Page "John Lingard" Paragraph 8

Lingard's History is also an apt demonstration of the advantages a Catholic historian of the time may have had, in terms of impartiality.

Lingard's religion had to a large extent isolated him from the mainstream nationalism which surrounded Protestant historians, as well as from the growing " providentialist " concept of history.

Lingard's strength of argument, however, continued to be popular, and the influence of Protestant animosity for Catholic apologetic also led him to develop a keen critical judgement.

He was devoted to absolute accuracy and detail and the History was a groundbreaking work in its use of primary sources.

Lingard made extensive use of Vatican archives and French, Italian, Spanish and English dispatches, document collections and state papers — the first British historian to do so.

The peripheral nature of English Catholicism put him in a position of " outside observer " to much of English intellectual culture, and this is reflected in his historical works.

Despite this distancing effect, however, Lingard maintained an active interest in politics all his life and was a noted pamphleteer.