The Advice to Hartlib

The Advice to Hartlib was a treatise on education, written by Sir William Petty (1623–1687) in 1647 as a letter to Samuel Hartlib. and published in 1647/8. It was the first printed work by Petty and covers a total of 31 pages. William Petty was educated in France and in Holland, and returned to England in 1646, to study medicine at Oxford University. By that time he had close contacts with scientists like Thomas Hobbes. He developed an instrument for double-writing and became friends with Samuel Hartlib and Robert Boyle. Samuel Hartlib (c. 1600 – 1662) had a profound interest in many fields of science and was especially active in creating (written) contacts with a number of persons, often scientists, part of whom were members of the Hartlib Circle. He had a clear vision on the importance of education and the spread of knowledge. In 1644 John Milton (1608–1674) wrote his tract Of Education as a letter to Hartlib. Hartlib himself wrote a pamphlet concerning education in 1647. The Advice to Hartlib was William Petty's contribution to the debate. Bibliographical information