Revisiting Geneva: Robert Kingdon and the coming of the French Wars of Religion

Abstract

The late Robert Kingdon’s Geneva and the Coming of the Wars of Religion in France, 1555-1563 (1956) was not merely an engaging and challenging piece of scholarship, it came to dominate the study of Genevan Protestantism and the city’s relationship with other Reformed communities, particularly those in France. Based on the rich archival records in Geneva, Kingdon’s work would inspire many subsequent scholars to investigate the questions he first raised in the 1950s. This volume is testament to the breadth of material he first covered, and demonstrates the variety of fields in which he came to have influence, including printing history, the role of the nobility in the Reformation, the functioning of the Consistory and the lives of pastors. Born out of a conference celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of his original book, this volume now stands as a memorial to a life of exemplary scholarship.