Letter from Major Robert Frederick, 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot, to Mrs Jane Teasdale, informing her of her son Edward's death, Stony Hill, Jamaica, 19 November 1808

Lieutenant Edward Teasdale was one of thousands of British soldiers who fell victim to disease while stationed in the West Indies during the early 19th century. Following his death, his commanding officer, Major Robert Frederick, wrote this letter to Teasdale's mother informing her of the circumstances of her son's death and offering his condolences: 'Your son died on the 15th of yellow fever. He was taken ill, convalesced but thinking himself stronger, left Kingston to come here and suffered a relapse...Most humbly do I console with you madam on the loss of this amiable young man but it must be a great consolation to you to know, that in the circle in which he moved he was most highly respected [and] most deservedly beloved.'