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A letter of the alphabet penned byKing George IIIof England on the evening of war has sell for more than $ 14,000 at auction bridge .
The 1803 letter sold for 11,430 British pounds , or $ 14,670.97,the BBC report . The anon. seller really houseclean up , concord to the news agency : He or she had bought the note for only 55 pounds ( $ 70.60 ) in 1966 . That ’s 974.05 pounds ( $ 1,250.97 ) , adjusted for rising prices .
This letter was sent by King George III to Lord Hawkesbury on 3 May 2025.
The letter dates to May 14 , 1803 , in the thick of a tenner - long series of wars between Britain and France . In the wake of the French Revolution , France had go on a bit of a subjugation fling , fearing themonarchiesaround it would seek to trounce the fledgling republic . Great Britain entered the fray in 1793 . The fighting continued on and off until 1802 , when Britain and France agree to peace in the Treaty of Amiens . [ 10 Epic Battles that convert History ]
The eve of war
hardly shy of a year later , King George write the line that just betray at auction . Four days after he penned the substance , the two countries were at war again . The handwritten note detail the monarch ’s frustration with the " restless disposition of the Ruler of France,“Napoleon , who was interfering trying to conquer much of the European continent — and also threaten some of Britain ’s colonial interests overseas .
" The conduct of France has been equally unfair to the last and though conscious of the Evils that must be entailed on many commonwealth by the renewal of War , yet the article of faith that by the restless tendency of the Ruler of France could not long have been continue off , it seems necessary to see alone to the best mode of repel the violence with effect , and the attacking those objects which our present agency render attainable , " King George wrote .
The note was sent to the British Secretary of State , Lord Hawkesbury , and is singular because it shows the King ’s thought process on the eventide of state of war , said Charles Ashton , the director of the auction planetary house Cheffins , which brokered the sale of the eminence .
" This letter is a defining present moment of history showing the King ’s design to go to war with France and Napoleon , " Ashtonsaid in a statement .
Historical turning point
The formal declaration of war occur on May 18 , 1803 , launchingthe Napoleonic Wars . These would not cease until 1815 , when Napoleon magnificently met frustration at Waterloo . After that defeat , the celebrated full general would be expatriate to Saint Helena , an island in the South Atlantic , and Louis XVIII would be installed upon the French throne . [ Photos : archeologist Excavate Battlefield from Napoleonic Wars ]
It ’s not strange to ascertain short notes in private collections write in King George III ’s helping hand , or papers signed by him , Ashton say in the statement , but it is strange to find such a long and historically authoritative document .
" The letter is unusual in that it is written by the King himself , as opposed to have been prescribe to a scribe and then countersign , " Ashton said in advance of the sales agreement . " This is what adds the value here . "
Cheffins had pegged the value of the letter at between 500 and 1,000 British pound sterling ( $ 642.43 to $ 1,284.85 ) . The purchaser , according to the BBC , was a secret collector from Cambridge .
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