Detail from National Savings poster (catalogue ref: NSC 5/350. 1952)
Inspired by the likes of the Great British Bake Off, I have for some time wanted to look in to recipes within The National Archives and what they can tell us, and so took the opportunity for my blog post this week.
The wonderful thing about taking a topic such as ‘recipes’ or ‘food’ as a theme in archival research, is that it cuts across many series, subjects and people.
Have you ever written an email in anger or in jest, and then decided it would be better not to send it? Where do your drafts go? And if a social historian were to compare it with the sent version of the email in years to come, what would they think? And what if only the draft survived – would it present you in a drastically different light?
Here at The National Archives we can make such a comparison for none other than Queen Elizabeth I, as we hold a draft letter addressed to the earl and countess of Shrewsbury that was evidently considered to be too frivolous to be sent, while the final version of the letter survives in Lambeth Palace Library. 1
First page of the draft letter from Elizabeth I to the earl and countess of Shrewsbury, SP 53/10 folios 9-12 (item 84)
Notes:
When I first heard about The Olympic Record, a site dedicated to making a selection of The National Archives’ records on the Olympics available to download, I thought it sounded like a brilliant idea. With London about to be the only city to ever host the Games for a third time, it seemed like a great way to celebrate and showcase the records at The National Archives and to connect this summer with the past. In fact, so good an idea did I think it was that when The Olympic Record team started to look around for a records specialist who would be prepared to discuss the records held here for any press interviews, I felt compelled to say yes!
