97 ALS and 1 AL to Henry Temple, 2nd viscount Palmerston and Mary (Mee) Temple, viscountess Palmerston; various locations, 1788 Jul 9 - 1804 Nov 7.

Manuscripts, in a single hand, of Blagden's correspondence with Lord and Lady Palmerston. 71 letters are addressed to Lord Palmerston and 27 to Lady Palmerston. The letters discuss personal affairs, including the health of Lord Palmerston, his travels, and social news about acquaintances, especially of the marriage negotiations of Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford, and of his daughter. Blagden also discusses political and military news, giving his correspondents extensive reports on the fighting at Madras and Seringapatam; the conclusion of a treaty between Sweden and Russia; and Dagobert Wurmser's actions against Napoleon Buonaparte in 1796. He also mentions sales of art collections, including those of the Duke of Orleans and the importation of an Egyptian statue to London, declaring that "the features of the countenance are sufficiently entire to assist in deciding the much-contested question, whether the acient Egyptians were Blacks," and comparing the statue to "our present negroes." Finally, the letters occasionally mention scientific matters and meetings of the Royal Society of London.