September 5-7, 2023 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 9/6/2023
This book was required for all British naval officers, and this one is found signed on the title page by it’s then owner, 2nd Lieutenant Ezekiel Nash (1730-1803). Nash was an important pre-Revolutionary War British Privateer Sea Captain who witnessed and contributed to the rising tensions during the Seven Years War. His earliest recorded service was in 1752, when he was in service as a merchant seaman, in 1756 becoming captain and commanding officer of the privateer "Caesar", a 320-ton 20-carriage ship out of Bristol. As a privateer captain, he captured the Dauphin, an 18-gun ship, and the Jolei Galeri, a 12-gun ship, both headed for Louisbourg loaded with supplies. By 1758, he was captain of the privateer Invincible, capturing the famous ships Polly and Johanna, sending them to Plymouth, before sailing on May 3rd from Portsmouth to support Holbourne. With a shortage of officer’s for His Majesty’s ships, Nash is next found as 2nd Lietuenant of the newly built HMS Milford (completed 28 December 1759) under Captain Robert Mann. Nash was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant on February 6th, 1760. He took command of the HMS Milford during the engagement with the La Gloire, after the loss of the Captain and the 1st Lieutenant, as Captain Robert Mann was mortally wounded by a 6-pound ball through the leg, followed by first Lieutenant Day being shot in the head. Upon taking over command of the ship, 2nd Lt. Nash fought on with success, taking La Gloire with 24 French casualties and 15 British casualties. He returned the HMS Milford to England, and Ezekiel Nash's naval career ended. While Nash was not involved, the ship he saved, the HMS Milford, became an important ship during the Revolutionary War. When it captured the first American naval ship to be taken during the war, the USS Yankee Hero, on June 6th 1776, the American ship was taken and renamed the HMS Postillion, while the surviving American sailors of the Yankee Hero were press-ganged into fighting for the British against their fellow Americans, creating an American uproar. The event was commemorated by a 1976 Paraguayan postage stamp, with a Mint Stamp included in this sale. In 1803, upon Nash’s death, and in gratitude for his life being spared during the taking of La Gloire, Nash set up a charity in his will that donated to the church he was buried at to give alms to the poor. This copy of "Regulations and Instructions" was printed in 1757 and is signed and dated by Nash in 1760, likely upon his commission to the Milford. Leather binding with gilt lettering on spine, and containing all information relevant to an officer of his majesty’s ships. Accompanied by extensive information and research on Captain Ezekial Nash, with citations throughout. CONDITION: Very good, with some age related distress to edges and crazing to leather, but still pliable and soft. Pages are legible with typical foxing and staining throughout. An extremely important copy of the regulations, with direct ties to the Seven Years War (French and Indian War), and in excellent condition.