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Scottish Enlightenment: Quick Facts

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The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
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Facts

Date c. 1730 - c. 1820
Location Scotland
Context Empiricism • Enlightenment • Rationalism • Skepticism

Photos and Videos

David Hume
Adam Smith
University of Glasgow
Timeline from the article “History” in the second edition (1780) of Encyclopædia Britannica
View from Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland, showing the Dugald Stewart Monument in the foreground and Edinburgh Castle and city landmarks in the background.
Kedleston Hall
title page of volume one of the first edition of Encyclopædia Britannica
rotative steam engine
A vintage encyclopedia page shows small type and scientific illustrations. The question What was Enlightenment? is written in old-fashioned blue lettering.
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Related Topics and References

Topics
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Key People

Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Scottish philosopher
David Hume
David Hume
Scottish philosopher
Joseph Black, detail of an engraving by J. Rogers after a portrait by Sir Henry Raeburn
Joseph Black
British scientist
Engraved portrait of Robert Burns, shown from the waist up wearing a dark jacket and cravat, facing slightly to the left.
Robert Burns
Scottish poet
Robert Adam, oil painting by an unknown artist; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
Robert Adam
Scottish architect
James Watt
James Watt
Scottish instrument maker and inventor
James Hutton
James Hutton
Scottish geologist
William Cullen
William Cullen
Scottish physician and professor
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James Tassie
Scottish artist
Scottish poet Allan Ramsay
Allan Ramsay
Scottish poet
Colin Maclaurin, engraving by S. Freeman; in the British Museum.
Colin Maclaurin
Scottish mathematician
Blair, Hugh
Hugh Blair
Scottish minister
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Scottish engineer
Thomas Reid
Thomas Reid
Scottish philosopher
Raeburn, Henry
Sir Henry Raeburn
Scottish painter
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James Thomson
Scottish poet [1700–1748]
default image
Allan Ramsay
Scottish painter
Dugald Stewart, detail of a portrait by Sir Henry Raeburn; in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh
Dugald Stewart
British philosopher
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John Home
English dramatist