Creator(s): Alexander, Du Pre, 1777-1839, 2nd Earl of Caledon, Governor of The Cape and Good Hope
Administrative History ↴
Lord Caledon (1777-1839) was not, literally, the first British civil governor of The Cape, having been preceded in that capacity by Lord Macartney and Sir George Yonge, successive holders of the office between the first conquest of The Cape, and its cession back to the Dutch under the terms of the Peace of Amiens of 1802. Rather, Lord Caledon was the first civil governor after The Cape's reconquest from the Dutch by General Sir David Baird in 1806. The question of the relationship between the civil and the military authorities of the colony, personified in Lord Caledon's relationship with the Commander-in-Chief, General Sir Henry Grey, was the most troublesome of the former's period of office as Governor, and the issue on which he resigned in June 1811. Lord Caledon maintained an interest in Cape affairs after his return to the UK.
-Extracted from a full account of the complete Caledon Papers in the PRONI catalogue: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/proni
Archival History ↴
Deposited by the Trustees of the Caledon Estates
Immediate Source Acquisition ↴
Donation
Content & Structure
Scope & Content: Alexander, Du Pre, 1777-1839, 2nd Earl of Caledon, Governor of The Cape and Good Hope ↴
PRONI D2431 The Caledon Cape Papers are the papers of the 2nd Earl of Caledon (1777-1839) as Governor of The Cape and Good Hope, 1807-1811. They consist of c.70 volumes of MS and printed material (minutes of judicial proceedings, copies of The Capetown Gazette, etc), c.5,500 letters in loose or letter-book form, and a number of patents, maps, plans and architectural drawings, 1796-1830, but mainly 1807-1812. They constitute a reasonably complete, albeit not unique, record of his administration at The Cape.
Appraisal Destruction ↴
Permanent Retention
Arrangement ↴
The collection is arranged as follows:
Printed proclamations 1807-1811
Schedules of papers laid before the Governor 1807-1811
Official ‘Diary’ 1807-1811
Dispatch books 1806-1811
Letter books 1795-1831
Capetown Gazettes 1807-1810
African Court calendar 1807-1811
Appeals, civil cases 1807-1811
Criminal sentences 1808-1811
Instruction book for Court of Justice etc. 1806-1809 Extracts from minutes of Court of Appeals, etc. 1807-1811
Various court and legal papers 1802-1811
Dutch ordinances 1805
Commissions to Sir George Yonge and Lord Caledon 1799-1807
Cash book of Lord Caledon as Governor 1807-1811
Conditions of Access & Use
Access Conditions
The collection can be consulted in the reading room in PRONI in accordance with PRONI guidelines.
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Items may be copied for personal research use only. If a researcher wishes to publish any documents from this collection, a request must be submitted in writing to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland.
Creation Dates
1796-1830
Extent Medium
c 70 volumes + c 5,500 letters
Material Language Script
English
Finding Aids
A full descriptive list is available to search online at: http://www.proni.gov.uk/
Archive Web Link →
Allied Materials
Copies Information
Copies of the papers are available on microfilm MIC228 and MIC527
Related Material
PRONI holds a number of collections relating to the Earls of Caledon:
D2432 Caledon East India Company Papers of the 1st Earl
D2433 Caledon Papers: Estate, Business, Family and Political Papers of the Alexander/Caledon and related families 1639-1951
Descriptive Control Area
Archivist Note
PRONI Archivist
Rules/Conventions
ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description. 2nd ed. Ottawa: International Council on Archives, 2000.
National Council on Archives: Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names. Chippenham: National Council on Archives, 1997.
UK Archival Thesaurus (UKAT)
