EARLS OF ONSLOW, OF CLANDON PARK, WEST CLANDON: FAMILY RECORDS

The Onslow family papers, deposited in 1972 after the death of the 6th Earl, are to a considerable extent an artificial collection made by the 5th Earl in the course of preparing a family history. For example, he purchased some papers of Arthur Onslow, the Great Speaker, in 1908 [173/3/8 & 12]. From 1912 onwards, the 5th Earl gathered together letters, diaries and other personal papers of his ancestors, especially of his father, and had most single items and small groups bound in a series of 23 volumes of Private Papers, with an additional volume entitled Loftus Letters and Miscellanea. For the last chapters of the unpublished nine-volume History of the Onslow Family and for part of his autobiography Sixty-Three Years (1944), the 5th Earl seems to have used files of his own and of his wife's correspondence from 1911, when he succeeded his father, until 1924, the approximate date at which the Family History was completed. With the exception of 1936 Coronation Committee minutes, etc, little material has been deposited relating to the period from 1925 until the 5th Earl's death in 1945. Similarly, there are no letters of the 6th Earl other than a small bundle of correspondence about West Clandon Village Hall in 1968. The 5th Earl and his son arranged for press cuttings about the family to be collect and bound. There are seventeen volumes of cuttings which date from the mid-18th century to 1952.

The archive of the Earls of Onslow contain little material relating to cadet branches of the family. There are no papers of those Onslows who were Members of Parliament for Guildford from 1660-1830 and 1858-80. Although there are a few miscellaneous papers of Arthur Onslow, the Great Speaker, in the 5th Earl's collection, five manuscript volumes, including the Speaker's Anecdotes and his Calendar of the Journals of the House of Commons, 1660-1710, have been deposited in the House of Lords Record Office.

A detailed summary of the contents is below:

G173/1/ 'History of the Onslow Family' by Richard 5th Earl of Onslow c. 1924
9 volumes with continuous pagination, typescript. It appears that Chapters XXIV-XXXIV are taken from an unpublished biography of the 4th Earl of Onslow by Reginald Lucas, the drafts of which survive as 173/222.
Comprises: The early Onslows c. 1174 to Richard 3rd Lord Onslow; Foot Onslow to George 1st Earl of Onslow; George 1st Earl of Onslow to Arthur Onslow, Dean of Worcester; Thomas, 2nd Earl of Onslow, to William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow; 4th Earl of Onslow and Sergeant Arthur Onslow M.P.; Clandon as a military hospital, 1914-1919; Richard 5th Earl of Onslow, 1876-1906, 1906-1918, 1918-c.1924

