This thread is about a new token I’ve acquired and I hope you will find this old copper as compelling as I do. Please tell me what you think! The title of my thread was the respectful nickname for British General George Augustus Eliot, who successfully led his troops to withstand a three year siege of Gibraltar (also known as The Rock), a key British fort guarding access to the Mediterranean. The Siege In July 1779, Spain declared war on Great Britain, joining the French who did so the previous year. They targeted Gibraltar for its strategic location and because they felt it would be relatively easy to conquer. Unfortunately for them, it turned out to be one of the longest continuous sieges in the history of the world. “The combined Spanish and French fleets blockaded the Rock from the sea, while on the land side an enormous army was engaged in constructing forts, redoubts, entrenchments, and batteries from which to attack. General Elliot formed a corps of sharpshooters. Initially the Spanish sent twelve thousand troops, including four battalions of Royal Guards. The posting was considered both a comfortable and fashionable one, as opposed to being sent to serve in one of Spain's American colonies." "As the winter of 1779 came down the garrison began to suffer from want of fresh provisions, which became very scarce and dear. Bread was almost impossible to get, and was not permitted to be issued except to the sick and children. Salt meat and biscuits, and not much of that, soon became the food of the troops, with an occasional issue of four ounces of rice as a full day's ration. Fuel was exhausted, and fires were only made with difficulty, the salt-encrusted timbers of old ships broken up in the harbour for the purpose. To the rigours of the siege was added a violent outbreak of scurvy among the troops, due to the want of fresh vegetables and medicines.” Over the next two years, the British made several successful attempts to resupply their troops by running through the Spanish blockade. Over time, Spain and France determined to prevail and planned a massive assault to finally overcome the British. The Final Assault “Eventually on 13th September 1782 the Bourbon allies launched their great attack; the number involved nearly 70,000 fighting men both French & Spanish. On land an army of 40,000 which consisted of nearly a third of the entire Spanish metropolitan army, on top of this they were supported by 400 guns. At sea 50 ships which included newly engineered 'floating batteries' with 200 heavy guns as well as Spanish & French ships of the line which had nearly 30,000 men. An 'army' of over 75,000 spectators thronged the adjacent hills over the Spanish border, among them the highest families in the land, assembled to see the fortress beaten to powder and 'the British flag trailed in the dust'. The 200 guns opened fire from floating batteries in the Bay and the 400 guns on the land side, directed on the fortifications after weeks of preparatory artillery fire. But the garrison, replied with red-hot shot to set fire to and sink the enemy's floating batteries and warships in the Bay, and beating off many attempts to storm the fortress from the land side. The British redcoats fired in three ranks deep as wave after wave of Spanish troops tried desperately to get up the walls of the fort. In that great conflict, the British destroyed nearly all the enemy fleet, most of the floating batteries simply blew up as the 'red hot shot' did its job. In addition 5,000 men both on board the ships (many of whom drowned) & on land were casualties.” “The siege was continued for some months longer, but in the spring of 1783 the French & Spanish retired disheartened and defeated, leaving the British garrison victorious, after three years and seven months' conflict. The garrison sustained a loss of 1,231 men, and expended 8,000 barrels of gunpowder.” The above references were from Wikipedia. General Eliott The general was known as a stern, but fair disciplinarian. He was highly regarded by his men. "The system of his life, as well as his education, particularly qualified him for this trust. He was perhaps the most abstemious man of the age. His food was vegetables, his drink water. He neither indulged himself in animal food nor wine. He never slept more than four hours at a time so that he was up later and earlier than most men. He had also inured himself to habits of severity that the things which to others are painful, were to him of daily practice and rendered agreeable to use". Burke's Dormant & Extinct Peerages of the British Empire, pp 188. The Nose Take a look at this portrait of the General. Evidently, while he had the fight of a rooster in him, his beak was quite prominent! Warwickshire 224 – The Token (at last) Produced by Peter Skidmore (his cypher on the obverse) two years after Eliot’s death. It was made for collectors of its day and is in uncirculated condition. What I really like about the piece is its quirkiness (the nose) (the misspelling of Eliot’s name) and the well struck dentils. What a great piece of history!
I loves it! :eat: I wish I had a ton of money so I could buy everything I like but I have to manage my money so I can buy what's important or I'd buy more Conders. I think they are one of the most interesting series to collect! :thumb: Ribbit
When considering the history, I also realized that if the men were suffering from scurvy from a lack of vegetables due to the siege, the good general was perhaps eating them all for his daily no meat diet!
Bruce - absolutely! It was probably done to attract the eye of collectors (since it was made for them.....less than 150 made) and, a couple of hundred years later, it did again!
I find this part of old warfare pretty incredible compared to today! "An 'army' of over 75,000 spectators thronged the adjacent hills over the Spanish border, among them the highest families in the land, assembled to see the fortress beaten to powder and 'the British flag trailed in the dust'."
A similar event happened during the first battle of Bull Run during the US Civil War. the Gentel and common folks came down from Washington DC bringing picnic lunches and setting themselves out on the hillsides to watch the Union troops give the rebels the thrashing they deserved and settle this matter once and for all. When the Confederate forces soundly beat the Union forces and forced them to retreat all the citizens tried to flee back to the city clogging the roads and preventing the army from making an orderly retreat, instead turning it into a rout. If instead of stopping to celebrate their victory in the battle, the Confederacy had reformed and marched north they probably would have been able to capture much of the union forces and the city of Washington DC. The Confederacy might have been able to settle the matter once and for all themselves with the Union suing for peace. They just failed to press their advantage.
