BY COMMAND OF His late Majesty WILLIAM THE IV^TH.
and under the Patronage of
Her Majesty the Queen.

HISTORICAL RECORDS,
OF THE
British Army
Comprising the
History of every Regiment
IN HER MAJESTY'S SERVICE.
By Richard Cannon Esq^re.
Adjutant General's Office, Horse Guards.
London.
Printed by Authority:

[Pg i]

GENERAL ORDERS.

HORSE-GUARDS,
1st January, 1836.

His Majesty has been pleased to command that, with a view of doing the fullest justice to Regiments, as well as to Individuals who have distinguished themselves by their Bravery in Action with the Enemy, an Account of the Services of every Regiment in the British Army shall be published under the superintendence and direction of the Adjutant-General; and that this Account shall contain the following particulars, viz.:—

And,

By Command of the Right Honourable

GENERAL LORD HILL,

Commanding-in-Chief.

John Macdonald,

Adjutant-General.

[iii]

PREFACE.

The character and credit of the British Army must chiefly depend upon the zeal and ardour by which all who enter into its service are animated, and consequently it is of the highest importance that any measure calculated to excite the spirit of emulation, by which alone great and gallant actions are achieved, should be adopted.

Nothing can more fully tend to the accomplishment of this desirable object than a full display of the noble deeds with which the Military History of our country abounds. To hold forth these bright examples to the imitation of the youthful soldier, and thus to incite him to emulate the meritorious conduct of those who have preceded him in their honourable career, are among the motives that have given rise to the present publication.

The operations of the British Troops are, indeed, announced in the "London Gazette," from whence they are transferred into the public prints: the achievements of our armies are thus made known at the time of their occurrence, and receive the tribute of praise and admiration to which they are entitled. On extraordinary occasions, the Houses of Parliament have been in the habit of conferring on the Commanders,[iv] and the Officers and Troops acting under their orders, expressions of approbation and of thanks for their skill and bravery; and these testimonials, confirmed by the high honour of their Sovereign's approbation, constitute the reward which the soldier most highly prizes.

It has not, however, until late years, been the practice (which appears to have long prevailed in some of the Continental armies) for British Regiments to keep regular records of their services and achievements. Hence some difficulty has been experienced in obtaining, particularly from the old Regiments, an authentic account of their origin and subsequent services.

This defect will now be remedied, in consequence of His Majesty having been pleased to command that every Regiment shall in future keep a full and ample record of its services at home and abroad.

From the materials thus collected, the country will henceforth derive information as to the difficulties and privations which chequer the career of those who embrace the military profession. In Great Britain, where so large a number of persons are devoted to the active concerns of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and where these pursuits have, for so long a period, been undisturbed by the presence of war, which few other countries have escaped, comparatively little is known of the vicissitudes of active service, and of the casualties of climate, to which, even during peace, the British Troops are exposed in every part of the globe, with little or no interval of repose.

[v]

In their tranquil enjoyment of the blessings which the country derives from the industry and the enterprise of the agriculturist and the trader, its happy inhabitants may be supposed not often to reflect on the perilous duties of the soldier and the sailor,—on their sufferings,—and on the sacrifice of valuable life, by which so many national benefits are obtained and preserved.

The conduct of the British Troops, their valour, and endurance, have shone conspicuously under great and trying difficulties; and their character has been established in Continental warfare by the irresistible spirit with which they have effected debarkations in spite of the most formidable opposition, and by the gallantry and steadiness with which they have maintained their advantages against superior numbers.

In the official Reports made by the respective Commanders, ample justice has generally been done to the gallant exertions of the Corps employed; but the details of their services, and of acts of individual bravery, can only be fully given in the Annals of the various Regiments.

These Records are now preparing for publication, under His Majesty's special authority, by Mr. Richard Cannon, Principal Clerk of the Adjutant-General's Office; and while the perusal of them cannot fail to be useful and interesting to military men of every rank, it is considered that they will also afford entertainment and information to the general reader, particularly to those who may have served in the Army, or who have relatives in the Service.

