Booksmart

Spain: A Unique History (UW Press, 2011)

Stanley Payne, Hilldale-Jaume Vicens Vives Professor Emeritus of History

“Becoming a Hispanist in 1955 was not exactly an accident, but also had something of the serendipitous about it,” says Stanley Payne. “It depended on a set of positive circumstances which were not part of any original plan, but, once engaged, developed rapidly and fruitfully.”

Indeed, as the book describes, “no hay mal que por bien no venga” (there is no ill that doesn’t lead to good).

Following the 1953 death of Joseph Stalin, Payne’s primary interests lay in Russian history. However, a postal delay got in the way of his application for a Russian studies program. Seeking a new focus for his study of modern European history, he settled on Spain and forged ahead. Now, he is known as one of the world’s top scholars of fascism in Spain and Western Europe.

Payne’s latest book is special because it reflects many such personal journeys. Though he has already written more than a dozen books on Spain, including a 1973 history of Spain and Portugal, this book provides a more general chronological survey of the country’s history and historiography by focusing on several key themes.

Throughout multiple eras — medieval to modern — many have referred to “the problem of Spain.” The country’s “unique” status exists in part because it seems misunderstood by both its neighbors and citizens.

Beginning with the Visigoths in the sixth century, Payne moves through the engagement with Islam and the Reconquest to world empire and decline. The book also includes more recent themes such as the problem of Republican democracy, the origins of the Civil War, the Franco regime and controversies about history and the concept of historical memory in contemporary Spain.

After 50 years of experiencing these events alongside his Spanish friends and colleagues, Payne’s American vantage point has allowed him to step back and analyze with a more nuanced view. On the suggestion of his Spanish publisher, the book begins with an extended chronicle of his life as a Hispanist.

Payne continues to maintain an active relationship with Spain, including frequent publication in Spanish periodicals. In addition to commentary in leading Spanish newspaper El Mundo, he often contributes essay-length book reviews on Spanish and Russian history for Revista de Libros, the Spanish equivalent of the New York Review of Books.

“I retired from teaching partly because of age, but also because I wanted to have enough time to devote to writing, since I had a lot of material to work on,” says Payne. “These past five years have been the most productive of my life.”

He’s not kidding. This volume is the fifth he has published since receiving emeritus status in 2005. Though all have appeared in Spanish, two have come out in English, and one will receive its French debut next month. He plans three more books in the next few years, including two on the European civil wars.

Not bad for a serendipitous career choice.