Lord Aberdeen Signed Copy of Treaty with Chile to Combat Slave Trade, Signed the Year Britain Abolished Slavery

Lord Aberdeen Printed Circular Letter Signed, "Aberdeen," as Secretary for Foreign Affairs. 1p, measuring 8" x 9.5", "Foreign Office," [London], dated April 30, 1843. Addressed in manuscript on the verso to "Edmund Molyneux Esq. &c. &c. &c." forwarding copies [not present] of a treaty between Great Britain and Chile to suppress the slave trade. Some mild ink bleed-through from the docket on verso, lightly soiled at folds on verso, else fine. 

Aberdeen's circular reads in full: "I herewith transmit to you for your information a Copy of a Treaty concluded at Santiago on the 19th of January 1839, and of an additional and explanatory Convention concluded at Santiago on the 7th of August 1841, between Her Majesty and the Republick [sic] of Chile, for the Abolition of the Slave Trade. The Ratifications of this Treaty and Convention were exchanged at Santiago on the 6th of August 1812." 

In 1833, Parliament passed the British Slavery Abolition Act which ended slavery in most of the empire, save for possessions controlled by the East India Company, the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and the Island of St. Helena. These three exceptions were eliminated by Parliament in 1843. The same year, the British government also concluded similar treaties to combat the slave trade with Mexico, Uruguay, and Bolivia.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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