Subject strengths: History, Politics, Education, Economics

The Trevelyan Papers, deposited by the Trevelyan family, are those of several generations of the Trevelyan family whose home was Wallington Hall, Northumberland. The archive is rich and diverse, not least because the family had so many roles and indulged so many interests between them that the archive can truly be described as multi-disciplinary.

Charles Edward Trevelyan (1807-1886) was a colonial administrator and civil servant. His positions in India included Assistant to the Resident of Delhi, Under Secretary to the Foreign Department of the Indian Government, Governor of Madras (1859-1860) and Financial Member of the Indian Council. He also served as Assistant Secretary to the Treasury, London between 1840 and 1858, during which time he oversaw provision of relief for Ireland during the Great Famine, and explored reform in the military and civil service.

The collection features 44 volumes of outgoing letters, covering 25 years of Charles’ career and personal life, and reflecting all of his roles and interests. There are also files of letters from colleagues, associates and friends relating to his professional life, in addition to publications by Charles and others, relevant to his interests.

The collection also includes some personal content, including correspondence, journals and publications relating to local matters, travel and Sir Charles’ inheritance of the Wallington Estate in Northumberland.

Collection Name and Collection Reference Code:

Collection Name: Trevelyan (Charles Edward) Archive

Archive Ref Code: GB186/CET

Date Range of Material

1807 - 1886

Type of Material

Personal archive

Size of Collection

4 Linear Metres 

How To Order Items From This Collection

Please use the finding aid below to search through a list of the individual items we have within this collection.

If you find an item you would like to consult in the Special Collections reading room, simply make a note of the reference number and title of the item(s) you are interested in (for example CET/3/2 Letters to and from Charles).

You can then place your order by linking to our Request Form.

Finding Aid:

Archival catalogue available via Archives Hub.

Unable to visit our Reading Room?

If you are unable to visit our reading room, we also have a virtual reading room service and digitisation service.

Related Material

Trevelyan (Charles Philips) Archive

Trevelyan (George Otto) Archive

Trevelyan (Walter Calverley) Archive

Other Resources:

For the papers of Charles Philips Trevelyan's niece, Mary Moorman, see Moorman (Mary) Archive. Other collections with family links to the Trevelyans include Bell (Gertrude Collection, Bell (Gertrude) Archive and Plowden (Lady Bridget) Archive.

For books written by members of the Trevelyan family among others and secondary texts on the Trevelyan Papers, see Trevelyan/Bell/Runciman (TBR) Collection.

Material from this collection was used in our Treasures of the Month feature for July 2013 and July 2014.

Projects, Progress and Updates:

In 2012, having previously been on loan since 1967, the Trevelyan Papers were kindly gifted to Special Collections by the family.