Collectors and collections

Princes

Three princely libraries each have a history of their own, while at the same time they are part of the past history of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek.

Regents, magistrates, politicians and civil servants

The collections of regents and magistrates have given the collection of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek a solid foundation.

Scholars, scientists and book lovers

The learned libraries present many similarities as well as dissimilarities.  The dissimilarities become manifest when we have a closer look at the various subjects of the collections.

Literary men and women, writers, artists and activists

The archives and book collections belonging to artists offer surprising inter-connections and often shed an illuminating light on their private lives.

Bankers, businessmen, managing directors and booksellers

Sober, down-to-earth businessmen can make warm-blooded and generous collectors, as appears from their rich collections acquired by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek.

Institutions, foundations, churches and associations

Private persons are not the only collectors of books. Associations, foundations, churches and institutions also have collections, or sometimes even whole libraries.