Description:One of Duchess Harriet’s more notable correspondents was William Ewart Gladstone (1809–1898). Gladstone is one of the most famous British Prime ministers, and was an influential political reformer in his own time.
Gladstone was the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he wrote to Duchess Harriet on October 22nd 1853. The date of his letter is significant. In 1853 Gladstone spoke out against the structure of government where appointment to the civil service depended on gaining the patronage of ministers. In his letter to Duchess Harriet, Gladstone reflects on his own political aspirations.
He writes: ‘there are occasions when appearances are so much against a man that his own conscience, though satisfied, hardly dares acquit him. And so it is now with me’. He goes on to speculate about his political career, noting: ‘I find it has really been in ability & not want of will which has kept me silent’.
Gladstone’s letter also informs Duchess Harriet about his activities and family life: ‘A week of travelling, a week well packed with business in London, a week at Manchester which taught and pleased me much’. He adds ‘I had looked forward to a good month of tranquillity here, and a real renewal of acquaintance with my children: but I am summoned to Windsor on Monday, and unhappily this means…councils and cabinets’.
The letter also includes remarks relating to Turkey’s declaration of war on Russia in October 1853, which began the Crimean War. Gladstone ruminates ‘whether it was an inevitable or only a supposed necessity which caused the Ottoman Government to declare war’, noting that ‘they have by that proceeding greatly aggravated both the difficulties of their allies and I believe their own eventual dangers’.
Gladstone’s letter also describes a recent visit to Manchester to the Duchess, stating: ‘our visit to Manchester went in many respects beyond my expectations’. Gladstone comments on ‘the extremely warm feeling towards the Government – winning through all classes of the people’ which he adds ‘was highly satisfactory’. Gladstone expresses surprise at the ‘selfgoverning’ tendencies of the inhabitants of Manchester, and also the ‘movement towards the cultivation of taste and beauty’ there.
Reflecting the contemporary awareness of class distinction which permeated nineteenth century society, Gladstone writes: ‘we had a host who is in trade: but the furniture and ornaments of his house I think you would have said were much beyond the average of Gentlemen’s country residences’.
Duchess Harriet’s correspondence reflects her interest in campaigns to abolish slavery. Gladstone’s letter demonstrates that the Duchess worked to extend her knowledge of the issue. He writes ‘The singular account – which I mentioned of a man named Mac donough who liberated his slaves in America has never been published, but I have it printed in a collection of tracts at Carlton Gardens where the volume could be found & lent to you without difficulty’.
Like so many of Duchess Harriet’s letters, her correspondence with Gladstone reflects her association with influential people, from artists to political reformers. The letters in her personal papers reflect Duchess Harriet’s social prominence, and provide rare insights into the personalities of famous figures from the nineteenth century.
Contextual information from: H. C. G. Matthew, ‘Gladstone, William Ewart (1809–1898)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 2008 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/10787]