Description
This is a rare dated and marked pre Brown Bess musket. In Howard Blackmore’s book “British Military Firearms” there are two similar muskets from this period with the cypher of George 1 on the tail of the lock. King George was born in Hanover, Germany near the Dutch border and became King of England from 1714-1727. The musket shows evidence of being Dutch manufacture and is dated 1722 on the tang. In 1722 King George 1 set forth new regulations of which this musket conforms. Illustrated in Blackmore’s book is a sealed-pattern musket with iron mounts dated 1722. The musket is also marked with “CVP” on the stock below the back of the trigger guard. The mark could indicate Colonial Virginia Property or Commonwealth Virginia Property. After the Declaration of Independence in 1775 the Colony of Virginia became the Commonwealth of Virginia. The other possibility is the property mark of a Colonel’s regiment. This is a musket missing from all of the recent reference books devoted to the British Brown Bess and its predecessor. The walnut stock musket is 62 ¼ inches overall with an 80 cal. 3-stage 46 3/8 inch barrel. The 6 ¾ x 1 3/8 inch banana lock is marked with a fleur di lis inside. The face of the lock contains a cartouche inside the frizen spring. The George Rex cypher is nicely relief engraved on the tail of the lock. The musket is iron mounted with a heavy 2 ½ inch butt. This musket has a transitional Queen Anne period butt stock.
In Bill Ahearn’s book “Muskets of the Revolution” there is an early 18th century Dutch musket nearly identical but missing the George 1 cypher on the tail of the lock and it appears to be of a later period with a handrail cut into the stock. This musket belongs to Robert Nittolo and it is thought that this musket was used by the British Regiment in the French & Indian War. This a musket as well as Nittolo’s musket closely resembles the 1730 Brown Bess with all iron fittings.
British records show that a contract for 10,000 muskets was ordered from Rotterdam by Queen Anne for use in Ireland. In 1715 the British Ordnance also procured another 20,000 Dutch muskets. There are very few of these muskets surviving today and to date this musket may be the only one known positively dated to the King George 1 period..
Please note in the photographs the mark on the tang of the barrel along with the date appears to be a reposing lion.
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