PRUSSIAN

[Baroness von Bunsen (née Frances Waddington), hostess and biographer, wife of the celebrated Baron von Bunsen.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mrs. Hall', giving her reasons for declining an invitation, and referring to her husband's illness.

Author: 
Frances von Bunsen (née Waddington; 1791-1876), Baroness von Bunsen in the Prussian nobility, English wife of the diplomat and scholar Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen (1791-1860), Baron von Bunsen
Publication details: 
‘Charlottenberg [Germany] Monday 15 Septr.’ [no year]
£50.00

See her husband’s entry in the Oxford DNB. The couple married in Rome in 1817, ‘in the chapel of Niebuhr's residence, the Palazzo Savelli. The couple had ten children, five sons and five daughters, including the biblical scholar Ernest Christian Ludwig de Bunsen. Born at Dunston Park, Berkshire, on 4 March 1791 and educated by her mother at Llanofer, Frances von Bunsen did not visit her native country for twenty-one years after her marriage.’ The recipient is presumably an in-law: her younger sister Augusta had married Benjamin Hall, 1st Baron Llanover. 3pp, 16mo. Bifolium.

[Baron von Bunsen [Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen], Prussian Ambassador to the Court of St James’s.] Autograph Letter Signed and Autograph Note Signed to Lady Theresa Villiers, the letter with reference to a young child's party.

Author: 
Baron von Bunsen [Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen] (1791-1860), Prussian Ambassador to Court of St James’s [Lady Theresa Lewis (1803-1865), author]
Publication details: 
ANS: ‘4 Carlton Terrace [London] / Tuesday 24.’ ALS: ‘C. T. Thursday / 25’. Neither item has the full date.
£56.00

Written while Bunsen was Ambassador in London, 1841-1854. The recipient Lady Theresa Lewis (1803-1865) was the sister of the Liberal Foreign Secretary the 4th Earl of Clarendon, and successively the wife of the novelist Thomas Henry Lister (1800-1842) and the Liberal politician Sir George Cornewall Lewis (1806-1863), all of whom also have entries in the Oxford DNB. Both items in good condition, lightly aged, on pieces of gilt-edged paper, folded for postage. Bunsen is writing from part of what was known as ‘Prussia House’. ANS (‘Tuesday 24.’): 1p, 32mo.

[Baron von Bunsen [Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen], Prussian Ambassador to the Court of St James’s.] Autograph Letter Signed, in English, to the English Foreign Secretary Lord Clarendon, regarding a railway journey with Count Groeben.

Author: 
Baron von Bunsen [Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen] (1791-1860), Prussian Ambassador to Court of St James’s [Lord Clarendon [George William Frederick Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon]
Publication details: 
‘Prussia House [i.e. Prussian embassy, London] Monday’. [Annotated: ‘Chev Bunsen / March 1854’.]
£50.00

Written while Bunsen was Ambassador in London, 1841-1854. See the recipient's entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo, on the first leaf of a bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with strip cut from second leaf, which is docketed ‘Chev Bunsen / March 1854 / Interieur’. The letter reads: ‘My dear Lord Clarendon / I shall not fail to be at the appointed time, to-morrow eleven o’clock, at the Railway Station, and bring Count Groeben with me (who is enchanted with your reception & concersation). / Every yours faithfully / Bunsen’.

[Princess Marie Radziwill, French noblewoman at the Prussian court.] Autograph Letter Signed (‘Marie Radziwill’), in French, inviting an unnamed princess to a ‘bazar de charité’.

Author: 
Princess Marie Radziwill [née Marie Dorothée Élisabeth de Castellane] (1840-1915), French noblewoman, granddaughter of the Duchess of Dino, a leading figure at the Prussian court
Publication details: 
2 February 1878; Berlin [Prussia].
£45.00

1p, 8vo. On grey laid paper. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded twice. Reads: ‘Madam / Permettez-moi de joindre à cette lettre l’annonce du bazar de charité que va avoir lieu dans notre maison et que j’espère sera visité par Votre Altesse Royale. / Designez agréer, Princesse, mes plus respectueux hommages. / Marie Radziwill’.

