Robert Roswell Palmer (January 11, 1909 – June 11, 2002) was an American
historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...
at
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...
and
Yale
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
universities, who specialized in eighteenth-century France. His most influential work of scholarship, ''The Age of the Democratic Revolution: A Political History of Europe and America, 1760–1800'' (1959 and 1964), examined an age of democratic revolution that swept the Atlantic civilization between 1760 and 1800. He was awarded the
Bancroft Prize
The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas.
It was established in 1948, with a bequest from Frederic Bancroft, in his memory and that of his brother, ...
in History for the first volume. Palmer also achieved distinction as a history text writer.
Life
Born in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
, Palmer accelerated through the
public schools
Public school may refer to:
*State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government
*Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England and ...
. By winning a citywide contest for a play written in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
, he earned a full scholarship to the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
where he studied with the historian
Louis Gottschalk and earned his bachelor's degree (
Ph.B.
Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's ...
) in 1931. He received his
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
in History from
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...
three years later, studying with
Carl L. Becker
Carl Lotus Becker (September 7, 1873 – April 10, 1945) was an American historian of the Age of Enlightenment in America and Europe.
Life
He was born in Waterloo, Iowa. He enrolled at the University of Wisconsin in 1893 as an undergraduate, an ...
.
His dissertation was ''The French Idea of American Independence on the Eve of the French Revolution'' – "published/created" 1934.
Palmer began teaching at Princeton University as an instructor in 1936, and worked there for nearly three decades, becoming a full professor. He was dean of arts and sciences (1963–1966) at
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University i ...
, then returned to teaching and writing at Yale, where he retired as ''professor emeritus''. Palmer had visiting professorships at numerous universities, including
Berkeley, Chicago,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
and
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
. After retiring in 1977, he returned to Princeton as a guest scholar at its
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent scholar ...
.
Palmer married Esther Howard in 1942, and they had three children and four grandchildren. His son, the historian
Stanley Palmer
Stanley H. Palmer is a professor of history at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) specializing in Modern British and Irish history, the history of the British Empire, and comparative police history.
Palmer has helped develop the school ...
, is a professor of history at the
University of Texas at Arlington
The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA or UT Arlington) is a public research university in Arlington, Texas. The university was founded in 1895 and was in the Texas A&M University System for several decades until joining the University of ...
. After R.R. Palmer's death in 2002 at
Newtown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Newtown is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,248 at the 2010 census. It is located just west of the Trenton, New Jersey metropolitan area, and is part of the larger Philadelphia metropolitan area. It i ...
, a memorial service was held at Princeton Chapel.
Work
In 1950 Palmer published ''
A History of the Modern World'', which is in its eleventh edition as of 2013. (Joel Colton is a co-author from 1956 the 2nd edition, and Lloyd Kramer is coauthor from 2002, the 9th ed.)
The text has been translated into six languages and is used in more than 1000 colleges and many
AP European History
Advanced Placement (AP) European History (also known as AP Euro, or APEH), is a course and examination offered by the College Board through the Advanced Placement Program. This course is for high school students who are interested in a first ye ...
high school courses.
It is notable for its clear, essay-like writing style. Palmer's introduction covers the period from the earliest signs of human civilization to 1300 CE. The main body of the text covers events from the
Black Death to the
Fall of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...
in European history. The book is organized partly by ideas: for example, the relation of the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
to modern and ancient thought may be mentioned before the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
.
Palmer's most important work of historical scholarship is ''The Age of the Democratic Revolution: A Political History of Europe and America, 1760–1800''. It was published by Princeton in two volumes: ''The Challenge'' (1959), which won the
Bancroft Prize
The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas.
It was established in 1948, with a bequest from Frederic Bancroft, in his memory and that of his brother, ...
in American History, and ''The Struggle'' (1964). Palmer's masterwork traced the growth of two competing forces – ideas of democracy and equality, on the one hand, and the growing power of aristocracies in society, on the other – and the results of the collision between these forces, including both the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolu ...
and the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
. Thus it foreshadowed the development of "comparative Atlantic history" as a field.
It remains a valuable resource for scholars. In 1971 Palmer published a slightly revised and condensed version of the second volume as ''The World of the French Revolution''.
The 1941
monograph ''Twelve Who Ruled'' is also noteworthy. It has been in print since its first edition, was reissued with a new preface in 1989 for the French Revolution bicentennial, and was reissued as a Princeton Classic in 2005 as part of the University Press centennial celebration.
The book is a fusion of history and collective biography, focusing on the members of the
Committee of Public Safety
The Committee of Public Safety (french: link=no, Comité de salut public) was a committee of the National Convention which formed the provisional government and war cabinet during the Reign of Terror, a violent phase of the French Revolution ...
and their efforts to guide France during the
Terror
Terror(s) or The Terror may refer to:
Politics
* Reign of Terror, commonly known as The Terror, a period of violence (1793–1794) after the onset of the French Revolution
* Terror (politics), a policy of political repression and violence
Emoti ...
following their Revolution. Columbia University history professor
Isser Woloch
Isser Woloch (born 1937) is the Moore Collegiate Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia. His work focuses on the French Revolution and on Napoleon.
He was educated at Columbia (A.B., 1959) and at Princeton (Ph.D., 1965). He was the winner of ...
, a specialist in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras, has stated that ''Twelve Who Ruled'' "may be the best book on the French Revolution written by an American."
