Late 18th century AD. An officer's sword for a member of the Order of the Garter, the gilt blade still with clear etching; the blade decorated with geometric patterns under the ricasso, followed by a foliage ornament with inscribed name 'Woolley' and the symbol of the Order of the Garter, a circle supported by two lions with the motto ‘Honi soit qui mal y pense' (Shame on him who thinks evil of it); the circle crowned by the Royal Lion, under the emblem inscription ‘Dieu et mon droit’. See Dufty, A.R., European swords and daggers in the Tower of London, London, 1974, pls.76, 92; Waterhoe, R., Child of another century, recollections of a High Court Judge, London, 2013. 790 grams, 99.5cm (39 1/4"). From the late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister; from her collection formed early 1960s-1990s. This British officer's sword (Woolley family) bears the crest of the Order of the Garter. The Most Noble Order of the Garter is still today the highest order of chivalry in England, and this sword bears the seal of that order together with the ual Royal Coat of Arms; this means the officer who once owned the sword was linked to that order and was a very important individual. The Woolley family members are well recorded for their service to the British Crown. Sir John Woolley was the Latin secretary to Queen Elizabeth I and Chancellor of the Order of the Garter. The Woolley family's service in the army continued at least until the First World War, where a certain Henry Woolley Leigh-Bennett served in the Coldstream Guards.