Black Books Society
The Black Books Society was founded to promote an appreciation of the history and possessions of Lincoln’s Inn through a series of talks and lectures by members, researchers, and academics.
The Black Books are the minutes from the meetings of the Inn’s Council, which date back to 1422. They are so called because they are bound in black leather. Council is the Inn’s overarching governing body, which is comprised of our Benchers, and meets ten times a year. The published Black Books are available in six volumes, covering the period 1422 to 1965 and digitised copies can be viewed here.
The society holds a number of events per year. These usually take the form of a lecture by a guest speaker, followed by a drinks reception. Both Lincoln’s Inn members and non-members are warmly invited to attend. Previous lecture topics have included ‘Women Spies, Lies and 17th Century Espionage’ and ‘Lord Haldane: Lawyer, Statesman and Philosopher’.
Information and booking details for the Society’s events are available on our What’s On section and are circulated by email to those on our mailing list. To be added to the Black Books Society mailing list, please contact the Inn’s Librarian, Dunstan Speight.
The Inn’s YouTube channel (@LincolnsInnOfficial) has recordings of several guest lectures presented by the Black Books Society. These can be found under the ‘Black Books Society Lectures’ playlist.