Description:

Disraeli quotes Shakespeare and Greek mythology! Two letters to a fellow Conservative member of the House of Commons one as Prime Minister six months after becoming Earl of Beaconsfield forced to leave the House of Commons - after 39 years - for the House of Lords: How are you getting on in the House of Commons? My life is now easier. I know I am dead but I have the consolation of being in the Elysian fields.

BENJAMIN DISRAELI (1804-1881) Comprises:

(1) Autograph Letter Signed "B. Disraeli," 4 pages, 4.5" x 7", front and verso on two conjoined sheets. Hughenden Manor, [Buckinghamshire, England],September 3, 1862. To J.G. Hubbard Esq, M.P. Light horizontal fold passes through "D" and "l" of signature. Fine condition.

In full, "I was unable to reply to yr kind letter yesterday, as my prospect of attending the dinner at Buckingham was uncertain. I am happy to say, now, that I can have that pleasure, & the still greater one of being your guest. My wife begs, that Mrs Hubbard will not think of giving herself the trouble of sending her a formal invitation to Addington, where, however, she proposes to accompany me, on the 16th Inst. & a person thanking you both for your obliging invitation." On August 31st, Hubbard had invited Disraeli to stay when he attended the North Bucks Agricultural meeting at Buckingham on September 17, 1862. He had added that if Mrs. Disraeli was to accompany her husband, Mrs. Hubbard would invite her too. Mrs. Hubbard was the eldest daughter of the 9th Baron Napier.

(2) Black-bordered Autograph Letter Signed "Beaconsfield" as Prime Minister, 3 pages, 4.5" x 7", front and verso on two conjoined sheets. 2, Whitehall Gardens, S.W. [London], February 16, 1877. To Right Honorable J.G. Hubbard. Fine condition.

In full, "I have never thanked you for yr Caviare = but I am not ungrateful. It was not 'caviare to the General' with me, for I highly appreciate it, & yours, is of the highest quality. How are you getting on in the House of Commons? My life is now easier. I know I am dead but I have the consolation of being in the Elysian fields." On August 12, 1876, London newspapers announced "The Queen has been pleased to summon the Prime Minister to the House of Lords as Earl of Beaconsfield." Disraeli had served in the House of Commons since 1837.

Quoting Shakespeare's Hamlet, the expression "caviar to the General" is a good thing unappreciated by the ignorant. In Greek mythology, the Elysian Fields was the final resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous.

Conservative Party member John G. Hubbard (1805-1889) was a Member of Parliament for Buckingham (1859-1868) and for the City of London (1874-1887). He was created 1st Baron Addington in 1887 and served in the House of Lords until his death.

Deaccessioned from Queen's University, Kingston, Canada, The Disraeli Project at Queen's University (1975-2014)

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