Historical
School Libraries

In 1845 a secondary school is officially created in each Spanish province with the exception of Madrid where the Instituto del Cardenal Cisneros and the Instituto de San Isidro, brought into service in that year. In 1857 the Public Instruction Act establishes that every secondary school must be provided with a library.

The books that are now accessible through the Virtual Library of Bibliographic Heritage are materials that justify pedagogic theories and teaching practices and have been held in these institutions throughout the last 150 years. They represent the educational memory of many generations and are a valuable source for the history of education.