John Lothrop Motley
American historian and diplomat who wrote on the Netherlands.
John Lothrop Motley was born on April 15, 1814, in Dorchester, Massachusetts, into a prominent Boston family. His father, Thomas Motley, was a successful merchant who co-founded a leading commission house on India Wharf, while his mother, Anna Lothrop, came from a distinguished line of Massachusetts clergymen. Motley’s early education included the Round Hill School and Boston Latin School; he entered Harvard at age thirteen and graduated in 1831. He then traveled to Germany, studying at Göttingen and later at Frederick William University in Berlin, where he became a lifelong friend of Otto von Bismarck. After returning to Boston in 1834, he pursued legal studies. In 1837, he married Mary Benjamin, from a wealthy Boston family. Motley published his first novel, *Morton’s Hope*, anonymously in 1839, drawing on his German university experiences; it was poorly received but later recognized for its portrayal of Bismarck. A second novel, *Merry Mount*, appeared in 1849. After a brief, unsuccessful stint as secretary of legation in St. Petersburg in 1841, Motley turned fully to a literary career, contributing essays to the *North American Review* on subjects such as Peter the Great and Puritan polity. His major historical work began in 1846 with plans for a history of the Netherlands. Finding American archives insufficient, he moved his family to Europe in 1851, spending five years researching in Dresden, Brussels, and The Hague. This resulted in the 1856 publication of *The Rise of the Dutch Republic*, a three-volume work that became immensely popular, going through many editions and translations. He followed this with the four-volume *History of the United Netherlands*, published between 1860 and 1867. His works were critical and popular successes in both Britain and the United States, though Dutch reception was mixed due to his favorable portrayal of the Dutch struggle for independence. As U.S. Minister to Austria under President Lincoln, Motley helped prevent European intervention on behalf of the Confederacy during the Civil War. He later served as Minister to the United Kingdom under President Ulysses S. Grant. Motley died on May 29, 1877.
- born
- April 15, 1814, in Dorchester, Massachusetts
- died
- May 29, 1877
- field
- History, Diplomacy
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- Works on Dutch history; diplomatic service preventing European intervention in the American Civil War
Lore & Background
John Lothrop Motley was born on April 15, 1814, in Dorchester, Massachusetts, to a wealthy Boston merchant family. He attended the Round Hill School and Boston Latin School, enrolled at Harvard at age 13, and graduated in 1831. He studied German language and literature at Göttingen from 1832–1833, where he became a lifelong friend of Otto von Bismarck, with whom he studied civil law at Frederick William University in Berlin. After European travel, he returned to Boston in 1834 to continue legal studies. In 1837, he married Mary Benjamin, from a wealthy Boston family. He published a novel, Morton's Hope, in 1839, and later a second novel, Merry Mount, in 1849, both anonymously. He was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society in 1856 and the American Philosophical Society in 1861.
Reader's Guide
Motley's significance rests on his popular historical works on the Dutch Republic, which achieved wide readership in both Britain and the United States, with multiple editions selling tens of thousands of copies. His The Rise of the Dutch Republic (1856) was translated into Dutch, French, German, and Russian. However, reception in the Netherlands was mixed: some historians, like Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, viewed him favorably, while others, such as Robert Fruin and Johannes van Vloten, criticized his tendency to invent facts for narrative effect and his lack of knowledge of the Dutch language, which they argued made him biased toward Protestants and against Catholics. Modern scholars note that his works, though once popular, have lost staying power due to overdramatization and less rigorous research compared to contemporaries like Prescott or Parkman. As a diplomat, Motley helped prevent European intervention on the side of the Confederacy during the American Civil War while serving as minister to Austria, but his later tenure as minister to the United Kingdom ended with his recall by President Grant after disregarding Secretary of State Hamilton Fish's orders on the Alabama Claims.
Did You Know?
- Motley became a lifelong friend of Otto von Bismarck while studying civil law together at Frederick William University in Berlin.
- His novel Morton's Hope (1839) featured a thinly disguised portrayal of Bismarck as a young student named Otto von Rabenmarck.
- Motley served as United States Minister to Austria during the Abraham Lincoln administration, helping to prevent European intervention on the side of the Confederacy.
- His historical works were criticized by some Dutch historians for lacking knowledge of the Dutch language and for bias in favor of Protestants.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"John Lothrop Motley (April 15, 1814 – May 29, 1877) was an American historian, novelist and diplomat." — John Lothrop Motley "Local self-government…is the life-blood of liberty." — John Lothrop Motley "The Rise of the Dutch Republic (1856; New York: Harper, 1861) vol. 3, part 6, ch. 1, p. 416." — John Lothrop Motley "As long as he lived, he was the guiding-star of a whole brave nation, and when he died the little children cried in the street." — John Lothrop Motley
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