Anational library is alibrary established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information.[1] Unlikepublic libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant works. A national library is that library which has the duty of collecting and preserving the literature of the nation within and outside the country. Thus, national libraries are those libraries whose community is the nation at large. Examples include theBritish Library in London, and theBibliothèque nationale de France in Paris.[2][3]
There are wider definitions of a national library which put less emphasis on the repository character.[2][3]
National libraries are usually notable for their size, compared to those of the other libraries in the same country. Some subnational states that wish to preserve their particular cultures have established comparable libraries with all the attributes of national libraries, such as withlegal deposit.
Many national libraries cooperate within the National Libraries Section of theInternational Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) to discuss their common tasks, define and promote common standards and carry out projects helping them to fulfill their duties. National libraries of Europe participate inThe European Library. This is a service of The Conference of European National Librarians (CENL).
The first national libraries had their origins in the royal collections of the sovereign or some other supreme body of the state.
One of the first plans for a national library was devised by the English mathematicianJohn Dee, who in 1556 presentedMary I of England with a visionary plan for the preservation of old books, manuscripts and records and the founding of a national library, but his proposal was not taken up.[4]
In England, SirRichard Bentley'sProposal for Building a Royal Library published in 1694 stimulated renewed interest in the subject.Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet, of Connington, a wealthyantiquarian, amassed the richest private collection ofmanuscripts in the world at the time and founded theCotton Library. After theDissolution of the Monasteries, many priceless and ancient manuscripts that had belonged to the monastic libraries began to be disseminated among various owners, many of whom were unaware of the cultural value of the manuscripts. Sir Robert's genius was in finding, purchasing and preserving these ancient documents.[5] After his death his grandson donated the library to the nation as its first national library. This transfer established the formation of the British Library.[6][7]
The first true national library was founded in 1753 as part of theBritish Museum.This new institution was the first of a new kind of museum – national, belonging to neither church nor king, freely open to the public and aiming to collect everything.[8] The museum's foundations lay in the will of the physician and naturalistSir Hans Sloane, who gathered an enviablecollection of curiosities over his lifetime which he bequeathed to the nation for £20,000.[9]
The first exhibition galleries and reading room for scholars opened on 15 January 1759,[12] and in 1757, KingGeorge II granted it the right to a copy of every book published in the country, thereby ensuring that the museum's library would expand indefinitely.
Anthony Panizzi became the Principal Librarian at the British Museum in 1856, where he oversaw its modernization. During his tenure, the library's holdings increased from 235,000 to 540,000 volumes, making it the largest library in the world at the time. Its famous circularReading Room was opened in 1857. Panizzi undertook the creation of a new catalogue, based on the "Ninety-One Cataloguing Rules" (1841) which he devised with his assistants. These rules served as the basis for all subsequentcatalogue rules of the 19th and 20th centuries, and are at the origins of theISBD and of digital cataloguing elements such asDublin Core.
In France, the first national library was theBibliothèque Mazarine, which evolved from its origin as a royal library founded at theLouvre Palace byCharles V in 1368. At the death ofCharles VI, this first collection was unilaterally bought by the English regent of France, theDuke of Bedford, who transferred it to England in 1424. It was apparently dispersed at his death in 1435.[13][14] The invention of printing resulted in the starting of another collection in the Louvre inherited byLouis XI in 1461.[15]Francis I transferred the collection in 1534 toFontainebleau and merged it with his private library.
