AUTOGRAPHED CARD 3rd MARQUESS OF SALISBURY & PRIME MINISTER of UNITED KINGDOM

Description

AUTOGRAPH 3rd MARQUESS OF SALISBURY
(ROBERT GASCOYNE-CECIL 1830-1903) THREE-TIME PRIME MINISTER of the UNITED KINGDOM between 1885 and 1902. The Marquess of Salisbury served as Prime Minister under two monarchs: Queen Victoria and her son/successor King Edward VII. He traded office twice with Gladstone and, during his last term, was preceded by the Earl of Rosebery and succeeded by his nephew Arthur Balfour. Having sprung from the landed aristocracy, Salisbury was a solid Conservative who lamented the progress of liberal democracy and who made every viable attempt to limit it. He was a strict and sometimes successful isolationist. But his isolationist tendency notwithstanding, he is credited by historians for his expertise in foreign affairs. Salisbury was the last Prime Minister to serve from the House of Lords. The paper artifact pictured above was plainly assembled by an ardent fan of Salisbury. On one side of the paper are two prints of the Marquess. The b/w half-tone on the right was clipped from a contemporaneous source and adhered to this sturdier sheet. Below this print is a
hand-signed card reading
"Your obedient servant / Salisbury". T
his card is autographed in ink by the
MARQUESS OF SALISBURY.
Beneath the sepia print (also contemporaneous) on the left is another signature which is more likely printed than hand-signed. On the flip side of this paper are clippings related to Salisbury. On the left are small b/w photographic portraits of "nine leading figures in Lord Salisbury's cabinet." On the right is a b/w print depicting the English Premier as he tricycles to the House of Lords. The clippings and the paper on which they are mounted are in excellent condition: no tears, stray marks, nicks or other flaws. Lower left corner of recto has 1/4" bend. Previous owner jotted letters P.M. in left margin of recto. Paper reflects typical signs of aging but nothing egregious.