Collection GB 0064 MID - Middleton, Charles, Admiral, 1st Baron Barham (1726-1813)

Identity area

Reference code

GB 0064 MID

Title

Middleton, Charles, Admiral, 1st Baron Barham (1726-1813)

Date(s)

  • [1778-1806] (Creation)

Level of description

Collection

Extent and medium

Context area

Name of creator

Biographical history

Charles Middleton entered the navy as a captain's servant in 1741, was promoted a lieutenant in 1745 and post captain in 1758. In 1778 he became Comptroller of the Navy, a position he held until 1790. He was created a baronet in 1781 and, though holding a civil post, a rear-admiral in 1787, being made a vice-admiral in 1793 and admiral in 1795. In 1794-5 he was senior sea lord to Lord Spencer and in 1805-6, First Lord of the Admiralty. Between 1804 and 1807 he headed the Commission for revising and digesting the civil affairs of the navy, being made a peer in May 1805 on accepting the appointment as First Lord.

Archival history

GB 0064 MID [1778-1806] Collection

Middleton , Charles , 1726-1813 , Admiral , 1st Baron Barham

Charles Middleton entered the navy as a captain's servant in 1741, was promoted a lieutenant in 1745 and post captain in 1758. In 1778 he became Comptroller of the Navy, a position he held until 1790. He was created a baronet in 1781 and, though holding a civil post, a rear-admiral in 1787, being made a vice-admiral in 1793 and admiral in 1795. In 1794-5 he was senior sea lord to Lord Spencer and in 1805-6, First Lord of the Admiralty. Between 1804 and 1807 he headed the Commission for revising and digesting the civil affairs of the navy, being made a peer in May 1805 on accepting the appointment as First Lord.

The papers were purchased form Maggs Bros, Sotheby's. Francis Edwards, Charles B Lee and The Right Honourable the Earl of Gainsborough between 1966 and 1979.

Papers of Charles Middleton. They consist of his private correspondence and his administrative papers. The latter cover the range of Admiralty and Navy Board subjects of business between 1778 and 1806. Originally Middleton arranged them all either by writer or alphabetically by subject; Sir John Knox Laughton may also have contributed to the arrangement. In so far as letters and administrative papers were largely separate, this arrangement has been retained, though extended and carried throughout the collection. Additional letters and papers, obviously added by John Deas Thompson, have been formed into a distinct section. A further group of papers were purchased from Lord Gainsborough via Christie's in 1994. Where possible these have been integrated into the existing catalogue sequence, from MID/1-MID/14. Further correspondence has been added in a new section, MID/15.

Please contact the Archive for further information.

Please contact the Archive for further information.

English

Detailed catalogue online at the: National Maritime Museum website .

Edited by Sarah Drewery, Sep 2011.
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

2010-08-26 Middleton , Charles , 1726-1813 , Admiral , 1st Baron Barham Admiralty Navy Board

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

The papers were purchased form Maggs Bros, Sotheby's. Francis Edwards, Charles B Lee and The Right Honourable the Earl of Gainsborough between 1966 and 1979.

Content and structure area

Scope and content

Papers of Charles Middleton. They consist of his private correspondence and his administrative papers. The latter cover the range of Admiralty and Navy Board subjects of business between 1778 and 1806. Originally Middleton arranged them all either by writer or alphabetically by subject; Sir John Knox Laughton may also have contributed to the arrangement. In so far as letters and administrative papers were largely separate, this arrangement has been retained, though extended and carried throughout the collection. Additional letters and papers, obviously added by John Deas Thompson, have been formed into a distinct section. A further group of papers were purchased from Lord Gainsborough via Christie's in 1994. Where possible these have been integrated into the existing catalogue sequence, from MID/1-MID/14. Further correspondence has been added in a new section, MID/15.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

System of arrangement

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Please contact the Archive for further information.

Conditions governing reproduction

Please contact the Archive for further information.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

  • Latin

Language and script notes

English

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Finding aids

Detailed catalogue online at the: National Maritime Museum website .

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

Related descriptions

Notes area

Alternative identifier(s)

Access points

Subject access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

National Maritime Museum

Rules and/or conventions used

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

  • English

Script(s)

    Sources

    Accession area