''The Nineteenth Century'' was a British monthly literary magazine founded in 1877 by James Knowles. It is regarded by historians as 'one of the most important and distinguished monthlies of serious thought in the last quarter of the nineteenth century'.

Editorial policy

The magazine was designed as an 'utterly impartial' forum for debate and discussion among leading intellectuals. Many of the early supporters and contributors to ''The Nineteenth Century'' were members of the

Metaphysical Society The Metaphysical Society was a famous British debating society, founded in 1869 by James Knowles, who acted as Secretary. Membership was by invitation only, and was exclusively male. Many of its members were prominent clergymen, philosophers, and ...

, of which Knowles had been secretary. The first issue, for example, contained pieces by former Society members

Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of his ...

, William Gladstone and Cardinal Manning. It quickly became one of the most successful literary magazines in Britain, selling over 20,000 copies a month by early 1878. An important part of the magazine's success was its regular 'Modern Symposium' section. This offered a series of essays and responses from different authors on subjects such as science or religion, collected together and published as a single structured debate. In this way the magazine quickly gained a reputation as a responsive forum where its contributors were given freedom to disagree without editorial interference. However, the magazine's focus on publishing established literary figures meant that it often excluded younger or unknown writers. Although it generally lived up to its reputation as a 'neutral ground', the magazine did at times abandon impartiality to support positions dear to Knowles himself. For example, it was famously at the forefront of the campaign to prevent the building of a Channel Tunnel between Britain and France in 1882.

''The Nineteenth Century and After''

In 1901 the title was changed to ''The Nineteenth Century and After''. To emphasise this change, a two-headed Janus-symbol of an old man and a young woman (the former representing the nineteenth century and the latter the twentieth) was added to the cover. Knowles was prevented from simply renaming it ''The Twentieth Century'' because the copyright to that name was already owned by someone else, who allegedly demanded a ransom for the rights to use it. Knowles remained editor until his death, in 1908. During the twentieth century the magazine became more politically right-wing. The magazine's title was finally changed to ''The Twentieth Century'' in 1951; it ceased publication in 1968.

Editors

1877-1908 - James Thomas Knowles
1908-1919 - William Wray Skilbeck
1919-1925 - George A.B. Dewar
1925-1930 - Carrol Romer
1930-1934 - Charles Reginald Schiller Harris
1934-1938 -

Arnold Wilson Sir Arnold Talbot Wilson (18 July 1884 – 31 May 1940) was a British soldier, colonial administrator, Conservative politician, writer and editor. Wilson served under Percy Cox, the colonial administrator of Mesopotamia (Mandatory Iraq) ...

1938-1946 -

Frederick Augustus Voigt Frederick Augustus Voigt (9 May 1892 – 8 January 1957) was a British journalist and author of German descent, most famous for his work with the ''Manchester Guardian'' and his opposition to dictatorship and totalitarianism on the European Conti ...

1947-1952 - Michael Goodwin
1952-195? - Bernard Wall During the magazine's final years it was run 'on a voluntary basis' by an editorial board chaired by Eirene Skilbeck, daughter of William Skilbeck and granddaughter of James Knowles.'Obituary: Eirene Skilbeck', ''The Times'', 28 Oct. 1969, p. 12.

References

External links

Examples of ''The Nineteenth Century'' at ''The Internet Archive''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nineteenth Century Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct literary magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1877 Magazines disestablished in 1972 1877 establishments in the United Kingdom