Collecting Revolution: The History and Importance of the Thomason Tracts
7-8 July 2008
British Library & University College London, London

The pamphlet collection amassed by the London bookseller George Thomason is of unparalleled importance, and has helped to ensure that the civil wars and interregnum remain central to the study of British history. Nevertheless, this is generally reflected in scholarly exploitation of the tracts, rather than in critical analysis of them. This conference seeks to explore a variety of approaches to the Thomason collection, including the man and his milieu, his role as a publisher and bookseller, his aims and methods as a collector, the fate of his collection, and its significance to subsequent generations of scholars.