VERY RARE - Revolutionary War British Hand-Grenade recovered many years ago at Albany, NY (SOLD)

This is another nice early piece coming out of a 60-year collection of French & Indian War, Revolutionary War, and War of 1812 artifacts. Being offered is a Revolutionary War British hand grenade. It has a diameter of 2.60” and weighs 1-pound, 11-ounces. It was recovered many years ago at Albany, New York.

It was believed that by capturing the Hudson River's head of navigation (Albany) and already holding its mouth (the City of New York), the British could establish their control of the entire river. Control of the Hudson could sever New England-the hot bed of the rebellion-from the rest of the colonies.

The Battle of Albany took place on July 16, 1775. The Continental Army force of General Nathanael Greene moved out of Boston and marched on Albany, the provincial capital of New York, where he defeated Charles Cornwallis' army and seized New York for the patriots.

he Americans moved to a hilltop, where their artillery unlimbered at a position with a strategic view of the fort. Greene decided to send dragoon captain Constant Dinsmore to circle the fort from its right side in order to make it appear as if he was about to launch a flank attack against the Tories and British regulars, drawing away some British troops.

Greene proceeded to send his forces to storm the walls, defeating the Tory militia at the front wall while the regulars attempted to chase the dragoons. On the left side of the fort, the patriot cavalry were attacked by the British cavalry as they moved to meet up with the dragoons, and they defeated the Tory provincial cavalry.

Afterwards, the patriots moved through the front gates after securing them in a bloody melee battle that saw the Tory militiamen fight to the death, and the Patriots succeeded in charging the British forces in the center of the forts. The dragoons dismounted and climbed over the rear wall of the fort, and they succeeded in securing the center of the fort as the Tory militiamen and British regulars engaged the patriot militiamen. The Patriots secured Albany, liberating New York from the British.

This is an amazing piece of early ordnance history.  Although ground troops used this type of grenade, they also played a significant role in ship-to-ship operations. There is a group of grenades recovered at Ft. Ticonderoga, NY and one on display at the Revolutionary War Museum in Yorktown, VA (see pictures).

It remains in very nice condition, having some slight overall roughness, but no chipping or flaking. This collection began in the late 1950s and was created by private acquisitions, closed museums, diggers, and lake divers. The collector meticulously displayed and cataloged every piece along with its provenance. His markings were crude at the time, but now they have proved to be very important. Some of the pieces went through electrolysis to remove crusted rust.

This is the first time it has been on the open market and is truly a rare piece of early American History. It definitely merits a place in an advanced collection or museum. As with all the pieces in this esteemed collection, a Certificate of Authenticity will be included. It comes in the acrylic display case pictured. As with all items on the website, the very friendly layaway is available.