ARTHUR FRANCIS GRESHAM LEVESON GOWER (1851-1922), DIPLOMAT, AND HIS FAMILY: DIARIES AND PRIVATE PAPERS

The records consist chiefly of the diaries of Arthur Francis Gresham Leveson Gower and his sister Caroline; and include letters, papers and photographs collected by his daughter, Victoria, relating to family life and the daily domestic elements of life at the various overseas legations in which Arthur served. They also include a small group of papers relating to the family's housekeeper, Harriet Messenger; and to the family's genealogy.

A detailed summary of the contents is below:

498/1/ ARTHUR FRANCIS GRESHAM LEVESON GOWER (1851-1922): DIARIES AND PERSONAL PAPERS 1872-1922

498/1/ Diaries and personal reminiscences 1870-c.1969
The diaries cover the period 1872-1922 with some omissions. Although a regular diarist, Arthur did not make entries on a daily basis. Chiefly relating to family and social events, the earlier entries in particular give a vivid impression of upper-class late-Victorian life both at home and abroad. Arthur matriculated from Christ Church, Oxford in 1869 and took his BA in 1874. The early diaries (-/1-3) record his undergraduate life - one of his tutors was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (alias the author, Lewis Carroll). The entries for Nov and Dec 1872 record a journey taken by Arthur to alleviate his depression after his mother's death. Further information about this period is given in the reminiscences Arthur compiled in 1921 (498/1/36).

Arthur joined the diplomatic service in 1876 and served in Constantinople [Turkey], 1877-1879; as 3rd Secretary in Rio de Janeiro [Brazil], 1879-1883; 2nd Secretary in Vienna [Austria], 1884; Berlin [Germany], 1885-1888; Berne [Switzerland], 1888-1892; Belgrade [Serbia], 1893; as Secretary of the Legation in Athens [Greece], 1895-1899; and as Chargé d'Affaires in the Hague [Holland], 1899-1905. However, his diaries do not comment on diplomatic matters, being confined to social and domestic events.

The diary for 1881 has very few entries and records his engagement on 5 July to Caroline Frederica Foljambe and their marriage on 4 August. After Caroline's death in 1895, Arthur's diaries are much taken up by his domestic responsibilities, looking after the children and their education, dealing with servants etc in his various foreign postings. The diaries also record various holidays, for example, a tour during May-June 1892 through France and Germany when he took a 'cure' at Haulmy; and September 1910 when he attended the Passion Play at Oberammergau, Germany. The surviving fragments of his diary for 1911 record the illness and death of his sister Caroline.

In 1913, following his retirement from the Foreign Service (in 1908), Arthur moved to Hadleigh House, Windsor, which he had had restored. A Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, his retirement enabled him to pursue the long-standing interest in antiquarian matters that he shared with his brother, Granville. Arthur was particularly interested in old country customs, churches, church plate and antique clocks. He contributed many articles on these subjects to various journals. His proximity to his old school Eton, where he had many friends, was another source of interest and pleasure to him. It is clear from the later diaries that Arthur remained a busy man and during the First World War he served as a special constable at Buckingham Palace. However, it appears that he never fully recovered from the death of his eldest son in action in 1918 and his final years appear to have been overshadowed by many family difficulties.

The diaries have been annotated by Victoria Leveson Gower with explanations of family reference; and other useful information. There is also an index of names, originally prepared for William's diaries (held at the House of Lords Record Office) with notes on all of the principal persons mentioned (498/1/-); it covers the period 1892-1918.

