British Colonial History (86 items)

11. [Cumberbatch, Benedict] Cumberbatch, Henry Arnold / Rees, Helen / Basil Benwell Rees / William Benwell Rees / Etheldreda Blanche Barker / [Sir Winston Churchill / Sir Anthony Arthur Duncan Montague Browne [Private Secretary to Sir Winston Churchill]].

Large Family Archive of the Benwell Rees – Family, including William Benwell Rees (brother to actor Benedict Cumberbatch’s grandmother Helen Rees, by marriage to British Diplomat Henry Arnold Cumberbatch, who was Consul in Romania, Turkey and Lebanon ). The archive includes at least one manuscript letter by Henry Arnold Cumberbatch and around one thousand documents chronicling the lives of the ex-patriate Benwell Rees family from 1890-1970 in Alexandria and Monaco, including William Benwell Rees, whose marriage to Etheldreda Blanche Barker cemented the family’s role in the highest circles of Alexandria life. The archive also charts their son Basil Rees’ decade in Monaco under Princess Grace and Prince Rainer III where he served as President of the British Association in the 1950’s-‘60s and solicited a letter written by Sir Anthony Arthur Duncan Montague Browne, on Winston Churchill’s behalf on Chartwell headed paper in which the former Prime Minister declined to attend an event in Monaco [signed by Montague Browne]. The archive is held in five heavy volumes, bursting with a plethora of amazing and wonderful historical letters, ephemera, emotional messages and telegrams, old images, theatre-programmes, and especially also includes programmes of plays in which ancestors of Benedict played (J.M.Barrie, Shakespeare etc.). The original letters and documents paint an interesting picture of Benedict Cumberbatch’s grandmother’s side of the family history in the Levant, their service in the Middle East and their social lives. The five volumes are bound in bespoke red morocco over textured paper-covered-boards and they contain at least one reference to Helen Rees next to a newspaper-clipping and dozens of wonderful handwritten letters and cards. Each volume about four inches across spine with title in gilt to upper cover and around 100 leaves in each with documents mounted recto and verso throughout, with photographs, invitations, business materials and clippings that chart the family’s life in their service for the British Colonial Office. The five Volumes include for example: Volume 1: The Benwell Rees’: begins with Egyptian Gazette, 1890 and a programme for a performance c1900 at the Port Theatre, Marina, Alexandria of Rumpelstilkskin; visiting cards and contemporary reports of the marriage of W B Rees and Etheldreda Blanche Barker in Alexandria, February 1901; Windsor Hotels prospectus and flyer (a WBR enterprise); 1913 Casino de Monte Carlo ticket for Ethel Rees; Kings School Canterbury ephemera and St Johns’ College, Cambridge for Basil Rees from 1920’s, graduated June 1924. Volume 2: The Benwell Rees’ Vol II, 1920’s-1990’s: includes J M Barrie, Quality Street programme for English Girls’ School, Alexandria, 1941; invitations from Princess Grace of Monaco etc Volume 3: Basil Rees Vol III, cover nearly detached, 1953- Basil Rees living at 2 Rue Origene, Alexandria, and covering period of move to Palais Majestic, Monaco after which he served as President of the British Association and his sudden death in 1967. Invitations to dinner and place settings with the Prince and Princess of Monaco. Birthday greetings; international stamp collecting societies. Photographic ‘Permis de Sejour’ for William Benwell Rees in Monaco, October 1918. Volume 4: Basil Rees Vol. IV Begins with telegram from Rees to the Queen; mostly very extensive formal correspondence concerned with Rees’ Presidency of he British Association in Monaco; invitations, notes, printed volume of Statutes of association from 1950, royal correspondence with Monaco and Britain. Volume 5: Basil Rees 4-5 1902 Vol II; William Basil Benwell Rees; Royal Navy ID card, British Forces, September 1943 – other material relating to Rees’ work as Duty Defence Officer at the Royal Navy Defence Base in Alexandria, HMS Nice. Volume begins in 1902 and includes Alexandria Dog Show, W B B Rees at Jesus College, Cambridge; Egypt NAAFI permits; lock of Basil Rees’ hair, aged 2 etc.

Alexandria / Monaco / etc., c. 1902 – 1967. Octavo. Half Morocco. Bindings stronger rubbed and slightly damaged.

