The British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (BSECS) is an interdisciplinary scholarly society founded in 1971 and based in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

which promotes the study of all aspects of eighteenth-century history and culture. Its members are both academics and members of the public from all over the world with a diverse range of interests in the

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

, and wider

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

of the

long eighteenth century The long 18th century is a phrase used by many British historians to cover a more ''natural'' historical period than the simple use of the standard calendar definition. They expand the century to include larger British and Western European historic ...

between approximately 1660 and 1820. BSECS is an affiliate of the International Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ISECS). The society's official journal is ''The Journal for Eighteenth-Century Studies'' (''JECS''). It was founded in 1974 and is currently published by

Wiley-Blackwell Wiley-Blackwell is an international scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly publishing business of John Wiley & Sons. It was formed by the merger of John Wiley & Sons Global Scientific, Technical, and Medical business with Blackwell Publish ...

. It is a leading scholarly journal in the field of long eighteenth-century studies, and publishes essays and reviews in eighteenth-century literature, history, and culture from scholars based across the world. It is received by all the Society's members, and is subscribed to by many individuals and institutions, including many university libraries. All volumes of ''JECS'' are available in both printed and electronic format. The society organizes an annual three-day conference in January, normally held at St Hugh's College,

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, which is attended by scholars from across the world. It also offers a range of fellowships and bursaries to support research into eighteenth-century history, literature, and culture.

Presidents

The current president (from 2021) is

Brycchan Carey Brycchan Carey (born 23 June 1967) is a British academic and author with research interests in the environmental humanities and the cultural history of slavery and abolition. He was educated at Goldsmiths' College, University of London and Queen ...

. Past presidents include: 2018 Caroline Warman 2015 Matthew Grenby 2013 Jeremy Gregory 2010

Michael Burden Michael Burden, FAHA, (born 14 March 1960) is an Australian musicologist, working in the United Kingdom. He was elected a Corresponding Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities in 2018. Life Born in Adelaide, South Australia, he was ...

2008 Penelope Corfield 2006 John Dunkley 2004 Frank O’Gorman 2002 Derek Hughes 2000

Janet Todd Janet Margaret Todd OBE (born 10 September 1942) is a British academic and author. She was educated at Cambridge University and the University of Florida, where she undertook a doctorate on the poet John Clare. Much of her work concerns Ma ...

1998 Brean Hammond

External links

The British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies''Journal for Eighteenth-Century Studies''
Literary societies History organisations based in the United Kingdom {{UK-org-stub