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1643 KING CHARLES I SIGNED MILITARY COMMISSION – ENGLISH CIVIL WAR – CHARLES R AUTOGRAPH – OXFORD
Extraordinary original military commission signed by King Charles I of England (1600–1649) during the English Civil War.
Signed boldly:
"Charles R"
("R" for Rex, King)
Dated:
Oxford, 6 July 1643
HISTORICAL DOCUMENT
This commission appoints Samuel Warcup, Esq. as:
Captain of a Company of Foot
serving under Colonel Thomas Leigh in the Royalist Army.
Issued from Oxford, the wartime capital of King Charles I during the English Civil War, the document represents a rare surviving example of a military commission personally authorized and signed by the King during one of the most turbulent periods in British history.
The commission opens in the traditional royal style:
"Charles by the Grace of God King of Great Britain France and Ireland..."
and authorizes the raising and command of troops in service of the Crown.
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
King Charles I was:
King of England, Scotland, and Ireland.
Central figure in the English Civil War.
Opponent of Parliament in the conflict of 1642–1651.
Tried and executed in 1649.
One of the most important figures in British constitutional history.
Military commissions signed by Charles I during the Civil War are significantly scarcer than later royal documents and are highly sought after by collectors of:
English Civil War history
Royal autographs
British monarchy
Military commissions
Seventeenth-century Civil War military commission
Signed "Charles R"
Oxford, 6 July 1643
Appoints Samuel Warcup as Captain
References Colonel Thomas Leigh
Royalist Army
English Civil War period
Large display-quality royal seventeenth-century document.
Expected folds and handling wear.
Age toning and scattered staining.
Text somewhat faded.
Signature remains visible and attractive.
Complete and historically intact
This is the type of document that attracts collectors of English Civil War manuscripts, royal autographs, and museum-quality historical material. A signed wartime commission of Charles I is far scarcer than most later British royal documents and represents an important artifact from one of the defining conflicts in British history.
