Fantastic Lord Nelson ALS Giving News of a Friends Son "you may be assured of my regard for him as if he was my own son." Written Around Time He Freed Muslim Slaves from Portuguese Ships.

ALS, 1p, 7" x 7.25", Palermo, Italy, October 28, 1799 written to the Honorable H. Walpole giving Walpole news of his son William, a midshipman, and Nelson's third cousin. Boldly signed by Nelson as "Nelson + Bronte." (Nelson signed his name incorporating part of the honorific title, the Duke of Bronté, bestowed upon him by the Kingdom of Sicily in 1799.) Flattened folds, toning and foxing, else fine. Framed to an overall size of 12.5" x 20."

In part:

"your son I consider as my right and I have always been a little jealous that he has been with anybody else, you may be assured of my regard for him as if he was my own son, he is well, seems very happy and it will be my business to keep him well fed, well paid and well worked...

Nelson + Bronte"

Just months earlier in August of 1799, Nelson had been given the Dukedom of Bronte in Sicily by King Ferdinand in gratitude for Nelson having saved the kingdom of Sicily from conquest by Revolutionary French forces under Napoleon. This was largely achieved by Nelson's victory at the Battle of the Nile (1798), which extinguished French naval power in the Mediterranean, but also by his having evacuated the royal family from their palace in Naples to the safety of Palermo in Sicily where this letter was written from.

Horatio Nelson and his connection to slavery have brought many questions to the forefront of society today. But in 1799, around the time of the writing of this letter, Nelson famously secured the liberation of a group of Muslim slaves from Portuguese ships in the Mediterranean, in order to improve the prospects for an anti-French alliance with the Islamic powers of North Africa.

Horatio Nelson is generally regarded as the greatest officer in the history of the Royal Navy. His reputation is based on a series of remarkable victories, culminating in the Battle of Trafalgar where he was killed in his moment of triumph. His victory at the Battle of Trafalgar would establish British naval supremacy for more than 100 years and shatter Napoleon's plans to invade England. The poet Byron referred to him as "Britannia's God of War".

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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