''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England, by

Edward Cave Edward Cave (27 February 1691 – 10 January 1754) was an English printer, editor and publisher. He coined the term "magazine" for a periodical, founding ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' in 1731, and was the first publisher to successfully fashi ...

in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1907, ceasing publication altogether in 1922. It was the first to use the term ''

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

'' (from the French ''magazine'', meaning "storehouse") for a

periodical Periodical literature (singularly called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) consists of Publication, published works that appear in new releases on a regular schedule (''issues'' or ''numbers'', often numerically divided into annu ...

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

's first regular employment as a writer was with ''The Gentleman's Magazine''.

History

The original complete title was ''The Gentleman's Magazine: or, Trader's monthly intelligencer''. Cave's innovation was to create a monthly digest of news and commentary on any topic the educated public might be interested in, from commodity prices to

Latin poetry The history of Latin poetry can be understood as the adaptation of Greek models. The verse comedies of Plautus, the earliest surviving examples of Latin literature, are estimated to have been composed around 205–184 BC. History Scholars conv ...

. It carried original content from a stable of regular contributors, as well as extensive quotations and extracts from other periodicals and books. Cave, who edited ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' under the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

"Sylvanus Urban", was the first to use the term ''

'' (meaning "storehouse") for a periodical. Contributions to the magazine frequently took the form of letters, addressed to "Mr. Urban". The iconic illustration of

St John's Gate St John's Gate, in Clerkenwell, Middlesex, now within central London, is one of the few tangible remains from Clerkenwell's monastic past. It was built in 1504 by Prior Thomas Docwra as the south entrance to the inner precinct of Clerkenwell Pr ...

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell ( ) is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an Civil Parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish from the medieval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The St James's C ...

, on the front of each issue (occasionally updated over the years) depicted Cave's home, in effect, the magazine's "office". Before the founding of ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', there were specialised journals, but no such wide-ranging publications (although there had been attempts, such as ''The Gentleman's Journal'', which was edited by

Peter Motteux Peter Anthony Motteux (born Pierre Antoine Motteux ; 25 February 1663 – 18 February 1718) was a French-born English author, playwright, and translator. Motteux was a significant figure in the evolution of English journalism in his era, as the ...

and ran from 1692 to 1694).

's first regular employment as a writer was with ''The Gentleman's Magazine''. During a time when parliamentary reporting was banned, Johnson regularly contributed parliamentary reports as "Debates of the Senate of Magna Lilliputia". Though they reflected the positions of the participants, the words of the debates were mostly Johnson's own. The name " Columbia", a poetic name for America coined by Johnson, first appears in a 1738 weekly publication of the debates of the British Parliament in the magazine. The magazine's long-running motto, ''

E pluribus unum ''E pluribus unum'' ( , , ) – Latin for "Out of many, one" (also translated as "One out of many") – is a traditional motto of the United States, appearing on the Great Seal of the United States, Great Seal along with ''Annuit cœptis'' (L ...

'', Latin for "Out of many, one", is thought to have inspired the use of the phrase as an unofficial motto of the United States. Motteux's ''The Gentleman's Journal'' had previously used the phrase. A skilled businessman, Edward Cave developed an extensive distribution system for ''The Gentleman's Magazine''. It was read throughout the English-speaking world and continued to flourish through the 18th century and much of the 19th century under a series of different editors and publishers. It went into decline towards the end of the 19th century and finally ceased general publication in September 1907. However, issues consisting of four pages each were printed in very small editions between late 1907 and 1922 in order to keep the title formally "in print".

