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11th Century

1066

King William I the Conqueror commissions the compilation of the Domesday Book. (RJ)

13th Century

1227

King Gojong of Koryo Dynasty completed the History Annals of King Myongjong and built two History Archives in Gaesung, its capital city, and Haeinsa Temple located at the southeast part of the country to preserve two copies of 187 volumes of the History Annals of Koryo Dynsaty.(SMLee)

14th century

1300

circa - Ethiopian church manuscripts and church murals created. (TJ)

1500

circa - Office of 'Clerk of the rolls, register and council' first appears in Scotland with responsibity for keeping the national archives. This official later became known as the Lord Clerk Register. (JMcL)

15th Century

1429

King Sejong of Chosun Dynasty built another History Archives in Chungju, adding one more archives repository to the History Archives in Hanyang(Seoul). (SMLee)

1434-1468

Zaro yaqob(seed of Jacob), ruler of ethiopia, writes several books on Christian discipline. (job)

1439

King Sejong built two more History Archives in Jeonju and Sungju. Each History Archives had same copies of the Annals of kings. During the Japanese invasion during 1592-1598, all the royal archives in History Archives except Jeonju were burnt down. In 1606, four more History Archives were built and four more copies of the Annals were made. They were preserved in five re-built History Archives throught the country(Five History Archives System). While only one History Archives building in Seoul survived, three copies of the Annals of Chosun Dynsty(2,077 volumes in South Korea, designated as the Memory of the World by UNESCO) survived and they are still available for research both in North and South Korea.(SMLee)

1439

Lorenzo Valla writes De falso credita et ementita Constantini donatione declamatio, exposing the forgery of the Donation of Constantine. (RJ)

1448

Pope Nicholas V transferred around 350 Greek, Latin and Hebrew codices acquired by his predecessors to the Vatican. In earlier times, collections had been kept at the Lateran Palace in Rome (until the end of the 13th century) and at Avignon (during the years Popes resided in that French city). (RDJ)

1462

The Town Clerk of the City of London is made responsible for the safe-keeping of the city corporation's records. LIber Dunthorne, a custumal compiled by William Dunthorne (Town Clerk 1461-90) is evidence of this. Even before this, John Carpenter (Town Clerk 1417-38) had compiled custumals as precedents for his successors(PC)

1468-1478

Monastaries in Ethiopia house scholars who gave courses in reading, writing, sacred music, poetry, grammar, church history, & exegis of the holy scriptures. (TJ)

1475

June 14 Pope Sixtus IV issued the Bull "Ad decorem militantis Ecclesiae," assigning a budget to the Vatican Apostolic Library appointed as librarian Bartolomeo Platina. (RDJ)

1481

Vatican Apostolic Library librarian Bartolomeo Platina draws up the first catalogue of manuscripts and codices in the library. (RDJ)

16th Century

1540

The Emperor Charles V transfers his most important records to a tower in the Castle of Simancas (Valladolid, Spain). Refurbisment work took place to accomodate the archives in one of the towers.

1574

Philip II of Spain commissioned the architect Juan de Herrera the design of a new expanded Archivo de Simancaswhich is probably the first purpose-built national archive in the world that remains in the same building. The first rules and archival procedures were issued on 24 August 1588.

1586

Arthur Agarde, Sir Robert Coton, and William Camden found the Society of Antiquaries in London. (RJ)

17th Century

1632

Bishop Baldassare Bonifacio writes his famous essay "De Archivis." (RJ)

1633

Ethiopian King Fasilidas who suceeded his father King Susenyos of Abyssinia, establishes his capital at Gondar [the Camelot of Ancient Ethiopia]. He builds an impressive archives repository in the royal complex.

1681

Benedictine monk Jean Mabillon publishes De re diplomatica (Study of Documents), a six volume treatise which coins the name of the new science of Diplomatics, which seeks to secure the provenance of a written text through systematic analysis of the material the text is written on, the scripts and penmanship used in writing the text, and the language usage within the text. (RJ)

18th Century

1753

British Museum founded. (RJ)

1772

General Register House in Edinburgh designed by Robert Adam as a repository for the public records of Scotland. (JMcL)

1789-1795

The French Revolution had a large impact on archival theory, ringing in the modern era of archives. (JT)

1790

the US Congress enacted the United States copyright law.

1792

Massachusetts Historical Society founded. (AL)

1794

June 25 - the French law of 7 Messidor Year II proclaimed for the first time the right of citizens to have access to public archives.

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