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1 1/2 pages 8vo in French with integral blank leaf, Navarre, 8 April n.y. (probably 1814).When Napoleon married Marie Louise, he granted Josephine the estate of Navarre in Normandy, and the additional title of Countess of Navarre. She retreated to Navarre in April 1810 as the formal wedding ceremony between the Emperor and his second wife was celebrated in Paris. Exactly four years later, in April 1814, she fled to Navarre under circumstances which were, if anything, even more painful for her, the abdication of her former husband. Napoleon's downfall was precipitous. On 31 March Tsar Alexander and Frederick William of Prussia rode down the Champs Elysées in triumph; on 1 April Talleyrand formed a provisional government with the approval of the Allies; on 2 April the Senate declared Napoleon deposed; and on 4 April Napoleon formally abdicated in favour of his son. Two days after this letter, on 11 April, the Treaty of Fontainebleau was to finalise the abdication and pave the way for the return of the Bourbon monarchy.

Trans: "I was very touched, my dear Alexander, by the new signs which you have given me of your attachment to me, which did not surprise me, it is in misfortune that one recognises friendship and I was right to count on yours. I do not know what my fate will be, I suspect it has been decided. I have just written to the Prince de Bénévent (Talleyrand), in order to ask his good offices. I recommend my interests to him and those of my children, I have come to Navarre less because of fear than for propriety. If you think that it would be appropriate for me to return to Malmaison, tell me, and I will follow your advice with as much pleasure as I have in renewing the assurance of my tender friendship."

Although Josephine was understandably anxious about her fate and that of her children, her legendary charm was to prove her salvation. Talleyrand, who resembled Josephine in his talent to please and also to adapt to changing circumstances, became her ally, continuing her annuity and protecting her children. Tsar Al]]> Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU3867.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU3867.asp
1 page oblong folio in Latin on vellum, fourteen lines of text in an accomplised scribal hand with a decorative initial letter "S" (of "sciant") and flourished ascenders in the first line, signed clearly by Richard at the foot and with a substantial proportion (about two thirds) of his royal armorial seal in red wax attached by the original vellum tag. 20 December 27 Henry VI (1448).Richard Duke of York, like his cousin Henry VI a descendant of Edward III, was the richest nobleman in the land, and before the birth of a son to Henry VI in 1453 was in effect the heir to the throne. Always turbulent, he maintained a show of loyalty until September 1460, when he formally claimed the throne, inaugurating the bloody era of the "Wars of the Roses". He is a major character in Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part 1, where he significantly declares "I will be King, or die." His ascendancy lasted only three months, until December 1460, when he was beheaded after losing the Battle of Wakefield to Henry VI and Queen Margaret. The Yorkist claim to the throne was (for a time) successfully carried to fruition by his sons.

In December 1448 Richard was, officially, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, but as he regarded the appointment as an unwelcome form of banishment he did not actually arrive there until July 1449. After some indeterminate skirmishing he returned to England without permission a year later, giving as his excuse that he did not have enough funds to maintain himself and his forces.

The signature and seal of the Duke of York are extraordinarily rare; as far as we are we are aware, no examples have been offered for sale for more than twenty years.

Provenance: The Lyttelton Collection (Viscount Cobham), dispersed in 1978. An attractive document in clear fresh condition.

Lightly laid down on maroon board, glazed, and in a plain gilt wood wood frame, measuring in all c. 17 3/4 x 17 ins. We could easily remove the document from the frame if requested.]]> Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5393.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5393.asp
Half page 4to in French, Warsaw, 16 January 1807.Trans: "I read with pleasure of what has been performed at the Opera. Convey my satisfaction to the author. I had ordered that he should be given a present for his work of Joseph. Tell me what has been done about that. In any case, give him a reward. In general, the best way to praise me is to create works which inspire heroic sentiments, to the nation, to the youth, and to the army. . ."

