Call for Papers

During the sixty or so years following the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the British Isles witnessed a period of rapid innovation in the methods of public and private finance. Ever-rising levels of public expenditure went hand in hand with increased public borrowing, and banks and stock markets became prominent features of everyday life. The new arrangements disrupted established hierarchies and redistributed privilege and political power.

Contemporary observers commented widely on this financial revolution, generating a rich and diverse body of work ranging from pedestrian pamphlets to scholarly treatises to engaging satires. This literature has long been the subject of careful study. But for the most part specialists have worked to their own disciplinary standards, unaware of developments in other fields. The goal of this colloquium is to gather scholars from a range of disciplines to work together to improve our collective understanding.

We invite proposals for papers considering any aspect of the contemporary response to the financial revolution. We welcome work from any discipline, but expect participants to write for a general, interdisciplinary audience. Authors should seek to inform those working in other disciplines about the interpretive consensus, or important new developments, in their own fields.

The colloquium will be organized as a series of workshop discussions of a common set of readings that will be circulated in advance.

Early expressions of interest are strongly encouraged. Formal proposals (1-2 pages in length) indicating topic, main propositions, and approach, must be received no later than 28 February 2004. Proposals may be submitted to any one of the three colloquium organizers.