LAWRENCE, T. E.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

Revolt in the Desert. First trade edition, the copy of Thomas Henderson Middleton with his signature on the front free endpaper. Middleton was one of the regular visitors at Clouds Hill where he interacted with other members of Lawrence's circle like E. M. Forster. The copy was sent to Middleton by Jonathan Cape; its compliments card, unrecorded by O'Brien, is mounted on the half-title.Middleton is mentioned by Lawrence in a number of pieces of correspondence: one letter to E. Palmer on 10 December 1925 where Lawrence comments on Middleton's regular letters and talkative nature; another to E. M. Forster on 12 December 1928 where Lawrence mentions recently writing to his friend. On 7 January 1925 Lawrence wrote to Charlotte Shaw that "Middleton and Knowles are fighting on that big leather seat [at Clouds Hill], which once had the honour to bear up G.B.S. on its springs... Middleton has a voice like a wooden bell; and he uses it too often, being thoughtless and very young. To him the army seems like perfect freedom, after the prison of family-life at home" (Wilson, pp. 120-21). In 1935 Forster inscribed a copy of Seven Pillars of Wisdom to Middleton, a testament to the strong relationships formed within Lawrence's circle right up until his death in that same year.

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