Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham by John Crealock

Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham (24 May 1852 – 20 March 1936) was a Scottish politician, writer, journalist and adventurer. He was a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

Member of Parliament (MP); the first ever socialist member of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

; a founder, and the first president, of the

Scottish Labour Party Scottish Labour (), is the part of the UK Labour Party active in Scotland. Ideologically social democratic and unionist, it holds 23 of 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament and 37 of 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons. It is repres ...

; a founder of the National Party of Scotland in 1928; and the first president of the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic party. The party holds 61 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, and holds 9 out of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, ...

in 1934. Cunninghame Graham was the eldest son of Major William Bontine of the Renfrew Militia and formerly a

Cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

in the Scots Greys with whom he served in Ireland. His mother was the Hon. Anne Elizabeth Elphinstone-Fleeming, daughter of

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Charles Elphinstone-Fleeming of Cumbernauld and a Spanish noblewoman, Doña Catalina Paulina Alessandro de Jiménez, who reputedly, along with her second husband, Admiral James Katon, heavily influenced Cunninghame Graham's upbringing. Thus the first language Cunninghame Graham learned was his mother's maternal tongue, Spanish.

Youth

He spent most of his childhood on the family estate of Finlaystone in

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Renfrewshire is located in the west central Lowlands. It borders East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, and lies on the southern ba ...

and Ardoch in

Dunbartonshire Dunbartonshire () or the County of Dumbarton is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Dunbar ...

, Scotland, with his younger brothers Charles and Malise. After being educated at Harrow public school in England, Robert finished his education in

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Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, before moving to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

to make his fortune cattle ranching. He became known as a great adventurer and

gaucho A gaucho () or gaúcho () is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, the southern part of Bolivia, and the south of Chilean Patago ...

there, and was affectionately known as Don Roberto. He also travelled in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

disguised as a Turkish

sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...

to find the "forbidden" city of

Taroudant Taroudant (, ) is a city in the Sous in southwestern Morocco. It is situated east of Agadir on the road to Ouarzazate and south of Marrakesh. Today, it is a small market town and a tourist destination. History The Almoravids occupied the town ...

but was captured by a Caid (Si Taieb ben Si Ahmed El Hassan El Kintafi), prospected for gold in Spain, befriended Buffalo Bill in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, and taught

fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...

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, having travelled there by

wagon train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

from San Antonio de Bexar with his young bride ''sic'' " Gabrielle Marie de la Balmondiere", a supposed half-French, half-

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an poet.

Convert to socialism

After the death of his father in 1883 he reverted to the Cunninghame Graham surname. He returned to the UK and became interested in politics. He attended socialist meetings where he heard and met

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditiona ...

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

, H. M. Hyndman,

Keir Hardie James Keir Hardie (15 August 185626 September 1915) was a Scottish trade unionist and politician. He was a founder of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, and was its first Leader of the Labour Party (UK), parliamentary leader from 1906 to 1908. ...

and John Burns. Despite his wealthy origins, Graham was converted to socialism and he began to speak at public meetings. He was an impressive orator and was especially good at dealing with hecklers.

Liberal Party MP

Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham Vanity Fair 25 August 1888

Although a socialist, in the 1886 general election he stood as a

candidate at North West Lanarkshire. His election programme was extremely radical and called for: *the abolition of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

universal suffrage Universal suffrage or universal franchise ensures the right to vote for as many people bound by a government's laws as possible, as supported by the " one person, one vote" principle. For many, the term universal suffrage assumes the exclusion ...

*the

nationalisation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with priv ...

of land, mines and other industries *free school meals * disestablishment of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

*Scottish

Home Rule Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governan ...

*the establishment of an eight-hour working day Supported by liberals and socialists, Graham defeated the Unionist candidate by 322 votes. He had stood against the same candidate at the 1885 general election, in which he was defeated by over 1100 votes. Robert Cunninghame Graham refused to accept the conventions of the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

. On 12 September 1887 he was suspended from parliament for making what was called a "disrespectful reference" to the

. He was the first MP ever to be suspended from the House of Commons for swearing; the word was damn. Graham's main concerns in the House of Commons were the plight of the unemployed and the preservation of

civil liberties Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties of ...

. He complained about attempts in 1886 and 1887 by the police to prevent public meetings and

free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...

. He attended the protest demonstration in

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster in Central London. It was established in the early-19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. Its name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the Royal Navy, ...

on 13 November 1887 that was broken up by the police and became known as Bloody Sunday. Graham was badly beaten during his arrest and taken to Bow Street Police Station, where his uncle, Col William Hope VC, attempted to post bail. Both Cunninghame Graham, who was defended by

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928) was a British statesman and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916. He was the last ...

, and John Burns were found guilty for their involvement in the demonstration and sentenced to six weeks imprisonment. When Graham was released from Pentonville prison he continued his campaign to improve the rights of working people and to curb their economic exploitation. He was suspended from the House of Commons in December 1888 for protesting about the working conditions of the chain makers of Cradley Heath. His response to the Speaker of the House, "I never withdraw", was later used by

in ''Arms and the Man''.

Scottish independence and the Scottish Labour Party

Graham was a strong supporter of

Scottish independence Scottish independence (; ) is the idea of Scotland regaining its independence and once again becoming a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom. The term Scottish independence refers to the political movement that is campaignin ...

. In 1886, he helped establish the Scottish Home Rule Association (SHRA), and while in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

, he made several attempts to persuade fellow MPs of the desirability of a

Scottish parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...

. On one occasion, Graham joked that he wanted a "national parliament with the pleasure of knowing that the taxes were wasted in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

instead of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

." In 1888, Graham attended the SHRA Conference at the Anderton's Hotel in Fleet Street and passed a motion "That in the opinion of this Conference the interests of Scotland demand the establishment of a Scotch national Parliament and an Executive Government having control over exclusively Scotch affairs, with a due regard to the integrity of the Empire". The motion was supported by Mr Cuninghame Graham (as name spelt in article), who said he "wanted a Scotch Parliament to do justice to their crofters and keep them at home, to pass an Eight Hours' Bill for their miners, to settle the liquor laws, and to nationalise the land." Peter Esslemont MP attended. Dr G.B Clark Chaired conference MP for Caithness-shire. While in the House of Commons, Graham became increasingly more radical and went on to found the

with

. Graham left the Liberal Party in 1892 to contest the general election in a new constituency as a Labour candidate. He supported workers in their industrial disputes and was involved with

Annie Besant Annie Besant (; Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was an English socialist, Theosophy (Blavatskian), theosophist, freemason, women's rights and Home Rule activist, educationist and campaigner for Indian nationalism. She was an arden ...

and the Matchgirls Strike and the 1889 Dockers' Strike. In July 1889, he attended the

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

Congress of the

Second International The Second International, also called the Socialist International, was a political international of Labour movement, socialist and labour parties and Trade union, trade unions which existed from 1889 to 1916. It included representatives from mo ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

with James Keir Hardie, William Morris,

Eleanor Marx Jenny Julia Eleanor Marx (16 January 1855 – 31 March 1898), sometimes called Eleanor Aveling and known to her family as Tussy, was the English-born youngest daughter of Karl Marx. She was herself a Socialism, socialist activist who sometimes ...

and Edward Aveling. The following year he made a speech in

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

that was considered by the authorities to be so revolutionary that he was arrested and expelled from France. Graham was a supporter of the eight-hour day and made several attempts to introduce a Bill on the subject. He made some progress with this in the summer of 1892, but he was unable to persuade the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

government, headed by

Lord Salisbury Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (; 3 February 183022 August 1903), known as Lord Salisbury, was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United ...

, to allocate time for the Bill to be fully debated. At the 1892 general election Graham stood as the Scottish Labour Party candidate for Glasgow Camlachie. He was defeated, bringing his parliamentary career to an end. He remained active in political circles, though, helping his colleague Keir Hardie establish the Independent Labour Party and enter parliament as the MP for

West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

. However, he became disillusioned by the pettiness and dissent of those he called "piss-pot socialists" and increasingly turned to a nascent

Scottish nationalism Scottish nationalism promotes the idea that the Scottish people form a cohesive nation and Scottish national identity, national identity. Scottish nationalism began to shape from 1853 with the National Association for the Vindication of Scottis ...

as a means of achieving social justice and cultural revival. Graham retained a strong belief in Scottish home rule. He played an active part in the establishment of the National Party of Scotland (NPS) in 1928 and was elected the Honorary President of the new

in 1934. He was several times the Glasgow University Scottish Nationalist Association candidate for the Lord Rectorship of the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

, which he lost by only sixty-six votes in 1928 to

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley (3 August 186714 December 1947), was a British statesman and Conservative politician who was prominent in the political leadership of the United Kingdom between the world wars. He was prime ministe ...

