The National Archives 
In Their Own Words 
Letters from History

The way we communicate has changed. Today, many of our interactions are digital, but until recently writing letters was the norm. Drawing from over 100 miles of records held at the UK“s official government archive, The National Archives at Kew, this collection of letters, postcards and telegraphs will shine a spotlight on a range of significant historical moments and occurrences, recapturing a lost world in which correspondence was king.





The book includes letters from: Queen Elizabeth I, Oscar Wilde, Charles Kray, “Jack the Ripper“, the Captain of the Titanic, Edward Smith, as well as the “real Charlotte Gray“ spy, Christine Granville, amongst others.





Topics covered in the collection are both British and international, including:

Anne Boleyn“s adultery, the Gunpowder Plot, mad King George III“s military campaign in the New World, Captain Cook being the first European to set foot in Australia, a soldier“s view of life in the trenches, the experience of a special agent during World War II and Nelson Mandela“s trial, amongst others.



The book features approximately 60 letters, each with a 600 word essay, and a 3000 word introduction. There are around 120 images in the book: 60 of the letters themselves, and a further 60 supplementary images.