A Super Historical Saxon Warrior's Axe. Likely a Saxon Thegn. Circa 850. As Was Used at the Battle of Basing of Saxon King Æthelred and His Brother, The Future Saxon, King Alfred the Great During the Viking Invasions of the Kingdom of Wessex

Just returned today from over two months of no expense spared conservation.

Incredibly the axe was recovered with it's original haft wedge still intact and present, this simply almost never happens. it has little or no intrinsic value as such at all, as an axe wedge, but historically, it is amazing. Found many decades ago, by the grandfather of its last owner, near the old site of Rowlads Castle, Hampshire, in the Saxon Kingdom of Wessex.
The Battle of Basing was a victory of a Viking army over the West Saxons at the royal estate of Basing in Hampshire on about 22 January 871.

In late December 870 the Vikings invaded Wessex and occupied Reading. Several battles followed in quick succession, Englefield, a West Saxon victory, Reading, a Viking victory and Ashdown on about 8 January, a West Saxon victory. Two weeks later, King Æthelred and his brother, the future King Alfred the Great, were defeated at Basing. There was then a lull of two months until the Battle of Meretun, when the Vikings again prevailed. Soon after Easter, which fell on 15 April in that year, Æthelred died and was succeeded by Alfred.

In 871, the Vikings continued to attack. Alfred's brother Aethelred died in one of the battles and Alfred was crowned king at the age of 22. Over the next several years Alfred fought off the Vikings. After many battles, he thought they had finally achieved some kind of peace. However, in 878, the Danish King Guthrum led a surprise attack against Alfred and his army. He was defeated. Alfred managed to escape, but with only a few men. He fled so that he could plot his counterattack.
Many of the men of Wessex were tired of the constant raids and attacks of the Vikings; as a result, they rallied around Alfred and soon the king had a strong army again.

Despite being very courageous and a great leader, Alfred was a frail man who struggled with illness for most of his life. He did not let this stop him though; with his new army, Alfred counter-attacked the Vikings. After a hard-fought battle, he
defeated King Guthrum and took back his land at Chippenham. Subsequently, Alfred established a peace treaty: the Vikings would remain on the eastern side of Britain and the Anglo Saxons on the west. The Viking territory became known
as Danelaw.
Once peace had been established with the Vikings, Alfred went about rebuilding his kingdom. With so much focus on fighting off the Vikings, the educational system of England had almost disappeared. Alfred knew that education was
important, so he founded schools and rebuilt monasteries.
In 886, he re-captured London and was named King of the English on Anglo Saxon coins. This was the first time a man had ever reigned over most of the country.
A devout Christian, he began to spread the religion throughout England and many Saxons and Vikings, who were Pagan, converted to Christianity. Not only this, but he helped to translate the Bible from Latin into English so that more people could read – this is another example of how he helped to improve education too.
In addition to this, Alfred made other reforms and improvements to his kingdom:
he built forts throughout the country, established a strong navy, and brought talented European scholars and craftsmen across the channel to England. Furthermore, he also established a national code of law.

The Saxon settlement at Southampton was known as Hamtun, while the surrounding area or scīr was called Hamtunscīr. The old name was recorded in the Domesday book as Hantescire, and it is from this spelling that the modern abbreviation "Hants" and thus its name Hampshire derives.

In later Anglo-Saxon England, a thegn was an aristocrat who owned substantial land in one or more counties. Thanes ranked at the third level in lay society, below the king and ealdormen. Thanage refers to the tenure by which lands were held by a thane as well as the rank.

Thegns, the wealthy noblemen of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, served as retainers for their lords, fulfilling their obligation of military service.

Well-trained and equipped, thegns served as infantrymen, clad in chain mail armour and iron helmets shields.

Led to battle under dragon banners, they provided Saxon armies with a steadfast, hard-hitting core.

The term thane was also used in early medieval Scandinavia for a class of retainers, and thane was a title given to local royal officials in medieval eastern Scotland, equivalent in rank to the child of an earl.

