This collection comprises the academic and literary papers of Humphrey Jennings, for the most part dating to his time as a postgraduate researcher at Cambridge in the early 1930s. The papers consist of draft writings and notes on Thomas Gray, the main focus of Jennings's research, and on other areas of research interest including plagiarism and literary borrowings, Christopher Marlowe's 'Tamburlaine' and Renaissance literature. The papers include material gathered by Jennings for his proposed works 'Le chariot' and 'Pandaemonium'. Within the small series of correspondence is a letter from William Empson.
Humphrey Jennings Papers
This material is held atCambridge University Library
- Reference
- GB 12 MS Add.10097
- Dates of Creation
- 1929-late 20th century; bulk 1929-1939
- Name of Creator
- Language of Material
- English .
- Physical Description
- 2 archive box(es) 2 boxes
Scope and Content
Access Information
Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
Acquisition Information
Purchased by Cambridge University Library on 20 July 2015.
Other Finding Aids
A catalogue of the collection can be found on ArchiveSearch.
Custodial History
From information supplied by the vendor, these papers were formerly held in the battered remains of a box file and were in the possession of the Canadian novelist and poet Elizabeth Smart (1913-86). The connection between Elizabeth Smart and Humphrey Jennings is not clear. Smart's son, the poet Sebastian Barker (1945-2014), made some attempt to arrange and number the papers. The pencil page numbers which recur throughout are presumed to be the work of Sebastian Barker. Barker's initial listing of the papers ('Humphrey Jennings Papers from the effects of Elizabeth Smart') and the paper wrappers he employed in this exercise have been retained, and are catalogued as MS Add.10097/6.