André de Staercke Churchill collection, 1937-1995

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Summary

Creators:
Staercke, André de, 1913-
Abstract:
A collection of Winston Churchill letters written to André de Staercke and related correspondence from members of the Churchill family.
Extent:
1.2 Linear Feet (1 box)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. André de Staercke Churchill collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists of letters and telegrams written by Winston Churchill to André de Staercke; the two men were friends as well as colleagues and most of the letters are personal thank you notes for gifts sent to the Churchills. According to the de Staercke family, Winston Churchill hoped de Staercke would marry his youngest daughter, Mary; she married Christopher Soames instead in 1947, but de Staercke was the godfather of their daughter (and Churchill's granddaughter) Emma Mary Soames. The collection also includes letters written to de Staercke by Lady Clementine Churchill, Winston Spencer Churchill, Connoisseur magazine, Pamela Harriman, Emma Mary Soames, and Mary Soames; as well as a few letters to Sir William Nicholson, one letter from J. C. Smuts to Jean Hersholt, a photograph of Emma Mary Soames, printed material and ephemera.

Biographical / historical:

Winston Churchill (1874-1965) was a British politician, statesman, historian, and writer; he served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. He married Clementine Hozier in 1908, and together they had five children; in 1922, the Churchill's purchased Chartwell which became their private home until his death in 1965.

André de Staercke (1913-2001) was born in Ghent and studied in Belgium and France. He entered public service in 1939 and served in a variety of positions, including head of the Private Office of the Prince Regent of Belgium. In 1950, de Staercke began a long and distinguished career with NATO; he retired from public life in 1976 and died in Brussels in December 2001.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Curt J. Zoller and Gertrude R. Zoller, December 2005.
Processing information:

Processed by Gayle M. Richardson in November 2010; in February 2024, a finding aid was created.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. André de Staercke Churchill collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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