Enrique Menéndez Pelayo y la biblioteca de su hermano

Abstract

RESUMEN. Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo se sentía especialmente orgulloso de su biblioteca. Creía que era su gran obra, ya que las escritas estaban constantemente sujetas a revisión y crítica. En su afán de perfeccionismo, nunca se sintió del todo conforme con los libros que escribió. Sin embargo sí consideró su biblioteca de Santander un lugar de estudio, tranquilidad y encuentro, al que iba siempre que podía. En su creación y organización tuvo un papel preponderante su hermano menor, Enrique, que hizo de primer bibliotecario de su hermano a partir del fallecimiento de su padre, en 1899. Después de la muerte de Marcelino, en 1912, vigiló el cumplimiento del testamento de su hermano y las disposiciones sobre su legado. El epistolario de los dos hermanos informa del desarrollo de la biblioteca: de la adquisición de muchas obras, la construcción de un pabellón en el jardín de casa, el envío de libros desde Madrid, las cautelas de Marcelino por preservar sus ejemplares mejores, el intercambio de noticias bibliográficas, la visita de investigadores, las reformas y arreglos en el edificio, etc.

ABSTRACT. Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo was particularly proud of his library. He used to think about it as his greatest work, since his written works were constantly under revision and subject to critique. Since he was a perfectionist he never felt completely satisfied with the books he wrote. Nevertheless he considered his library in Santander as a place of study and peacefulness where he could meet other authors and scholars. He used to visit it whenever he was able to. His younger brother Enrique played a key role in the creation and organization of the library and he was the first librarian since their father's death in 1899. After Marcelino passed away in 1912 Enrique ensured that his brother's will and the dispositions towards his legacy were complied with. The correspondence between the two brothers talks about the development of the library that is the acquisition of works, the construction of a pavilion in the house's garden, the remittance of books from Madrid, the caution showed by Marcelino to preserve the best works from the library, the interchange of bibliographic research news, the visits of different scholars and reforms or maintenance of the building.