Geographer Richard Hakluyt and His World, c. 1550-1625

FAIN: FB-53627-08

David Harris Sacks
Reed College (Portland, OR 97202-8138)

The purpose of this project is to complete my book in progress, To Restore the Distracted Globe: Richard Hakluyt and his World, c. 1550-1625. It explores the world of Richard Hakluyt (1552-1616), one of the first citizens of the Atlantic, studying him in relation to the intellectual, religious, political, and economic currents of his era; the early history of European overseas discovery east and west and of colonial settlement in America; and the beginnings of globalization. Hakluyt foresaw many features of our own interconnected world, but he was a humanist who looked back to the ancients and Scripture for his understanding of historical change. Known primarily as the author of geographical works, Hakluyt commonly identified himself as "Preacher of the Word of God" and served as a minister and ecclesiastical official, who believed that soul and the world were inextricably linked and were being restored to unity in his own age.