149 years of the RUSI Journal
In 1857, RUSI started to produce a periodical, the Journal of the Royal United Service Institution, which published both the transcripts of lectures given, including the discussions which followed, and articles submitted for publication. Colonel Bowlder, a later editor, summed up the aim of the journal as to publish ‘ . . . articles, whether original, compiled, or translated, which seem likely to be of interest to the Service at large, and are of sufficient importance to be worthy of insertion in its limited pages.’ The Journal thus sought to be responsive to the interests of its readership, rather than promoting any particular views of RUSI itself (indeed every issue carried the caveat that ‘Authors alone are responsible for the contents of their respective papers’). The Journal has rightly been described as the most important military periodical of Victorian Britain.
The Journal and RUSI was an important method of disseminating information within the Services, both at home and abroad. It was, for example, useful for naval officers to keep track of the rapid technological changes in the Royal Navy, and for Army officers to follow the debates over the Army's organisation and tactics. Information about the Armed Forces of other European nations also formed a significant proportion of the Journal. Today the Journal continues to examine these subjects and issues pertaining to international security.
Contacts
Editor
Dr Terence McNamee
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7747 2613
Email: TerryM@rusi.org
Deputy Editor
Saqeb Mueen
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7747 2618
Email: smueen@rusi.org
Editorial Assistant
Victoria Shin
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7747 2609
Email: victorias@rusi.org
Copyright © 2008 RUSI