Debating societies emerged in London in the early eighteenth century, and were a prominent feature of society until the end of the century. The origins of the debating societies are not certain, but by the mid-18th century, London fostered an active debating culture. Topics ranged from current events and governmental policy, to love and marriage, and the societies welcomed participants from all genders and all social backgrounds, exemplifying the enlarged public sphere of the Age of Enlightenment.

At the end of the century, the political environment created by the French Revolution led to the tightening of governmental restrictions. The debating societies declined, and they virtually disappeared by the beginning of the nineteenth century. However, a select few societies survived to the present day, and new societies formed in recent years have been boosted by promotion via the internet and social media, giving debating in London a new lease on life.

Scholarship on London's debating societies is hindered by the lack of records left by the societies, but the work of historian Donna T. Andrew, among others, has contributed to the field.

The Enlightenment is a period of history identified with the eighteenth century. Arising throughout Europe, Enlightenment philosophy emphasised reason as the foremost source of authority in all matters, and was simultaneously linked to increased secularisation and often political upheaval. The most obvious example of this link is the French Revolution of 1789. The Enlightenment in France is tightly associated with the rise of the salons and the academies, institutions which have been intensely studied by many notable historians. The English Enlightenment has historically been largely associated with the rise of coffeehouse culture, a topic also investigated by many historians. More recent scholarship has identified early elements of the Enlightenment in other European countries, such as the Low Countries.

While the Enlightenment was an incredibly diverse phenomenon that varied from country to country, one aspect common to each country was the rise of the "public sphere". The concept of the public sphere was articulated by Jürgen Habermas, a German sociologist and philosopher. Habermas saw in the eighteenth century the rise of new realm of communication that emphasised new areas of debate, as well as a surge in print culture. This new arena, which Habermas termed the "bourgeois public sphere," was characterised as separate from traditional authorities and accessible to all people, and could therefore act as a platform for criticism and the development of new ideas and philosophy. While the degree to which the salons and academies of France can be considered part of the public sphere has been questioned, the debating societies of London are undoubtedly part of the Enlightened public sphere. The relatively unrestricted print industry of late seventeenth century England, as well as the Triennial Act 1694 that required elections of the British Parliament at least every three years, fostered a comparatively active political climate in eighteenth century England, in which the debating societies were able to flourish.

While there were comparable societies in other parts of Europe, as well as in other British cities, London was home to the largest number of independent debate societies throughout all of the eighteenth century. This prominence was largely due to prior existence of clubs that had been created for various other reasons, the concentration of population in the capital, as well as other Enlightened philosophical developments.

The Enlightenment saw an increasing emphasis on the concept of "politeness". Perhaps most obvious in the salons of Paris, polite discourse was seen as a way for the rising middle class to access the previously unattainable social status of the upper classes. In England, politeness came to be associated with elocution. Paul Goring argues that "elocutionary movement" arose initially from a desire to make sermons more interesting and attainable. He notes that periodicals such as The Tatler and The Spectator, the quintessential reflections of British public opinion, often criticised Anglican ministers for their oratory. Goring also points out that, in spite of the burgeoning print culture of the eighteenth century, oratory was still the most effective way of communicating with a public that was basically only half literate in 1750.

The "British elocutionary movement" is linked to Thomas Sheridan, an Irish actor turned orator and author who was an avid proponent of educational reform. A contemporary of Jonathan Swift, Sheridan began his public career with the publishing of British Education; Or, The Source of the Disorders of Great Britain in 1756, which attacked the current practices of education that continued to emphasise Greek and Roman literature, and argued for a new system that instead concentrated on the study of English and elocution. Understandably, Sheridan's work was controversial, and his popularity in London society began to climb.