Letter books of Robert Cust

Robert Needham Cust (1821-1909), orientalist, was born on 24 February 1821, and educated at Eton College. After attending the East India Company's college at Haileybury, he administered the Hoshiarpur and Ambala districts of India. He was called to the bar in 1857, and was appointed judicial commissioner of Amritsar, 1861, and a member of the legislative council, 1864. He retired from the service in 1867. Cust studied oriental languages and published works on oriental philology and religion. He was secretary of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1878-1899. He died in London on 28 October 1909.

Letters from Robert Cust, chiefly in India, to correspondents in England. Most of the letters cover many pages.

A note by Cust, dated 1898, in the first volume, indicates that the letters were preserved by the recipients, and bound by him in 1893. It is not known when the Society received the volumes.

Please cite as Cambridge University Library: Royal Commonwealth Society Library, Letter books of Robert Cust, RCMS 70

The R.C.S. Manuscripts Collection includes essays by Cust, RCMS 13. Cambridge University Library holds Cust's judgements in cases in Lahore and Amritsar, 1858-1860, MSS.Add.6198-6201.

Donald H. Simpson, ed., 'The manuscript catalogue of the library of the Royal Commonwealth Society' (London, 1975), p. 62. Indexed

This collection level description was created by RAS.