The world in pictures

With its debut in 1842, The Illustrated London News became the world’s first fully illustrated weekly newspaper, marking a revolution in journalism and news reporting. The publication presented a vivid picture of British and world events – including news of war, disaster, ceremonies, the arts and science – with coverage in the first issue ranging from the Great Fire of Hamburg to Queen Victoria’s fancy dress ball at Buckingham Palace.

"I've been waiting for years for this to become available and think it is a fantastic resource. The searching performance is excellent and the resultant images are available in a range of resolutions, which is helpful."
Dr Ian West, School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester

" I just wanted to say that within minutes of being circulated with the news of this archive trial, I have recommended it to a third-year student, for whose dissertation it will be extremely valuable, and I have discovered a rich seam of material in it relevant to my own research."
Dr. Julian North, School of English, University of Leicester


Full-text searching

The Illustrated London News Historical Archive gives students and researchers unprecedented online access to the entire run of the ILN from its first publication on 14 May 1842 to its last in 2003. Each page has been digitally reproduced in full colour and every article and caption is full-text searchable with hit-term highlighting and links to corresponding illustrations. Facsimilies of articles and illustrations can be viewed, printed and saved either individually or in the context of the page in which they appear. Wherever possible Special Numbers covering special events such as coronations or royal funerals have been included.

• Spans more than 160 years (1842–2003)
• More than 7,000 issues
• Approximately 260,000 full-text searchable pages
• More than 1.5 million high-quality color facsimile images

  
                       Browse issues                                                               Page display

Illustrators

The ILN was unrivalled in the volume and the speed of its engravings, nurturing a large stable of war artists, illustrators and cartoonists to provide illustrations of wars, royal events, scientific inventions, and expeditions.

The ILN employed war correspondents and war artists to travel to the world’s areas of conflict. Researchers can find the work of the world’s first war artist, Constantin Guys, who sent sketches of the 1848 French Revolution back to the ILN’s London studio. Guy became the first in a lineage of “special artist correspondents” who would capture war images spanning two centuries: the Crimean war, the Franco-Prussian War, the Spanish Revolution, the American Civil War, the Boer War, and provide memorable war photographs of both World Wars.

 ILN Firsts and Special Issues

In 1855 the Illustrated London News launched the world’s first colour supplement. Over the years, the ILN was the first to break a story to the reading public. The coverage of the Great Exhibition of 1851 was a coup for the paper. The ILN published the plans for the Great Exhibition and the Crystal Palace in special supplements, with fold-out engravings of the building and its exhibits. From its first issue, the ILN reported on British and European royalty: births, deaths, marriages and royal tours are all chronicled with special issues published to commemorate events.

Today, Gale brings more than 160 years of social, cultural and political history to modern researchers in easy, convenient digital format. Use this remarkable resource to support studies in media history, Victorian history, 19th century history, family history and local history.

To request institutional pricing or a free trial click here

Please note:  The ILN Historical Archive is only available for institutions to trial and purchase.The archive is not available at this stage for individual subscriptions, although a pay per view site may be considered at some future time. Users of the archive can share images and articles for non commercial purposes only. If you wish to order and download images for commercial purposes please visit the Mary Evans Picture Library.