[Johann Georg Zimmermann, Swiss philosopher, naturalist and physician to Frederick the Great .] Autograph Letter Signed ('Zimmerman.' [sic]), in French, to 'Monsieur le General Grenville', suggesting treatment for his 'melancolie'.

Author: 
Johann Georg Ritter von Zimmermann [Johann Georg Zimmermann] (1728-1795), Swiss philosopher, naturalist and physician to Frederick the Great
Publication details: 
'Hanover 2. May 1787.'
£1,500.00

3pp, 4to. Bifolium. In fair condition, lightly aged. With thin strip of paper attached to reverse of second leaf, which is addressed, with seal in red wax, to 'Monsieur le General Grenville.' He begins by reassuring him, and condoling with him over his excessive sufferings ('vous en souffrés excessivement'), and continues: 'Votre oppressions paroit etre nerveuse, et elle dévient [sic] plus considerables a mésure que vous vous en saupés dâvantage.

[ Count Friedrich Waldburg-Truchsess, Prussian soldier and diplomat associated with Beethoven and Napoleon. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('Waldburg-Truchseß'), in French, congratulating 'Monsieur le Colonell Na<meyr?> and his wife on the birth of a son

Author: 
Count Friedrich Waldburg-Truchsess [ Friedrich Ludwig Truchseß Graf von Waldburg ] (1776-1844), Prussian soldier and diplomat associated with Beethoven and Napoleon Bonaparte
Publication details: 
[ The Hague, Netherlands. 14 March 1832. ]
£150.00

Waldburg-Truchsess appointed Beethoven Kapellmeister to the King of Westphalia when serving as the King's Chamberlain, and was one of the four Commissioners responsible for supervising Napoleon's exile in Elba. The letter is written on the eve of his return from the Hague, where he had been Prussian ambassador since 1827. 1p., 8vo. Bifolium. In fair condition, on aged paper with wear along one edge, and damage to second leaf caused by breaking of seal (not present).

[ Baron von Bunsen, Prussian diplomat. ] Autograph Note Signed ('Bunsen') to 'Mrs. Alexander', regarding 'Mr Gobah' letting her house.

Author: 
Baron von Bunsen [ Christian Karl Josias von Bunsen ] (1791-1860), Prussian diplomat, scholar, and theologian who supported the German constitutional movement
Publication details: 
[ London? ] 'Friday 19/6 [ 19 June, no year ]'.
£40.00

1p., 16mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Reads: 'Friday 19/6 | Dear Mrs. Alexander | One word to-day: Mr Gobah takes the house, on your terms. Pray, send the Inventory. More to-morrow. | Ever yrs | Bunsen'. Presumably written during Bunsen's long residence in London.

[ Karl Josias von Bunsen (Baron von Bunsen), German diplomat and scholar. ] Autograph Letter in the third person ('Chevalier Bunsen'), as Prussian Ambassador to London, to Henry Kemshead, declining an invitation to a dinner at St Mary's Hospital.

Author: 
Karl Josias von Bunsen [ Christian Charles, Baron von Bunsen; Chevalier Bunsen ] (1791-1860), German diplomat and scholar, Prussian Ambassador to London [ Henry M. Kemshead; St Mary's Hospital ]
Publication details: 
9 Carlton Terrace [ London ] 14 April 1851.
£45.00

1p., 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Written from the Prussian Embassy. The letter reads: 'Chevalier Bunsen presents his compliments to Mr. Henry M Kemishead, and regrets, that neither his health nor his public as well as literary occupations allow him to extend the sphere of the engagements, which he has already contracted for this season, and that therefore he shall not be able to accept the invitation for the Public Dinner of St. Mary's Hospital, which he has had the honour to receive.'

[ Anonymous printed item, in French. ] Le Rhin et la Vistule.

