National Trust and British Library Doctoral Fellowships

National Trust and British Library Doctoral Fellowships

This collection gathers outputs from a series of Doctoral Fellowships jointly supervised by the National Trust and British Library as part of a research partnership between the two organisations.
Collection Details
Keywords

Settings

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
  • Thumbnail Image
    Some of the metrics are blocked by your 
    consent settings
    Item type:Research report,
    Horticultural Collections at the British Library & the National Trust: Project Report
    (2024-04-26)
    Murray, Grace
    The British Library (BL, or the Library) and the National Trust (NT, or the Trust) each have a rich relationship with the history of horticulture and botany. The aim of this June – September 2023 Doctoral Fellowship was to explore the relationship between gardens and books in the BL’s printed book collections and the NT’s libraries in its ‘garden properties’. The fellowship was divided into three parts. As a specialist in early modern print (1500-1700), I centred my research on annotation and reader interventions in early garden and plant books, and for the British Library I produced a searchable spreadsheet of 271 copies of which 55% contained interventions (Part One and Appendix A). On the basis of a similar survey of annotated material at NT properties using the Library Hub Discover and Trust catalogues and with additional support from NT colleagues, I selected six properties to research further, most of which have received little attention for their gardens & landscapes: Ormesby Hall (North Yorkshire), Treasurer’s House (North Yorkshire), Felbrigg Hall (Norfolk), Kingston Lacy (Dorset), Calke Abbey (Derbyshire) and Ham House (Richmond). At these properties I investigated annotation practice in garden books printed between 1500 and 1900, supplemented by manuscript material (Part Two). My research at both organisations fed into overall preparations for the BL’s ‘Gardening’ exhibition, supported by NT loans and possibly satellite exhibitions (Part Three). Additional project outputs include talks, conference papers & articles, as well as suggestions for further research.
      3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Some of the metrics are blocked by your 
    consent settings
    Item type:Research report,
    Arabic language manuscripts: patterns of ownership and use
    (2025-03)
    Brown, Samantha
    This 2024 National Trust-British Library fellowship investigates the provenance of Arabic manuscripts in six collections across both organisations. The Trust had identified three properties of interest – Kingston Lacy, Belton House and Calke Abbey – and I was encouraged to select material to survey at the British Library. Being an early modernist, I focused on the Arabic content of three named collections representing early English libraries: Cotton, Arundel and Harley. Through its survey of over 130 manuscripts, the project sheds light on the provenance of individual items, while also identifying threads that run through six different collections held by two institutions, over a period of three centuries.
      4  6
  • Thumbnail Image
    Some of the metrics are blocked by your 
    consent settings
    Item type:Research report,
    Jane Austen and the Georgian Social Whirl of Bath: Understanding the importance of Provincial Assembly Rooms and Public Social Entertainments in Georgian Literature - Project Report
    (2023)
    Edwards, Joanne
    This report details the experience and findings of the 2023 British Library-National Trust Doctoral Fellow, undertaking the project titled Jane Austen and the Georgian Social Whirl of Bath. This project was undertaken across three months, from 3 January to 31 March 2023. The report is organised into two main sections. Part one focuses on the data collection of items found across the British Library and National Trust collections. This data is then analysed through distribution plotting, specifically examining the spread of Austen publications and Bath guidebooks across National Trust country houses. Part two aims to answer key research questions surrounding Bath’s public social life, assembly, and entertainments, further questioning the significance of Bath entertainment spaces in the facilitation of leisure activities.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Some of the metrics are blocked by your 
    consent settings
    Item type:Research report,
    Library Dispersal and Acquisition: Links Between the British Library and National Trust
    (2022-10-12)
    Blair, Laura
    In September 2021 the first round of collaborative Doctoral Fellowships was announced by the British Library and the National Trust. The first round was to consist of two fellowships: “‘Creative Networks and Authors’ Houses’: Links Between the British Library and National Trust” and “Library Dispersal and Acquisition: Links Between the British Library and National Trust.” Applications closed in October 2021, and the fellowships were awarded to begin in January 2022. The first was undertaken by Josip Martincic (University of Exeter) and the second by myself, Laura Blair (Queen Mary, University of London). I began the Doctoral Fellowship in January 2022, working on a part-time (0.5FTE) basis over the course of six months, finishing in July 2022. I took an interruption of studies from my full-time PhD at Queen Mary, University of London (funded by the Wellcome Trust) in order to complete the BL-NT Fellowship whilst also undertaking a Wellcome-funded Secondment Fellowhip at the Museum of the Home. My PhD research focuses on the libraries of nineteenth-century lunatic asylums and the role of reading as ‘therapeutic’; as such, I came to the project with an understanding of the history of the development and use of libraries. This, alongside experience working with archival records and special collections, gave me confidence in conducting research for the Fellowship. In addition, given my work in the museums sector, I was drawn to the project due to its relation to notions of what constitutes an item of ‘national significance’ and the institutions which are seen as devoting themselves to the preservation of cultural heritage. This report serves as an overview of the Fellowship project, its aims, findings and recommendations for future research and future Fellowship opportunities. The Interim report is available, as are extended reports for each house, are available – these are discussed in Section 6, Outputs. This report is the result of a collaboration between the National Trust and the British Library. London, UK
      4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Some of the metrics are blocked by your 
    consent settings
    Item type:Research report,
    Final report of the Doctoral Fellowship titled Creative Networks and Authors’ Houses: Links Between The British Library and National Trust
    (2023)
    MartinÄ ić, Josip
    This report outlines the scope, findings and experience of the British Library and National Trust Doctoral Fellowship called Creative Networks and Authors’ Houses. Josip Martincic undertook a three-month placement to explore the networks and homes of George Bernard Shaw, Virginia Woolf and Rudyard Kipling. The overarching purpose of the fellowship was to uncover connections between the authors, through their homes and manuscripts. Martincic summarises each author’s relationship with their home, setting the timeframe and the opportunity of contact. Examples of interaction follow, both in-person contact between the authors and references in their writings. The findings show few personal interactions took place, despite the geographical closeness of the writers. The strongest exception is the connection between Woolf and Shaw, as detailed below. Searching for written references by and about each writer shows more potential. Martincic gives a few examples from correspondence, literature, reviews, and recommends this an area for further research. Having set the scene, the research focussed on the manuscript collection at the British Library. By analysing the scope and provenance, Martincic shows the contrasts between the three authors in the way they wished their work, and their home, to be preserved and presented. In doing so he connects both the British Library and National Trust as spaces where the legacy of each author is expressed. The opportunities within the wider social network of each author is discussed. A summary of the public engagement related to this fellowship is provided. The recommendations for future fellowships include a focus on a single author, such as Shaw or Henry James. In conclusion, Martincic reflects on the impact the fellowship has had on his own understanding of the authors.
      1  1