Howard Louthan - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Howard Louthan
Encyclopedia of the Bible Online
A Companion to the Reformation in Central Europe, 2015
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2016
Choice Reviews Online, 2002
German Studies Review, 2014
Renaissance Quarterly, 1995
Sixteenth Century Journal, 1999
Renaissance Quarterly, 2010
Renaissance Quarterly, 2013
Religious Studies Review, 2006
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2010
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2003
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2007
Socinianism and Arminianism. Antitrinitarians, Calvinists and cultural exchange in seventeenthcen... more Socinianism and Arminianism. Antitrinitarians, Calvinists and cultural exchange in seventeenthcentury Europe. Edited By Martin Mulsow and Jan Rohls. (Brill’s Studies in Intellectual History, 134.) Pp. ix+310. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2005. E99. 90 04 14715 2 ; 0920 8607 JEH (58) 2007 ; doi :10.1017/S0022046906000406 Sociniansim and Arminianism is an examination of the changing nature of antiTrinitarianism in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. In a collection of eleven essays, a group of distinguished intellectual historians, theologians and philosophers have examined Socinianism outside the confessional and national historiographies that have traditionally framed the study of this subject. Their collective work focuses on two major issues. First, these essays chart the relationship of anti-Trinitarianism to three groups within the Reformed tradition : the French Huguenots, the Dutch Remonstrants and the English Latitudinarians. Second, these authors attempt to trace the transformation of Socinianism from its origins in Italy, to its refuge in eastern Europe and finally in its spread to Prussia, the Low Countries and England. The essays themselves have been grouped into five general categories of uneven quality. Strongest are sections on Hugo Grotius and the impact of Socinian ideas in England. Martin Mulsow’s introductory article is certainly the broadest and arguably the most valuable of the collection. Mulsow, who is the author of an important monograph on Germany’s early Enlightenment, considers the intellectual transformation of Socinianism as it moved across the continent and eventually reached England. The volume as a whole is generally less successful than its parts. More time and care should have been invested in editing the text. It seems as if many of the conference papers were accepted with little alteration. The essays range widely in length, and the spelling of proper names has not been standardised.
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2007
Journal for Eighteenth-Century Studies, 2012
German History, 1996
... Selected from twenty-five papers presented at the 1991 John Carter Brown Library conference o... more ... Selected from twenty-five papers presented at the 1991 John Carter Brown Library conference of the same name, these essays examine a range of ... She continues by examining the relations of the Esterhby with both their Habsburg overlords and neighboring Hungar-ian nobles ...
European Review of History: Revue europeenne d'histoire, 2011
The Wittelsbach dynasty was at its most divided in the early years of the seventeenth century, bu... more The Wittelsbach dynasty was at its most divided in the early years of the seventeenth century, but it was also at the height of its international prestige and influence, as the established leaders of both the Protestant and Catholic camps at the outset of the Thirty Years' War. This paradox forms the over-arching theme of this fascinating book by Andrew Thomas. Thomas explores the manner in which this division developed and the tactics employed by both branches of the dynasty to achieve dominance over the other, as well as heightened control of their territories. The other overall theme that emerges is that both halves of the dynasty, one in Heidelberg and one in Munich, made use of 'confessional humanism'-a marriage of secular Erasmian and theological ideologiesto advance their cause. After exploring this theme in various guises, the reader is left with an interesting conclusion: that dynasticism remained the dominant factor in determining policies in the courts of Europe, whichever side of the confessional divide one happened to be, and that rivals employed similar strategies to achieve dynastic aims. Things that appear to be very different on the surface may in fact be quite similar at their core. The book begins with a concise and clearly laid out introduction. The structure of the first half of the book is elegantly outlined as an exploration of 'confessional humanism', first with regard to individual princes, then the court, followed by the territory and then the international stage. The second half of the book focuses on the development of divisions between the two Wittelsbach branches on the international scene, from the move to Prague, to the outbreak of war, and the ensuing propaganda warfare from the court in exile at The Hague. By the end it becomes clear that there is no longer any real concept of a Wittelsbach dynasty united by patrilineal descent, but of two separate families defined more by matrilineal connections united by faith: the Bavarian-Austrian clan and the Palatine-Nassau-Stuart clan. A particular strength of this work is Thomas' stress on this female aspect of dynasticism throughout. The sources used are extremely wide-ranging (notably including Czech sources in Chapter six) and up to date, but there does seem to be a curious lack of manuscript sources. Everything consulted is printed, even private correspondence. This never hampers the author's argument, but does invite the question of authenticity in some cases, notably when writing about the court. For example, how do we know that a pious duchess spent much of her time visiting convents and hospitals (p. 105), when the source given is a printed panegyric on her life? When discussing fluctuations in offices of the court, no specifics are given, or when analysing the confessional compositions of the rival courts, no statistics are available on the courtiers, and there are no details of who converted or why. Instead this work focuses almost exclusively on the world of literature and other print