Napoleon was known to appreciate fine singing, and he encouraged musical artists, as can be seen here. The opera in question is Etienne Méhul's Joseph, based on the biblical story - one which no doubt would have appealed to Napoleon all the more with its Egyptian setting. This was reputedly the best of Méhul's operas, and admired by the later Romantic composers such as Berlioz, but today he is well known in France for his patriotic songs of the period, many of them predating Napoleon's order to create heroic works. They include marching songs such as the Chant du Départ and later the Chant de Retour pour la Grande Armée.]]> Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5066.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5066.asp
1 page large oblong folio on vellum, c. 18 x 27 ins, with elaborate pen and wash decoration to the first three words and their initials, as well as along the left and right margins, with the major portion of the Seal of the Court of Common Bench (of which an indistinct impression only remains). Westminster, 11 May 1657.An elaborate and very beautiful document, with the very rare Seal of the Court of Common Bench, albeit in an indistinct impression on which only the recto, showing the House of Commons, bears a distinguishable image.

The document concerns a land dispute in which ". . .Andrew Hilly & Nicholas Peryn in their proper persons doe demand against Edward Giles rent twelve messuages fifty gardens three hundred acres of land thirty acres of meadow one hundred & twenty acres of pasture thirty acres of wood & one hundred acres of furze & heath with the appurtenances . . .". Interestingly, the document further refers to the fact that Andrew Hilly and Nicholas Peryn were resident in ". . . the tenements aforesaid with the appurtenances in their demesne as of fee & right in the time of peace in the time of Charles late king of England takeing thereof the profits to the value. . ." The judgement appears to have gone in favour of Hilly and Peryn, as their opponent did not appear in Court when summoned ". . . but departed in contempt of the Court & maketh default".

The Robinson who signed the document is most likely Sir Thomas Robinson who "in Hilary term 1657 . . . was able to purchase the immensely lucrative office of chief protonotary of the common pleas. This office usually changed hands for over £5000." (DNB).

The justice presiding over the trial, Oliver St. John, had been king's solicitor to Charles I, but he was also a supporter of Parliament and a key figure in bringing Archbishop Laud to trial for treason. In 1648 he was appointed Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, a post which he only lost in 1660 with the Restoration.

A magnificent document in excellent condition.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5165.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5165.asp
2 pages 8vo, The Residency, Ramleh (Palestine), 21 August 1919."Many thanks for two letters of congratulation, wh. I value highly. You are rather hard on Uriah - who was sinned against, not sinning - to rank him with Judas Iscariot. I shall not choose either name! I congratulate you on your latest record in strike breaking. We shall want you here, soon, for that job."

The name chosen by Allenby for his title was Viscount Allenby of Megiddo, the site of his great victory over the Turks in Palestine in October 1918. The end of the war left him as military commander of a hugh swath of territory stretching from the Sudan to nothern Syria before being appointed, in March 1919, as special high commisioner for Egypt. Macready was Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police 1918-1920, and in August 1919 successfully dealt with a strike among the police themselves.

A little dusty at the lower edge.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5174.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5174.asp
1 page 8vo with integral blank leaf, Astor Gate, Victoria Embankment, 7 January 1901.Barely a month earlier, Lord Roberts had returned to England from South Africa, hailed as a hero. After a year which had seen the British endure and overcome the great sieges of the Boer War, at Ladysmith and Mafeking, and the British annexation of the Transvaal, it appeared to many that the war was finally drawing to an end. In fact, the war continued for another eighteen months, which saw some of the most brutal events of the conflict.

The American-born William Waldorf Astor settled in England in 1890 and became a British subject in 1899. He was eventually made a peer, which meant that his son had to relinquish his parliamentary career at his father's death. However, his wife, Astor's daughter-in-law Nancy Astor, thereby gained the opportunity to become Britain's first woman MP.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5231.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5231.asp
1 page 4to in French with integral blank leaf, Briancon, 7 June 1709.A letter written during Berwick's campaign to defend the south eastern frontier of France against the Austrians and Sardinians under Prince Eugene of Savoy. His defensive strategy is regarded as a model in the art of war. The leading opposing general in the European wars at the beginning of the eighteenth century was Berwick's uncle John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. Uncle and nephew however never faced each other in the field as they were involved in different theatres of war.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5308.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5308.asp
1 page 4to in French with integral blank leaf, Valencia, 15 October 1812.Trans: ". . . Announce with a salvo of artillery the entry of the Grande Armée into Moscow on 14 September."