Author: 
Anonymous [ Wladyslaw Czartoryski (1828-1894) ]
Publication details: 
Paris: Amyot, Éditeur des Archives Diplomatiques, 8, Rue de la Paix. Octobre 1861.
£50.00

16pp., 8vo. In yellow printed wraps. Disbound. In fair condition, on aged high-acidity paper, in worn wraps becoming detached from one another and the pamphlet. Part of stamp to one corner at reverse of title. Regarding Germany and the political situation in Europe. Begins: 'L'Allemagne est inquiète.

[ Rev. Henry George de Bunsen, Vicar of Lilleshall. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('H G de Bunsen') to 'Mr Clarke | Hodnet', discussing the motives behind collecting autographs.

Author: 
H. G. de Bunsen [ Henry George de Bunsen ] (c.1819-1885), Vicar of Lilleshall, 1847-1869, son of Christian Karl Josias Bunsen [ Baron Bunsen ] (1791-1860), Prussian ambassador in London, 1841-1854
Publication details: 
Donington Rectory, Albrighton, Wolverhampton. 15 September 1875.
£56.00

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Replying to a request for autographs, he is sending 'an Envelope addressed by my Father' and (writing in a postscript) another 'addressed to me by the Dean of Westminster', but he 'cannot give you one of the great Niebuhr'. He agrees with Clarke's 'feeling as to possessing something coming from, or belonging to some great or good man. It is a link - as is the signature of a loved friend or companion, with the unseen world.' He enquires after Clarke's health, and recalls 'calling at your School once - & another time at your house'.

[ Jakob Salomon Bartholdy, Prussian diplomat. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('J S Bartholdy') to the French composer and singer Sophie Gail

Author: 
Jakob Salomon Bartholdy [ Jakob Ludwig Salomon Bartholdy ] (1779-1825), Prussian diplomat, Consul-General in Rome, uncle of Felix Mendelssohn [ Sophie Gail [ née Edmée Sophie Garre ] (1775-1819) ]
Publication details: 
2 January 1819.
£950.00

1p., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Addressed on second leaf, with broken seal in red wax, 'A Madame | Madame Sophie de Gail | &c &c &c | Paris'. Nine lines of neatly and elegantly written text. A somewhat flirtatious acceptance of an invitation, with Bartholdy noting 'les belles choses que vous daignez me dire [...] Votre maniere est trop sedisante pour ne pas faire de l'impression'. It was at Bartholdy's suggestion that his sister Lea, the mother of the composer Felix Mendelssohn, joined him in adopting the surname Bartholdy.

[ Henry Turner, American artist in Prussia. ] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Messrs Morgan & Buckstone' of Berners Street Gallery, London, stating that he sending over '4 Oil Pictures', with reference to 'Mr G. du Mourier'. [ George Du Maurier ].

Author: 
Henry Turner, American artist, from Virginia [ Matthew Somerville Morgan (1839-1890) and Frederick Buckstone, manager and secretary, Berners Street Gallery, London; George Du Maurier ]
Publication details: 
Berger Strasse No. 1, Düsseldorf, Prussia. 5 December 1862.
£65.00

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In fair condition, lightly-aged. 'I shipped on yesterday to you through Mr J. D. Brink Jr Forwarding Merchant of this city a box containing 4 Oil Pictures which I wish you to expose for sale at your Exhibition Rooms. | The titles and prices of the same will be given you by my friend Mr G. du Mourier. Please let me know when they come to hand.' The Berner's Street Gallery's association with American artists would continue: in the following decade it would gain notoriety for exhibiting Whistler's 'Symphony in White, No. 1'.

[ Ernst Engel, German statistician. ] Autograph Signature ('Dr. Engel') to manuscript letter, in German, to Frederick Martin, editor of the 'Statesman's Year-Book'.

Author: 
Ernst Engel (1821-1896), German statistician and economist, commemorated by the Engel curve and the Engel's law
Publication details: 
Berlin, 27 July 1878. On letterhead of the 'Statistisches Bureau' of the Kingdom of Prussia.
£250.00

2pp., 8vo. Heavily aged and creased, with slight damage to signature. 20 lines of text, neatly written out by a secretary. Concerning revisions to his entry in the volume. Scan supplied on request.

