Correspondence, 1852-1899

References on this page: HAMILTON: 1/2/1-26

HAMILTON: 1/2/1

1852 May 12-[1854] Sep 22

Letters sent by Hamilton's parents, Col Christian Monteith Hamilton and Maria Corinna Hamilton, to her brother Henry Prendergast Vereker, regarding family news and progress of their journey from England to Corfu, 12 May and 24 Sep 1852. With incomplete letter (writer's name not given) giving his account of the battle of Alma, Crimean War, 22 Sep 1854. 1 file, 3 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/2

1856 [Jul]

Letters received by Hamilton's father Christian Monteith Hamilton from Hamilton's mother Maria Corinna Hamilton, regarding her last illness. With manuscript notes by Hamilton for including the letters in his When I was a boy (Faber and Faber, London, 1939). 1 file, 2 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/3

[1860,1876]

Four undated letters received by Hamilton's grandfather, John George Hamilton, from Rev Dr Norman MacLeod, mainly relating to requests for charitable purposes, MacLeod's novel [The gold thread (Edinburgh, 1861)], and MacLeod's visit to Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, at Balmoral, Scotland. With letter from Macleod's brother, Rev Dr Donald Macleod, thanking Hamilton's uncle, Rev Harry Hamilton, for the use of his letters [for Donald Macleod's biography Memoir of Norman Macleod, 2 vols (London, 1876)]. 1 file, 5 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/4

1874 Feb 12-1884 Nov 17

Letters sent by Hamilton to his father Col Christian Vereker Monteith Hamilton, mainly relating to Hamilton's life in India, including his hunting expedition at Buckree Wallah Nullah, Pir Punjal Range, 20 May 1875; the injury to his left wrist received at the Battle of Majuba Hill, First Boer War, 1881, and his desire to seek treatement from Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister, 5 Aug 1881; his proposal to accept the post of aide-de-camp to Maj Gen Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Bt, Commander-in-Chief Madras, 24 Jan 1882; his attachment to 1st Bn The Gordon Highlanders in Egypt for service in the First Sudan Expedition, 17 Nov 1884. With 'A tournament at Ooty', newspaper cutting on sports at Ootacamund, India, The Pioneer,14 Oct 1884. 1 file, 13 letters. Some letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)

HAMILTON: 1/2/5

1874 Feb 16-1884 Nov 24

Letters sent by Hamilton to his brother Vereker Monteith Hamilton, mainly relating to Hamilton's life in India, including the visit of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, to Lahore, and Hamilton's criticism of 57th (West Middlesex) Regt, 3 Feb 1876; his proposal to join an autumn campaign against Afridi tribesmen in Peshawar, 19 Aug 1876; an account of the record sized markhor he shot while hunting near Astor, 10 Sep 1876; the forthcoming march of 92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Foot to Delhi for the proclamation of Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, as Empress of India, 22 Oct 1876; account of a pig sticking expedition (with four sketches), 17 May 1878; regarding the possible success of his A jaunt in a junk (Kegan Paul, Trench and Co, London, 1884), 8 Oct 1883; the progress of his poetry, particularly 'The ballad of Hádji and the boar', 18 Mar 1884; his progress up the River Nile with 1st Bn The Gordon Highlanders, First Sudan Expedition, 24 Nov 1884. With letter from C A Lawson, editor of The Madras Mail, agreeing with his reviewer's criticism of A jaunt in a junk, 7 May 1884. 1 file, 56 letters. Some letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)

HAMILTON: 1/2/6

1874 Dec 28-1875 May 11

Letters sent by Hamilton to his grandmother (name not given), mainly relating to Hamilton's life in India, including his march with 92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Foot from Mooltan to Dera Ismail Khan, 28 Dec 1874; his hunting expedition at Buckree Wallah Nullah, Pir Punjal Range, 11 May 1875. 1 file, 4 letters. Some letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)

HAMILTON: 1/2/7/1

1875 Apr 26-1875 May 25

Letters sent by Hamilton to his aunt Janet Camilla Caldwell, mainly relating to Hamilton's life in India, including description of his clothes and camp while hunting at Panch Caltan Nullah, 25 May. 1 file, 2 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/7/2

1881 Oct 21

Manuscript letter from Hamilton to Maj Gen Martin Andrew Dillon, Assistant Military Secretary, War Office, giving Hamilton's account of the Battle of Majuba Hill, First Boer War, 27 Feb 1881. 9pp. With typed copy. 15pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/8

1882 Jun 10-1882 Jun 22

Manuscript copy of seven letters from a lieutenant (name not supplied) of 4 Bn The Lincolnshire Regt, to his acting adjutant, regarding his request for posting to active service in Egypt. 4pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/9