Napoleon had entered Moscow on 14 September. By the following day, the city was burning, set aflame by its inhabitants. If Joseph knew of the burning, he evidently did not communicate the news.

Joseph Bonaparte himself had more than enough problems to contend with at the time. The British were occupying his capital, Madrid, and in September, just as his brother was entering Moscow, he had intercepted a despatch in cypher from Marshal Soult, intended for Napoleon, accusing Joseph of mis-managing the war and betraying France. The salvo of guns ordered in this terse message would undoubtedly have served to raise morale in Spain.

Minor mark of red wax seal at bottom left; the letter is otherwise in very good condition.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5241.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5241.asp
c. 9 x 7 1/2 ins, Buckingham Palace, 3 June 1887.The varied programme includes music of Wagner (Lohengrin), Weber (Der Freischutz), Rossini (La Cenerentola) and Auber (Fra Diavolo). Tennyson's words for the opening piece, Stanford's Carmen Saeculare are printed inside the programme. Queen Victoria was very fond of music and continued her singing lessons even after her accession to the throne.

A most attractive piece of Victorian memorabilia.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU4558.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU4558.asp
2 pages 4to, Beaconsfield, 23 August 1793.Three years after the publication of his best-known work, Reflections on the Revolution in France, Burke continued to be appalled by the chaos threatened and inflicted by the revolution.

"The Letter . . . came from Mr. Brander . . . I . . . think that what he says of Lord Portchester, coming from so good a judge as Mr. Brander, cannot but be acceptable to you. . . I think you must have read of the Horrid Massacre made by the Jacobin Commissioners in St. Domingo. It is but a part of a Plan which they meant, & still mean . . . to executive in every Island of the West Indies, let it belong to what nation it will. I fear we have hardly taken the due precautions in that quarter, but I trust as their whole Naval Force have not gone with the murdering faction of the Commissioners of the Convention, they will hardly be able to pour in that body of armed blacks & Mulattoes upon Jamaica. . ."

France and England had been at war since February of this year, and the capture of France's overseas colonies formed part of the British strategy. As with the British Caribbean colonies, their considerable financial importance rested on slave labour. Haiti, the most important and wealthy of the French possessions, had been the scene of a slave uprising in 1791, when hundreds of white colonials were massacred and sugar and coffee plantations destroyed. A year later, the French National Assembly granted equal rights to all citizens of the island, barring the slaves. It was too little, too late. By 1793, the Spanish, who controlled the other half of that island, Santo Domingo, had joined the war, and Toussaint L'Ouverture, the leader of the freedom fighters, had agreed to fight with them, against the French. With the threat of an English invasion as well - Port au Prince was to be captured by the British in September 1793 - and further slave uprisings, the abolition of slavery on the island was announced on 29 August 1793 and formally ratified by the National C]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5128.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5128.asp
After a long and distinguished political career Canning, a liberal Tory, succeeded Lord Liverpool as Prime Minster on 12 April 1827. However he had caught a servere chill at the funeral of the Duke York on 5 January and never really recovered; he died on 8 August after a Premiership of only 100 days. Despite his abilities Canning faced extraordinary prejudice, with Lord Grey declaring in the House of Lords that he was unfit to be Prime Minister because his mother had been an actress. He had great difficulties during his short period of office, as the hostility of his own Tory party prevented him from making progess in two areas dear to his heart - Catholic emancipation and the reform of the Corn Laws.

