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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Cornwallis, Charles Cornwallis, Marquis, 1738-1805 to Lord Sydney

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02921 Author/Creator: Cornwallis, Charles Cornwallis, Marquis, 1738-1805 Place Written: London, England Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 10 April 1786 Pagination: 2 p. : docket ; Height: 24 cm, Width: 18.8 cm Order a Copy

Written by General Cornwallis, the leader of British forces at Yorktown, who had accepted the post of Governor General of India in February 1786 to Lord Sydney as Home Secretary in the Pitt government. Wants Lord Sydney to talk to King George about the specific powers of his new office. Wants to know if he has the power of granting commissions below the rank of colonel because he heard the king is disinclined to grant that power in peacetime. Says he does not expect any pay for the appointment. Sent from "Mansfield Street" in London.

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