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Lot 352
CHURCHILL (WINSTON) Seven letters, five by Churchill and one to him, concerning the Oxfordshire Yeomanry and Churchill's service in the regiment, July 1922 - November 1923
4 December 2019, 11:00 GMT
London, KnightsbridgeSold for £3,562.50 inc. premium
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CHURCHILL (WINSTON)
Seven letters, including five by Churchill and one to him, concerning the Oxfordshire Yeomanry and Churchill's service in the regiment, comprising:
(i) "Confidential" typed letter signed by General Sir Noel Birch, to Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon Charles Coventry, concerning the re-establishment of the regiment, 1 page, remains of adhesive paper mounting at head and foot, 4to, War Office, 19 July 1922
(ii) Typed letter signed ("Winston S. Churchill"), with autograph salutation and subscription, to "Dear Coventry", assuring Coventry how glad he is that he has room for him in his artillery brigade ("...I have every expectation of being able to come to camp this year... I will do my best to take charge of one of your batteries, either Oxford or Banbury – but Oxford preferred – as you may decide..."); and asking his adjutant to write with details of each unit ("...How many men, horses, guns, etc., they have, and who are the officers?..."), 1 page, on a bifolium, blind-stamped address, tape-stain at head, off-set below, some dust-staining, etc., 4to, Villa Rêve D'Or, Cannes, 6 March 1923
(iii) Four typed letters signed ("Winston S. Churchill"), with autograph salutations and subscriptions, to "Dear Drummond", arranging meetings, discussing expenditure and asking about his mount ("...Are there any regulations about the size of the horse that can be ridden? Would a large polo poney do?..."), 4 pages, one tape-stain at head, other minor stains or traces of mounting, 4to, Villa Rêve D'Or, Cannes, and 2 Sussex Square, 25 March, 2 and 14 May, 15 October 1923
(iv) Typed letter signed by General Sir Noel Birch, to "Dear Mr Churchill" and subscribed "The Rt. Hon. W.L.S. Churchill, C.H., 2, Sussex Square, W.2.", informing him that "the General Staff here are writing down to Congreve at Salisbury asking him to try and arrange for your Brigade to practice from May 31st to June 14th"; adding that when he next sees Coventry "I shall rub it in" and that he is always delighted to help in any way he can, 1 page, trace of mounting on reverse, 4to, War Office, November 1923
(i) "Confidential" typed letter signed by General Sir Noel Birch, to Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon Charles Coventry, concerning the re-establishment of the regiment, 1 page, remains of adhesive paper mounting at head and foot, 4to, War Office, 19 July 1922
(ii) Typed letter signed ("Winston S. Churchill"), with autograph salutation and subscription, to "Dear Coventry", assuring Coventry how glad he is that he has room for him in his artillery brigade ("...I have every expectation of being able to come to camp this year... I will do my best to take charge of one of your batteries, either Oxford or Banbury – but Oxford preferred – as you may decide..."); and asking his adjutant to write with details of each unit ("...How many men, horses, guns, etc., they have, and who are the officers?..."), 1 page, on a bifolium, blind-stamped address, tape-stain at head, off-set below, some dust-staining, etc., 4to, Villa Rêve D'Or, Cannes, 6 March 1923
(iii) Four typed letters signed ("Winston S. Churchill"), with autograph salutations and subscriptions, to "Dear Drummond", arranging meetings, discussing expenditure and asking about his mount ("...Are there any regulations about the size of the horse that can be ridden? Would a large polo poney do?..."), 4 pages, one tape-stain at head, other minor stains or traces of mounting, 4to, Villa Rêve D'Or, Cannes, and 2 Sussex Square, 25 March, 2 and 14 May, 15 October 1923
(iv) Typed letter signed by General Sir Noel Birch, to "Dear Mr Churchill" and subscribed "The Rt. Hon. W.L.S. Churchill, C.H., 2, Sussex Square, W.2.", informing him that "the General Staff here are writing down to Congreve at Salisbury asking him to try and arrange for your Brigade to practice from May 31st to June 14th"; adding that when he next sees Coventry "I shall rub it in" and that he is always delighted to help in any way he can, 1 page, trace of mounting on reverse, 4to, War Office, November 1923
Footnotes
'WOULD A LARGE POLO PONEY DO?' – WINSTON CHURCHILL ON EXERCISE WITH THE OXFORDSHIRE YEOMANRY. Members of Churchill's family, including his grandfather the Duke of Marlborough, served with the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars (in regular army parlance, 'Queer Objects on Horseback'). Churchill joined the regiment in 1901, being gazetted Captain the following year and Major in 1905. During his service at the Western Front in 1916 he held a commission as Lieutenant-Colonel (temporary) of the regiment, although actually serving with the Royal Scots Fusiliers.
These papers derive from an album kept by the wife of Churchill's principal correspondent, C.A.M. Drummond (Churchill gets his initials wrong), who served at the headquarters of the 100th (Worcestershire and Oxfordshire Yeomanry) Brigade of the Royal Field Artillery at Worcester. As a subaltern Drummond had been present at, and photographed, the famous Christmas Truce of 1914, records of which are among his private papers at the Imperial War Museum.
At the time of his death, Churchill was the Honorary Colonel of 299 Field Regiment RA (TA), a post to which he had acceded on the death of Queen Mary, because of his long association with the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars in which he had also previously served as an Honorary Colonel (Mick Luxford, Oxfordshireyeomanry website). Churchill was to leave specific instructions at the Territorial Army Headquarters at Oxford that a detachment from his old regiment take part in his state funeral; accordingly, as Luxford recollects, 'Our detachment was in front of the coffin and ahead of all the prestigious Guards regiments'.