The appointment ofJacques Auguste de Thou as librarian in the 17th century, initiated a period of development that made it the largest and richest collection of books in the world.[14] The library opened to the public in 1692, under the administration ofAbbé Louvois, Minister Louvois's son. Abbé Louvois was succeeded by theAbbé Bignon, or Bignon II as he was termed, who instituted a complete reform of the library's system. Catalogues were made which appeared from 1739 to 1753 in 11 volumes. The collections increased steadily by purchase and gift to the outbreak of theFrench Revolution, at which time it was in grave danger of partial or total destruction, but owing to the activities of Antoine-Augustin Renouard andJoseph Van Praet it suffered no injury.[14]
The library's collections swelled to over 300,000 volumes during theradical phase of theFrench Revolution when the private libraries of aristocrats and clergymen were seized. After the establishment of theFrench First Republic in September 1792, "the Assembly declared theBibliotheque du Roi to be national property and the institution was renamed theBibliothèque Nationale. After four centuries of control by the Crown, this great library now became the property of the French people."[13]
The library was founded by KingPhilip V in 1711 as the Royal Library or Palace Public Library. The Royal Letters Patent that he granted, the predecessor of the current legal deposit requirement, made it mandatory for printers to submit a copy of every book printed in Spain to the library. In 1836, theCrown transferred the library to theMinistry of Governance and it was renamed asNational Library of Spain. A year later, women were allowed access to the library for the first time, after a petition from writerAntonia Gutiérrez was granted by Queen RegentMaria Christina.[16]
TheNational Library of Poland continues the tradition of theZałuski Library.[17] The Załuski Library was opened to readers inWarsaw on 8 August 1747, thanks toJózef Załuski's cooperation with his brotherAndrzej Załuski, but the idea of the Library dates back to 1732 (presented inProgramma literarium by Józef Załuski).[18][19] The library was one of the first national libraries and largest public libraries of eighteenth-century Europe.[18][20] Following the death of its founders the library became the property of the Polish state and from 1774 was named the Library of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (Polish:Biblioteka Rzeczypospolitej).[18][19] In 1780 theSejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth granted the Library the right to receive a freelegal deposit copy of every book printed in the country.[17] Following the failedKościuszko Uprising, on the eve ofThird Partition of Poland and the collapse of Polish statehood, the Library of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was closed down and taken toSt Petersburg in 1794, on the decision of EmpressCatherine II, where it formed the basis of theNational Library of Russia.[18][20] Before taken to Russia the collections numbered about 400,000 volumes, including about 13,000 medieval and modern manuscripts.[17]
Between 1795 and 1918 no central institution existed collecting printed and handwrittenworks from the lands that had once formed Poland.[18] Some smaller libraries aimed to fill the gap it left, albeit on a smaller scale.[18] The National Library of Poland was re-founded after Poland regained its independence in 1918, and formally opened in 1928 under the Decree of the President of theRepublic of Poland.[18][17] Following theTreaty of Riga of 1921, most of the manuscripts of Zaluski Library and a large proportion of the prints were returned to Warsaw fromSoviet Russia.[19] National Library of Poland also included the collections of other Warsaw-based libraries and the collections fromRapperswil and Paris created by Polish émigré communities.[17] DuringWorld War II the most valuable part of the National Library's holdings – almost 800,000 registered items (includingc. 50,000 manuscripts destroyed by German Nazis) – were lost forever.[17]
In the newly formed American republic,James Madison first proposed instituting a congressional library in 1783.[22] TheLibrary of Congress was established on 24 April 1800, whenpresidentJohn Adams signed anact of Congress providing for the transfer of the seat of government fromPhiladelphia to the new capital city of Washington. Part of the legislation appropriated $5,000 "for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress ... and for fitting up a suitable apartment for containing them." Books were ordered from London and the collection, consisting of 740 books and three maps, was housed in the newCapitol.[23]
TheImperial Public Library was established in 1795 byCatherine the Great, whose private collections included the domestic libraries ofVoltaire andDiderot, which she had purchased from their heirs. Voltaire's personal library is still one of the highlights of the collection. The plan of a Russian public library was submitted to Catherine in 1766 but the Empress did not approve the project for the imperial library until 27 May [O.S. 16 May] 1795, eighteen months before her death. The cornerstone of the foreign-language department came from thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the form ofZałuski's Library (420,000 volumes), nationalized by the Russian government at thetime of the partitions.[24] The Polish-language books from the library (numbering some 55,000 titles) were returned toPoland by theRussian SFSR in 1921.[25]
Although Germany was only constituted as a state in 1871, the first national library was set up in the context of theGerman revolutions of 1848. Various booksellers and publishers offered their works to theFrankfurt Parliament for a parliamentary library. The library, led by Johann Heinrich Plath, was termed theReichsbibliothek ("Reich library"). After the failure of the revolution the library was abandoned and the stock of books already in existence was stored at theGermanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg.[26] In 1912, the town of Leipzig, seat of the annual Leipzig Book Fair, theKingdom of Saxony and the Börsenverein der Deutschen Buchhändler (Association of German booksellers) agreed to found aGerman National Library in Leipzig. Starting 1 January 1913, all publications in German were systematically collected (including books from Austria and Switzerland).