Series

*1731–1735: ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' or ''Monthly Intelligencer'' *1736–1833: ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' and Historical Chronicle *1834–1856 (June) New Series: ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' *1856 (July)–1868 (May) New Series: ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' and Historical Review *1868 (June)–1922 Entirely New Series: ''The Gentleman's Magazine''

Indexes

In addition to an index for each year of ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', which was usually published with the December issue of the magazine, a full index was compiled by the College of Arms and typed by the Genealogical Society of Utah. This 75-volume index, covering the years 1731–1850, gives the full name and an abbreviated reference to the date, event, and any other person(s) in each entry. The index is available at the Family History Library (FHL) under the call number 942 B2g Index, and is also available on microfilm (#599738–#599761) or microfiche (#6026701). In addition to the index, the FHL also has the magazine itself available in various formats. An abstract of the "chief contents of ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' from 1731 to 1868" was published by George L. Gomme in 1891. He describes it as "excerpts from the original publications containing local history and information, topographical details, and family history are presented here, organized into volumes by county". Gomme's work has been digitised and indexed by Ancestry.com and is available online to Ancestry subscribers or at subscribing libraries. A four-volume set of indexes was compiled by Samuel Ayscough (Assistant Librarian of the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

) with some assistance or later editing by John Nichols and by Gabriel Richard. The contents of these indexes are given as: *Volume 1 – 1731 – 1786 (published by Samuel Ayscough) **Index to the essays, dissertations and historical passages (494 pp.) **Index to poetry (62 pp.) **Index to names (239 pp.) **Index to plates (10 pp.) **Index to books (118 pp.) *Volume 2 – 1787 – 1818 (published by John Nichols) **Index to the essays, dissertations and historical passages (486 pp.) **Index to poetry (57 pp.) **Index to names (519 pp.) **Index to plates (17 pp.) **Index to books (103 pp.) **Index to books announced (13 pp.) **Index to musical publications (3 pp.) *Volume 3 – 1731 – 1818 (published by John Nichols) **Index to plates (239 pp.) *Volume 4 – 1731 – 1780 (published by the British Record Society) **Index to names and surnames (687 pp.) Volume 2 includes an "Index of Names to the Marriages, Births, Deaths, Promotions, &c." covering 1731–1786, and volume 4 contains an "Index of Names of Persons" covering 1731–1818. The indexes are by surname only and are available online for free through Google Books: *Ayscough, Samuel; Nichols, John. "General Index to the ''Gentleman's Magazine''" Nichols, 1789. Vol. 2. Free digital version at Google Books (follow link to page 64, which is followed by the index, which is numbered as page 1). Indexes names from Vol. 1 "To the End of the LVIth Volume of the ''Gentleman's Magazine''" and covers 1731–1786. *Ayscough, Samuel; Nichols, John. (sometimes Richard, Gabriel) "General Index to the ''Gentleman's Magazine'' 1787–1818" Nichols, 1821. Vol. 3. Free digital version at Google Books David Dobson gleaned references to American births, marriages, and deaths from ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' and published it as ''American Vital Records from the Gentleman's Magazine, 1731–1868'' (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987). A few partial indexes to genealogical events in ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' are also available: *Fry, Edward Alexander. "Index to the Marriages in the ''Gentleman's Magazine'', 1731–1768" (London: .n. 1922) *Fry, Edward Alexander. "Index to the Biographical and Obituary Notices in ''Gentleman's Magazine'', 1731–1780" (London: British Records Society, 1891) *Marriages from ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' for the years 1731 to 1768 were included in ''Boyd's Marriage Index''. *Obituaries were included in ''Musgrave's Obituaries''. *Joseph Foster's index to marriages includes marriages from this periodical, as well as from ''The Times'' (1865–1880 only) and the Historical Register; but covers surname beginning Aa–Alexander only."Marriages of the Nobility and Gentry, 1650–1880", an article in ''Collectanea Genealogica, 1881–1885'' *

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...

's Internet Library of Early Journals offers an online subject search tool for the years 1731–1750.

Authors of works published

* Mark Akenside (1721–1770), physician and poet *

Henry Aldrich Henry Aldrich (15 January 1648 – 14 December 1710) was an English theologian, philosopher, architect, and composer. Life Aldrich was educated at Westminster School under Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1 ...

(1647–1710), English

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Richard Allestree Richard Allestree or Allestry ( ; 1621/22 – 28 January 1681) was an English Royalist churchman and provost of Eton College from 1665. Life The son of Robert Allestree, descended from an old Derbyshire family, he was born at Uppington in Sh ...

or Allestry (1619–1681),

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

churchman and provost of

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

from 1665 *

Anthony Alsop Anthony Alsop was born about 1670 and died in Winchester on 10 June 1726. He was a clergyman and Neo-Latin poet who sided with the Tory Party at the end of the Stuart era. His poetry was admired at the time but was eventually forgotten until a r ...

(d. 1726),

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

clergyman and poetical writer * George Ashby (1724–1808), English learned

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

and sometime president of St. John's College, Cambridge *

Francis Atterbury Francis Atterbury (6 March 1663 – 22 February 1732) was an English man of letters, politician and bishop. A High Church Tory and Jacobite, he gained patronage under Queen Anne, but was mistrusted by the Hanoverian Whig ministries, and ban ...

(1663–1732), English man of letters, politician,

Bishop of Rochester The Bishop of Rochester is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury. The town of Rochester, Kent, Rochester has the bishop's seat, at the Rochester Cathedral, Cathedral Chur ...

, and Dean of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

* Samuel Badcock (1747–1788), English nonconformist minister, theological writer and literary critic * Henry Baker (1698–1774) * John Bancks (1709–1751), miscellaneous writer * Mary Barber (c. 1685–c. 1755), poet, mother of nine children, and a member of Swift's circle * James Theodore Bent (1852-1897), celebrity explorer * Samuel Bowden (fl. 1733–1761), English physician and poet (alive in 1761 but deceased by 1778) * John Bowle (1725–1788),

clergyman known as a writer on Spanish literature * Samuel Boyse (1708–1749), Irish poet * Peregrine Branwhite (1745–1795?), English poet * Anna Eliza Bray (1790–1883), British novelist * James Norris Brewer (fl. 1799–1829), English

topographer Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...

and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

* James Shudi Broadwood (1772–1851),

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

maker in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

and a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

* Rev. Moses Browne (1704–1787),

priest and poet * Edward John Carlos (1798–1851), English antiquarian and writer on architecture * Thomas Christie (1761–1796), radical political writer * Charles Clarke (antiquary) (died 1840), antiquarian * Rev. John Darwall (1731–1789),

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and hymnodist *

William Hepworth Dixon William Hepworth Dixon (30 June 1821 – 26 December 1879) was an English historian and traveller from Manchester. He was active in organizing London's Great Exhibition of 1851. Early life Dixon was born on 30 June 1821, at Great Ancoats in Manc ...

(1821–1879), English traveler, historian, author * Rev. John Duncombe (1729–1786) * Rev. William Dunkin, D.D. (1709?–1765), Irish poet and Anglican clergyman * William Falconer (1732–1769), Scottish poet * Thomas Faulkner (1777–1855), topographer of Chelsea, Fulham, Kensington etc. *

Bertram Fletcher Robinson Bertram Fletcher Robinson (22 August 1870 – 21 January 1907) was an English sportsperson, sportsman, journalist, editor, author and Liberal Unionist Party activist. During his life-time, he wrote at least three hundred items, including a ser ...

(1870-1907), sportsman, editor, journalist and author. * James Frederic Ferguson (1807–1855), Irish

born in Charleston, South Carolina * Thomas Fisher (1772–1826) * Rev. George Glasse (1761–1809), chaplain and a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

* Sir Andrew Halliday (1782–1839), Scottish physician, reformer, and writer * Sir John Hawkins (1719–1789), English author and friend of

and

Horace Walpole Horatio Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford (; 24 September 1717 – 2 March 1797), better known as Horace Walpole, was an English Whig politician, writer, historian and antiquarian. He had Strawberry Hill House built in Twickenham, southwest London ...

* Rev. William Hawkins (1722–1801), English clergyman, poet, and dramatist * Susanna Highmore (1690–1750), minor British poet *

(1709–1784) * Andrew Kippis (1725–1795), English nonconformist

and

biographer Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography. Biographers Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...

* Rev. John Langhorne (1735–1779),

clergyman, poet and co-translator of

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

's ''

Lives Lives may refer to: * The plural form of a ''life'' * Lives, Iran, a village in Khuzestan Province, Iran * The number of lives in a video game * ''Parallel Lives'', aka ''Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans'', a series of biographies of famous m ...

