Admiral Blackler
My grandfather Admiral Blackler OBE wrote letters to his wife from 1889 until 1925,during their courtship which had its genesis in Victoria,British Columbia,where they met at an Officer's Ball,during the docking of his British ship in Canada,throughout his naval service,during which at one stage he was in charge of the ships censorship(hence some letters are uncensered war time records),until the closure of the collection .The letters are assiduously and beautifully handwritten,mostly on emboshed letter paper and show a man of extroadinary humble charism and humanity with great insight towards the problems of his age.I have 1,400 of his letters which extend throughout the War,talk of meetings with the then young Winston Churchill,contain the appenditures of court marshells in which he was bounden to participate as part of his naval duties and most exciting, squabbles and skullduggery among the Admirals.Most extraordinary to me are the descriptions of that other dark side of London and the the insight of the poor which he felt almost helpless against.I also have about 100 of my grandmothers responses during her traverse from Canada,during her exploration of London as a young excited bride to be, animated with extraordinary perceptions of a metroplolis at the heart of the know Empire and with the eyes of a new commer from one of its fringes.As she dashes and jaywalkes in front of the hansom cabs with her shocked Victorian Aunt Helen on the side walks it is easy to see her as the genesis of sparks of rebellion to appear in later generations.
28 Comments:
Thank you for all this interesting information. The letters are excellent. When will you put more up?
I think that this has somehow proliferated itself because the letters are on the other site.Maybe you can ulitise this space but writing about your grandfathers life and history or perhaps put your grandmothers replies on this site.
Excellent! Please could we have more?
I'm glad to say that I can now view the letters! They just appeared on the screen, below your opening summary. Finally! After several tries over a period of what is it? months? Now let me see if I can enlarge them so I can read them. this is an importnat project, not just for you personally, and for David, but for a much wder audience. I hope they can be published widel and achived where researchers of all kinds and qualities can find them.
As the copy editor of the Thomas and Jane Welsh Carlyle letters (for Edinburgh and Duke University Presses), I can attest to the value of letters as a fascinating and vauable resource. Read in sequence, they're better than any novel, and better too than many histories and biographies, in their voice, detail, and drama. Even the handwriting tells us something about this man's character and his world, orderly nd fluent as it is.
Just found out about these letters. Look like interesting documents. Would like to know more about them.
This is really fascinating. Thank you for this information. I love reading biographical accounts of peoples lives and what they have achieved.
Again do put some more lettersup they are all too enticing and entriging.What a lucky person to have such an exciting man as a grandfather,I bet he was an amazing man.
I also excellently like your granfathers letters which are in some way presented with less narrative by you but with the immediacy of your grandfathers own voice and a voice written there and then these letters just before the outbreak of the second world war and even wth a picture of the ship.Please publish as many as you can I would certainlt pushse the book if you published.
Enjoy reading this both the letters on the other and these
This is great !
A very interesting set of letters beautifully written.
Good letters.
Atlast you have put more letters on.They are quite amazing letters.
Very historically interesting
amazing indeed
Really amazing courage
Very interesting account.
Nice photo good life to recall
Amazing contents
Nice grandad to have
more more more
Very mu8ch enjoyed these letters.
Sorry I mean I very much enjoyed these lettrs indeed and please publish some more.
Good letters and narratives
Excellent
Interesting
This is an interesting blog. Thank you.
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