The Papers of Sir Ernest Mason Satow

Sir Ernest Mason Satow (1843–1929) was a legendary British diplomat, whose diplomatic career began from 1862 in Japan during its dramatic transformation from a feudal state to a modern nation, then continued to Thailand, Uruguay, Morocco, Japan again, and lastly China at the turn of the 20th century. This collection consists of Satow’s private, diplomatic and other correspondence, letter books, diaries and papers that cover a period of over 65 years. With the exception of a few drafts among those addressed to Lord Reay, the letters are all originals which appear to have been returned to Sir Ernest Satow after the death of their several recipients.