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Bookplate Index by Library or Collector |
George V, King of England
George V,
king of England from 1910 to 1936, amassed a substantial library during
his lifetime. He was born on 3 June 1865, the second son of the future
King Edward VII and his wife Alexandra. As a young man, his interests
tended more toward sports than books. Neither he nor his elder brother,
who were tutored at home by a Mr. John Neale Dalton, showed any signs of
being an intellectual. The only subject in which George was proficient was
mathematics. Since George was not, at this time, the heir presumptive to
the throne, he chose a career in the navy. His elder brother died
prematurely in 1892, which made George next in line to the throne after
his father. On 6 July 1893 George
married Princess May (Mary) of Teck. Due to May's influence, he developed
a greater interest in books and book collecting. Princess May was the
eldest child of the duke and duchess of Teck. The family had constant
financial difficulties and was forced to spend three years in exile in
Italy. During this time, May was well educated in art, history, and
literature, and she continued these studies after her family returned to
England in 1885. After their marriage, she and George developed the habit
of reading out loud to each other in the evenings. This habit continued until George's ascension to the throne, after which they
did not have the time. This
did not mean, however, that George stopped reading altogether. Beginning
in May 1890, he kept a record of all the books that he read. This
extensive list is currently housed in the Royal Archives along with
George's diaries and is not generally available for inspection. A portion
of the list, covering the years 1932 to 1935, is reprinted in John Gore's King
George V—A Personal Memoir (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons,
1941). It indicates that George read an average of one book per week, and
that he preferred biographies and memoirs. There are approximately fifty
volumes of biographies and memoirs listed, including books on Queen
Victoria, Charles I, Ivan the Terrible, Henry VIII, David Lloyd George,
Oliver Cromwell, and William IV. According to Kenneth Rose's biography King
George V (London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1983), George also enjoyed
reading any contemporary fiction books "with a plot." Some of those
included in Gore's list are Uncle Tom's Cabin, The African Queen, and,
surprisingly enough, Lady Chatterley's Lover. Most
of George's personal library was probably kept at Windsor. However, Gore
states that, according to George's personal librarian, Sir Owen Morshead,
a "shelved recess, . . . [where] he put the books that he had been
reading or hoped to be able to read," was connected to George's study at
Buckingham Palace (p. 397). Morshead was also the royal librarian and
assistant keeper of the Royal Archives from 1926 to 1958. After George's
death, most of his books became part of the Royal Library. However, since
they were not kept as a separate collection, only the ones that contain a
bookplate are readily identifiable. The bookplate itself
incorporates several traditional English symbols that are found in
bookplates dating back to the reign of James I (1601-1625). It was made
for George in 1904, while he was still Prince of Wales. It bears the
initials of William Phillip Barrett (1861-1938), a famous bookplate
designer from New Zealand, whose initials are also found on bookplates
belonging to Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, and George's wife and children.
Brian Lee, in British Bookplates (Newton Abbot: David and Charles,
1979), suggests that although Barrett encouraged bookplate design, his
initials may have appeared on bookplates that he did not actually create.
The bookplate has the royal arms (supported by the unicorn) in the center,
surrounded by the garter with its logo—Honi Soit Qui Mal Y
Pense. At the bottom is George's full name and title, ''George
Frederick Ernest Albert, Prince of Wales," and on either side of this
are two anchors that symbolize his naval career. Above this, his German
motto Ich Dien (I serve) shows his Hanoverian ancestry. The upper
left corner has a plume of three ostrich feathers, which is the symbol of
the heir apparent, and the upper right corner has the dragon, which
symbolizes Wales. The very top two corners contain the Tudor rose. The
royal arms are also supported by a lion, symbolizing Scotland. The size of
the book plate is 7 7/8 x 6 3/4 inches. It is reproduced
as number 22, plate VI, in Catalogue of Royal Bookplates from the
Louise E. Winterburn Collection, San Francisco College for Women, by
Christine Price (Claremont, Cal.: Printed for the California Bookplate
Society by the Saunders Press, 1944). Victoria
Jones Department
of History University
of Texas at Austin |
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