Perhaps we enjoy a ghostly tale as an antidote to the otherwise saccharine fare of the season. Or perhaps, in the gloom of winter, drawing around the light together makes us all the more aware of the darkness at our backs. For whatever reason, ghost stories have been a feature of the Christmas celebration since... Continue Reading →
Warm wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from everyone in the Eton College Collections. A Turkey and a DoveFrom Florence Hopper’s Scrapbook, 1886 This is one of 97 pages in a scrapbook compiled by 12-year-old Florence Hopper in 1886. One of the pastimes of Victorian children was pasting purpose-made coloured pictures,... Continue Reading →
St Andrew's Day traditions viewed through the Eton College Collections St Andrew's Day, celebrated in the Michaelmas half, has become one of the two biggest holidays marked at Eton College, the other being the Fourth of June which takes place in the summer. (In one of Eton's quirks, they are not held on the actual... Continue Reading →
A year ago, the Macnaghten Library received the very moving gift of the First World War papers of four Old Etonian brothers: Reginald, Robert, Geoffrey and Wilfred Loyd. All four served in the Great War, but the archive is chiefly formed of papers relating to one of them, Geoffrey Loyd (FHR., H de J 1908).... Continue Reading →
In March 1878, Walter Severn rushed to Rome to be at the bedside of his father Joseph, who he believed was dying. When he arrived, Joseph recounted his early life and reminisced about a number of famous and prominent people he had known. Walter noted down the conversation for posterity and it is this which... Continue Reading →
This year Remembrance Sunday commemorations will be fairly different to tradition as the nation observes social distancing. Despite restrictions on crowds and gatherings indoors, there are many socially distanced events scheduled to honour the service and sacrifices of the armed forces, and their communities, in conflict. There are a number of holdings in the Eton... Continue Reading →
In these strange times we have been looking for new ways to 'gather' friends together, and it has highlighted the human urge to keep in contact with others, something with many more possibilities now, than there would have been a decade or two ago. Bronze of Moelwyn Merchant, by Bryan Ellery. Image from 'Moelwyn Merchant,... Continue Reading →
The Fourth of June is the occasion when Eton College celebrates the birthday of George III, a great supporter of the school, with a grand festival of speeches, cricket and the procession of boats. 2020 has brought unique circumstances and with these, a unique Fourth of June, as we celebrate from our homes and connect online.... Continue Reading →
MS 178 Folio 57 recto. Photographer Julia Craig-McFeely. The Eton Choirbook has under gone a vivid history. It is one of three surviving volumes of exquisite, Latin illuminated manuscripts. It has been loved as an instrument of the Catholic faith, later at the mercy of religious and political changes where relics, icons and artifacts of... Continue Reading →
In 1943, the success of Allied military campaigns in North Africa saw a great turning point in the war. The Allied forces' success in the campaign was a turning point because it involved their first major victories, and eventually allowed them to invade Europe from the south. This enabled them to gain a foothold in... Continue Reading →
