Enclosure – RG Summary of 1938

1938 [sic: 1939]

at La Chevrie, Montauban: rented from Countess de Kerouallan at £40 a year finished[RG]
Present: Laura, me, Dorothy, Beryl, Alan – two girls Leonie & Marie: Sidonie helping from the village.[RG]
Relations: good.
Health: good.
Work: Dictionary of Exact Meanings: contract not yet signed but general understanding with Dent & Little Brown. Laura generally supervising, Alan & I sorting out (about 25,000) words for definition – have about 17,000 so far – arranging them in groups. The Swiss Ghost. Constable has option. Laura & I have done all but 3 chapters, thoroughly. Of these three I have written out rough draft of 2¼. T.E. Lawrence to his Biographers: U.S. [United States] edition published on Dec 21, English follows on Jan 12.
Dorothy still working on a wooden sculpture of a ×××× [indecipherable] head1 & a wheel.
Alan. Dictionary: a book on journeys and[RG] revising Year of Damage written 2 years ago
Beryl Typing, looking after cats.[RG] (No-no & Bellamy) & hedgehog
Laura: Doing last section of Lives of Wives for Cassell & Random House. One scene still to do on dramatic version of Trojan Ending2 which I roughed out for her. Half-way through a children's story about a little girl who read to an old woman: for collaborative book of which I have written 'The Castle-Keeper'
Various Epilogue things. Going over last chapter for David Reeves of book on furniture which they have done together
Books on Poets & Schools (in which Alan & I, respectively, did most of the rough work) being coaxed along. The Left Heresy to be shortly published by Methuen. Harry Kemp, Laura (Alan & I a little.)
Rimbaud translation, with Norman
Publications last year (1938)
Laura
Self.
Laura & Len. Pamplet about Len3
Laura & others. Protocol One
Spanish War
Government hold Valencia, Barcelona, Madrid: have sent back4 foreign volunteers. Franco with German & Italian help is attacking Catalonia: for the severalth time, & losing heavily in a counter attack. Chamberlain is preparing to go to Rome & ×××× with Mussolini.
Protocol. About 70 people have endorsed it; in U.S.A. [United States of America] & England.
Friends: nearest always are John & Lucy, James & Mary, David, Tom, Julie, Isabel Len & Jane, Sally
Norman has got further away since he married Catherine. Honor has drifted away from negligence; Maisie because she could not endorse the Protocol.
Other friends are: Schuyler Jackson, George & Mary Buchanan, Albert Mills, Liddell Hart, Ward & Dorothy Hutchinson, Alix & Harry Kemp.
children: Sam at St Christophers5
Catherine at Farm House, Wendover
David at Jesus6 Camb
Jenny at Liverpool Playhouse
Our Money: about £200 in hand & £400 due when Laura finishes lif[RG] Lives of Wives + £1000 (minus) four months later.
Our Debts A few £s to Watt not yet covered by royalties; £125 to Chatto, less sales of World & Ourselves.

Editorial Notes

1deaths' head, i.e. a skull; one of L.R.'s rebases[?]: i.e. a single meaning is to be conveyed by an assemblage of various parts KG
4i.e. home KG
5St. Christopher's school, Letchworth eds.
6Jesus College, Cambridge University eds.

Hands Referenced

    • Annotation: ink correction
    • Character: regular
    • Ink: black

Places Mentioned

  • Montauban

    Montauban-de-la-Bretagne, Brittany, France

  • Liverpool

    Liverpool, England

  • Château de la Chevrie

    Montauban-de-la-Bretagne, Brittany, France
    translating as "Venison Castle," La Chevrie was manor of an estate that RG & LR rented with Alan Hodge and Beryl Pritchard during their stay in France in 1938

  • Valencia

    Valencia, Valencia, Spain
    City on East coast of Spain eds.

  • Barcelona

    Catalunya, Spain
    Located on the Mediterranean coast. eds.

  • Madrid

    Madrid, New Castile, Spain
    Capital city of Spain eds.

  • Catalonia

    Catalonia, Spain

  • Rome

    Italy

  • Cambridge [University]

    Cambridge, England
    University attended by RG's son David. eds.

People Mentioned

  • Alan

    Hodge, Alan
    Oxford history graduate. Became close friends with LR & RG. First husband of Beryl Graves. CP & WG

  • Laura

    Riding, Laura
    (1901-91) American poet. Laura Riding (née Reichenthal; then Laura Gottschalk).

  • David Reeves

    Reeves, David
    Brother of James Reeves [and Ethel Herdman] RPG 292.

  • Dorothy

    Simmons, Dorothy
    Sculptor associated with the Graves-Riding inner circle (1938-39). Married to Montague Simmons. eds

  • Beryl

    Pritchard, Beryl
    daughter of Harry and Amy Pritchard, R.G.'s second wife. Formerly married to Alan Hodge. Robert and Beryl had four children: William, Lucia, Juan and Tomas. eds

  • Countess

    Kerellouan, Comptesse de
    landowner of Château de la Chevrie in Montauban, France eds.

  • Leonie

    Léonie
    servant at La Chevrie eds.

