NB This glossary is a work in progress.

The Project Leader welcomes suggestions for inclusion (see 'About the Project' > 'Contact').

Cook and Wedderburn
E. T. Cook and Alexander Wedderburn were the editors of the standard edition of Ruskin's works [see under Works]. Each volume includes a full editorial apparatus and is headed by a long introduction.

Fors, or Fors Clavigera
Fors Clavigera is a work that comprises open letters first published by Ruskin as Fors Clavigera: Letters to the Workmen and Labourers of Great Britain. The original letters were published at regular intervals between January 1871 and March 1878; after Ruskin's breakdown, further letters were published at irregular intervals between 1880 and 1884. Early letters open with the familiar address, 'FRIENDS' and 'MY FRIENDS'; Letter 71 (November 1876) inaugurates the practice of making passing address to 'my good Sheffield friends'.

Guild of St George
The Guild had its origins in a Fund established by Ruskin in 1871 for 'the buying and securing of land in England, which shall not be built upon, but cultivated by Englishmen with their own hands'. Ruskin initially named the organization 'The Company of St George'. In 1877, the word 'Company' was replaced by 'Guild' in order to avoid the legal problems associated with the term. Ruskin explained the Guild's purposes in a series of 'Letters to the Workmen and Labourers of Great Britain', entitled Fors Clavigera.

He summed up the Guild's impetus as 'simply the purchase of land in healthy districts, and the employment of labourers on the land, under the carefullest supervision, and with every means of mental instruction' (Works, 30, p. 17). 'That', he insisted, 'is the only way of permanently bettering the material condition of the poor'. The Guild continues to exist as a charitable educational trust, which 'supports community projects and provides scholarships and awards in the areas of craft, agricultural science, art history, education, industry and social sciences'.

Walkley
Walkley is a mainly Victorian and Edwardian suburb of Sheffield, located to the north west of the city centre. In Ruskin's time, it was a healthily situated neighbourhood, inhabited by skilled artisans. Many of its streets were developed by local Land Societies.

Works
References to Works refer to the standard edition of Ruskin's works: The Library Edition of the Works of John Ruskin, ed. by E. T. Cook and Alexander Wedderburn, 39 vols (London: George Allen, 1903-12). Where possible, citations are given from these volumes.