The National and University Library (french: Bibliothèque nationale et universitaire; abbreviated BNU) is a

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also civil servants. There are five fundament ...

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, France. It is located on

Place de la République The Place de la République (known as the Place du Château d'Eau until 1879) is a square in Paris, located on the border between the 3rd, 10th and 11th arrondissements. The square has an area of .Warner, p. 250 Named after the First, Second ...

, the former ''Kaiserplatz'', and faces the ''

Palais du Rhin The Palais du Rhin ( en, Palace of the Rhine), the former ''Kaiserpalast'' (Imperial palace), is a building situated in the German (north-east) quarter of Strasbourg ( Neustadt) dominating the ''Place de la République'' (the former ''Kaiserplatz'' ...

''.

History

After the destruction of the municipal library and the city's archives by Prussian artillery during the

Siege of Strasbourg The siege of Strasbourg took place during the Franco-Prussian War, and resulted in the French surrender of the fortress on 28 September 1870. After the German victory at Wörth, troops from the Grand Duchy of Baden under Prussian General A ...

, the

German Empire The German Empire (), Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditar ...

founded the BNU on 19 June 1872. The task of arranging its collections was given to historian and professor, Rodolphe Reuss. It became the regional library for the ''Reichsland'' Alsace-Lorraine, as, according to German tradition, every region should have at least one library. It was also an

Academic library An academic library is a library that is attached to a higher education institution and serves two complementary purposes: to support the curriculum and the research of the university faculty and students. It is unknown how many academic librar ...

. The collections grew quickly, thanks principally to donations from all across Europe and the United States. But, even in spite of these generous donations, many priceless manuscripts, such as the

Hortus Deliciarum __NOTOC__ The ''Hortus deliciarum'' (Latin for ''Garden of Delights'') was a medieval manuscript compiled by Herrad of Landsberg at the Hohenburg Abbey in Alsace, better known today as Mont Sainte-Odile. Description The ''Hortus deliciarum'' ...

had been destroyed and could never be replaced. The present-day building, which is a work of architects August Hartel and

Skjold Neckelmann Skjold Neckelmann (born November 24, 1854 - May 13, 1903) was a Danish-German architect, best known for designing four Strasbourg buildings that are landmarks of the Neustadt (Strasbourg), Neustadt district - the Bibliothèque nationale et univ ...

, was opened in 1895. After the territory of Alsace-Lorraine had been reverted to France following World War I, the question arose as to whether or not this library should be renovated and reopened. After some hesitation, the French government decided to keep the library. The library now holds about 3,000,000 volumes, which is the second largest collection in France. The collection contains, amongst other things, ca. 2,300

incunabula In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pr ...

, 6,700

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

s (plus 29,000 others from the archives – kept by the library – of the De Turckheim family, and several other thousands from the Alsatian

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

order) and 5,200

papyri Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, ''Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a d ...

.Collections papyrologiques at the BNU website

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:NATIONAL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Library buildings completed in 1895 Libraries in France University of Strasbourg Organizations based in Strasbourg Tourist attractions in Strasbourg Monuments historiques of Strasbourg 1895 establishments in France