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Winston Churchill

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:NA Estimated At:130,000.00 - 150,000.00 USD
Winston Churchill

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Auction Date:2017 May 10 @ 18:00 (UTC-05:00 : EST/CDT)
Location:236 Commercial St., Suite 100, Boston, Massachusetts, 02109, United States
ALS - Autograph Letter Signed
ANS - Autograph Note Signed
AQS - Autograph Quotation Signed
AMQS - Autograph Musical Quotation Signed
DS - Document Signed
FDC - First Day Cover
Inscribed - “Personalized”
ISP - Inscribed Signed Photograph
LS - Letter Signed
SP - Signed Photograph
TLS - Typed Letter Signed
Amazing archive of 28 TLSs from Churchill to his proofreader and editor C. C. Wood relating to the publication of the monumental biography Marlborough: His Life and Times, dated from April 18, 1933, to October 29, 1938. Most letters addressed “Dear Mr. Wood” or “Dear Sir” in Churchill’s hand, and are signed by Churchill using one of several variations of his name, including “Winston S. Churchill,” “W. S. Churchill,” and “WSC.” Additionally includes: one galley proof page with handwritten corrections by Churchill, featuring 22 words in his hand; thirteen letters signed by various secretaries; one letter with signature excised; fourteen pages of proof corrections annotated in multiple hands (possibly some by Churchill); two proof maps; and fourteen telegrams from Churchill to Wood.

A small selection of the letters:

The earliest, April 18, 1933, in part: “I have sent you by Mr. Ashley the three last chapters for reprint. There will now come in quick succession all the chapters for final galley proof. I shall want twelve copies of all the reprints and you had better order any extra ones you may require yourselves.”

The second, April 30, 1933, in part: “I am most carefully considering of course the question of modernising the old letters and documents. Up to the present I am modernising Marlborough’s letters and those of the Duchess where quoted, but I am not modernising old documents which are cited in the text for the purpose of creating atmosphere.”

The next letter, May 9, 1933, in part: “What do you advise about the old style and new style printing? Our plan is to print in old style events clearly English in their preponderance, and in new style those that are clearly Continental.”

A later letter, January 9, 1935, in full: “I am not expecting to publish Volume III of Marlborough till the spring of 1936, as there is so much political distraction at the present time.”

Another, August 1, 1936, in part: “I have altered the Ramillies text so as not to be dependent on the old map, which I cannot find. I must ask the Brigadier to make a folder of the Ramillies as well as the one of Oudenarde…There will have to be a general map of the Low Countries, but that can be repeated with a few more places in it from Volume II, also a general map of Europe and the theatres which can likewise be repeated. The Ramillies playing card was photographed by the King’s librarian.”

The next, August 3, 1936, in part: “I send you now everything except the last chapters. Mr. Deakin will be with you tomorrow. There are a number of points for him from the ‘Jacobite Raid’ chapter onwards…With regard to modernization of letters, here is the rule. All letters which have been printed before, unless specially marked by me, should be modernised as you have proposed.”

The last, October 29, 1938, in full: “I am aware of no correction which I desire to make, and I have not noticed any serious mistakes pointed out by the reviewers.”

In overall very good to fine condition, with occasional stains, creasing, foxing, and paperclip impressions. A complete listing of all letters is available online at RRAuction.com. Churchill was commissioned to write a biography of his ancestor, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, in 1929. He began writing it in earnest in 1932, and ultimately published four volumes between 1933 and 1938. He began the work in an effort to refute earlier criticisms of Marlborough by the historian Thomas Babington Macaulay. This remarkable correspondence reveals Churchill’s meticulousness and attention to detail as a writer, which would ultimately lead to his receipt of the 1953 Nobel Prize in Literature for ‘his mastery of historical and biographical description as well as for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values.’ An important archive offering a behind-the-scenes view of Churchill’s process in creating one of his most significant works.