[vi]

There exists in the breasts of most of those who have served, or are serving, in the Army, an Esprit de Corps—an attachment to everything belonging to their Regiment; to such persons a narrative of the services of their own Corps cannot fail to prove interesting. Authentic accounts of the actions of the great, the valiant, the loyal, have always been of paramount interest with a brave and civilized people. Great Britain has produced a race of heroes who, in moments of danger and terror, have stood "firm as the rocks of their native shore;" and when half the World has been arrayed against them, they have fought the battles of their Country with unshaken fortitude. It is presumed that a record of achievements in war,—victories so complete and surprising, gained by our countrymen, our brothers, our fellow-citizens in arms,—a record which revives the memory of the brave, and brings their gallant deeds before us, will certainly prove acceptable to the public.

Biographical memoirs of the Colonels and other distinguished Officers will be introduced in the Records of their respective Regiments, and the Honorary Distinctions which have, from time to time, been conferred upon each Regiment, as testifying the value and importance of its services, will be faithfully set forth.

As a convenient mode of Publication, the Record of each Regiment will be printed in a distinct number, so that when the whole shall be completed, the Parts may be bound up in numerical succession.

[vii]

INTRODUCTION
TO
THE INFANTRY.

The natives of Britain have, at all periods, been celebrated for innate courage and unshaken firmness, and the national superiority of the British troops over those of other countries has been evinced in the midst of the most imminent perils. History contains so many proofs of extraordinary acts of bravery, that no doubts can be raised upon the facts which are recorded. It must therefore be admitted, that the distinguishing feature of the British soldier is Intrepidity. This quality was evinced by the inhabitants of England when their country was invaded by Julius Cæsar with a Roman army, on which occasion the undaunted Britons rushed into the sea to attack the Roman soldiers as they descended from their ships; and, although their discipline and arms were inferior to those of their adversaries, yet their fierce and dauntless bearing intimidated the flower of the Roman troops, including Cæsar's favourite tenth legion. Their arms consisted of spears, short swords, and other weapons of rude construction. They had chariots, to the[viii] axles of which were fastened sharp pieces of iron resembling scythe-blades, and infantry in long chariots resembling waggons, who alighted and fought on foot, and for change of ground, pursuit, or retreat, sprang into the chariot and drove off with the speed of cavalry. These inventions were, however, unavailing against Cæsar's legions: in the course of time a military system, with discipline and subordination, was introduced, and British courage, being thus regulated, was exerted to the greatest advantage; a full development of the national character followed, and it shone forth in all its native brilliancy.

The military force of the Anglo-Saxons consisted principally of infantry: Thanes, and other men of property, however, fought on horseback. The infantry were of two classes, heavy and light. The former carried large shields armed with spikes, long broad swords and spears; and the latter were armed with swords or spears only. They had also men armed with clubs, others with battle-axes and javelins.

The feudal troops established by William the Conqueror consisted (as already stated in the Introduction to the Cavalry) almost entirely of horse; but when the warlike barons and knights, with their trains of tenants and vassals, took the field, a proportion of men appeared on foot, and, although these were of inferior degree, they proved stout-hearted Britons of stanch fidelity. When stipendiary troops were employed, infantry always constituted a considerable portion of the military force;[ix] and this arme has since acquired, in every quarter of the globe, a celebrity never exceeded by the armies of any nation at any period.

The weapons carried by the infantry, during the several reigns succeeding the Conquest, were bows and arrows, half-pikes, lances, halberds, various kinds of battle-axes, swords, and daggers. Armour was worn on the head and body, and in course of time the practice became general for military men to be so completely cased in steel, that it was almost impossible to slay them.

The introduction of the use of gunpowder in the destructive purposes of war, in the early part of the fourteenth century, produced a change in the arms and equipment of the infantry-soldier. Bows and arrows gave place to various kinds of fire-arms, but British archers continued formidable adversaries; and owing to the inconvenient construction and imperfect bore of the fire-arms when first introduced, a body of men, well trained in the use of the bow from their youth, was considered a valuable acquisition to every army, even as late as the sixteenth century.

During a great part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth each company of infantry usually consisted of men armed five different ways; in every hundred men forty were "men-at-arms," and sixty "shot;" the "men-at-arms" were ten halberdiers, or battle-axe men, and thirty pikemen; and the "shot" were twenty archers, twenty musketeers, and twenty harquebusiers, and each man carried, besides his principal weapon, a sword and dagger.