  • Marie

    Marie
    servant at La Chevrie eds.

  • Julie

    Matthews, Julie
    Tom Matthews' wife. WG

  • Aldridge

    Aldridge, John
    (1905-1983), painter and close friend and collaborator. WG m. to Lucie Brown 1940 eds.

  • Schuyler Jackson

    Jackson, Schuyler
    American poet who became Laura Riding's second husband. Graves and Riding stayed with Jackson, his wife Katharine ("Kit"), and his family on their farm in Pennsylvania in 1939. It was here that the partnership between R.G. and L.R. came to an end. eds

  • Isabel

    Mayers, Isabel
    Laura Riding's sister. Lived in L.A. WG

  • Jenny

    Nicholson, Jenny
    Jenny Nicholson: oldest daughter of Robert by Nancy Nicholson.

  • Robert

    Graves, Robert
    [1st person]. (1895-1985). Poet, novelist, essayist, critic, and author of his diary. eds.

  • David

    Graves, David
    R.G.'s second child [by Nancy Nicholson]. W.G. In RAF; killed in the war. The only one of Graves' children who might have become a poet had he lived. K.G., eds.

  • Catherine

    Nicholson, Catherine
    Catherine Nicholson: (1922- ) third of four children of Robert Graves and Nancy Nicholson. eds.

  • Chamberlain

    Chamberlain, Neville
    (1869-1940) British Prime Minister in the 1930s; m. to Anne Chamberlain née Cole eds.

  • Franco

    Franco, General
    Spanish General; led the Nationalist forces against the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War; Spanish Head of State from 1939-1969.

  • Alix Kemp

    Kemp, Alix
    Married to poet Harry Kemp. The couple shared a house with Graves and Riding in Ewhurst, Surrey (1937). eds (RPG 277); also referred to as Frau Eierman by RG eds. see Diary August 30, 1936

  • Liddell Hart

    Liddell Hart, Capt. Basil
    War-fare expert and friend of T.E. Lawrence. Collaborated with RG on a book of T.E.L'.s letters, published in 1938. See RPG p.231. WG & Eds.

  • Mme Loyard

    Loyard, Madame
    woman from Montaubon, worked for RG & LR at La Chevrie eds.

  • Harry Kemp

    Kemp, Harry
    Poet. Met Graves and Riding through James Reeves in August 1936, just after their arrival in England. In their previous correspondence, Riding had been intrigued by his falling-out with Communism. He became associated with their circle, collaborating on various projects. (RPG 248-49)

  • Norman Cameron

    Cameron, Norman
    Poet. Built Can Torrent in 1932-1933. W.G.; m. to Elfriede, then to Catherine Vandervelde; friend and contributor to LR and RG's work eds.

  • Len

    Lye, Len
    New Zealand painter, sculptor, and filmmaker whom LR & RG had met in London. He helped with the Seizin Press publications. WG; married to Jane Lye, son Bix. eds.

  • Mussolini

    Mussolini, Benito
    (1883-1945) Fascist dictator ( "IL DUCE") of Italy from 1922-1943. eds.

  • Lucie

    Brown, Lucie
    Married artist John Aldridge. eds.

  • James

    Reeves, James
    Schoolmaster, writer and Poet. Friend of Jacob Bronowski. W.G./ K.G.; m. to Mary Phillips; daughter Stella born June 14, 1938 eds.

  • Mary

    Reeves, Mary
    wife of James Reeves; daughter Stella born 14 June, 1938 eds.

  • Tom

    Matthews, T.S.(Tom)
    American journalist. Took sabbatical from TIME and arrived in Deyá in 1930. Involved from then on with L.R. and R.G. WG

  • Jane

    Lye, Jane
    Married to New Zealand artist/ film-maker Len Lye; son Bix Lye. Friends with R.G. and L.R. Visited Graves and Riding in Majorca (1930), where Jane provided secretarial assistance. eds (RPG 138).

  • Sally

    Graves, Sally
    R.G.'s niece. Daughter of his half-brother Philip. KG

  • Catherine Vandervelde

    Vandervelde, Catherine
    one of Korda's scriptwriters; friend of RG and LR, met at Denham studios; contributor to World and Ourselves; married Norman Cameron in September, 1938. eds. Diary, and Friedmann 302

  • Honor

    Wyatt, Honor
    Journalist. Arrived in Deyá fortuitously. Married to Gordon Glover...Son Julian. W.G. First acquainted with R.G. and L.R. early in 1934; returned to visit in 1935; continued friendship in England. eds (RPG 211).

  • Maisie

    Sommerville, Maisie
    Head of BBC Education broadcasting department. Friend of R.G. and L.R. Arranged accomodation for them when they returned to London as exiles. W.G., eds.

  • George Buchanan

    Buchanan, George
    drama critic KG; friend of RG and contributor to the World and Ourselves; wife Mary eds. Friedmann 307-8

  • Mary Buchanan

    Buchanan, Mary
    m. to George Buchanan eds.

