Posted on 07/18/2011 7:23:46 PM PDT by markomalley
Warren H. Carroll, Founding and First President of Christendom College and Chairman of its History Department for its first twenty-five years, died on Sunday, July 17. Aged 79, he received last rites prior to his death in his home. Carroll was in a weakened condition having suffered several strokes in the last several years and was recovering from pneumonia. Cardiopulmonary failure was the official cause of death.
A native of Maine, Carroll was a summa cum laude history graduate of Bates College, achieved an M.A. and Ph.D. in history from Columbia University, and attended law school in 1962-64. Between 1955 and 1961 he served two years with the U.S. Army Signal Corps, worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, and worked as an assistant command historian for the Second Air Force, Strategic Air Command. In 1967-70 he was a member of the California State Senate staff, and in 1970-72 worked as a staff member for the U.S. Congress.
A convert to Catholicism, Carroll saw what was wrong in modern education a long time before he saw what was right about Christianity. He maintained that the people teaching in the university did not care whether truth existed or not, and it didn’t matter to them. But to him, it mattered a great deal. In 1968, precisely when “everyone” was leaving, Carroll converted to the Catholic Church under the influence of his wife, Anne.
In 1973, he joined the staff of Triumph, a monthly Catholic journal of opinion founded by L. Brent Bozell. When Triumph and its summer program came to an end, Carroll determined to perpetuate its vision by founding a college. In September, 1977, Christendom College opened its doors in Triangle, Virginia, from which it has since moved to its permanent location in Front Royal, Virginia. Carroll founded Christendom as a co-educational liberal arts undergraduate college in response to the Second Vatican Council’s call for the formation of lay apostles. He served as the College’s president from its opening until 1985 and then as the chairman of its History Department until his retirement in 2002.
Before his retirement, Carroll was one of the few teachers that every student had in common. For most, the memories of hearing Carroll’s interpretation and telling of history during History of Western Civilization I and II are unforgettable. There were the heroes: Constantine, Pelayo, Isabel of Spain, Athanasius, Don Juan of Austria, Our Lady of Fatima, Philip II, and Charlemagne; and the villains: Thomas Cranmer, Luther, Cecil, Lenin, Rasputin, Stalin, Mao, Ho Chi Minh, Queen Elizabeth I, Pope Alexander VI, Arius, Theodora, and Justinian.
His explanations of the historic D-Day invasions; the complications of Watergate and the Vietnam War; the Battle of Lepanto; the Crusades; the Inquisition; Henry II kneeling for three days in the snow before Gregory VII; the story of Charles the Fat and Charles the Bald; the missionary work of Matteo Ricci; the great theological battle over “homoousios vs homoiousios;” and the Robber Council of Ephesus could never be surpassed. And then there are the memorable phrases: “History can be summed up in five words: Truth exists. The Incarnation happened,” “You can never bribe a pope,” and “One man can make a difference.”
carrollDuring his teaching days, Carroll had also taught Classical History, History of Ireland, History of Britain, American History, American History, History of Hispanic Peoples, Causes and Effects of the French Revolution, Causes and Effects of the Communist Revolution, and History and Theology of Pope John Paul II.
His love of teaching history naturally spilled over into writing history: 1917: Red Banners White Mantle, Isabel of Spain, Our Lady of Guadalupe, The Rise and Fall of the Communist Revolution, The Last Crusade, and The Guillotine and the Cross.
Carroll is also known for his major work, the multi-volume History of Christendom. Five volumes have been published to date; together they present a narrative account of European and Catholic history from antiquity through the year 1815. The series is noteworthy for its frank Catholic understanding of crucial historical events, from the Crusades to the French Revolution.
Carroll received an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Christendom College in 1999 Additionally, he was awarded the college’s “Pro Deo et Patria Medal for Distinguished Service to God and Country,” and was the inaugural recipient of Christendom’s “Queen Isabel Catholic Vision of History Award,” both in 2007.
It is through his teaching enterprise at Christendom College that Carroll was able to reveal and develop his extraordinary skills as a Catholic historian, teacher, and author. He has won a well-deserved reputation as one of the foremost Catholic historians of our time, perhaps the greatest of the 20th Century.
Carroll leaves behind his wife Anne, and his adopted children and grandchildren – the 2640 alumni of Christendom College, which includes 300 alumna-to-alumnus marriages (with 1000s of children), 63 priests, and 43 religious sisters and brothers.
Additionally, Carroll is survived by his sister, Sally Watson of South Berwick, Maine; his niece, Carolyn Jones of South Berwick; and his nephew James Watson of Virginia.
Eternal rest grant unto Dr. Warren Carroll, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
Christendom is one of the 2 or 3 colleges in the US that takes ZERO federal dollars...including grants or federal student loans.
Sort of like that one place Levin advertises about on his show all the time.
requiescat in pace
RIP ping
My oldest son starts at Christendom in one month. I was hoping he would get to meet Dr. Carroll.
Réquiem ætérnam dona eis, Dómine,
et lux perpétua lúceat eis.
Requiéscant in pace. Amen.
Thanks!
One of several pioneers wh founded an orthodox Catholic college at a time when many of the formerly Catholic colleges were rotting.
A had a history teacher who I think was much like him. Not a Catholic, but his course in Ancient History changed my life.
Requiescat in pace.
A truly rare man!
A great man - may God bless him and his family. I just bought one of Dr. Carroll’s books...a truly original historian.
I used to correspond with him back in the early nineties.
He was very candid in his opinions, and had such a brilliant mind. Rest in Peace, Dr. Carroll.
Carroll published a bi-weekly newsletter on philosophy and politics for a few years in the ‘60s. I was a subscriber and enjoyed his commentary. His conversion to Catholicism must have been later since religion wasn’t mentioned at all.
Wow and R.I.P.
RIP
His Volume I - The Founding of Christendom is really brilliant. I think everyone, Catholic or not, should definitely read it. I also really enjoyed his book The Last Crusade, which tells the truth about the Spanish Civil War.
Warren Carroll RIP
These schools need all the support they can muster. They offer excellent educations and financial aid as much as they can, without any connection to the gubmint. That alone makes them worth a few bucks if you have them.
A great man and a very good school.
RIP.
And if the student goes on to take religious vows including the vow of poverty, Christendom will forgive their loans. (I doubt Hillsdale and Grove City offer that ;-)
bttt
In the short space of that car ride, we got into an engrossing conversation. He imbued me with the idea that "History is the arena for the working of Divine Providence." I have always thought that History looks more like "One Damned Thing After Another," so Carroll's perspective challenged, and challenges me.
Second, the topic of the bombing of Hiroshima/Nagasaki came up, and Carroll said very simply and firmly: "These were acts of murder. I have always taught that."
I later devoured his 6 volume series "A History of Christendom." Right now it's on loan to one of my RCIA students, who says it's by far the greatest history he's ever read. (I'm selfish, OK, so I want to get it back!)
Warren Carroll was a man of such strength, vision, and courage. I was saddened, taken aback to hear of his death. But I know he has gone to that King, Lord, and Tremendous Friend whom he loved and served with a powerful mind and a warrior's heart.
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