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European Travel from England in 19th century
- Thread starter duckweed
- Start date
I do believe that paper passports were issued by the Secretary of the State/Foriegn Offiice/Home Office in that era, in English and French. But I doubt that many would have existed.
It maybe possible that records of these Passports exist at the TNA.
From an article in the Guardian newspaper suggests that.............................!
From 1540, the granting of travelling papers became the business of the Privy Council. By this point the term "passport" was being used, although whether it originated with the idea of people passing through maritime ports or through the gates in city walls ("portes" in French) remains a matter for debate. A passport from this period, issued on June 18 1641 and signed by Charles I, still exists. From 1794, the office of the secretary of state took control of issuing passports, a function that the Home Office retains today. Records remain of every British passport granted from this time, although they continued to be available to foreign nationals and were written in French until 1858, when the passport first acquired its role as a British identity document. Nevertheless, passports were not generally required for international travel until the first world war.
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/nov/17/travelnews
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_passport
It maybe possible that records of these Passports exist at the TNA.
From an article in the Guardian newspaper suggests that.............................!
From 1540, the granting of travelling papers became the business of the Privy Council. By this point the term "passport" was being used, although whether it originated with the idea of people passing through maritime ports or through the gates in city walls ("portes" in French) remains a matter for debate. A passport from this period, issued on June 18 1641 and signed by Charles I, still exists. From 1794, the office of the secretary of state took control of issuing passports, a function that the Home Office retains today. Records remain of every British passport granted from this time, although they continued to be available to foreign nationals and were written in French until 1858, when the passport first acquired its role as a British identity document. Nevertheless, passports were not generally required for international travel until the first world war.
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/nov/17/travelnews
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_passport