In the Republic of Ireland, theCopyright and Related Rights Act 2000 specifies that one copy of every book published is to be delivered to theNational Library of Ireland, the Trinity College Library, Dublin, the library of theUniversity of Limerick, the library ofDublin City University, and theBritish Library. Four copies are to be delivered to theNational University of Ireland for distribution to its constituent universities. Further, on demand in writing within twelve months of publication a copy is to be delivered to the Bodleian Library, Cambridge University Library, the National Library of Scotland, and the National Library of Wales.
In Australia, theCopyright Act 1968 and other state acts require that a copy of every book published in Australia be deposited with theNational Library of Australia, the relevant state library for the state in which the book was published, and some states other libraries such as parliamentary and university libraries.
Since 1537, all works published in France must be deposited with theBibliothèque nationale de France. Since 1997, it has also received deposits of digital works.
Since 1661, theSwedish Royal Library has been entitled to a copy of all works published in Sweden.
Other countries, like the United States, do not follow this requirement. The United States does, however, require that any publisher submit two copies of a copyrightable work toUnited States Copyright Office at theLibrary of Congress – this is known asmandatory deposit[27] – but the Library is selective about which works it retains. The international nature of the book publishing industry ensures that all significant English language publications from elsewhere in the world are also included. It also has theFederal depository libraries, which must receive a copy of all of the publications of theGovernment Printing Office.
In addition to having a law requiring publishers to deposit books, those countries with legal deposits usually have many other incentives for a proper and speedy deposit, such as a tie-in with laws affectingcopyright of the same documents, and/or a cataloguing-in-publication (CIP) service.
One of the main goals of a national library is fulfilling their nation's part of the common international goal ofunion cataloguing and/oruniversal bibliographic control, by ensuring thebibliographic control of all the books or book-like documents published in that particular country or talking about that particular country, in any way.
The first part of the goal is usually achieved through the means of legal deposit laws or (as is the case of the United States) by a host of different programs such as a cataloguing in publication service. By this service, the Library of Congress gives a completecatalogue entry of a book to any publisher who sends a final draft or some form of galley proof of a book currently in production. Other national libraries offer similar services or enforce mandatory practices similar to this.
The second part of the goal is achieved by thorough acquisition programs andcollection development policies which target book markets in other nations, and which foster international agreements with other countries with national libraries who have national bibliographic control as one of their goals. Exchange and access protocols are defined permitting these countries to read each other's catalogues, and to standardize catalogue entries, thus making it easier for each national library to become aware of every possible published document which might concern their country.
Another one of the main goals of many a national library is the "export aspect" and the collaborative sides of the universal bibliographic control of all the books in the world. This is done by the exchanges and accords mentioned in the previous section, and also by fostering the creation of standard conceptual tools such aslibrary classification systems and cataloguing rules. The most commonly used of these tools is theInternational Standard Bibliographic Description or ISBD, which has served as a basis for national and international cataloguing codes, such asAACR2.
^Fell-Smith, Charlotte (1909)John Dee: 1527–1608. London: Constable and CompanyAvailable online
^John Aikin.The Lives of John Selden, Esq., and Archbishop Usher; With Notices of the Principal English Men of Letters with Whom They Were Connected. 1812. p. 375.
^'An Act for the better settling and preserving the Library kept in the House at Westminster called Cotton House in the Name and Family of the Cottons for the Benefit of the Publick [Chapter VII. Rot. Parl. 12 § 13 Gul. III. p. 1. n. 7.]', Statutes of the Realm: volume 7: 1695-1701 (1820), pp. 642–643. URL:http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=46991
^Letter to Charles Long (1823), BMCE115/3,10. Scrapbooks and illustrations of the Museum. (Wilson, David, M.) (2002). The British Museum: A History. London: The British Museum Press, pg 346
^abPaul M. Priebe. "From Bibliothèque du Roi to Bibliothèque Nationale: The Creation of a State Library, 1789–1793." The Journal of Library History, Vol. 17, No. 4 (Fall, 1982)
^Konstantinos Staikos (2012),History of the Library in Western Civilization: From Petrarch to Michelangelo, New Castle, DE: Oak Knoll Press,ISBN978-1-58456-182-8
^Constenla, Tereixa (10 March 2013)."Leer era cosa de hombres" [Reading Was a Man's Thing].El País (in Spanish). Madrid. Archived fromthe original on 11 March 2013. Retrieved25 September 2023.
^abcdef"History".The National Library of Poland. Retrieved16 June 2023.
