Charles Harbord, 5th Baron Suffield was appointed Lord of the Bedchamber to Edward, Prince of Wales (to become King Edward VII), to whom he was a close friend. Lord of the bedchamber??? Is that for real??? He later was chief of staff to the Prince of Wales during the Prince\'s expedition to India in 1875–1876. The 3-feather insignia of the Prince of Wales is engraved between the hammers of the rifle. The inscription on the rib helps us to place the year of manufacture to 1873 or 1874, so the rifle was no doubt ordered for this trip. The Oval is engraved with the family crest and motto.

*Lord of the Bedchamber is an ancient appointment to the Monarch, basically in modern speak, he would be a confidante of the Monarch , A trusted friend, and his role originally was to help dress the Monarch, guarding access to his bedchamber ,generally waiting on him. The main role was to be a friend. Lord Suffield was Master of the Robes at the coronation of Edward V11 in 1902. He married firstly Cecilia Annetta Baring (of the banking family) in 1854. in 1911 following her death he married again. He owned 12000 acres in Norfolk (Gunton Park). Lord Suffield 5th Baron died in 1914 The family crest was a shield with ermine crown on top and the family motto was Aequanimiter ..obviously Latin …for "Even Minded" The bores are extremely good (excellent) with very strong rifling. Some pitting around the breach and extractor. The wide rear V-notch sight is inlaid with a platinum pointer. Along with the expected stocking safeties there is an unusual lever safety which locks the trigger. We haven\'t seen this before.

The gun has had some stock work done over the years. There is a rather obvious but vintage and effective stock repair to a very old split in front of the sling swivel. The leather cheek piece could very well be original. The vintage horn and Silvers recoil pad may one day require some more attention.

The case itself retains its original case label, charge label, and contains an excellent array of tools and accessories including the proper bullet mold. These also include a chamber brush and oil bottle by Hawksley, a priming tool by W. Bartram, and powder measure among others.

A fine piece of British history that would make an excellent addition to any collection.

*The Lord of the bedchamber is a very old title first used in 1718. This involved assisting the monarch in dressing, waiting on him while he ate, and guarding access to his bed chamber. Holders of this position were considered to be extremely close and trusted confidants. In the later 1800s this position evolved to mean more as the position evolved to become quite powerful. *** Note: To see this gun with high resolution photos and a zoom-in feature, go to the vintagedoubles main site and search for the gun ID: 5333 or browse the main site to see our full gun collection.

SOLD

Manufacturer: J. D. Dougall .577 Lock-Fast patent double rifle with makers case, tools and a reference to the Prince of Wales bed chamber...........
Model: BEST
Serial Number: 3465
Caliber Info: .577
Ejectors: No
Barrels: 28
Barrel Type: Damascus
Action: bar action non rebounding hammer
Gauge Info: Caliber
LOP: 14 5/8" (13 7/8
Weight: 9 lbs. 14 oz.
Choke Left: NA
Choke Right: NA
Proof:Black: .577 2 3/4
Minimum Wall Thickness Left: NA
Minimum Wall Thickness Right: NA