498/1/ Personal letters, telegrams, photographs and related ephemera c.1870-1921

Includes leather bound album (498/1/41) entitled 'Berlin 1885-1888' containing photographs of members of various diplomatic legations in Berlin [Germany] and members of the German royal family. Those shown comprise:

Princess Hohenzollern, 1888; Mlle de Perpigna, Prince Henry, Princess Victoria, Princess Sophie, Princess Margaret, Count Radolinzki, and the Crown Prince and Princess, at Villa Zirio, Sanremo, Italy, 1888; Wilhelm I, Emperor of Germany, 1888; Prince and Princess Biron, 1888; Prince and Princess Antoine Radziwill; Princess Ferdinand Radziwill; Countess Stolberg; Princess Hatzfeldt; Count and Countess Eulenburg, 1888; Count Sierstorpff, 1888; Count Seckendorff; Prince Lichnowsky, 1887; Freifrau von Reischach; Frau von Benkendorff-Hindenburg; Mlle de Perpigna; Fraulein Claire von Gersdorff; Graf Alexander zu Munster; Frau Schwabach; Dr Lucius, Frau Lucius and Fraulein Lucius; Count Herbert Bismarck, 1888; Count Szechenyi, ambassador of Austria-Hungary, and Countess Szechenyi; Count Paul Schouvaloff, ambassador of Russia, and Countess Schouvaloff; Lady Ermyntrude Malet, wife of the English ambassador; Count Benomar, ambassador of Spain, and Countess Benomar and daughter; Le Baron de Jauru, envoy of the Emperor of Brazil, and his wife; Madame de Lima; Count de Penafiel, 1888; Countess Marie de Penafiel, 1888; Marquis de Penafiel, envoy of the King of Portugal; Mr Alexander Crosby, Second Secretary of the Legation of the United States of America; Mrs Pendleton; Madame van Weede.

Also includes faded photographs of the castle and lakes at Potsdam; Sans Souci, Potsdam; on the road to Charlottenburg, Thiergarten, Berlin; Bastei Brucke [Bridge], Saxon Switzerland.

498/1/42 comprises loose photographs of the German and Greek royal families and court, 1885-1904, including:
Queen Sophie of Greece, daughter of the Emperor and Empress Frederick of Prussia; two pictures of Queen Victoria posing with the Emperor and Empress Frederick; also photographic copies of five photographs of Kaiser Wilhelm I (including one of his funeral) and Prince Bismarck.

498/1/ Correspondence concerning the posthumous dispersal of Arthur Leveson Gower's papers 1945-1968

498/2/ CAROLINE FREDERICA LEVESON GOWER (NÉE FOLJAMBE): NOTEBOOKS AND PERSONAL PAPERS 1877-1896
Caroline Frederica Foljambe (1850-1895) married Arthur Leveson Gower in 1881. She died in 1895 leaving four young children (see general introduction for details). For records of the domestic arrangements and housekeeping of Arthur and Caroline Leveson Gower's household, see Harriet Messenger's papers below.

498/2/ Personal papers 1877-1896

498/2/ Printed books 1857-1918

498/2/ Watercolours c.1872-1895
The following watercolours were painted by Caroline Frederica Leveson Gower. Most are initialled and dated by her. Where it has been possible to identify the location represented (attribution supplied by the depositor), dates have been provided for the remainder, based on information known about her husband's posting to a particular region.

Includes: Wellhorn and Wetterhorn; Petropolis, Brazil; Vienna, view from Kahlenberg, Austria; view of Kahlenberg; Putbus Circus, Isle of Rugen, Germany; a gentian plant, painted in Switzerland; Homburg von der Hohe with Feldberg, Germany, showing the church, castle and synagogue; Lutheran church at Wiesbaden from the Gartenstrasse, Germany; study of autumn leaves, possibly executed in Homburg von der Hohe, Germany; views from the sands looking west at Wentworth Lodge and Hengistbury Head, [Dorset], and the Needles, Isle of Wight

498/3/ WILLIAM GEORGE GRESHAM LEVESON GOWER (1883-1918), BARRISTER AND CLERK TO THE HOUSE OF LORDS: PERSONAL PAPERS 1902-1919
Arthur's eldest son, William George Gresham Leveson Gower attended Eton College and Christ Church as his father had before him. He trained as a barrister and prior to 1914 was employed as a Clerk to the House of Lords. He joined up when war was declared and attained the rank of Lieutenant in the Coldstream Guards. He was killed in action on 9 Oct 1918 and is buried at Awoingt War Cemetery, Normandy, France. His diaries and related papers have been deposited with the House of Lords Record Office.

