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Auction: 25066 - Historical Documents, Autographs and Ephemera
Lot: 40

Great Britain
Military
General C.G. Gordon (1833-1885)
1871-1885 Group of six autograph letters to various correspondents written by Gordon from Gravesend, on notepaper of the "Commission Europienne du Danube", London and Jerusalem. He thanks Bain for a "little packet of honeydew"; writes from Galatz in 1872 to General Adye, Director General of Artillery, Pall Mall (with addressed not postally used envelope), and separately to Mr Sutzer regarding a map sheet of Galatz; 1872 writes to the Secretary of the United Services Club re his membership; writes in 1880 to Mr Sturge stating "China will never be friends with England till you stop the opium trade. India will never prosper, while it exists, there is a curse on it"; 1883 from Jerusalem, Gordon writes to Miss Gessie reporting on his experiences, spiritual knowledge, Solomon's Palace, "what series of sorrow this city has seen, it has been taken or plundered over 30 or 40 times...". A letter from Lord Wolseley dated January 1884 refers to Gordon leaving for Egypt and "takes Colonel Stewart 11th Hussars with him as his Military Secretary". This was the fateful mission to Khartoum that led to Gordon's death the following year. Included is a small lithographed letter on thin paper in Arabic signed by Gordon (4.5x3cm) sent out of Khartoum to friendly forces during the siege. The final letter is written by Gordon's sister Augusta after hearing of the death of her brother "I have been cast down by the news from the Soudan, I have felt unable to go to see my friends. I enclose a copy of the only communication that has reached the outer world from my brother for many months which I think you may like to have, the original was sent me from the Foreign Office"
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Estimate
£600 to £700

Starting price
£500