This is one of three swords inscribed for Confederate generals from Virginia in this sale from the same collection. Each of these swords includes a copy of the research paper "The Payne/Hunton Family Swords of Gen. William Henry Fitzhugh Payne, CSA & Gen. Eppa Hunton, CSA" by Nancy Dearing Rossbacher, the managing editor of "North South Trader's Civil War Magazine" and "The Civil War Collector's Price Guide." The paper covers all three swords and details how they are related. William Fitzhugh Payne (1830-1904) and Eppa Hunton (1822-1908) were related through the marriage of General Hunton's son Eppa Hunton Jr. (1855-1932) to first Minerva "Erva" Winston Payne (1861-1897) and later Virginia Semmes Payne (1867-1941), both daughters of General Payne. Rossbacher notes that the swords were passed down through the family. Both men were prominent Confederate generals from Virginia and saw action during the war, with Payne in particular being wounded and captured multiple times and then returning to the fight and never relenting in his dedication to the Confederate cause and his hatred of Yankees. The three would make an excellent display in a private or public Civil War collection. This sword appears to be the second sword mentioned by Confederate Brigadier General William H. F. Payne in "Payne's Letter of December 13, 1903 to the Alumni Association of Virginia Military Institute" reprinted in "I Am a Good Ol’ Rebel: A Biography and Civil War Account of Confederate Brigadier General William H. F. Payne" by Robert Houghtalen and in the included documentation. In the letter Payne wrote, "I have another sword of another Yankee officer captured by me at the First Battle of Manassas." Unfortunately he does not give as many details as he did for the other sword he captured. The sword has the post-war inscription: "Brig. Genl. W.H. Payne./Army of Northern Virginia/4th Va. Cavalry/CSA/1861-1864." The 31 1/2 inch lightly curved blade is decorated with etched floral, patriotic, and classical martial designs and has "W.H. Horstmann/& Sons/PHILADELPHIA" on the right. The gilt brass hilt has floral patterns and a wire wrapped shagreen grip. The leather scabbard has brass fittings, and the throat piece has "HORSTMANN/&/SONS/MAKERS/PHILADA" in raid letters on a scroll. Before the Civil War, William Payne studied at the University of Missouri, Virginia Military Institute, and the University of Virginia and practiced law in Virginia. Payne had originally enlisted as a private, served as a captain in the Black Horse Cavalry under J.E.B. Stuart. In command of the Black Horse, Payne and his men were part of Stuart's operations on July 15, 1861, that tricked Union General Robert Patterson into thinking a force as large as 35,000 opposed him rather than less than 10,000. From July 18-21, the Black Horse were assigned to act as scouts and videttes along Bull Run, and they engaged the retreating Union forces on the 21st and captured sixteen pieces of artillery, even after the bridge collapsed, and helped cement the historic Confederate victory at First Manassas by running down and chasing off the routed Union troops. Captain Payne was invited to breakfast with President Jefferson Davis in response to his success. They were also assigned to be the personal scouts and bodyguards of General Joseph E. Johnston. Payne was promoted to major in the 4th Virginia Cavalry. At the Battle of Williamsburg during the Peninsula Campaign, he was captured by the Union for the first time after being left for dead on the battlefield after being shot in the face. Payne wrote,"...I was wounded - indeed reported by Gen. Stuart as killed; and his report has never been altered...I was left between the lines, and was almost drowning in my own blood. One man remained with me- Dr. Pendleton, of Louisiana, who, when he saw me fall, immediately sprang from his horse, and, being a physician, thrust his fingers into my mouth and caught the arteries that had been broken by the ball which had torn out my right upper teeth, glancing along through my tongue and passing out over the jugular veins." Payne was paroled and allow to go home to recover. He wore a rubber mask that a Union surgeon had made him to hold his jaw together and could only consume liquids. Given the serious nature of his wounds, Union officers no doubt did not expect to see him on the battlefield again, but shortly after he was exchanged, he wrote that he and another Confederate captured two videttes using a knife and a hatchet. After the affair, he fainted and fell from his horse having overtaxed himself. He was in command at Lynchburg and then returned to the 4th Virginia Cavalry as their commander. He fought in hand-to-hand combat with a Union officer at the Battle of Kelly's Ford. This is both noted in Payne's letter and in General Fitz Lee's reports. Payne then took command of the 2nd North Carolina Cavalry and led it through the Gettysburg Campaign. His horse was shot out from under him and suffered a saber wound and fell into a vat of tanning liquid at the battle of Hanover and was captured for the second time. This time, he was not paroled and sent home. Instead, he was shipped off to the prisoner of war depot on Johnson's Island. Once exchanged, he returned to command of his regiment in time for General Early's Valley Campaign in the fall of 1864 and fought at Third Battle of Winchester (September 19), Fisher's Hill (Sept. 21-22), and Cedar Creek (Oct. 19) and then participated in the New Creek raid after which he received the other sword, [LOT 1204]. He was wounded severely again from gunfire at the Battle of Five Forks (April 1, 1865) near Petersburg, this time suffering a shot to the leg. He was able to recover enough to lead a cavalry brigade at the end of the war near Richmond. He claims he was arrested in relation to the assassination attempted of Secretary of State William H. Seward as part of the grand plot that included Booth's assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Lewis Powell had operated under the alias Lewis Payne, and that had apparently led to suspicion that General Payne had been involved, but he was paroled after being held at Johnson's Island until June of 1865. Following the war, Payne returned home to Virginia and his law career, including as the general counsel for the Southern Railway Company and also served in the state legislature. He remained a dedicate Confederate well after the Confederate cause was lost. In the letter to the Virginia Military Institute, he wrote, "I am as true a Confederate to-day as when I first rode from Warrenton to Manassas. I have never ceased to regret the loss of the cause; I have never sought any favors for myself; I think that the greatest calamity that has ever befallen the country is the wreck of the Confederacy." A poem printed in the biography of Payne that was found among his papers and apparently written by his hand expressed even harsher views noting that he hated the Constitution, the republic, the Freedman's Bureau, the Declaration of Independence, and of course the Yankees who he noted he had "killed a chance of" and wished he could kills some more. Such lasting hatred may not be surprising from a man who survived a Yankee gunshot to the face, a saber blow, and another gunshot to the leg and then saw his home state occupied by the boys in blue. All combined, these wounds no doubt caused him discomfort the rest of his life.

Good. The brass hilt and scabbard fittings display attractive natural aged patina. The knuckle bow has a repair. The grip is a little loose and has mild wear. The blade has moderate oxidation mainly in the front half but retains distinct etching and has mostly bright surfaces on the balance. The leather is poor, and the drag section is absent. This is a very interesting sword possibly captured from a Union officer during Payne's first major engagement and then inscribed in the post-war era to commemorate his years in service of the Confederate after he returned home deeply embittered against the Union.