G173/2/ THE REV JOHN BUTLER (1717-1802), BISHOP OF HEREFORD: LETTERS TO GEORGE, 1ST EARL OF ONSLOW (1731-1814), 1766-1802
This series of letters, almost all from the Rev John Butler to George Onslow, latterly 1st Earl of Onslow, was bound into two volumes, probably during the 19th century, possibly by Onslow himself (for Butler's request that the letters be disposed of, see G173/2/2/132). The letters document a political friendship between the two men, from the beginning when Butler hoped to gain ecclesiastical preferment through Onslow's patronage and political connections as an MP for Surrey, to a period when both men held seats in the House of Lords. Butler appears to have come from an unconventional background (little is documented of his family, though he is known to have been born in Hamburg, son of John Butler). Having taken holy orders in c.1750, he pursued his career in the church with great and unabashed ambition to rise, although he also appears to have taken seriously the spiritual and pastoral responsibilities of his clerical roles. At the start of the correspondence in 1766, Butler had already gained a position as a canon of the 10th prebend of Winchester Cathedral and would in 1768 become a chaplain to King George III through his political connections, arising from his reputation as a pamphleteer, and he was based in Farnham, also the home of the wealthy in-laws of his second marriage, the Vernons of Vernon House. In Nov 1769 he became Archdeacon of Surrey (see G173/2/2/152 for his facetious 'announcement' of the appointment). In 1777, Butler was rewarded with the bishopric of Oxford, which gained him kudos and a voice in Parliament, but was poorly endowed. The bishopric of Hereford was the culmination of his aspirations, which he gained in 1788 and held until his death in 1802. Butler appears to have attended Parliament much less in these later years: in May 1789 he comments that he is glad to be in Hereford and removed from 'the slave trade, the dissenters, the Catholics and Mr Hastings [Warren Hastings]' (G173/2/2/51). However, the French Revolution did not fail to excite his interest, and despite claiming public affairs could no longer engage him (G173/2/2/72), he continues to observe. Butler's letters comment on many key events and episodes of the late 18th century, as well as evoking a picture of his milieu of churchmen and politicians. Butler's publicly expressed views were recorded in his pamphlet output; during the American War of Independence he wrote as Vindex (it was also to his indignation falsely speculated that he wrote as 'Junius', the anonymous satirist of his time). Here, his private letters can be obscure as they are allusive and sometimes cautiously worded. He nevertheless tracks the career of George Onslow, discussing his controversial and changeable relationship with John Wilkes, 1768-1790, electioneering and rival candidates in Surrey of both George and later his son Tom, 2nd Earl of Onslow, Onslow's libel case against Horne Tooke, support for greater toleration for dissenters (which Butler opposed) and Onslow's captaincy of the Surrey Regiment of Fencible Cavalry, 1794-1799. Butler has much to say about the North American colonies and the conduct of the War of Independence, and the resulting changing factions in government. Both he and Onslow owned West Indies investments and he mentions with dismay the campaign for the abolition of the slave trade. Onslow's family life is also depicted: Butler ruthlessly comments on the increasing ill health yet slow decline of Richard 3rd Baron Onslow, from whom Onslow would inherit the title; he praises the erudition of Mrs Onslow (Henrietta Onslow, nee Shelley, 1731-1809), and shows much sympathy for the plight of Onslow's son Edward Onslow, who was forced to leave England following a homosexual scandal in 1781. See also 'Oxford Dictionary of National Biography' articles on Butler and George, 1st Earl of Onslow

G173/2/2 Letters to George 1st Earl of Onslow from Revd. John Butler, later Bishop of Oxford, 1781-1802 153 letters.
Two letters from Louisa Ford, niece of Butler, and her husband Henry Ford, Dec 1802, concerning Butler's death, -/-/139-140. Succeeding letters in the volume are strays from the chronological sequence or undated.

G173/3-26/ Correspondence etc. assembled by 5th Earl of Onslow and bound for him in 24 vols: 'Private Papers O[nslow]' 1630-1913
Much relates to the 5th Earl's political and diplomatic activities and interests. Includes material on smallholdings, House of Lords reform, the political situation in Russia, 1905, and the crisis in the Balkans, 1912-1913. Correspondents include Austen Chamberlain, Joseph Chamberlain, AJ Balfour and Lord Lansdowne. The detailed list of the contents of these volumes has been added to the catalogue on the Archives Hub.

G173/3/1-67 Private Papers, Onslow 1630-1863, 1660/1-1882
Miscellaneous items relating to the Onslow family, 17th - 19th cent., including some with Speaker Arthur Onslow's autograph apparently purchased by Viscount Cranley in 1908 and several pedigrees of various branches of the Onslows. Probably bound for 5th Earl; some items prefaced by descriptive note in red ink ? in hand of 4th Earl

G173/4/1-113 Private Papers Onslow, 1863-1886

G173/5/ Private Papers Onslow, 1886-1887

G173/6/1-38 Private Papers Onslow, 1887-1892
G173/7/1-89 Private Papers Onslow, 1892-1901

G173/8/1-39 Private Papers Onslow, 1902

G173/9/1-40 Private Papers Onslow, 1903
Vol.1. Many items removed

G173/10/1-12 Private Papers Onslow, 1903
Vol.II [many items removed]

G173/11/1-12 Private Papers Onslow, 1904
Vol.I [many items removed]

G173/12/1-22 Private Papers Onslow, 1904
Vol.II. Many items removed

G173/13/1-24 Private Papers Onslow, 1904
Vol. III. Many items removed

G173/14/1-27 Private Papers Onslow Vol. IV, 1904

G173/15/1-62 Private Papers Onslow, 1905
1905 Some items removed.

G173/16/1-157 Private Papers Onslow, 1906-1907

G173/17/1-92 Private Papers Onslow, 1908
G173/17/72-87 relate to House of Lords Reform; mainly printed papers of Select Committee on House of Lords of which 4th Earl was member.

