Library of Windsor.

The Library of the Dean and Chapter of Windsor is deposited in a commodious apartment, within the precincts of the Castle, overlooking the silver Thames, and the graceful Chapel of Eton.

The Books are arranged in open cases, distinguished by letters of the Alphabet round the room, which is divided into three compartments, and is adorned with an old view of Windsor, and an early representation in profile of our Saviour.

The Catalogue is arranged alphabetically, with an index to the shelves on which the books are placed, and is entitled “Catalogus Librorum in Bibliothecâ, S. Georgii Windsoriensi,” in folio, bearing date, 1786.

The book plate inserted in every book, bears round the armorial bearings of the Dean and Chapter this legend: “Libera Capella Regia Sti̅ Georgii infra Castrum de Windsor.”

There is a Manuscript Roll of Arms of the time of Bishop Sanderson, and the Common Prayer Book and Psalms, in the handwriting of the same prelate, 1578, 8vo.

Among the Typographical Antiquities of this Collection, I noticed the Image or Mirrour of the World, printed by William Caxton, at Westminster, in 1480, folio, a copy unfortunately wanting all after the 97th leaf, which is torn. It measures eleven inches in height by eight inches in width, and is in old calf binding. I also remarked a fine copy of Boetius de Consolatione Philosophiæ, printed by Joannes de Westphalia in alma civitate Lovaniensi, in 1487, folio, measuring eleven inches by eight inches and a half, in calf binding; and another copy of Boetius, printed by Iodocus Badius Ascensius in civitate Lugdunensi, 1498, folio, also in calf. To this I may add a noble copy of the Aldine Plato of 1513, folio, in calf, which measures eleven inches and three quarters by seven inches and a half. There is an imperfect copy of Chaucer, in double columns of black letter; a fine copy of Gower’s Confessio Amantis, printed by Berthelet at London in 1554, folio; and the Legenda Aurea of 1496, folio.

The Versions of the Sacred Scriptures in this Library, include Walton’s Polyglott; the Antwerp Polyglott of Plantin; the Bible of 1611; the Doway Bible of 1609, with the sumptuous edition printed by Nicol, at London, in 1802, in 9 volumes, 4to.; Biblia Hebraica Vatabli, & Kennicott; and Grabe’s Septuagint.

There are also several editions of the New Testament, including the Vetus Testamentum è Codice Alexandrino, and several Books of Common Prayer.

The patristic Works in this Collection, include those of SS. Ambrose, Athanasius, Augustin, Basil, Chrysostom, Clemens Alexandrinus, Cyprian, Cyril, Epiphanius, Gregory Nazianzen, Hilary, Jerome, skilled in the treasures of the three languages of Scripture; Ignatius, Irenæus, Isidore, Justin Martyr, Origen, and Tertullian.

Among the early Theologians may be found the Works of Anselm, Bellarmine, Calvin, Cassiodorus, Damascenus, Erasmus, Eusebius, Grotius, Lactantius, Lanfranc, Libanius, Limborch, Luther, Melancthon, Peter Martyr, Philo Judæus, Prudentius, Theodoret, Theophilus, Thomas Aquinas, Zanchius, and Zuinglius.

Among the Works of English Divines, I noticed those of Allix, Atterbury, Bede, Beveridge, Bingham, Bramhall, Bull, Chillingworth, Clarke, Comber, Dodwell, Donne, Hammond, Hooker, Heylin, Hoadley, Hooper, Jackson, Jewel, Laud, Leland, Lightfoot, Lowth, Bishop Newton, Patrick, Pearson, Pococke, Prideaux, Sherlock, Stapleton, Stillingfleet, Tillotson, Tomline, Usher, Warburton, and Waterland.

I may here conveniently notice the Commentaries of Nicolas de Lyra; Calmet’s Dictionary of the Bible; Cotelerii Patres Apostolici; the Concilia Magna; and the Critici Sacri, with Pole’s Synopsis. Also Cruden’s Concordance; Derham’s Physico-Theology; Ecton’s Thesaurus; Field of the Church; Gratiani Decreta; Lyndewode Provinciale, and Wall on Infant Baptism.

Of Works illustrative of Ecclesiastical History it may suffice to enumerate the Ecclesiastical Annals of Baronius; Bower’s Lives of the Popes; Burnet’s History of the Reformation; Cave’s Historiæ Ecclesiasticæ Scriptores; Collier’s Ecclesiastical History; Cotelerii Ecclesiæ Græcæ Monumenta; Dugdale’s Monasticon; Dupin’s Ecclesiastical Monuments; Fox’s Acts and Monuments of the Church; Godwin, Præsules Anglicani; Echard and Mosheim’s Ecclesiastical History; Platina, Vitæ Pontificum; Raderi Bavaria Sancta; Reyner, de Apostolatu Benedictinorum in Angliâ; Spotiswode’s Church of Scotland; Strype’s Annals of the Reformation; Memorials and Lives; Tornielli Annales Sacri; Tanner’s Notitia Monastica; and Warton’s Anglia Sacra.

I may here also notice the Bibliotheca Patrum; Bray’s Bibliotheca Parochialis; Cudworth’s Intellectual System; Derham’s Physico-Theology; Josephus’ History of the Jews; and Le Long’s Bibliotheca Sacra.

The Historical department of this Library embraces the Universal History, Ancient and Modern; Alison’s History of Europe; Bayle’s Dictionary; Carionis Chronicon; Cary’s Chronicle; Coxe’s Historical Works; De Thou, Historia sui temporis; Eadmer’s Historia Novorum; Hallam’s Middle Ages; Gibbon’s Decline and Fall; the Collections of Grævius and Gronovius; the Institutes of Justinian; Ockley’s History of the Saracens; Raleigh’s History of the World; Ricaut’s History of the Turks; Robertson’s Historical Works; and Watson’s Philip II.

