Elizabeth Atkinson Rash Brown (February 16, 1932 – August 8, 2024) was an American historian. She was professor emerita of history at Brooklyn College, of the City University of New York, a scholar and published author, known for her writings on feudalism.

Career

Brown received her B.A. from Swarthmore College and A.M. and PhD. from Radcliffe College and Harvard University. In 2009 Elizabeth A. R. Brown was elected the Second Vice-President of the Medieval Academy of America and in 2010–2011 served as its president. She taught at Brooklyn College in New York for decades and taught at Yale and Berkeley after retiring. Brown first began publishing academic works in 1958, and wrote more than 130 articles and books in total. Much of her research focused on the Capetian dynasty in 13th- and 14th-century France. In her groundbreaking 1974 article "The Tyranny of a Construct: Feudalism and Historians of Medieval Europe", Brown initiated an ongoing inconclusive discussion as to whether use of the term feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society. In her critique, Brown highlights the potential for constructs to influence research agendas and warns constructs that we use to analyze the past can be exclusive. In 1987, Brown was elected a Fellow of the Medieval Academy of America (MAA). She later served as the president of the MAA in 2010–2011. Brown died on August 8, 2024, at the age of 92.

Works

Monographs

Articles