The Archive holdings fall into two groups: institutional records and miscellaneous Huguenot papers. In addition to the administrative records of the French Hospital and the Huguenot Society, there are also records for other Huguenot institutions, including the Westminster French Protestant School, several societies and charities and church records (excluding registers). The miscellaneous material includes family records and papers, pedigrees, manuscripts and research notes and papers.
As well as being of interest to academic researchers, there is much unpublished material relating to individuals which may be of use to family historians, such as the Wagner Collection which contains pedigrees and supporting documentation resulting from the research of Henry Wagner into many Huguenot families. This material is available on microfiche. There are also many Family Research Files, which contain the results of research carried out by the Society's Research Officers, members of the Society and private researchers. Further details of these are given in the resources accessed via the Links section on this page.
The records of the French Hospital dating back to its creation in 1718 form the bulk of the Archive. They consist of minute books, records of applicants and inmates, accounts, indemnity bonds, inventories, correspondence, bequests and legal documents, as well as other miscellaneous documents and items. There are also records relating to charities either administered by the Hospital or whose records were deposited after they had been wound up. All the records can be consulted on microfiche.
The records of poor relief given to French Protestant refugees from 1686 to 1876 compose the papers of the Royal Bounty and connected funds and contain details of the administration and distribution of the grants. Again, these can be consulted on microfiche.
Societies set up by the Huguenot communities to assist those in need are among the earliest Friendly Societies. The Archive holds the records of La société de la province de Normandie, or The Norman Society, which was founded in 1703. The records were presented to the Huguenot Library in 1970. The Charitable Society of Saintonge (St Onge) and Angoumois, which is still in existence, was founded in 1701 and its records are also held in the Archives.
The Burn Donation contains records from French Protestant churches collected by Mr J S Burn in the nineteenth century while he was Secretary to the Commission for inquiries into non-parochial registers. The church registers themselves are held in the National Archives while the records forming the donation include "actes" of Consistory and financial records. These are also held on microfiche.
The records of the French Protestant Church of London (Eglise Protestante Française de Londres), originally in Threadneedle Street, now in Soho Square, are held on microfiche only. The original records remain in the care of the church and are kept at Soho Square. If you wish to visit, please write to the Hon. Archivist, c/o French Protestant Church of London Library, 9-11 Soho Square, London W1D 3DQ or email the church at info@egliseprotestantelondres.org.
These are original documents relating to families (personal records such as letters etc.) rather than records of research into families.
The Archive contains relatively few collections of family papers, but we do have collections relating to the following families:
Allix | Aufrère | Armand | Barraud | Beuzeville | Boileau | Bosanquet | Chick | Caillouel | Daniel de Grangues | De Bérenger | De la Balle | De Luc | De(s) Vignoles | Dubrée | Duroure | Fenhoulet | Fremeaux | Giraud | Hardy | Hill | Lamotte | La Roque | Layard | Lepine | Minet | Minett | Ott | Papillon | Pechell | Renouard | Roget | Ruvigny | Rybot | Serces | Teulon | Turquand
The following three volumes are the catalogues to the Archive holdings.
Smith, R. Records of the Royal Bounty and connected funds, the Burn Donation, and the Savoy Church in the Huguenot Library, University College London, London. Huguenot Society of London Quarto Series, 51 (London: Huguenot Society of London, 1974).
Gray, I. R. Huguenot Manuscripts: a descriptive catalogue of the remaining manuscripts in the Huguenot Library. Huguenot Society of London Quarto Series, 56 (London: Huguenot Society of London, 1983).
Harcourt Williams, M. Huguenot Archives: a further catalogue of material held in the Huguenot Library. Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland Quarto Series, 61 (London: Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland, 2008).
Harcourt Williams, M. "Coats of Arms and Pedigrees", Huguenot Families, 11, 2004, pp. 21-27.
Published by the Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
Waller, W. C. "Early Huguenot Friendly Societies", Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, 6, 1898-1901, pp. 201-235.
"The Wagner Collection", Huguenot Families, 2, 2000, pp. 26-33.
Published by the Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
"Research Files in the Huguenot Library", Huguenot Families, 4, 2001, pp. 23-35.
Published by the Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
Description of the French Protestant Church of London Library on the Institute of Historical Research website.
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The Librarian
The Huguenot Library,
University College London,
Gower Street,
London WC1E 6BT
tel 020 7679 5199
UCL Library catalogue (includes Huguenot Library holdings)
How to use the library catalogue
Reader fees and copying charges (pdf document)
Guidance notes for family historians (pdf document)
Resources for family historians in the Huguenot Library (pdf document)
Glossary of French terms used in Huguenot records (pdf document)
The Royal Bounty Archive - a guide for family historians. (pdf document)