G173/18/1-57 Private Papers Onslow, 1909

G173/19/1-137 Private Papers Onslow, [House of Lords reform unless otherwise stated], 1910-1911

G173/20/1-49 Private Papers Onslow, 1912

G173/21/1-68 Private Papers Onslow, vol.I, 1913

G173/22/1-55 Private Papers Onslow, vol. II, 1913

G173/23/1-55 Private Papers C, 1899-1911

G173/24/1-109 Private Papers C, 1900-1910

G173/25/1-50 Private Papers C, 1906-1911

G173/26/1-77 Loftus Letters and miscellaneous 1635-1905
Harriet Loftus married George Augustus Cranley Onslow in July, 1848 and was the mother of William Hillier, later 4th Earl, b. 1853; All items except nos. 55 and 58 in this volume are MS. Many items prefaced by descriptive note by ? 4th Earl; vol. probably bound for 5th Earl.

G173/27/ Speaker Onslow's Memoirs, Historical MSS. Commission report 1896

G173/28/ WILLIAM HILLIER, 4TH EARL OF ONSLOW (b.1853 d.1911) 1861-1914
G173/28/1-51 Letters addressed to the 4th Earl of Onslow 1886-1911
This volume, with the bookplate of the 5th Earl of Onslow inside the front cover, comprises letters addressed to the 4th Earl of Onslow, with the exception of one to Lady Onslow, between 1886 and 1911. Most letters are guarded and filed with the writer's name and position written in below, but some are loose enclosures. Apart from the first two items, they are in approximate date order. The volume is paginated in pencil but the numbering of items in this list is not original.

G173/29-40 Diaries of William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow 1869-1892

G173/41-53 Travel journals and publications of William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow 1861-1914
Includes France, Italy, Dolomites, Switzerland, America, India, Australia and New Zealand.

G173/56-205/ RICHARD 5TH EARL OF ONSLOW (b.1876 d.1945) 1880-1942
Correspondence arranged in groups which are substantially the same as the original box files and folders in which the letters were kept.

G173/56/1-30 Correspondence etc. of 4th Earl of Onslow, Personal 1900-1910

G173/57/1-348 Correspondence from the time of 5th Earl of Onslow, (b. 1876 d. 1945) 1912-1924
Only political correspondence listed in detail.

G173/58-76 Family and personal correspondence from the time of 5th Earl of Onslow, (b. 1876 d. 1945) 1880-1924

G173/77/1-144 Political and parliamentary correspondence 1912-1936
Excluding letters to and from Lord Midleton and letters of congratulation. The writer is Lord Onslow unless otherwise stated

G173/77/145-168 Political correspondence, between 5th Earl of Onslow and William, Viscount Midleton 1915-1923

G173/78/ Letters of congratulations to 5th Earl of Onslow on political appointments, and draft political speeches 1908-1931

G173/80-87 Surrey parochial and diocesan matters 1911-1924
Includes West Clandon, Merrow, Pyrford, Ripley, Send, Woodham, Worplesdon, and division of the diocese of Winchester.

G173/88-90 Official duties of 5th Earl of Onslow: national 1915-1936
Includes Lord in Waiting, 1919-1920, and Coronation Committee papers, 1936

G173/91-104 Official duties: county and local 1911-1924
Includes Deputy Lieutenancy, High Stewardship of Guildford Borough, County War Agricultural Committee and Pig and Poultry Scheme, closure of Clandon War Hospital, management of Clandon School, Merrow Downs Conservators, Metropolitan Police Housing Committee, Surrey Red Cross, St. John Ambulance Brigade and Order of St. John, Surrey County Council.

G173/105-106 Business affairs of 5th Earl of Onslow 1913-1921
Union Trust Company of Canada and Surrey Public House Trust Company

G173/107-113 Clubs, Associations and Societies excluding Red Cross and St. John Ambulance Brigade 1912-1925
Includes British Merchants' Morocco Association; Comrades of the Great War, later The British Legion; Comrades of the Great War Women's section; Freemasonry; Surrey Archaeological Society and Surrey Record Society

