Archives

The archives of RCS England are a rich resource for research and discovery.

You can explore the development of modern surgical patient care, uncover the lives of patients in historical hospitals and asylums, and trace the discoveries and innovations that revolutionised surgical practice. The archives also contain information about the College’s own history, the historical community of our fellows and members, and the evolution of the Hunterian Museum, from John Hunter’s original collection to what you see today.

Granted Designated Status by Arts Council England, the archives have been recognised as collections of national and international importance that deepen our understanding of the world and what it means to be human.

Image of a poster made for the centenary of the College

What’s in the RCS England archives?

The archives are the home of surgical stories for you to recover.

They are separated into two collections:

College records containing items from the establishment of the Company of Surgeons in 1745 as a national training and examination body for surgeons to the present.

Here, you can find items such as our royal charters, Council and committee minutes and papers, examination papers and records, buildings plans, photographs, and museum and library records.

Together, this collections documents the governance and administration of the College and demonstrates the role we have played in shaping surgical education and practice nationally and internationally.

‘Deposited archives’ are archives acquired by or given to the College by surgeons, surgical and dental clubs and societies, and hospitals and asylums.

Covering the 16th to the 21st century, this collection includes correspondence, diaries, lecture notes, research notes, patient records, x-rays, photographs, drawings and recipe books.

These archives document the work and lives of surgeons, the patients they treated, and institutions they trained and worked in. Some of these are public records that RCS England holds as a nominated Place of Deposit.

You can find out more about the contents of the archives and learn about some of the particularly significant items that we hold in our guide.

To search the collections use our online catalogue SurgiCat. 

How can I view the archives?

Everyone is welcome to use the archives.

All our appointments can be scheduled Tuesday–Thursday 10am–4.30pm and need to be scheduled at least five working days in advance, but we recommend that you give as much advance notice as possible.

If we’re busy, we may not be able to book your appointment on the day(s) you have requested, in which case we will offer alternative dates.

Book an in-person appointment

Our in-person appointments are free and take place in our research room in 38-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London.

You can request to see up to ten items or files per appointment, just complete our appointment request form.

If you have any access requirements, please mention them on your request form or get in touch if you’d like to discuss them with us. Our research room has step-free access via a lift. For a full guide to accessibility in the building read our AccessAble guide.

Book a virtual research room appointment

If you are unable to visit the research room you can also make a virtual research room appointment. Appointments are for one hour and take place via Microsoft Teams using a high-resolution camera.

Virtual appointments are £15 or free for all categories of members of the College.

You can request up to three volumes or files to consult, overseen by one of our archives team.

You can find out more about our virtual research room appointments or make an appointment by completing our virtual research room appointment request form.

Other archive services

As well as enabling viewings, we can conduct family history research of former members and fellows on your behalf, provide images of the collections for your personal research use, or for teaching, exhibition, and publication, and enable broadcasting using our collections.

We also organise displays and workshops for school, university, and specialist groups. You can find out about some of these workshops, which we host alongside the museum and library, or contact us to discuss upcoming events.

Some of these services are charged. As an independent charity, we use the income to support the care and management of the archives.

Image services

To request images of items from the archives for your own personal research use, you can complete our reprographics form.

If you would like to use images in a publication, exhibition, or website, please complete our licensing form. 

Fees are based on whether an item has already been digitised, the use of the images and whether we are also providing a copyright licence.

For many of the items in the archives we are unable to provide a copyright licence and you will need to seek permission from the copyright holder.

Please be aware that under data protection legislation we are not permitted to provide images of any items containing the personal data of living people.

Find out more about our images services.

Grants

Several funding grants are available to support people wishing to use the archives and heritage library collection for research or creative projects.

Find out about the grants.

Related collections

Further collections relating to the history of surgery are held in the heritage library collection and by the Hunterian Museum.

In some cases the papers, books, and surgical instruments, specimens, or objects of a surgeon will have been split across the archives, library and Hunterian Museum.

Contact us

  • Email: archives@rcseng.ac.uk
  • Phone: +44 20 7869 6531
  • Address:

    The Royal College of Surgeons of England 
    38–43 Lincoln's Inn Fields 
    London WC2A 3PE