Sidney Painter (September 23, 1902 – January 12, 1960) was an American

medievalist The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

and historian. He was a fellow of the Mediaeval Academy and professor of history and chairman of the department of history at

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

Life and career

Painter was born in

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; after the

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he attended

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

(AB 1925; PhD 1930). He was an influential member of American academia in the 1950s and served on many boards and committees. He was treasurer and secretary of the

American Council of Learned Societies The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is a private, nonprofit federation of 75 scholarly organizations in the humanities and related social sciences founded in 1919. It is best known for its fellowship competitions which provide a ra ...

and was a member of the council of the Mediaeval Academy. He was made a fellow in 1953. That same year, he was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

. He was elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) 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, and other ...

in 1958. He wrote many influential books. His doctoral thesis was later published as "William Marshal: Knight-Errant, Baron, and Regent of England", and was supervised by Professor Sydney K. Mitchell at

. He was an expert in medieval institutions but also believed in relating history from personal perspectives. He argued that the reign of King John cannot be understood without an intimate knowledge of the barons and their families and the division of family lands at the time. He died in Baltimore at the age of 57.

Works

''William Marshal: Knight-Errant, Baron, and Regent of England''
(1933)
''The Scourge of the Clergy: Peter of Dreux, Duke of Brittany''
(1937)
''Studies in the History of the English Feudal Barony''
(1943)
''The Reign of King John''
(1949) *''A History of the Middle Ages, 284–1500'' (1953), re-published as ''Western Europe in the Middle Ages, 300–1475'', co-authored by Brian Tierney (1983)
''French Chivalry: Chivalric Ideas and Practices in Mediaeval France''
(1961) *''Feudalism and Liberty: Articles and Addresses'' (1961) *''Mediaeval Society'' *''The Rise of the Feudal Monarchies''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Painter, Sidney Painer, Sidney 1960 deaths 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers American medievalists Fellows of the Medieval Academy of America Johns Hopkins University faculty Yale University alumni American male non-fiction writers Members of the American Philosophical Society