, the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

at the time. This event was pivotal in the founding of the National Party, and the eventual creation of the

in the 1930s. Because of his Scottish nationalism, and criticism of what he saw as the Labour Party's timidity and lack of socialist zeal, Graham has been effectively written out of Labour Party history, and the belief has been circulated that after his electoral defeat in 1892, he retired from politics until the late 1920s. This is entirely incorrect; in fact, between 1905 and 1914, Graham, while retaining the position of elder statesman, social commentator, and renowned world-traveller, became more militant, involving himself in many left-wing causes and protests. There is evidence to suggest that he joined the hard-left British Socialist Party, and he was an associate of anarchists and a political assassin. Graham was also a vociferous anti-imperialist at the height of British jingoism as well as a high-profile supporter of the

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

movement and Home Rule for Ireland and India.

Author

Between 1888 and 1892, Graham was a prolific contributor to small-circulation socialist journals, but his literary career took off when he was recruited by

Frank Harris Frank Harris (14 February 1856 – 26 August 1931) was an Irish-American editor, novelist, short story writer, journalist and publisher, who was friendly with many well-known figures of his day. Born in Ireland, he emigrated to the United State ...

to write for the '' Saturday Review'' in 1895, and he continued writing for the ''Saturday'' until 1926, as well as other journals. His main form was the 'sketch', or sketch-tale', mostly descriptive, atmospheric works on South America and Scotland, which gave his work a unique aesthetic, which carried a subtext of anti-colonialism, nostalgia, and loss. T. E. Lawrence (of Arabia) described his Scottish sketches as "the rain-in-the-air-and-on-the-roof mournfulness of Scotch music in his time-past style . .snap-shots – the best verbal snapshots ever taken I believe." His many works were collected into anthologies. Subject matter included history, biography, poetry, essays, politics, travel and seventeen collections of short stories or literary sketches. Titles include ''Father Archangel of Scotland'' (1896 in conjunction with his wife Gabriela), ''Thirteen Stories'' (1900), ''Success'' (1902), ''Hope'' (1910), ''Scottish Stories'' (1914), ''Brought Forward'' (1916) and ''Mirages'' (1936). Biographies included: ''Hernando de Soto'' (1903), ''Doughty Deeds'' (1925), a biography of his great-great-grandfather, Robert Graham of Gartmore and Portrait of a Dictator (1933). His great-niece and biographer, Jean, Lady Polwarth, published a collection of his short stories (or sketches) entitled ''Beattock for Moffatt and the Best of Cunninghame Graham'' (1979) and Alexander Maitland added his selection under the title ''Tales of Horsemen'' (1981). Professor John Walker published collections of Cunninghame Graham's South American Sketches (1978), Scottish Sketches (1982) and North American Sketches (1986) and Kennedy & Boyd republished the stories and sketches in five volumes (2011 – 2012). In 1988 The Century Travellers reprinted his ''Mogreb-el-Acksa'' (1898) and ''A Vanished Arcadia'' (1901). The former was the inspiration for George Bernard Shaw's play '' Captain Brassbound's Conversion''. The latter helped inspire the award-winning film '' The Mission''. More recently The Long Riders Guild Press have reprinted his equestrian travel works in their Cunninghame Graham Collection. He helped his close friend

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...

, whom he had introduced to his publisher Edward Garnett at Duckworth, with research for his novel ''

Nostromo ''Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard'' is a 1904 novel by Joseph Conrad, set in the fictitious South American republic of "Costaguana". It was originally published serially in monthly instalments of '' T.P.'s Weekly''. In 1998, the Modern Libra ...

''. Other literary friends included

Ford Madox Ford Ford Madox Ford (né Joseph Leopold Ford Hermann Madox Hueffer ( ); 17 December 1873 – 26 June 1939) was an English novelist, poet, critic and editor whose journals ''The English Review'' and ''The Transatlantic Review (1924), The Transatlant ...

