ABSTRACT
During the eighteenth century in Great Britain a major change took place which we now tend to take for granted—the emergence of the first “print society” in history. By the beginning of the eighteenth century print had been in existence in England for over two hundred years and had a limited yet well-established role, centered on the university towns and the London Stationers’ Company, but during the century it was disseminated through all levels of society and all parts of the country. The mere increase in printers and book titles over the course of the century, while impressive, does not fully account for the scope and pervasiveness of the change. In the early 1690s, there were almost no magazines or periodicals in England; publishing was closely monitored and restricted to London, the two university towns, and the archdiocese of York; and there was almost a total lack of printed documents in the provinces. In Terry Belanger's suggestive catalog, there were “no printed posters advertising estate or agriculture sales […] no theater bills or programmes, no newspapers, no printed handbills, bill headings, labels, tickets, or other commercial pieces. There were no printed forms meant to be completed by hand: no marriage certificates, printed indentures, or receipts.” Yet by 1790 all these forms of print had penetrated throughout the nation and Britain had emerged as the first print society in history. 1