Thegns were divided into three ranks: ealdormen (later earl), king's thegns, and median thegns. Below ealdormen were king's thegns, so called because they only served the king. The lowest thegnly rank were the median thegns who owed service to other thegns. The higher a thegn's rank, the greater the heriot he paid to the king.

Thegns were the backbone of local government and the military. Sheriffs were drawn from this class, and thegns were required to attend the shire court and give judgment. For these reasons, historian David Carpenter described thegns as "the country gentry of Anglo-Saxon England". Although their exact role is unclear, the twelve senior thegns of the hundred played a part in the development of the English system of justice. Under a law of Aethelred they "seem to have acted as the judicial committee of the court for the purposes of accusation". This suggests some connection with the modern jury trial.

Every single item from The Lanes Armoury is accompanied by our unique Certificate of Authenticity. Part of our continued dedication to maintain the standards forged by us over the past 100 years of our family’s trading, as Britain’s oldest established, and favourite, armoury and gallery  read more

Code: 25448

A Rare, Absolutely Stunning 1st Empire, Combat, 'Blue. & Gilt' Officer's Sabre of the Legere, Hussards, & Mounted Chasseurs. The Year IX, Circa 1810, Sabre Used by Officers of the Mounted Chasseurs of the Imperial Guard

The second example of an incredibly rare pair we acquired, but of course swords such as this were never made for combat use in pairs, so we are selling them separately. The first example we offered for sale, a few weeks ago, we immediately sold to a collector from abroad.

A fabulous Ist Empire deluxe quality Light Cavalry officer's 'blue and gilt' sabre with three bar guard hilt called "Hunter-style". Maker marked blade, within the gilt under one langet, S & K for Schnitzler and Kirschbaum, a well regarded maker of swords for 1st Empire officers from December 1808. Many officers swords marked S & K are in Les Invalides Musee de l’Armee in Paris. See ref below;

Light cavalry Hussars.
These fast, light cavalrymen were the eyes, ears, and egos of the Napoleonic armies. They regarded themselves as the best horsemen and swordsmen (beau sabreurs) in the entire Grande Armée. This opinion was not entirely unjustified and their flamboyant uniforms reflected their panache. Tactically, they were used for reconnaissance, skirmishing, and screening for the army to keep their commanders informed of enemy movements while denying the enemy the same information and to pursue fleeing enemy troops. Armed only with curved sabres and pistols, they had reputations for reckless bravery to the point of being almost suicidal. It was said by their most famous commander General Antoine Lasalle that a hussar who lived to be 30 was truly an old guard and very fortunate. Lasalle was killed at the Battle of Wagram at age 34. There were 10 regiments in 1804, with an 11th added in 1810 and two more in 1813.
Chasseurs à Cheval (Mounted Hunters)

These were light cavalry identical to hussars in arms and role. But, unlike the chasseurs of the Imperial Guard and their infantry counterparts, they were considered less elite. Their uniforms were less colourful as well, consisting of infantry-style shakos (in contrast to the fur busby worn by some French hussars), green coats, green breeches, and short boots. They were, however, the most numerous of the light cavalry, with 31 regiments in 1811, 6 of which comprised Flemish, Swiss, Italians and Germans. was a cavalry composed of chasseurs but on the horse, they could ride into melee or shoot as light infantry

The Mounted Chasseurs of the Imperial Guard would use this form of sword, and officers of wealth and status could afford, if they so chose, to have Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde impériale engraved onto the sword blades back strap etc. But many chose not to.
Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde impériale constituted a light cavalry regiment in the Consular, then Imperial Guard during the French Consulate and First French Empire respectively. They were the second senior "Old Guard" cavalry regiment of the Imperial Guard, after the Grenadiers à Cheval. The regiment had its origins in the Guides raised by General Bonaparte during his Italian Campaign of 1796. It was the Chasseurs that usually provided personal escort to Napoleon, and he often wore the uniform of the regiment in recognition of this service. The regiment was not only known for its lavish uniform, but its combat history as well.

