William James Bouwsma (November 22, 1923 – March 2, 2004) was an American scholar and historian of the European Renaissance. He was Sather Professor of History Emeritus at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

and president of the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

(AHA) in 1978.

Early life and education

Born in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all ...

of Dutch descent, he was raised in

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United ...

. He received his B.A. from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher ...

in 1943. Upon graduation from Harvard, he joined the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

where he spent three years as a classification specialist stationed in Denver, Colorado and became a buck sergeant. Following service in Army Air Forces, he returned to Harvard, receiving his Ph.D. in 1950.

Academic career

Bouwsma taught at the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univers ...

until 1957 when he accepted a position in the History Department at U.C. Berkeley. After teaching for two years at Harvard (1969–1971), he returned to U.C. Berkeley as Chairman of the History Department, serving in this capacity from 1966 to 1967, and from 1981 to 1983. He was chancellor for academic affairs from 1967 to 1969. He was an elected member of both the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

and the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

Works

*"The Politics of Commynes," ''The Journal of Modern History'' Volume 23, Number 4, December 1951 *''Venice and the Defense of Republican Liberty: Renaissance Values in the Age of the Counter Reformation'' (University of California Press, 1968) * ''John Calvin: A Sixteenth Century Portrait'' (Oxford University Press, 1988) *"Eclipse of the Renaissance," ''The American Historical Review'' Volume 103, Number 1, February 1998 *''The Waning of the Renaissance, 1550–1640'' (Yale University Press, 2000)

References

1923 births 2004 deaths American people of Dutch descent Writers from Ann Arbor, Michigan Harvard College alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty University of California, Berkeley College of Letters and Science faculty Presidents of the American Historical Association Historians from California Historians from Michigan United States Army Air Forces non-commissioned officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II {{US-historian-stub Members of the American Philosophical Society