A newly completed research project that has been collating, digitising and making freely available all the ‘lost’ theological writings of Sir Isaac Newton is now one of the largest online collections of writings of any individual.
 
Newton (1642–1727) is arguably the greatest scientific figure of all time.  He discovered how gravity works, designed the first reflecting telescope, and laid down the three laws of motion, all of which have dominated the scientific view of the physical universe ever since.  In 1703 Newton was elected President of the Royal Society which marks its 350th anniversary this year, and Newton remains to this day one of the Society’s most celebrated members. However, while today, we celebrate Newton’s ability in science, Newton considered his religious writings to be the most significant field of his research.
 
For the last ten years, the Newton Project, led by Sussex historian Professor Rob Iliffe, has been collating these lost papers and making them available online for the benefit of the both general public and academics alike. Over 4 million words are currently available on the site, with more being added every month.  The project, funded by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), is a collaboration of the University of Sussex and Peterhouse, Cambridge.
 
Newton’s non-scientific papers were auctioned by Sothebys in 1936, which resulted in them being scattered in collections in more than 20 countries. Until the Newton Project began transcribing these papers, the vast bulk of his theological works had previously only ever been seen by a handful of privileged scholars.
 
Newton was a highly religious, if extremely unorthodox Protestant who believed that the Holy Trinity was a fraud perpetrated by Catholics.  He wrote far more on religion and Biblical interpretation than on the natural sciences and mathematics for which he is best remembered. Professor Iliffe explains: ‘Newton believed that God had specially chosen him to discover the truth about the Christian religion.’
 
Over a period of six decades Newton scrutinised the complex code underlying the images and numbers in Daniel and Revelation, and wrote millions of words trying to decipher them. Professor Iliffe says: “Like the majority of his contemporaries, Newton believed that Revelation described in the bible was the true history of the world. Nevertheless, it is remarkable that the founder of modern science was composing a brilliantly original treatise on the end of the world at exactly the same time (in the mid-1680s) as he was writing his great work Principia Mathematica.” 
 
One of the Newton Project’s main objectives has been to reunite all this previously lost material with his scientific papers. Visitors to the project’s website now have, for the first time, the chance to see Newton’s private, unpublished historical and religious writings, alongside all the editions of his great scientific works.  The site includes personal writings, diaries and accounts, stretching all the way back to Newton’s teenage years.
 
Professor Iliffe says, ‘Visitors to the website can see two different versions of his work – a ‘diplomatic’ version that displays all the changes that Newton made to his texts, and another ‘normalised’ version in which shows the final text as Newton intended it.  In some cases, images of the original manuscripts are also available’.
 
One of the most personally revealing inclusions is Newton's list of his sins. Dating from 1662, a 19-year-old Newton records improper behaviour on the Sabbath, but also other misdemeanours such as stealing cherries, punching a close friend, having 'unclean' dreams, calling a girl a 'jade', and threatening to burn down his mother and stepfather's house with them in it. The list offers us a fascinating and unique window into the troubled mind of the young Newton and also to the day-to-day social and moral challenges of life in the 17th century.
 
The Newton Project’s website includes a tour on which visitors can read short summaries on Newton’s views on Biblical prophecy, Newton as a historian, his character and troubled mind, and his views on science and religion.
 
Newton remains influential to scientists, as demonstrated by a 2005 survey of members of the Royal Society asking who had the greater effect on the history of science and had the greater contribution to humankind, Newton or Albert Einstein. Royal Society scientists deemed Newton to have made the greater overall contribution on both. Further testimony to this is the launch of special edition Sir Isaac Newton postage stamp, commissioned by the Royal Society in their 350th anniversary year.
 
 Visit the Newton Project website at: www.newtonproject.sussex.ac.uk
 
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 Editor’s notes

For quotes or to arrange an interview with the Professor Rob Iliffe, or for a high resolution image taken from one of Newton’s manuscripts (in Newton’s own hand) which details ‘Outline History of the World’,  please contact AHRC’s Communications Officer: Emi Spinner, 01793 416020   
 
 
Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC): Each year the AHRC provides approximately £112 million from the Government to support research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities, from languages and law, archaeology and English literature to design and creative and performing arts. In any one year, the AHRC makes approximately 700 research awards and around 1,300 postgraduate awards. Awards are made after a rigorous peer review process, to ensure that only applications of the highest quality are funded. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK.