Materials relating to his Grand Tour, June 1771 - May 1773 / [Rev. Norton Nicholls.]

Marlborough, Wiltshire : Adam Matthew Digital, 2009.

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In 1771, Nicholls, encouraged by Thomas Gray, set off to the continent for a Grand Tour of France, Switzerland, and Italy. In the correspondence is found a long series of letters written by Nicholls (mainly to his mother, Jane Floyer Nicholls) during his travels in Paris, Bern and Zurich and other places in Switzerland; Milan, Chiavenna, Bologna, Parma, Florence, Rome, Frascati, and other places in the Roman Campagna, Naples, Paestrum, Capri, Venice, Genoa, Marseilles, Aix, Avignon, Versailles, and many places en route. Many of the letters are taken up with Nicholl's financial problems and many of the earlier letters also attempt to justify the extension of his tour into central Italy (he had planned to visit France and Switzerland but then only to see Turin and Milan before returning home). Nicholl's letters typically describe the places he has visited, the purchases he has made, life at the foreign courts, and, especially, the people he has met. Included among the latter are: Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon, and his travelling companion Sir Harry Heron; Salomon Gessner; a Mr Drake and Mr Maxwell (possibly William Drake and Henry Maxwell, who had travelled in Italy together in 1768-1769); James Holford; Carl Joseph Gotthard, Graf von Firmian (Count Firmian); Madame Balbi; Sir Horace Mann; Carlo Broschi, called Farinelli; Giuseppe Baretti; Sir Thomas Hesketh, 1st bart., and Harriet (Cowper), Lady Hesketh; John Minifie; James Ogilvy, 7th Earl of Findlater; Mr Cochran; Mr Graham; Lord Richard Cavendish; James Byres; Pompeo Batoni; James Wright; et al.

Grand tour.

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English

October 25, 2023

Grand tours (Education) > History > 18th century.

Personal correspondence

Adam Matthew Digital (Firm), digitiser.