G173/114-205 Correspondence relating to clubs and organisations, chiefly local, 1911-1924
Comprises:
G173/114/1-5, Allen House Bowls Club, 1923-1924
G173/115, Association for Promoting Training and Supply of Midwives, 1921
G173/116, Authors' Producing Society, 1914
G173/117/1-4, Automobile Association, 1915
G173/118/1-3, Beefsteak Club, 1917-1921
G173/119/1-3, Boys' Brigade, 1921
G173/120/1-5, British Dairy Farmers' Association, 1922-1923
G173/121, The Capitals United Club, 1914
G173/122/1-11, Central Landowners Association, 1917-1923
G173/123/1-3, Charlotteville Cycling Club, 1922-1923
G173/124/1-7, Clandon and District Farmers' Club, 1918-1921
G173/125, Commercial Travellers' Benevolent Institution, 1911
G173/126, County Club, Guildford, 1919
G173/127/1-2, Drummond Athletic Club, 1915-1917
G173/128/1-3, Empire Parliamentary Association, 1912
G173/129/1-3, The Girl Guides, 1919-1920
G173/130/1-3, Guildford Amateur Athletic Club, 1920
G173/131/1-2, Guildford Calf Club, 1922
G173/132/1-9, Guildford Chamber of Trade, 1920-1922
G173/133/1-6, Guildford Christmas Fat Stock and Corn Society, 1919-1924
G173/134/1-4, Guildford Golf Club, 1912-1921
G173/135/1-5, Guildford Institute, 1914-1922
G173/136, Guildford Kitchener Club, nd [1914-1918]
G173/137, Guildford Ladies' Golf Club, nd
G173/138, Guildford Oddfellows, Juvenile Branch, 1914
G173/139, Guildford Swimming Club, 1920
G173/140/1-16, Guildford YMCA, 1918-1924
G173/141, Guildford YWCA, 1919
G173/142/1-2, Guildford and District Allotment Holders' Society Ltd., 1919-1922
G173/143/1-5, Guildford and District Beekeepers Association, later Surrey Beekeepers Association, 1921-1922
G173/144/1-8, Guildford and District Boy Scouts Association, 1913-1922
G173/145, Guildford and District Coursing Club, 1914
G173/146, Guildford and District Heavy Horse Society, 1917
G173/147, Guildford and District Unemployment Council, 1921
G173/148/1-3, Guildford and District Wireless Society, 1922
G173/149/1-4, Guildford and District Women's Suffrage Society: letter (-/-/1) to the Countess of Onslow from Mrs E Hartree, Honorary Secretary of the Guildford and District Suffrage Society ('Non-party...non-militant'), requesting that she sign 'the enclosed memorial' (-/-/3), a petition seeking enfranchisement of women to enable them to vote 'in the election of Parliament which will deal with the problems of [post-war] reconstruction'. Also letter from the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (-/-/2) to the Countess of Onslow, Clandon Park Hospital, asking her to sign a memorial intended to include the names of 'about 500 prominent women workers', with copy of Lady Onslow's reply stating 'I am very pleased to sign the enclosed memorial, with which I am entirely in sympathy' (-/-/4), 17 May 1917-2 Jul 1917
G173/150, Guildford and Mid-Surrey Farmers Co-operative Association Ltd., 1918
G173/151, Guildford and Shere Foot Beagles, 1919-1920
G173/152/1-2, Guildford and West Surrey Agricultural Association, 1915-1922
G173/153, Horsell Common Preservation Society, 1913
G173/154, Intelligence 'B' Association, 1921
G173/155, Ladies' Samoyed Association, 1913
G173/156, London Municipal Society, 1914
G173/157/1-12, London Surrey Society, 1912-1921
G173/158, Lord Lieutenant of Surrey's Fund, 1920
G173/159/1-6, Merrow and District Rifle Club, 1912-1913
G173/160/1-2, Marylebone Cricket Club, 1916-1920
G173/161/1-3, National Association of Landswomen, 1922
G173/162, National British Bird and Mule Club, 1914
G173/163/1-8, National Political League and National Land Council, 1920
G173/164/1-7, National Unionist Association, 1914-1921
G173/165/1-2, 1900 Club, 1914
G173/166, Old Etonian Association, 1917
G173/167, Old Guildfordians' Football Club, 1923
G173/168, Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire Society, 1921
G173/169, Preventive and Rescue Society, Guildford and Godalming deaneries, nd
G173/170/1-3, Queen's Regiment Old Comrades Association, 1920
G173/171/1-2, Ripley and District Rifle Club, 1923
G173/172/1-7, Royal Society of Arts, 1914
G173/173/1-6, Royal Agricultural Society of England, 1918-1923
G173/174/1-5, Royal Automobile Club, 1918
G173/175, Royal Horticultural Society, 1918
G173/176, Royal Surrey County Hospital, Ladies Association Samaritan Fund, 1921
G173/177, Soldiers' Gospel Mission, Guildford, 1918
G173/178, South African Farmers' Agricultural Tour, 1914
G173/179, Southern Irish Loyalists Relief Association, 1923
G173/180, The Surrey Club, 1920
G173/181/1-9, Surrey Conservative and Unionist Club, 1912-1922
G173/182/1-3, Surrey County Agricultural Association, 1921-1923
G173/183, Surrey County Athletic Association, 1920
G173/184/1-7, Surrey County Cricket Club, 1913-1920
G173/185/1-8, Surrey County Miniature Rifle Association, 1913-1920
G173/186/1-4, Surrey County Nursing Association, 1919-1920
G173/187/1-3, Surrey Girl Guides, early 20th cent
G173/188, Surrey Ladies' Rifle Association, 1914
G173/189/1-4, Surrey Milk Recording Society, 1920
G173/190/1-3, Surrey Parish Register Society, 1915
G173/191, Surrey (Queen Mary's Regiment) Yeomanry, 1913
G173/192, Surrey Rifle Association, 1923
G173/193/1-2, Surrey Territorial Force Association, 1914-1917
G173/194, Travellers' Club, 1913
G173/195, Unionist Club, 1920
G173/196, United Services Club (Surbiton) Ltd., 1923
G173/197/1-2, V.A.D. Ladies' Club, 1922
G173/198, West Surrey Beagles, 1917
G173/199/1-3, West Surrey General Benefit Society, 1916-1921
G173/200/1-9, West Surrey Society, 1915-1923
G173/201, Westminster Constitutional Association, 1914
G173/202, Woking Railwaymen's Athletic Club, 1923
G173/203/1-3, Zoological Society of London, 1920