Selected works
* ''The French Idea of American Independence on the Eve of the French Revolution'' (Cornell Univ. PhD dissertation) – "published/created" 1934
["The French idea of American independence on the eve of the French ..."](_blank)
Library of Congress Catalog Record (LCC). Retrieved 2014-04-26.
* ''Catholics and Unbelievers in Eighteenth Century France'' (
Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press is an independent Academic publishing, publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large.
The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, ...
, 1939)
* ''Twelve Who Ruled: the Committee of Public Safety, during the Terror'' (Princeton, 1941; Bicentennial ed. with a new preface, 1989)
["Formats and Editions of Twelve who ruled: "](_blank)
WorldCat. Retrieved 2014-04-26.
*
''The Procurement and Training of Ground Combat Troops'', by Palmer,
Bell I. Wiley and William R. Keast (Department of the Army, 1948) – about the U.S. Army, 1939–1945
* ''A History of the Modern World'' (
Alfred A. Knopf
Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Alfred A. Knopf Sr. and Blanche Knopf in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers in ...
, 1950); 11th ed. by Palmer, Joel Colton, and Lloyd Kramer (
McGraw-Hill
McGraw Hill is an American educational publishing company and one of the "big three" educational publishers that publishes educational content, software, and services for pre-K through postgraduate education. The company also publishes referen ...
, 2013)
["Formats and Editions of A history of the modern world"](_blank)
WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...
. Retrieved 2014-04-26.
* ''The Age of the Democratic Revolution: a political history of Europe and America, 1760–1800'' (Princeton, vol. 1, 1959; vol. 2, 1964); one-volume edition, with new introduction by
David Armitage, 2014
online edition vols. 1–2online free* ''The World of the French Revolution'' (Allen & Unwin, 1971) – shorter and less scholarly treatment of ''The Age'', vol. 2
* ''The Improvement of Humanity: education and the French Revolution'' (Princeton, 1985)
;Translations
*
Georges Lefebvre
Georges Lefebvre (; 6 August 1874 – 28 August 1959) was a French historian, best known for his work on the French Revolution and peasant life. He is considered one of the pioneers of "history from below". He coined the phrase the ...
, ''The Coming of the French Revolution, 1789'' (Princeton, 1947)
rig. 1939* ''The School of the French Revolution: a documentary history of the College of Louis-le-Grand and its director, Jean-François Champagne, 1762–1814'' (Princeton, 1975), edited and transl. by Palmer
* Louis Bergeron, ''France Under Napoleon'' (Princeton, 1981)
rig. 1972* ''The Two Tocquevilles, Father and Son: Hervé and Alexis de Tocqueville on the coming of the French Revolution'' (Princeton, 1987), ed. and transl. by Palmer
* Jean-Paul Bertaud, ''The Army of the French Revolution: from citizen-soldiers to instrument of power'' (Princeton, 1988)
rig. 1979* ''From Jacobin to Liberal: Marc-Antoine Jullien, 1775–1848'' (Princeton, 1993), selected and transl. with commentary by Palmer
*
Jean Baptiste Say, ''An Economist in Troubled Times: writings'' (Princeton, 1997), selected and transl. by Palmer
;Historical atlas
* ''Atlas of World History'' (Rand McNally, 1957; Revised ed., 1965)
From 1983 the ''
and McNallyAtlas of World History'', general editor
R. I. Moore
Robert Ian "Bob" Moore (born 1941), most commonly known as R. I. Moore, is a British historian who is Professor Emeritus of History at Newcastle University. He specialises in medieval history and has written several influential works on ...
, is based on ''The Hamlyn Historical Atlas'' (
Hamlyn, 1981).
Honors and awards
* 1958, elected to 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, ...
* 1959, elected to 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 communi ...
* 1960, Bancroft Award in History,
American Council of Learned Societies Special Prize
* 1961, served as president of the
Society for French Historical Studies
* 1970, 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 ...
* 1990,
Antonio Feltrinelli International Prize for History in Rome
* Honorary degrees awarded by the universities of
Uppsala
Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...
and
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. The city is on t ...
References
Further reading
* Cox, Marvin R. "Palmer and Furet: A Reassessment of The Age of the Democratic Revolution", ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): pp. 70–85
* Friguglietti, James. "A Transatlantic Friendship: The Close Relationship between the Historians Georges Lefebvre and Robert R. Palmer",''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): pp. 56–69
* Hanson, Paul. "From Jacobin to Liberal", ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): pp. 86–100
* Harvey, John Layton. "Robert Roswell Palmer." ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): 1–17
online* Kramer, Lloyd. "Robert R. Palmer and the History of Big Questions", ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): pp. 101–22
* Layton Harvey, John. "Introduction: Robert Roswell Palmer: A Transatlantic Journey of American Liberalism", ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): 1–17
online* Harvey, John Layton. "'History Written with a Little Spite': Palmer, Brinton, and an American Debate on the French Revolution." ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): 38–55.
*
Van Kley, Dale K. "Robert R. Palmer's Catholics and Unbelievers in Eighteenth-Century France: An Overdue Tribute", ''Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques'' 37.3 (2011): pp. 18–37
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Robert Roswell
1909 births
2002 deaths
20th-century American historians
20th-century American male writers
Historians of the French Revolution
Cornell University alumni
Presidents of the American Historical Association
Washington University in St. Louis faculty
Yale University faculty
University of Michigan faculty
Princeton University faculty
Writers from Chicago
Bancroft Prize winners
Historians from Illinois
American male non-fiction writers
Members of the American Philosophical Society