On 1 August 1811, the regiment was increased to five squadrons and the vélites were done away with. During the year, squadrons were sent successively to serve with the divisions of the Garde in Spain. Guyot was promoted général de division, but still retained the command. To replace Corbineau and Daumesnil as majors, the regiment received Colonel François d'Haugéranville (6 August) and General Baron Exelmans (24 December).

On 6 May 1812, General Lefebvre-Desnouettes, who had escaped by breaking his parole, returned from his captivity in England and resumed command of the regiment. The chasseurs, five squadrons and the company of Mamluks, went through the Russian campaign, but though they lost 500 men, they only had 10 officers hit. At Borodino, they had no officer casualties at all. But on 25 October, the day after the Battle of Maloyaroslavets, two squadrons, escorting the Emperor on a reconnaissance, were sharply engaged and had 4 officers wounded. A body of Cossacks appeared suddenly from a wood and charged straight at Napoleon. General Rapp and the escort managed to beat them off, but not before one had fought his way to within twenty yards of the Emperor. From this day forth, haunted by the fear of captivity, he always carried a bag of poison on a string about his neck. The regiment's losses in this campaign must on the whole be attributed not so much to the fighting as to the Russian climate.

In 1813, the regiment was expanded from five to nine squadrons. The first five of these remained under the Old Guard while the newly raised 6th through 9th squadrons formed part of the Young Guard and in 1815 were redesigned as the 2e régiment de chasseurs de la Garde impériale.

While Napoleon is best known as a master strategist and charismatic presence on the battlefield, he was also a tactical innovator. He combined classic formations and tactics that had been used for thousands of years with more recent ones, such as Frederick the Great's "Oblique Order" (best illustrated at the Battle of Leuthen) and the "mob tactics" of the early Levée en masse armies of the Revolution. Napoleonic tactics and formations were highly fluid and flexible. In contrast, many of the Grande Armée's opponents were still wedded to a rigid system of "Linear" (or Line) tactics and formations, in which masses of infantry would simply line up and exchange vollies of fire, in an attempt to either blow the enemy from the field or outflank them. Due to the vulnerabilities of the line formations to flanking attacks, it was considered the highest form of military manoeuvre to outflank one's adversary. Armies would often retreat or even surrender if this was accomplished. Consequently, commanders who adhered to this system would place a great emphasis on flank security, often at the expense of a strong centre or reserve. Napoleon would frequently take full advantage of this linear mentality by feigning flank attacks or offering the enemy his own flank as "bait" (best illustrated at the Battle of Austerlitz and also later at Lützen), then throw his main effort against their centre, split their lines, and roll up their flanks. He always kept a strong reserve as well, mainly in the form of his Imperial Guard, which could deliver a "knockout blow" if the battle was going well or turn the tide if it was not. The swords came to us from one of the world's foremost experts on the finest antique European weapons, and a famous collector and author on antique fine and rare swords.

Original grip wire over original leather binding, only very light bruising to the scabbard, no combat damage. the blade has much mirror bright blue remaining {around 50%} with areas of blue wear, fine engraving within the blue with all the gilt remaining in the engraving, traditional three branch guard with no combat damage.

Ref; 'German Knife and Sword Makers' ( Complete Edition A to Z Hardcover – published 2015 )
by Anthony Carter (Author), John Walter (Author), Henning Ritter (Author). John Walter has been a most welcome visitor to us for decades, and a very dear friend and colleague of our late colleague of over 30 years, Christopher Fox.
Every single item from The Lanes Armoury is accompanied by our unique Certificate of Authenticity. Part of our continued dedication to maintain the standards forged by us over the past 100 years of our family’s trading, as Britain’s oldest established, and favourite, armoury and gallery  read more

Code: 25444

A Beautiful Edo Period Akasaka School O Sukashi Tsuba Decorated in Cut Silhouette With Clouds, Stars and Moon.

