For International Women’s Day, we’re spotlighting four women at Sworders and the opportunities, learning and support that have shaped their careers.
8 March 2026
A signed Churchill letter to R.A. Butler and a photograph taken the day before his resignation as prime minister headline a group of historically rich political lots in Sworders’ Open House sale from 9–15 December.
9 December 2025
BROWSE & BID REQUEST A VALUATION CONTACT A SPECIALIST
RA Butler or simply ‘Rab’ was a grandee of post-war Conservative party politics, appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in Winston Churchill’s 1951 administration and de facto deputy prime minister to both Anthony Eden and Harold Macmillan.
R.A.Butler M.P. (£100-200)
One lot in the sale references his tenure under Churchill. A signed and framed typed letter from Winston Churchill on Chartwell headed paper, dated 26 January, 1950, reads: 'From one part of Essex to another I want to send you a neighbourly greeting and my very best wishes for your victory with a much increased majority on February 23’ and continues to thank him for his hard work ‘during the last four years both in parliament and as Chairman of the Conservative Research Department.’ In the 1950 election Labour had returned to power, but its majority was dramatically reduced from 146 seats to just 5.
A signed and framed typed letter from Winston Churchill to The Rt. Hon. R.A. Butler M.P. (£200-400)
The letter is sold together with a black and white photograph of HM The Queen Elizabeth II, The Duke of Edinburgh, Winston and Clemintine Churchill leaving 10 Downing Street. It is dated verso April 4, 1955 – the day before Churchill resigned the premiership.
A signed and framed typed letter from Winston Churchill to The Rt. Hon. R.A. Butler M.P. (£200-400)
A rare survivor from the early 20th century is a fret cut softwood electioneering panel c.1910, which includes the legend: Vote For D J Proby, Support Tariff Reform Stronger Navy and Army, Stand Firm against Home Rule.
Douglas Proby (1856-1931), A fret cut softwood plaque centered with a black and white image (£100-200)
Douglas James Proby (1856-1931) was the only son of Lord and Lady Hamilton of Elton Hall in Cambridgeshire. A soldier for 30 years who fought for the 109th Foot and the Coldstream Guards in the Anglo-Egyptian War, the Mahdist War and the Battle of Suakin, he entered Essex politics in the first decade of the new century. He was voted MP for Saffron Walden in the January 1910 general election but lost his seat in the December election of the same year and never returned to Parliament.
These lots, alongside a wide range of others including silver, ceramics, furniture and works of art, will feature in our Open House timed auction (Tuesday 9 - Monday 15 December).
Viewing is available at our Stansted Mountfitchet Auction Rooms at the following times:
Wednesday 10 December | 10am-3pm
Thursday 11 December | 10am-3pm
Friday 12 December | 10am-3pm
Monday 15 December | 10am-3pm
openhouse@sworder.co.uk | 01279 817778
For International Women’s Day, we’re spotlighting four women at Sworders and the opportunities, learning and support that have shaped their careers.
8 March 2026
We are excited to share a collection of works from the estate of John Nash that features in our 31 March 'Modern & Contemporary Art' auction.
6 March 2026
One of the most rewarding aspects of our auctions is the opportunity to present a personal collection - an intimate glimpse into the tastes, influences and inspirations that shaped an individual’s life. This March, our Modern & Contemporary Art sale offers exactly that: a capsule of 20 works (lots 202–221) from the private art collection of Michael Rand, the celebrated art editor and director of The Sunday Times Magazine.
6 March 2026