History of the Pepys Building

Pepys’ library, architectural quirks, and historical significance at Magdalene College.

Samuel Pepys (1633–1703) was a scholar of Magdalene College, as well as Secretary to the Admiralty, Member of Parliament, and President of the Royal Society. In his will, he directed that his personal library—the collection of a lifetime—be left to the College after the death of his nephew and heir, John Jackson, in 1723. His 3,000 volumes, most specially bound for him, were to remain in their original order, housed ‘for the benefit of posterity’ without addition or removal.

The books are still arranged as Pepys intended—by height—in the bookcases he had crafted in a naval dockyard. His original catalogue, shelf list, and library desk remain part of the collection.

Pepys believed a library should contain ‘in fewest books and least room the greatest diversity of subjects, stiles and languages its owner’s reading will bear.’ His own collection reflects this philosophy, covering literature, history, science, music, and the fine arts. Among its greatest treasures is the series of diaries he kept from 1660 to 1669, providing an unparalleled account of 17th-century life.

Although the Pepys Building was unlikely to have been planned before 1640, construction was not fully completed until after 1700. The original design was modest, an all-brick structure with two wings connected by a narrow link, but financial difficulties stalled the project. In 1677, Robert Hooke, architect and pioneer of structural engineering, was consulted, leading to a revised plan. The new design extended the front of the building, adding a large upper room or series of rooms over a loggia in the central section, possibly intended for library use.

The building’s style reflects its changing construction history. The rear resembles a Jacobean manor house, while the front, completed later, features a neo-classical façade in Ketton stone, the only non-brick structure in the College. This contrast, along with other architectural anomalies, suggests an evolving design process.

The Pepys Building holds many structural oddities. Second Court is nearly ten feet short of a perfect square, and the east end of the northern boundary wall was rebuilt at an angle to provide access to the Garden. The internal brickwork at the front is of noticeably lower quality than the rest, and the south wing was shifted northward to accommodate the College brewhouse, rebuilt in 1629.

Further irregularities include mismatched dormers, uneven staircases, and a south wing that is two feet shorter than the north. Even the west façade, while elegant, is asymmetrical; the central first-floor window is slightly off-centre, and the spacing between some windows varies.

The inscription on the frieze, Bibliotheca Pepysiana 1724, marks the official arrival of the library. Above it, Pepys’s coat of arms and his motto, Mens cujusque is est quisque (‘The mind’s the man’—from Cicero’s De re publica), are painted. To either side appear the arms of College benefactors Sir Christopher Wray and Peter Peckard, though neither contributed to the building itself. The two busts above the entrance, intended to appear classical, were later additions, likely from 1813.

Despite its structural quirks and unanswered historical questions, the Pepys Building remains one of Magdalene’s most significant landmarks, safeguarding one of the most extraordinary private libraries ever assembled.