ARTHUR WELLESLEY, 1ST DUKE OF WELLINGTON (1769-1852)

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ARTHUR WELLESLEY, 1ST DUKE OF WELLINGTON (1769-1852)
Autograph letter, signed 'Wellington', from Walmer Castle, 22 October 1847, 3pp, 8°, to the Earl of Auckland, a long letter regarding the coastal defences of Kent. He has studied the coast over the last year and speaks of the vulnerability of the coastline. On many parts of the coast, he explains, 'there are banks of hard sand' on which, in the last war boats could land at quarter or low tides. He tells how Napoleon practiced this sort of embarkation at Bologne, 'a daily exercise'. Horses and men could have been landed 'nearly everywhere', mentioning Sandwich, Folkestone, Rye, under Beachy Head, Newhaven , Shoreham and the mouth of the Am River. He is aware of the difference of opinion respecting St. Catherine's Bay as 'a harbour of refuge' and encloses a letter and a plan, going on to discuss the depth of water in the harbour and the possibility of having anchorage there for large ships. He ends 'I send these papers as they have been sent to me, not doubting that the Admiralty will decide which is right' (slight spotting, creased on folds).

Lot Essay

Wellington gained the residence of Walmer Castle on the Kentish coast when becoming the Warden of the Cinq Ports after the death of Lord Liverpool. Despite being a largely ceremonial role, he took his duties very seriously, here writing to George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland (1784-1849) in his position of First Lord of the Admiralty.

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