''The New Age'' was a British weekly magazine (1894–1938), inspired by

Fabian socialism The Fabian Society is a British socialist organisation whose purpose is to advance the principles of social democracy and democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist effort in democracies, rather than by revolutionary overthrow. The Fa ...

, and credited as a major influence on literature and the arts during its heyday from 1907 to 1922, when it was edited by

Alfred Richard Orage Alfred Richard Orage (22 January 1873 – 6 November 1934) was a British influential figure in socialist politics and modernist culture, now best known for editing the magazine ''The New Age'' before the First World War. While he was working as a ...

. It published work by many of the chief political commentators of the day, such as

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

, H. G. Wells,

Hilaire Belloc Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (, ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a Franco-English writer and historian of the early twentieth century. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. H ...

, G. K. Chesterton and

Arnold Bennett Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...

History

''The New Age'' began life in 1894 as a publication of the

Christian socialist Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe cap ...

movement, but in 1907, as a radical weekly edited by

Joseph Clayton Joseph Clayton (1867–1943) was an English freelance journalist and biographer. A writer of numerous books, he covered areas of trade union and socialist history, but also religious figures and history. Life Joseph Clayton was born in London 2 ...

, it was struggling. In May of that year, Orage and

Holbrook Jackson George Holbrook Jackson (31 December 1874 – 16 June 1948) was a British journalist, writer and publisher. He was recognised as one of the leading bibliophiles of his time. Biography Holbrook Jackson was born in Liverpool, England. He worked ...

, who had been running the Leeds Arts Club, took over the journal with financial help from

. Jackson acted as co-editor only for the first year, after which Orage edited it alone until he sold it in 1922. By that time his interests had moved towards

mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in u ...

, and the quality and circulation of the journal had declined. According to a Brown University press release, "''The New Age'' helped to shape modernism in literature and the arts from 1907 to 1922". It ceased publication in 1938. Orage was also associated with '' The New English Weekly'' (1932–1949), as editor, during its first two years of operation (

Philip Mairet Philip Mairet (; full name: Philippe Auguste Mairet; 1886–1975) was a British designer, writer and journalist. He had a wide range of interest: crafts, Alfred Adler and psychiatry, and Social Credit. He translated major figures including Jean ...

took over at his death in 1934).

Content

The magazine began as a journal of Christian liberalism and socialism. Martin, Wallace
''The New Age Under Orage'' (chapter 2)
at the Modernist Journals Project Orage and Jackson re-oriented it to promote the ideas of

Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, Prose poetry, prose poet, cultural critic, Philology, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philo ...

and later a form of

guild socialism Guild socialism is a political movement advocating workers' control of industry through the medium of trade-related guilds "in an implied contractual relationship with the public". It originated in the United Kingdom and was at its most influent ...

. But ''The New Age'' did publish opposing viewpoints and arguments, even on issues upon which Orage had strong opinions. Topics covered in detail included: * the role of

private property Private property is a legal designation for the ownership of property by non-governmental legal entities. Private property is distinguishable from public property and personal property, which is owned by a state entity, and from collective or ...

– in a debate between

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

G. K. Chesterton and

* the need for a socialist party (as distinct from the newly formed Labour Party) *

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

On this last point, the editorial line moved from initial support to bitter opposition by 1912. As ''The New Age'' moved away from Fabian politics, the leaders of the

Fabian Society The Fabian Society is a British socialist organisation whose purpose is to advance the principles of social democracy and democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist effort in democracies, rather than by revolutionary overthrow. The Fa ...

, Beatrice and Sydney Webb founded the journal ''The

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

'' to counter its effect in 1913, and this, combined with the growing distance between Orage and the mainstream left, reduced its influence. By then, the editorial line supported

, expounded in articles by

G. D. H. Cole George Douglas Howard Cole (25 September 1889 – 14 January 1959) was an English political theorist, economist, and historian. As a believer in common ownership of the means of production, he theorised guild socialism (production organised ...

and S. G. Hobson among others. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Orage began to support the

social credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...

theory of C. H. Douglas. ''The New Age'' also concerned itself with the definition and development of

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

in the visual arts, literature and music, and consistently observed, reviewed and contributed to the activities of the movement. The journal became one of the first places in England in which

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies explained as originatin ...

