Sir Antonio Genesio Maria Panizzi (17 September 1797 - 8 April 1879), better known as Anthony Panizzi, was a naturalized British librarian of Italian birth and an Italian patriot. September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... 1797 (MDCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). ... 1879 (MDCCCLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The Librarian, a 1556 painting by Giuseppe Arcimboldo A librarian is an information professional trained in library science: the organization and management of information and service to people with information needs. ...

He was born in Brescello in the province of Reggio Emilia, Italy, and obtained a degree in law from the University of Parma in 1918. In Parma, it is likely that he joined one of the secret patriotic societies which aimed to unite Italy as an independent country. Parma was then ruled by Francesco IV, the Duke of Modena. Panizzi then returned to Brescello where he practiced law and in 1821 became inspector of the town's schools. Country Italy Region Emilia-Romagna Province Province of Reggio Emilia (RE) Mayor Elevation 24 m Area 24. ... Country Italy Region Emilia-Romagna Province Reggio Emilia (RE) Mayor Graziano Delrio (from July 1, 2004) Elevation 58 m Area 231 km² Population  - Total 141,383  - Density 612/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Reggiani Dialing code 0522 Postal code 42100 Frazioni see list Patron San Prospero  - Day... Country Italy Region Emilia-Romagna Province Parma (PR) Mayor Elvio Ubaldi (since May 28, 2002) Elevation 55 m Area 260 km² Population  - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 175,789  - Density 676/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Parmigiani (Parmensi are called the provinces inhabitants) Dialing code...

In 1820, following a short lived revolution in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Francesco IV started to arrest and jail suspected patriots on trumped-up, flimsy charges. When in May 1822 the Duchy's Chief of Police, Giulio Besini, was assassinated, the tempo of arrests picked up ,many were convicted, and a priest executed. Panizzi, tipped off that he also faced arrest and trial as a subversive, fled to Switzerland, where in 1823 he wrote and published a book decrying the repressive regime and trials against citizens of the Duchy of Modena. Following the book's publication, he was indicted, tried, and condemned to death in absentia in Modena and pressure was brought to have him expelled from Switzerland. The Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was the new name that the Bourbon king Ferdinand IV of Naples gave to his domain (including Southern Italy and Sicily) after the end of the Napoleonic Era and the full restoration of his power in 1816. ...

In May 1823 he moved to England, becoming a British subject in 1832. Upon arrival in London, Italian poet in exile Ugo Foscolo gave him a letter of introduction to Liverpool banker William Roscoe and he moved to that city, where he made a meager living teaching Italian. In 1826 Panizzi met lawyer and political figure Henry Brougham and helped him in a difficult abduction case; when Brougham became Lord Chancellor of England, he obtained for Panizzi the Professorship of Italian at the newly-founded University of London and later a post at the British Museum Library. Panizzi held a string of posts there: first Assistant Librarian (1831-37), then Keeper of Printed Books (1837-56) and finally Chief Librarian (1856-66). For his extraordinary services as a librarian, in 1869 he was knighted by Queen Victoria. Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... Ugo Foscolo (1778-1827), Italian writer, was born at Zakynthos in the Ionian Isles on 6 Febraury 1778. ... William Roscoe (March 8, 1753 - June 30, 1831), was an English historian and miscellaneous writer. ... Lord Henry Peter Brougham Baron Brougham & Vaux sitting as Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (September 19, 1778 - May 7, 1868) was Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. ... The centre of the museum was redeveloped in 2000 to become the Great Court, with a tessellated glass roof by Buro Happold and Foster and Partners surrounding the original Reading Room. ...

The British Museum library was, in fact, the national library of the United Kingdom in all but name and during Panizzi's tenure as Keeper of Printed Books its holdings increased from 235,000 to 540,000 volumes, making it at the time, the largest library in the world. Its famous circular Reading Room was designed and built by architect Sydney Smirke from a sketch drawn by Panizzi. The new reading room opened in 1857 and was in use until 1997 when the Library moved to new quarters. United States Library of Congress, Jefferson building A national library is a library specifically established by the government of a nation to serve as the preeminent repository of information for that country. ... Ceiling of the Reading Room The British Museum Reading Room, situated in the centre of the Great Court of the British Museum, used to be the main reading room of the British Library. ... Sydney Smirke (born 1798; died 1877) was a British architect during the 19th century. ...

During his tenure at the library, Panizzi was embroiled in many controversies, including a long term dispute with famous historian Thomas Carlyle. While working on his history of The French Revolution, Carlyle had complained in a magazine article that "a certain sub-librarian" had not been very helpful to him, restricting access to uncatalogued documents held by the British Museum. Panizzi never forgot the slight and when Carlyle, then working on the biography of Cromwell, requested the use of a private room at the library for his researches, the request was predictably denied. Despite high levels complaints, Carlyle lost the argument and, miffed, he and his supporters (which included Queen Victoria's husband) started their own library, The London Library. The most familiar view of Carlyle is as the bearded sage with a penetrating gaze. ... The period of the French Revolution in the history of France covers the years between 1789 and 1799, in which democrats and republicans overthrew the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church perforce underwent radical restructuring. ...

