Friends Invade England

The Friends of the Library, joined by the Friends of the Dartmouth College Library, travelled to England at the end of September for almost two weeks of bibliophilic fun and frivolity. The group was welcomed by Nicolas Barker, Keeper Emeritus of the British Library, at a typically English dinner at the Hotel Russell, our London headquarters. With splendid weather (for England) we spent a day on the south bank where we visited the Imperial War Museum, greatly expanded and refurbished in recent years, and the newly re-constructed Globe Theatre which was just concluding its first season under conditions that would have been familiar to the Bard. The day concluded with an excellent dinner at the distinguished antiquarian bookselling firm of Bernard Quaritch where some of our travellers dinted their pocket books while dinting their appetites.

The second day was strictly bibliophilic, with guided tours of both the new and the old British Libraries and a visit to the St. Bride Printing Library where James Mosley, the St. Bride Librarian, introduced the group to one of finest libraries in the world devoted to the history of printing. The visits to the BL were somewhat Janus-like, with a nostalgic farewell to the old library and its famous round reading room and a tour of the modern new building at St. Pancras which as yet contains no books although all the many miles of shelves are in place.

Friday found the group at Christie's auction house where we were entertained by an informal history of the firm and a visit deep into the bowels of the building where we saw much of the preparatory process of the auction business along with the firm's archive, dating from the 18th century. Following a free afternoon, we were treated to a cocktail hour at Old Battersea House, thanks to its owner, Friend Tim Forbes '76. The house dates from the 17th century and houses one of the finest collections of Victorian art in Britain. It was a special occasion to wander about amidst such surroundings unmolested by guards or "tourists" while balancing a canape in one hand and a drink in the other‹no, nothing was spilled.

Day three consisted of a day trip (still good weather) to Winchester and Salisbury where the group enjoyed exploring the two great cathedrals (Salisbury with its famous spire and Winchester with the longest nave in Europe). The latter had the added advantage of having on display the ancient and glorious Winchester Bible as well as other books from the cathedral library. Between churches, we passed a delightful afternoon at Wilton House, the seat of the Earls of Pembroke (the third and fourth earls were patrons of Shakespeare) which is famous for its great art collection of old master paintings and for the state rooms designed by Inigo Jones.

Sunday morning was spent in Hampstead with a visit to Kenwood House which contains a great library designed by Robert Adam and a wealth of paintings from the Iveagh bequest, including a Vermeer. Free time was provided to explore and lunch in the chic (i.e. yuppiefied) business district of Hampstead which was followed by a visit to the nearby house where Keats lived and wrote much of his most famous poetry‹e.g. the garden where he heard the nightingale of 'Ode' fame.

Our second day trip, to Oxford, took place on Monday (drizzly weather) and included a behind the scenes tour of the Bodleian Library and free time to wander about the colleges and bookstores. Dinner was in Windsor at a charming restaurant, said to have been designed by Christopher Wren, and directly beneath the walls of the Castle.

A smaller contingent of Friends continued on with an optional tour to the northern midlands the following day (Monday), flying to Manchester where we stayed at the recently restored Midland Hotel, orginally built as one of the great railroad hostelries. Highlights of the stay in and around Manchester included visits to the John Rylands Library, one of Britain's greatest rare book libraries, the City Art Gallery, famed for its Pre-Raphealite paintings, and a day trip to Chatsworth and Haddon Hall, two of the greatest of the great country houses, the former known for its library and the latter as one of the most unaltered of England's medieval manor houses.

Though all this may sound as if the pace was a breathless one, in reality there was time for independent touring, shopping, taking tea, and other quintessentially English pastimes. A good time was had by all and there is talk of another Friends trip in two or three years. So, stay tuned!

Christie's. Photo by Ann Roberts

Merrily Taylor and Friends at Haddon Hall. Photo by Connie Andrews.

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