498/4/ EMILY LEVESON GOWER AND VICTORIA LEVESON GOWER: PAINTINGS AND PERSONAL PAPERS 1881-1962
Arthur had two daughters, Emily (b.1884) and Victoria Leveson Gower (1887-1984). Empress Frederick of Prussia (formerly Crown Princess Victoria of Great Britain) was godmother to Victoria Leveson Gower.

498/4/ Printed book 1881-1899

498/5/ CAROLINE LEVESON GOWER (1842-1911): PERSONAL DIARIES 1871-1876
Caroline Leveson Gower (1842-1911) was Arthur's elder sister. They were very close: he called her 'Caddy' and, after their mother's death in 1872, the two moved into their aunt's house, Leveson Lodge, Clapham. Caroline did not write entries every day, but she did use her diaries to record her social and domestic engagements. The first diary contains entries relating to Caroline's tour of France in Jul-Aug 1871 (498/2/1). The diaries have been annotated by Victoria Leveson Gower with explanations of family reference; and other useful information.

498/6/ HARRIET MESSENGER (1848-1933): PERSONAL PAPERS AND BOOKS 1865-1894
Harriet Messenger (1848-1933), known to the Leveson Gowers as 'Gar', was companion and nanny to the family until 1905. She appears to have begun as maid to Caroline Foljambe and accompanied her mistress to the Leveson Gowers upon the latter's marriage in 1881.

498/6/ Personal papers 1865-1894

498/6/ Printed books 1862-1931

498/7/ KATHERINE HOPE (NEE LEVESON GOWER) (1805-1880): PHOTOGRAPH AND BOOK 1846-c.1870
Katherine Hope (née Leveson Gower) was the elder sister of William Leveson Gower, of Titsey Place, Limpsfield, and aunt to Arthur Francis Gresham Leveson Gower. She married Capt George Hope, RN, on 23 Apr 1845. The couple lived at Ormonde Lodge, Southborough, Kent (for painting, see 498/4/5).

498/8/ RONALD LEVESON GOWER (1863-1889): LETTERS 1887
Letters written by Ronald Leveson Gower, (1863-1889), nephew of Arthur Leveson Gower, printed for private circulation by Warren & Son, Winchester, 1893, as a memorial to him apparently at the insistence of his mother, Sophie Leveson Gower. The pages were uncut at the time of deposit but have since been cut to facilitate its use.

Ronald wrote these letters to his family whilst travelling in India, Japan and America. It appears he took the journey to recover from an unhappy romance. He frequently comments on the social conditions, flora and fauna of the various countries. There is a vivid account of a tiger hunt in India, and in America he gives a graphic account of the Chicago stockyards and was very impressed with Niagara Falls.

498/9/ SIR GEORGE LEVESON GOWER (1858-1951): LETTERS AND BOOKS 1885-1955
Sir George Leveson Gower (1858-1951) was a distant cousin to whom Victoria wrote in 1944, upon the death of his daughter Iris Palmer. Victoria, Sir George and his wife, Lady Cecily, subsequently corresponded about various historical and family matters. Sir George had been Gladstone's private secretary in the early years of his distinguished parliamentary career. He later wrote his memoirs: Years of Content (1940) and Years of Endeavour (1942).

498/10/ IRIS LEVESON GOWER (1899-1944): BOOK 1944
Under her maiden name, Iris wrote The Face Without a Frown, a biography of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, her great-great-grandmother. Iris was married to Richard Lodge Palmer.

498/11/ LEVESON GOWER FAMILY: GENEALOGICAL PEDIGREES AND FAMILY TREES c.1765-1902

498/12/ PAINTINGS AND PHOTOGRAPHS c.1850-1936

Arthur Francis Gresham Leveson Gower (1851-1922) was the youngest of the seven children of William Leveson Gower (1806-1860) of Titsey Place, Limpsfield, and his wife Emily (née Doyle). For genealogical information and family pedigrees, see 498/11/-.

