William Hickling Prescott (1796-1859) was an American historian and Hispanist, who is widely recognized by historiographers to have been the first American scientific historian. After an extensive period of study, he specialized in late Renaissance Spain and the early Spanish Empire. His works on the subject, The History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic (1837), The History of the Conquest of Mexico (1843), A History of the Conquest of Peru (1847) and the unfinished History of the Reign of Phillip II (1856-1858) have become classic works in the field, and have had a great impact on the study of both Spain and Mesoamerica.