]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5099.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5099.asp
4 pages 4to, Liverpool, 8 October 1834.By 1830, the British government was much concerned with the need to find a speedier and more direct route to India. Various options were examined, and Chesney, who sailed down part of the Euphrates in 1831, was convinced that the best option was through Iraq, sailing down the Euphrates to the Persian Gulf. In 1834, Parliament allocated £20,000 for an expedition, under Chesney's command, to explore the viability of this route, which finally set off in February 1835.

"Your letter . . . found me in the midst of list making . . . for the stores &c of the two steamers . . . the orders have been limited to those items which require time in preparation, and the others remain to be done, after Mr. Grant has approved of them . . . until it is quite decided into what weight the Boilers could be divided, it would have been injudicious to give the final Account of the Waggons & pontoons &c to the Ordnance . . . I shall be in town as soon as possible, and I hope to carry with me a list of all things to be done at this port . . . I hope also to be able to lay before Mr. Grant our wants as to Surveying and Astronomical instruments . . . About £500 have been expended in orders at Birmingham, Sheffield, &c . . . I have had a letter from Sabine (possibly the explorer and physicist Sir Edward Sabine) this moment and I fear his better half will deprive the Euphrates of one of the most valuable assistants which England could furnish . . . I think I have visited 20 steamers today connected with my engineers & lists . . ."

Chesney had two steamers on his expedition, the Tigris and the Euphrates. The Tigris sank in the Euphrates, but the Euphrates progressed to the mouth of the river, proving that the route to India was indeed viable.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5035.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5035.asp
1 long oblong page in Latin on vellum with address on the verso, c. 4 1/2 x 17 1/2 ins, the text in an accomplished italic hand, signed at the foot by the poet Blosius Palladius, Clement VII's secretary. St. Peter's. Rome, 11 June 1529.Francisco de Medici, an official in the Papal household, was evidently a member of the Medici family but not apparently a historically well-known figure. Guido Rangoni on the other hand was a celebrated commander of papal troops and in 1527 had attempted to rescue Clement VII when he was held by the Imperial forces after the sack of Rome.

Clement, the nephew of Lorenzo de Medici, was a vacillating figure in the struggle for the domination of Europe between Francois I of France and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Not daring to offend Charles, who was the nephew of Catherine of Aragon, Clement refused to grant Henry VIII an annulment of his marriage to Catherine, thus precipitating Henry's break with Rome.

Slightly defective at the top left corner, and with two small old stains not affecting text.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5155.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5155.asp
"I feel it a very great compliment that the Emperor should have given it to me on the marshal's recommendation - though I well know, not for the same service as the men - But I feel I may conscientiously wear it as an honorable distinction of war service - I should be very much obliged to you to send me, or tell Galignani to do so, the Moniteur of the day . . ."

Codrington's letter was written at the time of the debate, fuelled by the Crimean War, over the purchase of commissions for officers, leading to controversial proposals for army reform.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5254.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5254.asp
1 page large oblong 8vo, on Board His Majestys Ship Excellent, 27 March 1797.H.M.S. Excellent had been involved at the battle of Cape St. Vincent a month earlier, where Collingwood distinguished himself, seizing two Spanish ships and coming to the aid of Nelson's ship. After the battle, Nelson wrote to Collingwood quoting the maxim "A friend in need is a friend indeed."

There is a slight waterstain at the bottom left corner, and the document has been docketed at the top "60".]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5150.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5150.asp Rights of Man.

2 pages 4to with integral blank leaf, Calcutta, 14 October 1792." . . . Every thing is quiet in this quarter of the Globe, and we are anxiously turning our eyes to the event of the War on the Continent, and what is still more in interesting to us, the progress of the Associators and Reformers in England. I hope they will not establish La Lanterne (the iron lamp-post at the corner of Parisian streets, used by Revolutionary mobs for lynchings) in London, for after broiling seven years in this country, I should not relish being hanged as an Aristocrate as soon as I get home, and I don't see how I could possibly escape after being placed by Mr. Paine between Catherine (the Great) and Tippoo {the Sultan of Mysore), who have neither of them shown any respect for the rights of Man."

