Search FNL grants since 1931

This diary, compiled by the author and journalist Hugh de Sélincourt for his lover, the German translator and writer Eva Schumann, is written with fluency and writerly skill, conveying the day-to-day uncertainties and privations of the Phoney War. Part of the diary’s significance lies in de Sélincourt’s detailed descriptions of life at this early stage of the Phoney War, from gas-proofing the house to a remarkable description of the blackout in London which vividly bring these experiences to life.

Title deeds and associated papers relating to the Great House Estate in West Hoathly and the manor of West Hoathly Rectory. Dating from 1453 to 1964, this is a remarkably complete collection comprising several hundred documents. It is rare that the entire archive of a small Wealden estate, with an unbroken title from 1524, appears on the market, which makes this a particularly significant acquisition.

Three volumes containing eight issues of the The Savoy periodical (1896) from the collection of Walter Edwin Ledger, collector of Oscar Wilde’s works, and his brother Percy George Ledger. Walter Edwin Ledger’s collection of Oscar Wilde’s works began as early as 1884 when he attended a concert at the Royal Albert Hall and purchased the official programme, Shakespearean Show-Book, which included Wilde’s poem, ‘Under the balcony’. From the late 1890s, Ledger began collecting in earnest, amassing an almost complete collection by the time of his death in 1931.

The books acquired are:
1. Hiob Ludolf, 'A New History of Ethiopia, being a Full and Accurate Description of the Kingdom of Abessinia', first English edition, London, for Samuel Smith, 1682.
2. Nicholas de Bonnefons, 'The French Gardiner instructing how to cultivate all sorts of Fruit-Trees and Herbs for the Garden', translated by John Evelyn, third edition, London, by T.R. & N.T. for B. Tooke, 1675.
3. William Winstanley, 'Historical Rarities and curious Observations domestick & foreign', London, for Rowland Reynolds, 1684.
4. Garcilaso de la Vega, 'El Inca: The Royal Commentaries of Peru', 2 parts in 1, translated by Paul Rycaut, London, printed by Miles Flesher, for Christopher Wilkinson, 1688.

These 12 letters were part of a larger collection of correspondence to Peter Winckworth, Governor of St Paul’s School and Master Mercer. Winckworth was a Governor of the School from 1958 to 1973 and Master of the Mercers Company from 1961 to 1962. He was a Governor at an important time in the School’s history as it was moving location for the fifth time. It moved from West Kensington to Barnes in 1968. Several of the letters touch on this topic and give insight into the thinking and planning behind the move.

Eleven volumes of estate accounts, servants’ wages, rents, house accounts and a memoranda book relating to the Seale family estate of Dartmouth, Devon, 1745-1831. The collection forms part of the estate archive Mount Boone, Townstal, which is now the site of the Britannia Royal Naval College.

The photographic negative collection of Henry Wykes (1874-1964) who was an Exeter-based commercial photographer. The collection documents an important period of change in Exeter, capturing street scenes that no longer exist, such as Bedford Circus. The Second World War had a profound effect on central Exeter and the collection includes original negatives documenting the Baedeker raids in 1942, which caused widespread destruction in the heart of the old city.  Fortunately for the archive Wykes kept his photographic negative stock in a basement room, which survived the bombing even though the buildings above were destroyed.

The letter is addressed to a 12-year-old Sophia Thrale, the sixth daughter of Hester Lynch Thrale, British author and patron of the arts. Hester was one of the most important women in Johnson’s life, and his regular correspondence with Hester and her children provides great insight into Johnson’s mind. In the letter Johnson encourages Sophia to continue her studies, especially her mathematical pursuits. Its contents serve to demonstrate Johnson’s enlightened views on the importance of women’s education, and the openness he had towards young people in general. Further, it provides evidence of his interest in mathematics during his later life, a field for which he is not commonly known.

An important collection of manuscripts, typescripts and artefacts related to the Herschel family which comprises six very large archive boxes, containing a considerable number (800-1,000?) of manuscripts related to the Herschel family. It includes unique correspondence with Sir John Frederick William Herschel FRS (1792-1871) and his wife, botanical artist Margaret Brodie (Stewart) Herschel, including scientific and personal correspondence from many other Fellows of the Royal Society of the likes of Charles Lyell, William Henry Fox Talbot, William Henry Smyth, William Whewell and others.

'A voyage to and from the island of Borneo in the East-Indies: with a description of the said island giving an account of the inhabitants, their manners, customs, religion, product, chief ports, and trade'
This book, an account of a journey to Borneo and other locations in modern Indonesia via the Canary Islands and the Cape of Good Hope, was written by a captain in the East India Company. It features the earliest known European illustration of an orangutan, a native species of Borneo.