Hidden in West London, near Kew Gardens, lies another treasure many people may not be aware of. This is The National Archives, which represents the nation’s memory.
The archives hold many historical documents such as: Shakespeare’s will, the Doomsday Book, Magna Carta, the last Titanic telegram and 1st World War love letters as well as many other documents and artefacts. Records are usually transferred to The National Archives when they are around 20 years old.
Jessamy Carlson, Family & Local History Engagement Lead at The National Archives, filmed a video recently with Ancestry where she shared many interesting facts about the archives and some of the things that are held there. From this I discovered that in the Kew Archives there are 11 million paper records held which requires 220km shelving to store. Additionally there are 1 billion archived web pages. The smallest item held in The National Archives is a 1cm diameter wax seal, with the largest being a 3x4metre map of Epping Forest. One of the more curious artefacts are a pair of rat skeletons. These were used in the 1830s as evidence for the need to have proper government storage.
When asked what her favourite artefact in the archive is, Jessamy said ‘My favourite document is a commendation from the City of Liverpool to Queen Victoria from 1887 on her Silver Jubilee. I came across this whole series quite by accident, and this one stands out, not least because it is one of the largest, but because it is bold, colourful, intricate and beautiful. The drawings on the manuscript incorporate a number of the civic buildings and it pleases me greatly that the central library is amongst those included.’
In the Ancestry video it was mentioned that there is something for everyone in the archives. I asked what visitors seem to find most interesting, to which Jessamy replied, ‘It really varies. Some are intrigued by the building and the fact that it is (normally) open to the public. Others come with something very specific in mind - seeking a particular answer or enquiry. It really varies and one never quite knows what questions or enquiries one might get on a given day.’
The National Archives hold many educational talks and resources that can be used for research as well as general interest. Before the country went into lockdown, I visited The National Archives for an LGBTQ+ Hidden Love talk, as part of their ‘With Love’ season. At this talk, given by Victoria Iglikowski-Broad, Principal Records Specialist, I learnt how little was known about LGBTQ+ in history due to little being written about it. Being homosexual was not illegal but associated practices were criminalised. A famous example of this was Oscar Wilde who was convicted of gross indecency. Other sources of information which help piece history together include wills, divorce papers and personal letters.
An example of a story where divorce papers tell us a bit more of the LGBTQ+ history is the story of April Ashley. She was born George Jamieson in 1935. She transitioned from male to female and became a successful model and actress. Her divorce from Arthur Corbett made headline news when the judge ruled that as she remained a biological man, the marriage remained invalid. This was due to the fact that up until 2004, people were not legally allowed to change gender.
Another person mentioned at the talk was Anne Lister, referred to as the first modern lesbian. On Easter Sunday, 1834, she took communion together with Ann Walker, an act they both considered as representing their marriage, almost 200 years before same sex marriage was made legal. In her will she left her estate to her ‘friend’ Ann Walker but stated that if she should marry, she would be disinherited.
These people along with a number of others discussed on the evening, such as Chevalier D’Eon and Lady Austin, paved the road towards acceptance for the current generations of the LGBTQ+ community.
The resources at The National Archives help us to learn from our past and in fact an upcoming event is very relevant to the current situation we are living in. On the 5th June, there will be an online talk entitled ‘Shut Up - Quarantine and social distancing during Tudor Epidemics’. This will explore how the state reacted to epidemic outbreaks during the Medieval and Early Modern period. From this you can learn about Henry VIII’s attitude and the widespread reaction to government quarantine measures, including social distancing in 1517 in response to repeated outbreaks of both plague and ‘sweating sickness’.
There’s much we can learn from the past, and The National Archives at Kew is an amazing resource for discovering our hidden histories.
- Hannah Padbury
