7th Royal Fusiliers Gorget • British Officer's Gilt Brass Gorget
Price available on inquiry
ID: 07-2014
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Categories: Historical, Items, Militaria
7th Royal Fusiliers Gorget • British Officer's Gilt Brass Gorget
This British 7th Regiment Royal Fusiliers Officer’s Gilt Brass Gorget can be dated to sometime before 1796. This piece was originally worn for throat protection from weapons like swords. Later, it was used as decoration being part of an officer’s uniform.
7th Royal Fusiliers Gorget • British Officer's Gilt Brass Gorget Measurements:
- Length: 11.5 cm
- Width: 11 cm
- Space between arms: 8 cm
- Holed on either side for wearing at the ends
7th Royal Fusiliers Gorget's body is engraved with a lion and unicorn supporting the crowned royal shield. Below them is the Latin inscription, “Dieu et mon droit” (God and my right hand). Below that is the regimental badge. The badge consists of a crowned united red and white rose within Garter and another GR cipher flanking. The left shoulder has a trophy of arms above the regimental designation "VII th" within a laurel wreath. Right shoulder is engraved with REGT. within a wreath suspended from a ribbon bow. Other items include a Gallic helmet before a pole-axe, a guidon, and a dagger.
7th Royal Fusiliers Gorget Appraisal
This item was brought to us as a consignment from a local collector. He acquired from a military dealer at the Rose Bowl Flea Market about 25 years ago. Collect-Sell contacted The Fusilers Museum London in hopes to verify this gorget as original. Major Bowes-Crick was able to confirm via emailed pictures the gorget is in fact Royal Fusilier. However, he was unable to confirm its authenticity from the photograph alone “as the standard of copies nowadays is exceptional and very hard to discern.”
We then had the gorget assessed by a certified personal property appraiser. He confirmed the base material is brass and the images were acid etched. Because officers were responsible for acquiring their own uniform, gorgets were made by a variety of metal smiths thus making it difficult to identify an authentic gorget. This may be a lower quality gorget because the gold material was most likely not well plated, due to the fact there is hardly any remaining. Further, it is lower quality brass due to the crack in the edge.
This is an rare specimen of a historic English gorget. Please review the pictures carefully before your purchase. Also, please ask any questions and we will do our best to answer them. This item is sold “as is.”
This is an extremely rare gorget. The last identical item sold was in mint condition in 2005 and sold for $12,000 through Stack's.
7th Royal Fusiliers History
The 7th Regiment Royal Fusiliers (also known as "The 7th") was raised in 1685 and received its numerical designation in 1751. In 1773 The 7th was shipped to Quebec, Canada. When General Montgomery invaded Canada, The 7th opposed the colonial forces at St. Johns and Chambly. This is where The 7th lost scores of men and surrendered to the Americans.
The 7th was reconstituted in New York in 1777 and served in New York and Philadelphia from 1777-78. They began at the Battle of Monmouth Court House (New Jersey) in June of '78 and spent a year in New York, raiding rebel Connecticut towns. Then, The 7th were shipped to Charleston in December, 1779. In January, 1781 the regiment fought against Daniel Morgan's troops at the Battle of Cowpens, a resounding British defeat. In August 1782 part of the regiment was shipped to New York and then home. This left parts of its companies in defense of Savannah.
A century later, in 1881, the regiment was styled The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). During World War I, the regiment served with great bravery and patience at Ypres and on the Somme.