  • Mills

    Mills, Mr.
    an antique seller and friend of RG, and contributor to the Covenant of Literary Morality eds.; of Paddington Street, Marylebone KG

  • Ward

    Hutchinson, Ward
    Photographer. Contibuted to"Epilogue." W.G. R.G. often refers to "the Hutchinsons" (Ward & Dorothy) as a couple especially when they were staying on the island. eds.

  • Dorothy

    Hutchinson, Dorothy
    Ward Hutchinson's wife. WG

  • Sam

    Graves, Samuel
    R.G.'s youngest child by Nancy Nicholson. C.P.& WG

Organizations Mentioned

  • Cassell and Company Ltd.

    Publishers of Robert Graves' Collected Poems [1938], and the novel Count Belisarius [1938].

  • J.M. Dent & Sons

    Dent, J.M.
    Publishing house founded in 1888 and absorbed by Nicholson in 1988 eds.

  • Little, Brown & Co.

    Little, Brown & Co.
    Publisher in Boston who agreed to take on LR's Dictionary of Related Meanings in 1938 eds.

  • Constable & Co., Ltd.

    Constable
    Constable Publishers. Arranged with them to print and distribute Seizin Press Epilogue and books. WG

  • Random House

    American publishers (New York) eds.

  • Methuen Publishing

    Methuen Publishing
    Publisher of Harry Kemp's The Left Heresy eds.

  • Chatto & Windus

    Chatto & Windus
    publishers of The World and Ourselves eds.

  • A.S. Watt & Son, Ltd.

    Watt, A.S.
    RG's literary agent: first mentioned in November, 1935; team includes: Alexander Strahan Watt, and W.P. Watt et al, who may have handled different aspects of Graves' extensive European publishing and distribution. The firm replaced Eric Pinker. K.G. When did Pinker go, and why? KG

  • Editors

    Editors of the Graves Diary Project.

Bibliography

    • Title: Dictionary [projected project; unfinished]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • Date: 1935
    • Title: Trojan Ending [dramatised version based on Laura Riding's book; later called Greeks and Trojans]
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • Date: 1938-01
    • Title: Lives of Wives [prose]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell and Co. Ltd.
    • Idno: A39
    • Date: 1939
    • Title: The Swiss Ghost [formerly The Kind Ghost] [novel]
    • Author: Graves, Robert/ Riding, Laura
    • Date: 1937-04-22
    • Title: Collected Poems [1938]
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell and Co. Ltd
    • Idno: A48
    • Date: 1938
    • Title: T.E. Lawrence to His Biographer
    • Author: Lawrence, T.E.
    • Editor: Graves, Robert
    • PubPlace: New York
    • Publisher: Doubleday, Doran & Co., Inc.
    • Idno: A49
    • Date: 1938
    • Title: Year of Damage [novel]
    • Author: Hodge, Alan
    • Date: 1936-12
    • Title: Trojan Ending, A [novel]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Deyá & London
    • Publisher: Seizin & Constable
    • Date: 1937
    • Title: Castle-Keeper, The [children's story; unpublished?]
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • Date: 1938-10-30
    • Title: Furniture: An Explanatory History
    • Author: Reeves, David
    • Editor: [Riding, Laura]
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: Faber
    • Date: 1947
    • Title: Poets [prose]
    • Author: Graves, Robert/ Riding Laura
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • Title: Schools [an international survey of education]
    • Author: Graves, Robert; Riding, Laura
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • Title: The Left Heresy in Literature and Life [the essay "Politics and Poetry" comprises the closing section of this book.(RPG 278) eds.]
    • Author: Kemp, Harry/ Riding, Laura/ others
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: Methuen
    • Idno: B29
    • Date: 1939
    • Title: Selected Verse Poems of Arthur Rimbaud
    • Author: Rimbaud, Arthur trans. Cameron, Norman [with Laura Riding]
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: [?]
    • Date: 1942
    • Title: The World and Ourselves [former title: Letter Book]
    • Author: Riding, Laura [contributor; with Sally Graves, Sir Edward Marsh et al]
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: Chatto & Windus
    • Date: 1938-11
    • Title: Collected Poems [1938]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell and Co. Ltd
    • Idno: A35
    • Date: 1938
    • Title: Count Belisarius [1938]
    • Author: Graves, Robert
    • PubPlace: London
    • Publisher: Cassell
    • Idno: A47
    • Date: 1937-07-21
    • Title: Len Lye and the Problem of Popular Films [pamphlet; see Wexler xi]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Seizin Press
    • Publisher: London
    • Idno: N/A
    • Date: 1938
    • Title: Covenant of Literal Morality, The [subtitle Protocol I; privately printed]
    • Author: Aldridge, John, Dorothy Hutchinson, Lucie Brown, Ward Hutchinson, George Buchanan, Alix Kemp, Mary Buchanan, Hary Kemp, Norman Cameron, Len Lye, Gordon Glover, Albert Mills, Robert Graves, Mary Phillips, Sally Graves, Beryl Pritchard, Liddell Hart, David
    • Editor: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: Bristol
    • Publisher: Western Printing Services Ltd.
    • Idno: A37
    • Date: 1938