Manuscript diary, in two volumes and in two hands, recording a Grand Tour journey through Europe by a party of English travelers in 1845. The names of the travelers are never divulged, but various clues in the text suggest that they were natives of Manchester (or thereabout) and numbered about five or six, including at least three women and one man, plus "Truenock", a valet loaned by Mr. J. Kelsall. The diary is amply illustrated throughout with numerous mounted engravings and lithographs. The first volume begins with a table recording all the locations travelled to (or through), along with miles travelled (2425 in all), dates, names of hotels, and remarks (one word evaluations, from "bad" to "ex."). Both volumes have indexes to places visited, in chronological order. The first diarist records all of the entries up to p. 199 (Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland), while the second finishes the final part of the first volume and the entirety of the second. The first has a more formal and studied tone, with frequent historical notes and many opinions on customs of the Continent (its dress, shops, peasants, hotels, and dining, for example) compared to those in England, with many instances of a Continental preference. Both diarists make frequent reference to the scenery and architecture, and both occasionally conclude a daily entry with an excerpt from a fitting piece of verse (from Byron, for example). The tourists linger in major cities (Geneva, Milan, Venice, and Florence) for four or five days each, but they also undertake very thorough sightseeing of less urban, natural attractions. Nearly 10 days are spent touring the valley of the Rhine and its many castles, and three full weeks are spent in the Alps of Switzerland. Churches, galleries, monuments, and historical sites are all very frequent attractions. The inserted engraved illustrations appear to be extracted from many sources. Many of the engravings of German locations are by Frommel & Winkles, after illustrations by Carl Frommel; these are captioned in German. There is a series of engravings, captioned in English, of Swiss subjects, after illustrations by W.H. Bartlett. Italian locations are predominantly illustrated with unsigned lithographs, captioned in French and Italian.
