FRANCE / BELGIUM 1803 NAPOLEONIC CONSULAR PERIOD NORD-LIBRE (CONDÉ-SUR-L'ESCAUT) TO ANTWERP STAMPLESS LETTER WITH REMARKABLE MILITARY DESERTER PROFILE
1803 (Jan. 21 / 1er Pluviôse An XI), Napoleonic Consulate Annexed Territory Stampless Folded Letter from Nord-Libre (Nord) to Antwerp (Deux-Nèthes Department, Belgium). Addressed to "Au Citoyen Préfet Du Département Des Deux Nethes à Anvers", struck on front with bold black two-line revolutionary name postmark "57 / NORD-LIBRE" (the revolutionary name for Condé-sur-l'Escaut, Lenain #4). Face shows manuscript rate "4" décimes; complete and pristine interior military report, exceptional condition.
Written by Lieutenant Durand of the 71st Brigade on 1er Pluviôse An XI to the Prefect of the Napoleonic French-annexed Belgian department of the Deux-Nèthes at Antwerp. Dispatched just prior to the collapse of the Treaty of Amiens and the resumption of the Napoleonic Wars, the urgent official military report announces that conscript Jean Bavaux deserted his unit on December 30. The document provides an extraordinary handwritten physical description (*signalement*) for the gendarmerie: "Né à Habroek... agé 22 an... taille 5 p[ieds], cheveux bruns, sourcils idem, yeux idem, front bas, nez gros, bouche petite, menton rond, visage oval, teint clair, appartenant à la 71e demi-brigade". An exceptional historical postal document combining the rare revolutionary renamed town marking 'NORD-LIBRE' with vivid documentation of Napoleonic military conscription resistance.
Please examine lot scan carefully and please send any questions at least 48 hours before the auction closes. Please note that cover condition usually includes normal wear and tear to cover edges, opening tears and some creases and wrinkles. Only exceptional or extreme condition issues will be mentioned.
Legend:
PS - Postal Stationery
FL - Folded Letter
SFL - Stampless Folded Letter
RPO - Railway Post Office
CDS - Circular Date Stamp
DPO - Dead Post Office
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