Bidspirit 拍卖 | King George III – Royal

King George III – Royal Appointment on Vellum Appointing Thomas Fowler Steward as Commissioner to Take Affidavits – 59th Year of the Reign, 29 June 1819 – Royal Revenue Stamps - An impressive original British Royal and legal document on vellum, issued during the reign of King George III (1738–1820) and dated 29 June 1819, in the fifty-ninth year of his reign and during the final period of his long monarchy. The document opens with the Royal formula: “George the Third by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland King Defender of the Faith…” and is addressed to Thomas Fowler Steward of Great Yarmouth in the County of Norfolk, Gentleman. By this instrument, the Crown appoints Thomas Fowler Steward as a Commissioner to take Affidavits, granting him authority to receive sworn affidavits for legal proceedings within several English counties, including Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridge, Essex and Northampton, together with the City of Norwich. The document expressly refers to legislation originating in the reign of King Charles II, concerning the taking of affidavits in the country for use in proceedings before the Courts of King's Bench, Common Pleas and Exchequer. The instrument contains the formula: “Witness Sir Charles Abbott Knight” referring to Sir Charles Abbott (1762–1832), then Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, subsequently created 1st Baron Tenterden and one of the prominent British jurists of the early nineteenth century. At the foot appears: “By Warrant of the Chief Justice” together with a manuscript signature. The document was not personally signed by King George III; it was formally issued in his name and under Royal authority through the judicial appointment process. The face bears an embossed ten-shilling Royal revenue stamp, incorporating Royal insignia, together with an additional circular impressed stamp – evidence of the British stamp duties imposed upon official legal instruments. The reverse carries a printed legal rule headed: “Mich. T. 37. GEO. III. 1796.” setting out requirements concerning affidavits. The date 1796 relates to the printed legal rule and is not the date of the present appointment. The year 1819 was the final complete year of George III's reign. By this period the King was no longer capable of personally exercising Royal authority and his son, the future George IV, governed as Prince Regent; nevertheless, official legal instruments continued to be issued in George III's name until his death in January 1820. An attractive, more than two-century-old British Royal legal document combining a George III appointment, original vellum, Royal revenue stamps, contemporary manuscript entries and an association with Lord Chief Justice Sir Charles Abbott.