Sassoon campaign moves a huge step forward after NHMF grant

The announcement was made at an event held in Parliament on Wednesday morning which included a hugely powerful reading of 'A Soldier's Declaration' by Sassoon enthusiast and former Children's Laureate Michael Morpurgo.

Anne Jarvis, Cambridge University Librarian, said: “We are absolutely delighted with this wonderful demonstration of support from the National Heritage Memorial Fund. This is hugely encouraging news for Cambridge University Library and for all the many donors, large and small, who have given their generous support to the campaign so far. In the current economic climate it would have been impossible to foresee a successful outcome for the campaign without a substantial grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund. Thanks to this outstanding support, we now have a realistic hope that we can secure the Sassoon Archive for the nation. However, we still need to raise the outstanding balance of £110,000 for the purchase, and also raise additional funds for cataloguing, conservation and exhibiting the archive to make it accessible to as wide an audience as possible.”

The campaign is being led by Max Egremont, official biographer of the World War One poet - who also spoke at Parliament - and supported by Sebastian Faulks, Andrew Motion and military historian Richard Holmes.

Egremont said: “The generosity of the National Heritage Memorial Fund and other donors should now make it possible to save this extraordinary archive for the nation. I was fortunate enough to be able to use the papers for my 2005 biography and to discover what a unique insight they give into Siegfried Sassoon's life and work. The response to the appeal has been heartening in these difficult times and shows Sassoon's popularity and importance as a writer. If the rest of the money can be raised, the papers will soon be available to the public. It is particularly appropriate that they will be in Cambridge, Siegfried Sassoon's old university and a place that he loved."

Comprising seven crates of material, the archive includes Sassoon’s diaries, pocket notebooks compiled on the Western Front, and a draft copy of ‘A Soldier’s Declaration’ – the letter composed in July 1917 detailing his refusal to return to duty.

The declaration caused a storm in Britain, with Sassoon also stating the war was being prolonged by those who had the power to end it. The furore only died down when fellow officer Robert Graves persuaded authorities to send Sassoon to Craiglockhart Hospital for the treatment of shell-shock.

Cambridge University Library already holds several significant sets of Sassoon’s letters and manuscripts, and has for many years played a leading role in conserving the records of Sassoon’s life and works – and making them accessible to readers.
 

Jenny Abramsky, Chair of the NHMF, said: “This is such wonderful news. The passing of the UK’s last surviving First World War veteran earlier this year has brought into sharp focus the sacrifice made by so many in service to the nation during both World Wars and the sacrifice still being made today. The National Heritage Memorial Fund was founded to help safeguard our heritage as a lasting memorial to those men and women. Sassoon’s archive – full of fascinating personal accounts of his own experiences at war - provides the perfect tribute.”