Early in the 17th century, tradition says, a dealer of Kiōto, named Kariganeya Hikobei, practised the designing of openwork iron guards in a new and refined style and had them made by a group of skilled craftsmen. From among these men he selected one Shōgunal capital, and settled with him at Kurokawa-dani in the Akasaka Japanese text district. Shōzayemon took the name of Tadamasa and continued his work on Kariganeya’s designs, dying in 1657. His son (or younger brother) Shōyemon, who succeeded him, calling himself Tadamasa II and adopting Akasaka as a surname, died in 1677 and was in turn succeeded by his son Masatora (d. 1707), by Masatora’s son Tadamune, and thence by four generations all called Tadatoki, the last living on into the middle of the 19th century. The first Tadatoki seems to have removed to Kiōto with his father’s pupil Tadashige and there to have founded a western branch of the school. Besides these a number of pupils, all called Tada-…, are recorded.

The earlier Akasaka guards closely resemble the pierced work of the Heianjō and Owari workers (Group III). Later productions display a number of striking features, such as clean-cut fret-piercing in positive silhouette of designs leaving little of the iron in reserve, the addition of a slight engraving finish, a rounded or rather tapered edge to the guard, and, in some of the more recent specimens, the semi-circular enlargement of each end of the tang-hole, as if to take a plug (not supplied) of abnormal size. Enrichments of other metals are entirely absent.  read more

Code: 25445

Koto Tanto By Masaiye With A Full Matching Suite of Edo Mounts, & a Fabulous Oni Demon Mount on The Saya

Around 500 years old. A stunning tanto with carved steel mounts decorated with geometric Ha-kenkoroitsu pattern, a version of the Hachisuka clan mon, it also has a matching kozuka with gold inlay to match the gold inlay workmanship on the tsuba. Cockeral menuki and a super oni demon mount on the two tone banded lacquer saya. Signed koshirae and blade by Masaiye circa 1530. Although called the manji in Japan symbolising 10,000 years and infinity, and usually used as a Buddhist symbol for temples, this version though is the Ha-kenkoroitsu (from the German word Hakenkreuz, or crooked cross) and it describes it as the 45-degree clockwise manji used by the Nazi party.

Its first recorded occurrence of the swastika named from a sanskirt word dates all the way back the the 6th to 5th millennium BC when it was used in the Vinca script of Neolithic Europe. After that it has been used by primitive society consitently from China to the Americas passing by Greece and Africa. The crooked cross is a historical sacred symbol in all Indian religions. It is used in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. It rose
to importance in Buddhism during the Mauryan
Empire and in Hinduism with the decline of Buddhism in India during the Gupta Empire. It followed the silk road with Buddhism to reach Tibet and China. The symbol was also introduced
to Bali with Hinduism by Hindu kings. The use of the swastika by the Bon faith of Tibet, as well as later religions like Cao Dai of Vietnam and Falun Gong of China, can also be traced to Buddhist influence. The oni is the demon of Japanese folklore. It takes on many other names, sometimes referred to as a devil. Unlike most western cultures, the oni is not necessarily seen as an evil being. It is said to be of a dual nature, meaning it's powers can be good or evil, depending on if it likes the subject it attaches itself too. Oni are credited with bringing good health, safety, peace and avoiding disaster. A typical oni mask has horns, bulging eyes, a sinister looking smile and sharp teeth.

Every single item from The Lanes Armoury is accompanied by our unique Certificate of Authenticity. Part of our continued dedication to maintain the standards forged by us over the past 100 years of our family’s trading, as Britain’s oldest established, and favourite, armoury and gallery  read more

