Scottish Enlightenment
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The Scottish Enlightenment ( sco, Scots Enlichtenment, gd, Soillseachadh na h-Alba) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century,
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
had a network of parish schools in the
Scottish Lowlands The Lowlands ( sco, Lallans or ; gd, a' Ghalldachd, , place of the foreigners, ) is a cultural and historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Lowlands and the Highlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowl ...
and five universities. The Enlightenment culture was based on close readings of new books, and intense discussions took place daily at such intellectual gathering places in Edinburgh as
The Select Society The Select Society, established in 1754 as The St. Giles Society but soon renamed, was an intellectual society in 18th century Edinburgh.Emerson, Roger L. ''The Social Composition of Enlightened Scotland: The Select Society of Edinburgh, 1754–1 ...
and, later,
The Poker Club The Poker Club was one of several clubs at the heart of the Scottish Enlightenment where many associated with that movement met and exchanged views in a convivial atmosphere. History The Poker Club was created in 1762 out of the ashes of The ...
, as well as within Scotland's
ancient universities The ancient universities are British and Irish medieval universities and early modern universities founded before the year 1600. Four of these are located in Scotland, two in England, and one in Ireland. The ancient universities in Britain and I ...
(
St Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fou ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
,
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, King's College, and Marischal College). Sharing the
humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...
and
rational Rationality is the quality of being guided by or based on reasons. In this regard, a person acts rationally if they have a good reason for what they do or a belief is rational if it is based on strong evidence. This quality can apply to an abi ...
outlook of the Western Enlightenment of the same time period, the thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment asserted the importance of human reason combined with a rejection of any authority that could not be justified by reason. In Scotland, the Enlightenment was characterised by a thoroughgoing
empiricism In philosophy, empiricism is an epistemological theory that holds that knowledge or justification comes only or primarily from sensory experience. It is one of several views within epistemology, along with rationalism and skepticism. Empir ...
and practicality where the chief values were improvement, virtue, and practical benefit for the individual and society as a whole. Among the fields that rapidly advanced were philosophy, political economy, engineering, architecture, medicine, geology, archaeology, botany and zoology, law, agriculture, chemistry and sociology. Among the Scottish thinkers and scientists of the period were
Joseph Black Joseph Black (16 April 1728 – 6 December 1799) was a Scottish physicist and chemist, known for his discoveries of magnesium, latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was Professor of Anatomy and Chemistry at the University of Glas ...
,
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...
,
William Cullen William Cullen FRS FRSE FRCPE FPSG (; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and professor at the Edinburgh Medical School. Cullen was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment: He was ...
,
Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment. Ferguson was sympathet ...
,
David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment philo ...
, Francis Hutcheson,
James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June O.S.172614 June 1726 New Style. – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, agriculturalist, chemical manufacturer, naturalist and physician. Often referred to as the father of modern geology, he played a key role i ...
,
John Playfair John Playfair FRSE, FRS (10 March 1748 – 20 July 1819) was a Church of Scotland minister, remembered as a scientist and mathematician, and a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his book ''Illu ...
,
Thomas Reid Thomas Reid (; 7 May ( O.S. 26 April) 1710 – 7 October 1796) was a religiously trained Scottish philosopher. He was the founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense and played an integral role in the Scottish Enlightenment. In 1783 he wa ...
,
Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
, and
Dugald Stewart Dugald Stewart (; 22 November 175311 June 1828) was a Scottish philosopher and mathematician. Today regarded as one of the most important figures of the later Scottish Enlightenment, he was renowned as a populariser of the work of Francis Hut ...
. The Scottish Enlightenment had effects far beyond Scotland, not only because of the esteem in which Scottish achievements were held outside Scotland, but also because its ideas and attitudes were carried all over Great Britain and across the
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and state (polity), states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.
as part of the
Scottish diaspora The Scottish diaspora consists of Scottish people who emigrated from Scotland and their descendants. The diaspora is concentrated in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, England, New Zealand, Ireland and to a lesser extent A ...
, and by foreign students who studied in Scotland.


Background

Union with England in 1707 meant the end of the Scottish Parliament. The parliamentarians, politicians, aristocrats, and
placemen In the political history of Britain, placemen were Members of Parliament who held paid office in the civil service, generally sinecures, simultaneously with their seat in the legislature. William and Mary Placemen exerted substantial influence ...
moved to London. Scottish law remained entirely separate from English law, so the civil law courts, lawyers and jurists remained in Edinburgh. The headquarters and leadership of the
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
also remained, as did the universities and the medical establishment. The lawyers and the divines, together with the professors, intellectuals, medical men, scientists and architects formed a new
middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Com ...
elite that dominated urban Scotland and facilitated the Scottish Enlightenment.


Economic growth

At the union of 1707, England had about five times the population of Scotland and about 36 times as much wealth, but there were five Scottish universities ( St. Andrews,
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
,
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, and Aberdeen's King's College and
Marischal College Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has acted as the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. However, the building was constructed for and is on long- ...
) against two in England. Scotland experienced the beginnings of economic expansion that allowed it to close this gap. Contacts with England led to a conscious attempt to improve agriculture among the gentry and nobility. Although some estate holders improved the quality of life of their displaced workers, enclosures led to unemployment and forced migrations to the burghs or abroad. The major change in international trade was the rapid expansion of the Americas as a market.J. D. Mackie, B. Lenman and G. Parker, ''A History of Scotland'' (London: Penguin, 1991), , p. 292. Glasgow particularly benefited from this new trade; initially supplying the colonies with manufactured goods, it emerged as the focus of the tobacco trade, re-exporting particularly to France. The merchants dealing in this lucrative business became the wealthy
tobacco lord The Tobacco Lords were a group of Scottish people, Scottish merchants and slave traders who in the 18th century made enormous fortunes by International trade, trading in tobacco. Many became so wealthy that they adopted the lifestyle of aristocr ...
s, who dominated the city for most of the eighteenth century.J. D. Mackie, B. Lenman and G. Parker, ''A History of Scotland'' (London: Penguin, 1991), , p. 296. Banking also developed in this period. The
Bank of Scotland The Bank of Scotland plc (Scottish Gaelic: ''Banca na h-Alba'') is a commercial and clearing bank based in Scotland and is part of the Lloyds Banking Group, following the Bank of Scotland's implosion in 2008. The bank was established by th ...
, founded in 1695 was suspected of Jacobite sympathies, and so a rival Royal Bank of Scotland was founded in 1727. Local banks began to be established in burghs like Glasgow and Ayr. These made capital available for business, and the improvement of roads and trade.J. D. Mackie, B. Lenman and G. Parker, ''A History of Scotland'' (London: Penguin, 1991), , p. 297.


Education system

The humanist-inspired emphasis on education in Scotland culminated in the passing of the
Education Act 1496 The Education Act 1496 was an act of the Parliament of Scotland (1496 c. 87) that required landowners to send their eldest sons to school to study Latin, arts and law. This made schooling compulsory for the first time in the world. The humanis ...
, which decreed that all sons of barons and freeholders of substance should attend grammar schools.P. J. Bawcutt and J. H. Williams, ''A Companion to Medieval Scottish Poetry'' (Woodbridge: Brewer, 2006), , pp. 29–30. The aims of a network of parish schools were taken up as part of the Protestant programme in the 16th century and a series of acts of the Privy Council and Parliament in 1616, 1633, 1646 and 1696 attempted to support its development and finance. By the late 17th century there was a largely complete network of parish schools in the Lowlands, but in the Highlands basic education was still lacking in many areas.R. Anderson, "The history of Scottish Education pre-1980", in T. G. K. Bryce and W. M. Humes, eds, ''Scottish Education: Post-Devolution'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2nd edn., 2003), , pp. 219–28. One of the effects of this extensive network of schools was the growth of the "democratic myth", which in the 19th century created the widespread belief that many a "lad of pairts" had been able to rise up through the system to take high office, and that literacy was much more widespread in Scotland than in neighbouring states, particularly England. Historians are now divided over whether the ability of boys who pursued this route to social advancement was any different than that in other comparable nations, because the education in some parish schools was basic and short, and attendance was not compulsory.T. M. Devine. ''The Scottish Nation, 1700–2000'' (London: Penguin Books, 2001). , pp. 91–100. Regardless of what the literacy rate actually was, it is clear that many Scottish students learned a useful form of visual literacy that allowed them to organise and remember information in a superior fashion. By the 17th century, Scotland had five universities, compared with England's two. After the disruption of the
civil wars A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
, Commonwealth and purges at the
Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...
, they recovered with a lecture-based curriculum that was able to embrace economics and science, offering a high quality liberal education to the sons of the nobility and gentry. All saw the establishment or re-establishment of chairs of mathematics. Observatories were built at St. Andrews and at King's and Marischal colleges in Aberdeen.
Robert Sibbald Sir Robert Sibbald (15 April 1641 – August 1722) was a Scottish physician and antiquary. Life He was born in Edinburgh, the son of David Sibbald (brother of Sir James Sibbald) and Margaret Boyd (January 1606 – 10 July 1672). Educated at t ...
(1641–1722) was appointed as the first Professor of Medicine at Edinburgh, and he co-founded the
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that sets the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by Royal charter ...
in 1681.T. M. Devine. "The rise and fall of the Scottish Enlightenment", in T. M. Devine and J. Wormald, ''The Oxford Handbook of Modern Scottish History'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012), , p. 373. These developments helped the universities to become major centres of medical education and would put Scotland at the forefront of new thinking. By the end of the century, the University of Edinburgh's Medical School was arguably one of the leading centres of science in Europe, boasting such names as the anatomist
Alexander Monro (secundus) Alexander Monro of Craiglockhart and Cockburn (22 May 1733 – 2 October 1817) was a Scottish anatomist, physician and medical educator. He is typically known as or Junior to distinguish him as the second of three generations of physicians o ...
, the chemists
William Cullen William Cullen FRS FRSE FRCPE FPSG (; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and professor at the Edinburgh Medical School. Cullen was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment: He was ...
and Joseph Black, and the natural historian John Walker. By the 18th century, access to Scottish universities was probably more open than in contemporary England, Germany or France. Attendance was less expensive and the student body more socially representative. In the eighteenth century Scotland reaped the intellectual benefits of this system.A. Herman, ''How the Scots Invented the Modern World'' (London: Crown Publishing Group, 2001), .


