Erik Lönnroth

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Erik Lönnroth was a Swedish historian and a member of the Swedish Academy between 1962-2002. He was born in Gothenburg 1910 and was awarded a PhD in history at Gothenburg University (at that time university college) at only 24 years of age, 1934. His thesis treated the important medieval Swedish bishop Tomas of Strängnäs. Lönnroth was regarded as somewhat of a prodigy. He was professor at Uppsala University between 1942-1953 and then at Gothenburg University between 1953-1977. Among the subjects he did historical research on one can mension the Kalmar Union, Lawrence of Arabia, King Gustav III of Sweden and the rebel leader Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson. Lönnroth took the history subject to a new level in Sweden, he further developed and refined the hypercritical theory of history that his mentor, Curt Weibull, had introduced. He also did pioneering work on the medieval economical history of Sweden and on psychohistory. Lönnroth was a very skilled author.