Robert Innes Smith Archive
Scope and Contents
Robert Innes Smith’s archive mainly comprises of his letters. Correspondents are predominantly British aristocrats and from aristocratic families (including the Queen, and the Duke of Norfolk) as well as politicians (such as Oswald Mosely) and historians. They also include other notable individuals such as the poet Sir John Betjeman, script writers Jimmy Perry/David Croft (Dad's Army, Are You Being Served?, 'Allo 'Allo!) and actors including Nyree Dawn Porter, (The Forsyte Saga).
Other items in the archive include newspaper cuttings, material relating to Burton Hall which was owned by Innes Smith, publications and photographs.
Dates
- Creation: 1910s - 2020
Creator
Data Protection
Available by appointment apart from correspondence from Fox-Strangways family.
Copyright
Copyright lies with Robert Innes Smith and various third party copyrights.
Biographical / Historical
Robert Innes Smith is a journalist, author and former editor of the Edinburgh Tatler magazine, the Tatler and Bystander, the Derbyshire Guide and Glasgow Illustrated who has written mainly on country houses, castles, the aristocracy and heraldry. His main publications are 'The Charge of the Right Brigade' (autobiography), 'The House of Innes' (family history) and 'An Outline of Heraldry'.
He is the son of Stuart W. Innes Smith and the Grandson of Robert William Innes Smith (1872-1933), a medical practitioner and historian whose papers books and portraits are part of Special Collection’s holdings.
Robert was born in Sheffield and brought up in Southern Rhodesia. Before becoming a journalist and writer, Robert's previous occupations were Doctor of Medicine, Barrister-at-Law and Schoolmaster. After reading law he worked for a time for Burke's Peerage and Reuter's.
Robert married Elizabeth, also known as Betsy Lamb, daughter of B. J. Lamb 'Uncle Dick' (the creator of the cartoon Pip, Squeak and Wilfred) in 1954. They had three children Victoria, Augusta and James.
The surnames 'Innes Smith' and 'Innes-Smith' appear interchangeably throughout records in the archive and published sources.
Extent
12 Box(es)
Language of Materials
English
Custodial History
Donated to the University by Robert Innes Smith in 2022.
Topical
- Description rules
- International Standard for Archival Description - General
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections and Archives Repository
Western Bank Library
University of Sheffield
Western Bank
Sheffield South Yorkshire S10 2TN United Kingdom
+44 (0) 114 222 7299
lib-special@sheffield.ac.uk