Intellectual climate

In France, the Enlightenment was based in the salons and culminated in the great ''
Encyclopédie ''Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers'' (English: ''Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts''), better known as ''Encyclopédie'', was a general encyclopedia publis ...
'' (1751–72) edited by
Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the ''Encyclopédie'' along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a promine ...
and (until 1759)
Jean le Rond d'Alembert Jean-Baptiste le Rond d'Alembert (; ; 16 November 1717 – 29 October 1783) was a French mathematician, mechanician, physicist, philosopher, and music theorist. Until 1759 he was, together with Denis Diderot, a co-editor of the '' Encyclopéd ...
(1713–84) with contributions by hundreds of leading intellectuals such as
Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...
(1694–1778),
Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...
(1712–78) and
Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principa ...
(1689–1755). Some 25,000 copies of the 35-volume set were sold, half of them outside France. In Scottish intellectual life the culture was oriented towards books. In 1763 Edinburgh had six printing houses and three paper mills; by 1783 there were 16 printing houses and 12 paper mills. Intellectual life revolved around a series of clubs, beginning in Edinburgh in the 1710s. One of the first was the Easy Club, co-founded In Edinburgh by the Jacobite printer
Thomas Ruddiman Thomas Ruddiman (October 167419 January 1757) was a Scottish classical scholar. Life He was born on a farm near Boyndie, three miles from Banff in Banffshire, where his father was a farmer. He was educated locally, then studied at the Univer ...
. Clubs did not reach Glasgow until the 1740s. One of the first and most important in the city was the Political Economy Club, aimed at creating links between academics and merchants,M. Lynch, ''Scotland: A New History'' (London: Pimlico, 1992), , p. 346. of which noted economist
Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
was a prominent early member. Other clubs in Edinburgh included
The Select Society The Select Society, established in 1754 as The St. Giles Society but soon renamed, was an intellectual society in 18th century Edinburgh.Emerson, Roger L. ''The Social Composition of Enlightened Scotland: The Select Society of Edinburgh, 1754–1 ...
, formed by the younger Allan Ramsay, a prominent artist, and philosophers David Hume and Adam SmithM. MacDonald, ''Scottish Art'' (London: Thames and Hudson, 2000), , p. 57. and, later,
The Poker Club The Poker Club was one of several clubs at the heart of the Scottish Enlightenment where many associated with that movement met and exchanged views in a convivial atmosphere. History The Poker Club was created in 1762 out of the ashes of The ...
, formed in 1762 and named by
Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment. Ferguson was sympathet ...
for the aim to "poke up" opinion on the militia issue.M. Lynch, ''Scotland: A New History'' (London: Pimlico, 1992), , p. 348. Historian
Jonathan Israel Jonathan Irvine Israel (born 26 January 1946) is a British writer and academic specialising in Dutch history, the Age of Enlightenment and European Jews. Israel was appointed as Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the School of Historical Studies a ...
argues that by 1750 Scotland's major cities had created an intellectual infrastructure of mutually supporting institutions, such as universities, reading societies, libraries, periodicals, museums and masonic lodges. The Scottish network was "predominantly liberal Calvinist, Newtonian, and 'design' oriented in character which played a major role in the further development of the transatlantic Enlightenment". Bruce Lenman says their "central achievement was a new capacity to recognize and interpret social patterns." The Scottish Enlightenment owed much to the highly literate culture of Scottish Presbyterianism. Established as the Church of Scotland following the Revolution of 1688, the Presbyterians supported the 1707 Act of Union, and the protestant Hanoverian monarchy. The eighteenth century saw divisions and dispute between hard-line traditional Calvinists, Enlightenment influenced Moderates, and increasingly popular Evangelicals. Moderate clergy, with their emphasis on reason, toleration, morality and polite manners, were ascendant in the universities. Some of the leading intellectual lights of the Scottish Enlightenment were Presbyterian ministers, such as William Robertson (1721–93), historian and principal of the University of Edinburgh. The careers of sceptics, such as Adam Smith and David Hume, owed much to the tolerance, support and friendship of Moderate clergy. Such was the reputation of the Scottish clergy for their Enlightenment values that a friend in England asked the Rev. James Wodrow, a minister in Ayrshire, whether two thirds of the Scottish clergy were in reality Deists. Wodrow dismissed the suggestion, and observed that “I cannot imagine the number of Deists among us bear almost any proportion at all to the rest. A few about Edinburgh in east Lothian & in the Merse by reading David Hume’s books & by their conversation & connexions with him & his friends, to whom you may add a scatered Clergyman or two here & there in other parts of heCountry who has happened to get his education among that set of people; are all you can reckon upon & it is no way difficult to account for their forsaking the faith … & loving a present World & the mode of thinking fashionable in it.” (James Wodrow to Samuel Kenrick, 25 January 1769).


Major intellectual areas


Empiricism and inductive reasoning

The first major philosopher of the Scottish Enlightenment was Francis Hutcheson (1694–1746), who was professor of moral philosophy at Glasgow from 1729 to 1746. He was an important link between the ideas of
Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...
and the later school of Scottish Common Sense Realism, developing
Utilitarianism In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals. Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different charact ...
and
Consequentialist In ethical philosophy, consequentialism is a class of normative, teleological ethical theories that holds that the consequences of one's conduct are the ultimate basis for judgment about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct. Thus, from a ...
thinking. Also influenced by Shaftesbury was George Turnbull (1698–1748), who was regent at Marischal College, Aberdeen, and who published pioneering work in the fields of Christian ethics, art and education.
David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment philo ...
(1711–76) whose '' Treatise on Human Nature'' (1738) and '' Essays, Moral and Political'' (1741) helped outline the parameters of philosophical
Empiricism In philosophy, empiricism is an epistemological theory that holds that knowledge or justification comes only or primarily from sensory experience. It is one of several views within epistemology, along with rationalism and skepticism. Empir ...
and
Scepticism Skepticism, also spelled scepticism, is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the p ...
.R. Mitchison, ''Lordship to Patronage, Scotland 1603–1745'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1983), , p. 150. He would be a major influence on later Enlightenment figures including
Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
,
Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and ...
and
Jeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...
. Hume's argument that there were no efficient causes hidden in nature was supported and developed by Thomas Brown (1778–1820), who was
Dugald Stewart Dugald Stewart (; 22 November 175311 June 1828) was a Scottish philosopher and mathematician. Today regarded as one of the most important figures of the later Scottish Enlightenment, he was renowned as a populariser of the work of Francis Hut ...
's (1753–1828) successor at Edinburgh and who would be a major influence on later philosophers including
John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, Member of Parliament (MP) and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of classical liberalism, he contributed widely to ...
. In contrast to Hume,
Thomas Reid Thomas Reid (; 7 May ( O.S. 26 April) 1710 – 7 October 1796) was a religiously trained Scottish philosopher. He was the founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense and played an integral role in the Scottish Enlightenment. In 1783 he wa ...
(1710–96), a student of Turnbull's, along with minister George Campbell (1719–96) and writer and moralist James Beattie (1735–1803), formulated Common Sense Realism. Reid set out his theories in ''An Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense'' (1764). This approach argued that there are certain concepts, such as human existence, the existence of solid objects and some basic moral "first principles", that are intrinsic to the make up of man and from which all subsequent arguments and systems of morality must be derived. It can be seen as an attempt to reconcile the new scientific developments of the Enlightenment with religious belief.Paul C. Gutjahr, ''Charles Hodge: Guardian of American Orthodoxy'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011), ), p. 39.


