Lutterworth Press

The Lutterworth Press is one of Britain's oldest independent publishing houses. Its institutional history reaches back to the late eighteenth century, when it operated through the Religious Tract Society (RTS), an organisation established around the production and distribution of Christian literature. The publishing identity now known as Lutterworth was adopted in 1932. The name refers to Lutterworth, a small town in Leicestershire associated with John Wyclif, who served there as rector in the fourteenth century. The Lutterworth name was introduced while the press continued much of the existing RTS publishing programme. Religion and theology formed the original centre of the list. In keeping with the RTS tradition, the press initially published many evangelical writers and devotional or instructional works. Norman Grubb is among the writers associated with this religious programme. During the second half of the twentieth century, the religious list broadened beyond its earlier evangelical emphasis, while remaining an important part of the publisher's identity. A second major area has been books for children and young people. This activity developed partly from the influence and publishing legacy of the Boy's Own Paper and Girl's Own Paper. Lutterworth's children's list has included authors such as Enid Blyton, W. E. Johns, Kathleen Fidler, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Historically, the children's programme was associated with the idea of improving literature: entertaining books were also expected to convey moral or educational values. That approach reflects the religious and educational origins of the wider RTS publishing tradition. The press also publishes general adult non-fiction. Its list has particular strengths in popular history and art history, while extending to a broad range of other subjects. David Attenborough and Patrick Moore are among the well-known general writers who were first published by Lutterworth. The range of subjects outside religion and children's literature has allowed the house to retain a broad non-fiction identity rather than functioning solely as a theological or juvenile specialist. Lutterworth has had an international dimension for much of its history. It is described as the first British publishing house to establish branches in Africa and Asia. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it issued dictionaries and other works in a number of indigenous languages. This activity linked the press's missionary and educational heritage with overseas publishing and distribution. The company was originally based in London. It later expanded its operations to Guildford in Surrey, where it remained until 1983, and moved to Cambridge in 1984. From Cambridge it has continued as an independent publisher. Its persistence is notable in an industry in which many long-established British houses have been absorbed into multinational groups. The press's catalogue combines inherited religious and children's publishing traditions with adult non-fiction, including history and art history. Its development is documented in the 2006 collection From the Dairyman's Daughter to Worrals of the WAAF: The R.T.S., Lutterworth Press and Children's Literature, edited by Dennis Butts and Pat Garrett.

The history of Lutterworth Press is inseparable from that of the Religious Tract Society, commonly abbreviated as RTS. The RTS developed a large publishing and distribution programme centred on Christian tracts, books, and related educational material. Although the later Lutterworth identity is distinct from the organisation's earliest form, the press inherited its catalogue traditions, editorial practices, and institutional continuity. The house therefore traces its origins to the late eighteenth century rather than to the date on which the Lutterworth name first appeared. Religion and theology were the earliest and most consistent elements of the programme. The RTS tradition favoured Christian instruction and, in particular, evangelical writers. Authors such as Norman Grubb represent this part of the historical list. Over time, especially during the second half of the twentieth century, the religious publishing programme became broader and less narrowly defined by its earlier evangelical profile. The continuing religious list nevertheless preserved an important connection with the press's original purpose. Children's and young people's publishing became another defining part of the house's history. The development of this list drew on the strength of the Boy's Own Paper and Girl's Own Paper, periodicals connected with the wider RTS publishing world. Lutterworth published or became associated with children's and juvenile authors including Enid Blyton, W. E. Johns, Kathleen Fidler, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. The editorial ideal was not simply entertainment: the press placed emphasis on improving literature and on books that could communicate moral values. This approach reflected the religious and educational environment from which the publishing house emerged. The press expanded beyond its religious and juvenile foundations into general adult non-fiction. It became particularly associated with popular history and art history, while also issuing works on many other subjects. David Attenborough and Patrick Moore are cited among writers first published by Lutterworth, illustrating the house's ability to publish accessible works by authors who later became prominent in their fields. Lutterworth also developed an unusual overseas profile for a British publisher of its era. It is described as the first British publishing house to establish branches in Africa and Asia. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, its international work included dictionaries and other publications in indigenous languages. This output reflected the combined missionary, educational, and linguistic interests of the RTS tradition, and made the press more than a purely domestic British publisher. The Lutterworth name has been in use since 1932. It was chosen in reference to Lutterworth in Leicestershire and to the town's association with John Wyclif, the fourteenth-century religious reformer who served as rector there. The renamed press retained most of the then-current RTS publications, creating continuity rather than a complete break with the earlier institution. The company's physical base changed during the twentieth century. It began in London, later operated from Guildford in Surrey, and remained there until 1983. In 1984 it moved to Cambridge, which has remained its base. The Cambridge period forms part of the press's continuing independent existence. In contrast with the consolidation of many older British publishers into larger multinational groups, Lutterworth has maintained an identifiable editorial presence. The publishing house's history has been examined directly in From the Dairyman's Daughter to Worrals of the WAAF: The R.T.S., Lutterworth Press and Children's Literature, edited by Dennis Butts and Pat Garrett and published by Lutterworth in 2006. The collection studies the development of children's literature from the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries and places the roles of both the RTS and Lutterworth within that longer publishing history.

• 2006

  Publication of the press history of children's literature

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Dennis Butts and Pat Garrett edited From the Dairyman's Daughter to Worrals of the WAAF, a collection examining the RTS and Lutterworth contribution to children's literature.

• 1984

  Move to Cambridge

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Lutterworth Press moved its base to Cambridge, England, where it has continued its independent publishing activity.

• 1983

  End of the Guildford period

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  The press completed its period of operation from Guildford, Surrey.

• 1932

  Adoption of the Lutterworth name

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  The Lutterworth Press name came into use, taking its inspiration from Lutterworth in Leicestershire and retaining much of the existing RTS publishing programme.

• Origins in the Religious Tract Society

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  The publishing tradition from which Lutterworth Press developed began through the Religious Tract Society, whose programme focused on Christian, educational, and instructional literature.

• Expansion into Africa and Asia

  [1]The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org

  The press established branches in Africa and Asia and issued dictionaries and other works in a number of indigenous languages.

An independent British publisher combining a historic religious and educational mission with children's literature and general non-fiction. Its positioning is associated with long-term editorial continuity, improving or morally oriented children's literature, evangelical and broader theological publishing, and accessible history and art history.

• Religious publishing

  Religion and theology

  Religious and theological works form the oldest core of the Lutterworth publishing programme. The list grew out of the Religious Tract Society and historically included evangelical authors such as Norman Grubb. Its emphasis broadened during the second half of the twentieth century, while continuing to represent Christian thought and religious instruction.

• Juvenile publishing

  Children's and young people's literature

  The children's list developed from the wider RTS periodical and book tradition, including the influence of the Boy's Own Paper and Girl's Own Paper. It has included works by Enid Blyton, W. E. Johns, Kathleen Fidler, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Historically, the list placed value on improving literature and moral or educational content as well as entertainment.

• General non-fiction

  Popular history

  Popular history is one of the press's established adult non-fiction strengths. Lutterworth's approach has been to publish accessible works for general readers rather than limiting its list to specialist academic monographs. The historical list forms part of the house's broader move beyond its original religious and juvenile focus.

• General non-fiction

  Art history

  Art history is another recognised area within Lutterworth's adult non-fiction programme. It sits alongside popular history and other subjects, contributing to the press's identity as a general independent publisher with specialist editorial interests rather than a single-subject religious house.

• Reference and educational publishing

  Dictionaries and indigenous-language works

  During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the press issued dictionaries and related works in several indigenous languages. These publications were part of its overseas activity in Africa and Asia and reflected the educational and missionary dimensions of its historical publishing network.

1. 1The Lutterworth Pressen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official Lutterworth Press websitelutterworth.com