LONDON: A letter from T.E. Lawrence in which he complained he was no longer able to travel outside the UK, less than 15 years after his role in the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire, sold at auction on Thursday for more than $14,000.
In the letter, written in October 1932, Lawrence expresses his frustration after failing to obtain visas to visit a number of countries following speculation in the British press that he was working as a spy.
The predicament was a far cry from his “Lawrence of Arabia” days during the First World War when, between 1916 and 1918, he fought alongside Arab forces as they attempted to overthrow Turkish colonial rule.
The letter was sold in the US by Freeman’s Auctions in Philadelphia for well over the estimated selling price of $1,500-$2,500.
It was addressed to Montague Shearman Jr., a senior member of the diplomatic service, and in it Lawrence expressed thanks for Shearman’s efforts to help him obtain permission to visit several countries.
The letter from T.E. Lawrence to a diplomatic official sold for more than $14,000 at an auction in Philadephia. (Freeman's Auctions)
Lawrence said the travel was related to his archaeological work, and Turkiye, Syria, Iraq and Egypt were the main focus of his interests.
“It remains rather sad from my private point of view that my character should be such as to make France, Germany, Russia, Persia, Turkey, India and Egypt refuse me entrance,” Lawrence wrote. “I do not know about Italy and the States; they might not be afraid.
“But the places — Asia Minor, Syria, Mesopotamia, the Nile Valley — where my archaeological interests lay, now all ban me, and foreign travel (had I the money for it) would be impossible.”
Press reports from around the time had speculated that Lawrence, who became incredibly famous for his role in the Middle East during the First World War, had been involved in espionage for the British government.
He appears to refer in the letter to these news stories, saying he had never “denied or confirmed any report, true or false, published about me.”
The auction house listing said: “It is possible that it was due to these rumors that Lawrence was denied travel visas in the many countries listed in the above letter.”
Lawrence appears to express some bitterness about the situation, describing the treatment he received as “fair warning to anyone like myself not to exceed the normal achievement, if he values his integrity.”
Christopher Brink, head of sale at Freeman’s Auctions in Philadelphia, told The Times newspaper: “This remarkable letter reveals the price TE Lawrence paid for becoming Lawrence of Arabia.
“Less than 15 years after his exploits in the Middle East made him an international legend, his fame — and the suspicions surrounding it — had effectively made him a man without borders, denied visas by countries across Europe, Asia and the Middle East.”
Lawrence wrote the letter while stationed in Plymouth, southwestern England, with the Royal Air Force, and less than three years before he died in a motorcycle crash at the age of 46.
His role in the Arab Revolt as a British Army intelligence officer was immortalized through promotional tours, along with his book “Seven Pillars of Wisdom,” and the 1962 Oscar-winning film “Lawrence of Arabia,” directed by David Lean, in which he was portrayed by Peter O’Toole.
During the conflict he worked as an adviser to the son of the grand sharif of Makkah, Prince Faisal Bin Al-Hussein, who led Arab forces against Ottoman troops in the Hejaz.
Lawrence went on to write that he was ashamed of deceiving Arab forces into fighting for British interests with the promise that they would be rewarded with self determination, only for Arab land to be divided between Britain and France when the war ended.