, John Galsworthy, W. H. Hudson,

(who openly admits his debt to Graham for " Captain Brassbound's Conversion" as well as a key line in '' Arms and the Man'') and G. K. Chesterton, who proclaimed him "The Prince of Preface Writers" and famously declared in his autobiography that while Cunninghame Graham would never be allowed to be Prime Minister, he instead "achieved the adventure of being Cunninghame Graham", which Shaw described as "an achievement so fantastic that it would never be believed in a romance." There is a seat dedicated to Cunninghame Graham in the Scottish Storytelling Centre in Edinburgh with the inscription: "R B 'Don Roberto' Cunninghame Graham of Gartmore and Ardoch, 1852–1936, A great storyteller".

Final years

Grave of RB Cunninghame Graham Inchmahome priory

Graham remained sprightly and rode daily even in his eighties. He continued to write, and held the office of President of the Scottish Branch of the P.E.N. Club, and involve himself in politics. He died from pneumonia on 20 March 1936 at the Plaza Hotel in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, following a visit to the birthplace of his friend William Hudson. He lay in state in the Casa del Teatro and received a countrywide tribute led by the President of the Republic before his body was shipped home to be buried beside his wife on 18 April 1936, in the ruined Augustinian

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

on the island of Inchmahome,

Lake of Menteith Lake of Menteith, also known as Loch Inchmahome (Scottish Gaelic: ''Loch Innis Mo Cholmaig''), is a loch in Scotland located on the Carse of Stirling (the flood plain of the upper reaches of the rivers River Forth, Forth and River Teith, Teith, u ...

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

. The following year (June 1937), a monument, the

Cunninghame Graham Memorial The Cunninghame Graham Memorial is a stone monument dedicated to the memory of 'Don Roberto' Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham (1852–1936) 15th of Gartmore and 19th of Ardoch, a Scottish author, politician, traveller and horseman . The cairn ...

, was unveiled at Castlehill, Dumbarton, near the family home at Ardoch. Despite the monument being removed to Gartmore in 1981, closer to the principal Graham estate, which he had been forced to sell in 1901 to the shipping magnate and founder of the Clan Line, Sir Charles Cayzer, Bt, the Cunninghame Graham Memorial Park (which is managed by the

National Trust for Scotland The National Trust for Scotland () is a Scottish Building preservation and conservation trusts in the UK, conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organisation in Scotland and describes itself as "the charity that cares for, sha ...

) is still affectionately locally known as "the Mony". His estates at Ardoch and feudal barony of Gartmore passed to his nephew, Captain (later Admiral Sir)

Angus Cunninghame Graham Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral Sir Angus Edward Malise Bontine Cunninghame Graham of Gartmore and Ardoch (16 February 1893 – 14 February 1981) was a Royal Navy officer who became Flag Officer Scotland, Northern England, Northern Ireland, Flag O ...

, the only son of his brother Cdr. Charles Elphinstone-Fleeming Cunninghame Graham, MVO.

Cunninghame Graham in art

Cunninghame Graham was a staunch supporter of the artists of his day and a popular subject. He sat for artists such as Sir William Rothenstein, who painted Don Roberto as ''The Fencer''; Sir John Lavery, whose famous ''Don Roberto: Commander for the King of Aragon in the Two Sicilies'' was on the cover of the

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

edition of Conrad's ''Nostromo'' for many years and who painted the equestrian portrait of Don Roberto on his favourite horse, ''Pampa''; and G. P. Jacomb-Hood, who painted his official portrait on entering parliament, with whom, along with Whistler, he was personal friends. George Washington Lambert painted him in oil with his horse Pinto and James McBey portrayed him in old age. There are also busts by Weiss and

Jacob Epstein Sir Jacob Epstein (10 November 1880 – 21 August 1959) was an American and British sculptor who helped pioneer modern sculpture. He was born in the United States, and moved to Europe in 1902, becoming a British subject in 1910. Early in his ...

. The Dumbarton born artist,

William Strang William Strang (13 February 1859 – 12 April 1921) was a Scottish painter and printmaker, notable for illustrating the works of John Bunyan, Bunyan, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Coleridge and Rudyard Kipling, Kipling. Early life Strang was bor ...

, used Cunninghame Graham as the model for his series of etchings of

Don Quixote , the full title being ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'', is a Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, the novel is considered a founding work of Western literature and is of ...

