of the Ordem Terceira da Penitencia. In 1836 the Academy acquired
the library of that convent, numbering 30,000 vols., which have since
been kept apart. The Archivo Nacional, in the same building,
contains the archives of the kingdom, brought here after the
destruction of the Torre do Castello during the great earthquake.
The Biblioteca Publica Municipal at Oporto is the second largest in Portugal, although only dating from the 9th of July 1833, the anniversary of the debarcation of D. Pedro, and when the memorable siege was still in progress; from that date to 1874 it was styled the Real Biblioteca do Porto. The regent (ex-emperor of Brazil) gave to the town the libraries of the suppressed convents in the northern provinces, the municipality undertaking to defray the expense of keeping up the collection. Recent accessions consist mainly of Portuguese and French books. The important Camoens collection is described in a printed catalogue (Oporto, 1880). A notice of the MSS. may be found in Catalogo dos MSS. da B. Publica Eborense, by H. da Cunha Rivara (Lisbon, 1850–1870), 3 vols. folio, and the first part of an Indice preparatorio do Catalogo dos Manuscriptos was produced in 1880. The University Library of Coimbra (1591) contains about 100,000 vols., and other colleges possess libraries.
Netherlands.
Since 1900 there has been considerable progress made in both Belgium and Holland in the development of public libraries, and several towns in the latter country have established popular libraries after the fashion of the municipal libraries of the United Kingdom and America.
The national library of Belgium is the Bibliothèque Royale at Brussels, of which the basis may be said to consist of the famous Bibliothèque des ducs de Bourgogne, the library of the Austrian sovereigns of the Low Countries, which had gradually accumulated during three centuries. After suffering many Belgium. losses from thieves and fire, in 1772 the Bibliothèque de Bourgogne received considerable augmentations from the libraries of the suppressed order of Jesuits, and was thrown open to the public. On the occupation of Brussels by the French in 1794 a number of books and MSS. were confiscated and transferred to Paris (whence the majority were returned in 1815); in 1795 the remainder were formed into a public library under the care of La Serna Santander, who was also town librarian, and who was followed by van Hulthem. At the end of the administration of van Hulthem a large part of the precious collections of the Bollandists was acquired. In 1830 the Bibliothèque de Bourgogne was added to the state archives, and the whole made available for students. Van Hulthem died in 1832, leaving one of the most important private libraries in Europe, described by Voisin in Bibliotheca Hulthemiana (Brussels, 1836), 5 vols., and extending to 60,000 printed vols. and 1016 MSS., mostly relating to Belgian history. The collection was purchased by the government in 1837, and, having been added to the Bibliothèque de Bourgogne (open since 1772) and the Bibliothèque de la Ville (open since 1794), formed what has since been known as the Bibliothèque Royale de Belgique. The printed volumes now number over 600,000 with 30,000 MSS., 105,000 prints and 80,000 coins and medals. The special collections, each with a printed catalogue, consist of the Fonds van Hulthem, for national history; the Fonds Fétis, for music; the Fonds Goethals, for genealogy; and the Fonds Müller, for physiology. The catalogue of the MSS. has been partly printed, and catalogues of accessions and other departments are also in course of publication. There are libraries attached to most of the departments of the government, the ministry of war having 120,000 vols. and the ministry of the interior, 15,000 vols. An interesting library is the Bibliothèque Collective des Sociétés Savantes founded in 1906 to assemble in one place the libraries of all the learned societies of Brussels. It contains about 40,000 vols. which have been catalogued on cards. The Bibliothèque du Conservatoire royal de Musique (1832) contains 12,000 vols. and 6000 dramatic works. The popular or communal libraries of Brussels contain about 30,000 vols. and those of the adjoining suburbs about 50,000 vols., most of which are distributed through the primary and secondary schools. At Antwerp the Stadt Bibliothek (1805) has now 70,000 vols., and is partly supported by subscriptions and endowments. The valuable collection of books in the Musée Plantin-Moretus (1640) should also be mentioned. It contains 11,000 MSS. and 15,000 printed books, comprising the works issued by the Plantin family and many 15th-century books.
