Scott Sowerby

Scott Sowerby is an Associate Professor of History at Northwestern University's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University (2006) and specializes in early modern Britain and Europe, focusing on religious toleration, military power, and transnational history. He currently serves as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Material History Lab and teaches courses on Tudor-Stuart Britain, global piracy, and gender history. His research investigates how European states accommodated religious diversity in military contexts, challenging traditional narratives of toleration's origins.

• Affiliations: Material History Lab, Graduate Program in British Studies
• Education: Ph.D., Harvard University (2006)

His research interests include comparative history, religious toleration, demographic change, and military power. Recent projects explore the intersection of religious minorities and state militaries in early modern Europe. Notable awards include the Royal Historical Society’s Whitfield Prize (2013) and the Weinberg College Award for Distinguished Teaching (2014). He has edited/co-edited multiple volumes, including Revolutionising Politics (2021) and The Memoirs of Sir Daniel Fleming (2021).

Teaching highlights include a course on 'Pirates, Guns, and Empires' (2019), developed with support from the CCHS Teaching Fellowship. His current book project, Absolution and Arms, examines how minority religious groups secured toleration through military service.