Albert Einstein's relationship with Oxford is a complex one. 

While the city proved to be a haven from Nazi Germany in 1933, he did not settle in Oxford for long. 

As Andrew Robinson writes in his new book Einstein in Oxford, "Einstein was everywhere and nowhere at home, throughout his life". 

The renowned scientist continues to inspire in this thriving hub of academia with his blackboard in the History of Science Museum being treated almost "as an object of veneration". 

While he did not wish for the blackboard to be preserved, Einstein's presence continues to live on in the City of Dreaming Spires having visited Oxford in 1931, 1932 and 1933. 

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Mr Robinson, who has now written three books on Einstein, had become aware of "a puzzling omission of Oxford in Einstein scholarship" when he decided to publish this new work. 

Born and brought up in Oxford, before studying science at University College, the author's father Neville Robinson, a fellow of St Catherine’s College, was a physicist who worked from the 1950s to the 1990s at the Clarendon Laboratory.

The director here from 1919 to 1955 was Frederick Lindemann, the physicist who invited Einstein to Oxford in 1931. 

The blackboard used by Einstein preserved in Oxford for visitors to see today The blackboard used by Einstein preserved in Oxford for visitors to see today

Einstein in Oxford explores how the refugee embraced many aspects of the city away from lectures, visiting the Ashmolean Museum, attending a rowing regatta and strolling through the city on many walks in informal attire. 

His first set of Christ Church rooms in 1931 overlooked Tom Quad and had been occupied by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, otherwise known as Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. 

Yet, Einstein also detested the formality of Oxford's traditions, "symbolised by the dreaded dinner-jacket". 

Mr Robinson told the Oxford Mail: "Einstein was famous, even notorious, among Princetonians—who cultivated formal dress as much as Oxonians—for his unruly hair and informal dress, including his lack of socks.

"The combination of formal dress and behaviour, religious rituals and lack of women in Christ Church would have made life intolerable for him as a Christ Church don dwelling in Christ Church."

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Having escaped Nazi Germany, Einstein was grateful for Oxford welcoming him with open arms without ever intending to settle long-term. 

In the great man's own words: “I shall leave England for America at the end of the week, but no matter how long I live I shall never forget the kindness which I have received from the people of England.” 

But as Mr Robinson states "he did not become part of many local lives" and "very few Oxonians understood his scientific achievements". 

The author adds: "As I say in my postscript, Einstein was everywhere and nowhere at home, throughout his life, in Europe, the USA and around the world.

"His view of himself is summarised in his 1931 Oxford thank you poem kept at the Bodleian Library, calling himself an old 'hermit' and a 'barbarian' on the roam."

Moreover, Einstein himself did not regard his 1931 Oxford lectures as "being of long-term importance and "he refused to write them up when requested to do so by Oxford University Press (OUP) - unlike his still-influential 1933 lecture in Oxford, which was published by OUP". 

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein (Image: Unknown)The book, which is a concise 96 pages and published by Bodleian Library Publishing, includes archival material from the Oxford Times. 

Mr Robinson consulted the newspaper, which published two reports on Einstein’s Rhodes lectures in 1931, explaining how they "struck the audience, most of whom were not physicists, who were unable to follow either Einstein’s German or his physics but nevertheless fell for the man".

Other sources used for the book include the archives at Rhodes House, at Christ Church, at Lady Margaret Hall and at Nuffield College.

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Yet the mystique surrounding Einstein's time here is exemplified by the lack of photos of his time in the city. 

Mr Robinson explained: "Einstein’s stay in Oxford precedes our modern cult of celebrity, and so there was much less reporting of it, despite his fame, than we would expect if he had visited Oxford in the days of mobile phones and social media. There are sadly few photos of him in Oxford.

"Fortunately, there does exist one photo, charming indeed, of him sitting alone in hat and coat, while on a walk in an unknown part of Oxford (perhaps Christ Church Meadow).

"No one knows where the photo was taken or who took it. It appears on the back cover of my book."

The photo of Einstein in Oxford which is on the back of Andrew Robinson's bookThe photo of Einstein in Oxford which is on the back of Andrew Robinson's book

Einstein in Oxford is the first book devoted to the scientist's relationship with the city and is an enjoyable insight into his lifestyle and personality, exploring the genius enigma he was. 

But does Mr Robinson consider him to be the most important figure in Oxford's history, a place which has welcomed many of the greatest minds to grace this planet?

He replies: "I think Einstein is the most important scientist to have worked in Oxford, however briefly, and that he deserves at least a paragraph in any history of the university—particularly at a time when the university wishes to attract staff and students from all over the world."

Einstein in Oxford by Andrew Robinson can be purchased for £16.99 in hardback.