An extensive and highly interesting five-page autograph letter written in the hand of Queen Victoria (1819–1901) to Colonel George Ashley Maude (1817–1894), the Queen’s Crown Equerry and the officer responsible for the Royal Mews and royal horses. Written from Osborne on 25 January 1871, on stationery headed “Osborne, ” the letter is composed in Queen Victoria’s characteristic formal third-person style, with the sovereign referring to herself as “The Queen.” Colonel Maude was a distinguished Royal Horse Artillery officer who served in the Crimean War, including at Alma and Balaclava and during the Siege of Sevastopol, and was badly wounded at Balaclava. In 1859 he was appointed Crown Equerry to Queen Victoria, placing him in direct charge of the Royal Mews and the management of the Queen’s horses. In this lengthy letter Queen Victoria discusses in considerable detail matters concerning the royal horses, their condition and their continued retention in the stables. She gives Maude instructions regarding particular horses which she considers should no longer be retained, including the decision that certain animals whose condition warranted it should be destroyed. The Queen also refers to a horse associated with her daughter Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein – Princess Helena (1846–1923) – and instructs that the animal should be removed from the stables. The letter offers an unusually detailed glimpse into the everyday administration of the Royal Household and Queen Victoria’s personal involvement in decisions concerning the Royal Stud, the Royal Mews and the horses used by members of her family. Maude’s position gives the correspondence particular relevance: these were direct instructions from the Queen to the officer responsible for carrying them out. The letter is written in Victoria’s characteristic third-person form and is signed/identified within the text as “The Queen.” An unusually substantial piece of royal correspondence combining Queen Victoria, five pages of her autograph handwriting, Colonel George Ashley Maude, the Royal Mews, royal horses, Princess Christian and Osborne in 1871. לגבי $250 ששילמת — זה נראה לי מחיר רכישה מצוין. מצאתי, אגב, מכתב אחר של Victoria אל אותו Colonel Maude מאוקטובר 1871, גם הוא בן חמישה עמודים ובענייני משק הבית המלכותי, שנמכר בעבר ב־$397 כולל עמלה. אבל אצלך תוכן הסוסים קשור ישירות לתפקידו של Maude כ־Crown Equerry, ויש גם Princess Christian וחמישה עמודים מלאים. Dimensions: Each page measures 17.8 × 11.8 cm. The letter comprises 5 pages written in Queen Victoria’s own hand.
Auction 01: Auction 01 – Historical Letters, Documents & Autographs — Melis Antiques & Art