. It is unsurprising that he was at the mercy of cartoonists such as Tom Merry, who portrayed him in prison garb, and caricaturists such as

Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

and Spy.

Cunninghame Graham as literary inspiration

Cedric Watts claims that Cunninghame Grahame appears as 'Mr. X' in Conrad's ''The Informer'', as ''Mr. Courtier'' in Galsworthy's ''The Patrician'', and as 'Mr. Graham' in Wells's '' When the Sleeper Wakes''. Anne Taylor and James Jauncey have argued that his travels in Morocco were one of the inspirations for the character Sandy Arbuthnot, hero of

John Buchan John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (; 26 August 1875 – 11 February 1940) was a Scottish novelist, historian, British Army officer, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation. As a ...

's novel '' Greenmantle'' (1916).Jauncey, James (2023), ''Don Roberto: The Adventure of Being Cunninghame Graham'', Scotland Street Press, p. 215,

Bibliography

* ''Notes on the district of Menteith: for tourists and others'' (1895) * ''Father Archangel of Scotland and other essays'' (1896) * ''Mogreb-el-Acksa: A Journey in Morocco'' (1898) * ''Aurora La Cujiñi: A Realistic Sketch in Seville'' (1898) * ''The Ipané'' (1899) * ''Thirteen Stories'' (1900) * ''A Vanished Arcadia: Being Some Account of the Jesuits in Paraguay, 1607 to 1767'' (1901) * ''Success'' (1902) * ''Hernando de Soto; together with an account of one of his captains, Gonçalo Silvestre'' (1903) * ''Progress'' (1905) * ''His People'' (1906) * ''Santa Teresa: being some account of her life and times'' (1907) * ''Rhymes from a world unknown'' (Preface) (1908) * ''Faith'' (1909) * ''Hope'' (1910) * ''Charity'' (1912) * ''A Hatchment'' (1913) * ''Scottish Stories'' (1914) * ''Bernal Diaz del Castillo: being some account of him'' (1915) * ''Brought Forward'' (1917) * ''A Brazilian mystic: being the life and miracles of Antonio Conselheiro'' (1920) * ''Cartagena and the Banks of the Sinú ''(1920) * ''The Conquest of New Granada: Being the Life of Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada'' (1922) * ''The Dream of the Magi'' (1923) * ''Doughty Deeds: an account of the life of Robert Graham of Gartmore'' (1925) * ''Pedro de Valdivia, conqueror of Chile'' (1926) * ''Redeemed: And Other Sketches'' (1927) * ''Jose Antonio Paez'' (1929) * ''Thirty Tales & Sketches'' (1929) * ''Writ in sand'' (1932) * ''Portrait of a dictator: Francisco Solano Lopez'' (1933) * ''Mirages'' (1936) * ''Rodeo: A Collection of the Tales and Sketches'' (1936) * ''Reincarnation: The Best Short Stories of R. B. Cunninghame Graham'' (1979) posthumous

Footnotes

Bibliographies

*''A bibliography of the first editions of the works of Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham'', compiled with a foreword by Leslie Chaundy, London: Dulau, & Co. 1924 *''Cunninghame Graham and Scotland: an annotated bibliography'', John Walker, Dollar: Douglas S. Mack, 1980

References

*''The Adventures of Don Roberto'' A Caledonia TV production for BBC Scotland, broadcast on BBC2 2008-12-15. *''The People's Laird: A Life of Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham'' by Anne Taylor, The Tobias Press, 2005 *''Gaucho Laird: The Life of R.B. Don Roberto Cunninghame Graham'', by Jean Cunninghame Graham, Long Riders' Guild, 2004 *''R.B. Cunninghame Graham: Fighter for Justice'', by Ian M. Fraser (privately published 2002) *''Revaluation: R.B. Cunninghame Graham'', by Tom Hubbard, in '' Cencrastus'' No. 8, Spring 1982, pp. 27 – 30, *''R.B. Cunninghame Graham'', by Cedric Watts, Boston, Mass.: G. K. Hall, Twayne, 1983. *''Cunninghame Graham: A Centenary Study'', Hugh MacDiarmid, with a foreword by R.E. Muirhead, Glasgow: Caledonian Press, 1952 *''Cunninghame Graham: A Critical Biography'', Cedric Watts and Laurence Davies, Cambridge

ng. Ng, ng, or NG may refer to: * Ng (name) (吳黄伍), (吳 being the most common), a surname of Chinese origin Arts and entertainment * N-Gage (device), a handheld gaming system * Naked Giants, Seattle rock band * '' Spirit Hunter: NG'', a vide ...

