A first-hand account of the Great Fire of London
On 13 September 1666, only a few days after the Great Fire of London had finally been quenched, John Evelyn presented Charles II with a survey of the ruins, ‘for it was now no longer a Citty’*, and a design for the new London, drafted with extraordinary speed – but then Evelyn had long been […]
40 years ago: Philip Larkin opens new University library
While repackaging the photograph series in the University Archives recently Rebecca, our intern, spotted that his weekend marks the 40th anniversary of the official opening of the new University Library by Philip Larkin on 27 September 1975. An honorary graduate of the University, the poet was also a former member of its library staff, having joined […]
Death’s Doings
While working on some book moves we are presently carrying out, I rediscovered the rather wonderful Death’s Doings illustrated by Richard Dagley, first published in 1822. This volume belongs to a long tradition on the Dance of Death theme, which dates back to medieval times, when death from war and violence, disease, poverty, childhood mortality […]
Caring for our Special Collections
Visitors to Special Collections often ask how we preserve the rare books, manuscripts and archives in our collection. Much of what we do could be described as preventative care. This starts as soon as someone visits us to consult an item, as we ask them only to bring pencils or digital devices into the reading […]
East Derbyshire Election, 1868
Our look back at past elections in Special Collections is rounded off today with a gallery of from an impressive volume of East Derbyshire Election Cartoons, 1868. The book was printed and published by Richard John Smithson of Chesterfield. Shown here are 21 political cartoons. Numbers 1-18 (Liberal Cartoons) were drawn by J. Priestman Atkinson, […]
Smallpox in Leicester
From my reading of The Wyvern: a Topical, Critical & Humorous Journal published in Leicester around the turn of the century, I was shocked to learn that serious outbreaks of smallpox continued to be a problem in the city right up until 1902-4. During the second half of the 19th century, the corporation struggled with […]
Local Politics in Leicester During the 1890s
The forthcoming local council and mayoral elections in Leicester have made me wonder what issues were preoccupying our local administration during the period when The Wyvern, a rare local Victorian periodical, was in circulation. This short-lived but fascinating Topical, Critical & Humorous Journal appeared between 1899 and 1906. It was published from ‘18 ½’ Belvoir […]
Poll Books in Special Collections
With a General Election campaign in full swing, it seems like a good time for some blog posts about the sources we hold on the history of British parliamentary elections. As we all head off to our local polling stations on 7 May, one thing that we will take for granted is that when we […]
17th Century Adventures in Travel Writing
In 1627, at the age of only 21, Sir Thomas Herbert travelled to Persia and India as a low-ranking member of Charles I’s embassy to Shah Abbas I. His account of his experiences, Some Years Travels into Divers Parts of Africa and Asia the Great …, first published in 1634, was a great success and […]
Supporting teaching in Special Collections
Supporting academic colleagues with teaching is an important part of our work in Special Collections. Semester 1 has been a busy time for us, with visits from students on eight different courses at the University of Leicester and one from our friends at De Montfort. In an age where so much primary source material is […]
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