Arthur Godley, Baron Kilbracken, Letters

Finding aid prepared by Hannah Blythe, Claremont Graduate University, Fall 2015.
Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library
800 North Dartmouth Ave
Claremont, CA, 91711
Phone: (909) 607-3977
Email: spcoll@cuc.claremont.edu
URL: http://libraries.claremont.edu/sc/default.html
© 2015


Descriptive Summary

Title: Arthur Godley, Baron Kilbracken, Letters
Dates: 1875-1899 and undated
Bulk Dates: 1898-1899
Collection number: H.Mss.1066
Creator: Kilbracken, Arthur Godley, Baron, 1847-1932
Extent: 1 document box
Repository: Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library. Claremont, CA 91711.
Abstract: This collection contains the letters of Arthur Godley, Baron Kilbracken to his adult daughter Helen from the years of 1898-1899, along with two photographs of Helen from 1875. An additional autograph letter signed by Catherine Gladstone (wife of Prime Minister William Gladstone) to Walter Charles James is also included. The letters were written during Godley's time as Under-Secretary of State in India and provide an intimate picture of the private, upper-class world of the time, while also encompassing the larger political and social scene in late 1890s Britain. Topics include family and government matters, travels, societal events, and notable figures.
Physical location: Please consult repository.
Language of materials: Languages represented in the collection: English

Administrative Information

Access

This collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Arthur Godley Baron Kilbracken Letters (H.MSS.1066). Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library, Claremont University Consortium.

Immediate Source of Acquisition note

Purchase, 2015.

Accruals

No additions to the collection are anticipated.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Hannah Blythe, Claremont Graduate University in Fall 2015. The collection has been arranaged to the item level, chronologically by date on letter. Two folders appear at the front of the collection containing collection information and photographs. Remaining folders contain a single letter. Undated letters appear at end of collection followed by the Catherine Gladstone letter.

Biographical Information

Arthur Godley, Baron Kilbracken (1847-1932) had an illustrious career as a civil servant and was acquainted with many well-known figures of his time. A decorated Oxford scholar, he served as assistant private secretary to Prime Minister William Gladstone from 1872 to 1874, and as principal secretary to Gladstone from 1880 to 1882. In 1883 he was appointed Under-Secretary of State of India, a post he retained until his retirement in 1909, though he himself never visited the country. Working well within British politics, Godley did not, however, advance the interests of the Indian National Congress during his time in the India Office. In his later years, he was made Baron Kilbracken of Killegar, served as chairman of the board for Rugby School, and was a trustee at the British Museum. Godley married his wife Sarah in 1871, and together they had two sons and three daughters.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The letters in this collection span 1898-1899 and are written to his just married daughter Helen, detailing his life as under-secretary. The collection contains nearly 400 pages of Godley’s light-hearted thoughts about family and government matters, about his travels (he was especially fond of visiting churches and reveals keen knowledge of architecture), his reading, the cause of women's rights (Helen was a supporter of women's rights), dinners and other occasions with imporant people. He also writes of other matters, including religious bills before Parliament, bicycling, the perils of foreign travel, and the memorial windows to Jane Austen newly installed at Westminster Cathedral. Among the people mentioned in the letters are the Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Curzon, Rudyard Kipling and the dukes of York and Cambridge. The majority of the collection consists of complete letters, with a few undated partial letters, two photographs of Helen at the age of three and an autograph letter signed by William Gladstone's wife, Catherine, to Walter Charles James referring to the installation of James's son-in-law, Godley, as Gladstone's private secretary.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library’s online public access catalog.

Subject Terms

British politics and society
Father-daughter relationship
India
Secretary of State (England and Wales)
Women's rights

Genre and Form of Materials

Correspondence
Photographs


Box 1, Folder 1

Collection information

Box 1, Folder 2

Helen photographs, 1875 November 21

Note

2 cartes de visite photographs
 

Arthur Godley, Baron Kilbracken, letters to Helen, 1898-1899 and undated

Box 1, Folder 3

1898 Februrary 19 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 4

1898 March 20 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 5

1898 March 21 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 6

1898 March 24 1898

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 7

1898 March 30 1898

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 8

1898 April 16 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 9

1898 April 19 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 10

1898 April 28 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 11

1898 April 30 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 12

1898 May 4 1898

Note

2 folded leaves, 1 single leaf
Box 1, Folder 13

1898 May 7 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 14

1898 May 10 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 15

1898 May 20 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 16

1898 July 18 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 17

1898 July 21 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 18

1898 July 24 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 19

1898 August 9 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 20

1898 August 22 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 21

1898 August 31 1898

Note

4 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 22

1898 September 9 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 23

1898 September 15 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 24

1898 October 8 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 25

1898 October 23 and undated partial letter 1898

Note

2 folded leaves, partial letter contains 1 folded and 1 single leaf
Box 1, Folder 26

1898 October 27 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 27

1898 November 3 1898

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 28

1898 November 21 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 29

1898 November 23 1898

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 30

1899 March 3 1899

Note

4 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 31

1899 March 15 1899

Note

2 folded leaves, 1 single leaf
Box 1, Folder 32

1899 March 21 1899

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 33

1899 April 11 1899

Note

2 folded leaves, 1 single leaf
Box 1, Folder 34

1899 April 23 1899

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 35

1899 May 29 1899

Note

4 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 36

1899 June 14 1899

Note

5 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 37

1899 June 24 1899

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 38

1899 August 9 1899

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 39

1899 August 15 1899

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 40

1899 August 25 1899

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 41

1899 November 9 1899

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 42

1899 November 11 1899

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 43

1899 November 22 1899

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 44

1899 December 28 1898

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 45

1899 December 29 1899

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 46

Undated partial letter (folder 1)

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 47

Undated partial letter (folder 2)

Note

3 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 48

Undated partial letter (folder 3)

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 49

Undated partial letter (folder 4)

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 50

Undated partial letter (folder 5)

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 51

Undated partial letter (folder 6)

Note

1 folded leaf
Box 1, Folder 52

Undated partial letter (folder 7)

Note

2 folded leaves
Box 1, Folder 53

Catherine Gladstone letter to Walter Charles James, undated

Note

1 folded leaf