Arts and Minds: How the Royal Society of Arts Changed a Nation

Description

A major new history of the extraordinary society that has touched all aspects of British life From its beginnings in a coffee house in the mid-eighteenth century, the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce has tried to improve British life in every way imaginable. It has sought to influence how Britons work, how t

Anton Howes is historian in residence at the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

"One of Tyler Cowen's Best Non-Fiction Books of 2020" "Lucid and scrupulously researched history."---Henry Hitchings, The Spectator "A comedy about preposterous or earnest characters at work in an essentially virtuous institution."---Matthew Sweet, History Today "I've greatly enjoyed reading Arts and Minds. . . . The book is clearly a labour of love, and is packed with interesting bits of information. . . . Anybody interested in the process of invention, diffusion and changing tastes will greatly enjoy reading this."---Diane Coyle, Enlightened Economist "[Arts and Minds] is simply a very good read. Anton avoids the trap of writing as if for a dissertation and laying on the jargon, and simply tells a rattling good story, full of eccentric characters and colourful detail."---Mike Paterson, London Historians' Blog "This enjoyable and interesting book tells the story of the Royal Society of Arts from its founding in 1754 to the present day. . . . Howes is to be thanked for a story so very well told."---Peter Stansky, Journal of Interdisciplinary History "[An] interesting, detailed history of the RSA, whose broad mission was and is hard to define. . . . Historians of different interests will find this book fascinating, and Benjamin Franklin, an early member, would be pleased by it." * Choice Reviews * "Well-researched. . . . a generally entertaining and illuminating story."---Susan Bennett, Journal of British Studies "[An] original and important contribution. It will inform any subsequent historiographical efforts to understand the precise ways in which liberal industrial capitalist values and practices came to achieve their hegemonic position within modern Britain's wider social order."---Theodore Koditschek, Journal of Modern History