Eighteenth Century Journals

Sourced from the Bodleian Library, Oxford

The Hope Collection at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, is one of the finest surviving collections of eighteenth-century periodicals. These journals provide an invaluable insight into the eighteenth-century world. The views represented within these texts are often in opposition to those of the government or other established bodies; indeed, they are often in opposition with one another.

Authors represented include Joseph Addison, Henry Fielding, Horace Walpole, Richard Steele, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Thomas Chatterton. Topics covered include law and policing, British colonial possessions, the South Sea Bubble, religion, female dress and the American and French revolutions.

Sourced from the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Centre, University of Texas at Austin

This module is based on the holdings of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Centre at the University of Texas, Austin, which contains one of the finest collections of rare 17th and 18th century British periodicals in the world. Over 70 newspapers and periodicals have been drawn from these, all extremely rare or unique, and many of which are not held by The British Library.

The content of newspapers was dictated by the editor’s sense of what was desired by the general readership. This desire can be summed up in a single word: variety. Themes covered by the periodicals featured in this digital collection are highly diverse, including literature, the theatre, fashion, politics, revolution, agriculture, social issues and society life. There is a wide selection from across every decade, including many short-run items. Material is drawn from London, Dublin and Edinburgh as well as many local and provincial publications.

Sourced from British Library Newspapers, Colindale and Cambridge University Library

Module III celebrates the variety and diversity of eighteenth-century publishing with a range of newspapers and magazines covering a variety of subjects. This module focuses largely on material published outside of London, including newspapers from across the British Empire, Ireland, Scotland and provincial England as well as Canadian, Caribbean and Indian journals.

Colonial newspapers, included in this collection, were aimed at the British population across the globe and focused on current affairs, offering both local news and the ‘latest’ news from Britain and Europe. Although, acquired through the frequent arrivals of ships from home, they were frequently nine or ten months out of date by the time they arrived. However, they are an invaluable source of information about the political dealings, practical struggles and military skirmishes. In addition to newspapers, Eighteenth Century Journals III also contains several journals and magazines from the UK which offered satire, poetry and opinion.

Sourced from Chetham's Library, Manchester and the Brotherton Library, University of Leeds

In the eighteenth century, London’s economic and political influence receded as the importance of towns and cities like Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow rose. Eighteenth Century Journals, Module IV, contains key material published in Manchester during this time of rapid industrial change and political turmoil.

Newspapers were also integral to the rise of advertising in the eighteenth century. As the circulation and readership of regional newspapers widened, businesses became more aware of the potential for advertising and selling their products via printed advertisements on a nation-wide scale. By the end of the eighteenth century, advertisements made up a large part of the content of newspapers.

Sourced from Birmingham Central Library, British Library, Cambridge University Library and Liverpool John Moores University Library

This module includes the full run of The Lady’s Magazine, or Entertaining Companion for the Fair Sex, a periodical which ran for sixty-two years from 1770 to 1832, before merging with its rival The Ladies Museum in 1832. The Ladies Museum was launched in 1798 as The Lady’s Monthly Museum, the first two volumes of which are also included in this section.

It is a major source for scholars of literary and gender studies. Topics covered include education, fashion, poetry, literature, art, music, the theatre, the body, disease, health, vaccination, religion, world events, gardening, poverty, hunting, gambling and food, as well as commentaries on other aspects of the social and domestic scenes.