Name/Title
St Eustatius [Silver Box]Description
Gilt interior silver box hallmarked for John Reily, London, 1814 and inscribed "St Eustatius Captured 1781 / Prize Money Paid 1819."Context
In a letter to Lord George Germain dated March 5, 1781, General Vaughan, the military commander at the capture of St Eustatius, made the startling claim that 'it is the general Opinion here that the Capture of this Island will compleatly [sic] crush the American Rebellion and greatly Distress if not entirely ruin the French Islands.' This reflected views strongly held by Rodney, the naval commander, who had been very much aware during his periods of service in the West Indies of the extensive trade that was funneled through the neutral Dutch island of St Eustatius to the French islands and to the rebellious colonies in North America. What particularly galled Rodney was that he felt his hands to be tied by any attempt to control the trade as he was not empowered to stop or confiscate neutral shipping or its cargoes. The wound was made worse because he was aware that many of the cargoes arriving at St Eustatius were owned by British merchants, or at the very least were being handled by them. As he wrote to the Admiralty on March 6, 1781: