Universal Zetetic Society

The Universal Zetetic Society (UZS) was the precursor to the Flat Earth Society. It was founded in Britain shortly after the death of Samuel Rowbotham (aka Parallax) by Rowbotham's adherents. The UZS was active well into the early part of the 20th century, publishing many issues of a magazine titled The Earth Not a Globe Review. In 1971, the UZS was renamed The Flat Earth Society when Samuel Shenton became its leader.

Purpose and Mandates

The Universal Zetetic Society engaged on multiple fronts. It firstly acted to provide a scientific peer review for Robotham's Earth Not a Globe by collecting professional quotes and references in its publications. Secondly, it also had a theological motivation to bring and peruse the sentiments of last chapter of Earth Not a Globe to its next level, where Robotham described that Flat Earth research was possible evidence for the Abrahamic religions which described the same cosmology.

An advertisement for the Universal Zetetic Society's Earth Not a Globe Review states:

  “ THE EARTH (NOT A GLOBE) REVIEW. A record of scientific information and a journal of the Universal Zetetic Society. Quarterly. Its motto—For God and Truth, as found in Nature, and taught in His Word. The propagation of knowledge relating to Natural Cosmogony in confirmation of Holy Scriptures, based upon practical investigation. "Prove all things; hold fast to that which is true." –Paul. In its fourth volume. Address John Williams, 96 Arkwright Street, Nottingham, Eng. ”

The lines "in confirmation of the Holy Scriptures, based on practical investigation" and "Prove all things; hold fast on that which is true" indicates that Lady Blount and her society took Rowbotham's philosophy at the end of his book and continued it. The UZS sought to use direct physical science research to support scripture, as opposed to relying on faith or speculation for religious belief, the later being tactics Rowbotham criticizes. The Universal Zetetic Society is the development of a religious organization in an era of rapid social and scientific progression, which sought to adapt to this new paradigm by using physical scientific evidence to support religious beliefs.

Victorian Era

The Victorian era was 63-year period from 1837-1901 that marked the reign of England's Queen Victoria. The era was popularly characterized by a growing state and economy, class-based society, and Britain’s status as the most powerful empire in the world. During this period Britain was a powerful sea faring nation with a rich culture. It had a large empire, a stable government, a growing state, and an expanding commercial franchise. It was wealthy due to its degree of industrialization and its imperial holdings, in spite of the fact that three-fourths or more of its population was working-class.

The period was marked by rapid technological progress and social upheaval. The Industrial Revolution, rise of the modern pharmaceutical industry, improvements in travel, invention of Morse code and the telegraph, Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone, first mechanical computer, woman's suffrage movement, Britain's abolishment of slavery, and the publishing and popularization of the Origin of the Species all contributed to profound changes to the previous way of life.

Science vs. Religion

The Flat Earth Society no longer maintains a religious-oriented mandate, but at the time the topic of Science vs. Religion was a very popular and engrossing subject for the Victorian Era. Although not as popular, in a similar vein to the Creation vs. Evolution debates at the time, the Universal Zetetic Society acted as a medium where science and religion met at a crossroads for the subjects of Earth Science and Astronomy.

A Gresham College lecture states:

  “ If there was any single belief that characterized the Victorian era it was Christian belief. Religion pervaded social and political life to an extent almost unimaginable today. ”

The 1800's was marked by the theme of Science vs. Religion, even more-so than the 1700's. During this time there was the Darwin-evolution controversy, the Shroud of Taurin was photographed, the elimination of religion in schools, and debates on the separation of church and state.

The Victorian Web by Aileen Fyfe of the National University of Ireland states:

  “ During the nineteenth century, the entities we refer to as 'science' and 'religion' both underwent dramatic changes. It would consequently be naïve to expect to be able to find one simple and unchanging relationship between the two. The relationship has varied across time and geography, and from one individual to another. In addition to the historical interest of the nineteenth century debates between science and religion, there is a great historiographical significance. The way in which science and religion have been perceived in the twentieth century was heavily influenced by the writings of late nineteenth-century historians of science and religion, whose influence we have only recently begun to move beyond. ”

  “ At the beginning of the nineteenth century in Britain, religious faith and the sciences were generally seen to be in beautiful accordance. The study of God's Word, in the Bible, and His Works, in nature, were assumed to be twin facets of the same truth... This harmony between science and faith, mediated by some form of theology of nature, continued to be the mainstream position for most men of science, and most interested individuals, right up to the 1860s, at least. But it did come under threat. In the 1820s and 1830s, some working-class radicals saw a chance of using certain versions of the sciences for political ends. ”

The Universal Zetetic Society was a direct product of these debates, born out of the era's controversy, and represented an innovative effort to preserve religion by showing that science actually supported, rather than contradicted, its teachings.