R anging from a warrant signed by Queen Elizabeth I ordering an attack on Spain, to an anxious letter by Lenin’s wife following her husband’s arrest as a possible Tsarist spy at the outbreak of World War I, this unique collection of some 170 lots preserves exceptional moments over four centuries of British, European, and colonial history.
As well as the signed warrant, and also a letter by Queen Elizabeth in which she promises that her enemies will never take “one foote of grounde in Englande”, many other keys figures of the Elizabethan age are represented. Mary, Queen of Scots pleads for clemency for a cousin; the Earl of Leicester writes to the Queen herself of his concern for her welfare during his absence from court; a would-be assassin explains how he had planned to poison the Queen in a signed confession; and a letterbook preserves the correspondence of Elizabeth’s ambassador to France in 1566.
Another major focus of the collection is Revolutionary and Napoleonic France. There are letters and documents by many of the leading figures of the Revolution, including a signed speech of patriotic fervour by Robespierre, and Napoleon’s career is traced from the young artillery officer reporting on the defence of his native Corsica, to the Emperor haughtily insisting on his peace-loving nature in 1813, to documents relating to his imprisonment on St Helena. There is also an important series of letters by a British diplomat and witness to Napoleon’s invasion of Italy in 1796-7, and correspondence by Marshal Berthier tracing the gradual military collapse of the Emperor’s army in 1813-14.
Elsewhere in the collection, David Livingstone describes what he has found during his recent expedition in East Africa, whilst General Gordon writes to Sir Richard Burton with his opinion of other European explorers in Africa. The collection sheds light on aspects of European expansion beyond exploration, such as Afghanistan’s role as the “graveyard of empire” revealed in a series of documents relating to the First Anglo-Afghan War.
The tumults of the first half of the Twentieth century are another major theme. The collection includes a memorandum by one of Chamberlain’s closest Cabinet colleagues on the reviled Munich agreement with Hitler; a typescript speech by Charles de Gaulle, outlining his vision for the Free French from his London exile; and a major series of letters by Montgomery of Alamein, Georges Clemenceau, and others.
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Many of the most intrepid and celebrated figures of the Victorian age were involved in the mapping of Africa, intent on searching out the answers to questions such as the source of the Nile. Many of these individuals were also deeply involved in the suppression of the slave trade. These men have been celebrated for their individual courage, and their stories are entwined in complex and fascinating ways with the European colonial exploitation of Africa in the decades that followed the era of exploration. The History in Manuscript sale includes a range of important letters by Gordon, Livingstone, Speke, from the 1850s-70s, as well as a range of other items documenting the development of the British Empire during the 19th century. Many of the most intrepid and celebrated figures of the Victorian age were involved in the mapping of Africa, intent on searching out the answers to questions such as the source of the Nile. Many of these individuals were also deeply involved in the suppression of the slave trade. These men have been celebrated for their individual courage, and their stories are entwined in complex and fascinating ways with the European colonial exploitation of Africa in the decades that followed the era of exploration. The History in Manuscript sale includes a range of important letters by Gordon, Livingstone, Speke, from the 1850s-70s, as well as a range of other items documenting the development of the British Empire during the 19th century.
![View 1 of Lot 83: Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester | Autograph letter signed, to Queen Elizabeth I, [1584]](https://sothebys-com.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/57b5099/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1337x2000+0+0/resize/251x376!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsothebys-md.brightspotcdn.com%2Fed%2F2f%2F3c09361f4f32869d545c4cfe21ed%2Fl22424-c2whx-1.jpg)
![View 1 of Lot 42: Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex | Autograph letter signed, on his influence over Queen Elizabeth, [1594?]](https://sothebys-com.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6e8474b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1433x2000+0+0/resize/269x376!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsothebys-md.brightspotcdn.com%2F53%2F80%2Ff334d0c74e42b13f9a79ba377988%2Fl22424-c2whr-1.jpg)