1884 Oct 28-1899 May 5

Letters received by Hamilton from FM Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Baron Roberts of Kandahar and Pretoria, comprising letter to Hamilton's father Col Christian Monteith Hamilton, complimenting Hamilton on his work as Roberts' aide-de-camp, 28 Oct 1884; urging Hamilton to remain as his aide-de-camp and not to revert to regimental duties, 5 Oct 1885; advising him to delay his proposal of marriage to Jean Miller Hamilton for four months, 15 Aug 1886, with manuscript copy of Hamilton's reply, stating his intent to continue the courtship, 17 Aug 1886; telegram from Roberts informing Hamilton of his appointment as Military Secretary to Gen Sir George Stuart White, Commander-in-Chief in India, 19 Jan 1893; eleven letters, 28 Apr-15 Aug 1893, mostly relating to Roberts'speculation on his own future employment and his social engagements, including his interview with Rt Hon Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Secretary of State for War, regarding his possible appointment to command Aldershot District, 18 May 1893, his possible appointment as Viceroy of India, 22 Jun 1893, his refusal of the offer of Lt Gen Sir Reginald Gipps, Military Secretary, of appointments as Governor of Gibraltar or Malta, 4 Jul 1893, his concern at the French threat to Siam, 27 Jul 1893, his appearance before a Parliamentary Committee under George William Erskine Russell, Under Secretary of State for India, investigating the implementation of the Contagious Diseases Act in India, 15 Aug 1893; comparisons between the Tirah Campaign of 1897 and the Second Sudan Campaign of 1898, 23 Nov 1898; shares and investments, 5 May 1899. 1 file, 18 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/10

1884 Nov 29-1886 Sep 14

Photocopies of letters sent by Hamilton to his father Col Christian Vereker Monteith Hamilton and his brother Vereker Monteith Hamilton, relating to his progress up the River Nile with 1st Bn The Gordon Highlanders, First Sudan Expedition, 29 Nov 1884-6 Feb 1885. With manuscript letter from Vereker and his wife Lilian, regarding Hamilton's proposal of marriage to Jean Miller Muir, and Hamilton's Icarus (Vizetelly's one volume novels, Vol 18, 1886), 14 Sep 1886. 1 file, 7 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/11

1886 Jun 25-1886 Dec 21

Letters sent by Hamilton to his future wife Jean Miller Muir, mainly relating to their courtship, engagement and forthcoming marriage, including letters written as aide-de-camp of Lt Gen Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Bt, Commander-in-Chief, India, on campaign in Burma. With letter to his brother-in-law Thomas George Harry Moncrieffe, 22 Nov 1886. 1 file, 61 letters. Some letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)

HAMILTON: 1/2/12

1887 Mar 171892 May 26

Letters received by Hamilton relating to his investments in the North and South Sylhet Tea Companies Ltd. 1 file

HAMILTON: 1/2/13

1888 Jun 30-1888 Dec 29

Letters sent by Hamilton to his wife Jean Miller Hamilton, mainly relating to Hamilton's tour through Karachi, Simla and Meerut as aide-de-camp of Lt Gen Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Bt, Commander-in-Chief, India; Jean's tour of Europe; arrangements for Jean's return to India. With letter to his sister-in-law Elizabeth Brown Moncrieffe, 30 Jun. 1 file, 12 letters.

HAMILTON: 1/2/14

1889 Jan 13-1889 Mar 12

Letters sent by Hamilton to his wife Jean Miller Hamilton, mainly relating to Hamilton's tour through Calcutta, Benares and Lucknow as Assistant Adjutant General for Musketry in India, arrangements for Jean's return to India, and including Hamilton's accusation, 26 Feb 1889, that his article on musketry for The Fortnightly Review had been submitted in advance to Col John Frederick Maurice to enable Maurice to write a reply. 1 file, 10 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/15

[1889 Oct 28]-1896 Oct 1

Various correspondence of Hamilton's brother Vereker Monteith Hamilton, including from Thomas Lane Devitt, regarding acquisition of Vereker's painting 'An ambuscade', for the National Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australia, 8 Apr-1 Oct 1896; letters to FM Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Baron Roberts of Kandahar and Waterford from secretaries of the United Services Club, Junior Army and Navy Club, and the East India United Service Club, regarding their exhibiting Vereker's paintings, 'The attack on the Peiwar Kotal' and 'The storming of the Kashmir Gate at Delhi' on their premises, 11-14 May 1896; three cartoons by Vereker. 1 file

