News | April 21, 2023

Royal Letters from Middle Ages to 20th Century at Coronation Sale

Sotheby's

 Lot 6, Katharine Parr, signed letter announcing her marriage to Henry VIII, July, 20 1543

Sotheby’s is to stage a one-off Coronation Sale which brings together a range of royal letters, fine manuscripts, jewellery, artwork, and objects that reflect upon Britain’s royal past from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.

The full contents of the auction,  include:

  • an exceptionally rare letter signed by Queen Katherine Parr announcing her marriage to Henry VIII
  • a letter by Charles I as he faced defeat in the Civil War
  • and long series of letters to a mentor by the future ill-fated King Edward VIII 

Addressed to her brother, William, the Parr letter -  estimated at £15,000-20,000 ($18,600- $24,800) - was written on July 20, 1543, just days after Katherine Parr’s marriage to the 52-year-old Henry VIII. The last of his six marriages, the couple wed at Hampton Court Palace in front of only 18 witnesses and immediately set off on the court’s summer journey, with this letter written from their first stop at Oatlands Palace in Surrey.
 
A widow herself, and aged 31 at the time, Katherine was initially noticed by the King as part of the household of his eldest daughter, Princess Mary. Ambivalent about marrying an unpredictable King, who had executed his previous wife Catherine Howard only 18 months prior, she knew rejecting Henry was unthinkable, but that the marriage would bring great benefit to her family, with her brother William (1513-71), the recipient of this letter, elevated to the Earldom of Essex.
 
In the letter she writes: “It hath pleased Almighty god of his goodness to incline the Kinges ma[jes]tes harte in suche wise towards me”, celebrating an event which is “the greatest Joye and comfort that could happen to me in this world”, and inviting her brother to “rejoyse with me in the goodness of god and of his Ma[jes]te.”
 
At the time of the marriage, Katherine was in love with another man, Thomas Seymour, who eventually became her husband six months after the King’s death.
 
Gabriel Heaton, Sotheby’s Specialist in Books and Manuscripts said: “Katherine has often been represented as a nurse to an ailing king but she was a highly eligible widow in her mid-thirties, extremely well educated, fluent in several languages and with a keen interest in religious reform. She understandably felt some trepidation about marrying an aging King Henry, with a history of marriage that was chequered to say the least. However, this letter shows her engaging in an external display of delight at her new circumstances. Rejecting the King’s advances in favour of his former brother-in-law, Thomas Seymour, was unthinkable, and the marriage would undoubtedly bring great benefit to her family.”

Lot 10, Queen Elizabeth I—Sir Gilbert Dethick 9 illustrated heraldic manuscripts presented to the Queen, 1568-80
1/5
Sotheby's

Lot 10, Queen Elizabeth I - Sir Gilbert Dethick, nine illustrated heraldic manuscripts presented to the Queen, 1568-80

Lot 11, Mary Queen of Scots, Letter signed, to M. de Rambouillet, 31 August 1578
2/5
Sotheby's

 Lot 11, Mary Queen of Scots, Letter signed, to M. de Rambouillet, August 31, 1578

Lot 14, King Charles I, Autograph letter signed, to Prince Rupert, ordering his exile, 14 September 1645
3/5
Sotheby's

Lot 14, King Charles I, autograph letter signed, to Prince Rupert, ordering his exile, September 14, 1645

Lot 19, The Declaration of Breda
4/5
Sotheby's

 Lot 19, The Declaration of Breda

Lot 28, Edward VIII, A fine series of 45 autograph letters signed, as Prince of Wales, to Sir Campbell Tate, 1912-1918
5/5
Sotheby's

Lot 28, Edward VIII, A fine series of 45 autograph letters signed, as Prince of Wales, to Sir Campbell Tate, 1912-1918

Another highlight of the sale is the document that enabled the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the Declaration of Breda. One of two surviving copies signed by King Charles II, this is the most important document relating to Britain’s royal history to ever come to the market.

Other major items of the Coronation Sale include:

* a letter signed by King Henry VIII to Louise of Savoy, Regent of France, informing her that he is sending Thomas More to attend peace negotiations at Cambrai. The Treaty of Cambrai brought about a cessation of the Italian war between Europe’s two greatest dynasties, the Habsburgs and the Valois (estimate £30,000- 50,000).
 
* nine illustrated heraldic manuscripts presented to Queen Elizabeth I as New Year’s gifts between 1569 and 1580 (estimate £100,000- 200,000). Each contains historic coat of arms painted in vivid emblazonry with gold, silver and coloured inks.
 
* a letter from Mary, Queen of Scots to the Marquis de Rambouillet thanking him for his services during his mission to the English court, complaining of the lies that have been spread by her enemies and reflecting on her confinement (estimate £24,000- 35,000).
 
* a series of 45 autograph letters by Edward VIII addressed to his mentor Admiral Sir Campbell Tate, watchkeeper in the battleship Hindustan. Written while an undergraduate at Oxford and later during the First World War,  he vents his frustrations and dreams to the older naval officer. These warm and informative letters reveal the dissatisfaction the prince felt with the unchallenging role he was forced to assume (estimate £6,000- 8,000).
 
* a letter sent by Charles I to Prince Rupert of the Rhine, expressing candidly his bitter feelings of personal betrayal at his nephew’s surrender of Bristol and shock at the ease of his defeat. The fall of Bristol to the New Model Army on September 11, 1645, marked the loss of the only major seaport left in royalist hands which was a devastating blow to the King (estimate £7,000- 9,000).

Bidding on the sale is open until 4 May, with highlights also on exhibition at Sotheby’s London.

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