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Henri Pirenne

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Henri Pirenne

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Also known as J.H.O.L.M. Pirenne, Jean Henri Otto Lucien Marie Pirenne

Belgian historian (1862-1935)

OverviewAI-generated

Henri Pirenne was a Belgian medievalist, historian, and university teacher born in Verviers in 1862. He worked at Ghent University and the University of Liège, with his professional location listed as Ghent. Pirenne was educated at the University of Liège, Leipzig University, the University of Paris, and the École pratique des hautes études. He wrote in French and participated in World War I.

His notable works include *A history of Europe, from the invasions to the XVI century*, *Une histoire économique et sociale de la guerre*, *Histoire du Moyen-Age*, *Villes, marchés et marchands*, and *Les Etats Belgiques Unis*. Pirenne was a member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He died in Uccle in 1935. His child and student was Jacques Pirenne.

Synthesized by Vinony from 28 facts across 3 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, Vinony collections. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Born
1862
Died
1935
Works
71

Top works

  • A history of Europe, from the invasions to the XVI century
  • Une histoire économique et sociale de la guerre
  • Histoire du Moyen-Age
  • Villes, marchés et marchands
  • Les Etats Belgiques Unis

via Open Library + Wikidata

Key facts

Born
( 1862-12-23 ) 23 December 1862, Verviers , Belgium
Died
24 October 1935 (1935-10-24) (aged 72), Uccle , Belgium
Occupations
Historian and political activist
Spouse
Jenny Vanderhaeghen
Children
Henri Pirenne (1888–1935), Jacques Pirenne (1891–1972), Pierre Pirenne (1895–1914), Robert Pirenne (1900–1931), Jacqueline Pirenne (Granddaughter, 1918–1990)
Awards
Francqui Prize (1933)
Alma mater
University of Liège
Institutions
University of Ghent
Notable works
Medieval Cities: Their Origins and the Revival of Trade (1927), Mohammed and Charlemagne (1937)

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of
human
Given name
Marie
Gender
male
Citizenship
Belgium
Place of birth
Verviers
Place of death
Uccle
Occupation
historian
Educated at
Ghent University
Languages spoken
French
Native language
French
Field of work
history
Conflict
World War I
Image
Henri.Pirenne.Portrait.gif
Work location
Ghent
Show 11 more facts
date of birth
1862-00-00
Commons category
Henri Pirenne
date of death
1935-00-00
Commons Creator page
Henri Pirenne
birth name
Jean Henri Otto Lucien Marie Pirenne
short name
Henri Pirenne
writing language
French
name in native language
Henri Pirenne
Sources (8)

via Wikidata · CC0

~19 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Henri Pirenne ( French: [piʁɛn]; 23 December 1862 – 24 October 1935) was a Belgian nationalist and historian. A medievalist of Walloon descent, he wrote a multivolume history of Belgium in French and became a prominent public intellectual. Pirenne made a lasting contribution to the study of cities that was a controversial interpretation of the end of Roman civilization and the rebirth of medieval urban culture. He also became prominent in the nonviolent resistance to the Germans who occupied Belgium in World War I.

Henri Pirenne's reputation today rests on three contributions to European history: for what has become known as the Pirenne Thesis, concerning origins of the Middle Ages in reactive state formation and shifts in trade; for a distinctive view of Belgium's medieval history; and for his model of the development of the medieval city. His magnus opus, Histoire de Belgique is a classic in nationalist histography and comprehensively traces the origin of the modern Belgian state.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Henri Pirenne” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (6)