Cornwallis had a distinguished and successful career after the debacle of Yorktown (for which he was not personally blamed) and served as Governor-General of India from 1786 to 1793. Thomas Paine's Rights of Man had been published in 1791, embodying the ideas of liberty and equality, and defending the French Revolution against the attacks of Edmund Burke. It was written before the execution of Louis XVI and the excesses of the Terror, and when Britain and France were still at peace. An establishment figure like Corrnwallis would have regarded "Associators" (those in England who had formed "associations" in support of the principles of the Revolution) and "Reformers" with deep suspicion.

Paine's bracketing of Corwallis with Catherine and the Great and the bloodthirsty Tippoo does seem excessive and his annoyance is understandable. It occurs in a passage where Paine is advocating spending the nation's wealth on a system of supporting the elderly instead of maintaining hereditary privilege: "Let peace and justice, let honour and humanity, let even hypocrisy, sycophancy, and Mr. Burke, let George (III) . . . Let Catherine, Cornwallis or Tippoo Sahib, answer the question."]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5264.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5264.asp
1 page 4to with integral address leaf with remains of red wax seal, St. James' Street, 25 April 1837."I received your letter with the twenty pound note I have no wish to bet . . . but I have taken three to one about Elis being the current odds bet yesterday at Tattersall so in the event of the horse winning I shall have to give you Eighty pound which I will remit you by any way I shall name."

William Crockford, born a working-class cockney, opened his St. James's club in 1828, and it immediately became one of the most fashionable and exclusive haunts of the London elite. A lucky and astute gambler himself, he was less fortunate when he strayed into fields les familiar to him, but he nevertheless left his wife a very wealthy woman when he died.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5215.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5215.asp
1 page oblong 8vo in French, laid down, undated but annotated at the foot in another hand 'Brumaire an 11' (October/November 1802).As an enthusiastic supporter of the Revolution and director of the great national fetes organised to replace the symbols of monarchy and Christianity with those of nature and republican freedom, David barely manged to save himself from following his friend and patron Robespierre to the guillotine. He easily adapted to the regimes of the Consulate and Empire, and the year before the date of this document he completed his great painting of Napoleon crossing the St. Bernard pass.

David was an inspired teacher amd numbered among his pupils Ingres, Gros and Gerard. Louis Prot, for whom he wrote this certificate, became a noted portrait and history painter, exhibiting at the salon between 1806 and 1819.

Numbered '853' at the top right in another hand. Very skight fraying at the right-hand edge, but in sound in legible condition.

]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5313.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5313.asp Diary of a Provincial Lady.Autograph Letter Signed ("Elizabeth M. Delafield") to "Dear Mr. Osborne" (identified in pencil in another hand as E.R. Osborn, Literary Editor of the Morning Post and the Daily Telegraph), thanking him for his "most understanding & helpful review" of her book, The Brontës.

1 page 8vo, Cullompton, 8 June 1935."Please let me say Thank you, very warmly & very sincerely, for your most understanding & helpful review of my Brontë book. I do so appreciate it, coming from your pen."

E.M. Delafield's book on the Brontës was essentially a complilation of nineteenth century views of the authors, published by the Hogarth Press as part of the series Biographies Through the Eyes of Contemporaries. Five years earlier, Delafield had started a series of articles which were eventually published in one volume as Diary of a Provincial Lady, a masterpiece of wry, understated comedy.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5185.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5185.asp
2 pages 8vo, Devonshire Terrace, Wednesday 14 August 1850."Georgina (Hogarth, Dickens' sister-in-law) tells me you are all going to the opera, next Tuesday. Now / as our servants are out of town, and we are in an anti-Malthusian state here / ( i.e. surrounded by children) I want you and Mrs Brown to come and dine with me, at the Star and Garter at Richmond, on the following Friday. I will drive you down, and we will dine early; so that if we feel disposed for Vauxhall we amy go there, very easily afterwards.Is it a bargain? I name that day, bacause I am not likely to be free before, being now hard at work . . .Say yes, and I elevate my pen in the air, after the Roman manner, and swear by it to call for you next Friday week, at 3! . . ."

The term 'Malthusian', and by inference its contrary 'anti-Malthusian', entrered the language around 1812. Malthus's theories of population and subsistence were popularly interpreted as meaning that population growth should be checked; Dickens here alludes to his 'non-Malthusian' state as the father of nine children. The Star and Garter was one of Dickens' favourite haunts, where he often dined, and to which he would often walk from central London. In the summer of 1850 Dickens was "hard at work" on David Copperfield, which was appearing in monthly parts between May 1849 and November 1850.

Annotated at the head in pencil by Montagu Yeats Brown "Charles Dickens to my Father." Mounting traces have been removed under our direction.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5218.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5218.asp
3 pages 4to with integral address leaf, London, 19 July 1843.Only six years after he first entered Parliament, Disraeli linked his name to the leaders of the new Young England movement, George Smythe, Lord John Manners and Alexander Baillie-Cochrane. A group of romantic High Tories, who campaigned for a rather paternalistic type of social conscience, their work and influence would last for only about six years. Two of Disraeli's best-known novels, Coningsby and Sybil show the influence of their philosophy.

"By this post, I send you a copy of the "Times". I beg to call your attention to the letter of Mr. Smythe, which you will there observe. That party of the youth of England, of which, many months ago, I apprised you & others, are now attracting very great attention in our Parliament, & throughout the country. The speeches of Mr. Smythe, Lord John Manners, Mr. Cochrane, & others, in the late debate on Ireland, have arrested public attention in the highest degree. In consequence of some attacks, Mr. Smythe through the medium of an address to his constituents, has put forth this morning a programme of these new, or rather revived, opinions. You will observe well how the alliance with France is definitely advanced as a political principle; you will appreciate our courage & determination in doing this at a moment, when we understand that considerable disagreement exists between the Cabinets of the two countries. I write in great haste, but wished to lose no time in drawing your attention, & that of one whom I never remember but with profound respect & affection, to this very interesting & important document. If you can find a good occasion to write to me about Spain, I should be glad."

By the early 1840s, France and England were dangerously close to open conflict over the question of the Ottoman Empire. During Lord Palmerston's tenure as Foreign Secretary - a post he left in 1841 - France's support for the Egyptian Mehmet Ali had been viewed unfavourably by England, who were staunchly p]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5140.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5140.asp
2 pages 8vo with integral blank leaf and the original stamped and postmarked envelope, Brooks's, St. James's Street, 2 April 1928."The £30 machine is the one you heard on Sunday & there is nothing better to be had I think (H.M.V.). Send me a line here to tell me if you are pledged to deal at any shop: if not you might let me help you to the gramaphone. It was so delightful to see you & Hubert yesterday . . ."

Elgar and Hubert Leicester had been close friends since they met as boys in Worcester. Leicester, an accomplished flautist, was a member of Elgar's amateur string quintet which played together most Sunday afternoons between 1878 and 1882. It was to Leicester that Elgar dedicated Suite No. 2 of his Wand of Youth (1908, revised from early drafts of 1867-71). Elgar liked and admired Agnes Leicester, and dedicated his setting of the Ave Maria tro her. In 1905 Hubert Leicester, as Mayor of Worcester, had been responsible for Elgar receiving the freedom of the his native city.

]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5131.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5131.asp
1 page folio in French with integral blank leaf and the original letter cover, the text in an attractive calligraphic hand, Berlin, 8 July 1747.Trans: "It is with great pleasure that We have received the news of the happy delivery by the Queen, Your Majesty's wife, of a Prince . . . and as We are always glad to share in all the happy events whch take place in the August House of Your Majesty, We cannot fail to congratulate You on the present increase to Your Royal Family, hoping that Divine benevolence will preseve the new Prince for the satisfaction of Your Majesty . . ."

Charles VII (1716-1788) son of Philip V of Spain, seized Naples and Sicily from the Austrians in 1734. Regarding himself as an 'enlightened despot', he instituted some limited internal reforms. In 1759 he renounced Naples and Sicily in favour of his third son Ferdinand when he succeeded his half-brother Ferdinand VI as King of Spain. The son whose birth is the subject of this letter, Felipe, was excluded from the succession because of his weak health.

Like Charles, Frederick II considered himself a proponent of enlightened despotism. A patron of the arts and a talented musician, he had invited Johann Sebastian Bach to visit him in Potsdam in May 1747, two months before the date of this letter. During his visit Bach improvised a fugue on a theme composed by Frederick, and on his return to Leipsig he developed Frederick's theme into a more elaborate Musical Offering. He sent the composition to Frederick with a dedication, dated 7 July 1747, to "a sovereign admired in music as in all the other arts of war and peace."

The page is evenly toned, but this is an attractive letter with a fine large signature.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5243.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5243.asp
4 pages 8vo, 22 Princes Gardens, Hyde Park, 17 November 1872."Pray accept my best thanks for your letter of 13th November containing the account of the meeting of 12th in Manchester & enclosing the resolutions that were carried there & also for the newspaper with the account of the meeting that you so kindly sent me. The feeling so decidedly expressed at Manchester cannot fail materially to strengthen our hands, & I earnestly hope now that Public attention has been re-directed to the subject; that the great question of how to keep down the Slave Trade, will not again be permitted to drift out of sight."

Frere was to travel to Zanzibar later that month, on a mission to suppress the slave trade on the island. He succeeded in closing the Slave Market in June 1873; however, it was not until 1897 that slavery was banned altogether and existing slaves freed, some years after the island became a British Protectorate.

Remains of guard at the top of the last leaf.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5255.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5255.asp
1 page folio with integal blnak leaf and Royal paper seal, printed and completed in manuscript, signed at the head by the King and countersigned at the foot by the Home Secretary Earl Spencer. St. James's, 22 September 1806.Prussia was at this period attempting to maintain an useasy neutrality between England and Napoleon. Less than three weeks after the date of this document, on 14 October 1806, the Prussian armies suffered the shattering defeats of Jena and Auerstadt, and Napoleon entered Berlin in triumph. Both England and France attempted to restrict each other's trade and prevent countrries within their sphere of influence trading with the enemy; real hardship was alleviated by smuggling, mild corruption, and the issue of licences such as this. This licence would be carried on the importing neutral ship, and shown to the Captain of any British ship who might wish to search it.

The permission granted here is wide, allowing the import of "Grain, if importable according to the Provision sof the Corn Laws, Salted provisions of all sorts, Salted Beef and Pork, Oak Bark, Flax & Flax-seed . . . Saffron, Butter, Cheese . . . Geneva (i.e. gin), Vinegar . . . Clapboards, Bleaching ashes, Raw Materials, Timber, Ash Rafters, Oak Plank & Staves."

An uncommon form of document. Masny such licences must have been issued, but few seem to have survived.

]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU4854.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU4854.asp
1½ pages folio in Latin with integral address leaf and paper seal, St. James's, 8 August 1783.The short-lived Fox-North coalition caused George III tremendous anguish, to the extent that he considered abdication. Charles James Fox, the greatest of the Whig politicians, but also a gambler and a bon viveur was very likely the man most hated and despised by the King. There is a certain piquancy in the sight of their two signatures so closely juxtaposed.

Princess Amelia, whose birth is announced, was the youngest and favourite of George III's daughters. Despite his obvious affection, her brief life - she died in her mid-twenties - was as unhappy as that of her sisters, largely because of her mother's unreasonable possessiveness.

The recipient of the letter, Ferdinand IV of Naples, had married Maria Carolina, sister of Marie Antoinette. Fifteen years later, he was to be rescued from advancing French forces by Horatio Nelson.