Literature

Major literary figures originating in Scotland in this period included
James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 (New Style, N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the Englis ...
(1740–95), whose ''An Account of Corsica'' (1768) and '' The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides'' (1785) drew on his extensive travels and whose ''
Life of Samuel Johnson Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy tran ...
'' (1791) is a major source on one of the English Enlightenment's major men of letters and his circle. Allan Ramsay (1686–1758) laid the foundations of a reawakening of interest in older Scottish literature, as well as leading the trend for pastoral poetry, helping to develop the
Habbie stanza The Burns stanza is a verse form named after the Scottish poet Robert Burns, who used it in some fifty poems. It was not, however, invented by Burns, and prior to his use of it was known as the standard Habbie, after the piper Habbie Simpson (1550 ...
as a
poetic form Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in a ...
. The lawyer
Henry Home, Lord Kames Henry Home, Lord Kames (169627 December 1782) was a Scottish writer, philosopher, advocate, judge, and agricultural improver. A central figure of the Scottish Enlightenment, a founding member of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh, and a ...
(1696–1782) made a major contribution to the study of literature with ''Elements of Criticism'' (1762), which became the standard textbook on rhetoric and style.
Hugh Blair Hugh Blair FRSE (7 April 1718 – 27 December 1800) was a Scottish minister of religion, author and rhetorician, considered one of the first great theorists of written discourse. As a minister of the Church of Scotland, and occupant of the ...
(1718–1800) was a minister of the Church of Scotland and held the Chair of Rhetoric and
Belles Lettres is a category of writing, originally meaning beautiful or fine writing. In the modern narrow sense, it is a label for literary works that do not fall into the major categories such as fiction, poetry, or drama. The phrase is sometimes used pejora ...
at the University of Edinburgh. He produced an edition of the works of
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
and is best known for ''Sermons'' (1777–1801), a five-volume endorsement of practical Christian morality, and Lectures on Rhetoric and ''Belles Lettres'' (1783). The former fused the oratorical arts of humanism with a sophisticated theory on the relationship between cognition and the origins of language. It influenced many leading thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment, including Adam Smith and Dugald Stewart. Blair was one of the figures who first drew attention to the Ossian cycle of
James Macpherson James Macpherson (Gaelic: ''Seumas MacMhuirich'' or ''Seumas Mac a' Phearsain''; 27 October 1736 – 17 February 1796) was a Scottish writer, poet, literary collector and politician, known as the "translator" of the Ossian cycle of epic poem ...
to public attention. Macpherson (1736–96) was the first Scottish poet to gain an international reputation. Claiming to have found poetry written by the ancient bard Ossian, he published "translations" that were proclaimed as a Celtic equivalent of the Classical
epics The Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) is a set of software tools and applications used to develop and implement distributed control systems to operate devices such as particle accelerators, telescopes and other large sci ...
. ''Fingal'', written in 1762, was speedily translated into many European languages, and its appreciation of natural beauty and treatment of the ancient legend has been credited more than any single work with bringing about the Romantic movement in European, and especially in German literature, through its influence on
Johann Gottfried von Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder ( , ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a German philosopher, theologian, poet, and literary critic. He is associated with the Enlightenment, '' Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism. Biography Born in Mohrun ...
and
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as trea ...
. Eventually it became clear that the poems were not direct translations from the Gaelic, but flowery adaptations made to suit the aesthetic expectations of his audience. Before
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...
(1759–96) the most important Scottish language poet was
Robert Fergusson Robert Fergusson (5 September 1750 – 16 October 1774) was a Scottish poet. After formal education at the University of St Andrews, Fergusson led a bohemian life in Edinburgh, the city of his birth, then at the height of intellectual and c ...
(1750–74), who also worked in English. His work often celebrated his native Edinburgh and Enlightenment conviviality, as in his best known poem "Auld Reekie" (1773).G. Carruthers, ''Scottish Literature'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2009), , pp. 53–54. Burns, an Ayrshire poet and lyricist, is now widely regarded as the
national poet A national poet or national bard is a poet held by tradition and popular acclaim to represent the identity, beliefs and principles of a particular national culture. The national poet as culture hero is a long-standing symbo ...
of Scotland and became a major figure in the Romantic movement. As well as making original compositions, Burns also collected
folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...
from across Scotland, often revising or adapting them. Burns's poetry drew upon a substantial familiarity with and knowledge of Classical,
Biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
, and
English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...
, as well as the Scottish
Makar A makar () is a term from Scottish literature for a poet or bard, often thought of as a royal court poet. Since the 19th century, the term ''The Makars'' has been specifically used to refer to a number of poets of fifteenth and sixteenth cen ...
tradition.Robert Burns:
Literary Style
". Retrieved on 24 September 2010.


Economics

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
developed and published ''
The Wealth of Nations ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', generally referred to by its shortened title ''The Wealth of Nations'', is the ''magnum opus'' of the Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith. First published in 1 ...
'', the starting point of modern economics. This study, which had an immediate impact on British
economic policy The economy of governments covers the systems for setting levels of taxation, government budgets, the money supply and interest rates as well as the labour market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the e ...
, still frames discussions on globalisation and
tariff A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and poli ...
s. The book identified land, labour, and capital as the three factors of production and the major contributors to a nation's wealth, as distinct from the
Physiocratic Physiocracy (; from the Greek for "government of nature") is an economic theory developed by a group of 18th-century Age of Enlightenment French economists who believed that the wealth of nations derived solely from the value of "land agricultur ...
idea that only agriculture was productive. Smith discussed potential benefits of specialisation by division of labour, including increased
labour productivity Workforce productivity is the amount of goods and services that a group of workers produce in a given amount of time. It is one of several types of productivity that economists measure. Workforce productivity, often referred to as labor product ...
and
gains from trade In economics, gains from trade are the net benefits to economic agents from being allowed an increase in voluntary trading with each other. In technical terms, they are the increase of consumer surplus plus producer surplus from lower tariffs ...
, whether between town and country or across countries. His "theorem" that "the division of labor is limited by the extent of the market" has been described as the "core of a theory of the functions of firm and
industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...
" and a "fundamental principle of economic organization." In an argument that includes "one of the most famous passages in all economics," Smith represents every individual as trying to employ any capital they might command for their own advantage, not that of the society, and for the sake of profit, which is necessary at some level for employing capital in domestic industry, and positively related to the value of produce. Economists have linked Smith's invisible-hand concept to his concern for the common man and woman through
economic growth Economic growth can be defined as the increase or improvement in the inflation-adjusted market value of the goods and services produced by an economy in a financial year. Statisticians conventionally measure such growth as the percent rate of ...
and
development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development hell, when a project is stuck in development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting *Development (music), the process thematic material is reshaped * Photograph ...
, enabling higher levels of consumption, which Smith describes as "the sole end and purpose of all production."


Sociology and anthropology

Scottish Enlightenment thinkers developed what leading thinkers such as
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (baptised 25 October 1714; died 26 May 1799) was a Scottish judge, scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist. He is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical linguistics. In 176 ...
(1714–99) and Lord Kames called a ''
science of man '' A Treatise of Human Nature: Being an Attempt to Introduce the Experimental Method of Reasoning into Moral Subjects'' (1739–40) is a book by Scottish philosopher David Hume, considered by many to be Hume's most important work and one of the ...
'', which was expressed historically in the work of thinkers such as James Burnett,
Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment. Ferguson was sympathet ...
, John Millar, William Robertson and John Walker, all of whom merged a scientific study of how humans behave in ancient and primitive cultures, with an awareness of the determining forces of
modernity Modernity, a topic in the humanities and social sciences, is both a historical period (the modern era) and the ensemble of particular socio-cultural norm (social), norms, attitudes and practices that arose in the wake of the Renaissancein the " ...
. Modern notions of visual anthropology permeated the lectures of leading Scottish academics like
Hugh Blair Hugh Blair FRSE (7 April 1718 – 27 December 1800) was a Scottish minister of religion, author and rhetorician, considered one of the first great theorists of written discourse. As a minister of the Church of Scotland, and occupant of the ...
, and Alan Swingewood argues that modern sociology largely originated in Scotland. James Burnett is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical
linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...
. He was the first major figure to argue that mankind had evolved language skills in response to his changing environment and social structures.C. Hobbs, ''Rhetoric on the Margins of Modernity: Vico, Condillac, Monboddo'' (SIU Press, 2002), . He was one of a number of scholars involved in the development of early concepts of
evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
and has been credited with anticipating in principle the idea of
natural selection Natural selection is the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in phenotype. It is a key mechanism of evolution, the change in the heritable traits characteristic of a population over generations. Charle ...
that was developed into a
scientific theory A scientific theory is an explanation of an aspect of the natural world and universe that has been repeatedly tested and corroborated in accordance with the scientific method, using accepted protocols of observation, measurement, and evaluatio ...
by
Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...
and Alfred Russel Wallace.


Mathematics, science and medicine

One of the central pillars of the Scottish Enlightenment was scientific and medical knowledge. Many of the key thinkers were trained as physicians or had studied science and medicine at university or on their own at some point in their career. Likewise, there was a notable presence of university medically-trained professionals, especially physicians, apothecaries, surgeons and even ministers, who lived in provincial settings. Unlike England or other European countries like France or Austria, the intelligentsia of Scotland were not beholden to powerful aristocratic patrons and this led them to see science through the eyes of utility, improvement and reform.
Colin Maclaurin Colin Maclaurin (; gd, Cailean MacLabhruinn; February 1698 – 14 June 1746) was a Scottish mathematician who made important contributions to geometry and algebra. He is also known for being a child prodigy and holding the record for bei ...
(1698–1746) was appointed as chair of mathematics by the age of 19 at Marischal College, and was the leading British mathematician of his era. Mathematician and physicist
Sir John Leslie Sir John Leslie, FRSE KH (10 April 1766 – 3 November 1832) was a Scottish mathematician and physicist best remembered for his research into heat. Leslie gave the first modern account of capillary action in 1802 and froze water using an a ...
(1766–1832) is chiefly noted for his experiments with heat and was the first person to artificially create ice. Other major figures in science included
William Cullen William Cullen FRS FRSE FRCPE FPSG (; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and professor at the Edinburgh Medical School. Cullen was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment: He was ...
(1710–90), physician and chemist,
James Anderson James Anderson may refer to: Arts *James Anderson (American actor) (1921–1969), American actor *James Anderson (author) (1936–2007), British mystery writer *James Anderson (English actor) (born 1980), British actor * James Anderson (filmmaker) ...
(1739–1808), agronomist.
Joseph Black Joseph Black (16 April 1728 – 6 December 1799) was a Scottish physicist and chemist, known for his discoveries of magnesium, latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was Professor of Anatomy and Chemistry at the University of Glas ...
(1728–99), physicist and chemist, discovered carbon dioxide (fixed air) and
latent heat Latent heat (also known as latent energy or heat of transformation) is energy released or absorbed, by a body or a thermodynamic system, during a constant-temperature process — usually a first-order phase transition. Latent heat can be underst ...
, and developed what many consider to be the first chemical formulae.
James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June O.S.172614 June 1726 New Style. – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, agriculturalist, chemical manufacturer, naturalist and physician. Often referred to as the father of modern geology, he played a key role i ...
(1726–97) was the first modern
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...
, with his ''Theory of the Earth'' (1795) challenging existing ideas about the age of the earth. His ideas were popularised by the scientist and mathematician
John Playfair John Playfair FRSE, FRS (10 March 1748 – 20 July 1819) was a Church of Scotland minister, remembered as a scientist and mathematician, and a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his book ''Illu ...
(1748–1819). Prior to
James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June O.S.172614 June 1726 New Style. – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, agriculturalist, chemical manufacturer, naturalist and physician. Often referred to as the father of modern geology, he played a key role i ...
, Rev.
David Ure David Ure (1749 – 28 March 1798), was a Scottish geologist. He has been called "the father of Scottish palaeontology"; his book ''The History of Rutherglen and East-Kilbride'' contains the first illustrations of fossils in Scotland. Life Ure wa ...
then minister to East Kilbride Parish was the first to represent the shells 'entrochi' in illustrations and make accounts of the geology of southern Scotland. The findings of
David Ure David Ure (1749 – 28 March 1798), was a Scottish geologist. He has been called "the father of Scottish palaeontology"; his book ''The History of Rutherglen and East-Kilbride'' contains the first illustrations of fossils in Scotland. Life Ure wa ...
were influential enough to inspire the Scottish endeavour to the recording and interpretation of natural history and Fossils, a major part of the Scottish Enlightenment. Edinburgh became a major centre of medical teaching and research.


