Launch of the Encyclopædia Britannica

Background. The Encyclopædia Britannica, whose Latin name means 'British Encyclopædia', was conceived as a general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It was first published between 1768 and 1771 in Edinburgh, Scotland, in weekly instalments that came together to form three volumes. The serial ran under the full title Encyclopædia Britannica, or, A Dictionary of Arts and Sciences, compiled upon a New Plan, and the founders Colin Macfarquhar and Andrew Bell managed and published the work during its first era.

Editorial Arrangements. At the age of 28, William Smellie, a Scottish printer born in Edinburgh in 1740, was hired by Macfarquhar and Bell to edit the first edition. He compiled nearly all the articles himself, receiving minor help from at least one contributor, James Anderson, who wrote the articles 'Dictionary', 'Pneumatics', and 'Smoke'. Smellie strove to make the work usable, holding that 'utility ought to be the principal intention of every publication.'

Publication Schedule. The Britannica was first published in serial instalments between December 1768 and about August 1771 in Edinburgh. Smellie's biographical account specifies that the work appeared in 100 weekly instalments, or 'numbers', from December 1768 to 1771, and was reissued together in 1771 in three volumes. The weekly numbers thus accumulated gradually rather than appearing as a completed set.