Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0050
- IE DCUA C1/1/c1_1_0050
- Part
- October 1935-January 1936
Part of Seán Lester Collection
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Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0050
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0051
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0058
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0060
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0070
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0082
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0006
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0007
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0008
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0010
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0012
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0014
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0016
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0017
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0021
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0026
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0031
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0037
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0039
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0052
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0055
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0056
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0057
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0061
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0066
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0067
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0069
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0072
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0078
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0079
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0083
Part of Seán Lester Collection
The collection mainly consists of eleven diaries written by Seán Lester from 1935- 1942 when he was High Commissioner of the League of Nations in Danzig [Gdansk, Poland], then Deputy and subsequently General Secretary of the League of Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Lester's diary entries and the numerous letters, telegrams and other documents included in the diaries give an invaluable insight into his work in the League of Nations, the momentous historical events that were taking place, and his personal thoughts and struggles during this period. The first diary opens with the following entry by Lester written in October 1935: 'So I've opened a diary at last, the odds are against a dozen entries.' In fact, Lester would go on to write hundreds of entries over the next few years, recording the background workings of the League 5 of Nations with accounts of meetings, public events, conversations with political leaders and diplomats, transcripts of telephone calls, copies of letters he sent, and many of the letters he received and pasted into the pages of the diaries. They provide an invaluable insight into some of the most significant historical events during this period, including the rise of the Nazis in Danzig, the increasing persecution of Jews, the failed attempts to appease Hitler in the run-up to war, and the eventual outbreak of the Second World War.
They also chart Lester's career in the League of Nations as it developed in tandem with these events: the increasing pressure and intimidation he faced as High Commissioner in Danzig from the Nazis as they undermined the authority of the League, his promotion in late 1936 to Deputy Secretary General in Geneva (essentially as a form of appeasement to the Nazis), and his assuming the role of Acting Secretary General of the League after Joseph Avenol left Geneva for Vichy France in 1940. The diaries also show his courage and determination to keep the League (albeit, only its basic functions) running throughout the course of the Second World War.
Details of Lester's personal life and struggles during this period are also recorded, particularly the torment and loneliness he felt being separated from his wife Elsie and three daughters Dorothy Mary, Ann and Patricia following their evacuation from Geneva to Ireland in 1940. Ireland is never far from his thoughts during the period, and the diaries feature numerous correspondence with Irish friends, accounts of brief trips home for Christmas and family holidays to Connemara in the years up to 1940, and reflections on Irish current affairs and political figures. One of the most notable entries in the diaries is Lester's extensive account of his meeting with James Joyce and his family in Geneva in December 1940. The Joyce family had fled their home in Paris the previous May and sought Lester's help in obtaining a visa for their daughter Lucia; the Nazis had refused to issue her with a visa and she remained in a mental health clinic in German-occupied France. A related letter from Joyce to Lester prior to this meeting is also included in the diaries, as is correspondence between Lester and members of the Joyce family and friends following the death of James Joyce in Zurich less than a month later.
The collection also includes a metal case in which Lester – fearing that the Nazis could invade Switzerland at any moment – placed his diaries before burying them next to a bench in the Palais des Nations, the headquarters of the League of Nations in Geneva. This may account for why the diary entries stop in 1942. Also included in the collection is an address book kept by Lester during the period of the diaries, and a television documentary about Lester written and presented by John Bowman which includes a segment on the diaries.
Untitled
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Consists of handwritten and typed diary entries relating to Lester's time as High Commissioner of the League of Nations in Danzig. Consists of handwritten and typed diary entries relating to Lester's time as High Commissioner of the League of Nations in Danzig. Includes reference to Konni Zilliacus (1894-1967), Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (1861-1930), Arthur Henderson, (1863-1935), George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), Sir Roger Casement (1864-1916), Carl Joachim Hambro (1885-1964), SirAnthony Eden (1897-1977), Henri Le Rond (1864-1949), Charles Gates Dawes (1865-1951), Arthur Sweetser (1888-1968).
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0004
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0005
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0013
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0025
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0029
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0032
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0033
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0038
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0040
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0041
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0059
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0063
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0064
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0065
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0068
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0071
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0077
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0081
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0084
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0085
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0002
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0003
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0011
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0015
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0018
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0019
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0020
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0022
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0023
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0024
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0027
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0030
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0034
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0035
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0042
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0043
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0044
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0046
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0053
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0054
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0062
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0076
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0080
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0073
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: October 1935 - January 1936, p0074
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0010
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0018
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0020
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0023
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0025
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0028
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0031
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0034
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0040
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0041
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0043
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0044
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0048
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0053
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0059
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0061
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0063
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0068
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0072
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0075
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0081
Part of Seán Lester Collection
Diary: January - June 1936, p0084
Part of Seán Lester Collection