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Sword of Thomas Howard, 3rd. Earl of Effingham (1746-1791)

Dateca. 1770-1775

MediumSword (A): Steel, iron, brass, copper, and wood Scabbard fragment (B): Leather and brass

DimensionsOverall: 38 3/8"; Blade: 31 3/4" x 1 1/8"; Hilt: 6 3/8"

Credit LineGift of William & Mary from Mrs. Preston Davie

Object number2024-204,A&B

DescriptionA: Loop-guard spadroon with double-edged false colichemarde blade. The blade is steel with three fullers and tapers rapidly from about one-quarter of the way down the blade. The hilt is brass with one outboard side ring. The pommel, knuckle bow, and side ring are gadrooned, and its grip is bound in twisted copper wire and tape.

B: Only a small portion of the top of the scabbard remains. Its locket is now detached, and any traces of a hook or suspension ring has been effaced, though it retains its spring. An engraved, scrolled-end plaque is affixed to the back of the leather, spanning the seam.
Label TextOn the eve of the Revolutionary War, Thomas Howard, 3rd Earl of Effingham, held a Captain's commission in the British 22nd Regiment of Foot, then stationed in Cork, Ireland. Before they embarked for America, Effingham resigned his commission directly to Lord Barrington, Secretary of State for War. He stated, "As I cannot, without reproach from my conscience, consent to bear arms against my fellow subjects in America in what, to my weak discernment, is not a clear cause." Effingham followed up with an impassioned speech to the House of Lords, explaining his actions while drawing his sword from its scabbard and tossing it to the floor.

Based on the contemporary inscription on the back of the scabbard, this is that very sword. It is of a form referred to as a "loop-guard spadroon," which was to become immensely popular with British Officers of all services during the 1770s. King George III was even portrayed in 1771 by Johann Zoffany with a nearly identical sword by his side.

Effingham never wavered in his devotion to King and Country and was permitted to secure a Lieutenant Colonel's commission in 1782, as the threat of French invasion rose. He died without heir at the age of 45 while serving as Governor of Jamaica.
InscribedBrass plaque attached to scabbard engraved in four lines "THE REGIMENTAL SWORD OF / Thomas Howard, Earl of Effingham / Who refus'd to draw it in attempt of his Country / To Subjugate America in the Year 1776," in block and script (now extremely worn and only partially legible).
ProvenanceThomas Howard, 3rd Earl of Effingham [1746-1791]; Mrs. Preston Davie; 1955, given to College of William & Mary (Williamsburg, VA); 2024, given to The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA)