An examination of the Oxford group of the followers of John Hutchinson , the self-taught Hebrew scholar, natural philosopher and cosmologist, provides insights into the change in the movement that bears his name. Hutchinsonians who studied at Oxford, like George Horne , William Jones and Alexander Catcott , first adopted Hutchinson's ideas in much the same uncompromising form as the earliest followers of Hutchinson had done. However, later on, we see an effort by members of this Oxford group to moderate (...) the profile of the movement. They gradually developed a sense of the need to embrace a more generalised orthodoxy instead of pursuing at all costs their own esoteric defence of the Trinity. They also began to soften what had been their sometimes patronising, sometimes aggressive attitudes to those not convinced of Hutchinson's brilliance and sufficiency. The realisation among this Oxford group that a full-blooded Hutchinsonian system was on the margins of orthodox thinking led them to develop a more integrated approach which arguably contributed to the gradual breakdown of Hutchinsonianism as a coherent body of thought. (shrink)

The Hutchinsonian movement exercised considerable influence on thought about various topics of importance in England's Enlightenment/Counter-Enlightenment debates. Its epistemological stance, derived from a group of Irish writers of the early eighteenth century, places the movement at the centre of these debates and does much to explain its attraction to contemporaries. The article emphasises the persistence of Hutchinsonian thought and the continuing importance of its epistemological underpinnings into the early nineteenth century, drawing attention particularly to the writings of Bishop William Van (...) Mildert. (shrink)