G173/206-214/ Correspondence of Violet, wife of 5th Earl of Onslow 1913-1931
Chiefly family, domestic and financial, but includes Blue Triangle (YWCA) Appeal, 1919; Womens' Farm and Garden Union and Womens' National Land Service Corps, concerning the employment of women on the Clandon Park estate, 1915-1918; and St. John Ambulance Brigade, Hersham Division, 1920

G173/215-220/ RECEIPTS 1912-1923
Chiefly food, staff wages.

G173/221/ Correspondence of Arthur, 6th Earl of Onslow, (b.1913 d.1971) 1968
Relating to Clandon village hall

G173/222/ FAMILY HISTORY DRAFTS, TYPESCRIPT AND MANUSCRIPT c.1900
Drafts from an unpublished biography of William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow, by Reginald Lucas later incorporated in 5th Earl's Family History, TS. [chapter references to bound volumes given]. Comprises G173/222/1-39 "Early Life": Ch. XXIV; G173/222/40-91 "On the Threshold": Ch. XXV; G173/222/92-167 "Office": Ch. XXVI; G173/222/168-233 "In Opposition": Ch. XXVIII; G173/222/234-97 "London County Council": Ch. XXIX; G173/222/298-380 "India Office and Colonial Office": Ch. XXX; G173/222/381-498 "Board of Agriculture": Ch. XXXI; G173/222/499-598 "Budget of 1909 and Reform of the House of Lords" Ch. XXXII; G173/222/599-714 "Central Land Association and Association of Opposition Peers": Ch. XXXIII; G173/222/715-58 Untitled: Ch. XXXIV

G173/223/ Family History drafts by 5th Earl of Onslow c.1900

G173/224/ Cancelled and unidentified drafts of the Family History by the 5th Earl of Onslow c.1900

