Gibbon
Gibbon was born in Putney in England. He had his higher education in Oxford. He studied Latin, Greek and French. His work falls into two parts –
The first part was in four volumes covering Roman History for 460 years from 2nd century AD.
The second part was in two volumes covering 800 years.
Leopole Von Ranke
Leopole Von Ranke was a German historian and he was the founder of modern source based history. His period was from 1795 to 1886. His first work was “Histories of Roman and German people”. His other works includes “History of Service” and “History of the world”. He was elected as the first honourary member of American Historical Association.
Trevelyan
George MaCauley Trevelyan was greatest of the modern historians. He was influenced by the ideas of Edward Gibbon. His important works include “History of England”, “Garibaldi”, “The Making of Italy”, “England under Queen Annie” and “Muse”. He brought in many materials and new evidences for historical writing. He reflected the past by a pleasant language.
Objectivity
Objectivity is of capital importance for the growth of healthy historical studies. Objectivity stands what is true or real. It is being free from personal bias, sentimental approach and not being one sided. Objectivity contributed to the emergence of history as an independent branch of knowledge.
Hypothesis
Hypothesis means an idea that is formulated as a starting point for discussion. A working hypothesis is intended to bring out the importance of scope of study. It helps to explain the methods of approach and give a glimpse in the conclusions.
Foot Notes
There are mainly five forms of foot notes:
Documentation
Cross reference to another chapter
Clarification or explanation of a point
Comment upon the views of other writers on one event or other
Adding an interesting piece of information to enlighten the readers.
