This is an incredibly rare and significant sword. Only four or five Hyde & Goodrich marked Confederate Eaglehead staff swords are known due to changes in the company early in the war. The fact that this sword's original owner's name and the presentation information is etched on the blade adds significantly to its historical interest and value, even more so with our discovery of period documentation detailing the sword's presentation to Captain Francois G. Barrier (c. 1823-1874) of the French Legion. The etching on the left side of the blade includes "La 3eme Cie a Son Capitaine/F.G. BARRIERE," and the right has "LEGION FRANCAISE/15 Aout 1861." Translated, the inscriptions read: "The 3rd Company to Its Captain F.G. Barriere" and "French Legion 15th August 1861."The 29 1/2 inch blade also has scroll patterns and is stamped "HYDE & GOODRICH/NEW ORLEANS" on the left ricasso. The gilded brass hilt has floral designs on the guard, a wire and leather wrapped grip, and a very attractive eagle head pattern pommel and strap with detailed feathering and a solder line. The black leather scabbard has coordinating gilded brass fittings. There is a photograph of General Martin Luther Smith wearing the same pattern of sword. Given the date in the inscription, the sword would have been presented just a month and a half after A.L. Hyde left the company on July 1, 1861, and it became Thomas, Griswold & Company. In "The Daily Picaynne" from New Orleans the day following the date of the inscription under the heading "The Assumption and the French," it states that the French, including residents of New Orleans, celebrated the Assumption of the Virgin Mary as a national holiday and "The 3d company of the French Legion had also chosen this day to present their captain, Mr. F.G. Barriere, the dry goods importer of No. 130 Canal street, with a sword of honor. After this interesting ceremony, which took place at the Captain's residence, No. 89 Rampart street, the company, preceded by all the officers of the Legion, went to Commercial Restaurant, on Customhouse street, where a splendid supper was spread for them." They toasted Captain Barriere, the French Legion, President Jefferson Davis, Emperor Napoleon III, and others. Advertisements in the local newspapers before and during the war indicate C.A. Barriere & Brother sold an array of European manufactured fabric goods such as men and women's clothing and "plantation goods." Often merchants would play both sides of the cotton market and purchase cotton in the South and export it to Europe where they would purchase finished good for import in North America using the proceeds from the sales of the raw materials. American cotton was critical to the French textile industry, and cotton costs more than doubled in France by 1862. In fact, the Confederacy restricted cotton exports to pressure European countries to intervene on their behalf. There was also an internal component to the cycle prior to the war where northern manufacturers and merchants would profit off of the products of slave grown cotton by purchasing it from plantations, turning them into finished products, and then selling the goods, including in the South. One known abolitionist's business specifically marketed cheap clothing to plantation owners for them to clothe their slaves. Based on records from the war such as "The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies," by the time of the Civil War at least, Charles managed their affairs in Paris while Francois, also known as Francis, managed affairs in New Orleans. They requested as part of their terms in offers to Confederate government for supply contracts to be able to purchase cotton for export to France with the proceeds from a variety of goods they proposed to supply which included shoes, salt, pork, blankets, and fabric. Despite his well-known Confederate ties, Barriere successfully remained in business through the war and continued to advertise the sale of goods imported from France and England. Additional detailed information about Captain Barrier, his family, and their business ventures, including their ties to the Confederacy, is included in a research paper from Nancy Dearing Rossbacher, managing editor of "North South Trader's Civil War" and "The Civil War Collector's Price Guide." She indicates Francois G. Barriere was born in France around 1823 and moved to New Orleans with his brother, Charles Auguste Barriere, in the 1840s and established themselves as C.A. Barriere & Brother. F.G. Barriere fought in the defense of New Orleans as captain of the 3rd Company of the Legion Francaise (French Legion) in the 1st Regiment French Brigade. He later appears to have served as a major in the Garde Francaise (French Guard) of the 3rd Regiment European Brigade of the Louisiana Militia. After the fall of New Orleans, he was fined $100 for closing his business and then sent to the guard house when he refused to pay as noted in "Beauty and Booty: The Watchwords of New Orleans" from Southwood in 1866. Major General Butler also confiscated some of the Barrieres' blankets for use in the military hospitals after they refused to sell them at what he considered a fair price. Barriere then protested through the French consul all while still actively working to supply the Confederacy, including offering to contract with the Confederate government for 50,000 barrels of flour and 10,000 sacks of coffee. The Confederate government denied their contract due to New Orleans being under Union control but noted if the goods could be secured another way they would take them. He partnered with his nephew Charles W. Barriere, also a Confederate veteran, and the business remained active until F.G. Barriere's death in New Orleans on June 8, 1874. His extended family had ties to European nobility by marriage.

Very good with mottled gray and brown patina and moderate wear on the blade, traces of original gilding mixed with well-aged patina on the hilt, stronger original gilding on the scabbard furniture, mild age and handling related wear on the grip, and redyed, restored dark leather on the scabbard body with only minor wear. Overall, this is a very solid and incredibly rare Confederate sword with interesting French connections, documented presentation and owner, and interesting history. The fact that it is one of only a perhaps a handful of surviving Hyde & Goodrich marked Confederate swords alone would make this sword a significant addition to any Civil War or antique arms collection. So few of their Confederate swords exist that the company is not even discussed in detail nor their arms shown in some of the main books on Confederate edged weapons.