G173/225/ BOUND VOLUMES OF ONSLOW FAMILY PRESS CUTTINGS 1889-1952

G173/226-228/ MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS c.1690 - 19th century
Mostly 17th-19th century copies. Comprises:
Copy of notes made by Rt. Hon. Arthur Onslow, Speaker of House of Commons re Parliaments from c. 1690-1722; Militia return by Richard, Lord Onslow, 1759; Cromwell's Speech about Kingship; The King's letter to my lord Somers and my lord answer relateing to the treaty of partition 25 August 1698 and 28 August 1698, contemporary copy; Mr. Finche's speech in the Convention Parliament; The Recorder of London's Speech to the King at Kensington, November 18th 1697, when the Lord Mayor and Court of Aldermen attended to congratulate his Majestye upon his safe returne and the happy conclusion of the peace, contemporary copy; The Commons' reasons for disagreeing to the Lords' Amendments to the Bill for preventing Occasional Conformity; A Satyr [satire] upon the French King written by a non-swearing parson and dropt out of his pocket at Sam's coffee house, (verses), 17th cent?; Mr. Vincent Alsop's harangue upon presenting and address to the late King James by the Nonconformist divines; The Lords' reasons for insisting on their Amendment to the Conformity Bill, copy; Dates of Parliamentary sessions 1701-61. Printed

G173/229/ SCRAPBOOKS 18th-20th cent
Chiefly engravings of Surrey views and buildings

The Onslow family, originally from Shropshire, became established in Surrey with the marriage of Richard Onslow, M.P., later Speaker of the House of Commons, to Catherine Harding of Cranleigh, heiress to the manors of Knowle, Bramley and Rowley, in 1559. Further acquisitions of land followed and another prudent marriage, that of Thomas 2nd Baron Onslow to a "Jamaica heiress", Elizabeth Knight in 1708 facilitated the purchase of Guildford Park, the manors of Somersbury, Baynards, Pollingfold, Burpham and Shalford Clifford and the building of Clandon Park, completed circa 1750. George, 4th Baron Onslow, who was created Earl of Onslow and Viscount Cranley in 1801, found it necessary to sell the manors of Bramley, Rowley, Esher and Thames Ditton, acquiring for his estates only the manor of Papercourt from Peter Lord King in exchange for the manor of Wisley in 1785. Thomas 2nd Earl of Onslow sold the remaining Onslow lands in Cranleigh and a nadir in the history of the estates was reached during the long lifetime of the 3rd Earl who abandoned Clandon Park and became a recluse after the death of his wife and son. There was an improvement in the management of the still extensive estates after the succession to the title in 1870 of William Hillier Onslow, but during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, land near Guildford was gradually sold for building development. On part of the old Guildford Park, Onslow Village was begun in 1920 and in 1928 the 5th Earl gave 6 acres on Stage Hill as a site for Guildford Cathedral.

The Onslows were a political family and one which provided the House of Commons with three Speakers. Their close connexion with Guildford began after the Restoration in 1660, when Sir Richard Onslow was returned as a Member of Parliament for the town. For the next 220 years, except from 1830 to 1858, one, if not both, of the representatives of Guildford in the House of Commons was an Onslow. It also became a tradition, maintained to the present day, for the Earl of Onslow to be elected High Steward of Guildford and the proximity of the family seat, Clandon Park, encouraged an association with the borough from the early 18th century onwards.

The careers of the 4th and 5th Earls exemplify the political interests characteristic of the family. William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow, was appointed Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1887 and Parliamentary Secretary at the Board of Trade in 1888. From 1888-91, he was Governor of New Zealand, returning to England to become Under-Secretary of State for India in 1895 and, once more, Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1900. After the conclusion of the Boer War, he was involved in plans for the re-settlement of South Africa. In 1903, he entered the Cabinet as President of the Board of Agriculture. From 1905 until shortly before his death in 1911, the 4th Earl served as Chairman of Committees in the House of Lords. He formed the Association of Opposition Peers and was elected first chairman of the Executive Committeee of the Central Land Association. The 4th Earl's interest included the government of London. He was elected to the Westminster Vestry in 1894 and became an alderman and later leader of the Moderate Party on the London County Council from 1896-8. In 1899, he promoted a Bill which led to the abolition of the London vestries and he became an alderman on Westminster City Council in 1900, having refused an invitation to be the first mayor.

