"Historical Documentation and Its Importance during the Modern Era"

The eighteenth century witnessed a broad and revolutionary scientific and philosophical movement known as the Enlightenment. This movement was supported by governments and scientific academies to facilitate the exchange of ideas among educated individuals. It was also marked by numerous historical transformations in the fields of discovery, innovation, and the embrace of modernity. Society began to shift from reliance on myths and superstitions toward a historical narrative based on accurate information and proper documentation. It is from this context that my choice of this topic stems.

Accordingly, we can say that history began to take a scientific direction based on documentation. Prior to the eighteenth century, historical documentation focused mainly on literature, reflections, myths, royal praises, and metaphysical or supernatural matters. However, in what came to be known as the Age of Enlightenment, history assumed a scientific form grounded in firm methodological and technical principles. The ideas that once dominated the minds of traditional historians—mainly their focus on political affairs and events—were replaced by a new vision that regarded history as a practical and objective science.

Historians during this period exerted great efforts to study important historical topics. The century saw the emergence of several prominent philosophers and historians, such as Vico, Voltaire, Gibbon, Hume, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Adam Smith, Condorcet, and others whose philosophies and perspectives shaped the study of history.

The philosophers of the Enlightenment contributed significantly to historical studies through their critical analysis of texts, which helped eliminate many errors from historical accounts. They were the first to expand the European—and global—view of history. As a result, the historian’s perspective during the Enlightenment became more liberated and less influenced by religious or nationalist bias. They came to believe that true history is the history of thought, revealed through the progress of human reason.

Historical documentation before the Enlightenment focused on narrative traditions. However, the eighteenth century witnessed a rich diversity in historical knowledge, the emergence of new branches of history, and the development of research methodologies. This led to the eighteenth century being labeled “the age of history-making.”

The defining characteristics of the eighteenth century were its identity as the Age of Enlightenment—or the age of reason—during which great philosophers and thinkers emerged across various fields of knowledge. In the realm of history, it gradually evolved to rest on scientific and methodological foundations, moving away from literature, philosophy, reflection, the legends of saints, and royal eulogies, toward a solid scientific discipline.

The interest in history during this century reflected a broader concern for humanity—not merely the study of humans, but an understanding that examining the past provides us with knowledge and experience. Furthermore, the study of history satisfies the rational inclination to issue judgments independent of the Church and political authorities. Historians began to critique the theological foundations upon which historical writing in the middle Ages had been based