Two astonishing shotguns owned and used by the Duke of Wellington when he was Prime Minister have emerged 174 years after he died.
The weapons were made by Forsyth & Co in the late 1820s and remarkably remain in their original boxes with some of the original loading tools. Leading antique dealer Charles Wallrock of Wick Antiques in Lymington, Hants, said acquiring items once held by one of the greatest Britons who ever lived was a privilege. He will be exhibiting them for the first time at the LAPADA Fair in Mayfair, London, between October 28 and November 1.
Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, was born in 1769 in Dublin into an Anglo-Irish aristocratic family. He was trained at the Royal Academy of Equitation in France, the country which he was later to defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.
He fought through the French Revolutionary Wars and in India before fighting in the Peninsular War and ultimately finishing off Napoleon in 1815. As a reward for his victory over the French he was awarded £400,000 and a country estate in Hampshire called Stratfield Saye.
There he enjoyed country sports, including shooting, and entertained some of the most important people in the country.
He was Prime Minister from 1828 to 1830 and then again for two months in 1834. His London Home, Apsley House, aka No. 1, London, was on the same road as the gunmaker Alexander Forsyth, a Scottish Presbyterian minister, chemist and inventor.
Charles said:
“These sporting guns are unquestionably owned by the Duke of Wellington, and are identified as such in the principal reference work on the gunmaker Forsyth."
“Clearly they have been used and we know that the duke enjoyed shooting on his country estate. Infact, after he left the office of Prime Minister he hosted Queen Victoria and Prince Albert at Stratfield Saye and went shooting with the prince. He was then in his mid-70s and he likely used these guns."
“Forsyth was a very important gunmaker and innovator and his inventions enabled guns to move away from the unreliable flintlock systems. The duke was always keen on new technologies for the battlefield and would possibly have known Forsyth. These guns are Damascus-barrelled, side-by-side 18 bore weapons with handsome walnut stocks and finely engraved metalware."
“They are small by modern standards but are exquisitely finished and might well have been made as presents for him. I anticipate a great deal of interest in them at the LAPADA fair.”
The guns come with a price tag of £185,000 and TV antique expert David Harper from Bargain Hunt and Antiques Road Trip has filmed the pieces.
He said:
“Wellington is one of the country’s greatest heroes and anything owned by him is of significance. But his sporting guns, which he used on his country estate while he was Prime Minister, will be of huge interest to collectors and institutions."
“They remain in remarkable condition for things that are nearly 200 years old.”
Liz Shanks, CEO, LAPADA, said:
“These are exactly the kind of objects that make the LAPADA Fair so interesting.
“They have extraordinary historical associations, being owned by the Duke of Wellington. We’re delighted that Wick Antiques will be bringing them to the Fair this year, giving visitors the opportunity to see these remarkable pieces of history in person.”