EUR 7.800,-- 

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27. Griffith, Sir William Brandforth.

Ordinances of the Gold Coast Colony, and the Rules and Orders Thereunder in Force 31st March, 1903; An Appendix Containg the Letters Patent; The Imperial Orders in Council, And Various Acts of Parliament in Force in the Colony, And an Index. Also The Ordinances, & c., In Force in Ashanti and the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast. Prepared under the Authority of “The Reprint of the Statutes Ordinance, 1903” by Sir William Brandford Griffith, Chief Justice of the Gold Coast Colony.

Original / First Edition. 2 Volumes (complete set). London, Stevens & Sons, Limited, 1903. 15.5 cm x 24.5 cm Volume 1: XLVI, 878 pages. Volume 2: 907 pages. Interleaved with blank pages throughout for later annotations / notes. Hardcover/ Original, brown half-leather with gilt lettering on spine with raised bands. Massive, stunning set in overall very good condition with only minor signs of external wear (Leather-corner missing from front board bottom corner of Volume I). Minor gutter-split between front endpaper and half title of Volume I but binding still firm and strong. Binding of Volume II is very firm and strong. Boards are faded and carry minor stains. Board of Volume II has minor worming. Volume I carries occasional annotations. Some staining to edges of Volume I. Occasional inkstains and spotting to interiors but both volumes are sharp cornered, bright and for the most part clean. Very Rare, rather scarce original edition !

EUR 780,-- 

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Montgomery Martin, The British Colonies; Their History, Extent, Condition and Resources

53. Martin, Robert Montgomery.

The British Colonies; Their History, Extent, Condition and Resources. 6 Volumes bound in 3 Volumes (Text only without maps and illustrations). The Set includes: Volume I – British North America / Volume II – Australia / Volume III – New Zealand, Tasmania / Volume IV – Africa and the West Indies / Volume V – British India / Volume VI – Ceylon, East India and Meditteranean Settlements /

First Edition. London and New York, The London Printing and Publishing Company [that was J. and F. Tallis], no year (c. 1850). Quarto (20 cm x 27 cm). Volume I (British North America [Canada / USA]): Frontispice illustrated titlepage, XXIV, 360 pages with pages 1 – 9 missing / Volume II (Australia): pages 361 – 744 pages / Volume III (New Zealand / Tasmania): II, 384 pages. / Volume IV (Africa and the West Indies): II, 188 pages / Volume V (British India): II, 564 pages with pages 455 – 456 missing / Volume VI (Ceylon, East India and Mediterranean Settlements): II, 172 pages. Hardcover / Original, decorative publisher’s halfleather with gilt lettering and ornament to spines. Bindings rubbed but overall in firm and very good condition with only minor signs of wear. All maps and illustrations besides one illustration removed by a previous owner. In the course of removal of maps and illustrations, one page slightly torn and 11 pages of text missing. This is still one of the most important text-sources of British Colonial History, itsevaluation in Britain and a plethora of data on economical and political impact the Colonies had for the former Empire. No other contemporary 19th century publication includes details on colonial produce, movement of population and local History from Tasmania to Quebec, from Hong Kong to Heligoland (Helgoland), and in general on the depition of “England, the ‘Nursing Mother’ of Nations” (Introductory page XXIV by Montgomery Martin).

EUR 370,-- 

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62. Pugilism (Boxing) – Baert-Duholant, Charles-Alexandre-Balthazar-François de Paule baron de / Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage.

Tableau de la Grande-Bretagne, De L’Irlande et des Possessions Angloises dans les quatre parties du Monde. [Large Paper Copy / Better Paper Copy / Exemplaire de Luxe] [With five (5) large, folded Maps by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage: Large, oblong folded Map/Plan of Gibraltar / England / Scotland / Ireland / India] / [With four (4) stunning copper-engravings: Grotte de Fingal, Chaussée des Géants / Plan et vue de Gibraltar / Combat de Boxe (Pugilists)] / [With two (2) portraits: 1.Portrait of William Pitt (after William Owen) and 2. Portrait of Charles Jacques Fox (after Karl Anton Hickel)].