HAMILTON: 1/2/16

1890 Oct 14-1897 Aug 11

Letters received by Hamilton, including from John Macallan Swan, artist, regarding his portrait of Hamilton, 14 Oct 1890; from Henry Babington Smith, Private Secretary to Rt Hon Sir Victor Alexander Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin and 13th Earl of Kincardine, Viceroy of India, regarding Elgin's character, the Malakand uprising, and riots in Calcutta, 10 Aug 1897; from Gen Sir George Stuart White, Commander-in-Chief in India, regarding unrest on the North West Frontier, with details of British Army units based around Malakand, Peshawar and Shabkadr, and his hopes for more active military measures against the Afridis, 11 Aug 1897. 1 file, 4 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/17

1890 Nov 20

Printed letter from Gen Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Bt, Commander-in-Chief in India, to Lt Gen Sir George Byng Harman, Military Secretary, War Office, requesting the promotion of Hamilton and Lt Col William Gustavus Nicholson to substantive Colonels, due to their selection for appointments on the Staff as respectively, Assistant Adjutant General for Musketry in Bengal, and Military Secretary to the Commander-in-Chief in India. 4pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/18

1891 Jan 28

Printed letter from Gen Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Bt, Commander-in-Chief in India, to Rt Hon Edward Stanhope, Secretary of State for War, requesting the promotion of Hamilton and Lt Col William Gustavus Nicholson to substantive Colonels, due to their selection for appointments on the Staff as respectively, Assistant Adjutant General for Musketry in Bengal, and Military Secretary to the Commander-in-Chief in India. With reply of Lt Gen Sir George Byng Harman, Military Secretary, War Office, notifying Roberts of the refusal of FM George William Frederick Charles, Duke of Cambridge, Commander-in-Chief of the British Army, to grant Hamilton's promotion. 9pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/19

1893 Oct 11-1898 Mar 1

Correspondence between Hamilton and his brother Vereker Monteith Hamilton, mainly relating to their joint business affairs and investments, and including Ian Hamilton's tiger hunting in Nepal, 2 Jan 1894; his duties under Maj Gen Edward Stedman with the Chitral Relief Expedition, Indian North West Frontier, 18 May 1895; his refusal to be appointed Assistant Military Secretary to FM Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Baron Roberts of Kandahar and Waterford, commanding forces in Ireland, 8 Jun 1895. 1 file, 24 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/20

1895 Feb 22-1895 Oct 8

Letters sent by Hamilton to his wife Jean Miller Hamilton, mainly relating to the Chitral Relief Expedition, Indian North West Frontier, including his posting as Assistant Adjutant General to Maj Gen Edward Stedman, 24 Apr 1895; his refusal to be appointed Assistant Military Secretary to FM Sir Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Baron Roberts of Kandahar and Waterford, commanding forces in Ireland, 31 May 1895; his acceptance of the post of Deputy Quarter Master General in India, 23 Aug 1895. 1 file, 28 letters

HAMILTON: 1/2/21

1895 Aug 29

Letter from Maj John Sherston, District Deputy Assistant Adjutant General for Instruction in India, advising Hamilton on suitable houses to rent in Simla, India. 3pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/22

1896 Jul 8

Letter from Col Sir Neville (Francis Fitzgerald) Chamberlain, giving his account of the action in which Col William John Vousden won his Victoria Cross during the Second Afghan War. 4pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/23

1897 Aug 29-1898 Feb 21

Letters sent by Hamilton to his wife Jean Miller Hamilton, mainly relating to the Tirah Expedition, Indian North West Frontier, including his posting as commander of 1 Bde, 1st Div, Tirah Expeditionary Force, by Gen Sir William Stephen Alexander Lockhart, 13 Sep 1897; Hamilton's riding accident leading to a broken leg and forfeiture of his command, 19 Oct 1897; his posting as commander of 3 Bde, Tirah Expeditionary Force, in place of Brig Gen Francis James Kempster, and the possibility of his taking Lt Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill as his orderly officer, 3 Feb 1898. 1 file, 28 letters. Some letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)

HAMILTON: 1/2/24

1898 Mar 20

Photocopy of letter from Hamilton to (Henry) Spenser Wilkinson, describing Hamilton's advance through the Bara Valley, Indian North West Frontier, during the Tirah Campaign. 9pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/25

1898 May 16

Letter from Gen Sir William Stephen Alexander Lockhart, regarding the misrepresentation by the press of a speech by Lockhart on the Tirah Campaign, and congratulating Hamilton on his appointment as commandant of the School of Musketry at Hythe, Kent. 8pp

HAMILTON: 1/2/26

1898

Photocopies of letters received by Hamilton from Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, comprising undated letter from India regarding Churchill's plans to see active service in Egypt and publication of his The story of the Malakand Field Force (Longmans and Co, London, 1898); letter, 16 Sep, with Churchill's account of his part in the battle of Omdurman, Second Sudan Campaign, 2 Sep 1898. 1 file, 2 letters [Both letters reprinted in Hamilton's Listening for the drums (Faber and Faber, London, 1944)]