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Guide to the Edward John Trelawny Collection
h2007.7
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Table of contents
Title: Guide to the Edward John Trelawny Collection
creator:
Prell, Donald B.
Dates: 1821-2008
Extent: 3 feet (2 boxes) (1 oversized box)
Repository:
Claremont Colleges. Honnold/Mudd Library.
800 N. Dartmouth Avenue
Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library
Claremont University Consortium
Claremont, California 91711
Abstract: This collection was compiled by Donald Prell as a result of his research on Edward John Trelawny. The collection, therefore,
contains primary and secondary source information about Edward John Trelawny and his relationships with Percy B. Shelley,
Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, Claire Clairmont, Edward Ellerker Williams, and others of his time. The materials include copies
of letters, diaries, images, and articles ranging from 1821 to 2008.
Collection Number: h2007.7
Languages: Languages represented in the collection: English
Physical Location: Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library. Claremont University Consortium.
This collection is open for research.
For permissions to reproduce or to publish, please contact Special Collections Library staff.
[Identification of item], Edward John Trelawny Collection. Special Collections, Honnold Mudd Library, Claremont University
Consortium.
Gift of Donald B. Prell.
Arranged and Processed by Sarah Jaques-Ross
The Trelawny collection was originally housed and organized by the donor in multiple three-ring binders. In some cases, different
material/document
types were housed together. In an effort to properly house the materials according to standard archival practices and
make the collection more
intellectually accessible to scholars, the collection has been arranged as below. In cases where different materials
seemed to have an important
link, the original order was kept. Also in the case of copies of materials belonging to other repositories, any copyright
restrictions or secondary
collection information was kept with the copies. A list of the original folders with their original contents is included
with the vertical file for
this collection.
Additions to the collection are anticipated.
Biography of Edward John Trelawny (1792-1881)
Edward John Trelawny was an English author whose works include
Adventures of a Younger Son (1831) and
Records of Shelley, Byron, and the Author (1878). He was born on November 13, 1792 probably in London. He had one older brother and four younger sisters. In 1805,
Trelawny joined the Royal Navy and served on various ships, including the HMS Superb. After being honorably discharged from
the Royal Navy in 1812, Trelawny embarked on the first of his three marriages in May 1813 at which time he married Caroline
Addison. He later divorced her in 1819. Through Edward Ellerker Williams, Trelawny met Shelley and Byron in 1822 when he
visited Pisa, Italy. Trelawny accompanied Byron in 1822 on his trip to Greece for the cause of Greek independence. Trelawny
married his second wife, Tersitza Androutses, during his time in Greece. Tersitza later divorced Trelawny sometime between
1826 and 1828. Between 1832 and 1835, Trelawny travelled in America meeting notables such as James Fenimore Cooper. In 1841,
Trelawny married for the last time to Augusta Goring.
Trelawny's
Adventures was originally published anonymously and is generally considered to be an autobiographically-based novel about his time in
the Royal Navy. The work was very popular during the time as evidenced by the numerous translations and editions of the book.
Trelawny lived in England, Switzerland, and Wales during his lifetime. In addition to Trelawny's notoriety as an author, his
friendships with Percy B. Shelley, Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, and Claire Clairmont also make him a notable personality in the
19th century. Trelawny arranged the funerals of both Shelley and Byron and was eventually buried near Shelley in the Protestant
Cemetery in Rome.
Biography of Donald B. Prell (1924- )
Donald Prell was born in Los Angeles in 1924. He earned a B.A. in 1948 from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
and a C.Phil. in 1950 from the University of London. Mr. Prell was a 2nd Lieutenant in the American Armed Forces during World
War II taking part in the Battle of the Bulge. He was captured and became a German prisoner of war twice (the second time
after escaping). Mr. Prell founded one of the first magazines about computers and software in 1958 called
Datamation. "In the 1960s, 70s and 80s he was associated with several venture capital firms, with the Union Bank of California, and
was President of Imperial International Bank. He has served on the Boards of Directors of over fifteen foreign and domestic
corporations. Currently he is the managing Director of Prell and Associates, a consulting firm in the field of Futurology,
Program Director of the World Affairs Council of the Desert and a Councilor of the UCLA Foundation." (Source: the appraisal
of Donald Prell's collection by Charles A. Goldsmid - located in the collection's vertical file).
Scope and Contents of the Collection
This collection was compiled by Donald B. Prell as a result of his research on Edward John Trelawny. The collection, therefore,
contains information about Edward John Trelawny and his relationships with Percy B. Shelley, Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, Claire
Clairmont, Edward Ellerker Williams, and others of his time. Although the collection does not contain many "original" documents,
it does offer many copies of original documents and is a fairly comprehensive source of information and documents pertaining
to Trelawny located in one place. The collection is divided into two series: Primary Sources and Secondary Sources. The
series, Primary Sources, contains material dating from 1821 to 1909. It consists mainly of copies (although there are two
original documents) of handwritten and transcribed letters (to/from Trelawny or referencing Trelawny), journals, manuscripts,
and images. This series is strong in correspondence, especially between Trelawny and Claire Clairmont. The series, Secondary
Sources, contains material dating from 1810 to the present. It includes essays, articles, and documents written by the collection's
creator, Donald Prell, and by others regarding Trelawny, Lord Byron, Shelley, Edward Ellerker Williams, and others in this
circle. The material in this series provides a useful source of "outsider" viewpoints about Trelawny and his works during
his life and up to the present.
Series 1: Primary Sources
Subseries 1.1: Correspondence
Subseries 1.11: To/From Trelawny (alphabetical by author)
Subseries 1.12: Referencing Trelawny (chronological)
Subseries 1.2: Journals and Manuscripts (chronological)
Subseries 1.3: Images (chronological)
Series 2: Secondary Sources
Subseries 2.1: Authored by Donald B. Prell (chronological)
Subseries 2.2: Authored by others (chronological)
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection
Prell, Donald B.
Trelawny, Edward John, 1792-1881
Trelawny, Edward John, 1792-1881--Correspondence
Trelawny, Edward John, 1792-1881--Friends and associates
Authors, English -- 19th century
Williams, Edward Ellerker, 1793-1822
Williams, Edward Ellerker, 1793-1822--Diaries
Clairmont, Clara Mary Jane, 1798-1879
Clairmont, Clara Mary Jane, 1798-1879--Correspondence
Clairmont, Clara Mary Jane, 1798-1879--Relations with men
Authors--Correspondence