Scope and Contents
Undated photocopies of writings on religious subjects, 41 pages. The title page records that 'these papers were written by Chinese Gordon and given by him to James Macalister, during a voyage from Port Elizabeth to Plymouth, on board the 'Kinfauns Castle', Oct. 13-Nov. 6. 1882'. The papers include an account of Gordon's theory that the Seychelles were the site of the Garden of Eden, illustrated with sketches and accompanied by four page of drawings. There are also five pages of photocopies of letters from General Gordon, 10 November 1882 (Southampton), 28 January 1883 and 13 March 1883 (Jerusalem).
Dates
- Creation: 1960 - 1999
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
Biographical / Historical
Charles George Gordon (1833-1885) was born in Woolwich on 28 January 1833. He entered the Royal Engineers in 1852, and was promoted after serving in the Chinese War, 1860-1862. He commanded the Chinese forces against the Taipings, 1863-1864, and was Governor of the equatorial provinces of Africa, 1874-1876. Gordon was made Governor-General of the Soudan in 1877, and was the commanding Royal Engineer in Mauritius, 1881-1882. He was made a Major-General in 1882, and became Governor-General of the Soudan in 1884, with responsibility for the evacuation of the country. He was killed by the Mahdi at the siege of Khartoum.
Extent
.003 cubic metre(s) (1 envelope) : paper
Language of Materials
English
Former / Other Reference
MSS 11
Other Finding Aids
MSS Addenda, vol. I.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The provenance of the collection is unknown.
Existence and Location of Originals
The location of the original papers is not known.
General
This collection level description was created by RAS using information from the original typescript catalogue. The biographical history was compiled with reference to the entry on General Gordon in Leslie Stephen and Sidney Lee, eds, 'Dictionary of national biography', vol. VIII (London, 1908), pp. 169-176.
Originator(s)
Gordon, Charles George, 1833-1885, Major General
Geographic
- Date
- 2003-08-12 15:16:01+00:00
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Cambridge University Library Repository
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Cambridge CB3 9DR United Kingdom
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