I have unearthed a concise, though interesting letter dated the 8th February, 1977, from the Estate Office, Ely Lodge Estate, Enniskillen, County Fermanagh.
It was written by Charles Plunket (Major Charles Plunket MBE UD DL), the 5th Duke of Westminster's land agent at the time.
He wrote to me on behalf of the Duke.
Even in 1977 (when I was 17 years old) I was passionate about country houses and heritage.
Click on the images to enlarge them.
First published in August, 2018.
Tim, I was also a letter writer in my teens. I had a postcard from Sintra in Portugal from the Duke of Bedford in reply to a letter I sent. I also (later) had a reply from the current Duke of Devonshire (signed Stoker Devonshire) after I wrote to him about a proposed disruptive hovercraft that was threatened on the River Blackwater in Co Waterford. I had a letter from Lady Susan Hussey after I wrote to tell the Queen how much her visit to the Republic of Ireland meant. And I was very pleased that Dame Agatha Christie wrote me a lovely handwritten two page letter after I sent her an appreciation of her books and had admired her house above the River Dart. I was very excited, and somehow it made me realise I wasn't just living in my imagination!
ReplyDeleteTexting and emailing has made us lazier, in a sense. I only tend to write "thank-you" letters today.
ReplyDelete