The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

On 2nd June 1953, Princess Elizabeth of York was crowned Queen Elizabeth II. She had ascended the throne on 6 February the previous year, when her father George VI died after a long period of ill-health. She was 25 when crowned; now, at the age of 96, she has reigned for 70 years and is both …

Heirs and Spares: Succeeding George IV

This is a guest post by Dr Richard A Gaunt, academic curator of the exhibition Georgian Delights: Life during the reign of George IV 1820-1830. George IV spent most of his adult life waiting to be King. So accustomed have we become to this fact, and to the various machinations associated with his part in …

Monday Mystery: Celebrity Scrapbook, 19th century style

The Manvers family of Holme Pierrpont were one of the most influential families in Nottinghamshire in the second half of the 19th century. The men held high-ranking positions in various Army regiments, served as local MPs, and held other important civic offices, such as magistrates or Master of the Hunt. The archives we hold very …

Georgian Delights

When King George IV died in June 1830, The Times asked, ‘What eye has wept for him? What heart has heaved one throb of unmercenary sorrow?’. George was a controversial figure throughout his lifetime (1762-1830). As Prince of Wales, after 1783, George became notorious for his frequent love affairs and lavish self-indulgence, spending wildly on …

1977-2017: 40 years of the Queen’s Medical Centre

On 28th July 1977, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II opened The Queen’s Medical Centre, the first specifically-built teaching hospital in the UK. This marked her Silver Jubilee. Manuscripts and Special Collections holds a number of the hospital’s papers and photographs, including those relating to the opening event, which were acquired in October 2012. The University …

Celebrating the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II

The recent visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Nottingham as part of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations reminded us of an unusual item from the records of the Castle Gate Congregational Church. This extract comes from The Music with the Form and Order of the Service to be performed at the Coronation of Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen …