LORD UXBRIDGE (1ST MARQUESS OF ANGELESEY): A GEORGE IV 18 CARAT GOLD IRISH FREEDOM BOX
by Edward Murray, Dublin 1827
Sold for £100,900
An 18 carat gold Irish presentation box dating to 1827 sold for £100,900 at Bonham’s April Waterloo sale. The Lord Uxbridge (Ist Marquess of Anglesea) presentation gold box was made in 1827 by Edward Murray, Dublin. The cover of the finely embossed and chased box is set with coat or arms on a matted ground within a frame of rocaille shells and foliage. There are convex plain sides and the base is set with another coat of arms on a plain ground with similar border.
The arms on the cover are those of Field Marshal Henry William Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey (1768-1854) who served twice as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He was styled Lord Paget between 1784 and 1812 and known as The Earl of Uxbridge between 1812 and 1815. During his first appointment in Ireland he received an honorary doctorate from Trinity College, Dublin. The arms on the base are those of Trinity College.
He led the charge of the heavy cavalry against Comte d’Erlon’s column at the Battle of Waterloo. At the end of the battle he lost part of one of his legs to a cannonball, leading to a famous brief exchange of words: he was close to Wellington when his leg was hit, and exclaimed, “By God, sir, I’ve lost my leg!” ? to which Wellington replied, “By God, sir, so you have!” The auction was built around Wellington, Waterloo and the Napoleonic Wars.