EL7181 - The Wilkinson Grenadier Guards officer's sword of Colonel Hercules Arthur Pakenham CMG DL JP (17 February 1863 – 28 March 1937). The blade being made and sold by Wilkinson in 1883, when Pakenham commissioned into the Grenadier Guards. While will the Guards he served in the Sudan Wars, and this blade has been service sharpened and was presumably carried in the Sudan. The hilt has at some later date been updated to the 1895 back piece. Pakenham was ADC to the Governor General of Canada from 1886 to 1888 and to the Governor-General of India from 1888 to 1893. Pakenham had a varied political as well as military career, and when the First World War broke out he raised and commanded the 11th (Service) Battalion Royal Irish Rifles. He worked for MI5 during the latter part of the war. In 1917 he was MI5's liaison at the French War Ministry. In early 1918 he became head of MI5's Washington D.C. office. There is a lot of further research to be done with this sword and it has a fantastic provenance that spans military and political careers, and strong connections with Ireland, Canada and the USA. The sword is in average condition, having varying amounts of patina to the blade, but the etching remaining deep and clear. The blade is firm in the hilt and there is no movement. The hilt is plated, and would benefit from careful cleaning. The grip shagreen is rather worn, but the wire is all present, and the grip could also be improved with careful work. Housed in a field service scabbard.