While at the library, Panizzi undertook the creation of a new catalog, based on the "Ninety-One Cataloguing Rules" (1841) which he devised with his assistants. These rules served as the basis for all subsequent catalog rules of the 19th and 20th centuries, and are at the origins of the ISBD of the 21st century and of digital cataloging elements such as Dublin Core. He also instituted the copyright system which, by law, made British publishers give the library a copy of every book printed in England. The card catalog at Yale Universitys Sterling Memorial Library goes almost completely unused, but adds to the austere atmosphere. ... The International Standard Bibliographic Description or ISBD is a set of rules produced by the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) to describe a wide range of library materials, within the context of a catalog. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ...

Panizzi was a personal friend of British Prime minister Lord Palmerston and William Gladstone, conducted an active correspondence with Sardinian Prime Minister Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, and through French archaeologist and writer Prosper Merimee, was well acquainted with French Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie. In 1844, Panizzi also assisted Giuseppe Mazzini, then in exile in London, by publishing an influential article denouncing the practice ordered by the Home Secretary of ordering Mazzini's private letters opened by the Post Office and giving copies of their contents to the Austrian Embassy. He also orchestrated a visit of Giuseppe Garibaldi to England, and convinced Gladstone to travel to Naples to view personally the inhumane conditions in which political prisoners were kept. When his efforts to have these prisoners released failed, he raised money to buy a ship and mounted an expedition to rescue the prisoner from the island fortress of Santo Stefano in the Gulf of Gaeta. Unfortunately, the ship sank in a storm shortly after leaving England. In 1859, the prisoners were released by Neapolitan King Ferdinand II Bourbon and put on a ship bound for New York. Panizzi then mounted a new expedition led by his son, who commandeered the ship and made port in England, where the former prisoners received asylum and were assured support. Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (October 20, 1784 - October 18, 1865) was a British Prime Minister and Liberal politician. ... William Ewart Gladstone (December 29, 1809 - May 19, 1898) was a British Liberal politician and Prime Minister (1868-1874, 1880-1885, 1886 and 1892-1894). ... Count Camillo Benso di Cavour (Turin, August 10, 1810 - Santena, near Turin, June 6, 1861) was a statesman who was a leading figure in the movement toward Italian unification and the first Prime Minister of the new Kingdom of Italy. ... Prosper Mérimée (September 28, 1803 - September 23, 1870) was a French dramatist, historian, archaeologist, and short story writer. ... Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (April 20, 1808 - January 9, 1873) was the son of King Louis Bonaparte and Queen Hortense de Beauharnais; both monarchs of the French puppet state, the Kingdom of Holland. ... Maria Eugenia Ignacia Augustina Palafox de Guzmán Portocarrero y Kirkpatrick, 9th Countess de Teba, aka Eugenia de Montijo (May 5, 1826 - July 11, 1920) was Empress of France (1853-1871). ... Giuseppe Mazzini. ... Garibaldi in 1866 Garibaldi redirects here. ...

In addition to his English knighthood, Panizzi was given an honorary degree by Oxford University, the Legion d'Honneur from France, various chivalric honors from the Italian Government and Crown, and in 1868 was appointed as a senator in the Italian Parliament. He never took his seat there.

Panizzi died in London on April 8, 1869 and was buried in the Kensal Green Catholic Cemetery, not far from the resting places of William Makepeace Thackeray and Anthony Trollope. William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray (18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist of the 19th century. ...

Panizzi also prepared and published editions of Matteo Maria Boiardo's Orlando Innamorato and Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso. Matteo Maria Boiardo (c. ... Orlando Innamorato is an epic poem written by the Italian Renaissance author Matteo Maria Boiardo. ... Ludovico Ariosto (September 8, 1474 – July 6, 1533) was an Italian poet, author of the epic poem Orlando furioso (1516), Orlando Enraged. He was born at Reggio, in Emilia. ... Ruggiero Rescuing Angelica by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres. ...

The Panizzi lectures are an annual series of bibliography lectures, hosted by the British Library since 1985. Bibliographies at the University Library of Graz Bibliography (from Greek βιβλιογραφία, lit. ... British Library Ossulston St entrance, with distinctive red logo. ...

External link

• Panizzi lectures since 1985

Further reading

• Miller, Edward (1967). Prince Of Librarians: The Life & Times of Antonio Panizzi of the British Museum. The Ohio University Press.
• Weimerskirch, Philip John (1982). “"Antonio Panizzi and the British Museum Library"”, The 1981 AB Bookman's Yearbook. AB Bookman Publications.
• Fagan, L. The Life of Sir Anthony Panizzi, 2 volumes,London,1880
• Harris, P.R. "Panizzi, Sir Anthony",in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,Oxford University Press, Sept.2004