's ideas were discussed before the First World War, in particular by

David Eder (Montague) David Eder (1 August 1865 – 30 March 1936) was a British psychoanalyst, physician, Zionist and writer of Lithuanian Jewish descent. He was best known for advancing psychoanalytic studies in Great Britain. Education and medical trai ...

, an early British psychoanalyst.

Production

The journal appeared weekly, and featured a wide cross-section of writers with an interest in literature and the arts, but also politics, spiritualism and economics. With its woodprint illustrations reminiscent of artwork by the

German Expressionists German Expressionism () consisted of several related creative movements in Germany before the First World War that reached a peak in Berlin during the 1920s. These developments were part of a larger Expressionist movement in north and central ...

, its mixture of culture, politics, Nietzschean philosophy and spiritualism, and its non-standard appearance, ''The New Age'' has been cited as the English equivalent of the German Expressionist periodical ''

Der Sturm ''Der Sturm'' () was a German avant-garde art and literary magazine founded by Herwarth Walden, covering Expressionism, Cubism, Dada and Surrealism, among other artistic movements. It was published between 1910 and 1932. History and profile ' ...

'', a journal to which it bore a striking resemblance.

Notable contributors

* Boris Anrep *

Michael Arlen Michael Arlen (16 November 1895 – 23 June 1956), born Dikran Kouyoumdjian ( hy, Տիգրան Գոյումճեան), was a British essayist, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and scriptwriter of Armenians, Armenian origin, who had his ...

(Dikran Kouyoumdjian) *

Belfort Bax Ernest Belfort Bax (; 23 July 1854 – 26 November 1926) was an English barrister, journalist, philosopher, men's rights advocate, socialist, and historian. Biography Ernest Belfort Bax was born on 23 July 1854, in Leamington Spa, son of Danie ...

Cecil Chesterton Cecil Edward Chesterton (12 November 1879 – 6 December 1918) was an English journalist and political commentator, known particularly for his role as editor of '' The New Witness'' from 1912 to 1916, and in relation to its coverage of the Marco ...

* G. K. Chesterton *

* C. H. Douglas *

Arthur Kitson Arthur Kitson (6 April 1859, London – 2 October 1937) was a British monetary theorist and inventor. Early life He married Fannie Ernestina Aschenbach in Spring Garden, Philadelphia on 25 March 1886. They had seven children but eventually div ...

Havelock Ellis Henry Havelock Ellis (2 February 1859 – 8 July 1939) was an English physician, eugenicist, writer, progressive intellectual and social reformer who studied human sexuality. He co-wrote the first medical textbook in English on homosexuality in ...

Florence Farr Florence Beatrice Emery (''née'' Farr; 7 July 1860 – 29 April 1917) was a British West End leading actress, composer and director. She was also a women's rights activist, journalist, educator, singer, novelist, and leader of the occult ...

* Beatrice Hastings *

T. E. Hulme Thomas Ernest Hulme (; 16 September 1883 – 28 September 1917) was an English critic and poet who, through his writings on art, literature and politics, had a notable influence upon modernism. He was an aesthetic philosopher and the 'father ...

* Herbert Hughes *

Oscar Levy Oscar Ludwig Levy (28 March 1867 – 13 August 1946) was a German Jewish physician and writer, now known as a scholar of Friedrich Nietzsche, whose works he first saw translated systematically into English. His was a paradoxical life, of self-exile ...

Anthony Ludovici Anthony Mario Ludovici MBE (8 January 1882 – 3 April 1971) was a British philosopher, sociologist, social critic and polyglot. He is known as a proponent of aristocracy and anti-egalitarianism, and in the early 20th century was a leading ...

