Footnotes

Whilst these shoe buckles may seem rather flamboyant, even showy, for the fleet’s second-in-command to choose to wear on the quarterdeck of his flagship as she prepares to go into action and engage the enemy, their authenticity is greatly supported by an interesting account of Collingwood’s toilette on the morning of the battle [of Trafalgar] by Mr. Smith, the Admiral’s valet, and published in G.L. Newnham Collingwood’s A Selection from the Public and Private Correspondence of Vice-Admiral Lord Collingwood interspersed with Memoirs of his Life, 4th edition, London, 1829, p. 124:

“……‘I entered the Admiral’s cabin’, he observed, ‘about daylight and found him already up and dressing. He asked if I had seen the French fleet; and on my replying that I had not, he told me to look out at them, adding that, in a very short time, we should see a great deal more of them. I then observed a crowd of ships to leeward; but I could not help looking with still greater interest at the Admiral, who, during all this time, was shaving himself with a composure that quite astonished me.’ Admiral Collingwood dressed himself that morning with peculiar care; and soon after, meeting Lieutenant Clavell, advised him to pull off his boots. ‘You had better,’ he said, ‘put on silk stockings, as I have done: for if one should get a shot in the leg, they would be so much more manageable for the surgeon.’

Thus, having made the decision not to wear his usual seaboots but, instead, to put on shoes [and stockings], his choice would have been severely limited, quite possibly to a single pair of shoes reserved solely for social functions. In such circumstances, these buckles set with their blue pastes may well have been attached to the shoes already and, in the absence of any more sober alternatives, been pressed into use that day despite their apparent unsuitability.

Provenance:

Vice-Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, his niece Louisa (Mrs. James Burke, wife of Surgeon James Burke, R.N.), her nephew Paymaster Walter Burke, R.N., his sister Margaret Hamilton-Burke, her daughter Katherine Burke, her brother Bernard Hamilton-Burke and thence by descent. Sold with a detailed statement outlining the family provenance in the hand of Bernard Hamilton-Burke, Lt. Colonel (ret’d.), 68th Durham Light Infantry, and dated 21st October 1911.

Admiral Lord Cuthbert Collingwood (1750-1810) was born in Newcastle-on-Tyne on 26th September 1750, the scion of an old Northumberland family by then in reduced circumstances. Entering the Royal Navy as a Volunteer in 1761, he remained mostly in home waters until appointed to H.M.S. “Preston” in 1774 in which ship he went to North America. Promoted Lieutenant in 1775 as a direct result of his conduct, when ashore, at the battle of Bunker’s Hill, he first became acquainted with Nelson in 1777 and, thereafter, their lives and careers remained closely connected. Despite losing his ship, H.M.S. “Pelican”, in a hurricane in 1781, he was recognised as a promising officer and promotion came steadily. In command of the 90-gun “Prince” at the ‘Glorious First of June’ (1794), he was in “Excellent” at the battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797) where he played a distinguished role supporting Nelson and thereby ensuring the victory. Made Rear-Admiral early in 1799, he was immediately appointed to a command in the Channel Fleet and, promoted Vice-Admiral in April 1804, was given command of a squadron to support Nelson and reinforce the blockade off Cadiz. When Nelson joined the fleet off Cadiz on 28th September (1805), Collingwood became his second-in-command, led the Lee Column at Trafalgar and succeeded Nelson in overall command once the latter had been mortally wounded. Raised to the peerage as Baron Collingwood by way of reward, he nevertheless remained in the Mediterranean for another five years until, worn out and weakened by a debilitating illness, he died at sea when homeward-bound on 7th March 1810.