GORDON
(George Grant, 1836-1912, served in all the chief engagements in the Crimea with the Scots Guards and as to ADC Sir James Simpson, Equerry and Comptroller to Prince and Princess Christian, Colonel)
Autograph Letter in the third person to Messrs A & J Cooper,
conveying Princess Christian's acceptance as patron of 'the Exhibition', with on the conjugate leaf a draft reply in pencil, naming the event as 'A Music Room, the decorations after the Greek', and noting other possible patrons including the King of Greece, the letter 2 sides 8vo., Cumberland Lodge, Windsor Park, 8th March
Item Date:
1886
Stock No:
52069
£75
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GORDON
(Charles George, 1833-1885, General Gordon of Khartoum, 'Chinese Gordon')
Superb Illustrated Autograph Letter Signed to "My dear Gerald",
starting with a description of his journey to Galatz by rail and carriage, "as I could not speak the languages German is by far the most useful out here & I must try and learn it ... I thought to find it very mountainous near Czernowitz where the Carpatheans extend their spurs but it is not so ... this is the route the savage tribes of old used to follow in their descent on Daria and Roumania, and it is fine pasture land ..." he discusses the possible abdication of Prince Charles, "the very French feeling of the Boyards renders him quite a puppet .. he has 50000£ a year, & so he thinks twice before he will leave ... The Empress of Austria's companion and great friend is Miss Throgmorton. Bucharest is much improved ... Divorce being so very easy that a woman may meet two of her former husbands in the same room. Galatz is a large semi civilised place ... Stokes is very civil & kind, he has worked this Commission admirably ... The Commission consists of Turkish, Austrian, English, French, Russian, Italian, Prussian Commissioners, who meet twice a year & make very prosy proposals. The Executive Committee is Stokes, who rules them all & carries everything ..." he continues that he had been "down to the Delta .. it is a dismal swamp ... the fish come down & get a prick & then perhaps turn round and impale themselves ... the villages are principally Russian ... they used to be much persecuted, they do not smoke but make up for it by drinking ... All these environs are historical ..." he details some events of note in the area and continues that "The Turkish soldiers are fine soldierly fellows with quite a swagger ..." he has drawn an excellent detailed map of the area on the final sheet, with all the places that are mentioned clearly named, 8 sides 8vo., Galatz, 22nd November
Item Date:
1871
Stock No:
38295
£7500
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GORDON WRITES TO HIS MOTHER A MONTH BEFORE ARRIVING IN TIANJIN, CHINA, TELLING HER ABOUT HIS TRIP THROUGH THE GULF OF SUEZ
GORDON
(Charles George, 1833-1885, General Gordon of Khartoum, 'Chinese Gordon')
Superb Autograph Letter Signed "C. G. Gordon" to "My dear Mother",
saying that "In spite of the heat I must write you a line to tell you how we got on after Cairo. When I despatched my letter to you on the 4th Augt I went up in a carriage to the Citadel and had a splendid view of the Pyramids both of Giza and Cairo. You remember that Mehmet Aliput the Mamelukes to death in this Castle and the place where one of them jumped his horse over and escaped and where they were buried is shown. The Mosque in the Citadel and palace are most beautiful. I shall leave with ... a piece of the marble ... send it to you. We went on at 10 am to Suez, a miserable place 90 miles from Cairo and over the veritable desert it was a perfect waste of sand. Suez looked very warm, the steamers lay enclosed about 2 miles from the village, and we were conveyed to them by a small tug. The place where they said the Israelites passed is about 1 mile from Suez, the only reason for it being that the water is shallower there than elsewhere. The Arab boys dive wonderfully well altho the water is far from clear, they pick up 6 with ease. The land on each side of the Gulf of Suez is high and arid and looks very hot; about Sunday we passed the range of which Mt Sinai & Horeb are peaks but no one could say positively which was which, after the Gulf of Suez, the Red Sea (which by the way is of Meditterranean blueness) widens and we lose sight of land. The whole navigation is very intricate and a native pilot is kept with the vessel as far as Aden. We are all pretty well ... it is not good to say anything about its being warm. The Cabin is provided with 'punkahs' or mats which are pulled to & fro by small boys to produce a draft. I found an officer called Hills of the Bombay Engineers who is my companion. We are crowded in my opinion but I hear it is nothing to what the crush is during the cool months. There is ample room for another line of packets on this route and it would be a great boon for the passengers, for at present we are at the mercy of the P & O for everything. As yet we have heard no news from China. The Sun today was on our Zenith and did not seem the worse for his eclipse. The Priests are in fine feather, they still keep to their hot black dress. There is a horrid child called Maggie, Sardinian, who squalls frightfully every evening on going to bed. There is a lieutenant of Bengal Infantry, fat and old with a heap of children and a funny wife ... We passed several sharks today and some shoals of flying fish pursued on all sides as well. We went thro the straits of Bab el Mandeb today ...", he then talks about a fellow passenger "she remarked that she had been fool enough to take her husband's advice and come out to India. He replied that most people made a mistake once in their lives, in spite of the heat she wept ... and a reconciliation took place ... we arrived in the Bay of Aden last night ... and I rode off to Bayly ... he came to meet me but I missed him and soon after I came to his house ... he is looking to my eyes very well ... in good spirits and has a capital house, he had ridden into Aden Bay to meet me and certainly did not seem the worse for the ride. He says he does not feel the heat at all and it is only during the wet season that he has any feeling of the bullet. I do not think that he can suffer much as he looks so well. My best love to my father, August, Helen & Mensa and please write to Ella and let her know that Bayly is looking very well and has been extremely kind ..." and hoping that she is well, 4 sides 8vo., crosswritten on 3 sides, "About 300 miles from Aden". 8th August
Item Date:
1860
Stock No:
39502
£4750
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GORDON
(Charles George, 1833-1885, General Gordon of Khartoum, 'Chinese Gordon')
Small collection of material relating to General Gordon
comprising an Autograph Formal Letter from his brother Sir Henry William GORDON(1818-1887, Commissary-General) sending "an autograph and an impression of General Gordon's Chinese seal", (both present) the signature is the end of an autograph letter with the words "Believe me yours very affect" and another Autograph Letter to Mrs Kettlewell, signed "H. W. Gordon" regretting that he is "unable to comply with your request for an autograph of General Gordon but I have none at my disposal. There is no seal except the Chinese one ...", each 1 side 8vo., no place and 68 Elm Park Road, Chelsea, 2nd and 9th March 1885, together with a fine original cabinet photoby the London Stereoscopic Society showing him half length in Egyptian uniform with medals and a fez, 6½" x 4¼", no place,
Item Date:
1885
Stock No:
39768
£475
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GORDON
(Charles George, 1833-1885, General Gordon of Khartoum, 'Chinese Gordon')
Fine Autograph Letter signed to 'My dear Sir Charles' STANLEY
(4th Viscount Monck, 1819-1894, Politician, Last Governor General of Canada) saying that he "ought to have written to you before as you are daily in my thoughts and have always been so kind. I am going to town tomorrow and to Brussels on Wednesday to wait decision of govt as to my going to Congo. I do not yet know if my resignation is accepted or not. I drifted into the Congo business & promised the King of Belgians. I hope you and Lady Stanley & your family are well ..." , 2 sides 8vo., 5 Rockstone Place, Southampton, 14th January
Item Date:
1884
Stock No:
40582
£1275
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