The University Library of Ghent, known successively as the Bibliothèque de l’École Centrale and Bibliothèque Publique de la Ville, was founded upon the old libraries of the Conseil de Flandres, of the College des Échevins, and of many suppressed religious communities. It was declared public in 1797, and formally opened in 1798. On the foundation of the university in 1817 the town placed the collection at its disposal, and the library has since remained under state control. The printed volumes now amount to 353,000. There are important special collections on archaeology, Netherlands literature, national history, books printed in Flanders, and 23,000 historical pamphlets of the 16th and 17th centuries. The main catalogue is in MS. on cards. There are printed catalogues of the works on jurisprudence (1839), and of the MSS. (1852). The Bibliothèque de l’Université Catholique of Louvain is based upon the collection of Beyerlinck, who bequeathed it to his alma mater in 1627; this example was followed by Jacques Romain, professor of medicine, but the proper organization of the library began in 1636. There are now said to be 211,000 vols. The Bibliothèque de l’Université of Liége dates from 1817, when on the foundation of the university the old Bibliothèque de la Ville was added to it. There are now 350,000 printed vols., pamphlets, MSS., &c. The Liége collection (of which a printed catalogue appeared in 3 vols. 8vo., 1872), bequeathed by M. Ulysse Capitaine, extends to 12,061 vols. and pamphlets. There are various printed catalogues. The Bibliothèques Populaires of Liége established in 1862, now number five, and contain among them 50,000 vols. which are circulated to the extent of 130,000 per annum among the school children. The Bibliothèque publique of Bruges (1798) contains 145,600 printed books and MSS., housed in a very artistic building, once the Tonlieu or douane, 1477. There are communal libraries at Alost, Arlon (1842), Ath (1842), Courtrai, Malines (1864), Mons (1797), Namur (1800), Ostend (1861), Tournai (1794, housed in the Hôtel des Anciens Prêtres, 1755), Ypres (1839) and elsewhere, all conducted on the same system as the French communal libraries. Most of them range in size from 5000 to 40,000 vols. and they are open as a rule only part of the day. Every small town has a similar library, and a complete list of them, together with much other information, will be found in the Annuaire de la Belgique, scientifique, artistique et littéraire (Brussels 1908 and later issues).
The national library of Holland is the Koninklijke Bibliotheek at Hague, which was established in 1798, when it was decided to join the library of the princes of Orange with those of the defunct government bodies in order to form a library for the States-General, to be called the Nationale Bibliotheek. In 1805 Holland. the present name was adopted; and since 1815 it has become the national library. In 1848 the Baron W. Y. H. van Westreenen van Tiellandt bequeathed his valuable books, MSS., coins and antiquities to the country, and directed that they should be preserved in his former residence as a branch of the royal library. There are now upwards of 500,000 vols. of printed books, and the MSS. number 6000, chiefly historical, but including many fine books of hours with miniatures. Books are lent all over the country. The library boasts of the richest collection in the world of books on chess, Dutch incunabula, Elzevirs and Spinozana. There is one general written catalogue arranged in classes, with alphabetical indexes. In 1800 a printed catalogue was issued, with four supplements down to 1811; and since 1866 a yearly list of additions has been published. Special mention should be made of the excellent catalogue of the incunabula published in 1856.
The next library in numerical importance is the famous Bibliotheca Academiae Lugduno-Batavae, which dates from the foundation of the university of Leiden by William I., prince of Orange, on the 8th of February 1575. It has acquired many valuable additions from the books and MSS. of the distinguished scholars, Golius, Joseph Scaliger, Isaac Voss, Ruhnken and Hemsterhuis. The MSS. comprehend many of great intrinsic importance. The library of the Society of Netherland Literature has been placed here since 1877; this is rich in the national history and literature. The Arabic and Oriental MSS. known as the Legatum Warnerianum are of great value and interest; and the collection of maps bequeathed in 1870 by J. J. Bodel Nyenhuis is also noteworthy. The library is contained in a building which was formerly a church of the Béguines, adapted in 1860 somewhat after the style of the British Museum. The catalogues (one alphabetical and one classified) are on slips, the titles being printed. A catalogue of books and MSS. was printed in 1716, one of books added between 1814 and 1847 and a supplementary part of MSS. only in 1850. A catalogue of the Oriental MSS. was published in 6 vols. (1851–1877). The Bibliotheek der Rijks Universiteit (1575) at Leiden contains over 190,000 vols.
The University Library at Utrecht dates from 1582, when certain conventual collections were brought together in order to form a public library, which was shortly afterwards enriched by the books bequeathed by Hub. Buchelius and Ev. Pollio. Upon the foundation of the university in 1636, the town library passed into its charge. Among the MSS. are some interesting cloister MSS. and the famous “Utrecht Psalter,” which contains the oldest text of the Athanasian creed. The last edition of the catalogue was in 2 vols. folio, 1834, with supplement in 1845, index from 1845–1855 in 8vo., and additions 1856–1870, 2 vols. 8vo. A catalogue of the MSS. was issued in 1887. The titles of accessions are now printed in sheets and pasted down for insertion. There are now about 250,000 vols. in the library.
The basis of the University Library at Amsterdam consists of a collection of books brought together in the 15th century and preserved in the Nieuwe Kerk. At the time of the Reformation in 1578 they became the property of the city, but remained in the Nieuwe Kerk for the use of the public till 1632, when they were transferred to the Athenaeum. Since 1877 the collection has been known as the University Library, and in 1881 it was removed to a building designed upon the plan of the new library and reading-room of the British Museum. The library includes the best collection of medical works in Holland, and the Bibliotheca Rosenthaliana of Hebrew and Talmudic literature is of great fame and value; a catalogue of the last was printed in 1875. The libraries of the Dutch Geographical
