Jacobus Wilhelmus Smit (1930–2006)

Wim was born on August 25th, 1930 in Utrecht, the Netherlands. He joined the faculty of the University of Utrecht after receiving his doctorate in history there in 1958. In 1965, Wim joined the Columbia University faculty as the Queen Wilhelmina Professor of the History of the Low Countries. He was a widely recognized authority in the social, religious, cultural, and economic history of early modern Europe. While he wrote prolifically in his earlier career, Wim became most renowned for his dedication to teaching and was a friend and mentor to countless students, particularly through teaching all four of Columbia's Core Curriculum courses. In 1984, the Columbia College Student Council presented Smit with the Mark Van Doren Award for Great Teaching, and in 2003, he was a co-recipient of the first award for Distinguished Service to the Core Curriculum. Smit was a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, served on the Governing Board of Columbia's Society of Fellows in the Humanities and was consulting editor for the Records of Civilization series published by Columbia University Press. Wim was also an avid piano player and lover of music, as well as a prolific cook, cyclist, and, in his earlier years, semi-professional soccer player.