1868 – The Danish Consul in New York ships 1,000 Remington rifles home to Denmark’s Minister of War to be used in Demark’s war with Prussia

New York or Philadelphia, 1868. Unbound. Very good. This Bill of Lading measures 13¼” x 8¼”. It is from the Liverpool, New York and Philadelphia Steamship Company and was issued on 4 September 1868. It bears a nice illustration of a steamship and is fracked with a 10-cent blue Washington Power of Attorney revenue stamp (Scott #39c) In nice shape.

The document reads in part:

“Shipped, in good order and well-conditioned by N. Dooner, Consul for Denmark in and upon the Steamship called the City of Paris whereof Kennedy is Master for the present. . ..

“Fifty cases said to contain 1000 Guns wg Gross 12,500 lbs / Sixty two (truncated) cases copper Plats wg. Gross 21,976 lbs / To be shipped in transit to Hull at the expense of the ship, but at the risk of the owner of the goods. . ..”

“Forty five shillings stg per ton of 40 cubic feet for Guns Cases & fifty five shillings stg for ton of 2240 lbs gross weight coper. . ..” . Until the Napoleonic Wars when it was forced to cede all of Norway to a newly independent Sweden, the Danish Royal Family ruled over one of the largest empires in Europe. Then it lost two wars to Austria and Prussia who, by 1864, had taken control of Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark’s remain territories.

The Danish defeats were, in part, due to its army’s firearms which were far inferior to the Prussians breech-loading Dreyse rifles. Intent on improving it arsenal, members of the Danish Ordnance Commission toured American firearms factories including Remington. Impressed by Remington’s rifles, Denmark ordered 20,000 for the company’s new m/1867 in April of 1867. This was an important order for the company as it was its first major order since the Civil War and its first overseas contract. Pleased with what it received, Denmark ordered another 10,000 rifles and 18,000 carbines in August, and an additional 10,000 rifles in May of 1868.

This shipment would have fulfilled part of Denmark’s third order.

At the time of listing, nothing similar is for sale in the trade, and there are no records of similar items appearing in auctions or being held by institutions.

A fascinating bill of lading documenting America’s entry into the international arms market. . (Inventory #: 010436)