The Papers of Eric Milner-White

Eric Milner-White was born in 1884 to the barrister Henry Milner-White, later Sir Henry Milner-White. Eric was educated at Harrow and matriculated at King's College, Cambridge in 1903, having won a scholarship to read history. He later received a double first, winning the Lightfoot Scholarship in 1906. He was ordained a deacon in 1908 and returned to King's in 1912. After serving as an army chaplain during World War I, and receiving the Distinguished Service Order for his efforts, he returned to King's where he was made fellow and dean. He remained at the college until 1941. One of his most lasting achievements while at the college was the introduction of the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, first broadcast in 1928 and now a cornerstone of the BBC's Christmas schedule.

In 1941, Milner-White was called to York to act as dean and remained there until his death in 1963. During that period, he was responsible for replacing a high proportion of the windows in York Minster, an act that eventually garnered him the award of Commander of the British Empire. His liturgical and devotional interests were made manifest in numerous printed works, including 'My God My Glory' (1954) and in his service on several national committees. His interest in stained glass and other forms of art led to his appointment to the Advisory Council of the Victoria and Albert Museum between 1944 and 1959 .

The collection includes published works of Eric Milner-White as well as a large number of manuscript prayers, sermons and other talks given by him as Dean of King's College, Cambridge and later as Dean of York. It also includes his notes on Trappists and church glass, and a number of publications that he collected on religious themes.

The papers of Eric Milner-White were presented to King's College Library by his literary executor, the Reverend P.N. Pare, in 1982. Some items were transferred from other collections in the 1980s and 1990s.

Authorisation to publish from the published and unpublished writings of Eric Milner-White should be addressed to the First Bursar, King's College, Cambridge CB2 1ST.

Please cite as King's College Archive Centre, Cambridge, The Papers of Eric Milner-White, EMW

For biographical details concerning Eric Milner-White the reader is referred to Robert Tinsley Holtby's 'Eric Milner-White: A Memorial' (Chichester, 1991) and Patrick Wilkinson's 'Eric Milner-White 1884-1963', a memoir prepared by the direction of the Council of King's College, Cambridge (Cambridge, 1963).

A full catalogue is available on the College web site, and in hard copy in the Archive Centre.

The current catalogue, completed in January 1997, replaces the original box list of the papers which was prepared by Rev. Pare in the 1970s. The box list was found to be incomplete with several items missing and many others present but unlisted. Subsequent reference numbers had been assigned to the box list by the archivist, Michael Halls, during the 1980s.