Sutton Place Déjeuner du 8 Juin 1909
Sutton Place, Guildford, Surrey: [Lord & Lady Northcliffe], 1909. [Lord and Lady Northcliffe]
Menu
[Menu] Sutton Place Déjeuner du 8 Juin 1909. (140x90mm) heavy stiff cream card, all edges gilt, gilt titled and printed to one side, with 13 autographs to the verso in pencil
[Lord and Lady Northcliffe]
[Menu] Sutton Place Déjeuner du 8 Juin 1909
(140x90mm) heavy stiff cream card, all edges gilt, gilt titled and printed to one side, with thirteen autographs to the verso in pencil. Stiff, crisp, recto faintly soiled.
In June 1909 the first Imperial Press Conference was held in London bringing together publishers and journalists from across the British Empire to discuss the functions of the press in the Empire. This led to the creation of the Empire Press Union, which later became the Commonwealth Press Union. The conference was a week long and country wide event. In addition to the formal conference events there were a number of social engagements.
Lord Northcliffe (Alfred Harmsworth 1865-1922) was a British newspaper and publishing magnate. He owned the Daily Mirror, the Daily Mirror and The Amalgamated Press amongst many other publishing assets and was a dominant figure in popular journalism and publishing during the Edwardian era. He participated widely in the conference and was active in the ensuing Empire Press Union which later become the Commonwealth Press Union.
On the 9th June after the resumption of the Conference at the Foreign Office, the delegates went by special train to Northcliffe's leased estate Sutton Place, Guildford in Surrey where they were his guests for lunch. Sutton Place is a Grade I listed Tudor Mansion constructed during the time of Henry VIII [ca.1525].
The guests who signed the menu were: Viscount Esher, The Marchioness of Salisbury (wife of the British Statesman and member of the Queen's Court), the Lady Clementine Waring, Earl Roberts (Commander in Chief of the Armies) , Lord Desborough (politician), Mr Gerald Balfour (politician), Mr George Alexander (the English stage actor and producer), Mr Owen Seamen (the publisher of Punch, poet and journalist), Mr Charles Russell, Walter Lawrence (British and Indian Statesman), Mr Herbert Beerbohm Tree (actor, director and theatre manager) and their host Lady Mary Northcliffe. One signature could not be identified
A rare ephemeral item illustrating the confluence of class, politics, journalism, the arts and publishing during the Edwardian period and the importance of social occasions in earnest meetings of delegates from across the British Empire.
Item #10628
Price: $350.00 AUD