These letters which make up the Journal to Stella were written during the most politically active period of Swift's life, and offer an insider's view of British political life at a pivotal point in eighteenth-century history. They also offer a glimpse into the intimacy of some of Swift's closest friendships.

The Journal to Stella, Jonathan Swift's letters to Esther Johnson, or 'Stella', and Rebecca Dingley, written between September 1710 and June 1713, offers an extraordinary commentary on Swift's experiences in London during the most politically active and exciting years of his career and evidence of his evolving relationship with the two women. This edition seeks for the first time both to situate the letters alongside Swift's other works and to place them within their original political, historical and cultural contexts. It brings together a combination of printed work and manuscript to present the most complete and accessible text possible, enhanced by the use of the latest digital image analysis techniques to reinstate previously indecipherable material. In addition to a new critical introduction and appendices, there is also a biographical appendix derived from recently available resources.