A Token of Service to Colonel Robert Gordon who Fought the Insurrection of the Black Carib in 1795

Silver, with pleasing overall toning, maker marked "RE", marked with the British lion and date marked "b" (1817) on the underside of the lid, handles incorporating floral designs on either side, with couplings illustrating female faces with floral and bow-tied ribbon headdresses at the handles' ends, engraved "To THE HONble ROBERT GORDON / In Token of / Esteem and approbation of his services during a long and active life, particularly as Colonel of the N. R of Militia during the Insurrection of the French and Charaibs in the Colony A.D. 1795. / SENATUS SANCTI VINCENTII. dedit A.D 1817. (in Latin: "awarded by the St. Vincent Senate in 1817") between the handles on the front, engraved with the Gordon coat-of-arms between the handles on the back, the base of the bowl with a repeating oak leaves and acorns design, a floral band above incorporating acorns and thistles, scalloped trim encompassing the base, ornate floral ball lift handle and matching base affixed to lid by a nut and bolt combination, engraved with the Gordon "DREAD GOD" boar insignia on the front, two rows of scalloped trim encompassing the lid, measuring 173 mm at the mouth x 100 mm at the base x 310 mm in height (inclusive of the lid). Extremely fine. Accompanied by a 31 mm x 41 mm oval hand-painted portrait of Gordon, dated in handwritten ink "1814" on the reverse. Footnote: The island of St. Vincent was discovered by Christopher Columbus on January 22, 1498, being St. Vincent's Day on the calendar. In 1763, the island was ceded to Great Britain in perpetuity, with General Melville becoming the first governor, together with Grenada, Dominica, Tobago and the Grenadines. The islands were formed under one government by his Majesty's proclamation of October 7, 1763, and by virtue of the powers given by that instrument, the general assemblies were established. In 1779, the island was captured by the French, the island being restored to Great Britain in 1783. In 1776, a separate government for the island was established, the house of assembly regulated by an act passed in 1786. In 1780, the island suffered from the calamitous effects of a hurricane, whereby the church, public buildings, and many of the houses were destroyed, with many public records and documents of various descriptions being lost. In 1795, the Insurrection of the Black Carib (AKA Black Charaibs) commenced, aided by the French, continuing for more than two years. The Black Caribs are indigenous people from the island of St. Vincent, formed by the mixture between Island Caribs and enslaved Africans bred in the eighteenth century. This event proved equally injurious to the public records, as they were frequently removed to different places for security, suffering from exposure, and with a few exceptions, the titles to lands in the colony can only be traced back to 1776. During this conflict, the proprietors suffered severely. The prosperity of the island began from this point, as the French were completely conquered. The British authorities on the island decided that the Black Caribs with higher Amerindian traits were to be maintained on the island, and had to take the oath of allegiance to the crown. The remaining Black Caribs, with darker of African features, were considered by the British as the cause of the revolt. They were subsequently deported from the island, conveyed first to Jamaica, then transported to the island of Roatan (AKA Rattan) off the northern coast of Honduras. As such, more than 5,000 Black Caribs were deported, but when the British landed on Roatan in April 12, 1797, only about 2,500 survived the trip to the island.