'' * William Lauder (c. 1680–1771), Scottish literary forger; article on

John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. His 1667 epic poem ''Paradise Lost'' was written in blank verse and included 12 books, written in a time of immense religious flux and politic ...

's ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...

'' was largely a

plagiarism Plagiarism is the representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 ''Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close ...

of earlier works * Sir

Sidney Lee Sir Sidney Lee (5 December 1859 – 3 March 1926) was an English biographer, writer, and critic. Biography Lee was born Solomon Lazarus Lee in 1859 at 12 Keppel Street, Bloomsbury, London. He was educated at the City of London School and ...

(1859–1926) * John Lockman (1698–1771), English author * Michael Lort (1725–1790), Welsh clergyman, academic, and

* William Markham (1719–1807), English divine and archbishop of York * Arthur Murphy (1727–1805), Irish writer * Laetitia Pilkington ( to 1750),

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

-born author and friend of

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

* Robert Riccaltoun (1691–1769), Scottish Presbyterian divine and friend of poet James Thomson (1700–1748) *

William Roscoe William Roscoe (8 March 175330 June 1831) was an English banker, lawyer, and briefly a Member of Parliament. He is best known as one of England's first abolitionists, and as the author of the poem for children '' The Butterfly's Ball, and th ...

(1753–1831), English historian and miscellaneous writer; poetry by him first appeared in the magazine in 1807 * Richard Savage (c. 1697–1743), English poet * George Stephens (1813–1895), English

archeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeol ...

and

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...

who worked in Scandinavia *

(1667–1745), Anglo-Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet and cleric who became Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin * Captain Philip Thicknesse (1719–1792) * James Thomson (1700–1748), Scottish poet and playwright best known for his masterpiece '' The Seasons'' and the lyrics of "

Rule, Britannia! "Rule, Britannia!" is a British patriotic song, originating from the 1740 poem "Rule, Britannia" by James Thomson and set to music by Thomas Arne in the same year. It is most strongly associated with the Royal Navy, but is also used by th ...

" * Nigel Tourneur (18??–18??), pseudonym of a

fin de siècle "''Fin de siècle''" () is a French term meaning , a phrase which typically encompasses both the meaning of the similar English idiom '' turn of the century'' and also makes reference to the closing of one era and onset of another. Without co ...

writer known for one work only—''Hidden Witchery'', a collection of seven short stories and a short prose drama * Thomas Tyrwhitt (1730–1786), English

classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

and

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as Art criticism, art, Literary criticism, literature, Music journalism, music, Film criticism, cinema, Theater criticism, theater, Fas ...

* Michael Tyson (antiquary) (1740–1780),

clergyman, academic, antiquary and artist * Richard Weston (botanist) (1733–1806) * Charles Woodmason (c. 1720–1789), English-born American poet *

Edward Young Edward Young ( – 5 April 1765) was an English poet, best remembered for ''Night-Thoughts'', a series of philosophical writings in blank verse, reflecting his state of mind following several bereavements. It was one of the most popular poem ...

(1681–1765), English poet, best remembered for '' Night-Thoughts''

Associated artists, painters, topographers

* James Norris Brewer (fl. 1799–1829) English

and

* Thomas Faulkner (1775–1855), topographer * John Gibson (1750–1792), cartographer * Moses Griffith (1749–1819), Welsh draughtsman, engraver, and water colourist * William George Moss, chief illustrator * Bartholomew Howlett (1767–1827), English draughtsman and engraver * Samuel Rawle (1771–1860), English topographical engraver and draughtsman

References

External links

* *
''The Gentleman's Magazine''
archives at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

.
''The Gentleman's Magazine''
archives at

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...

.
Bodleian Internet Library of Early Journals: A digital library of 18th and 19th Century journals
including ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', vols 1–20 (1731–50)

) *''A Selection of Curious Articles from the Gentleman's Magazine'', John Walker, Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 181
">
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gentlemans Magazine, The 1731 establishments in England 1922 disestablishments in England Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines published in England Magazines established in 1731 Magazines disestablished in 1922 Magazines published in London News magazines published in the United Kingdom