Brief guide to manuscripts collections| William L. Clements Library The University of Michigan John Russell Papers |
John Russell became a member of Parliament in 1813. A champion of reform measures, he introduced the Reform Bill of 1832. He entered the cabinet as home secretary under Melbourne in 1835 and was later colonial secretary. When he became prime minister in 1846, he introduced measures for alleviating the condition of the Irish and the Jews. He resigned in 1851, returned to office, and resigned again the following year, although he continued in the cabinet. As foreign secretary under Palmerston, Russell maintained England's neutrality during the American Civil War. He became prime minister once again in 1865 but left public life in 1866.
Correspondence, essays, and memoranda of Lord John Russell, British statesman.
This collection contains 125 letters, 45 written by Russell to his father, the remainder addressed to Russell on political matters. There are notes and quotations for speeches; drafts and revisions of some of his historical writings; a draft of his preface to Tom Moore's diary; an essay on the trial of Warren Hastings; a list of peers created from 1264 to 1828, with each name checked to indicate whether the living nobleman generally supported or opposed Melbourne's ministry; and some notes on the state of representation, listing the districts, their size, population, and number of members in Parliament.
Purchased, 1927
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