Under Construction @ Keele 2016 Volume 1 Issue 1 | Page 36

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been lost at some point, and so an English translation of the Latin translation
appeared a few years later. It appears that van Helmont edited the work, with Henry
More writing at least part of an unpublished Preface. The Principles stands as a
testament to a great philosophical talent who, due to unfortunate historical
circumstance, was not allowed to be celebrated in her own lifetime.15 It is certainly a
text which has more than curiosity value as an intriguing response to the intellectual
currents of the 17th century and as offering a philosophical system which brings
together the old and the new in a remarkably productive synthesis. From the point of
view of biography also, Anne Conway is highly noteworthy as a figure who was not
afraid to go against the grain, both socially and intellectually, at the same time as
courageously battling serious ill-health. As such, it is laudable that philosophers and
historians are considering her life and work in a much more detailed way than ever
before.16

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15

It is possible, however, that Conway had some considerable impact, in the decade following her
th
death, upon the philosophy of Leibniz, a prominent rationalist around the turn of the 18 century and
friend of van Helmont. See Carolyn Merchant, ‘The Vitalism of Anne Conway: Its Impact on Leibniz’s
Concept of the Monad,’ Journal of the History of Philosophy 17.3 (1979): passim.
16
For those who wish to explore Conway’s philosophy further, a summary and systematic
commentary of the Principles can be found in Peter Loptson, Introduction to The Principles of the
Most Ancient and Modern Philosophy, by Anne Conway (The Hague; Boston: Martinus Nijhoff, 1982),
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