Montague Summers | |
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![Montague Summers ca. 1925[1]](view_image.php?q=Montague_Summers&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Montague_Summers.png) Montague Summers ca. 1925[1] | |
| Born | Augustus Montague Summers 10 April 1880 Clifton, Bristol, England |
| Died | 10 August 1948 (aged 68) Richmond, Surrey, England |
| Resting place | Richmond Cemetery |
| Pen name | Reverend Alphonsus Joseph-Mary Augustus Montague Summers |
| Occupation | Author and clergyman |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Oxford |
| Subject | Restoration comedy, Gothic fiction, the occult |
| Notable works | The History of Witchcraft and Demonology (1926); translation of the Malleus Maleficarum (1928); The Vampire: His Kith and Kin (1928); The Werewolf (1933) |
Augustus Montague Summers (10 April 1880 – 10 August 1948) was an English author, clergyman, and teacher. As an independent scholar, he published many works on the English drama of the Stuart Restoration (1660–1688) and helped to organise and to promote the performance of plays from that period. He also wrote extensively on the occult and has been characterized as "arguably the most seminal twentieth century purveyor of pop culture occultism."[2]
Summers initially prepared for a career in the Church of England at Oxford and Lichfield, and was ordained as an Anglican deacon in 1908. He then converted to Roman Catholicism and began styling himself as a Catholic priest. He was, however, never under the authority of any Catholic diocese or religious order in England, and it is doubtful that he was ever actually ordained to the priesthood.[2][3] While employed as a teacher of English and Latin, he pursued scholarly work on the English theatre of the 17th century. For his contributions to that field he was elected to the Royal Society of Literature in 1916.[2]
Noted for his eccentric personality and interests, Summers became a popular figure in London high society first for his theatrical work and later for his History of Witchcraft and Demonology, published in 1926. That work was followed by other studies on witchcraft, vampires, and werewolves, in all of which he professed to believe. In 1928 he published his translation of the 15th-century witch hunter's manual, the Malleus Maleficarum, and for decades this remained the only full English translation of that historical document. Summers also produced scholarly work on Gothic fiction and published several anthologies of horror stories. He wrote some original works of fiction, none of which were published in his lifetime.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Sewellwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c Doherty, Bernard (2020). "From Decadent Diabolist to Roman Catholic Demonologist: Some Biographical Curiosities from Montague Summers' Black Folio". Literature & Aesthetics. 30 (2): 1–37.
- ^ Davies, Robertson (2004). "Summers, (Augustus) Montague (1880–1948)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/39387. Retrieved 8 January 2023. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)