Old World & New World · Article 11 of 22 · 1450–1750
Printing, experimental science and disputes about authority
People & builders: Johannes Gutenberg (c. 1400–1468); Galileo Galilei (1564–1642); Isaac Newton (1642–1727); John Locke (1632–1704); Mary Astell (1666–1731)
Old learning was preserved, translated and disputed
The printing technology associated with Gutenberg in Mainz around 1450 made reproducing books in European markets less dependent on hand copying. European scholars had already received mathematical, astronomical and medical knowledge through Latin, Arabic, Greek and other languages. Paper-making and earlier printing traditions in East Asia were indispensable parts of the longer history. The growth of printed books accelerated the circulation of claims but did not by itself produce agreement.
Martin Luther’s 1517 dispute over indulgences became one of the early examples of how printing could spread a religious challenge rapidly. The Reformation and Catholic responses brought changes in education, worship and political allegiance, as well as destructive wars. Print supported persuasion and propaganda alike. A society equipped to reproduce arguments was also equipped to circulate accusations.
Observation challenged inherited answers
In 1543 Nicolaus Copernicus published a model of the planets revolving around the Sun. Galileo used telescopic observations to support a new account of the heavens and was condemned by church authorities in 1633. Isaac Newton’s 1687 Principia described laws of motion and gravitation that connected celestial and earthly phenomena in a single mathematical framework. The changes accumulated through skilled instrument-makers, correspondence and institutions, not solitary flashes of insight.
The Royal Society, founded in London in 1660, provided one forum for reported experiments and public scrutiny. Its membership and opportunities were restricted by class and gender. Scientists elsewhere, including in Asia and the Islamic world, were continuing their own investigations. There was no single year when inherited belief gave way to tested fact.
Political argument became a public contest
John Locke’s political writings, published in 1689–1690, defended limits on rulers and a government justified by consent. Their influence was substantial but uneven, and Locke’s life also intersected with colonial institutions. Mary Astell questioned the exclusion of women from intellectual and political power in works beginning in 1694. Printed declarations about liberty were already being tested by the gap between stated principles and who could exercise rights.
Modern journalism, universities and constitutional debates inherit the advantages of repeatable evidence and open criticism. They also inherit problems of censorship, commercial manipulation and unequal access. Wider communication creates an opportunity to correct errors; it does not absolve readers or governments from evaluating evidence.
Dates & turning points
- c. 1450: Gutenberg develops large-scale movable-type printing in Mainz.
- 1517: Luther’s theological challenges spread rapidly through print.
- 1543: Copernicus publishes his heliocentric proposal.
- 1660: Royal Society is founded in London.
- 1687: Newton publishes the Principia.
- 1690s: Locke and Astell publish influential arguments about political authority and women’s standing.