We are proud that this item will be part of an exhibition that explores the global influence of Black music in Britain.
The Music is Black: A British Story opens at V&A East Museum in East Bank, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, on 18 April 2026.
Newton, once a slave trader who later became an abolitionist, became a priest in 1764. Within this sermon book are his handwritten notes that inspired the famous hymn ‘Amazing Grace’.
Scroll across to see the specific passage that inspired ‘Amazing Grace’. 🎵
Lambeth Palace Library, Newton Papers, MS2940 p.22 & 23.
Lambeth Palace Library, Newton Papers, MS2940 p.22 & 23.
Image credit - Eddie Otchere, ‘So Solid Crew’, Battersea Park, 2001 © Eddie Otchere.
📢 We are excited to share that John Newton’s Sermon Book — held in the Library’s collection — will be featured in the inaugural exhibition at the brand-new V&A East Museum, The Music is Black: A British Story.
Don't miss 'Routes in the Records II: Church of England’s Black History at the Archives' on Wednesday 22 April 2026 from 18:30 GMT via Zoom.
Book your place @ tinyurl.com/3mryr9j6
📚Book your Reading Room slot for April 11th via our website now! 📖
www.lambethpalacelibrary.info/using-the-li...
✨Our exhibition, Primate of All England, is open as usual - free of charge and no booking required! ✨
Following our Spring 2025 exhibition—Unfolding Time: The medieval pocket calendar— @kresenkernow.bsky.social will be hosting free zigzag calendar events on 14 and 15 April!
See Kresen Kernow’s event page for more info and to book: kresenkernow.org/events/
Supported by @heritagefunduk.bsky.social
This talk is free and open to all! Book via the link below:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-seat-in-...
The event will take place from 5:30pm-7pm.
Join us for 'A Seat in Canterbury: Enthronements of Archbishops Through the Ages', a talk held in connection with our current exhibition Primate of All England: The Archbishop of Canterbury Through Time.
REMINDER - Tickets almost gone!
Winchester Cathedral. Plan by Roland Paul, 1892
FREE preservation site visits for cathedrals! The Spring 2026 application round is now open; apply for a visit from our expert Collections Care team, to advise on a range of preservation issues. Details at www.lambethpalacelibrary.info/cathedral-li...
For anyone in London at a loose end on Thursday 9 April, I'm giving a talk at @lampallib.bsky.social on the concept of the primate archbishop, exploring its history from late antiquity to the Norman Conquest. Free to attend but please register here! #medievalsky
This seminar is free and open to all! Book via the link
below:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/david-scot...
hapel-and-the-laudian-style-162840-tickets-
1980853969546?aff=oddtdtcreator
The event will take place from 5pm-6:30pm.
REMINDER - Join us for a fascinating evening with David
Scott on the Peterhouse Chapel and the Laudian Style.
Discover the chapel’s ritual innovations, its Baroque
influences, and what its surviving evidence reveals
about music, liturgy, design, and the beauty of
holiness.
#BlackHistory #BlackHistoryMonth #LambethPalaceLibrary #OpenDay
[B79.10_V44FR]
📅What to expect 📅
🔍 Explore archives, libraries & conservation work
👥 Meet expert archivists, librarians & conservators
📚 Learn about Black activists & historical figures
⚖️ Discover records on the Church Commissioners’ links to the Transatlantic Slave Trade
🏛️ Enjoy guided tours (limited spaces!)
Join us for Routes in the Records II on Saturday 11th April for a chance to connect with and reflect on the Church of England's Black History at the Archives.
This talk is free and open to all! Book via the link below:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/primacy-ar...
The event will take place from 5:30pm-7pm.
Join us for 'Primacy: Archbishops and Authority from late Roman Africa to Medieval England', a talk held in connection with our current exhibition Primate of All England: The Archbishop of Canterbury Through Time.
Image from the National Society (Church of England) for Promoting Religious Education.
[NS/12/5/2/23]
#LambethPalaceLibrary
‘Good Morning Sir!’
As we mark #SchoolArchivesDay, here are the pupils of St Thomas' School in Birmingham performing a 9am salute, back in the 19th or early 20th century.
Discover the chapel’s ritual innovations, its Baroque influences, and what its surviving evidence reveals about music, liturgy, design, and the beauty of holiness.
Join us for a fascinating evening with David Scott on the Peterhouse Chapel and the Laudian Style.
Right: Portrait of Cranmer (1533), held by Lambeth Palace. By kind permission of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Church Commissioners
Left: Reg. Cranmer, fol. 1r.
Read more on our catalogue: archives.lambethpalacelibrary.org.uk/CalmView/Rec...
This beautiful R for Registrum begins the register, which has been referred to as a key document of the Reformation.
An edition of the Register of Archbishop Cranmer, edited by the late Paul Ayris, has now been published open access: uclpress.co.uk/book/thomas-...