There is a seal tear at a blank portion of the address leaf, but the letter is otherwise in very good condition.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5224.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5224.asp
1 page oblong folio on parchment with blue treasury seal, Carlton House, 12 November 1813.At this period, the 70th Regiment of Foot served in Canada, where British forces were engaged in a conflict known in England as the American War and in America as the War of 1812.

Together with a certificate from the Royal Military College at High Wycombe, an elaborate document, certifying that Captain William Robison of the 24th Regiment of Foot has "acquitted himself to the perfect satisfaction of the Board and the Lieutenant Governor" and that he is "well qualified to serve in the General Staff of the Army".

1 page large folio on parchment with paper seal, High Wycombe, 8 July 1809.

Signed, in the first instance, by David Dundas, commander in chief of the army, who had served as president of the court of inquiry on the convention of Cintra the year before. The second signatory, "Edward FM" was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, who was to become the father of the future Queen Victoria.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5305.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5305.asp
4 pages folio with integral blank leaf, bound by green silk cord, Carlton House, 13 August 1819.The separate mention of Berwick upon Tweed is interesting. Until the late fifteenth century, the town changed hands between England and Scotland over a dozen times. Although English from 1482 onwards, it was evidently still considered wise to specify its inclusion in the agreement.

George IV's love of fine clothes was well-known and the period saw the rise of the dandy, most notably in the person of Beau Brummell. Unfortunately, we have been unable to ascertain the precise nature of William Hudson's improvement.

The final leaf of the document is slightly dusty, but it is otherwise in very good condition.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5314.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5314.asp
2 pages small 4to marked "Private & Confidential", together with the autograph envelope, Buckingham Palace, 18 April 1923.The Duke of York was married to the Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon at Westminster Abbey on 26 April 1923, the first royal prince to be married there for over five hundred years.

"How very kind of you it is to send me the liqueur cups for a wedding present, & I thank you very much indeed for your kind thought of me at this time in my life. How well I remember the walls we used to take on Fara together when I was in the "Drina". They meant a lot to me in those days & you never realised what a great friend you were to me, & how I longed to get out of the ship for a bit of peace away from the doctor. . ."

Prince Albert, as he was then known, had met Rev. McCarthy while on the hospital ship, HMS Drina in the spring of 1916. The Prince suffered from severe gastric problems, and was later diagnosed with a duodenal ulcer.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5032.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5032.asp
1½ pages 4to with integral blank leaf, in French, n.p., 8 November 1828.Gérard asks his correspondent to look with favour on (trans:) ". . . Mr. Richter, a young German painter who has already shown remarkable talent in his Art. He is leaving for Munich and would greatly value a few words of recommendation from Your Excellency. I have the pleasure of knowing for some years this worthy young man, whom Mr. A(lexan)dre de Humboldt told me recently he found worthy of note, and I assure you he is in every respect worthy of your protection. . ." Gérard signs himself as "P(ein)tre du Roi", a position granted to him by the restored Louis XVIII.

Early in his career, Gérard was a protégé of David, and he went on to become one of the pre-eminent painters of the Napoleonic period. Indeed, it would be quicker to draw up a list of the major figures whose portraits he did not paint than those he did: from Napoleon himself, and his family, Madame Mère, Caroline, Murat, Ney, Mme. Récammier, Mme. Tallien. After Waterloo, his sitters included not only the restored Bourbon monarchs, but also Wellington and Canning. Gérard's immense historical painting of the Battle of Austerlitz was particularly appreciated by Napoleon.

The great naturalist and explorer, Alexander von Humboldt lived in Paris until 1827, so his recommendation for Mr. Richter would have been slightly out of date by November of the following year. It is impossible to state with certainty the recipient of this letter, but mention of Alexander von Humboldt suggests that it might have been his elder brother, the philosopher and diplomat Baron Wilhelm von Humboldt.]]> Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT Autographs and Manuscripts http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5148.asp http://www.maggs.com/title/AU5148.asp