James Hutchison Stirling

James Hutchison Stirling (22 June 1820 – 19 March 1909) was a Scottish idealist philosopher and physician. His work *The Secret of Hegel* (1st edition, 1865, in 2 vols.; revised edition, 1898, in 1 vol.) gave great impetus to the study of Hegelian philosophy both in Britain and in the United States, and it was also accepted as an authoritative work on Hegel's philosophy in Germany and Italy. The book helped to create the philosophical movement known as British idealism. Stirling was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the fifth son of William Stirling and Elizabeth Christie. He studied medicine, history, and classics at the University of Glasgow. After receiving a large inheritance, he dedicated himself to studying philosophy, learning French and German. He lived in France and Germany before settling in Edinburgh, where he wrote his influential works. One of his other major philosophical works, *Philosophy and Theology* (1890), delivered as Gifford Lectures, focused on Charles Darwin's evolutionary theories. Stirling died in Edinburgh and is buried in Warriston Cemetery.