Description:

Burgoyne John 1722 - 1797 John Burgoyne signed "King's Own" regimental document

Single page partially printed document, 7.25" x 10.75", adhered to a backing sheet for preservation. Signed by Colonel John Burgoyne as "J. Burgoyne / Colonel". Small nick to upper right edge, expected folds, and a few faded handling marks. Strong contrasting ink. Accompanied by documented provenance as noted below.

A handsome example of a signed document for a purchase of a commission by Colonel John Burgoyne, who later was elevated to the status of General. John Burgoyne is best known for his role in the American Revolutionary War. He designed an invasion scheme and was appointed to command a force moving south from Canada to split away New England and end the rebellion. Burgoyne advanced from Canada but his slow movement allowed the Americans to concentrate their forces. Instead of coming to his aid according to the overall plan, the British Army in New York City moved south to capture Philadelphia. Surrounded, Burgoyne fought two small battles near Saratoga to break out. Trapped by superior American forces, with no relief in sight, Burgoyne surrendered his entire army of 6,200 men on 17 October 1777. His surrender, says historian Edmund Morgan, "was a great turning point of the war, because it won for Americans the foreign assistance which was the last element needed for victory".

Although this piece is undated, it is known that Burgoyne bought and sold numerous commissions. This document appears that he is represented in the sale of his commission of the 4th Regiment of Foot (The Kings Own). Burgoyne sold his own commission to settle gambling debts. The document is shown in part below:

"I beg you will be pleased to obtain for me His Majesty's Permission to purchase the Captain Lietentancy in the 4th (or King Own/Regiment of Foot) ...

In case his Majesty shall be graciously pleased to permit me to purchase the said Commission I do declare and certify, upon the Word and Honour of an Officier and a Gentleman, That I will not, either now or at any future Time, give, by any Means, or in any Shape whatever, directly or indirectly, any more than the Sume of £400 being the Price limited and fixed ....

M.Grafton ...

I beg leave to recommend the above, and I verily believe the established Regulation with regard to Price is intended to be strictly complied with and that no clandestine Bargain subsists between the Parties concerned.

J.Burgoyne

Colonel"

Only commissions in cavalry and infantry regiments (and therefore only those up to the rank of colonel) could be purchased. Commissions in the Royale Engineers and the Royale Artillery were awarded to those who graduated from a course at the Royale Military Academy, and subsequent promotion was by seniority. Such officers (and those of the Army of the British East India Company) were often looked down upon as being "not quite gentleman" by officers who had purchased their commissions. Nor did the Royale Navy ever practice the sale of commissions, with advancement in officer ranks being solely by merit or seniority (at least in theory).

There were several key reasons behind the sale of commissions:

· It preserved the social exclusivity of the officer class.

· It served as a form of collateral against abuse of authority or gross negligence or incompetence. Disgraced officers could be cashiered by the crown (that is, stripped of their commission without reimbursement).

· It ensured that the officer class was largely populated by persons having a vested interest in maintaining the status quo, thereby reducing the possibility of Army units taking part in a revolution or coup.

· It ensured that officers had private means and were less likely to engage in looting of pillaging, or to cheat the soldiers under their command by engaging in profiteering using army supplies.

· It provided honorably retired officers with an immediate source of capital.

The official values of commissions varied by regiment, usually in line with the differing levels of social prestige of different regiments.

Provenance: This item was recently discovered in an extra illustrated volume of "History of the City of New York" by Mary L. Booth, New York W. R. C. Clark, 1867. Originally two volumes, the monumental task of expanding the work to 21 volumes by none other than Emery E. Childs esquire of New York City. In volume 1 of this work exists a lovely india ink drawing of Mary L. Booth along with a notation: "presented by her to E E C" in pencil. Next to the title page we find an original letter of Booth to Childs dated April 4, 1872: "I am in receipt of your favor of the 4th inst., and am grateful to hear that you are taking the trouble to illustrate my History of the City of New York in the manner you describe. I shall be happy to see you, should you favor me with a call as I am usually in my office during business hours and should be pleased to facilitate your Enterprise by any means in my power"

It is assumed that the book took several years to assemble at which point, assumedly through Childs, it made its way to Senator Charles B. Farwell of Chicago who took the seat of John A. Logan in 1887. Farwell had an extensive library that fortunately survived the great Chicago fire in 1871 having been housed in his Lakeside home. In the American Bibliopolist of November 1871 there is an article about the devastation to libraries caused by the tragedy. "Mr C. B. Farwell's library is also fortunately far out from the city, at his country house, and is safe. The same remark will also apply to the extensive collection of books and curiosities belonging to Mr. E. E. Childs." This establishes the Chicago connection between Childs and Farwell.

That these letters were preserved for over 140 years and have never been on the market for that period is remarkable on many levels. It is the state of being wedged in these volumes that also account for what is mostly the pristine state of preservation.

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