deaths
February 9, 1874
Jules Michelet, French historian, philosopher, and academic (born 1798)
Jules Michelet
Jules Michelet was a French historian and writer, best known for his multi-volume work Histoire de France, which chronicles the history of France from its earliest origins to the French Revolution. Michelet was influenced by Giambattista Vico, particularly his emphasis on the role of ordinary people and their customs in shaping historical narratives, which contrasted with the traditional focus on political and military elites. Michelet also drew inspiration from Vico's concept of the "corsi e ricorsi," the cyclical nature of history, in which societies rise and fall in a recurring pattern.