Carlos Martínez Shaw

Carlos Martínez Shaw is Professor of Early Modern History at the University of Barcelona and Professor Emeritus at UNED, and a leading figure in this field. His career has been marked by specialization in economics, trade, politics, culture, religion, demography, law, human rights, and society from a global perspective, with particular attention to the relations between Catalonia, America, and Asia.

Around thirty books, including authored and edited volumes, and nearly three hundred and forty articles endorse his career. The chronology of his research spans from the reign of the Catholic Monarchs to the early nineteenth century, including works focused on Catalonia, Spain, and the five continents. If one specific theme were to be highlighted within his historiographical production, it would be economics, especially maritime trade and its related activities.

Martínez Shaw has been a pioneer in research on the early modern history of Asia and Africa, which in the early modern period were almost unknown to the Western world. He is also recognized for his teaching and outreach work, particularly his dedication to training researchers, as reflected in the more than forty doctoral theses he has supervised. His links with the URV have been very close, collaborating in the training of research staff and participating in the consolidation of the area of Early Modern History.