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Volume 5 1936~1939

Doc No.
Date
Subject

No. 218 UCDA P150/2808

Three versions of a handwritten letter from Eamon de Valera to Neville Chamberlain (London)
(Purely Personal)

Dublin, 15 September 1938

[1]

Mr. Chamberlain
Prime Minister
London

Do not let the irresponsibility or rashness of others halt or deflect you in your effort to secure peace. The tens of millions of innocent people on both sides who have no cause against each other, but who are in the pursuit of are in danger of being hurled against each other with no alternative but mutual slaughter, depending on are looking to you to find some a way of saving them from this awful terrible doom.

Question (1)Should I send it
(2)Publication (here or London)

[2]

Dear Prime Minister,
You will have succeeded or failed when you receive this. I merely want to tell you that one person at least is how completely I am satisfied satisfied that you are doing the right thing no matter what the result.

I hope and pray you will be successful. I believe you will be successful. Should you not be so, you will be blamed I have no doubt for having gone at all. To stop half way - to stop short at any action which held out the slightest hope of success in view of what is involved would be wrong.

Should you fail you need have no qualms. What a business man wd. do with far less reason - you who have at this moment the fate of millions Iin his hands who cannot help themselves depending on you are certainly entitled to do and should do.

May God bless your efforts,
Sincerely Yrs.
E. de V.

[3] 1

You will have succeeded or failed when you receive this. I merely want2 to tell you that one person at least is completely3 satisfied that you are doing the right thing - no matter what the result.

I believe you will be successful. Should you not be so, you will be blamed for having gone at all. To stop half way4- to stop short (at any)5 of taking any action which held out even6 the slightest chance (hope)7 of success, in view of what is involved, would be wrong.

Should you fail8 you need9 have no qualms. What a business man would do, you, who have at this moment the fate of millions10 who cannot help themselves11 depending on you, are certainly entitled to do and should do. May God bless your efforts.


This is the copy sent by Mr. Feiling. It is not an exact copy of the Taoiseach's draft copy written from Geneva but he may have altered the letter which he forwarded and did not make the alterations in the draft (copy).12




1 This version of the letter was published, with slight alterations (which are indicated below in footnotes), by Keith Feiling in his The life of Neville Chamberlain (London, 1946) (p. 364); Sir Keith Feiling (1884-1977), biographer of Neville Chamberlain and Lecturer in English history at Christ Church College, Oxford.

2 In the version of the letter published by Feiling 'want' is reproduced as 'write'.

3 In the version of the letter published by Feiling 'completely' is reproduced without underlining (underlining reproduced as italics in DIFP.)

4 In the version of the letter published by Feiling a comma has been inserted at this point

5 Handwritten insertion.

6 This word has been circled in pen.

7 This word has been written above 'chance'.

8 In the version of the letter published by Feiling a comma has been inserted at this point.

9 'You need' has been circled in pen.

10 In the version of the letter published by Feiling a comma has been inserted at this point.

11 In the version of the letter published by Feiling a comma has been inserted at this point.

12 Handwritten insertion.

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