Significance

Representative of the far-reaching impact of the Scottish Enlightenment was the new ''
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
'', which was designed in Edinburgh by
Colin Macfarquhar Colin Macfarquhar (1744 or 1745? – 2 April 1793 or May 1793, Edinburgh?, Scotland) was a Scottish bookseller and printer who is most known for co-founding ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' with Andrew Bell, first published in December 1768. The da ...
, Andrew Bell and others. It was first published in three volumes between 1768 and 1771, with 2,659 pages and 160 engravings, and quickly became a standard reference work in the English-speaking world. The fourth edition (1810) ran to 16,000 pages in 20 volumes. The ''Encyclopaedia'' continued to be published in Edinburgh until 1898, when it was sold to an American publisher.


Cultural influence

The Scottish Enlightenment had numerous dimensions, influencing the culture of the nation in several areas including architecture, art and music. Scotland produced some of the most significant architects of the period who were involved in the intellectual culture of the Enlightenment.
Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...
(1728–92) was an interior designer as well as an architect, with his brothers developing the
Adam style The Adam style (or Adamesque and "Style of the Brothers Adam") is an 18th-century neoclassical style of interior design and architecture, as practised by Scottish architect William Adam and his sons, of whom Robert (1728–1792) and James (17 ...
, He influenced the development of architecture in Britain, Western Europe,
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
and in Russia.M. Glendinning, R. MacInnes and A. MacKechnie, ''A History of Scottish Architecture: from the Renaissance to the Present Day'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2002), , p. 106. Adam's main rival was William Chambers, another Scot, but born in Sweden. Chambers was appointed architectural tutor to the Prince of Wales, later
George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
, and in 1766, with Robert Adam, as Architect to the King. Artists included John Alexander and his younger contemporary William Mossman (1700–71). They painted many of the figures of early-Enlightenment Edinburgh.M. MacDonald, ''Scottish Art'' (London: Thames and Hudson, 2000), , p. 56. The leading Scottish artist of the late eighteenth century, Allan Ramsay, studied in Sweden, London and Italy before basing himself in Edinburgh, where he established himself as a leading portrait painter to the Scottish nobility and he undertook portraits of many of the major figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, including his friend the philosopher David Hume and the visiting
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...
. Gavin Hamilton (1723–98) spent almost his entire career in Italy and emerged as a pioneering neo-classical painter of historical and mythical themes, including his depictions of scenes from Homer's ''
Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...
'', as well as acting as an informal tutor to British artists and as an early archaeologist and antiquarian. Many of his works can be seen as Enlightenment speculations about the origins of society and politics, including the ''Death of Lucretia'' (1768), an event thought to be critical to the birth of the
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kin ...
. His classicism would be a major influence on French artist
Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in ...
(1748–1825).M. MacDonald, ''Scottish Art'' (London: Thames and Hudson, 2000), , pp. 63–65. The growth of a musical culture in the capital was marked by the incorporation of the Musical Society of Edinburgh in 1728. Scottish composers known to be active in this period include: Alexander Munro (fl. c. 1732), James Foulis (1710–73) and Charles McLean (fl. c. 1737).J. R. Baxter, "Culture, Enlightenment (1660-1843): music", in M. Lynch, ed., ''The Oxford Companion to Scottish History'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), , pp. 140–41.
Thomas Erskine, 6th Earl of Kellie Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...
(1732–81) was one of the most important British composers of his era, and the first Scot known to have produced a
symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...
.N. Wilson, ''Edinburgh'' (Lonely Planet, 3rd edn., 2004), , p. 33. In the mid-eighteenth century, a group of Scottish composers began to respond to Allan Ramsey's call to "own and refine" their own musical tradition, creating what James Johnson has characterised as the "Scots drawing room style", taking primarily Lowland Scottish tunes and adding simple figured basslines and other features from Italian music that made them acceptable to a middle-class audience. It gained momentum when major Scottish composers like James Oswald (1710–69) and William McGibbon (1690–1756) became involved around 1740. Oswald's ''Curious Collection of Scottish Songs'' (1740) was one of the first to include Gaelic tunes alongside Lowland ones, setting a fashion common by the middle of the century and helping to create a unified Scottish musical identity. However, with changing fashions there was a decline in the publication of collections of specifically Scottish collections of tunes, in favour of their incorporation into British collections.


Wider impact

While the Scottish Enlightenment is traditionally considered to have concluded toward the end of the 18th century, disproportionately large Scottish contributions to British science and letters continued for another 50 years or more, thanks to such figures as
Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...
,
James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was fun ...
,
William Murdoch William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock) (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish engineer and inventor. Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engine erector for ten yea ...
,
James Clerk Maxwell James Clerk Maxwell (13 June 1831 – 5 November 1879) was a Scottish mathematician and scientist responsible for the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, which was the first theory to describe electricity, magnetism and ligh ...
,
Lord Kelvin William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, (26 June 182417 December 1907) was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer born in Belfast. Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), Professor of Natural Philoso ...
and
Sir 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' ...
. The influence of the movement spread beyond Scotland across the British Empire, and onto the Continent. The political ideas had an important impact on the founding fathers of the US, which broke away from the empire in 1775. The philosophy of Common Sense Realism was especially influential in 19th century American thought and religion.


Cultural representations

The Scottish dramatist
Robert McLellan Robert McLellan OBE (1907–1985) was a Scottish renaissance dramatist, writer and poet and a leading figure in the twentieth century movement to recover Scotland’s distinctive theatrical traditions. He found popular success with plays and ...
(1907-1985) wrote a number of full-length stage comedies which give a self-conscious representation of Edinburgh at the height of the Scottish enlightenment, most notably '' The Flouers o Edinburgh'' (1957). These plays include references to many of the figures historically associated with the movement and satirise various social tensions, particularly in the field of spoken language, between traditional society and anglicised Scots who presented themselves as exponents of so-called 'new manners'. Other later examples include '' Young Auchinleck'' (1962), a stage portrait of the young
James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 (New Style, N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the Englis ...
, and ''
The Hypocrite ''The Hypocrite'' is a 1768 comic play by the Irish writer Isaac Bickerstaffe. It is a reworking of the 1717 play '' The Non-Juror'' by Colley Cibber, itself inspired by Molière's ''Tartuffe''. The original play had derived much of its humour f ...
'' (1967) which draws attention to conservative religious reaction in the country that threatened to check enlightenment trends. McLellan's picture of these tensions in
nation A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or society. A nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined by those ...
al terms is complex, even-handed and multi-faceted.