The Works relating to the History and Antiquities of England, include Adam’s Index Villaris; Baker’s Chronicle; Barnes’ Edward III.; Battely, Antiquitates Rutupinæ; Bentham’s Ely; Kippis’ Biographia Britannica; Borlase’s Cornwall; Burton’s Leicestershire; Camden’s Britannia; Clarendon’s History of the Rebellion and State Papers; Dodsworth’s Salisbury Cathedral; Dugdale’s Works; Gibson’s Chronicon Saxonicum; Gunton’s Peterborough; Guthrie’s and Lingard’s History of England; Henry’s History of Great Britain; Lhuyd, Archæologia Britannica; Kennet’s Historical Register; Lyttelton’s Henry II.; Ogilby’s Britannia; Pitseus de Rebus Anglicis; Plot’s Oxfordshire and Staffordshire; Pote’s Windsor; Rushworth’s Historical Collections; Speed’s History of Great Britain; Rymer’s Fœdera; Somner’s Roman Ports and Forts in Kent; Stow’s London; Tod’s Ashridge; Verstegan’s Restitution of Decayed Intelligence respecting English Antiquities; Warwick’s Charles I.; Matthæi Westmonasteriensis Flores Historiarum; Weever’s Funeral Monuments; Whitelock’s Memorials; and Wood’s Historia Oxoniensis.

I may also record Buchanan’s History of Scotland; the Wellington Dispatches; Fuller’s Worthies; Southey’s Peninsular War; Tomline’s Life of Pitt; Wake’s Rex Platonicus; Cox and Ware’s Ireland; and Warrington’s Wales.

The Voyages and Travels include those of Anson, Barrow, Cook, Dampier, and Vancouver, Harris’ Collection, Park’s Travels, and those of Bruce; to which I may add Blome’s Jamaica; Kæmpfer’s Japan; Maurice’s Indostan; and Sir Robert Wilson’s Campaign in Egypt.

The Classical department of this Collection comprehends various editions of the Works of Achilles Tatius, Ælian, Ammianus Marcellinus, Aristophanes, Aristotle, Arrian, Æschylus, Athenæus, Aulus Gellius, Ausonius, Cæsar, Cicero, Quintus Curtius, Demosthenes, Diodorus Siculus, Diogenes Laertius, Dio Cassius, Ennius, Epictetus, Euripides, Frontinus, Herodotus, Herodian, Hesiod, Hippocrates, Homer, Horatius, Juvenal, Livy, Lucretius, Lucan, Lucian, Macrobius, Pausanias, Petronius Arbiter, Phalaris, Plautus, Pliny, Polybius, Quintilian, Seneca, Sophocles, Strabo, Suidas, Tacitus, Terence, Thucydides, Virgil, and Xenophon.

To the above may be added, Stephanus de Urbibus, Photii Bibliotheca; Fabricii Bibliotheca Græca; and Vegetius de Re Militari.

The Etymological Works include the Etymologicum Magnum; Buxtorf’s Lexicon; Johnson’s Dictionary; Tooke’s Diversions of Purley; Du Fresne’s Glossary; Hickes’ Thesaurus; Julii Pollucis Onomasticon; Lye’s Dictionarium Saxonicum; Parkhurst’s Lexicon; and the Works of Vossius.

The Heraldic Works include Ashmole’s Order of the Garter; Guillim’s Heraldry; Milles’ Catalogue of Honour; Willement’s Regal Heraldry, and St. George’s Chapel.

In English Literature these shelves contain the Works of Bacon, Bale, Bayle, Charles I., Brerewood, Ben Jonson, Samuel Johnson, Sir William Jones, Spelman, Temple, and Locke; together with Burney’s History of Music; Blount’s Censura Literaria; Bryant’s Mythology; Boswell’s Johnson; Clarke’s Life of Nelson; Hartley on Man; Reid on the Intellectual Powers; Roscoe’s Lorenzo; Smith’s Wealth of Nations; Warton’s History of English Poetry; Du Bartas, Divine Works and Weeks; and Stanley’s Lives of the Philosophers.

The miscellaneous Works in this Collection embrace Les Entretiens du Sage, par Sebastian de Senlis, Paris, 4to.; the Encyclopædia Britannica; the Archæologia, the Works of Casaubon, Euclid, Hobbes, Petrarch, Selden, and Tiraboschi; the Bibliothecæ Regiæ Catalogus, and Catalogus MSS. Angliæ & Hiberniæ, 1697, folio; Fleetwood’s Chronicon Preciosum; D’Herbelot, Bibliotheque Orientale; Wolfii Bibliotheca Hebræa; Mabillon de Re Diplomaticâ; Brucker, Historia Critica Philosophiæ; and Petavii Doctrina Temporum.

The Legal Works include Blackstone’s Commentaries; Spencer de Legibus Hebræorum; Gibson’s Codex Juris Ecclesiastici & Civilis; and Wilkins’ Leges Anglo-Saxonicæ.

The Works on Natural History, embrace Buffon, Histoire Naturelle; Raii Historia Plantarum; and Tournefort’s Botany.

In the Musical Library I observed a large Collection of the Works of Handel, whose solemn strains may frequently be heard pealing through the lofty aisles of St. George’s Chapel, by the studious occupants of this convenient chamber.

I may add with great satisfaction that every Dean and Canon of Windsor, on his presentation, makes a donation of twenty pounds to the fund for the augmentation of the Capitular Library.