Four Volumes (complete set). Paris, Chez H.J.Jansen, L’An 8me [1800]. Octavo (21.5 cm x 14 cm). Collation: Volume I: (8), 459, (1), 11 pages with Eleven (11) copper-engravings of which are: 5 Maps / Plans and 4 Engravings: The folded view of Fingals Cave (″Grotte de Fingal dans l’Ile de Staffa” – (20.5 cm x 31.5 cm) / “Folded Plate of the Giants Causeway (″Vue occidentale de la Chaussee des Geans et des Caps voisins” (20.5 cm x 39 cm)) / Fantastic, large Map/Plan of Gibraltar by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage, with a Birds-Eye-View of the Ville de Gibraltar (20.5 cm x 65.5 cm) [also showing the Ville Irlandaise on Gibraltar] / Scenic View of Gibraltar (″Vue de Gibraltar, prise du cote de l’Espagne” (20.5 cm x 33 cm) / Large Fold-Out-Map of England by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage with an Inset-View of Stonehenge (47 cm x 51 cm) / Large Fold-Out-Map of Scotland by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage, including the Western Isles and Shetland, with a stunning Inset-View of the irish pilgrimage-mountain Croagh Patrick [Craig-Phadrick] in Westport, Ireland (37 cm x 50 cm)/ Large Fold-Out-Map of Ireland with an Inset-View of the Lakes of Killarney (39 cm x 44.5 cm) / Volume II: 532, (1), 12 pages with Large Fold-Out-Map of India (″Possessions Anglaises”) by Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage – the large India-Map showing areas as far as Tibet, Siam, Sumatra and the Andaman Islands, Ceylon, Burma (48 cm x 43 cm) / Volume III: 502, 48, (2) pages with two portraits: Guillaume Pitt [William Pitt] & Charles Jacques Fox (each 20.5 cm x 12.5 cm)/ Volume IV: 486, 22, (2) pages with the very famous Fold-out-Illustration of Pugilists / Boxers at Odiham in Hampshire [″Combats de Boxers a Odiham”] showing a boxing-match between Humphrey and Mendoza (32 cm x 20.5 cm). Hardcover / Original, very decorative original half leather bindings with gilt lettering and ornament on spine. Volume One professionally rebacked by an english master bookbinder. All four Volumes in protective Collector’s Mylar. Excellent condition with only minor signs of external wear. From the library of François-Xavier de Valenzi with his bookplate / exlibris to the pastedowns of each Volume. Maps in this de Luxe Edition are all considerably larger than in the normal-paper-edition and all the maps and illustrations are in superb condition. An underestimated collectable.

EUR 1.200,-- 

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75. Staunton, Sir George / Lord Macartney.

An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China [First Dublin Edition with 34 full-page-plates]; Including Cursory Observations Made, and Information Obtained, in Travelling Through That Ancient Empire, and a Small Part of Chinese Tartary. Together with a Relation of the Voyage undertaken on the Occasion by his Majesty’s Ship ‘The Lion’, and the Ship ‘Hindestan’ in the East India Company’s Service, to the Yellow Sea, and Gulf of Pekin [sic]; as well as of their return to Europe. With Notices of the several places where they stopped in their way out and home: being the Islands of Madeira, Teneriffe and St.Jago, the Port of Rio de Janeiro in South America; the Islands of St.Helena, Tristan da Cunha and Amsterdam, the Coast of Java and Sumatra, the Nanka Isles, Pulo-Condore and Cochin-China. Taken chiefly from the Papers of his Excellency, the Earl of Macartney, Knight of the Bath, his Majesty’s Embassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Emperor of China; Sir Erasmus Gower, Commander of the Expedition and other Gentlemen in the several Departments of the Embassy.

Two Volumes (complete set). Dublin, Printed for P.Wogan, R.Cross, P.Byrne and others, 1798. Octavo. Volume I: XV, 449 pages with 8 full-page plates / Volume II: XVIII, 430 pages, with 26 full-page-plates and including an Appendix. Hardcover / Original, early 19th century half leather with original spinelabels. Bindings firm and strong but rather worn. Bookplate of Richard Meade, Ballymartle, to the pastedown of Volume I. Overall in very good condition with some stronger signs of wear but with all the illustrations / engravings, called for in the Dublin Edition.

EUR 1.800,-- 

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