A rare, signed letter by Napoleon Bonaparte that records the French occupation of Gaza in 1799 will be sold at auction in London on September 16, when it is predicted to realise £25,000 to £50,000.
The letter was written in February 1799 and dated “Gaza 8 Ventose au 7”, the seventh year of the French Revolutionary Calendar and the “Windy” month.
The date is written in Napoleon’s hand and the letter is signed at its end by him and by General Cafferelli, with his name “Max Cafferelli”.
The letter concerns the payment of “neuf mille francs” to fund engineering works in three cities conquered by Napoleon, including Gaza.
Spink, who are selling the document, say: “Fine and immeasurable historic significance, this believed to be the earliest known letter from Gaza and one of very few signed Napoleon from this period of the campaign.”
In 1799 Napoleon was still a French Revolutionary general, leading the Egyptian campaign that aimed to cut British routes to India and establish a French colonial presence.
After losing his fleet to Nelson at the Battle of the Nile and facing resistance in Egypt, Napoleon invaded Syria in order to see off a an attack from Ottoman Empire forces. For once, he failed.
The Battle of the Nile left Napoleon marooned in Egypt with no fleet. Though he was able to set up a French administration in the country, the French were driven from the country by British and Ottoman armies.
Just a few months after this letter was written, Napoleon was back in France, where he plotted a coup that would end with him as First Consul, a position that would be made a life appointment in 1802 before Napoleon Bonaparte became Emperor Napoleon I in 1804.
Napoleon was only briefly in Gaza, arriving on February 25, while retreating from a defeat in Khan Yunis. He returned to the city on May 30 after the decisive defeat of the Siege of Acre.
General Cafferelli would die from sniper fire later in the campaign.
Anything to do with Napoleon is collectible and potentially valuable.
Earlier this year, a significant sale of artefacts from Napoleon’s life made nearly $10 million at auction in Paris.
A sword he wore at the Battle of Marengo sold for $6.5 million in 2007.
This significant document is likely to attract plenty of interest and attention. It will be sold alongside several other documents from the same campaign.