Key figures

* William Adam (1689–1748) architect * John Adam (1721–1792) architect *
Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...
(1728–1792) architect and artist * James Adam (1732–1794) architect and designer * Archibald Alison (1757–1839) essayist * David Allan (1744–1796) painter and illustrator *
James Anderson James Anderson may refer to: Arts *James Anderson (American actor) (1921–1969), American actor *James Anderson (author) (1936–2007), British mystery writer *James Anderson (English actor) (born 1980), British actor * James Anderson (filmmaker) ...
(1662–1728) lawyer, antiquary and historian *
James Anderson James Anderson may refer to: Arts *James Anderson (American actor) (1921–1969), American actor *James Anderson (author) (1936–2007), British mystery writer *James Anderson (English actor) (born 1980), British actor * James Anderson (filmmaker) ...
(1739–1808) agronomist, lawyer * John Arbuthnot (1667–1735) physician, satirist and polymath * John Armstrong (1709–1779) physician, poet and satirist *
Joanna Baillie Joanna Baillie (11 September 1762 – 23 February 1851) was a Scottish poet and dramatist, known for such works as ''Plays on the Passions'' (three volumes, 1798–1812) and ''Fugitive Verses'' (1840). Her work shows an interest in moral philoso ...
(1762–1851) poet and dramatist *
George Husband Baird George Husband Baird FRSE FSAScot (13 July 1761 – 14 January 1840) was a Scottish minister, educational reformer, linguist and the Principal of the University of Edinburgh from 1793 to 1840. In 1800 he served as Moderator of the Church of Sc ...
(1761–1840) minister, educational reformer and linguist * James Beattie (1735–1803) philosopher and poet * Andrew Bell (1753–1832) priest and educationalist *
Sir Charles Bell Sir Charles Bell (12 November 177428 April 1842) was a Scottish surgeon, anatomist, physiologist, neurologist, artist, and philosophical theologian. He is noted for discovering the difference between sensory nerves and motor nerves in the s ...
(1774–1842) surgeon, physiologist and neurologist * Henry Bell (1767–1830) engineer * John Bell of Antermony (1691–1780) doctor and traveller *
Joseph Black Joseph Black (16 April 1728 – 6 December 1799) was a Scottish physicist and chemist, known for his discoveries of magnesium, latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was Professor of Anatomy and Chemistry at the University of Glas ...
(1728–1799) physicist and chemist, first to isolate carbon dioxide * Thomas Blackwell (1701–1757) classical scholar and historian *
William Blackwood William Blackwood (20 November 177616 September 1834) was a Scottish publisher who founded the firm of William Blackwood and Sons. Life Blackwood was born in Edinburgh on 20 November 1776. At the age of 14 he was apprenticed to a firm of book ...
(1776–1834) publisher, founder of Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine *
Hugh Blair Hugh Blair FRSE (7 April 1718 – 27 December 1800) was a Scottish minister of religion, author and rhetorician, considered one of the first great theorists of written discourse. As a minister of the Church of Scotland, and occupant of the ...
(1718–1800) minister, author *
Sir Gilbert Blane of Blanefield, 1st Baronet ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English language, English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist i ...
(1749–1834) physician *
James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 (New Style, N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the Englis ...
(1740–1795) lawyer, author of ''
Life of Johnson Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy tran ...
'' *
John Broadwood John Broadwood (6 October 1732 – 17 July 1812) was the Scottish founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons. Life Broadwood was born 6 October 1732 and christened 15 Oct 1732 at St Helens, Cockburnspath in Berwickshire, and grew up in ...
(1732–1812) piano manufacturer * Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778–1868) Englishman born, educated and active in Edinburgh, advocate, journalist and statesman * Robert Brown (1773–1858) botanist * Thomas Brown (1778–1820) philosopher *
James Bruce James Bruce of Kinnaird (14 December 1730 – 27 April 1794) was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who confirmed the source of the Blue Nile. He spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Ethiopia and in 1770 became the first Eur ...
of Kinnaird (1730–1794) African explorer *
James Daniel (Yakov) Bruce James Daniel (born January 17, 1953) is a former American football coach. He most recently served as the tight ends coach for the National Football League (NFL)'s Pittsburgh Steelers. Biography College career Daniel was a 4-year letter winne ...
(1669–1735) Moscow-born Scot, Count of the Russian Empire, statesman, general, diplomat and scientist * Patrick Brydone (1736–1818) traveller and author * David Steuart Erskine, 11th Earl of Buchan (1742–1829) founder of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland *
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...
(1759–1796) poet *
John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, (; 25 May 1713 – 10 March 1792), styled Lord Mount Stuart between 1713 and 1723, was a British nobleman who served as the 7th Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1762 to 1763 under George III. He was arguabl ...
(1713–1792) politician, botanist, literary and artistic patron, first President of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland * Charles Cameron (1746–1812) architect, active in Russia * George Campbell (1719–1796) philosopher * Thomas Campbell (1777–1844) poet *
Alexander Carlyle Alexander Carlyle MA DD FRSE (26 January 172228 August 1805) was a Scottish church leader, and autobiographer. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1770/71. Life He was born on 26 January 1722 in the m ...
(1722–1805) church leader and autobiographer *
Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...
(1795–1881) historian and philosopher *
Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...
(1780–1847) minister and political economist *
Sir William Chambers __NOTOC__ Sir William Chambers (23 February 1723 – 10 March 1796) was a Swedish-Scottish architect, based in London. Among his best-known works are Somerset House, and the pagoda at Kew. Chambers was a founder member of the Royal Academy. Bio ...
(1723–1796) architect *
John Cleland John Cleland (c. 1709, baptised – 23 January 1789) was an English novelist best known for his fictional '' Fanny Hill: or, the Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure'', whose eroticism led to his arrest. James Boswell called him "a sly, old malcont ...
(1709–1789) writer, author of ''Fanny Hill'' * Sir John Clerk of Penicuik, 2nd Baronet (1676–1755) politician, lawyer, judge and antiquary * Sir John Clerk of Eldin (1728–1812) artist, navalist *
John Clerk, Lord Eldin John Clerk, Lord Eldin FRSE FSA (1757– 30 May1832) was a Scottish judge based in Edinburgh. Life He was the eldest son of Susannah Adam, the sister of John Adam and Robert Adam, and John Clerk of Eldin. He was born in April 1757 in Edinburgh ...
(1757–1832) advocate, judge and collector * Archibald David Constable (1774–1827) publisher * William Cruickshank (c 1740-1810/1) chemist * James Craig (1739–1795) architect, designer of the Edinburgh New Town *
William Cullen William Cullen FRS FRSE FRCPE FPSG (; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and professor at the Edinburgh Medical School. Cullen was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment: He was ...
(1710–1790) physician, chemist, medical researcher *
David Dale David Dale (6 January 1739–7 March 1806) was a leading Scottish industrialist, merchant and philanthropist during the Scottish Enlightenment period at the end of the 18th century. He was a successful entrepreneur in a number of areas, m ...
(1739–1806) industrialist, merchant and philanthropist *
Alexander Dalrymple Alexander Dalrymple FRS (24 July 1737 – 19 June 1808) was a Scottish geographer and the first Hydrographer of the British Admiralty. He was the main proponent of the theory that there existed a vast undiscovered continent in the South P ...
(1737–1808) geographer *
James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount Stair (May 1619 – 29 November 1695), Scottish lawyer and statesman, and a key influence on the Scottish Enlightenment. He was a leading figure of Scottish law, “and also one of the greatest thinkers on law ...
(1619-1695) lawyer and statesman * Sir Alexander Dick, 3rd Baronet of Prestonfield (1703–1785) doctor, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh * Sir Robert Douglas of Glenbervie, 6th Baronet (1694 – 1770) genealogist *
Alexander Dow Alexander Dow (1735/6, Perthshire, Scotland – 31 July 1779, Bhagalpur) was a Scottish Orientalist, writer, playwright and army officer in the East India Company. Life He was a native of Crieff, Perthshire. Alexander Dow's father worked at th ...
(1735/6 – 1779) writer and Orientalist *
George Drummond George Drummond (1688–1766) was accountant-general of excise in Scotland and a local politician, elected Lord Provost of Edinburgh a number of times between 1725 and 1764. Life Drummond was born at Newton Castle in Blairgowrie, Perthshire ...
(1688–1766) accountant-general and politician, Lord Provost of Edinburgh *
James Elphinston James Elphinston (December 6, 1721 – October 8, 1809) was a well noted 18th-century Scottish educator, orthographer, phonologist and linguistics expert. Life Elphinston was a good friend of Samuel Johnson as stated in ''Life of Samuel ...
(1721–1809) educator and linguist *
Robert Erskine (doctor) Robert Erskine FRS (1677–1718) was a Scottish physician remembered as an advisor to Tsar Peter the Great. He became one of the Tsar's most powerful advisors.Robert 2009, p. 53 He was known in Russia as Robert Karlovich Areskin. Life He was b ...
(1677–1718) doctor and naturalist, head and reformer of Russian medicine, compiled first herbarium in Russia and discovered mineral waters * Henry Erskine (1746–1817) advocate and politician *
Henry Farquharson Henry Farquharson (1675 – 19 December 1739) was a teacher who pioneered the study of mathematics in Russia. He was recruited by Peter the Great, who sought to introduce Western ideas and technology into Russia. He moved to Moscow where he estab ...
(c.1675–1739) mathematician, active in Russia where he introduced Arabic numerals and logarithms *
Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment. Ferguson was sympathet ...
(1723–1816) considered the founder of sociology *
James Ferguson James Ferguson may refer to: Entertainment * Jim Ferguson (born 1948), American jazz and classical guitarist * Jim Ferguson, American guitarist, past member of Lotion * Jim Ferguson, American movie critic, Board of Directors member for the Broadca ...
(1710–1776) astronomer and instrument maker *
Robert Fergusson Robert Fergusson (5 September 1750 – 16 October 1774) was a Scottish poet. After formal education at the University of St Andrews, Fergusson led a bohemian life in Edinburgh, the city of his birth, then at the height of intellectual and c ...
(1750–1774) poet * Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1653–1716) forerunner of the Scottish Enlightenment, writer, patriot, commissioner of Parliament of Scotland *
George Fordyce George Fordyce (18 November 1736 – 25 May 1802) was a distinguished Scotland, Scottish physician, lecturer on medicine, and chemist, who was a Fellow of the Royal Society and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. Early life George Fo ...
(1736–1802) physician and chemist * Andrew Foulis (1712–1775) printer * Robert Foulis (1707–1776) printer and publisher *
John Galt John Galt () is a character in Ayn Rand's novel ''Atlas Shrugged'' (1957). Although he is not identified by name until the last third of the novel, he is the object of its often-repeated question "Who is John Galt?" and of the quest to discover ...
(1779–1839) novelist *
Alexander Gerard Alexander Gerard FRSE (1728 –1795) was a Scottish minister, academic and philosophical writer. In 1764 he was the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. Life He was born on 22 February 1728, the son of Gilbert Gera ...
(1728–1795) minister, academic and philosophical writer *
James Gillray James Gillray (13 August 1756Gillray, James and Draper Hill (1966). ''Fashionable contrasts''. Phaidon. p. 8.Baptism register for Fetter Lane (Moravian) confirms birth as 13 August 1756, baptism 17 August 1756 1June 1815) was a British caricatur ...
(1756–1815) caricaturist and printmaker *
Walter Goodall Walter Goodall (1706? – 1766) was a Scottish historical writer, born in Banffshire, and educated at King's College, University of Aberdeen. Later he became assistant librarian to the Advocates' Library in Edinburgh. In 1754 Goodall publi ...
(1706?–1766) historical writer *
Alexander Gordon Alexander Gordon may refer to: * Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly (died 1470), Scottish magnate * Alexander Gordon (bishop of Aberdeen) (died 1518), Precentor of Moray and Bishop-elect of Aberdeen * Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly (died ...
