author
Th. (Théodore) Mortreuil
1850–1937
A longtime steward of the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris, this French writer turned his deep knowledge of the institution into clear, useful histories of one of Europe’s great libraries. His work opens a window onto how collections were built, organized, and preserved across centuries.
1 Audiobook
La bibliothèque nationale : Son origine et ses accroissements jusqu'à nos jours
by Th. (Théodore) Mortreuil
About the author
Born in Paris in 1850, Théodore Mortreuil spent most of his working life at the Bibliothèque nationale. Archival and library sources describe him as having entered the institution in 1870 and serving as secrétaire-trésorier from 1885 to 1925, working alongside several successive administrators.
He is best known as the author of La bibliothèque nationale, son origine et ses accroissements jusqu'à nos jours, published in 1878, as well as other historical and institutional writings connected with the library. His books reflect the perspective of someone who knew the place from the inside and wanted to make its long development understandable to a wider public.
Mortreuil died in 1937. The fact that a major group of administrative archives of the Bibliothèque nationale came to be known as the "fonds Mortreuil" suggests the lasting mark he left on the institution and on the record of its history.