About the Programme

The Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarships Programme Knowledge Orders before Modernity is an innovative collaboration between King’s College London and the Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies at the University of Kent. The programme explores the capacity of the handwritten word comparatively, outside and well as within western cultures, after as well as before the advent of the printing press. It seeks to challenge a conventional periodization which associates complex knowledge, complex archival mechanisms, and mundane recording with the arrival of print.

In the lifetime of the award the programme will fund three cohorts of doctoral scholars, starting in 2024, 2025, and 2026, and up to three Master’s Plus scholarships for applicants from under-represented groups. Successful applicants to Knowledge Orders will participate in a shared programme of visits, events, and discussions.