of Auchintoul (1669/70–1752) general and memoirist *
Alexander Gordon Alexander Gordon may refer to: * Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly (died 1470), Scottish magnate * Alexander Gordon (bishop of Aberdeen) (died 1518), Precentor of Moray and Bishop-elect of Aberdeen * Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly (died ...
(1692?–1755) antiquary and singer *
Thomas Gordon (writer) Thomas Gordon () was a Scottish writer and Commonwealthman. Along with John Trenchard, he published ''The Independent Whig'', which was a weekly periodical. From 1720 to 1723, Trenchard and Gordon wrote a series of 144 essays entitled ''Cato's ...
(c.1691–1750) writer and translator from Latin * Thomas Gordon (1714–1797) philosopher, mathematician and antiquarian * John Gregory (1724–1773) physician, medical writer and moralist * John Grieve (1753–1805) physician *
Matthew Guthrie Matthew Guthrie FRS, FRSE, FSA, FRSA (1743 – 30 August 1807) was a Scottish physician, mineralogist and traveller who rose to be councillor to the Russian royal family. He made extensive studies of Russian history and folklore, and did much ...
(1743–1807) physician, mineralogist and traveller * Sir David Dalrymple, Lord Hailes (1726–1792) advocate, judge and historian *
Sir James Hall, 4th Baronet Sir James Hall of Dunglass, 4th Baronet FRS FRSE (17 January 1761 – 23 June 1832) was a Scottish geologist and geophysicist. He was a Member of Parliament for St. Michael's borough (Mitchell, Cornwall) 1807–1812. Education Hall was born at D ...
(1761–1832) geologist, geophysicist *
Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...
(1739–1802) physician * Gavin Hamilton (1723–1798) painter and archaeologist * Sir William Hamilton (1730–1803) diplomat, antiquarian, archaeologist and vulcanologist *
Matthew Hardie Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...
(1755–1826) violin maker, called the 'Scottish Stradivari' *
James Hogg James Hogg (1770 – 21 November 1835) was a Scottish poet, novelist and essayist who wrote in both Scots and English. As a young man he worked as a shepherd and farmhand, and was largely self-educated through reading. He was a friend of many ...
(1770–1835) writer, author of ''The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner'' * Francis Home (1719–1813) physician * John Home (1722–1808) minister and writer, author of ''Douglas'' * John Hope (1725–1786) physician and botanist *
Francis Horner Francis Horner FRSE (12 August 1778 – 8 February 1817) was a Scottish Whig politician, journalist, lawyer and political economist. Early life: 1778–1807 He was born in Edinburgh the son of John Horner a linen merchant and his wife Joanna ...
(1778–1817) politician, lawyer and political economist * John Hunter (1728–1793) surgeon * William Hunter (1718–1783) anatomist, physician *
David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment philo ...
(1711–1776) philosopher, historian and essayist * Francis Hutcheson (1694–1746) philosopher *
James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June O.S.172614 June 1726 New Style. – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, agriculturalist, chemical manufacturer, naturalist and physician. Often referred to as the father of modern geology, he played a key role i ...
(1726–1797) founder of modern geology *
John Jamieson John Jamieson (3 March 1759 – 12 July 1838) was a Scottish minister of religion, lexicographer, philologist and antiquary. His most important work is the ''Dictionary of the Scottish Language''. Life He was born in Glasgow in March 1759 the ...
(1759–1838) minister, philologist and antiquary *
Robert Jameson Robert Jameson Robert Jameson FRS FRSE (11 July 1774 – 19 April 1854) was a Scottish naturalist and mineralogist. As Regius Professor of Natural History at the University of Edinburgh for fifty years, developing his predecessor John ...
(1774–1854) Scottish naturalist and mineralogist *
Francis Jeffrey, Lord Jeffrey Francis Jeffrey, Lord Jeffrey (23 October 1773 – 26 January 1850) was a Scottish judge and literary critic. Life He was born at 7 Charles Street near Potterow in south Edinburgh, the son of George Jeffrey, a clerk in the Court of Sessi ...
(1773–1850) advocate, journalist and literary critic, founder of the Edinburgh Review *
Henry Home, Lord Kames Henry Home, Lord Kames (169627 December 1782) was a Scottish writer, philosopher, advocate, judge, and agricultural improver. A central figure of the Scottish Enlightenment, a founding member of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh, and a ...
(1696–1782) philosopher, judge, historian and agricultural improver * John Kay (1742–1826) caricaturist and engraver *
James Keir James Keir FRS (20 September 1735 – 11 October 1820) was a Scottish chemist, geologist, industrialist, and inventor, and an important member of the Lunar Society of Birmingham. Life and work Keir was born in Stirlingshire, Scotland, in ...
(1735 – 1820) chemist, geologist, industrialist and inventor *
Thomas Alexander Erskine, 6th Earl of Kellie Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...
(1732–1781) composer and virtuoso violinist *
John Law John Law may refer to: Arts and entertainment * John Law (artist) (born 1958), American artist * John Law (comics), comic-book character created by Will Eisner * John Law (film director), Hong Kong film director * John Law (musician) (born 1961) ...
of Lauriston (1671–1729) economist, banker, active in France *
Sir John Leslie Sir John Leslie, FRSE KH (10 April 1766 – 3 November 1832) was a Scottish mathematician and physicist best remembered for his research into heat. Leslie gave the first modern account of capillary action in 1802 and froze water using an a ...
(1766–1832) mathematician, physicist *
James Lind James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish doctor. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting one of the first ever clinical trials, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. Lind ...
(1716–1794) doctor, pioneer of naval hygiene *
James Lind James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish doctor. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting one of the first ever clinical trials, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. Lind ...
(1736–1812) naturalist and physician * Charles Lyell (botanist) (1767–1849) botanist and translator of Dante * John Loudon MacAdam (1756–1836) engineer and road-builder *
Zachary Macaulay Zachary Macaulay ( gd, Sgàire MacAmhlaoibh; 2 May 1768 – 13 May 1838) was a Scottish statistician and abolitionist who was a founder of London University and of the Society for the Suppression of Vice, and a Governor of British Sierra Leone ...
(1768–1838) statistician, abolitionist *
Colin Macfarquhar Colin Macfarquhar (1744 or 1745? – 2 April 1793 or May 1793, Edinburgh?, Scotland) was a Scottish bookseller and printer who is most known for co-founding ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' with Andrew Bell, first published in December 1768. The da ...
(1745?–1793) printer, co-founder of the Encyclopædia Britannica *
Sir Alexander Mackenzie Sir Alexander Mackenzie (or MacKenzie, gd, Alasdair MacCoinnich; – 12 March 1820) was a Scottish explorer known for accomplishing the first crossing of America north of Mexico in 1793. The Mackenzie River is named after him. Early life ...
(1764–1820) explorer of North America *
Henry Mackenzie Henry Mackenzie FRSE (August 1745 – 14 January 1831, born and died in Edinburgh) was a Scottish lawyer, novelist and writer sometimes seen as the Addison of the North. While remembered mostly as an author, his main income came from legal rol ...
(1745–1831) lawyer and writer * Charles Mackie (1688–1770) first Professor of History at Edinburgh University and in the British Isles *
Sir James Mackintosh Sir James Mackintosh FRS FRSE (24 October 1765 – 30 May 1832) was a Scottish jurist, Whig politician and Whig historian. His studies and sympathies embraced many interests. He was trained as a doctor and barrister, and worked also as a jo ...
(1765–1832) jurist, politician and historian *
Charles Macintosh Charles Macintosh FRS (29 December 1766 – 25 July 1843) was a Scottish chemist and the inventor of the modern waterproof raincoat. The Mackintosh raincoat (the variant spelling is now standard) is named after him. Biography Macintosh was ...
(1766–1843) chemist, inventor of waterproof fabrics *
Colin Maclaurin Colin Maclaurin (; gd, Cailean MacLabhruinn; February 1698 – 14 June 1746) was a Scottish mathematician who made important contributions to geometry and algebra. He is also known for being a child prodigy and holding the record for bei ...
(1698–1746) mathematician *
James Macpherson James Macpherson (Gaelic: ''Seumas MacMhuirich'' or ''Seumas Mac a' Phearsain''; 27 October 1736 – 17 February 1796) was a Scottish writer, poet, literary collector and politician, known as the "translator" of the Ossian cycle of epic poem ...
(1736–1796) writer, author of ''Ossian'' * David Mallet (Malloch) (c.1705–1765) writer *
Francis Masson Francis Masson (August 1741 – 23 December 1805) was a Scottish botanist and gardener, and Kew Gardens’ first plant hunter. Life Masson was born in Aberdeen. In the 1760s, he went to work at Kew Gardens as an under-gardener. Masson ...
(1741–1805) botanist *
William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, PC, SL (2 March 170520 March 1793) was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland, before moving to Lond ...
(1705–1793) jurist, judge and politician *
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, PC, FRSE (28 April 1742 – 28 May 1811), styled as Lord Melville from 1802, was the trusted lieutenant of British Prime Minister William Pitt and the most powerful politician in Scotland in the late 18t ...
(1742–1811) advocate and statesman *
Andrew Meikle Andrew Meikle (5 May 1719 – 27 November 1811) was a Scottish mechanical engineer credited with inventing the threshing machine, a device used to remove the outer husks from grains of wheat. He also had a hand in assisting Firbeck in the inve ...
(1719–1811) engineer and inventor *
Adam Menelaws Adam Menelaws, also spelled Menelas (born between 1748 and 1756, presumably in Edinburgh – died 31 August 1831 in Saint Petersburg, russian: Адам Адамович Менелас) was an architect and landscape designer of Scottish origin, ...
(1749/56–1831) architect, active in Russia *
James Mill James Mill (born James Milne; 6 April 1773 – 23 June 1836) was a Scottish historian, economist, political theorist, and philosopher. He is counted among the founders of the Ricardian school of economics. He also wrote ''The History of Brit ...
(1773–1836) philosopher *
Andrew Millar Andrew Millar (17058 June 1768) was a British publisher in the eighteenth century. Biography In 1725, as a twenty-year-old bookseller apprentice, he evaded Edinburgh city printing restrictions by going to Leith to print, which was considered be ...
(1705–1768) publisher * John Millar (1735–1801) philosopher, historian *
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (baptised 25 October 1714; died 26 May 1799) was a Scottish judge, scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist. He is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical linguistics. In 176 ...
(1714–1799) judge, founder of modern comparative historical linguistics * Alexander Monro I (1697–1767) physician, founder of Edinburgh Medical School * Alexander Monro II of Craiglockhart and Cockburn (1733–1817) anatomist, physician * John Monro of Auchinbowie (1725–1789) advocate *
Jacob More Jacob More (1740–1793) was a Scottish landscape painter. Biography Jacob More was born in 1740 in Edinburgh. He studied landscape and decorative painting with James Norie's firm. He took the paintings of Gaspard Dughet and Claude Lorrain a ...
(1740–1793) painter *
James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton, KT, PRS (1702 – 12 October 1768) was a Scottish astronomer and representative peer who was president of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh from its foundation in 1737 until his death. He also became ...
(1702–1768) astronomer, patron of science, President of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh and of the Royal Society *
James Mounsey James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...
(1709/10–1773) physician and naturalist * Thomas Muir of Huntershill (1765–1799) political reformer *
William Murdoch William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock) (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish engineer and inventor. Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engine erector for ten yea ...
(1754–1839) engineer and inventor * Alexander Murray (1775–1813) minister and philologist * John Murray (1778–1843) publisher * Carolina Nairne Lady Nairne, née Oliphant (1766–1845) writer and song collector * William Napier (c.1741–1812) musician and music publisher * William Nicholson (1782–1849) poet *
