The Queen Sofía Spanish Institute is very pleased to announce that Professor Richard L. Kagan, a member of QSSI’s Board of Directors, has been named Doctor Honoris Causa by the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

The appointment, approved unanimously by the University Council, recognizes Dr. Kagan’s eminent contribution to the advancement of contemporary studies on the history and culture of Spain and the Hispanic world in the Early Modern period.

A leading scholar of Early Modern Europe and the Hispanic world, Dr. Kagan has also played a central role in shaping the scholarly program of the QSSI’s America&Spain250 initiative, which highlights Spain’s contributions to the American Revolution and the long-standing historical ties between Spain and the United States.

Dr. Kagan is widely regarded as one of the most prominent American historians of Early Modern Europe, with particular expertise in Habsburg Spain and the formation and development of the Spanish Empire. His scholarship has explored the relationship between university education and administration in early modern Spain, legal history, jurists, and litigation practices in Castilian society, as well as fields including art history, cultural history, urban history, and the history of cartography.

Most recently, Professor Kagan’s scholarly work has focused on the history of the image of Spain in the United States, Spain’s historical legacy in the country together with that of the collecting of Spanish art.  His seminal book on this field, “The Spanish Craze”, was published in 2019.

The University also highlighted Dr. Kagan’s distinguished teaching career in the United States and his role as visiting professor at leading universities and institutions in the Americas and Europe, including the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

The QSSI is immensely proud to have Dr. Kagan serve on its Board and to benefit from his leadership, scholarly expertise, and deep knowledge of Spain’s history and its enduring connections with the wider Atlantic world.  Dr. Kagan’s role as Academic Director of the QSSI has been key in guiding the work of the Institute in the field of history and in developing the intellectual vision behind America&Spain250.