Admiral David Beatty – Wilkinson Toby

To the Toby Jug collector, the pinnacle of any collection is owning the original set of World War I Allied Commanders Tobys created by the Wilkinson Royal Pottery in Staffordshire, England. Admiral David Beatty, Commander-in-Chief of the British Grand Fleet, is depicted sitting down, wearing the dress uniform of an Admiral of the Fleet, and holding an explosive shell inscribed “Dread Nought.” (Beatty is remembered for saying, after two of his ships exploded during the Battle of Jutland, “There seems to be something wrong with our ships today.”) Originally produced from 1915 to 1919, these Toby Jugs are considered some of the finest examples ever produced by an English ceramic company.