Alexander Nisbet Alexander Nisbet (bapt. 23 March 1657; died 7 Dec. 1725) was a Scottish lawyer and antiquarian. He is remembered for his works on the subject of heraldry, which are generally considered to be some of the most complete and authoritative ever pr ...
(1657-1725) lawyer, antiquarian and heraldist *
William Ogilvie of Pittensear William Ogilvie of Pittensear FRSE FSA(Scot) (1736-1819), known as the Rebel Professor and described by his biographer as the ''Euclid of Land law Reform', was a Scottish classicist, numismatist and author of an influential historic land ref ...
(1736–1819) classicist, numismatist and land reformer * James Oswald (1710–1769) composer, cellist and music publisher * Mungo Park (1771–1806) explorer of West Africa *
Thomas Pennant Thomas Pennant (14 June Old Style, OS 172616 December 1798) was a Welsh natural history, naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian. He was born and lived his whole life at his family estate, Downing Hall near Whitford, Flintshire, in Wales ...
Welsh naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian (1726–1798), whose travel writings and collected pictorial representations of Scotland inspired the 'petit' grand tour fueling philosophical and artistic re-interpretation of landscape appreciation in Scotland. *
John Pinkerton John Pinkerton (17 February 1758 – 10 March 1826) was a Scottish antiquarian, cartographer, author, numismatist, historian, and early advocate of Germanic racial supremacy theory. He was born in Edinburgh, as one of three sons to ...
(1758–1826) antiquarian, cartographer and historian *
Archibald Pitcairne Archibald Pitcairne or Pitcairn (25 December 165220 October 1713) was a Scottish physician. He was a physician and poet who first studied law at Edinburgh and Paris graduating with an M.A. from Edinburgh in 1671. He turned his attent ...
(1652–1713) physician and bibliophile *
John Playfair John Playfair FRSE, FRS (10 March 1748 – 20 July 1819) was a Church of Scotland minister, remembered as a scientist and mathematician, and a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his book ''Illu ...
(1748–1819) mathematician, geologist * James Playfair (1755–1794) architect *
William Playfair William Playfair (22 September 1759 – 11 February 1823), a Scottish engineer and political economist, served as a secret agent on behalf of Great Britain during its war with France. The founder of graphical methods of statistics, Playfai ...
(1759–1823) engineer, political economist, founder of graphical methods of statistics *
Jane Porter Jane Porter (3 December 1775 – 24 May 1850) was an English historical novelist, dramatist and literary figure. Her bestselling novels, ''Thaddeus of Warsaw'' (1803) and ''The Scottish Chiefs'' (1810) are seen as among the earliest historical ...
(1776–1850) historical novelist * Sir Robert Ker Porter (1777–1842) artist, author, diplomat and traveller *
Sir John Pringle, 1st Baronet Sir John Pringle, 1st Baronet (10 April 1707 – 18 January 1782) was a Scottish physician who has been called the "father of military medicine" (although Ambroise Paré and Jonathan Letterman have also been accorded this sobriquet). Biograph ...
(1707–1782) physician * Allan Ramsay (1686–1758) poet * Allan Ramsay (1713–1784) portrait painter *
Andrew Michael Ramsay Andrew Michael Ramsay (9 July 16866 May 1743), commonly called the Chevalier Ramsay, was a Scottish-born writer who lived most of his adult life in France. He was a Baronet in the Jacobite Peerage. Ramsay was born in Ayr, Scotland, the son o ...
(1686–1743) writer, based in France *
Henry Raeburn Sir Henry Raeburn (; 4 March 1756 – 8 July 1823) was a Scottish portrait painter. He served as Portrait Painter to King George IV in Scotland. Biography Raeburn was born the son of a manufacturer in Stockbridge, on the Water of Leith: a f ...
(1756–1823) portrait painter *
Thomas Reid Thomas Reid (; 7 May ( O.S. 26 April) 1710 – 7 October 1796) was a religiously trained Scottish philosopher. He was the founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense and played an integral role in the Scottish Enlightenment. In 1783 he wa ...
(1710–1796) philosopher, founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense * John Rennie (1761–1821) civil engineer * William Richardson (1743–1814) author and literary scholar * William Robertson (1721–1793) historian, minister and Principal of the University of Edinburgh * John Robison (1739–1805) physicist, mathematician and philosopher, first General Secretary of the Royal Society of Edinburgh *
Sir John Ross Sir John Ross (24 June 1777 – 30 August 1856) was a Scottish Royal Navy officer and polar explorer. He was the uncle of Sir James Clark Ross, who explored the Arctic with him, and later led expeditions to Antarctica. Biography Ear ...
(1777–1856) Arctic explorer *
William Roxburgh William Roxburgh FRSE FRCPE Linnean Society of London, FLS (3/29 June 1751 – 18 February 1815) was a Scottish people, Scottish surgeon and botanist who worked extensively in India, describing species and working on economic botany. He is known ...
(1751–1815) surgeon and botanist, founding father of Indian botany *
Thomas Ruddiman Thomas Ruddiman (October 167419 January 1757) was a Scottish classical scholar. Life He was born on a farm near Boyndie, three miles from Banff in Banffshire, where his father was a farmer. He was educated locally, then studied at the Univer ...
(1674–1757) classical scholar *
Alexander Runciman Alexander Runciman (15 August 1736 – 4 October 1785) was a Scottish people, Scottish painter of historical and mythological subjects. He was the elder brother of John Runciman, also a painter. Life He was born in Edinburgh, and studied at ...
(1736–1785) painter *
John Runciman John Runciman (1744 – 1768 or 1769) was a Scotland, Scottish painter known for Biblical and literary scenes. His works include ''Flight into Egypt'' and ''King Lear in the Storm'', both in the National Gallery of Scotland. Life Born in Edinbu ...
(1744–1768/9) painter * John Rutherford (1695–1779) physician *
Daniel Rutherford Daniel Rutherford (3 November 1749 – 15 December 1819) was a Scottish physician, chemist and botanist who is known for the isolation of nitrogen in 1772. Life Rutherford was born on 3 November 1749, the son of Anne Mackay and Professor John ...
(1749–1819) physician, chemist and botanist * Paul Sandby (artist) (1731–1809) English Topographical and landscape painter, among the first to depict Scotland as a place of landscape appreciation in its natural state, influencing Robert Adam and John Clerk of Eldin. *
Sir 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' ...
(1771–1832) novelist, poet * Sir Robert Sibbald (1641–1722) physician and antiquary *
Sir John Sinclair Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster, 1st Baronet, (10 May 1754 – 21 December 1835), was a British politician, a writer on both finance and agriculture, and was one of the first people to use the word '' statistics'' in the English language, in ...
of Ulbster (1754–1835) writer, statistician *
William Skirving William Skirving (c. 1745 – 1796) was one of the five Scottish Martyrs for Liberty. Active in the cause of universal franchise and other reforms inspired by the French Revolution, they were convicted of sedition in 1793–94, and sentenced t ...
(c.1745–1796) political reformer * William Smellie (1740–1795) editor of the first edition of
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
*
Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
(1723–1790) philosopher and political economist *
Sydney Smith Sydney Smith (3 June 1771 – 22 February 1845) was an English wit, writer, and Anglican cleric. Early life and education Born in Woodford, Essex, England, Smith was the son of merchant Robert Smith (1739–1827) and Maria Olier (1750–1801) ...
(1771–1845) English writer, co-founder of ''Edinburgh Review'' *
Tobias Smollett Tobias George Smollett (baptised 19 March 1721 – 17 September 1771) was a Scottish poet and author. He was best known for picaresque novels such as '' The Adventures of Roderick Random'' (1748), '' The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle'' (1751 ...
(1721–1771) writer * Mary Somerville (1780–1872) science writer, astronomer, polymath *
Dugald Stewart Dugald Stewart (; 22 November 175311 June 1828) was a Scottish philosopher and mathematician. Today regarded as one of the most important figures of the later Scottish Enlightenment, he was renowned as a populariser of the work of Francis Hut ...
(1753–1828) philosopher * James Stirling (1692–1770) mathematician *
Sir Robert Strange Sir Robert Strange (14 July 1721 – 5 July 1792) was a Scottish engraver. A Jacobite, he spent periods out of Great Britain, but was eventually reconciled to the Hanoverian succession and was knighted by George III. Early life The eldest son ...
(1721–1792) engraver *
Gilbert Stuart Gilbert Charles Stuart ( Stewart; December 3, 1755 – July 9, 1828) was an American painter from Rhode Island Colony who is widely considered one of America's foremost portraitists. His best-known work is an unfinished portrait of George Washi ...
(1742–1786) journalist and historian *
William Symington William Symington (1764–1831) was a Scottish engineer and inventor, and the builder of the first practical steamboat, the Charlotte Dundas. Early life Symington was born in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, to a family he described as ...
(1764–1831) engineer, inventor, builder of the first practical steamboat *
Robert Tannahill Robert Tannahill (3 June 1774 – 17 May 1810) was a Scottish poet of labouring class origin. Known as the 'Weaver Poet', he wrote poetry in English and lyrics in Scots in the wake of Robert Burns. Life Robert Tannahill was born in Castle St ...
(1774–1810) poet *
James Tassie James Tassie (1735–1799) was a Scottish gem engraver and modeller. He is remembered for a particular style of miniature medallion heads, portraying the profiles of the rich and famous of Britain, and for making and selling large numbers of "T ...
(1735–1799) gem engraver and modeller *
Thomas Telford Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotla ...
(1757–1834) civil engineer and architect * James Thomson (1700–1748) poet, author of ''The Seasons'' * George Thomson (1757–1851) collector and publisher of the music of Scotland * Thomas Trotter (1760–1832) physician * George Turnbull (1698–1748) theologian, philosopher and writer on education *
William Tytler William Tytler WS FRSE (1711–1792) was a Scottish lawyer, known as a historical writer. He wrote ''An Inquiry into the Evidence against Mary Queen of Scots'', against the views of William Robertson. He discovered the manuscript the ''"Kingis Q ...
(1711–1792) lawyer and historian * Alexander Fraser Tytler, Lord Woodhouselee (1747–1813) advocate, judge, writer and historian *
David Ure David Ure (1749 – 28 March 1798), was a Scottish geologist. He has been called "the father of Scottish palaeontology"; his book ''The History of Rutherglen and East-Kilbride'' contains the first illustrations of fossils in Scotland. Life Ure wa ...
(1750–1798) Reverend, Natural History and History, 1st Statistical Account. First to represent entrochi for Scotland and appreciate Scottish natural history in any detail in History of Rutherglen & East Kilbride, 1793. * Richard Waitt (died 1732) painter *
John Walker (naturalist) John Walker FRSE (1731–1803) was a Scottish minister and natural historian. He was Regius Professor of Natural history at the University of Edinburgh from 1779 to 1803. He was joint founder of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1783 and ...
(1731–1803) minister and natural historian *
James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was fun ...
(1736–1819) inventor of a more efficient, practical steam engine *
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(1742–1798) a Founding Father of the United States, signer of ''US Declaration of Independence'' *
John Witherspoon John Witherspoon (February 5, 1723 – November 15, 1794) was a Scottish-American Presbyterian minister, educator, farmer, slaveholder, and a Founding Father of the United States. Witherspoon embraced the concepts of Scottish common sense real ...
(1723–1794) a Founding Father of the United States, signer of ''US Declaration of Independence'' Plus those who visited and corresponded with Scottish scholars: * Alexander James Dallas (1759–1817) American statesman * Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802) English physician, botanist, philosopher, grandfather of
Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...
* Semyon Efimovich Desnitsky (c. 1740–1789) native of Ukraine, University of Glasgow graduate, "Father of Russian jurisprudence" *
Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...
(1706–1790) polymath, one of the
Founding Fathers of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, known simply as the Founding Fathers or Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colonies, oversaw the Am ...
* Princess Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova (1743–1810) Director of the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St Petersburg, first President of the Russian Academy