Code: 21724

A Beautiful & Impressive Shinto Period Long Samurai Tanto Circa 1650

In all original Edo period fittings, including a pair of dragon menuki underneath original Edo two colour striped tsuka-ito, a flying goose in iron Higo fuchi complimented with a carved buffalo horn kashira, a super tsuba in iron with a takebori dragon around half of the edge to match the menuki. Original Edo lacquer saya in black ishime [stone finish] inset with an original Edo Kogatana utility knife, of a fine Oni demon tokebori kozuka on a nakago ground of patinated copper, the demon has a pure gold decorated sash onlaid. The habaki [blade collar] is finely and deeply chiselled at the botom half with a plain contrasting top half. The hira-zukuri blade is beautifully polished with a very clear and well defined deep notare hamon. The whole tanto is very attractive indeed, and all of the fittings, wrap tsuka and saya have been likely completely untouched or restored in around 150 years. The tanto is commonly referred to as a samurai's knife or dagger. The blade can be single or double edged [this one is single edged] with a length between 15 and 30 cm (6-12 inches, in Japanese 1 shaku). The tanto was designed primarily as a stabbing weapon, but the edge can be used for slashing as well. Tanto are generally forged in hira-zukuri style (without ridgeline), meaning that their sides have no ridge line and are nearly flat, unlike the shinogi-zukuri structure of a katana. Some tanto have particularly thick cross-sections for armour-piercing duty, and are called yoroi toshi. The tanto was invented partway through the Heian period. With the beginning of the Kamakura period, tanto were forged to be more aesthetically pleasing, and hira and uchi-sori tanto becoming the most popular styles. Near the middle of the Kamakura period, more tanto artisans were seen, increasing the abundance of the weapon, and the kanmuri-otoshi style became prevalent in the cities of Kyoto and Yamato. Because of the style introduced by the tachi in the late Kamakura period, tanto began to be forged longer and wider. The introduction of the Hachiman faith became visible in the carvings in the hilts around this time. The hamon (line of temper) is similar to that of the tachi, except for the absence of choji-midare, which is nioi and utsuri. Gunomi-midare and suguha are found to have taken its place.

During the era of the Northern and Southern Courts, the tanto were forged to be up to forty centimetres as opposed to the normal one shaku (about thirty centimetres) length. The blades became thinner between the uri and the omote, and wider between the ha and mune. At this point in time, two styles of hamon were prevalent: the older style, which was subtle and artistic, and the newer, more popular style. With the beginning of the Muromachi period, constant fighting caused the greater production of blades. Blades that were custom-forged still were of exceptional quality. As the end of the period neared, the average blade narrowed and the curvature shallowed Overall 21.25 inches long, blade 12 inches [1 shaku] long tsuba to tip.  read more

Code: 23041

A Stunning King George IIIrd 1756 Pattern Light Dragoon Flintlock Pistol, 19th & 25th Light Dragoons, Part of The East India Company Cavalry Contingent Combating the ‘Tiger of Mysore’ Tipu Sultan

With finest walnut stock with amazing natural age patina, and traditional brass furniture and two British EIC traditional ‘heart’ marks, one on the stock the other on the barrel. From the historical 'Siege of Seringapatam' used by the British 19th & 25th Light Dragoons, serving with the East India Company. The 19th played a major role in the Anglo-Mysore Wars and Anglo-Maratha Wars. Their first campaign was against Tipu Sultan of Mysore from 1790 to 1792. After defeating Tipu, the 19th were on garrison duty until 1799 when war broke out with Tipu again. This time, the Sultan was killed during the Battle of Seringapatam.

Tipu Sultan was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in Southern India. An enemy of many of his neighbours as much as he was of the British East India Company.

Tipu remained an implacable enemy of the British East India Company, sparking conflict with his attack on British-allied Travancore in 1789. In the Third Anglo-Mysore War, he was forced into the Treaty of Seringapatam, losing a number of previously conquered territories, including Malabar and Mangalore. He sent emissaries to foreign states, including the Ottoman Empire, Afghanistan, and France, in an attempt to rally opposition to the British.