[Printed 'University of London Institute of Education' pamphlet.] Educational Problems in the Far and Near East. Three Lectures delivered in the Institute.

Author: 
C. H. Becker, Sometime Professor in the University of Berlin and Kultus-Minister in Prussia [University of London Institute of Education]
Publication details: 
[University of London Institute of Education.] Published for the Institute of Education by Oxford University Press. London: Humphrey Milford. 1933.
£60.00

44pp., 4to. With frontispiece photographic portrait of the author. In grey printed wraps. In fair condition, on lightly-aged paper in loose front and back wraps detached from one another. Stamps, shelfmarks and label of the Ministry of Education Reference Library, London. Six copies on COPAC.

Manuscript, on paper watermarked 1810, a detailed table titled 'Present <Stat>ement of His Majesty the King of Prussia's Army'.

Author: 
[The Prussian Army (Königlich Preußische Armee), 1810]
Present <Stat>ement of His Majesty the King of Prussia's Army
Publication details: 
[Circa 1810.]
£325.00
Present <Stat>ement of His Majesty the King of Prussia's Army

Landscape folio leaf (32.5 x 40.5 cm), 1 p. On paper watermarked 'JOHN HALL | 1810'. Neatly ruled to make a complex, detailed table, in three columns of 31 rows each. The table has a central vertical fold, with the left hand side of the reverse mounted on a leaf removed from an autograph album. In poor condition, with around an eighth of the total area of the paper and text lacking, mostly from the bottom right-hand corner. Despite the loss the table (presumably prepared for the British War Office) contains a mass of valuable information.

Faux-metallic embossed German [Prussian] military decoration with ribbon, consisting of black Imperial eagle (Reichsadler) with Landwehrkreuz motto, over silver and gold eight-pointed star.

Author: 
German (Prussian) military decoration [Reichsadler; Landwehrkreuz; World War; Germany army]
Publication details: 
[First World War or earlier.]
£120.00

An attractive and delicate piece of ephemera, dusty and slightly tarnished, but in very good condition overall. Skilfully manufactured and giving a convincing metallic appearance. 15 cm wide from opposing points of the star, which is of gold card overlaid with silver silver card, both types embossed in a pattern of pearls of different sizes radiating out from the centre, over which sits the Reichsadler, of embossed black card, 6 cm high by 7 cm wide, crowned, with wings outstretched, orb and sceptre in its talons.

Autograph Letter Signed ('von Bülow'), in English, to 'Jon Shelly Esq | Yarmouth'.

Author: 
Heinrich Ulrich Wilhelm von Bulow [von Bülow; von Buelow] (1791-1846), Baron von Bulow, Prussian Minister in London, 1827-1845; and Wilhelm von Humboldt's son-in-law
Publication details: 
2 October 1825; Hull [Kingston upon Hull].
£56.00

4to: 3 pp. A bifolium. Good, on lightly-aged and creased paper. Thin strip of brown paper mount still adhering in inner margin of reverse of second leaf. Forty-six lines of text, clear and complete. A small square of paper, bearing Von Bulow's red wax seal (with clear impression) has been cut away from the second leaf and neatly placed beneath the signature. Address, with circular Hull postmark in black ink, on reverse of second leaf.

Autograph Signature ('H. Bismark') on fragment of letter in English.

Author: 
Prince Herbert von Bismarck [Nicolaus Heinrich Ferdinand Herbert von Bismarck] (1849-1904), Prussian diplomat and soldier, son of Otto von Bismark
Publication details: 
Date and place not stated.
£35.00

On piece of paper roughly 6.5 x 13 cm. Good, on creased and lightly aged paper. Reads '<...> | yours very sincerely | H. Bismark'. On reverse '<...> looking forward immensely to my visit to you. I have just been asked to lunch with a very old lady <...>'.

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