See also

*
American Enlightenment The American Enlightenment was a period of intellectual ferment in the thirteen American colonies in the 18th to 19th century, which led to the American Revolution, and the creation of the United States of America. The American Enlightenment was ...
*
John Amyatt John Amyatt FRSE was an English chemist. He was appointed King's Chemist on 24 October 1776 and the office was abolished on 14 November 1782. Amyatt, described as "a very sensible and agreeable English gentleman", is remembered for one of the mo ...
* Books in the "Famous Scots Series" *
Industrial Revolution in Scotland The Industrial Revolution in Scotland was the transition to new manufacturing processes and economic expansion between the mid-eighteenth century and the late nineteenth century. By the start of the eighteenth century, a political union between Sc ...


References


Further reading

* Allan, David, ''Virtue, Learning and the Scottish Enlightenment: Ideas of Scholarship in Early Modern History'', Edinburgh University Press, 1993, . * Amrozowicz, Michael C. " Scottish Enlightenment Histories of Social Organization " ''Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture'' Volume 48, 2019 pp. 161–186 10.1353/sec.2019.0011 * Berry, C. J., ''Social Theory Of The Scottish Enlightenment'', Edinburgh University Press 1997, . * Broadie, Alexander. ''The Scottish Enlightenment: The Historical Age of the Historical Nation.''
Birlinn The birlinn ( gd, bìrlinn) or West Highland galley was a wooden vessel propelled by sail and oar, used extensively in the Hebrides and West Highlands of Scotland from the Middle Ages on. Variants of the name in English and Lowland Scots inclu ...
2002. Paperback: , . * Broadie, Alexander, ed. ''The Cambridge Companion to the Scottish Enlightenment.'' (Cambridge Companions to Philosophy)
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...
, 2003. . * Bruce, Duncan A. ''The Mark of the Scots: Their Astonishing Contributions to History, Science, Democracy, Literature, and the Arts.'' 1996. Hardcover: , . Citadel,
Kensington Books Kensington Publishing Corp. is an American, New York-based publishing house founded in 1974 by Walter Zacharius (1923–2011)Grimes, William"Walter Zacharius, Romance Publisher, Dies at 87,"''New York Times'' (MARCH 7, 2011). and Roberta Bender G ...
, 2000. Paperback: , . * Buchan, James ''Crowded With Genius: Edinburgh's Moment of the Mind.'' (Harper Perennial, 2004). . * Campbell, R. H. and Andrew S. Skinner, eds. ''The Origins and Nature of the Scottish Enlightenment'' (1982), 12 essays by scholars, esp. on history of science * Daiches, David, Peter Jones and Jean Jones. ''A Hotbed of Genius: The Scottish Enlightenment, 1730–1790'' (1986), 170 pp; well-illustrated introduction * Derry, J. F. ''Darwin in Scotland: Edinburgh, Evolution and Enlightenment.'' Whittles Publishing, 2009. Paperback: . * Daiches, David, Peter Jones, Jean Jones (eds). ''A Hotbed of Genius: The Scottish Enlightenment 1731–1790.'' (Edinburgh University Press, 1986); * Dunyach, Jean-François and Ann Thomson, eds. ''The Enlightenment in Scotland: national and international perspectives'' (2015) * Eddy, Matthew Daniel. ''The Language of Mineralogy: John Walker, Chemistry and the Edinburgh Medical School, 1750–1800'' (2008). * Goldie, Mark. "The Scottish Catholic Enlightenment," ''The Journal of British Studies'' Vol. 30, No. 1 (Jan. 1991), pp. 20–6
in JSTOR
* Graham, Gordon. "Morality and Feeling in the Scottish Enlightenment," ''Philosophy'' Vol. 76, No. 296 (Apr. 2001), pp. 271–8
in JSTOR
* Herman, Arthur. '' How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World & Everything in It'' (Crown Publishing Group, 2001), . * Hook, Andrew (ed.) The History of Scottish Literature. Vol. 2. 1660–1800 (Aberdeen, 1987). * Israel, Jonathan "Scottish Enlightenment and Man's 'Progress'" ch 9 in ''Democratic Enlightenment: Philosophy, Revolution, and Human Rights 1750–1790'' (2011) pp. 233–6
excerpt and text search
* Lenman, Bruce P. ''Enlightenment and Change: Scotland 1746–1832'' (2nd ed. The New History of Scotland Series. Edinburgh University Press, 2009). 280 pp. ; 1st edition also published under the titles ''Integration, Enlightenment, and Industrialization: Scotland, 1746–1832'' (1981) and ''Integration and Enlightenment: Scotland, 1746–1832'' (1992); general survey * Scott, Paul H. (ed.) Scotland. A Concise Cultural History (Edinburgh, 1993). * Swingewood, Alan. "Origins of Sociology: The Case of the Scottish Enlightenment," ''The British Journal of Sociology,'' Vol. 21, No. 2 (Jun., 1970), pp. 164–8
in JSTOR
* Towsey, Mark R. M. ''Reading the Scottish Enlightenment: Books and Their Readers in Provincial Scotland, 1750–1820'' (2010)


Primary sources

* Broadie, Alexander, ed. ''The Scottish Enlightenment: An Anthology'' (1998), primary sources
excerpt and text search


External links


Northern Lights: How modern life emerged from eighteenth-century Edinburgh


– an introduction (archived 26 October 2004)

– Philosophical play readings of the legacy of David Hume, Adam Smith and Robert Burns
Edinburgh Old Town Association
– has references and links
"The Enlightenment in Scotland"
BBC Radio 4 discussion with Tom Devine, Karen O'Brien and Alexander Broadie (''In Our Time'', Dec. 5, 2002) {{Age of Enlightenment 1750s in Scotland 1760s in Scotland 1770s in Scotland 1780s in Scotland Scottish philosophy History of philosophy Philosophical movements Enlightenment philosophy Scientific revolution Secularism History of the United Kingdom by period History of Scotland by period Age of Enlightenment 18th century in Scotland 1790s in Scotland 1800s in Scotland