THE ESCUTCHEONS INSCRIBED "PRESENTED BY THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON TO CAPTAIN MARSHALL RL MS ON BOARD H.M.S. BELLEROPHON, 6TH AUGUST 1815"

with browned octagonal swamped sighted polygroove rifled barrels, inscribed ‘Manufre. Impele a Versailles’ and numbered ‘189’, struck with gold-lined barrelsmith’s marks of Jean Nicolas Leclerc, further gold-lined marks (Neue Støckel 95, 97, 3741), ‘Boutet’ and a band of gold foliage at the breech (the gold with losses), case-hardened breeches incorporating the back-sights, flat bevelled locks signed ‘Boutet a Versailles’ fitted with ‘French’ cocks and semi-rainproof pans, figured walnut full stocks, chequered butts (small cracks and repairs), blued steel mounts of shaped outline comprising two-piece ‘batwing’ side-plates, trigger-guards with symmetrical finials, and moulded ramrod-pipes, the butts each fitted with finely cast and chased silver medusa-mask pommels struck with Paris silver marks and a further mark, in a lozenge NB a pistol between, silver escutcheons with presentation inscriptions, each with associated copper-alloy-tipped wooden ramrod with iron worm, perhaps the original, and some early colour throughout, 21.5 cm (2)

The inscription reads: ‘Presented by the Emperor Napoleon to Captain Marshall Rl Ms on board H.M.S. Bellerophon, 6th August 1815’

George Marshall, Captain of Marines, is listed among the Officers borne on the Books of H.M.S. Bellerophon in July 1815.

Six weeks after his defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon faced an uncertain future. After his abdication, he was unwelcome in France, with his capture sought by Prussian and Austrian forces.

On 10 July 1815, HMS Bellerophon was guarding the French port of Rochefort when a French vessel bearing a flag of truce approached. On board were General Anne Jean Marie Rene Savary and the Comte de Las (Count of) Cases, with the first announcement of Napoleon’s consideration to surrender to the British. At 07:00 on 14th July a vessel approached the Bellerophon. The Comte de Las Cases was again on board, this time accompanied by General L’Allarand. They had a letter from Napoleon, wishing to discuss the terms of General Bonaparte’s surrender. After leaving Bellerophon, Comte de Las Cases returned at 19:00 the same day with a letter from Napoleon’s General, Count Bertrand revealing that Napoleon was currently on Isle D’Aix and fully prepared to surrender. Napoleon’s arrival on the Bellerophon is recorded in the log for the ship dated 15 July 1815. While in custody Napoleon and his entourage were treated like guests, with the former emperor given access to the Great cabin of the ship. Napoleon wanted to travel to North America, where he hoped to gain asylum; upon refusal of this by the British, he hoped to be allowed to live out his life in England which was also refused. He was held aboard the moored Bellerophon at Plymouth and not allowed to set foot on British soil, much to his annoyance. Over the following weeks, the British government considered the fate of the ship’s famous prisoner. Eventually a decision was made to designate Napoleon and his entourage as ‘Prisoners of War’, with the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic chosen as their place of exile. Before leaving the Bellerophon, Napoleon had not been granted his desired audience with the Prince Regent. He revealed to Captain Maitland that part of his wish to meet the Prince was in the hope that he could recommend Maitland for promotion to Rear Admiral, as an appreciation of the hospitality that the Captain had shown him (Maitland would eventually rise to the position of Rear Admiral by the time of his death in 1839). Napoleon told Maitland that he considered him ‘a man of honour’. Captain Maitland published a detailed accounts of his time spent with Napoleon:

‘About ten A.M. the barge was manned, and a captain's guard turned out. When Buonaparte came on deck, he looked at the marines, who were generally fine-looking young men, with much satisfaction; went through their ranks, inspected their arms, and admired their appearance, saying to Bertrand, "How much might be done with a hundred thousand such soldiers as these." He asked which had been longest in the corps; went up and spoke to him. His questions were put in French, which I interpreted, as well as the man's answers. He enquired how many years he had served; on being told upwards of ten, he turned to me and said, "Is it not customary in your service, to give a man who has been in it so long some mark of distinction?" He was informed that the person in question had been a sergeant, but was reduced to the ranks for some misconduct. He then put the guard through part of their exercise, whilst I interpreted to the Captain of Marines, who did not understand French, the manœuvres he wished to have performed. He made some remarks upon the difference of the charge with the bayonet between our troops and the French; and found fault with our method of fixing the bayonet to the musquet, as being more easy to twist off, if seized by an enemy when in the act of charging.’ Extract from: Rear-Admiral Sir Frederick Lewis Maitland, K.C.B, The Surrender of Napoleon being the narrative of the surrender of Buonaparte, and of his residence on board H.M.S. Bellerophon, with a detail of the principal events that occurred in that ship between the 24th of May and the 8th of August 1815 by, a new edition edited, with a memoir of the author, by William Kirk Dickson, 1904.

‘Towards evening Lord Keith came on board of us, and had a long personal interview with Napoleon in the cabin, which we may judge was not of the pleasantest nature. From some intemperate threat of Savary, I believe, who had declared that he would not allow his master to leave the Bellerophon alive, to go into such wretched captivity, it was judged proper to deprive the refugees of their arms. A good many swords, and several brace of pistols, marked with a large silver N. at the butt end, were brought down to the gun-room, where they remained for some hours. Three of the swords belonged to Napoleon, and two of them were pointed out to us as those he wore at Marengo and Austerlitz. I never in my life felt such a strong inclination to lay my hands on what was not my own. A sword I durst not think of, but could I have got a brace of pistols, or even one solitary pistol, belonging to Napoleon, I would have thought myself the happiest man alive; but it would not do, detection was certain, and with bitter vexation I saw them carried out of the gun-room. ‘ [Extracts from Memoirs of an Aristocrat, and Reminiscences of the Emperor Napoleon, by a Midshipman of the Bellerophon [George Home]. London, Whittaker & Co., and Bell & Bradfute, Edinburgh, 1838.