Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Sir William Johnson Coat of Arms DeBruhl Engraver

In the Johnson Papers there is no further mention of a coat of arms until January 10, 1763
In a letter from William Darlington of New York, to Johnson of that date the former writes
"Mr. Weyman seems not to understand the directions in Regard to the Coat of Arms and directed me to One Debrul's Engraver.  Enclosed is a letter from him about it.

The letter from DeBrul's is as follows:  Mr Darlington hath Aquainted me Your commands concerning your coat of arms, the Engraving of the Same will cost four pound.  The printing
and coloring the same proper will cost two pound per hundred or Twenty Pound per Thousand.

Your Most Obed
Serv
Michael DeBruls  ( DeBruhl)

In Johnson's reply to this letter, which Johnson addressed not to DeBruls but to Darlington, on January 29, 1763, he objected to the price, said he could get the prints of them for less in London and finally commissioned Darlington to offer 5 pounds for my Coat of Arms only printed and 4 pounds for your plate which is to be mine.

Other letters on the subject have unfortunately been burned, but the Calendar of the Sir William
Johnson Manuscripts shows (p. 160,169) that Darlington wrote further about them on February 21, 1763, and that on May 6, 1763, he mentioned sending the copper plates, and denounced DeBruls for his charges.

In some of Johnson's library books that have come down to us there are his bookplates bearing his coat of arms, an illustration of which appears in this volume.  It would seem probable that these represent the order for one thousand copies which Johnson placed with DeBruls (DeBruhl) through Darlington.

The use of his arms on his bookplate would explain the quantity of prints ordered.  None of these plates which we have seen are in color, seeming to indicate that Johnson lived up to his intention of refusing to pay a price which he regarded as exorbitant.
At what time Johnson had drawn the design of his coat of arms from which DeBruls made his engraving we have no exact information.  It may have been previous to the date of his brother Warren's letter, but it seems probable that it was between 1755 and 1762, for in the former year he received his baronetcy, giving him the right to have the red hand of Ulster in his coat of arms, and in the latter year appeared a plan or Map of his Niagara campaign on which the same coat of arms appears as on the bookplate ( Johnson Papers, lll: vii 81) We know DeBruhl engraved maps of Niagara and Fort Ticonderoga The Fort Niagara map has the coat of arms of Sir William Johnson signed by Michael DeBruls and Son Godart DeBruls (DeBruhl)source New York Iconography)  The only marked difference between the two is that on the map the red hand of Ulster does not appear in the small escutcheon which is left blank and the panoply of flags appears on a standard apart from the coat of arms.

Plan of Fort Niagara and vicinity in 1759
From a map published in 1762, now in possession of Peter A Porter of Niagara Fall, N.Y.
Only the western half of the map is known to be in existence.
Drawn by Michael Samuel DeBruhl and son Godard DeBruhl leading engravers in New York
in that time period.   Both the map and Sir William Johnson's family coat of arms on the map
were the work of Michael Samuel DeBruhl and son Godart DeBruhl.


Sir William Johnson papers
E 195
J 62 Vol 3
The Seven Years War

Ships of the Great Expedition to Found the City of Halifax

May 14th 1749 Captain General Edward Cornwallis and his staff left England in the sloop of war Sphinx.

The Transports left some days later, slowly making their way down the Channel, calling at Portsmouth, and finally setting forth on the long voyage to Halifax, Nova Scotia. A land almost as unknown as the dark side of the moon.

They carried 2576 passengers for Chebucto, distributed as follows:

Charlton          395 tons      213 passengers
Cannon            342  "         190       "            Michael DeBruhl family
Winchelsea      559             303
Merry Jacks     378             230
Alexander        320             172
Beaufort           541             287
Rockhampton  232             77
Everly              351             186
London            550              315
Brotherhood     --                27
Baltimore         411             226
Fair Lady          --                10

In addition to these transports there was the Sphinx with Cornwallis and his suite, the transport Sarah, which sailed later from Liverpool with the hospital stores and staff, the small vessel Union, and other store ships.  All in all, the first fleet probably carried three thousand people to Chebucto.

The Sphinx steered for Cape Race, that famous landmark on the way to the New World, and met head winds.  The transports took a more southerly course and had better weather, so that despite their tubish hulls they arrived on the coast only a few days behind the captain-general.
The Sphinx sighted the coast of Nova Scotia on June 14: but as nobody on board had ever seen it before, and there was no chart worthy of the name, she stood offshore until she met by good fortune a Yankee sloop carrying two pilots to the British garrison at Louisburg.  With these she
headed for the land, touched at Merliguish (the site of Lunenburg), and entered Chebucto on June 21, 1749 a date celebrated by Haligonians ever since.

The command of this venture into the wilds was given to Colonel Edward Cornwallis, a handsome military bachelor of thirty-six who had fought at Fontenoy, commanded a regiment in the Highlands against Prince Charlie, and now was anxious to distinguish himself in Nova Scotia.

He had turned over his regiment in the Highlands to a Major Wolf, who would distinguish himself in Nova Scotia later on.  Horace Walpole speaks of Cornwallis as "a brave sensible young man of great temper and good nature"-a perfect picture of the man- and Wolfe afterwards mentioned Cornwallis' "approved courage and fidelity".

More than this, Cornwallis was incorruptible- a very rare quality in colonial governors of his time.  He was slender, somewhat over middle height, an aristocrat to his fingertips, conscious of his dignity and inclined to be cool and ceremonious except when the "great temper" took charge.  We are told he had a pleasant voice, fine eyes, and a winning expression.  Later on his voice acquired a rasp, and so did his pen, as troubles mounted and the harsh winters of the new colony destroyed his health.

His aide and right-hand man was a young army bachelor like himself, Richard Bulkeley, tall, handsome, Irish, wealthy, a former king's messenger and captain of dragoons whose equipment for the wilderness included a valet,groom, a butler, three blood horses and a vast amount of baggage.  Another aide was Captain Horatio Gates son of the Duke of Leeds on the wrong side of the blanket, a capable young officer who in later years was to make his name famous on the wrong side of the field in the American Revolution.

Raddell  Warden of North

Monday, February 1, 2016

Hans Maurice Bruehl (von Bruhl) (deBruhl)

Bruehl, Hans

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Hans (John) Moritz von Bruehl was born on December 19, 1736 in Wiederau, Germany.  He was a general inspector of roads in Brandenburg and Pomerania.  He was the youngest son of count Heinrich von Bruehl (1700-1763).  He was Minister of Saxony in Germany and Ambassador to England, and lived in London.  He was one of the strongest players of the London chess club.  He gave support to Philidor.  He was a count.  In 1782, at the Parsloe’s, Philidor drew with Bruehl and defeated Dr. Thomas Bowdler blindfolded, simultaneously.  Philidor played several blindfold games against Bruehl throughout the years.  In 1788, Bruehl defeated Cotter and lost to General H. S. Conway in two chess matches in London.  In 1795, Philidor published a third edition of his chess book, L’analyse du jeu des Eschecs, and dedicated it to his friend and chess patron, Count Bruehl.  The count was also interested in music (a patron of musicians) and astronomy (he built his own observatory).  He was a colonel in the French service before the French Revolution of 1789.  He died in London on June 9, 1809.