Rafael Altamira

Rafael Altamira y Crevea (February 10, 1866 - June 1, 1951) was a Spanish

Rafael Altamira was a historian and lawyer born in Alicante in 1866. Rafael Altamira, considered to be one of the most outstanding Spanish historians of the 20th century, was a many-sided scholar who also took interest in journalism, pedagogy, politics, and literature.

In 1898 Rafael Altamira, together with other professors of the Law School at the University of Oviedo (northern Spain), established the University Extension as a different area of the university structure. Its main goal was to spread the knowledge created by the universities by means of conferences, courses, and other activities to those social classes that did not have access to it. These professors were following the example set by several English universities that had already been put into practice in other European countries such as Germany and Belgium.

Rafael Altamira gave courses and conferences in many universities both in Spain and abroad (Argentina, Peru, USA, France, England, etc.). He was also a justice of The Hague Tribunal, in the Netherlands, where he concentrated his efforts on working for peace and international dialogue. For his work and career he was nominated as candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1933.