New York: Cambridge University Press, 1979 *''Don Roberto: being the account of the life and works of R. B. Cunninghame Graham, 1852–1936'', A. F. Tschiffely, London, Toronto: William Heinemann, 1937 *''A Modern Conquistador: Cunninghame Graham His Life and Works'', by Herbert Faulkner West, Cranley Day, 1932 *''Don Roberto: vida y obra de R. B. Cunninghame Graham, 1852–1936'', A. F. Tschiffely; versión castellana de Julio E. Payró, Buenos Aires: Guillermo Kraft, 1946 *''El Escocés Errante: R. B. Cunninghame Graham'', Alicia Jurado, Buenos Aires: Emecé Editores, c1978 *''Robert and Gabriela Cunninghame Graham'', Alexander Maitland, Edinburgh: William Blackwood and Sons Ltd, 1983 *''The Friendship between W.H. Hudson and Cunninghame Graham; translation of an article ... in the Buenos Aires illustrated weekly Acquí Está'', José Luis Lanuza, Argentina: Florencio Varela, n.d. *''Lecture on R.B. Cunninghame Graham for the Anglo-Argentine Society, 24 January 1979'', Jean Polwarth, London: n.p., 1979 *''Jorge Luis Borges Lecture on R. B. Cunninghame Graham for the Anglo Argentinian Society, 30 September 1986'', Alicia Jurado, Royal Society of Arts, London: n.p., 1986 *''Personalidad de Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham: extracto de la tesis doctoral ... en la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de la Universidad de Madrid sobre: Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham : personalidad del autor y estudio crítico de sus ensayos'', Julio Llorens Ebrat., Madrid: Florencio Varela, 1963 *''Testimonio a Roberto B. Cunninghame Graham'', Buenos Aires: P.E.N. Club Argentino, 1941 *''The North American Sketches of R. B. Cunninghame Graham'', John Walker (ed.), Tuscaloosa, University of Alabama Press, 1987 *''The Scottish Sketches of R.B. Cunninghame Graham'', John Walker (ed.), Edinburgh, Scottish Academic Press, 1982 *''The South American Sketches of R. B. Cunninghame Graham'', John Walker (ed.), Norman, University of Oklahoma Press, 1985 *''An Eagle in a Hen-House: Selected Political Speeches and Writings of R. B. Cunninghame Graham'', Lachlan Munro, The Deveron Press, 2017. *''Joseph Conrad's Letters to R. B. Cunninghame Graham'', Cedric Watts (ed.), London, Cambridge University Press, 1969 *''South London Chronicle, 9 June 1888, page 7, SHRA Conference (Tuesday). *''Empires & Revolutions: Cunninghame Graham & His Contemporaries.' ''Carla Sassi and Silke Stroh'' ''(Eds.) 2017, ASLS.''

External links

Archival collections

Guide to the Anne Elizabeth Bontine Diaries and Other Materials.
Special Collections and Archives, The UC Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California.

Other

Biographical Profile
at ''ElectricScotland.com''
Rare Reprints – Cunninghame Graham
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R. B. Cunninghame Graham, Rauner Special Collection, Dartmouth College Library, N.H.Canning House Special Collection – R. B. Cunninghame Graham
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National Portrait GalleryCross party support to honour Scottish Hero Robert Cunninghame Graham
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunninghame Graham, Robert 1852 births 1936 deaths Anglo-Scots Writers from London People educated at Harrow School Presidents of the Scottish National Party Scottish journalists Scottish explorers Scottish politicians Scottish nationalists 19th-century Scottish writers 19th-century Scottish male writers 20th-century Scottish writers Scottish travel writers 20th-century Scottish historians Scottish biographers Scottish essayists Scottish socialists Scottish Liberal Party MPs 19th-century Scottish translators Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies UK MPs 1886–1892 Deaths from pneumonia in Argentina Scottish Labour Party (1888) politicians British political party founders 19th-century Scottish historians