James Hutchison Stirling (22 June 1820 – 19 March 1909) was a Scottish

idealist philosopher Idealism in philosophy, also known as philosophical realism or metaphysical idealism, is the set of metaphysical perspectives asserting that, most fundamentally, reality is equivalent to mind, spirit, or consciousness; that reality is entir ...

and physician. His work ''

The Secret of Hegel ''The Secret of Hegel: Being the Hegelian System in Origin, Principle, Form and Matter'' is the full title of an important work on the philosophical system of German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831) by James Hutchison Stirl ...

'' (1st edition, 1865, in 2 vols.; revised edition, 1898, in 1 vol.) gave great impetus to the study of

Hegelian Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political philosophy and the ...

philosophy both in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and it was also accepted as an authoritative work on Hegel's philosophy in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. The book helped to create the

philosophical movement List of philosophies, schools of thought and philosophical movements. A Absurdism – Academic skepticism – Accelerationism - Achintya Bheda Abheda – Action, philosophy of – Actual idealism – Actualism – Advaita Vedanta ...

known as

British idealism A subset of absolute idealism, British idealism was a philosophical movement that was influential in Britain from the mid-nineteenth century to the early twentieth century. The leading figures in the movement were T. H. Green (1836–1882), F. ...

Biography

James Hutchison Stirling was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland, the fifth son (and the youngest of six children) of William Stirling (died 14 March 1851) and Elizabeth Christie (d. 1828). William was a wealthy textile manufacturer who was a partner in the Glasgow firm of James Hutchison & Co., which manufactured muslin (lightweight cotton cloth in a plain weave, used for making sheets and for a variety of other purposes). William was known for his deeply-held religious views, many of which strongly influenced his son James. Stirling studied at Young's Academy in Glasgow, followed by nine years of education (1833–1842) at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

, where he studied medicine, history, and classics. He became a Licentiate (1842, medical diploma) and Fellow (1860) of the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The RCSEd has five faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical and healthcare specialities. Its main campus is locate ...

. Stirling married Jane Hunter Mair (died 5 July 1903), an old family friend, on 28 April 1847 in

Irvine, North Ayrshire Irvine ( ;
; ) is a town and former

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The couple had seven children (five daughters and two sons), as follows: Jessie Jane Stirling (born 26 June 1850) (who married Rev. Robert Armstrong of Glasgow), Elizabeth Margaret Stirling (11 February 1852 – 1871), Amelia Hutchison Stirling, Florence Hutchison Stirling (1858 – 6 May 1948), Lucy Stirling, William Stirling, and David Stirling. Stirling's daughter Amelia wrote many books on historical subjects, and she was the joint-translatorwith William Hale White (1831–1913)of Spinoza's ''Ethics'' (1883). She also wrote a biography of her father James titled ''James Hutchison Stirling: His Life and Work'' (London and Leipzig: T. Fisher Unwin, 1912). Stirling's daughter Florence won the Scottish Ladies' Championship in chess five times (in 1905, 1906, 1907, 1912, and 1913). After receiving a large inheritance from his father's estate in 1851, Stirling left his medical practice. He then set out to learn French and German, for the purpose of being able to better understand continental philosophical trends. In pursuit of this goal, he moved his family briefly to

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

, France (located in the current

Pas-de-Calais The Pas-de-Calais (, ' strait of Calais'; ; ) is a department in northern France named after the French designation of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. It has the most communes of all the departments of France, with 890, and is the ...

department of the

Hauts-de-France Hauts-de-France (; ; ), also referred to in English as Upper France, is the northernmost region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its prefecture is Lille. ...

region), then to Paris for 18 months, then to

St. Servan Saint-Servan (; often abbreviated as St. Servan; ) is a town of western France, in Brittany, situated 2 miles from the ferry port of Saint-Malo. It is renowned for its shops and restaurants. History In June 1758, during the Seven Years' War, Brit ...

(located two miles from the ferry port of St. Malo in the

Ille-et-Vilaine Ille-et-Vilaine (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Ill-e-Vilaenn'', ) is a departments of France, department of France, located in the regions of France, region of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in the northwest of the country. It is named a ...

department of the

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

region of France) for four and a half years, and then finally to Heidelberg, Germany. In November 1857, Stirling and his family took up residence in London (at 3 Wilton Terrace, Kensington), where they lived for about three years. After this, in 1860 Stirling returned to

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

his address there was 4 Laverockbank Road,

Trinity, Edinburgh Trinity is a district in northern Edinburgh, Scotland, formerly part of the burgh of Leith. It is one of Edinburgh's outer villa suburbs, mainly developed in the 19th century. It is bordered by Wardie to the west and north-west, Newhaven to th ...

Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory, 1908-9which then became his permanent residence until the end of his life, and where he wrote on the philosophy of

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political philosophy and t ...

(1770–1831) and many other subjects. The primary result of his comprehensive Hegel studies was his influential work ''The Secret of Hegel'' (2 vols., 1865). One of Stirling's other major philosophical works''Philosophy and Theology'' (1890) (consisting of his 20

Gifford Lectures The Gifford Lectures () are an annual series of lectures which were established in 1887 by the will of Adam Gifford, Lord Gifford at the four ancient universities of Scotland: St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Their purpose is to "pro ...

, delivered at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

in 1889–1890)focuses not on Hegelian philosophical topics, but on

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

's evolutionary theories.

Frederick Copleston Frederick Charles Copleston (10 April 1907 – 3 February 1994) was a British Catholic priest, philosopher, and historian of philosophy, best known for his influential multi-volume '' A History of Philosophy'' (1946–75). Copleston achieved ...

(''A History of Philosophy'' vol. VII, p. 12) wrote: "we may be inclined to smile at J. H. Stirling's picture of Hegel as the great champion of Christianity". Stirling died in Edinburgh and is buried in

Warriston Cemetery Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in List of graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh, Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and o ...

on the north side of the city. His grave lies in the centre of the long, upper section north of the vaults, facing south onto an east–west path.

Selected publications

Other works: *''Sir William Hamilton'' (1865) *''

'' (1865) *''Text-book to Kant'' (1881) *''Philosophy and Theology'' (1890) (

) *
Darwinianism: workmen and work
' (1894) – In this work Stirling recollects views on

Darwin's theory of evolution ''Darwinism'' is a term used to describe a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others. The theory states that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural sele ...

, including that of Thomas Brown and others, stating: "it is the theory involved which it is also my endeavour, with all honour, to refute." Stirling states "it is not by any means necessary that an evolutionist should be also a Darwinian." *''What is Thought? or the Problem of Philosophy'' (1900) *''The Categories'' (1903). More concerned with literature: *''Jerrold, Tennyson, and Macaulay'' (1868) *''Burns in Drama'' (1878) *''Philosophy in the Poets'' (1885).

Notes

References

* ;Attribution *

External links

* * *
James Hutchison Stirling: His Life and Work
by Amelia Hutchison Stirling (1912) {{DEFAULTSORT:Stirling, James Hutchison 1820 births 1909 deaths 19th-century Scottish writers Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Hegelian philosophers Non-Darwinian evolution 19th-century Scottish philosophers 20th-century Scottish philosophers