Baldwin's of St. James's
Auction 43 25 Mar 2020
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
The Pavilion Collection, Commemorative Medals, Henry Brougham (1778-1868), candidature in the Westmoreland Elections, silver medal, 1818, by G. Mills, bare head r., rev. legend in wreath, 36mm. (BHM.970; Eimer 1106), suspension loop; General Sir Robert Thomas Wilson (1777-1849), copper medal, 1821, by John Westwood, bust l. in uniform with Stars, rev. oak wreath, CIVIBUS SERVATIS, 41mm. (BHM.1168), swivel loop for suspension, both extremely fine, the second rare (2)
Second bt. Saltford Coins, London Coin Fair, November 2019
Although the first medal is unrelated to the trial of Queen Caroline, it depicts Henry Brougham, later to be Lord Chancellor and Baron Brougham and Vaux, whom Queen Caroline appointed as her Attorney-General to fight the Pains and Penalties Bill. Brougham had been her adviser since 1812 and the trial firmly established his reputation. The portrait is contemporary and an excellent likeness.
Wilson had a distinguished military career up to 1821, the date on this medal. He was dismissed following the funeral of Queen Caroline but later reinstated and went on to become Governor of Gibraltar.
On the day of the funeral procession, the crowds (and the Lord Mayor and Aldermen) had expected the Queen's body to pass through the City of London on its way to Colchester and Harwich and thence to the Cathedral of St. Blaise in Brunswick [Lower Saxony]. Lord Liverpool misread the feelings of the crowds and Sir Robert Wilson intervened to prevent another 'Peterloo Massacre'. Liverpool and others in Government however assumed that Wilson, known for his radical politics and support towards the Queen, had caused the near riots rather than prevented them. He was stripped of his rank and his many foreign decorations for his service as a Lieutenant-General in the Napoleonic wars. They were to be returned a decade later and Wilson ended his career as Governor of Gibraltar (1842-1848). The medal is considerably rarer than suggested in BHM.
(150-200 GBP)
Second bt. Saltford Coins, London Coin Fair, November 2019
Although the first medal is unrelated to the trial of Queen Caroline, it depicts Henry Brougham, later to be Lord Chancellor and Baron Brougham and Vaux, whom Queen Caroline appointed as her Attorney-General to fight the Pains and Penalties Bill. Brougham had been her adviser since 1812 and the trial firmly established his reputation. The portrait is contemporary and an excellent likeness.
Wilson had a distinguished military career up to 1821, the date on this medal. He was dismissed following the funeral of Queen Caroline but later reinstated and went on to become Governor of Gibraltar.
On the day of the funeral procession, the crowds (and the Lord Mayor and Aldermen) had expected the Queen's body to pass through the City of London on its way to Colchester and Harwich and thence to the Cathedral of St. Blaise in Brunswick [Lower Saxony]. Lord Liverpool misread the feelings of the crowds and Sir Robert Wilson intervened to prevent another 'Peterloo Massacre'. Liverpool and others in Government however assumed that Wilson, known for his radical politics and support towards the Queen, had caused the near riots rather than prevented them. He was stripped of his rank and his many foreign decorations for his service as a Lieutenant-General in the Napoleonic wars. They were to be returned a decade later and Wilson ended his career as Governor of Gibraltar (1842-1848). The medal is considerably rarer than suggested in BHM.
(150-200 GBP)