The rather humble-looking brass-mounted flintlock pistol pictured here is actually extremely interesting, as it follows the design of the Pattern 1796 ‘Prince de Bouillon’ pistol manufactured by the famous gunmakers Durs Egg and Henry Nock for the aforementioned prince. This particular pistol differs from the standard pattern in that the lock marking has the maker’s signature ‘D EGG’ and not the usual Crown GR Tower device. Also, its calibre is .56in and not the normal .59in of the Ordnance pattern. It has a wrist escutcheon, which the Ordnance pattern does not.
This pistol was produced by Egg, possibly for commercial sale and almost certainly for a naval officer, but more of that later. Two hundred pairs, believed of the regulation pattern pistol, were produced jointly between Egg and Nock under instruction of Philippe d’Auvergne, Prince of Bouillon. But who was he,
