TAKE A TOUR! The London Library is one of the world's great lending libraries, with an amazing collection of over 1 million books, and an equally extraordinary history. Behind its elegant facade overlooking St. James Square is a vast network of books, where since the mid-nineteenth century, seven buildings have been brought into one and a great centre of learning and ideas has been created. | The London Library

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The British Library was created on 1 July 1973. The core of the Library’s historical collections is based on a series of donations and acquisitions from the 18th century. These are known as the “foundation collections”, and they include the books and manuscripts of Sir Hans Sloane (d. 1753), whose decision to donate his library and natural history collection to the nation led to the formation of the British Museum. The trustees of the museum also purchased the Harleian Librarycollection of Rober