This substantial collection of over 47,000 books will be indispensable to researchers of history and literature.
“Eighteenth Century Collections Online captures the essence of the Enlightenment in Great Britain between 1701 and 1800. As the eighteenth century opened, the expiration of the strict controls that previously existed over printing, coupled with the birth of the Industrial Revolution, resulted in the proliferation of printing operations across the country—and in turn, created an explosion of literacy. For the first time, a large segment of the population was exposed to a vast array of printed material. Social and economic criticism flourished; theories on man and society were set forth and debated.
A variety of materials is included—from books and broadsides, Bibles, tract books and sermons to printed ephemera—with works by many well-known and lesser-known authors, all providing a diverse collection of material for the researcher of the eighteenth century. A centerpiece of this collection is the complete works of twenty-eight major eighteenth-century authors including Henry Fielding, Edmund Burke, Alexander Pope, Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin, and Jonathan Swift. ” (Gale database guide)
