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Lot 4

Naval Assault and Capture of Fort St Philip, Minorca, 1781,

5 July 2005, 11:00 BST
London, New Bond Street

£400 - £600

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Naval Assault and Capture of Fort St Philip, Minorca, 1781,

A historically interesting snuff-box, commemorating the capture of Fort St Philip, Minorca, 1781, its lid impressed with a naval scene depicting a coastal bombardment of a fort, with ships in the harbour. Inscription: PRISE DU FORT ST. PHILIPPE 19 AOUST 1781. The interior of the box is tortoiseshell-lined. 80 mm. (3.2 inches) in diameter; 25 mm. (1 inch) in height.

Footnotes

In 1781 a large French and Spanish force led by the Duc de Crillon besieged the British garrison at Fort St Philip, Minorca. Under the command of the island’s governor, James Murray (c.1719-94), the British troops put up a stubborn resistance lasting nearly seven months. After his numbers had been reduced from 2000 men to just 600, Murray was forced to surrender. This surrender resulted in his being tried by court-martial on his return to England. He was acquitted, and later became a general. Murray had previously distinguished himself as an officer in the British army, serving in the West Indies, North America and at Louisburg, where in 1758 he was one of General Wolfe's three brigadiers in the expedition against Quebec. In 1763 he became governor of Canada after it had been formally ceded to Great Britain, on the cessation of the Seven Years' War.

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