Supreme Allied Commander in Southeast Asia, British statesman and uncle of Prince Philip; he was killed by an IRA bomb in 1979. This archive is a great complement to any Mountbatten collection. It includes: four Lord Mountbatten TLSs all written in the mid to late-1970s concerning a book which is being written by a gentleman named Virgil, accompanied by a photo reproduction of Mountbatten with Eisenhower (as described in one of the letters), a handsome matte-finish portrait of Lord Mountbatten in uniform, signed “Mountbatten of Burma, A.F. 1965” in the border beneath the image. One of the TLSs (to Virgil), reads, in part: “I remember congratulating General Eisenhower very much indeed on his extremely courageous and correct decision to launch Overlord on June 6th in spite of the very tricky forecast...” Also included is a very impressive one-page leaf taken from Princess Victoria’s autograph album with the heading “Windsor Castle, Jan. 1903,” with the signatures Earl Mountbatten’s mother, grandmother, and two elder sisters, one of whom is the mother of the current Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Signatures on the leaf include: Princess Alice of Battenberg (1885-1969), daughter of Princess Victoria Battenberg of Hesse and Prince Louis of Battenberg, who married Prince Andrew of Greece, father of Prince Philip of Greece (Mountbatten), the current Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Victoria Eugenie (Ena) of Battenberg or Queen Ena of Spain (1887-1969), daughter of Princess Beatrice and Prince Henry of Battenberg, she married King Alfonso XIII of Spain; Princess Beatrice of Great Britain and Ireland (1857-1944), daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Great Britain, Empress of India and Prince Albert of Saxe-Cobug and Gotha, she married Prince Henry of Battenberg (brother of Prince Louis of Battenberg), mother of Princess Victoria Eugenie (Ena) of Battenberg; Princess Victoria Battenberg of Hesse (1863-1950), daughter of Princess Alice and Grand Duke Louis IV of Hesse and The Rhine, she married Prince Louis of Battenberg, mother of Princess Alice of Battenberg, Princess Louise of Battenberg and Lord Louis Mountbatten (Earl Mountbatten of Burma); Princess Louise of Battenberg (Lady Louise Mountbatten, also Queen of Sweden), (1889-1965), daughter of Princess Victoria Battenberg of Hesse and Prince Louis of Batttenberg. Wonderful associations! Also included, a TLS, written a few months before his death, which reads, in part: “...I took the opportunity of a good talk with Winston Churchill…He said to me ‘You must lay down a set of rules and adhere to them otherwise you get into trouble…you should write forewords only to Operations which took place under your command or Military leaders who served under you. Do not stray outside this otherwise you will get yourself into trouble…I’m sure you will understand and forgive me and will have no difficulty in finding a really high-class person to write your foreword, preferably, I imagine, an American.” Also included are three pages of related genealogical charts. In overall fine condition, with paper clip impressions to letters, occasional crease or surface impressions. COA John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
