“Crafting a Classic: Henry C. Lea’s History of the Inquisition of Spain,” with Richard Kagan

“Crafting a Classic: Henry C. Lea’s History of the Inquisition of Spain,” with Richard Kagan
April 30th, 2024
Often regarded as America’s first “scientific” historian, Henry C. Lea (1825-1909) is best remembered for histories of the Inquisition, especially that focused on Spain’s Inquisition, which remains a foundational text. But what attracted Lea to a subject many of his contemporaries judged abhorrent? How did he manage to collect the archival sources required to write such a study? Was his methodology as “scientific” as alleged? These and other issues relating to Lea’s multi-faceted life-as literary critic, publisher of medical books, political activist, philanthropist, and historian-are the focus of this lecture by Prof. Richard Kagan. They also offer an introduction to his forthcoming The Inquisition’s Inquisitor: Henry C. Lea of Philadelphia.
Richard L. Kagan is Academy Professor and Arthur O. Lovejoy Professor Emeritus of History at Johns Hopkins University. His research has focused on the intellectual and legal history of the Spanish Empire. Prof. Kagan's many contributions to the study of the art, culture, and history of Spain and the broader Hispanic World have given him international recognition. They include Urban Images of the Hispanic World, 1493-1793 (2000), Spain in America: The Origins of Hispanism in the United States (2002), Clio and the Crown: The Politics of History in Medieval and Early Modern Spain (2009), The Spanish Craze: America’s Fascination with the Arts and Cultures of the Hispanic World, 1779-1939 (2019), as well as the above-mentioned biography of historian Henry Charles Lea. He is a member of the American Philosophical Society and of Spain's Real Academia de la Historia.
Language: English
Considerado comúnmente el primer historiador "científico" de los Estados Unidos, Henry C. Lea (1825-1909) es recordado por sus historias sobre la Inquisición, centradas especialmente en la Inquisición española, que aún se consideran textos fundacionales. Pero ¿qué atrajo a Lea a una materia que muchos de sus contemporáneos juzgaban aborrecible? ¿Cómo logró recopilar los archivos necesarios para escribir un estudio así? ¿Fue su metodología tan "científica" como se presume? Estos y otros asuntos relacionados con la vida multifacética de Lea -como crítico literario, editor de libros médicos, activista político, filántropo e historiador- constituyen el enfoque de la conferencia que imparte el profesor Richard Kagan, que también sirve de introducción a su próximo libro, The Inquisition’s Inquisitor: Henry C. Lea of Philadelphia.
Richard L. Kagan es catedrático emérito Arthur O. Lovejoy de Historia, además de Academy Professor of History, en Johns Hopkins University. Es reconocido internacionalmente por sus múltiples aportaciones al estudio del arte, la cultura y la historia de España, así como del mundo hispánico. Entre sus numerosos libros, cabe destacar Urban Images of the Hispanic World, 1493-1793 (2000), Spain in America: The Origins of Hispanism in the United States (2002), Clio and the Crown: The Politics of History in Medieval and Early Modern Spain (2009) y The Spanish Craze: America’s Fascination with the Arts and Cultures of the Hispanic World, 1779-1939 (2019), además de la mencionada biografía sobre el historiador Henry Charles Lea. Kagan es miembro de la American Philosophical Society y de la Real Academia de la Historia.