Richard, 5th Earl of Onslow held various posts in the Diplomatic Service between 1901 and 1909, when he joined the Foreign Office as assistant private secretary to Sir Edward Grey. He had a distinguished record of service in the First World War and was demobilised with the rank of Colonel after being Assistant Director of Staff Duties in the B E F, France. He was appointed a Lord in Waiting to George V in 1919 and Civil Lord of the Admiralty in the following year. In 1921 he became Parliamentary Secretary at the Board of Agriculture and, later in the same year, accepted a similar post in the Ministry of Health. From 1923-4, he was Parliamentary Secretary at the Board of Education and he then served for four years as Under-Secretary for War. In 1928 he took the post of Paymaster General in order to be free to supervise the passing of the Local Government Act, having been Chairman of the Royal Commission on Local Government from 1923-8. In 1931, the 5th Earl followed in his father's footsteps by becoming Chairman of Committees in the House of Lords, a post he held until 1944, shortly before his death.

This collection, of mainly family papers, is arranged roughly in chronological order commencing with the 5th Earl's 'History of the Onslow Family', c.1174 to c.1924 (G173/-/1/1-9). Drafts of Reginald Lucas' unpublished biography of William Hillier, 4th Earl, were incorporated into this history. Lucas' draft manuscript and typescript were also retained (see G173/-/222-224). The papers of the 1st, 4th and 5th Earls of Onslow are arranged in chronological order. However the bound letters of George, 1st Earl Onslow comprises only the letters from the Revd John Butler, later bishop of Oxford, 1766 to 1802 (G173/-/2/1-2). The bound correspondence and papers acquired and compiled by the 5th Earl, 1635-1913, (G173/-/3-26) are to a large extent the papers of William Hillier, 4th Earl of Onslow. Much of it relates to his political career and includes significant material on House of Lords reform. There are also papers from the 5th Earl's diplomatic career, including documents on the situation in the Balkans in 1913. Further papers of the 4th Earl include letters from political colleagues (see G173/-/28), diaries (see G173/-/29-40), travel journals (see G173/-/41-47), his printed pamphlets (see G173/-/48-50), and material relating to Clandon and the town house: visitors' book, 1892-1911; furniture sales catalogues, 1893; inventory of furniture, 1912 (see G173/-/51-53).

The correspondence of Richard, 5th Earl (1876-1945) is arranged chronologically by topic (see G173/-/56-205), including local gypsies and the Central Land Association, although only the political correspondence is listed in detail. The papers include: general correspondence, 1912-1924 (see G173/-/57/1-348); family and personal correspondence, 1880-1923 (see G173/-/58-71); political and parliamentary, 1912-1936 (see G173/-/77-79); parochial and diocesan matters, 1911-1936 (see G173/-/80-87); official duties: national and local, 1911-1936 (see G173/-/88-104); business affairs, 1913-1921, (see G173/-/105-106), and clubs and societies (mainly local), 1912-1925, (see G173/-/107-204). The correspondence of the 5th Earl's wife, Violet, 1913-1931 is also included in this collection (see G173/-/206-214).

The limited quantity of household records follow including receipts, 1912-1924; home farm supplies, 1919-1921; domestic servant's wages, 1918-1922 and supplies to the Onslows' holiday home on the Scilly Isles, 1920-1923 (see G173/-/215-220).

General material including bound volumes of family press cuttings, 1724-1952 (see G173/-/225/1-17), scrapbooks, 19th century to 1911 (see G173/-/229/1-6) and miscellaneous documents (published and manuscript and not all relating to the Onslow family, G173/-/226-228) complete the collection.

No access without written permission of Lord Onslow.

Deposited in several instalments between 1947 and 1972 by Arthur 6th Earl of Onslow, by his solicitors Messrs Smallpeice & Merriman and by his widow Jo, Countess of Onslow.

An item level description of the archive is available on the Surrey History Centre online catalogue

For records of the Onslow manors and title deeds of their estate, 1424-1939, see G97; for Onslow estate records, including title deeds and manorial papers of the Stoke Park estate, Guildford, 1232-1946, see 1320; for two Onslow family settlements, 1761 and 1776, see 1186; for additional estate, and family and political papers relating to the 4th and 5th Earls, c.1709-c.1945, see 5337.

An account of the family will be found in CE Vulliamy's 'The Onslow Family' (1953) which covers the period 1528-1874. For Stoke manors and the Stoke Park estate see O Manning and W Bray, 'The History and Antiquities of the County of Surrey', vol 1, pp.166-173; for the Onslow manors see 'The Victoria History of the County of Surrey'.