Officer's presentation sword given to Brigadier General William Henry Clinton from the British Consul and Factory in Madeira, 1802

Clinton was involved in several secret missions during the French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802) and in July 1801 commanded a covert operation to capture and occupy the island of Madeira. Clinton remained its Governor until the Peace of Amiens in 1802. His career continued and he was Governor of the Chelsea Hospital at his death in 1846.