The Drake of Colyton papers

The newly-purchased Drake of Colyton papers at the Devon Record Office include some of the daily dispatches and intelligence activities of British diplomats during the war of Spanish Succession (1702-1713) and the war which Revolutionary France declared on Britain in 1793.

The earlier papers, some 100 in all, cover dispatches to and from James Craggs the younger, who was British envoy in Barcelona supporting the Austrian claim to the Spanish throne. Craggs was also supplying and paying a British army in Spain, and the papers cast interesting light on the costs and problems involved.

The later papers, numbering more than 700, illustrate the diplomatic duties of Francis Drake in Genoa and Munich as well as other aspects of his life. At Genoa he was observing closely the threat posed by the French forces to British interests in the Mediterranean and corresponding with agents in France. The papers include a constant flow of dispatches from some of the leading figures of the day, including Sir William Hamilton, British envoy in Naples, Admiral Lord Hood, Commander in Chief of the British fleet, Lord Grenville, Foreign Secretary, senior Whitehall figures and British envoys in other European capitals.

The papers have several references to Horatio Nelson, then captain of HMS Agamemnon, a 64-gun battleship, said to be his favourite vessel in which Nelson played a prominent part in the capture of Corsica.

Francis Drake was one of the East Devon Drakes, a family which had grown separately from the Drakes in West Devon who are best remembered for the famous Elizabethan navigator, Sir Francis Drake.

James Craggs the younger (1686 – 1721)
James Craggs the younger was an ambitious English diplomat who found himself with a ringside seat to observe for three years the War of the Spanish Succession.

Craggs, whose father was a close associate of the Duke of Marlborough, was first appointed secretary and soon resident at the court of the Austrian Archduke Charles III in Barcelona. The British Government, with the Portuguese, was supporting Charles’s claim to the Spanish throne, and trying to wrest it from King Philip V who was backed by France.

Craggs also acted as Commissary of the Musters for the British troops in Spain, and was responsible to General James Stanhope, the Commander in Chief, for their pay and supplies.

Here are the documents appointing Craggs:

Instructions for James Craggs signed by Queen Anne.(1700M/CP 70)

The appointment of James Craggs as Commissary of the Musters for the British troops in Spain by General James Stanhope.(1700M/68A - Loose sheet)

Before setting out on a tedious journey to Barcelona via Hanover and Genoa, James Craggs made sure he was properly supplied for his task. In this letter he writes to a Mr Pennington ordering wine and shirts. (1700M/CP68A 1708)

In this letter below, Craggs writes to Mr Drummond asking that his luggage (consisting of three trunks containing china, silver plate etc) be sped on its way so that it meets him at Genoa.(1700M/CP68A 1708)

Three months later he is still at Genoa without a ship and worrying about how to get his wine into Spain without paying high customs duties! (1700M/CP68A 1708)

Eventually Craggs reaches Barcelona on 31 December 1708. His first task is to find more men for the army, and then food. (1700M/CP68A 1709)

In April Craggs is more optimistic about the outlook. In this letter of 27th April 1709 to the Earl of Galway he writes that "the enemies do not yet stir on their frontier which makes us hope they are not so strong as once feared." (1700M/CP68A 1709)

But things are not going well for the British forces at Alicante. Here Craggs writes in a letter of May 7th to the Duke of Marlborough that 'Mr. Stanhope arrived here 4th having brought off the garrison of Alicante by capitulation.' (1700M/CP68A 1709)

As the war dragged on, Craggs returned to London with dispatches from General Stanhope about the possibility of making peace. This letter of 26th July 1709 refers to proposals for peace being examined in several committees of the Cabinet-Council at the cockpit. This is an interesting reference to the early use of Cabinet committees sitting in the old Palace of Whitehall cockpit building.(1700M/CP68A 1709)

Craggs apparently remained in London for the rest of the year and does not return to Barcelona until the following May (1710) when he found himself with the British forces in the field. Writing briefly from various camp sites in June, he refers to being 'fatigued'. On June 22nd 1710, he is writing to the Earl of Sunderland complaining that everything is so extravagantly dear here, and on the 27th he says: 'The Army is returned to camp at Balaguer... we conclude we shall do nothing but be on the defensive this campaign and our high hopes are vanished.' (1700M/CP68A 1710)

Craggs also wrote to a colleague in London, the Hon. J.Brydges, about their policy on clothing. In a letter of 22nd June he said it had raised a clamour of complaints. He writes: 'Sending from England the cheapest clothing they have been able to find, and with direction to put them off as dear as possible. None have bought except when forced by necessity... these things bring a discredit on your office.'(1700M/CP68A 1710)

Visit the next episode in the Drake of Colyton papers, Problems of the British Army in Spain.

This webpage is hosted on behalf of the Devon Record Office. For any enquiries about the material listed on this webpage, please consult the Devon Record Office.