South East European Collections in the British Library
South East European Collections in the British Library

Summary/Abstract: Systematic acquisition of material in most of the Slavonic languages began in 1837. However, some rarities came as part of the foundation collections of Sir Hans Sloane, Old Royal Library and later donated collections of King George III, Sir Joseph Banks and Thomas Grenville, just to name a few. The library, then part of the British Museum, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1753 had been opened to the public six years later. The Old Royal Library, the collection of the Kings of England had been founded in the 15th century by Edward IV and donated to the newly formed library in 1757 by King George II. But the most valuable gift that the Old Royal Library brought was the right of Copyright Act, which laid down that the Royal Library should receive a copy of every printed work registered at Stationers’ Hall.

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