Matthew McDonald is a political and cultural historian studying with David Bell. His current project explores how French became an international language in the long eighteenth century. Matthew’s research on Francophone cosmopolitanism has expanded his initial interest in France to include other countries in northern Europe, most notably Germany and Sweden.

Matthew also has a research interest in precolonial West Africa and is working on a project related to information and empire in eighteenth-century Senegal. He is currently a preceptor for Kevin Kruse’s course on the history of the United States.

Matthew previously received a Bachelor of Arts with honors in history at the University of Chicago, where he studied state classicism and artistic centralization under Louis XIV with Paul Cheney and Larry Norman. A classical violinist, Matthew has curated historical exhibits for the New York Philharmonic. He performs on campus with Early Music Princeton.