Augustine the African

LONGLISTED FOR THE CUNDILL HISTORY PRIZE 2026

An eye-opening new history of one of Christianity's most important figures - and one of Pope Leo XIV's primary inspirations

'Brilliant' SPECTATOR
'Illuminating' NEW YORKER
'Rich and sympathetic' TLS

Augustine of Hippo is one of the world's most influential theologians, an early Christian writer whose work shaped the course of Western philosophy. Born in Numidia in 354 CE, Augustine's African identity has long been painfully denied. But it was foundational to his thinking and faith. Drawing on original sources and the Augustinian texts themselves, world-renowned scholar Catherine Conybeare traces Augustine's travels from North Africa to the European continent and back again, placing his African origins firmly at the centre of his story.

A tale of exile, faith and identity, Augustine the African upends conventional knowledge about one of Christianity's most celebrated saints, and recentres Africa as the locus of early Catholic intellectual activity - with Europe on the periphery.