Humanistic Ideas about History and Foundations of the New Chronology by Joseph Justus Scaliger (1540-1609)

Abstract

The question of the development of humanistic historiography in the Renaissance and early Modern era is considered. Special attention is paid to the contribution of Joseph Justus Scaliger (1540-1609) to the creation of a new chronology. The novelty of the research is that Scaliger’s achievements in the field of chronology are considered as an important component of the process of formation of a new historical narrative and the development of scientific principles of historical research. It is emphasized that earlier works written by Italian humanist historians used outdated calendar systems, which developed in the late Antique era and were characterized by a lack of understanding of the true significance of the change of historical epochs. The authors show that Scaliger’s achievements in the field of chronology allowed historians of the early Modern era, especially the French historians, to make significant progress in the understanding of the relevant for the history of Europe period of transition from Late Antiquity to the early Middle Ages. The article concludes that due to the achievements of Scaliger the time scale of the Roman Empire and barbarian kingdoms was able to line up in a meaningful sequence. The history of the Frankish Kingdom as the initial period of the Middle Ages was able to take its place of honor in the writings of historians.

Keywords

• chronology
• humanism
• historiography
• joseph justus scaliger
• renaissance
• early modern era