A highlight of James D Julia’s latest arms and militaria sale on April 11 is this rare Lloyd’s Patriotic Fund sword, one of 23 awarded to captains who fought in the Battle of Trafalgar.
This particular example was presented to Captain William George Rutherford, the only American-born British captain in the naval action. Rutherford was born in 1764 in Wilmington, North Carolina, to a loyalist family.
The family returned to Scotland where the young William was educated at the University of St Andrews before embarking on a successful naval career.