since 1610 one of Britain's oldest public libraries

Lambeth Palace Library London, England
The database of archives and manuscripts is newly online

The online catalogue of archives and manuscripts is not complete, with new entries being added on a regular basis. It includes descriptions of original records held at the Library and at the Church of England Record Centre.

Use the Catalogue of Archives and Manuscripts

Lambeth Palace Library has separate online catalogues for its collections of printed books, and archives and manuscripts.

The online printed books catalogue includes over 130,000 items held by Lambeth Palace Library. The catalogue contains entries for the entire collections of printed books, prints and periodicals. It does not generally contain records for the Sion College collections, for which card catalogues are available.

Use the Printed Books Catalogue

Lambeth Palace Library is the historic library of the Archbishops of Canterbury and the principal library and record office for the history of the Church of England. The Library focuses on ecclesiastical history, but its rich collections are important for an immense variety of topics from the history of art and architecture to colonial and Commonwealth history, and for innumerable aspects of English social, political and economic history. It is also a significant resource for local history and genealogy. Our source guides provide further information.

The Library was founded as a public library by Archbishop Bancroft in 1610, and its collections have been freely available for research ever since. Using their pages you can explore ther holdings, and find out about visiting the Library and the services available here.