Manuscripts and archives

You can access ancient, medieval, modern, and contemporary manuscript and archive material from around the world. Our collections include historical, literary, political, scientific, and religious papers as well as maps, charters, seals, rolls, and papyri.

Collection guides

Cotton manuscripts
The library of Sir Robert Cotton (1571–1631)
Harley manuscripts
Manuscripts, charters, and rolls collected by the Harley family
Sloane manuscripts
Manuscripts and artefacts gathered by the physician Sir Hans Sloane (1660–1753)
Royal manuscripts
Manuscripts collected by English sovereigns from Edward IV onwards
Lansdowne manuscripts
A collection of modern political papers and material relating to topography and heraldry
King’s manuscripts
Medieval and post-medieval manuscripts and topographical material

View all related guides

Help

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Subjects

Classics

Graeco-Roman antiquity, from the middle of the 2nd millennium BC to the end of the 6th century AD.

Medieval and early modern Britain

British historical and literary manuscripts, 600–1600

Modern British history

British history from 1600 to the present

Contemporary Britain

Collections reflecting contemporary British society and culture

Literature and drama

Collections relating to English literature and British theatre

Maps

The British Library collection of maps, plans and views is one of the largest in the world, numbering some 4.5 million

Music

The British Library has a world-famous collection of music

Arts and humanities

Collections for the study of history, culture and society

Social sciences

Research resources on politics, economics, law, sociology and other subjects.

Digital Scholarship

Undertake innovative research with our digital collections and data

Law and legal studies

Historical and current resources for the study of law, legislation and society

Family history

Primary sources and reference material for family history and genealogy research

Readers at desks in the Manuscript Reading Room

Manuscripts Reading Room

The Manuscripts Reading Room is the enquiry point for the Library's western language manuscript collections (i.e. written by hand, not printed). The collection includes literary, historical manuscripts and private papers.

Find information on the shelves about the British Library’s collection of western manuscripts and those held elsewhere
Access online databases and electronic journals and books relating to archives and manuscripts
Order collection items to the Reading Room via our Explore Archives & Manuscripts Catalogue

Some of our manuscripts may require a Letter of Introduction, or may have other Access Conditions.

We offer a range of free Reader sessions and 1-2-1 consultations to help you make the best use of the Library's collections.

You’ll need a Reader Pass

Mon: 10.00 – 17.00
Tue – Sat: 09.30 – 17.00
Sun & English Public Holidays: closed

Opening hours for all Reading Rooms

For enquiries, please contact the Manuscripts Reference Team.

Blog posts

Sir Stafford Northcote’s voyage down the new Suez Canal

Thursday, June 1, 2023

A travel journal of the British politician Stafford Northcote includes a first-hand account of the opening of the Suez Canal. Sir Stafford Henry Northcote, 1st Earl of Iddesleigh, by Edwin Longsden Long (1882) NPG 2944 © National Portrait Gallery, London...

EAP Digital Lecture Series

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Every now and then, researchers notify us of a conference talk focusing on content digitised by EAP projects. We are always thrilled to be told about these talks and it prompted us to create a digital lecture series of our...

‘Bringing up a chicken to peck out their eye’: A niece’s betrayal

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Alice Thornton (1626–1707), a Yorkshire gentlewoman, made sure that her life didn’t go untold by writing at least four versions of it in the 1660s to 1690s, two of which were acquired by the British Library in 2009. But why...

The last day of Constantinople

Monday, May 29, 2023

This year marks the 570th anniversary of the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire, on 29 May 1453. The city at the Bosporus, on the border between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, bridging Europe, Asia Minor and the...

Case studies

More Case studies

…Being at both Leicester and the British Library has given me two outlets to present my research to the wider public.…

Exploring how the Anglo-Saxons used manuscripts to experience Rome from afar.

Collaborative Doctoral Student British Library

…You get to know how people work in an institution like this... it's something I would like to do as well.…

Exploring the working life of a twentieth-century scientist through the archive of John Maynard Smith.

…I have most enjoyed the collaborative atmosphere of learning at the Library.…

AHRC Innovation Placement Fellow

…A PhD can be a lonely journey, but collaborative PhDs are certainly not that.…

Investigating constructions of identity in the works and archive of the writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala.

Shop

The British Library houses one of the world's greatest collections of illuminated manuscripts, and Janet Backhouse has drawn on this rich resource to make a selection of outstanding examples that span over 800 years of medieval book production.

£8.95