Editing Chetham's Library (section)

==History==
[[File:Chetham's Library 2015 3.jpg|thumb|left|220px|alt=photograph|The 15th-century Baronial Hall next to Chetham's Library]]
The manor house of the [[Lord of the Manor]], in the centre of the medieval town of Manchester, stood on a [[sandstone]] [[Cliff|bluff]], at the confluence of the [[River Irwell]] and the [[River Irk]]. In 1421 the rector of the parish church, [[Thomas la Warr, 5th Baron De La Warr|Thomas de la Warre]] (Lord of the manor of Manchester), obtained a licence from [[Henry V of England|Henry V]] to refound the church as a collegiate foundation. He donated his manor house for use as the college of priests' buildings for the [[collegiate church]] (later to be the [[Manchester Cathedral|cathedral]]). There was accommodation for the warden, eight fellows, four clerks, and six choristers.

The [[Manchester Grammar School|Manchester Free Grammar School for Lancashire Boys]] was built between the church and the college buildings between 1515 and 1518. The college was dissolved in 1547 by the [[Chantry#Abolition of Chantries Acts, 1545 and 1547|Chantries Act]] and sold to the [[Earl of Derby]]. It was re-founded as a catholic foundation by [[Mary I of England|Queen Mary]] and again disbanded by Protestant [[Elizabeth I of England|Queen Elizabeth I]]. In 1578 the collegiate church was re-founded by charter as Christ's College and re-occupied by the warden and fellows. In the [[English Civil War|Civil War]] it was used as a prison and arsenal.

In 1653 the college buildings were bought with the bequest of Humphrey Chetham, for use as a free library and [[charity school|blue coat charity school]]. At that time there was no facility for independent study in the north of England and Chetham's will of 1651 had stipulated that the Library should be "for the use of schollars and others well affected", and instructed the librarian "to require nothing of any man that cometh into the library".<ref name="History">{{cite web|url=http://www.chethams.org.uk/history.html|title=A Brief History of Chetham's|last=Anon|work=Chetham's library official website|access-date=1 June 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100513171141/http://www.chethams.org.uk/history.html|archive-date=13 May 2010}}</ref> The 24 [[feoffees]] appointed by Humphrey Chetham set out to acquire a major collection of books and manuscripts that would cover the whole range of available knowledge and would rival the college libraries of Oxford and Cambridge.<ref name="History"/> In order to protect the newly acquired books from rising damp the Library was housed on the first floor and, in accordance with the provisions of Chetham's will, the books were chained to the presses (bookcases).<ref name="History"/> Twenty-four carved oak stools with S-shaped hand-holds (which are still in use) were provided as seats for readers.<ref name="History"/>

In 1718 the feoffees offered the Manchester poet and inventor of a system of [[shorthand]], [[John Byrom]], the post of Library Keeper. Byrom, who was an avid collector of books, declined the offer but after his good friend, [[Robert Thyer]], became Librarian in 1732, frequently acted as an agent for the library, purchasing books at London auctions.<ref name="Byrom">{{cite web|url=http://www.chethams.org.uk/collections_byrom.html|title=Byrom Collection|last=Anon|work=Printed books and ephemera|publisher=Chetham's Library|access-date=1 June 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616205621/http://www.chethams.org.uk/collections_byrom.html|archive-date=16 June 2011}}</ref> Byrom's library, which included the manuscript of his poem "Christmas Day" (which became the Christmas carol, "Christians Awake") and some 2,800 printed books, was presented to the library by his descendant, [[Eleanora Atherton]], in 1870.<ref name="Byrom"/>

The books were originally uncatalogued and placed in the presses in size order. The first catalogue wasn't produced until 1791, and then was written in Latin and only listed the size and subject of each book.<ref name="History"/> The practice of chaining the books was abandoned in the mid eighteenth century when gates were erected to prevent theft.<ref name="History"/> 
[[File:Chetham's Library - The Marx, Engels alcove.jpg|thumb|right|220px|The window alcove in which [[Karl Marx]] and [[Friedrich Engels]] worked]]
Chetham's was the meeting place of [[Karl Marx]] and [[Friedrich Engels]] when Marx visited Manchester in the summer of 1845. Facsimiles of the economics books they studied can be seen on a table in the window alcove where they would meet. The research they undertook during this series of visits to the library led ultimately to their work, ''[[The Communist Manifesto]]''. Therefore, the library acts as a site of historical importance for visiting communists.<ref name="Hunt">{{cite book |last=Hunt |first=Tristram |title=The Frock Coated Communist: A Revolutionary Life |date=2 June 2009 |publisher=Allen Lane |isbn=978-0713998528 |page=129}}</ref>

Additions were made to the buildings by J. E. Gregan (1850s), [[Alfred Waterhouse]] (1878) (grade II listed),<ref>{{NHLE|num=1197920|desc=Detached block, Alfred Waterhouse|grade=II|access-date=17 November 2023}}</ref> and J. Medland Taylor (1883–95). Manchester Grammar School was extended along Long Millgate in 1870.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1197921|desc=South east wing, formerly Manchester Grammar School|grade=II|access-date=17 November 2023}}</ref> Manchester Grammar School moved to [[Fallowfield]] in the 1930s, and after standing empty for many years the original building was destroyed during the Second World War, leaving only its new block. This became part of Chetham's School of Music in 1978. The old college building, which became the music school in 1969, still incorporates Chetham's Library and is [[Grade I listed]].<ref>{{NHLE |num=1283015|desc=Chethams Hospital and Attached wall|grade=I|access-date=17 November 2023}}</ref> A fragment of a 17th century [[Christian cross|cross]] was relocated to the library's gardens in 1913, and is listed at Grade II.<ref>{{NHLE|num=1219660|desc=Hyde's Cross|grade=II|access-date=17 November 2023}}</ref>

===Librarians===
Past librarians include Robert Thyer (1709–1781), who became Librarian in 1732.<ref name="Byrom"/><ref>Among his works was ''The Genuine Remains in Verse and Prose of Mr. Samuel Butler, author of Hudibras''; Published from the original manuscripts, formerly in the possession of W. Longueville, Esq.; with notes by R. Thyer, Keeper of the Public Library at Manchester. 2 vols. London: J. and R. Tonson, 1759</ref> Peter Hordern (died 1836) was librarian and also the minister of St Clement's Chapel, [[Chorlton-cum-Hardy|Chorlton]]. [[Thomas Jones (librarian)|Thomas Jones]] held the position from 1845 to 1875; during his time, the size of the library more than doubled (from 19,000&nbsp;volumes to 40,000&nbsp;volumes). He also produced a two-volume catalogue of the library's collection in 1862 and 1863.<ref name=Oxford>{{cite ODNB|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/15097|title=Jones, Thomas (1810–1875)|last=Sutton|first=C. W.|author2=Crosby, Alan G.|year=2004|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/15097 |access-date=27 January 2009}}</ref><ref>Radcliffe, John ''Bibliotheca chethamensis: Bibliothecae publicae Mancuniensis ab Humfredo Chetham, armigero fundatae catalogus, exhibens libros in varias classes pro varietate argumenti distributos''; [begun by John Radcliffe, continued by Thomas Jones]. 5 vols. Mancuni: Harrop, 1791-1863</ref>