Lot 105
CHARLES II Illuminated letters patent for Anthony Ashley Cooper, under the Great Seal, Westminster, 20 April 1661
Ending from 19 November 2025, 12:00 GMT
Online, London, Knightsbridge£3,000 - £5,000
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CHARLES II
Illuminated letters patent issued by Charles II under the Great Seal, appointing Anthony Ashley Cooper as Baron Ashley of Wimborne St Giles, in Latin, bearing historiated initial letter portrait of Charles II, the document bearing three decorative borders (at head and sides); the portrait of the King showing him head and shoulders, in armour, with simple white collar and chain of office, uncrowned, foliate and filigree background in gilt; the upper border with the Royal arms flanked by the lion and unicorn surrounded by poppies and thistles, coronets in roundels either side, foliate gilt decoration; the left hand border depicting the arms of England and France surmounted by crowns amidst heavy foliate gilt decoration; the right hand border with the arms of Scotland and Ireland similarly decorated, first line in gilt capitals with gilt filigree decoration; docket on reverse, the writing and decoration in pen-and-ink, ruled in red, engraved portrait and borders illuminated in gilt, with red, green and blue washes; remainder of Great Seal in green wax held by gold and silver thread plaited cords, on one skin of vellum, overall dust-staining, some rubbing and smudging, c.650 x 895mm., seal cracked, lacking left and right hand edges leaving throned figure intact, c.145mm. diameter, Westminster, 20 April 1661
Footnotes
CHARLES II APPOINTS A BARONET IN HIS CORONATION HONOURS LIST: the rise of Anthony Ashley Cooper, politician, Lord Proprietor of Carolina and patron of John Locke.
The recipient of our document, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury (1621-1683) held high office under both the Commonwealth and the restored Charles II and is noted as the patron of John Locke. Under Cromwell, he served on the English Council of State, although, as an outspoken detractor of the Protector, fell out with him by opposing his attempt to rule without Parliament (1655-1657). In April 1660, when he was re-elected MP for Wiltshire in the Convention Parliament, he voted in favour of the unconditional restoration of the monarchy and, in May was one of twelve delegates chosen to travel to The Hague to invite the exiled Charles II back to England. As our document, which is dated three days before the Coronation, shows, Cooper was raised to the peerage as Lord Ashley in the King's Coronation honours list of 1661. A month later, the king appointed Ashley as Chancellor of the Exchequer and under-treasurer. In May 1663 he was one of eight 'Lords Proprietor' given title to what was to become the Province of Carolina (named after Charles II) in North America and from 1667 worked with his then personal secretary and physician, John Locke, on the Grand Model and Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, which outlined a framework for its settlement. He became earl of Shaftesbury in 1672, but fell out of favour and his glittering career came to an end when imprisoned on charges of treason in 1681, leading to his exile in Holland.
Our document, sumptuously decorated, bears the remains of Charles II's Great Seal designed by Thomas Simon, one of the finest engravers and medallists working at that time, who had also designed seals for the Commonwealth and Oliver Cromwell. Our impressive seal for the restored monarch returns to a style used before the Commonwealth and depicts the new King enthroned in state with a lively equestrian portrait on the reverse.