In 1800, the 19th fought Dhoondia Wao's rebel army and in 1803, led by Major-General Arthur Wellesley (who later became the Duke of Wellington), they participated in the Battle of Assaye. In this battle, the outnumbered British troops defeated a Maratha army and the regiment was subsequently awarded the battle honour of "Assaye" and presented with an honorary colour.
They were stationed at Cheyloor in 1802, at Arcot in 1803, in Bombay in 1804, and at Arcot again from 1805 to 1806. The regiment was summoned to Vellore on the night of 10 July 1806 to rescue the 69th Regiment of Foot who had been the victims of a revolt by Indian sepoys. The 25th Dragoons (raised for service in India by F E Gwyn on 9 March 1794) was renumbered 22nd (Light) Dragoons in that year. This 22nd (Light) Dragoons regiment served throughout the Napoleonic Wars, which began in 1805, and was disbanded in 1820.
Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, the rulers of the Kingdom of Mysore, offered much resistance to the British forces. Having sided with the French during the Revolutionary war, the rulers of Mysore continued their struggle against the Company with the four Anglo-Mysore Wars. Mysore finally fell to the Company forces in 1799, with the death of Tipu Sultan.

Napoleon and Tipu Sultan

In 1794, with the support of French Republican officers, Tipu allegedly helped found the Jacobin Club of Mysore for 'framing laws comfortable with the laws of the Republic'. He planted a Liberty Tree and declared himself Citizen Tipoo. In a 2005 paper, historian Jean Boutier argued [likely wrongly] that the club's existence, and Tipu's involvement in it, was fabricated by the East India Company in order to justify British military intervention against Tipu.

One of the motivations of Napoleon's invasion of Egypt was to establish a junction with India against the British. Bonaparte wished to establish a French presence in the Middle East, with the ultimate dream of linking with Tippoo Sahib. Napoleon assured the French Directory that "as soon as he had conquered Egypt, he will establish relations with the Indian princes and, together with them, attack the English in their possessions." According to a 13 February 1798 report by Talleyrand: "Having occupied and fortified Egypt, we shall send a force of 15,000 men from Suez to India, to join the forces of Tipu-Sahib and drive away the English." Napoleon was unsuccessful in this strategy, losing the Siege of Acre in 1799 and at the Battle of Abukir in 1801. It was, as with all Napoleon’s ‘alliances’ simply a way to remove Britain’s ability to oppose his own Empire ambitions. His term ‘establish relations’ has been used for centuries since by controlling despots as a benign appearing phrase that is actually in reality an umbrella term for ‘control and dominate’.

It has been said in numerous quarters, especially by denigrators of the former British Empire, that the magnificent sub continent of India suffered much under British rule, however let’s not forget prior to the British arrival, and even during, despite their best efforts, India had been ruled with an iron fist for millennia by dozens of kings, nawabs, maharajahs, and princes who had stripped so much wealth from India that many became the richest men on earth, some worth 10 or 100 times the worth of the billionaires of today. So much wealth it is almost inconceivable to understand and comprehend today. There were of course a few benign and caring rulers, but as a rule they were deposed, murdered or imprisoned, often by sons with a somewhat less ‘sympathetic nature’ to their subjects.

As with all our antique guns no license is required as they are all unrestricted antique collectables. Very good and tight action. A horn tipped ramrod. As with all our antique guns they must be considered as inoperable with no license required and they are all unrestricted antique collectables  read more

Code: 22429

1830 Damascus Barrel Irish Overcoat Pistol, With Percussion Back-Action Lock, by Green of Mallow

County Cork, Ireland. Chequered rounded grip all steel mounts. Large bore. A sound and effective personal manstopper protection pistol that was highly popular during the late Georgian to early Victorian era. London, like many cities around the world at that time, could be a most treacherous place at night, and every gentleman, or indeed lady, would carry a pocket or overcoat pistol for close quarter personal protection or deterrence. Replaced ramrod.As with all our antique guns no license is required as they are all unrestricted antique collectables  read more

Code: 23072

A Fabulous, 18th Century Sea Captain's Brass Cannon Barrel Pocket Blunderbuss Pistol. A Near Pair to the Pistol Presented To America’s Most Famous Revolutionary War Naval Commander John Paul Jones

This has to quite simply be one of the most beautiful and outstandingly attractive 18th century pocket pistol you will ever see.
A rare and and most fine original 18th Century Sea Captain's cannon barrel pocket Pistol, that is almost a pair to the John Paul Jones Sea Captain’s pistol presented to him by the 18th century American Congress
Brass cannon barrel flintlock pocket pistol, the barrel is three stage cannon barrel type, with a good working flintlock action, with sliding safety catch, maker marked by a fine maker, from a world renown English naval port and harbour, Bristol.
We show in the gallery a photograph of an almost identical brass cannon barrelled ships captain's pocket pistol in the Massachusetts Historical Society Museum Collection, a near pair to our pistol, that was said to have been presented by US Congress to John Paul Jones (1747-1792), a newly appointed captain in the Continental Navy, on October 10, 1776.

