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Burney, Charles, 1726-1814. Correspondence (MS Hyde 88): Guide.


Creator: Burney, Charles, 1726-1814
Title: Correspondence,
Dates: 1755-1811
Abstract: Letters to and from author and musician Charles Burney, including some which discuss Samuel Johnson's final days and James Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D.
Extent: 1 box (.5 linear ft.)
Identification: MS Hyde 88 (shelved with bMS Hyde 89)
Location: b

Administrative Information

*2003JM-58 (part)

Bequest of Mary Hyde Eccles, Four Oaks Farm, Somerville, New Jersey; received: 2004.

Several related items are also part of the Hyde Collection, including five letters from Samuel Johnson in MS Hyde 1, items (14) and (126); four letters from Hester Lynch Piozzi in MS Hyde 3, item (13); six letters to and from various parties in MS Hyde 57, pages 12 to 17 and 22; a letter to George Henry Glasse in MS Hyde 61, item (7.14); two letters to Thomas Cadell in MS Hyde 69, item (10); a letter from Bennet Langton in MS Hyde 77; and a letter from Hester Lynch Piozzi in MS Eng 1477, item (1).

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Rick Stattler

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Charles Burney (1726-1814) established a reputation as an organist and composer before moving to London in 1760. There he became a central figure in the circle gathered around author Samuel Johnson. Burney published numerous works of music scholarship, most notably his four-volume A General History of Music (1776-1789). Eight of his children survived to adulthood, including novelist Frances d'Arblay, generally known as Fanny Burney (1752-1840); Susanna Elizabeth Phillips, generally known as Susanna Burney (1755-1800); and Charles Burney (1757-1817).

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This collection consists of 13 letters by Burney, five letters received by him, and two poems. Of special importance is a portion of Burney's notes on Samuel Johnson sent to James Boswell, item (2), which were used in Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson LL.D. The collection also includes letters to Fanny Burney, item (3); and Samuel Johnson, item (8). Many of the letters discuss Samuel Johnson, including two that describe his final days in detail, items (10) and (12).

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