Jean Christopher Herold (11 May 1919 — 10 December 1964) was a Czechosloavk American
university press
A university press is an academic publishing house specializing in monographs and scholarly journals. Most are nonprofit organizations and an integral component of a large research university. They publish work that has been reviewed by schola ...
editor and author from the 1940s to 1960s. While holding an editorship for
Columbia University Press
Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...
from 1946 to 1956, Herold edited ''
Columbia Encyclopedia
The ''Columbia Encyclopedia'' is a one-volume encyclopedia produced by Columbia University Press and, in the last edition, sold by the Gale Group. First published in 1935, and continuing its relationship with Columbia University, the encyclope ...
'' articles about
European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD 500), the Middle Ages (AD 500 to AD 1500), and the modern era (since AD 1500).
The first early ...
. From 1956 to 1960, Herold was the editor of
Stanford University Press.
As an author, Herold primarily wrote French history books on
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
while also covering
Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...
and
Madame de Staël Madame may refer to:
* Madam, civility title or form of address for women, derived from the French
* Madam (prostitution), a term for a woman who is engaged in the business of procuring prostitutes, usually the manager of a brothel
* ''Madame'' ...
. He won the 1959
National Book Award for Nonfiction
The National Book Award for Nonfiction is one of five U.S. annual National Book Awards, which are given by the National Book Foundation to recognize outstanding literary work by U.S. citizens. They are awards "by writers to writers". The panelists ...
with ''Mistress to an Age: A Life of Madame de Staël'' and received a
Guggenheim Fellowship in 1960. Herold was also given fellowships from the
Royal Society of Literature and the
Society of American Historians.
Early life and education
Herold was born on 11 May 1919 in
Brno,
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
. For his post-secondary education, Herold attended the
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...
during the late 1930s and studied literature. After moving to
New York in 1939, Herold went to
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
for a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
and a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...
in the early 1940s.
Career
After completing his studies, Herold was a member of the
Military Intelligence Corps from 1942 to 1945. In 1946, Herold started a decade long editorship tenure with
Columbia University Press
Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...
.
During this time period, Herold worked on
European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD 500), the Middle Ages (AD 500 to AD 1500), and the modern era (since AD 1500).
The first early ...
articles for the ''
Columbia Encyclopedia
The ''Columbia Encyclopedia'' is a one-volume encyclopedia produced by Columbia University Press and, in the last edition, sold by the Gale Group. First published in 1935, and continuing its relationship with Columbia University, the encyclope ...
''. Herold had "rewrote some 10 million articles" while holding the position of
assistant editor.
In 1956, Herold was selected by
Stanford University Press to become their editor. He held the position until his replacement was selected in 1960. Outside of editing, Herold wrote his first book, ''The Swiss Without Halos'', in 1948 while at Columbia. From the 1950s to 1960s, Herold primarily wrote about
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
during his literary career in French history.
[
In 1952, Herold wrote a children's book about ]Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...
with ''Joan, Maid of France'' while Frederick T. Chapman provided the drawings. After starting the work in 1953, Herold released his Madame de Stael Madame may refer to:
* Madam, civility title or form of address for women, derived from the French
* Madam (prostitution), a term for a woman who is engaged in the business of procuring prostitutes, usually the manager of a brothel
* ''Madame'' ...
biography in 1958. In 1961, Herold released a book about women who lived in France between the 17th to 19th centuries called ''Love in Five Temperaments''. His publication focused on Madame de Tencin, Madame de Staal de Launay, Mademoiselle Aisse, Mademoiselle Clairon, and Julie de Lespinasse.
Awards and honors
In 1958, ''Mistress to an Age: A Life of Madame de Staël'' received the gold medal for nonfiction as part of the California Book Awards
The Commonwealth Club of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States. Membership is open to everyone.
Act ...
. The following year, ''Mistress to an Age: A Life of Madame de Staël'' won the 1959 National Book Award for Nonfiction
The National Book Award for Nonfiction is one of five U.S. annual National Book Awards, which are given by the National Book Foundation to recognize outstanding literary work by U.S. citizens. They are awards "by writers to writers". The panelists ...
. The following year, he received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1960 studying French literature. Additional fellowships Herold received were from the Royal Society of Literature and the Society of American Historians.[
]
Death and personal life
On 10 December 1964, Herold died at Columbia–Presbyterian Medical Center. He had one child and was previously married.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Herold, J. Christopher
1919 births
1964 deaths
Czechoslovak writers
Czechoslovak emigrants to the United States
National Book Award winners
Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature
Czechoslovak editors