2016-12-03 Sat

Brig. Gen. Alexander Macomb was awarded a unique congressional gold medal by President James Madison for his contributions in the Battle of Plattsburgh in 1814, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain. The medal will be offered at Fritz Rudolph Kunker Auction on 2nd February in Berlin.

The victory in the battle stopped the last invasion of the northern states of the United States and with the Battle of Baltimore the next day, peace was restored three months later when the Treaty of Ghent was signed.

English Gen. George Prevost and his 10,531 men near Plattsburgh, N.Y. were stopped by Macomb, 1,500 soldiers and some militia members.

The medal was authorised on 3rd November 1814 and Macomb was one of 27 men to receive the medal for the same reason.

The medal was kept in a castle in Geneva by one of Macomb’s family members. The obverse features a bust of Macomb, his name and the initials of the engraver Moritz Furst. The reverse depicts a battle scene on the Saranac River and Lake Champlain, along with inscriptions related to the honour, the battle name and date, and the engraver’s name.

The medal has an estimated value of €150,000 ($159,702 U.S.).