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 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 ...

city printing restrictions by going to

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

to print, which was considered beyond Edinburgh's jurisdiction. Millar was soon to take over his apprentice master's London print shop. He was actively involved in railing against the authorities in Edinburgh.http://www.millar-project.ed.ac.uk/manuscripts/html_output/5.html Letter from Andrew Millar to Robert Wodrow, 15 July 1725. About 1729, Millar started business as a bookseller and publisher in the

Strand, London Strand (or the Strand) is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster, Central London. It runs just over from Trafalgar Square eastwards to Temple Bar, where the road becomes Fleet Street in the City of London, and is part of the A4 ...

. His own judgment in literary matters was small, but he collected an excellent staff of literary advisers, and did not hesitate to pay what at the time were considered large prices for good material. "I respect Millar, sir," said

Dr Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford D ...

in 1755, "he has raised the price of literature." He paid

Thomson Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson Mic ...

£105 for ''The Seasons'', and Fielding a total sum of £700 for '' Tom Jones'' and £1000 for ''Amelia''. Millar was one of the syndicate of booksellers who financed

Johnson's Dictionary ''A Dictionary of the English Language'', sometimes published as ''Johnson's Dictionary'', was published on 15 April 1755 and written by Samuel Johnson. It is among the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language. The ...

in 1755, and on him the work of seeing that book through the press mainly fell. During the same year Millar published the first edition of the

Mitchell Map The Mitchell Map is a map made by John Mitchell (1711–1768), which was reprinted several times during the second half of the 18th century. The map, formally titled ''A map of the British and French dominions in North America'' &c., was used ...

. He also published the histories of

Robertson Robertson may refer to: People * Robertson (surname) (includes a list of people with this name) * Robertson (given name) * Clan Robertson, a Scottish clan * Robertson, stage name of Belgian magician Étienne-Gaspard Robert (1763–1837) Places ...

and Hume. Millar was the

plaintiff A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the p ...

in the 1769 case ''

Millar v Taylor ''Millar v Taylor'' (1769) 4 Burr. 2303, 98 ER 201 is an English court decision that held there is a perpetual common law copyright and that no works ever enter the public domain. It represented a major victory for the bookseller monopolies. Fac ...

'' which held that authors and publishers are entitled to a perpetual

common law copyright Common law copyright is the legal doctrine that grants copyright protection based on common law of various jurisdictions, rather than through protection of statutory law. In part, it is based on the contention that copyright is a natural right an ...

. That decision was ultimately overturned in the landmark 1774 case ''

Donaldson v Beckett ''Donaldson v Becket'' (1774) 2 Brown's Parl. Cases (2d ed.) 129, 1 Eng. Rep. 837; 4 Burr. 2408, 98 Eng. Rep. 257; 17 Cobbett's Parl. Hist. 953 is the ruling by the British House of Lords that held that copyright in published works was not perpe ...

'', whose unsuccessful plaintiff was Millar's apprentice, Thomas Becket (or Beckett). Millar died at his villa at

Kew Green Kew Green is a large open space in Kew in west London. Owned by the Crown Estate, it is leased to the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is roughly triangular in shape, and its open grassland, framed with broadleaf trees, extends to abo ...

, near London, on 8 June 1768.

References

External links

*
Andrew Millar Project
www.millar-project@ed.ac.uk.

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Millar, Andrew Scottish publishers (people) 1705 births 1768 deaths English booksellers 18th-century English businesspeople Publishers (people) from London