The Library of 10 Downing Street

Abstract

The talk focuses upon the largely unknown collection of books held at No. 10 Downing Street known as the "Prime Minister’s Library". The collection is made up of volumes donated by most members of the British Cabinet through the twentieth century. The selections made by each donor say much about the way they saw their place in British politics and their relations with their colleagues. In turn, the whole collection reveals many stories about the way that Downing Street has evolved as the administrative base of the Prime Minister as well as the family home of successive Prime Ministers and their families.