Souvenirs of an empire

As a new year of auctions get under way, a treasure trove of memorabilia linked to Britain's colonial past goes under the hammer.

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Sir Francis Drake's will: yours for $1.6m

On 21 October 1805, Admiral Lord Nelson sunk to the deck of HMS Victory, mortally wounded. His body, preserved in brandy, was returned to Britain, along with his ship's flags, which were displayed at the Painted Hall in Greenwich ahead of his funeral. When the day came, the battle-scarred "Victory Jack" was to be placed on the coffin by Nelson's sailors before being lowered into the crypt at St Paul's Cathedral.

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

You can follow Chris on Instagram.