Hugh MacDiarmid Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Rena ...

Ramiro de Maeztu Ramiro de Maeztu y Whitney (May 4, 1875 – October 29, 1936) was a prolific Spanish essayist, journalist and publicist. His early literary work adscribes him to the Generation of '98. Adept to Nietzschean and Social Darwinist ideas in his youth, ...

Katherine Mansfield Kathleen Mansfield Murry (née Beauchamp; 14 October 1888 – 9 January 1923) was a New Zealand writer, essayist and journalist, widely considered one of the most influential and important authors of the modernist movement. Her works are celebra ...

* Dimitrije Mitrinovic *

Edwin Muir Edwin Muir CBE (15 May 1887 – 3 January 1959) was a Scottish poet, novelist and translator. Born on a farm in Deerness, a parish of Orkney, Scotland, he is remembered for his deeply felt and vivid poetry written in plain language and w ...

* P. D. Ouspensky *

Alfred Orage Alfred Richard Orage (22 January 1873 – 6 November 1934) was a British people, British influential figure in socialist politics and modernist culture, now best known for editing the magazine ''The New Age'' before the First World War. While he ...

A. J. Penty Arthur Joseph Penty (17 March 1875 – 1937) was an English architect and writer on guild socialism and distributism. He was first a Fabian socialist, and follower of Victorian thinkers William Morris and John Ruskin. He is generally credited with ...

Marmaduke Pickthall Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall (born Marmaduke William Pickthall; 7 April 187519 May 1936) was an English Islamic scholar noted for his 1930 English translation of the Quran, called ''The Meaning of the Glorious Koran''. His translation of the Qur ...

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an expatriate American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Fascism, fascist collaborator in Italy during World War II. His works ...

Herman George Scheffauer Herman George Scheffauer (born February 3, 1876, San Francisco, California – died October 7, 1927, Berlin) was a German-American poet, architect, writer, dramatist, journalist, and translator. San Francisco childhood Very little is known abou ...

Hugh Pembroke Vowles Hugh Pembroke Vowles (1885 – 1951) was a British engineer, socialist and author. Early life and education Hugh Vowles was the son of Henry Hayes Vowles, a Wesleyan minister, author, and theologian; and of Hannah Elizabeth Thist ...

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

Herbert Read Sir Herbert Edward Read, (; 4 December 1893 – 12 June 1968) was an English art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher, best known for numerous books on art, which included influential volumes on the role of art in education. Read ...

Clifford Sharp Clifford Dyce Sharp (1883–1935) was a British journalist. He was the first editor of the ''New Statesman'' magazine from its foundation in 1913 until 1928; a left-wing magazine founded by Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other members of the social ...

Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji (born Leon Dudley Sorabji; 14 August 1892 – 15 October 1988) was an English composer, music critic, pianist and writer whose music, written over a period of seventy years, ranges from sets of miniatures to wor ...

Walter Sickert Walter Richard Sickert (31 May 1860 – 22 January 1942) was a German-born British painter and printmaker who was a member of the Camden Town Group of Post-Impressionist artists in early 20th-century London. He was an important influence on d ...

References

External links

* Complete archive o
''The New Age''
under Orage (1907–1922) at the

Modernist Journals Project The Modernist Journals Project (MJP) was created in 1995 at Brown University in order to create a database of digitized periodicals connected with the period loosely associated with modernism. The University of Tulsa joined in 2003. The MJP's websit ...

. PDFs of all 783 weekly issues (and 42 supplements) may be downloaded for free at the MJP website. {{DEFAULTSORT:New Age, The 1894 establishments in the United Kingdom 1938 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Christian socialist publications Defunct literary magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct political magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines disestablished in 1938 Magazines established in 1894 Religious magazines published in the United Kingdom Socialist magazines Weekly magazines published in the United Kingdom