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John Malcolm Forbes Ludlow: Papers

 Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0012/MS Add.7450

Scope and Contents

Papers of John Malcolm (Forbes) Ludlow (1821-1911), and of the Ludlow and allied families, late 18th to early 20th century. This collection of papers comprises: correspondence of Ludlow's father, Lieutenant-Colonel John Ludlow, an officer in India; correspondence with his sisters, Eliza and Maria Ludlow, and Maria's husband, Charles Liot, and the Liot family; diaries of Eliza and Maria Ludlow, 1820s-1830s; papers of Charles Liot and the Liot family, some of which relate to Martinique; papers of members of the Des Graz family [Constance Des Graz was the daughter of Charles and Maria Liot (nee Ludlow)]; genealogical and bigraphical papers of the Ludlow family, including baptism certificates, wills, notes on graves and Ludlow pedigree. One of Ludlow's sisters, Maria, married Charles Liot, Treasurer of Martinique, then a French colony in the Caribbean. Coffee plantations worked by enslaved labour were a feature of Martinique from the 1720s. It seems likely that Charles Liot owned or had interest in a plantation or estate at Mondelice, Martinique, with enslaved labour (see MS Add.7450/23). According to the entry in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, John Ludlow visited Martinique in the late 1830s and 'learned a hatred of slavery' (see: https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/37696).

Dates

  • Creation: 1750-1940

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).

Extent

4 archive box(es) (4 boxes)

6 volume(s) (6 volumes)

3 rolled item(s) (3 rolls)

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement

Much of the collection came to the Library in a state of some confusion. This is due partly to Sir Charles L. Des Graz, who went through the papers in pursuit of his ancestors. John Malcom Ludlow is also known to have gone through his own papers in old age and destroyed much of the material, which probably accounts for the lack of his correspondence after 1874. In the sorting and listing of the collection, the two parts of the collection were treated as a whole. Original bundles were retained where these could be recognised, but a good deal of rearrangement was unavoidable.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Presented by the Executors of Charles G. des Graz, 28th April 1954.

Existence and Location of Originals

See also MS Add.7348.

Related Materials

At Cambridge University Library, Department of Archives and Modern Manuscripts, see aslo: MS Add.7348, papers of John Malcolm Ludlow, presented at the same time at this collection, comprise material relating to Christian socialism, including correspondence with Thomas Hughes, author of 'Tom Brown's Schooldays', Charles Kingsley, Norman Macleod, Charles Blachford Mansfield and Frederick Denison Maurice and MS Add.8883, papers of Sir Charles des Graz.

Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • 22 June 2022: This catalogue was revised by Sally Kent to address offensive, inappropriate and inaccurate language used in the original catalogue description. The collection level description and the entry MS Add.7450/23 were revised to draw attention to links to enslavement. A previous version of the catalogue is available on request.

Repository Details

Part of the Cambridge University Library Repository

Contact:
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