Carver manuscripts

The archive is composed principally of the papers of Richard Wellesley II and his mother, with some for his father, brothers and sister, and for his own children, including: Hyacinthe Roland, later Marchioness Wellesley: correspondence 1792-5, 1797-1816, with copies of her letters to Richard, Marquis Wellesley, in India and at London, and his letters to her (MS 63/17-32). Papers of Richard, Marquis Wellesley: including correspondence with Richard II, political notes, c.1809-12, some made for Parliament or for debates, notes on the grievances of Spain and her colonies, together with notes made as ambassador to Spain, 1809, notes on relations with the United States of America, 1811-12 (MS 63/7-8); correspondence with General Francisco de Miranda and Simon Bolivar, 1810-12, and the Duque del Infantado, 1812 (MS 63/9); letters from Madame de Stad, post 1812 (MS 63/10); accounts and financial papers, 1796-1816; household accounts for Apsley House, 1802-18 (MS 63/15). Papers of Richard Wellesley II: including correspondence with his father, 1807-30 (MS 63/34, 45), his mother and his sisters, Hyacinthe and Anne, 1808-28 (MS 63/35-6); political correspondence with E.J.Littleton, 1827-8 (MS 63/41-2); general political correspondence, 1804-26 (MS 63/43-6); correspondence with Stratford Canning, 1808-28 (MS 63/47); correspondence with the first Duke of Wellington and Wellington's correspondence with Richard II's wife, 1809-42 (MS 63/45, 65); papers relating to Spain, 1809, to Venezuela and the Spanish colonies, c.1810, including correspondence with Simon Bolivar, 1810, Francisco de Miranda, 1810-11, the Duque del Infantado, 1811, and Blanco White, c.1809-10 (MS 63/46, 48, 49); letters from Spencer Perceval, 1811-12 (MS 63/51); notebook on events in Spain and Portugal, 1809-10 (MS 63/53); and a political diary, 1810-14 (MS 63/54).

The Carver manuscripts contain papers of the family of Richard Wellesley, first Marquis Wellesley (1760-1842), the eldest son of Garret Wesley, first Earl of Mornington, and Anne Hill, and the elder brother of Arthur Wellesley, first Duke of Wellington. Wellesley was Governor General of India, 1797-1805, and Commander-in-Chief, 1800-5, during which period he effected the complete destruction of the empire of Mysore. He was created Marquis Wellesley in 1799. He was British ambassador to Spain, 1809, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, December 1809 to 1812, and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 1821-8 and 1833-4. He married his mistress Hyacinthe Gabrielle Roland (1760-1816), in 1794, having already had several children by her. Hyacinthe did not join Wellesley in India and, when Hyacinthe died in 1816, they had been separated for many years. Wellesley subsequently married Marianne Patterson. Richard, Marquis Wellesley, and Hyacinthe Roland had five children. Richard II (1787-1831), the eldest, became a Member of Parliament and acted as his father's private secretary on embassy and at the Foreign Office. He married Jane Chambers. Anne (1788-1875) gained notoriety on leaving her first husband Sir William Abdy, Baronet, and eloping with Lord Charles Bentinck, MS 63/78-88, who became her second husband. Hyacinthe (1789-1846) married Edward Littleton, Member of Parliament for Stafford and subsequently first Baron Hatherton. The two youngest children were Gerald (1790-1833) and Henry (1794-1866), who married Charlotte Mackenzie.

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