In many respects such a pistol was considered a symbol of rank and status in both the British and American navies, as it is said only the Captain would be permitted to carry such an arm on board, hence its presentation by Congress to Jones as a symbol of his command of a ship of the line in the US Navy.

As early as 1420, vessels from the English port Bristol were regularly travelling to Iceland and it is speculated that sailors from Bristol had made landfall in the Americas before Christopher Columbus or John Cabot. After Cabot arrived in Bristol, he proposed a scheme to the king, Henry VII, in which he proposed to reach Asia by sailing west across the north Atlantic. He estimated that this would be shorter and quicker than Columbus' southerly route. The merchants of Bristol, operating under the name of the Society of Merchant Venturers, agreed to support his scheme. They had sponsored probes into the north Atlantic from the early 1480s, looking for possible trading opportunities. In 1552 Edward VI granted a Royal Charter to the Merchant Venturers to manage the port.

By 1670, the city had 6,000 tons of shipping, of which half was used for importing tobacco. By the late 17th century and early 18th century, this shipping was also playing a significant role in British world trade.

John Paul was born near Kirkbean in Scotland to John Paul, Sr. and Jean McDuff. He first went to sea as an apprentice at the age of 13 and continued to work on merchant and slave ships as a young man. On a voyage aboard the brig John in 1768, both the captain and a ranking mate of his vessel died suddenly of yellow fever, and John Paul navigated the ship safely back to port. As a reward, the Scottish owners promoted him to master of the ship and its crew. Eventually he fled Scotland for North America to avoid charges of murder, due to his killing of a so-called mutineer in Tobago, and changed his name to John Paul Jones. He was assigned as a 1st Lieutenant in the newly-founded Continental Navy on 7 December 1775 and went on to become the first well-known naval commander in the Revolutionary War. He is sometimes referred to as the "Father of the American Navy". After a long career, including a stint in the Imperial Russian Navy, he died in Paris in 1792. During the American Revolution Capt John Paul Jones urged that “open and hostile operations” be utilised on any of “the Towns of Great Britain or the West Indies.” These targets, included the important ports of “London, Bristol, Liverpool, Glasgow and Edinburgh,” He suggested a brilliant US naval war strategy, in that he acknowledged that the US Continental Navy couldn't possibly defend the American ports and harbours against attack by the most superior Royal Navy. However, if the US Navy attacked the poorly defended enemy harbours and towns the Royal Navy would be forced to divert ships to defend all vulnerable British ports and thus keep those vessels away from the American harbours and coastal towns. In the gallery we show period paintings and engravings of Capt.Jones utilising his small box lock pistols in his numerous naval close combat assaults.
One interesting reveal as to Capt Jones character.

Before he fled England to avoid a murder charge he lived for some time in the sea port town of Whitehaven, where, apparently, the locals treated him well, and with the usual friendliness and courtesy as to expected. However some few years later, at 11 p.m. on April 22, 1778, Commander John Paul Jones led a small detachment of two boats from his ship, the USS Ranger, to raid the shallow port at Whitehaven, England, where, by his own account, 400 British merchant ships are anchored. Jones was hoping to reach the port at midnight, when ebb tide would leave the shops, that he intended to plunder, at their most vulnerable.

