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Thomason Collection of Civil War Tracts

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the most valuable set of documents connected with English history; greatly preferable to all the sheepskins in the Tower and other places, for informing the English what the English were in former times; I believe the whole secret of the seventeenth century is involved in that hideous mass of rubbish
123:. Between 1660 and 1664 Barlow offered the tracts, together with two copies of a manuscript catalogue to the university for £4,000 but the sale was not agreed. Thomason remained hopeful that they would be sold, and in his will dated 1664, he charged his three executors (Barlow, Thomas Lockey, and 83:
in London, methodically collected and preserved the works over two decades. The tracts consist of a broad range of writings, including sermons, songs, political speeches, debates, opinions, jokes, gossip, news reports, descriptions of the trial and execution of Charles I, accounts of Civil War
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battles, reports from Parliament, and several regularly appearing publications that historians consider the forebears of modern newspapers. Thomason's collection represents approximately 80 percent of the published works released in England during this period.
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Many of the publications that comprise the collection are exceedingly rare. In fact, some are not known to exist anywhere else. The tracts are bound into some 2,000 volumes and housed at the British Library's main building at
202:, where they were originally known as the "King's pamphlets" and added to the Royal Library Collection. In 1973, the museum transferred the Thomason Tracts to the British Library where they continue to be housed. 142:
in May 1684 to dispose of them on her family's behalf. Over the next four decades various members of the Sisson family (descendants of Samuel Mearne) endeavoured to sell the collection on numerous occasions to
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Thomason frequently made handwritten annotations on the tracts, providing such information as publication dates and the authorship of anonymous works. During the turbulent years of the Civil War and
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After Thomason's death in April 1666, the negotiations fell through and the collection remained in Barlow's hands, until they were acquired about 1677–1679 by the bookbinder
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Catalogue of pamphlets, books, newspapers, and manuscripts relating to the Civil War, the Commonwealth, and Restoration, collected by George Thomason, 1640–1661
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Thomason reputedly moved the collection several times to protect the more controversial works from destruction by government or opposition censors.
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consists of more than 22,000 pamphlets, broadsides, manuscripts, books, and news sheets, most of which were printed and distributed in
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there (Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the constitution and government of the British Museum.
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reels containing the entire collection. The microfilms are available at research libraries around the world.
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Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the constitution and government of the British Museum
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for the bargain price of £300 (a fraction of the cost of forming the collection). In that same year
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Stoker, David (1992), "Disposing of George Thomason's Intractable Legacy 1664–1762",
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Thomason Collection of Civil War Tracts: History of the Collection and its Collector
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Thomason appears to have entrusted the collection to the care of
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British Government Documents in the Microform Reading Room
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from 1640 to 1661. The collection represents a major
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Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer
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Customs and Excise Collection 382: 194:donated the collection to the new 157:James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos 25: 1144: 813:H.M. Stationery Office Collection 1091: 1082: 1081: 1014:Oral History of British Science 838:Inland Revenue Stamping Archive 788:Foreign and Commonwealth Office 743:Contributions Agency Collection 963:Turner Collection of Forgeries 958:Treasury Excise Correspondence 823:Harrison & Sons Collection 299: 283: 206:Significance of the collection 13: 1: 1009:British Library Sound Archive 316: 184:John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute 71:Compilation of the collection 908:R.P.S.L. 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It is now held in the 758:Crown Agents Collection 653:Stefan Zweig Collection 389:British Museum (1908), 372:(subscription required) 335:Encyclopædia Britannica 1128:17th-century documents 1019:St Mary-le-Bow Debates 993:Wilson-Todd Collection 221: 898:Photograph Collection 778:Fitzgerald Collection 713:Bojanowicz Collection 638:Lansdowne manuscripts 552:Harold Pinter Archive 216: 888:Muraleetharan Papers 753:Crown Agents Archive 708:Blackburn Collection 117:University of Oxford 81:St. Paul's Cathedral 1059:Preservation Office 938:Sherborn Collection 858:Langmead Collection 818:Harrison Collection 783:Fletcher Collection 773:Feldheim Collection 738:Chinchen Collection 669:Beudeker Collection 623:Harleian Collection 603:Arundel Manuscripts 582:Thomason Collection 476:Ettridge Collection 169:"Honest Tom" Martin 136:Palace of Whitehall 109:The Queen's College 57:English Restoration 953:Tapling Collection 933:Shelley Collection 923:Seymour Collection 868:McInroy Collection 848:Kaluski Collection 843:Johnson Collection 798:General Collection 733:Chismon Collection 723:Burnett Collection 633:King's manuscripts 618:Egerton Collection 542:Garrick Collection 527:Durrell Collection 491:Jaffray Collection 481:Evanion Collection 343:Gillies, Stewart, 1133:English Civil War 1105: 1104: 1027: 1026: 983:Walker Collection 978:U.P.U. 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(1911), 324:Chisholm, Hugh 318: 315: 312: 311: 298: 282: 258: 256:, p. 868. 245: 244: 242: 239: 225: 222: 212:Thomas Carlyle 207: 204: 196:British Museum 180:British Museum 125:John Rushworth 100: 97: 72: 69: 45:King Charles I 37:primary source 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1145: 1134: 1131: 1129: 1126: 1124: 1121: 1119: 1116: 1115: 1113: 1098: 1090: 1088: 1080: 1079: 1076: 1070: 1067: 1065: 1062: 1060: 1057: 1055: 1052: 1050: 1047: 1045: 1042: 1040: 1037: 1036: 1034: 1030: 1020: 1017: 1015: 1012: 1010: 1007: 1006: 1004: 1000: 994: 991: 989: 986: 984: 981: 979: 976: 974: 971: 969: 966: 964: 961: 959: 956: 954: 951: 949: 946: 944: 941: 939: 936: 934: 931: 929: 926: 924: 921: 919: 916: 914: 911: 909: 906: 904: 901: 899: 896: 894: 891: 889: 886: 884: 881: 879: 876: 874: 871: 869: 866: 864: 861: 859: 856: 854: 851: 849: 846: 844: 841: 839: 836: 834: 831: 829: 826: 824: 821: 819: 816: 814: 811: 809: 806: 804: 801: 799: 796: 794: 791: 789: 786: 784: 781: 779: 776: 774: 771: 769: 766: 764: 761: 759: 756: 754: 751: 749: 746: 744: 741: 739: 736: 734: 731: 729: 726: 724: 721: 719: 716: 714: 711: 709: 706: 704: 701: 700: 698: 696: 692: 686: 683: 682: 680: 676: 670: 667: 666: 664: 660: 654: 651: 649: 646: 644: 641: 639: 636: 634: 631: 629: 626: 624: 621: 619: 616: 614: 611: 609: 606: 604: 601: 600: 598: 594: 588: 585: 583: 580: 578: 575: 573: 570: 568: 565: 563: 560: 558: 555: 553: 550: 548: 545: 543: 540: 538: 535: 533: 530: 528: 525: 523: 520: 518: 515: 513: 510: 509: 507: 503: 497: 494: 492: 489: 487: 484: 482: 479: 477: 474: 473: 471: 467: 464: 458: 454: 447: 442: 440: 435: 433: 428: 427: 424: 418: 415: 412: 406: 400: 392: 387: 386: 377: 369: 365: 361: 357: 352: 348: 347: 341: 337: 336: 330: 325: 321: 320: 308: 302: 295: 291: 286: 278: 272: 267: 265: 263: 255: 254:Chisholm 1911 250: 246: 238: 236: 232: 220: 215: 213: 210:According to 203: 201: 200:Montagu House 197: 193: 189: 185: 181: 177: 172: 170: 166: 162: 158: 154: 150: 146: 141: 140:Privy Council 137: 133: 132:Samuel Mearne 128: 126: 122: 118: 114: 110: 107:, provost of 106: 105:Thomas Barlow 96: 94: 90: 85: 82: 78: 68: 66: 62: 58: 54: 50: 46: 42: 38: 34: 30: 19: 1064:Reading Room 1039:Bookbindings 718:Booth Papers 581: 572:Private Case 390: 359: 355: 345: 333: 301: 293: 285: 271:Gillies 2013 249: 227: 217: 209: 176:Thomas Birch 173: 129: 102: 86: 74: 28: 26: 596:Manuscripts 462:collections 356:The Library 290:Stoker 1992 231:St. Pancras 53:Interregnum 1112:Categories 695:Philatelic 678:Newspapers 505:Literature 317:References 55:, and the 1044:Employees 235:microfilm 1087:Category 469:Ephemera 399:citation 1097:Commons 1049:Friends 115:at the 1069:Sounds 292:cites 163:, the 147:, the 51:, the 47:, the 33:London 1032:Other 1002:Sound 460:Named 241:Notes 662:Maps 405:link 277:help 27:The 374:or 364:doi 198:at 91:of 59:of 1114:: 409:, 401:}} 397:{{ 360:14 332:, 309:." 261:^ 159:, 155:, 151:, 67:. 445:e 438:t 431:v 407:) 378:. 366:: 279:) 273:. 20:)

Index

Thomason Tracts
London
primary source
social history of England
King Charles I
English Civil War
Interregnum
English Restoration
King Charles II
British Library
George Thomason
St. Paul's Cathedral
the Protectorate
Oliver Cromwell
Thomas Barlow
The Queen's College
Bodleian Library
University of Oxford
Bishop of Lincoln
John Rushworth
Samuel Mearne
Palace of Whitehall
Privy Council
Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer
Bodleian Library
Thomas Thynne, 1st Viscount Weymouth
James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos
Frederick, Prince of Wales
Radcliffe Library
"Honest Tom" Martin

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