Whitaker's Almanack is a
reference book, published annually in the
United Kingdom. The book was originally published by J Whitaker & Sons from 1868 to 1997, then by
The Stationery Office, and since 2003 by
A & C Black, part of
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Content
The
Almanack consists of articles, lists and tables on a wide range of subjects including
education, the
peerage,
government departments, health and social issues, and the
environment.
The largest section is the countries directory, which includes recent
history,
politics, economic information and culture overviews. Each edition also features a selection of critical essays focusing on events of the previous year. Extensive
astronomical data covering the forthcoming year is published at the rear of the book.
Whitaker's Almanack is not an
encyclopedia but more of a
yearbook of contemporary matters and a directory of various establishments in the
UK (such as clubs, public bodies and
universities).
Whitaker's was prized enough that
Winston Churchill took a personal interest in the continued publication of the book after its
headquarters were destroyed in
The Blitz; a copy is also sealed in
Cleopatra's Needle on the north bank of the
River Thames.
Formats
Each year's
Almanack is published in two formats - the Standard
Edition and a shortened Concise Edition. In previous years, a larger-format of the Standard Edition,
bound in
leather, was produced for
libraries. Both editions were redesigned in 1993 and 2004 to...
Read More