CAMPAIGN GROUPS AND PAIRS
An M. G. S. Pair, Original Artefacts and An Exceptional Archive Related to General W. H. Scott, late Scots Fusilier Guards

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An M. G. S. Pair, Original Artefacts and An Exceptional Archive Related to General W. H. Scott, late Scots Fusilier Guards

(a) Military General Service, 1793-1814, one clasp, Talavera (Ensn 3rd. Foot Gds.), nearly extremely fine, together with the Horse Guards enclosure document and registered envelope, 1849

(b) FRANCE, Restoration, Decoration of the Lily, a crowned fleur de lys, 32 mm. x 15 mm., silver, very fine, with original white riband, card box cover and forwarding letter, 1819, from the court of Louis XVIII " ... for a bullet received at the Battle of Talavera"

(c) Two official Prisoner of War passes, one issued from Paris, 1805 "_... Mr William Henry Scott ... aged 16 years ... going to Germany without let or hindrance", the other from Verdun, 1811 " ... Lieutenant 3rd Regiment of Guards ... to leave the place by the pavement gates on the condition he return each day before they are closed ...", the last permit contained within a personalised leather cover.

(d) Temporary pass issued by the Principality of Sax-Weimar, 1806 to " ... the Student ... 19 years old who has stayed at the Academy ... near Weimar for one and a half years ..."

(e) Letter from Prince Albert, Windsor Castle, signed and dated, 1844 " ... and hasten to assure you of the regret with which I have received your resignation of the commission which you have so long held in my Regiment ... it will give me great pleasure to place the name of your little Boy on my list of Candidates of Commissions ..." with envelope

(f) Letter from Wellington, Horse Guards, signed and dated February, 1848 " ... I do myself the honour to aquaint you that her Majesty has been pleased to approve of your being placed on the List of General Officers ..." with envelope

(g) Copy of General Scott's address to the Scots Fusilier Guards on his resignation, 1844, together with a "Duplicate key of the C.O.s drawer, Horse Guards, 1837"

(h) Two letters from Viscount Hardinge, both signed -- July, 1854, regarding a grant for distinguished service -- January, 1855, appointing General Scott to the command of the 36th. Regiment, both with envelope

(i) A number of other documents including two letters written by Scott's father from Versailles, 1811, 1814 relating to the hope of his son's release from the French, a "Grant of Exclusive Right to Burial" in All Soul's Cemetery Kensall Green, 1840, various notes made by Scott relating to his entry in Hart's Army List, a water colour, 1869, and a leather bound British passport in the name of W. C. Scott, General Scott's son, 1879

(j) Three leather bound journals comprising over 600 handwritten pages; the work entitled 'Lives of my Grandfather General W. Scott and his Family' contains a remarkable amount of detail which has been compiled from contemporary sources, mainly correspondence; they include inserted maps, watercolours and some newspaper cuttings

(k) A musket ball in a card cashew box inscribed 'Bullet taken out of the side of William Scott at Tal"; Scott's multi coloured silk 'House wife' containing needles, pins, silk buttons and thread

(l) 'A Record of British Valour', a superb example of the bronze picture medal by Edward Orme, Bond Street, London, 1815, 74 mm., containing thirteen aquatints of battles in Portugal and Spain 1808-1814, and Waterloo, 1815, extremely fine, in its silk lined, gold blocked leather case

Lot Essay

INDENTGeneral William Henry Scott (1790-1868) at the age of twelve accompanied his father, Major General William Scott to France and settled in Versailles, Autumn, 1802. After the Peace of Amiens May 1802, English men and women 'flocked' to Paris in great numbers However, the peaceful relations deteriated and Lord Whitworth the English Ambassador left Paris 12th. May the following year. Napoleon decreed that all the English in France were made Prisoners of War -- those in Paris were sent to Fontainebleau; the decree was extended to Holland and many of the most distinguished English families remained close prisoners at Verdun, St. Omer and other centres for more than eleven years until liberated by the victorious allies. Trapped in Versailles, the Scott family hoped the emergency would pass -- it did not. In December, 1803, Major General Scott was sent to Verdun, his wife and childred remaining at Versailles continually applying for passports. In the autumn of 1803, permission had been sought for young William to go to Weimar to study at the academy -- one year later on 11th. September Mrs Scott wrote "I am sorry I cannot inform you that William's business is finished. It is now in the "Fourth Bureau". She wrote again on 1st. October "I am still plagued about William's passport, the Minister has given leave for it, but has not yet signed it". The passport was received later that month and William Scott departed for Weimar via Verdun the following week and persued his studies there from December 1804 to April 1806. It was during this time that he was granted a commission in the Third Foot Guards as Ensign and was allowed to continue his studies.

Scott arrived in the Peninsula, 1808; Lieutenant and Captain 1811; was present with his regiment at the crossing of the Douro, the taking of Oporto 12th. May, 1809 and the pursuit of Soult's army on the 18th.; he took part in the battle of Talavera 28-29th. July during which he was severely wounded in the side by a musket ball (with lot) and left in the local Bishop's palace, used as a hospital, where he was made a Prisoner of War by the French. One year after his release in 1814, Scott was made Captain and Lieutenant Colonel; Colonel, 1837; Commanded the Scots Fusilier Guards from 1841 to 1844 when he resigned his commission after 41 years of service with the regiment; Major General 1846, Lieutenant General 1854, General 1861; General Scott was appointed to the Colonelcy of the 36th. Regiment October, 1855, a position he held until his death at Brighton, November 1868

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