Beschreibung:

Sassoon (Siegfried Loraine, 1886-1967). Two Autograph Letters Signed with monogram 'SS', Heytesbury House, Wiltshire, 5 November 1965 & 27 February 1967, both to Anthony Rossiter the first referring to Dom Aelred and saying that it is difficult for him to drive himself to Downside [School] now, before continuing, 'It is extraordinary, the consoling effect the Memoirs have on people. A famous steeplechase rider wrote to me last March, saying that it had been the greatest blessing to his mind while in hospital after a bad accident. I always say that the clue to its charm is that it is an unprofessional piece of writing. My later books are more skilful, though not less natural, I hope. You mentioned John Moore He was brought here once, about twelve years ago, and I found him quite delightful, like his books. I hope you will bring yourself here some afternoon. I am something of a solitary, though befriended by my beeches!; the second letter referring to a recent visit by Dom Aelred and saying that he should wait until the spring before visiting, 'You must also realize – in your tremendous young intellectual explorativeness – that you are addressing the much simplified mind of a complete quietest! I still try to respond to what the world expects of me – (my renown as a war writer, as you infer, has become almost a burden on me) – but I exist in a kind of domestic retreat from worldly concerns. And am, as always, that simple soul George Sherston. Him you will find in his library – living a lot in meditation on past life and those I have loved and lost. That self, people say, does give out the light of faith and submissiveness. But the intellectual adventurer is not there. You must take him as you find him!', both 1 page, 8vo, with the accompanying envelope to the second letter (Quantity: 2) Provenance: From the family, by direct descent. For further information please see https://www.anthonyrossiter.co.uk Sassoon and Rossiter shared a friendship with Dom Aelred, a monk at Downside School. Dom Aelred was Christopher Ingram Watkin (1918-1997), a housemaster at Downside School, 1948-62, and then Headmaster, 1962-75. Siegfried Sassoon converted to Catholicism in 1957 under the instruction of Dom Sebastian Moore at Downside Abbey, close to his home. Sassoon also sometimes played for a Downside Abbey team called ‘The Ravens’, continuing playing well into his seventies. After meeting Dom Father Aelred Watkin, the Headmaster of Downside School near Bath, in 1960, Rossiter became increasingly drawn to the Catholic Church. He adored the poetry of Gregorian ritual and in his own search for truth, was attracted by the combination of moral values and mysticism that the Benedictines taught. He was received into the Catholic Church in 1962, the beginning of a lifelong attachment to Downside Abbey and to its monastic community. This led to his being asked to paint the portrait of Dom Father Aelred Watkin upon his retirement as Headmaster of the school. The painting hangs, with the other portraits of former headmasters, in the school dining room.