European History Quarterly, 2013
Encyclopedia of the Bible Online
A Companion to the Reformation in Central Europe, 2015
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2016
Choice Reviews Online, 2002
German Studies Review, 2014
Renaissance Quarterly, 1995
Sixteenth Century Journal, 1999
Renaissance Quarterly, 2010
Renaissance Quarterly, 2013
Religious Studies Review, 2006
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2010
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2003
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2007
Socinianism and Arminianism. Antitrinitarians, Calvinists and cultural exchange in seventeenthcen... more Socinianism and Arminianism. Antitrinitarians, Calvinists and cultural exchange in seventeenthcentury Europe. Edited By Martin Mulsow and Jan Rohls. (Brill’s Studies in Intellectual History, 134.) Pp. ix+310. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2005. E99. 90 04 14715 2 ; 0920 8607 JEH (58) 2007 ; doi :10.1017/S0022046906000406 Sociniansim and Arminianism is an examination of the changing nature of antiTrinitarianism in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. In a collection of eleven essays, a group of distinguished intellectual historians, theologians and philosophers have examined Socinianism outside the confessional and national historiographies that have traditionally framed the study of this subject. Their collective work focuses on two major issues. First, these essays chart the relationship of anti-Trinitarianism to three groups within the Reformed tradition : the French Huguenots, the Dutch Remonstrants and the English Latitudinarians. Second, these authors attempt to trace the transformation of Socinianism from its origins in Italy, to its refuge in eastern Europe and finally in its spread to Prussia, the Low Countries and England. The essays themselves have been grouped into five general categories of uneven quality. Strongest are sections on Hugo Grotius and the impact of Socinian ideas in England. Martin Mulsow’s introductory article is certainly the broadest and arguably the most valuable of the collection. Mulsow, who is the author of an important monograph on Germany’s early Enlightenment, considers the intellectual transformation of Socinianism as it moved across the continent and eventually reached England. The volume as a whole is generally less successful than its parts. More time and care should have been invested in editing the text. It seems as if many of the conference papers were accepted with little alteration. The essays range widely in length, and the spelling of proper names has not been standardised.
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2007
Journal for Eighteenth-Century Studies, 2012
German History, 1996
... Selected from twenty-five papers presented at the 1991 John Carter Brown Library conference o... more ... Selected from twenty-five papers presented at the 1991 John Carter Brown Library conference of the same name, these essays examine a range of ... She continues by examining the relations of the Esterhby with both their Habsburg overlords and neighboring Hungar-ian nobles ...
European Review of History: Revue europeenne d'histoire, 2011
The Wittelsbach dynasty was at its most divided in the early years of the seventeenth century, bu... more The Wittelsbach dynasty was at its most divided in the early years of the seventeenth century, but it was also at the height of its international prestige and influence, as the established leaders of both the Protestant and Catholic camps at the outset of the Thirty Years' War. This paradox forms the over-arching theme of this fascinating book by Andrew Thomas. Thomas explores the manner in which this division developed and the tactics employed by both branches of the dynasty to achieve dominance over the other, as well as heightened control of their territories. The other overall theme that emerges is that both halves of the dynasty, one in Heidelberg and one in Munich, made use of 'confessional humanism'-a marriage of secular Erasmian and theological ideologiesto advance their cause. After exploring this theme in various guises, the reader is left with an interesting conclusion: that dynasticism remained the dominant factor in determining policies in the courts of Europe, whichever side of the confessional divide one happened to be, and that rivals employed similar strategies to achieve dynastic aims. Things that appear to be very different on the surface may in fact be quite similar at their core. The book begins with a concise and clearly laid out introduction. The structure of the first half of the book is elegantly outlined as an exploration of 'confessional humanism', first with regard to individual princes, then the court, followed by the territory and then the international stage. The second half of the book focuses on the development of divisions between the two Wittelsbach branches on the international scene, from the move to Prague, to the outbreak of war, and the ensuing propaganda warfare from the court in exile at The Hague. By the end it becomes clear that there is no longer any real concept of a Wittelsbach dynasty united by patrilineal descent, but of two separate families defined more by matrilineal connections united by faith: the Bavarian-Austrian clan and the Palatine-Nassau-Stuart clan. A particular strength of this work is Thomas' stress on this female aspect of dynasticism throughout. The sources used are extremely wide-ranging (notably including Czech sources in Chapter six) and up to date, but there does seem to be a curious lack of manuscript sources. Everything consulted is printed, even private correspondence. This never hampers the author's argument, but does invite the question of authenticity in some cases, notably when writing about the court. For example, how do we know that a pious duchess spent much of her time visiting convents and hospitals (p. 105), when the source given is a printed panegyric on her life? When discussing fluctuations in offices of the court, no specifics are given, or when analysing the confessional compositions of the rival courts, no statistics are available on the courtiers, and there are no details of who converted or why. Instead this work focuses almost exclusively on the world of literature and other print
European History Quarterly, 2013