''Constable's Miscellany'' was a part publishing serial established by

Archibald Constable Archibald David Constable (24 February 1774 – 21 July 1827) was a Scottish publisher, bookseller and stationer. Life Constable was born at Carnbee, Fife, son of the land steward to the Earl of Kellie. In 1788 Archibald was apprenticed to Pe ...

. Three numbers made up a volume; many of the works were divided into several volumes. The price of a number was one

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...

. The full series title was ''Constable's Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications, in the Various Departments of Literature, Science, and the Arts.'' Archibald Constable died in 1827, and the ''Miscellany'' was taken over by a consortium of Aitken, Henry Constable, and a London publisher. When the publisher went bankrupt in 1831, the project became relatively dormant. The entire list was later advertised by the London firm of Whittaker & Co. There were 80 volumes in all, the first appearing in 1826 and the last in 1835.

Background and influence

Projected before the

Panic of 1825 The Panic of 1825 was a stock market crash that started in the Bank of England, arising in part out of speculative investments in Latin America, including an imaginary country: Poyais. The crisis was felt most acutely in Britain, where it led to ...

, the ''Miscellany'' was dedicated to

George IV of the United Kingdom George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

, a privilege gained for Constable by

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...

. The initial plans were more ambitious; Constable himself became bankrupt in 1827, and this final project proceeded under constraints. The ''Miscellany's'' first editor was John Aitken. As a series of less expensive contemporary non-fiction books for a popular audience, by a commercial publisher, it was the precedent for ''

Murray's Family Library ''Murray's Family Library'' was a series of non-fiction works published from 1829 to 1834, by John Murray, in 51 volumes. The series editor was John Gibson Lockhart, who also wrote the first book, a biography of Napoleon. The books were priced a ...

'', which it anticipated by two years. It was recognised in the new genre, of "libraries of useful knowledge". Constable's project is recognised as initiating a publishing phenomenon of the later 1820s. Cheap editions marketed as small libraries were seen also in the ''

Library of Useful Knowledge The Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (SDUK) was founded in London in 1826, mainly at the instigation of Whig MP Henry Brougham, with the object of publishing information to people who were unable to obtain formal teaching or who pr ...

'', ''

Library of Entertaining Knowledge The ''Library of Entertaining Knowledge'' was founded by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. The books appeared from 1829 to 1838, published in London by Charles Knight (publisher), Charles Knight, and complemented the Society's ''L ...

'', '' Lardner's Cabinet Cyclopædia'', and series by

Henry Colburn Henry Colburn (1784 – 16 August 1855) was a British publisher. Life Virtually nothing is known about Henry Colburn's parentage or early life, and there is uncertainty over his year of birth. He was well-educated and fluent in French and h ...

and

Abraham John Valpy Abraham John Valpy (178619 November 1854) was an English printer and publisher. Life He was the son of the Reading schoolmaster Richard Valpy and was born in that town. He is remembered in connection with two great undertakings in the department o ...

List of ''Constable's Miscellany''

Revival of the series

"A version of the series was revived in the mid 1850s, the early 1880s, and, finally, in 1928..."Constable's Miscellany
seriesofseries.owu.edu. Retrieved on 19 March 2017. The 1929 incarnation of the series was named "Constable's Miscellany of Original and Selected Publications in Literature until about 1939.

Notes

{{Commons category, Constable's Miscellany Lists of British books 1820s in England 1830s in England Series of books 19th-century British literature