Arthur was only nine when his father died in 1860 and his elder brother Granville (1838-1895), who succeeded to the Titsey estate, seems to have been a father figure to him. He was similarly close to his sister Caroline, know as Cass, and, after their mother's death in 1872, Arthur lived with her at Leveson Lodge, Clapham.

Leveson Lodge was a family property formerly owned by Arthur's aunt, Miss Fanny Leveson Gower, and left for the use of unmarried girls in the family. The house was sold in 1883 when the area's reputation declined; Caroline afterwards lived with her sister, Emily, at Limpsfield. The only other unmarried sister was Mary (1836-1908) who, according to Victoria Leveson Gower, 'lived at Reading with a companion (Mrs May) on account of mental disability' (annotation, 13 September 1879, 498/1/7).

After graduating as a BA from Christ Church, Oxford, in 1874, Arthur joined first the Foreign Office and then, in 1876, the diplomatic service. He served in Constantinople [Turkey], 1877-1879; as 3rd Secretary in Rio de Janeiro [Brazil], 1879-1883; 2nd Secretary in Vienna [Austria], 1884; Berlin [Germany], 1885-1888; Berne [Switzerland], 1888-1892; Belgrade [Serbia], 1893; as Secretary of the Legation in Athens [Greece], 1895-1899; and as Chargé d'Affaires in the Hague [Holland], 1899-1905.

In 1881, he married Caroline Frederica Foljambe, the daughter of George Foljambe of Osberton, Nottinghamshire, and Selina, Viscountess Milton. The couple had four children: William (1883-1918), Emily (born 1884), Victoria (1887-1984) and Osbert (born 1888). When Caroline died in 1895, Arthur continued to bring up the children himself.

The Leveson Gowers were on friendly terms with Queen Victoria's eldest daughter, the Empress Frederick of Prussia (formerly Crown Princess Victoria of Great Britain), who was godmother to Victoria Leveson Gower. The Empress' daughter Sophie married Crown Prince Constantine of Greece in 1889 (reigned as Constantine I, 1913-1917 and 1920-1922), and was thus in Greece while Arthur was Secretary of the Legation in Athens, 1895-1899.

His elder sister Caroline, died in 1911. Two years later, Arthur bought Hadleigh House, in Sheet Street, Windsor. He had it restored and moved into it in 1916. He also purchased and restored the Mechanics' Institute, Windsor, ultimately converting it into a dwelling house (see obituary, Ascot & District Advertiser, 1922, ref: 498/4/10). Having retired in 1908, he was thus able to pursue his long-standing interest in antiquarian matters that he shared with his brother, Granville. He remained active until his death in 1922 although it is clear that he apparently never fully recovered from the death of his eldest son in 1918 and his final years appear to have been overshadowed by many family difficulties.

Unfortunately, relatively few papers relating to his later life and interests appear to have survived.

There are no access restrictions.

Deposited by Victoria Leveson Gower, daughter of Arthur Francis Gresham Leveson Gower, in 1969.

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

For Victoria Leveson Gower's baptism certificate and her sister, Emily's birth certificate, see 2423. For copy of the will of William Leveson Gower, 1859, see CC84. For estate papers of the Leveson Gower family of Titsey Place, Limpsfield, 1542-1948, see 2186 and 3403. For family papers, 1838-1947, see 4663.

Arthur Leveson Gower's eldest son, William George Gresham (1883-1918), was a barrister and clerk at the House of Lords. His personal papers, 1890-1920, are held at the House of Lords Record Office. The papers of his youngest son, Osbert Charles Gresham (1888-1868), Commander RN, are held at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. They cover the period 1893 to 1968.

Bygone Years, recollections of F Leveson Gower (John Murray, London, 1905).
Estate Management in 18th Century England: the building of the Leveson Gower fortune, JR Wordie (Royal Historical Society, 1982). Relates to the Shropshire estates.
Miscellanea Heraldica and Genealogica, September 1911, ed. W Bruce Bannerman (Mitchell, Hughes & Clarke, 1911). Includes article on the Leveson Gower family.