Manuscript letter by George Grey to Hercules Robinson (Jameson Raid) March 1895.

Manuscript letter by George Grey to Hercules Robinson relating to the prelude of the Jameson Raid.

Sir George Grey

Written by one of the most prominent colonial governors in the history of the British Empire, Sir George Grey (1812–1898): Signed at the end as "G. Grey", this letter originates from 7 Park Place, St. James's, London, where Grey resided late in his life after leaving New Zealand and South Africa. Grey famously served as Governor of South Australia, Governor of New Zealand (twice), Governor of Cape Colony (South Africa), and later Prime Minister of New Zealand.

28 March 1895: Written during Grey's final return to England, the letter captures his thoughts just months before the Jameson Raid (December 1895) and four years before the outbreak of the Second Boer War (1899–1902), a critical turning point in South African history.

The "Robinson" addressed in this letter is almost certainly Sir Hercules Robinson (later 1st Baron Rosmead), making the letter an extraordinary piece of personal political correspondence between two of the most influential figures in late 19th-century British colonial history.

Sir Hercules Robinson

Sir Hercules Robinson served as Governor of the Cape Colony and High Commissioner for Southern Africa during two critical periods, 1881–1889 and 1895–1897.

In early 1895, the British government decided to reappoint Robinson to a second term as High Commissioner in South Africa. Sir George Grey’s letter, written on 28 March 1895 from London, directly coincides with the precise weeks when Robinson's reappointment was being finalized and publicly debated in the UK and Cape Colony.

Context of Their Correspondence

Shared Legacy in South Africa: Both Sir George Grey and Sir Hercules Robinson served in the premier colonial positions in South Africa; Grey as Governor of Cape Colony (1854–1861) and Robinson following in his footsteps decades later.

The 1895 Reappointment & Re-perusing Plans: Grey writes in this letter:

"I have been in Europe, and am only now beginning to return to some energy... Your letter was most interesting. I have just been re-perusing it..."

This directly references the correspondence surrounding Robinson's return to South Africa in 1895 to manage the mounting political tensions between the British imperial authorities, the Boer Republics, and Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company.

Shared Concern over Commercial Imperialism: In the letter, Grey expresses his sharp criticism of chartered companies governing South Africa for shareholder profit. Robinson took office again in South Africa in May 1895, just months before the ill-fated Jameson Raid (December 1895) launched by Rhodes's associates, a disaster Robinson was forced to manage.

Critique of Imperial Chartered Companies: In the text, Grey strongly criticizes the prevailing system of governance in South Africa, directly targeting corporate imperial rule (such as Cecil Rhodes’s British South Africa Company):

"...instead of the interests of South Africa... being governed by a few away in South Africa, or by a Company with shareholders in a foreign country who care for nothing but their dividends..."

Advocacy for Self-Governance: Grey argues passionately that the people of South Africa themselves, not distant financiers or corporate interests, should control their own destiny, reflecting his visionary (and often controversial) views on self-rule and federation.

110mm x 180mm (closed).

Age toned; writing offset; general rubbing.

R15,000