SIR WINSTON SPENCER CHURCHILL (1874-1965), Typed Letter Sign...

Estimate

£800 - £1,000

SIR WINSTON SPENCER CHURCHILL (1874-1965), Typed Letter Signed to Robert Burns Esq., Harrow hat maker, of 52 High Street, Harrow-on-the-Hill, 1p, 8vo, 10 Downing Street, Whitehall headed paper, dated December 23rd, 1953, content re thanking Mr Burns for sending him a miniature Harrow School straw hat "Dear Mr. Burns, I was very pleased to receive your letter and the gift from your wife of a miniature Harrow Straw. Please accept my warm thanks for your kind thought of me at this time. [signed] yours sincerely, Winston S. Churchill", framed and glazed, theo whole approx. size 21 x 14cm, together with a contemporary example of a miniature Harrow School straw hat produced by Robert Burns hat makers, diameter approx. 14cm, and a c.1980's colour post card of Harrow-on-the-Hill high street, with a manuscript note "WAS Robert Burn's (school hat shop)." and arrow pointing to the premises (being No. 52). Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. His indomitable spirit, eloquent speeches, and unwavering leadership during times of crisis earned him a place among the greatest statesmen in history. In April 1888, aged 13, Winston Churchill narrowly passed the entrance exam for Harrow School. His academics proved high but his teachers complained about his lack of discipline. However, Churchill’s ability to memorise lines, which he later used when he first made public speeches, was already apparent. While at Harrow, he entered a competition and won a School prize for reciting from memory 1,200 lines from Thomas Babington Macaulay’s long poem, Lays of Ancient Rome – a quite remarkable achievement. Churchill’s future interest in soldiering was already evident at Harrow. He joined the Harrow Rifle Corps within weeks of entering the School and, following encouragement from his father, was enrolled in the academic programme to prepare students for Sandhurst (the Royal Military College, now called the Royal Military Academy). In a letter from 1889, Churchill writes to ‘Mamma’, telling her that he has joined the ‘Army class’ and that he is learning French and geometrical drawing and studying for the Shakespeare prize. But his mother was very disappointed in her son, feeling he could achieve much more. In 1890, she wrote: ‘I had built up such hopes about you and felt so proud of you – and now all is gone … your work is an insult to your intelligence. If you would only trace out a plan of action for yourself and carry it out and be determined to do so – I am sure you could accomplish anything you wished.’ Churchill was to return to Harrow many times during his life, most memorably in 1941 during the Second World War, when he gave his famous speech to the boys, ‘Never Give In’. The Harrow School Old Speech Room Gallery has an example of a Harrow school straw hat signed by Sir Winston Spencer Churchill on display. E.A. Laborde’s book, ‘Harrow School: Yesterday & Today’ gives us a short introduction on the appearance of the Harrow School straw hat. Its first appearance was on the cricket fields of Harrow. Charles Wordsworth (OH, 1820-1825) recalls his straw hat being broken by a ball after fielding near a batsman. In the 1830s, it became a popular item of dress in the summer term, but it was not until later that they were permitted to be used instead of the top hats, except on Sundays. The famous two-inch low crown dates from the 1860s but the brim length was narrow up to 1873. Between 1873-1877, the brim widened gradually until its present breadth of three inches. Notable makers of Harrow hats include E. Chatham, and her grandson E.A. Burns. It is suspected that E. Chatham, who had established a hatter’s shop on the Hill in 1830, was the ‘inventor’ of the shallow crown boater hat. Robert Burns was presumably the son of E.A. Burns and continued the family business, and was active making hats at 52 Harrow high street in the early to mid C20th. Provenance: by descent. Robert Burns was the Great Uncle (Grandfather's brother) of the vendor (R) £500 (E) £6-800