The Russian journals of Martha and Catherine Wilmot written at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

The first was written by Martha Bradford, nee Wilmot, and cover the years 1803-08 in six notebooks. She left Ireland on 12 April 1803, On a journey to Moscow: Thursday 4 December 1803: 'We dined at Genl. Gelagines - mem. beautiful Turkish slave amongst the Russian ones- the family is a numerous, & apparently, an uneducated one.' 'Prince D's visit, 'smithereens, smithereens' - I dined alone, & join'd the Princess immediately after - I cannot help hazzarding one remark, that the love which the Princess has for her son, is the cause of such misery to both, that tis dreadful, her jealousy of his attention, all she exacts from him, her enquiries, etc that a woman of her understanding should not know how to control herself'.

The journals are about social events, people, ['her face is painted most frightfully yet, she is pretty, her features are beautiful, but expression is buried in paint'] , clothes, visits and conversations, house interiors, food ['we have sorrel dress'd at table almost every day'], agriculture, the weather, her reading etc.

There are also copies of letters from Russia from Martha for part of this period, 1803-06, and also copies of the letters of her sister, Katherine Wilmot from Russia, 1805-1807, and Katherine's own journal of her stay in Russia, 1806-1807.

Martha Bradford's journal of a year spent in Italy, 1821-1822.

There are also poems by Martha Bradford, with copies of others' poems and puzzles, of the same period.

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