Jones and his 30 volunteers had greater difficulty than anticipated rowing to the port, which was protected by two forts. They did not arrive until dawn. Jones’ boat successfully took the southern fort, disabling its cannon, but the other boat returned without attempting an attack on the northern fort, after the sailors claimed to have been frightened away by a ‘noise’. To compensate, Jones set fire to the southern fort, which subsequently engulfed the town, and burnt much to the ground, rendering many of the townsfolk homeless and thus destitute. Some might say it is a most interesting way of repaying his historical debt of courtesy to the decent people of Whitehaven. However, it must be pointed out that legend has it that Capt. Jones was of a most chivalric character, and had many fine points, none the least of which was his much respected skill in his new tactics of attacking his former home in order to cause terror and fear to the people of England.

Benjamin Franklin fully agreed with Captain Jones new tactic of terror and fear warfare, but he considered he could not condone it officially, as he believed it would be most counter productive to appear that a new sovereign nation could be engaging in what we we would call today, terrorism. Political sensitivities were as much a part of life then as they are today, and were indeed over, say, two thousand years ago, or in fact, likely since the dawn of mankind, and whenever it was that for the very first time a stone age man began to consider what others would think of him or her, and how he or she was regarded by their neighbours.

Every single item from The Lanes Armoury is accompanied by our unique Certificate of Authenticity. Part of our continued dedication to maintain the standards forged by us over the past 100 years of our family’s trading, as Britain’s oldest established, and favourite, armoury and gallery  read more

Code: 22281

Historismus Chinese Bronze Helmet, Ancient C.400bc Warring States Era Style

A fabulous statement piece, ideal for a interior decor centrepiece. Probably mid 19th century. With good green aged patination, and as tradition dictates, cast in one piece. In the past 30 years or so we have had only a very few of this style of helmet, and just two have been original and the correct age that they should. This is a Historismus period example. It is a most beautiful work of art, extremely pleasing, decorative, and it would compliment any historical or classical display of arms or antiques. We don't normally acquire or sell non period items but historismus pieces have always been desireable and most collectable in their own right. Historicism or also historism and historismus comprises artistic styles that draw their inspiration from recreating historic styles or imitating the work of historic artisans. This is especially prevalent in architecture, such as revival architecture. Through a combination of different styles or implementation of new elements, historicism can create completely different aesthetics than former styles. Thus it offers a great variety of possible designs.

In the history of art, after Neoclassicism which in the Romantic era could itself be considered a historicist movement, the 19th century saw a new historicist phase marked by an interpretation not only of Greek and Roman classicism, but also of succeeding stylistic eras, which were increasingly considered equivalent. In particular in architecture and in the genre of history painting, in which historical subjects were treated of with great attention to accurate period detail, the global influence of historicism was especially strong from the 1850s onwards. The change is often related to the rise of the bourgeoisie during and after the Industrial Revolution. The history and evolution of armour in Chinese warfare is difficult to ascertain with certainty, given its often perishable nature, but text descriptions and appearances in art, such as in wall paintings and on pottery figurines, along with surviving metal parts can help reconstruct major developments. Just who wore armour and when is another point of discussion. Military treatises of the Warring States period (c. 481-221 BCE) suggest that all officers of any level wore armour. The same sources contain references to commanders keeping armour in storage bags and distributing it to troops, but at least some of the ordinary conscripted infantry probably had to provide their own. This obviously depended on their means, and being farmers it is unlikely to have been a realistic possibility for most. 31 cm high, weight 3 kilos.  read more

Code: 22225

Most Interesting & Incredibly Rare 19th Century Cornish Tin Miner’s Leather 'Tull' Helmet

A most rare artefact of early English mining. this amazingly historical piece of the earliest British mining industry would make an incredible display for a former miner or miner's family.
These days they are only ever to be seen in museums or recreated for historical dramas such as 'Poldark'. A style of helmet that was copied by the British army to create the WW1 Brodie helmet. This helmet was formed from a single piece of boiled leather, some economy versions were made of shaped felt soaked in pine resin. Under the tull, miners would wear a strip of cloth; helping the tull to fit. Candles were attached to the tull using lumps of clay. While working the tull was usually removed and the candle stuck to a nearby ledge. 4 small holes to brim. GC  read more

Code: 20945