Fidelino de Figueiredo, the Sociedade Portuguesa de Estudos Históricos and the Revista de História: scientific environment and historiographic horizons (1911-1928)

Abstract

In his famous book Writing of History — whose first edition was recently celebrated for its 75th anniversary —, Michel de Certeau draws attention to the importance of the  historian locus, of the practices and of the historiographical writing. In this paper, such locus is the Sociedade Portuguesa de Estudos Históricos and its journal, Revista de História. Largely driven by the work of Fidelino de Figueiredo, pivotal actor for the creation and institutionalization of both the society and its journal, he published in 1910, at the age of 22, O Espírito Histórico, which marked his epistemological and symbolic breakthrough. The second part of this paper analyzes the historiographical and operational concepts embodied by the Revista de História, which bridge the gap between practices and historiographical writings, shaping discourse and representation, showcasing the tension between the prevalence of classical historiography — more linked to Ranke than inspired by the methodical school — and the need to consolidate a national historical spirit, in defiance of positivism and radical republicanism.