G. W. F. Hegel (17701831) the influential German philosopher believed that human history was advancing spiritually and morally according to Gods purpose. At the beginning of this masterwork Hegel writes: What the history of Philosophy shows us is a succession of noble minds a gallery of heroes of thought who by the power of Reason have penetrated into the being of things of nature and of spirit into the Being of God and have won for us by their labours the highest treasure the treasure of reasoned knowledge. In his introduction to this Bison Book edition Frederick C. Beiser notes the complex and controversial history of Hegels text. He makes a case that this English-language translation by E. S. Haldane and Frances H. Simson is still the most reliable one.
