A late 18th Century Black Leather covered Dispatch Box with central swing brass handle and diamond shaped brass key escutcheon. The original owners name 'HONble. W. Hill, PRIVATE'* is stamped on front bevel, and George III's Royal Cipher stamped twice in front. The green velvet lined interior, with raised walls, is original, as is the working lock & key.
*The Hon, William Hill born 1773, educated at Rugby School, and graduated at Jesus College, Cambridge. He assumed the additional surname of Noel, becoming Noel-Hill in 1824. He entered the Diplomatic Service, and in 1814 was sent to Sardinia as Envoy Extraordinary & Minister Plenipotentiary, and in 1824-1833 to Naples & the two Sicilies. In 1824 he was made a member of the Privy Council. Mr Hill was M.P. for Marlborough from 1814-1818. He succeeded his elder brother, as 3rd Lord Berwick on the latter's death in 1832. Lord Berwick died, unmarried, at Redrice, near Andover, on the 4th August 1842.
Weight: 1.85
Dimensions: 31 x 16.5 x 15 cms.