[x]

Companies of infantry varied at this period in numbers from 150 to 300 men; each company had a colour or ensign, and the mode of formation recommended by an English military writer (Sir John Smithe) in 1590 was:—the colour in the centre of the company guarded by the halberdiers; the pikemen in equal proportions, on each flank of the halberdiers; half the musketeers on each flank of the pikes; half the archers on each flank of the musketeers; and the harquebusiers (whose arms were much lighter than the muskets then in use) in equal proportions on each flank of the company for skirmishing.[1] It was customary to unite a number of companies into one body, called a Regiment, which frequently amounted to three thousand men; but each company continued to carry a colour. Numerous improvements were eventually introduced in the construction of fire-arms, and, it having been found impossible to make armour proof against the muskets then in use (which carried a very heavy ball) without its being too weighty for the soldier, armour was gradually laid aside by the infantry in the seventeenth century: bows and arrows also fell into disuse, and the infantry were reduced to two classes, viz.: musketeers, armed with matchlock muskets,[xi] swords, and daggers; and pikemen, armed with pikes from fourteen to eighteen feet long, and swords.

In the early part of the seventeenth century Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, reduced the strength of regiments to 1000 men; he caused the gunpowder, which had heretofore been carried in flasks, or in small wooden bandoliers, each containing a charge, to be made up into cartridges, and carried in pouches; and he formed each regiment into two wings of musketeers, and a centre division of pikemen. He also adopted the practice of forming four regiments into a brigade; and the number of colours was afterwards reduced to three in each regiment. He formed his columns so compactly that his infantry could resist the charge of the celebrated Polish horsemen and Austrian cuirassiers; and his armies became the admiration of other nations. His mode of formation was copied by the English, French, and other European states; but so great was the prejudice in favour of ancient customs, that all his improvements were not adopted until near a century afterwards.

In 1664 King Charles II. raised a corps for sea-service, styled the Admiral's regiment. In 1678 each company of 100 men usually consisted of 30 pikemen, 60 musketeers, and 10 men armed with light firelocks. In this year the king added a company of men armed with hand-grenades to each of the old British regiments, which was designated the "grenadier company." Daggers were so contrived as to fit in the muzzles of the muskets, and bayonets[xii] similar to those at present in use were adopted about twenty years afterwards.

An Ordnance regiment was raised in 1685, by order of King James II., to guard the artillery, and was designated the Royal Fusiliers (now 7th Foot). This corps, and the companies of grenadiers, did not carry pikes.

King William III. incorporated the Admiral's regiment in the Second Foot Guards, and raised two Marine regiments for sea-service. During the war in this reign, each company of infantry (excepting the fusiliers and grenadiers) consisted of 14 pikemen and 46 musketeers; the captains carried pikes; lieutenants, partisans; ensigns, half-pikes; and serjeants, halberds. After the peace in 1697 the Marine regiments were disbanded, but were again formed on the breaking out of the war in 1702.[2]

During the reign of Queen Anne the pikes were laid aside, and every infantry soldier was armed with a musket, bayonet, and sword; the grenadiers ceased, about the same period, to carry hand-grenades; and the regiments were directed to lay aside their third colour: the corps of Royal Artillery was first added to the army in this reign.

About the year 1745, the men of the battalion companies of infantry ceased to carry swords;[xiii] during the reign of George II. light companies were added to infantry regiments; and in 1764 a Board of General Officers recommended that the grenadiers should lay aside their swords, as that weapon had never been used during the seven years' war. Since that period the arms of the infantry soldier have been limited to the musket and bayonet.

The arms and equipment of the British troops have seldom differed materially, since the Conquest, from those of other European states; and in some respects the arming has, at certain periods, been allowed to be inferior to that of the nations with whom they have had to contend; yet, under this disadvantage, the bravery and superiority of the British infantry have been evinced on very many and most trying occasions, and splendid victories have been gained over very superior numbers.

Great Britain has produced a race of lion-like champions who have dared to confront a host of foes, and have proved themselves valiant with any arms. At Crecy, King Edward III., at the head of about 30,000 men, defeated, on the 26th of August, 1346, Philip King of France, whose army is said to have amounted to 100,000 men; here British valour encountered veterans of renown:—the King of Bohemia, the King of Majorca, and many princes and nobles were slain, and the French army was routed and cut to pieces. Ten years afterwards, Edward Prince of Wales, who was designated the Black Prince, defeated, at Poictiers, with 14,000 men, a French army of 60,000 horse, besides infantry, and took John I., King of France, and his son[xiv] Philip, prisoners. On the 25th of October, 1415, King Henry V., with an army of about 13,000 men, although greatly exhausted by marches, privations, and sickness, defeated, at Agincourt, the Constable of France, at the head of the flower of the French nobility and an army said to amount to 60,000 men, and gained a complete victory.

During the seventy years' war between the United Provinces of the Netherlands and the Spanish monarch, which commenced in 1578 and terminated in 1648, the British infantry in the service of the States-General were celebrated for their unconquerable spirit and firmness;[3] and in the thirty years' war between the Protestant Princes and the Emperor of Germany, the British troops in the service of Sweden and other states were celebrated for deeds of heroism.[4] In the wars of Queen Anne, the fame of the British army under the great Marlborough was spread throughout the world; and if we glance at the achievements performed within the memory of persons now living, there is abundant proof that the Britons of the present age are not inferior to their ancestors in the qualities [xv]which constitute good soldiers. Witness the deeds of the brave men, of whom there are many now surviving, who fought in Egypt in 1801, under the brave Abercromby, and compelled the French army, which had been vainly styled Invincible, to evacuate that country; also the services of the gallant Troops during the arduous campaigns in the Peninsula, under the immortal Wellington; and the determined stand made by the British Army at Waterloo, where Napoleon Bonaparte, who had long been the inveterate enemy of Great Britain, and had sought and planned her destruction by every means he could devise, was compelled to leave his vanquished legions to their fate, and to place himself at the disposal of the British Government. These achievements, with others of recent dates in the distant climes of India, prove that the same valour and constancy which glowed in the breasts of the heroes of Crecy, Poictiers, Agincourt, Blenheim, and Ramilies, continue to animate the Britons of the nineteenth century.

The British Soldier is distinguished for a robust and muscular frame,—intrepidity which no danger can appal,—unconquerable spirit and resolution,—patience in fatigue and privation, and cheerful obedience to his superiors. These qualities, united with an excellent system of order and discipline to regulate and give a skilful direction to the energies and adventurous spirit of the hero, and a wise selection of officers of superior talent to command, whose presence inspires confidence,—have been the leading causes of the splendid victories gained by the[xvi] British arms.[5] The fame of the deeds of the past and present generations in the various battle-fields where the robust sons of Albion have fought and conquered, surrounds the British arms with an halo of glory; these achievements will live in the page of history to the end of time.

The records of the several regiments will be found to contain a detail of facts of an interesting character, connected with the hardships, sufferings, and gallant exploits of British soldiers in the various parts of the world where the calls of their Country and the commands of their Sovereign have required them to proceed in the execution of their[xvii] duty, whether in active continental operations, or in maintaining colonial territories in distant and unfavourable climes.

The superiority of the British infantry has been pre-eminently set forth in the wars of six centuries, and admitted by the greatest commanders which Europe has produced. The formations and movements of this arme, as at present practised, while they are adapted to every species of warfare, and to all probable situations and circumstances of service, are calculated to show forth the brilliancy of military tactics calculated upon mathematical and scientific principles. Although the movements and evolutions have been copied from the continental armies, yet various improvements have from time to time been introduced, to ensure that simplicity and celerity by which the superiority of the national military character is maintained. The rank and influence which Great Britain has attained among the nations of the world have in a great measure been purchased by the valour of the Army, and to persons who have the welfare of their country at heart, the records of the several regiments cannot fail to prove interesting.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] A company of 200 men would appear thus:—

20	20	20	30	20	30	20	20	20
Harquebuses.		Muskets.		Halberds.		Muskets.		Harquebuses.
	Archers.		Pikes.		Pikes.		Archers.

The musket carried a ball which weighed ¹/₁₀ of a pound; and the harquebus a ball which weighed ¹/₂₅ of a pound.

[2] The 30th, 31st, and 32nd Regiments were formed as Marine corps in 1702, and were employed as such during the wars in the reign of Queen Anne. The Marine corps were embarked in the Fleet under Admiral Sir George Rooke, and were at the taking of Gibraltar, and in its subsequent defence in 1704; they were afterwards employed at the siege of Barcelona in 1705.

[3] The brave Sir Roger Williams, in his Discourse on War, printed in 1590, observes:—"I persuade myself ten thousand of our nation would beat thirty thousand of theirs (the Spaniards) out of the field, let them be chosen where they list." Yet at this time the Spanish infantry was allowed to be the best disciplined in Europe. For instances of valour displayed by the British Infantry during the Seventy Years' War, see the Historical Record of the Third Foot or Buffs.

[4] Vide the Historical Record of the First, or Royal Regiment of Foot.

[5] "Under the blessing of Divine Providence, His Majesty ascribes the successes which have attended the exertions of his troops in Egypt to that determined bravery which is inherent in Britons; but His Majesty desires it may be most solemnly and forcibly impressed on the consideration of every part of the army, that it has been a strict observance of order, discipline, and military system, which has given the full energy to the native valour of the troops, and has enabled them proudly to assert the superiority of the national military character, in situations uncommonly arduous, and under circumstances of peculiar difficulty."—General Orders in 1801.

In the General Orders issued by Lieut.-General Sir John Hope (afterwards Lord Hopetoun), congratulating the army upon the successful result of the Battle of Corunna, on the 16th of January, 1809, it is stated:—"On no occasion has the undaunted valour of British troops ever been more manifest. At the termination of a severe and harassing march, rendered necessary by the superiority which the enemy had acquired, and which had materially impaired the efficiency of the troops, many disadvantages were to be encountered. These have all been surmounted by the conduct of the troops themselves; and the enemy has been taught, that whatever advantages of position or of numbers he may possess, there is inherent in the British officers and soldiers a bravery that knows not how to yield,—that no circumstances can appal,—and that will ensure victory when it is to be obtained by the exertion of any human means."

HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SEVENTH REGIMENT,
OR
THE ROYAL FUSILIERS:

CONTAINING

AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT
IN 1685,

AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES
TO 1846.

COMPILED BY

RICHARD CANNON, Esq.,

ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, HORSE-GUARDS.

ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES.

LONDON:

PARKER, FURNIVALL, & PARKER,

30 CHARING CROSS.

MDCCCXLVII.

London: Printed by W. Clowes and Sons, Duke Street, Stamford Street,
For Her Majesty's Stationery Office.

THE SEVENTH REGIMENT,

OR

THE ROYAL FUSILIERS,

BEARS IN THE CENTRE OF ITS REGIMENTAL COLOUR,
THE ROSE WITHIN THE GARTER AND THE CROWN OVER IT;
AND IN THE CORNER THE WHITE HORSE;

ALSO THE WORD

"MARTINIQUE,"

FOR ITS GALLANT CONDUCT AT THE CAPTURE OF THAT ISLAND IN 1809;

AND THE WORDS

"TALAVERA," "ALBUHERA," "BADAJOZ,"
"SALAMANCA," "VITTORIA," "PYRENEES," "ORTHES,"
"TOULOUSE," "PENINSULA,"

TO COMMEMORATE ITS DISTINGUISHED SERVICES IN THE
PENINSULA AND SOUTH OF FRANCE
FROM 1809 TO 1814.

[xxiii]

CONTENTS.

[xxviii]

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS.

PLATES.

[Pg 1]

HISTORICAL RECORD

OF

THE SEVENTH REGIMENT,

OR

THE ROYAL FUSILIERS.

The invention of gunpowder was speedily followed by the introduction of cannon; but many years elapsed before a corps of artillery was added to the army. The guns were fired by men hired for the purpose, under the direction of a master-gunner, and an officer styled the Master of the Ordnance, and the whole were under the orders of the Master-general of the Ordnance. Non-commissioned officers and private soldiers of infantry regiments were frequently employed as gunners; and the care and protection of the guns were confided to particular corps. On the augmentation of the army during the rebellion of James Duke of Monmouth, in the summer of 1685, King James II. resolved, that the first infantry corps raised on that occasion should be an Ordnance Regiment, for the care and protection of the cannon; of which corps His Majesty appointed George Lord Dartmouth, then Master-general of the Ordnance, colonel, by commission dated the 11th of June, 1685.

[2]

The regular regiments of foot were composed, at this period, of Musketeers,—men armed with muskets and swords; Pikemen,—armed with long pikes and swords; and Grenadiers,—armed with hand-grenades, muskets, bayonets, swords, and small hatchets; but in the Ordnance Regiment every man carried a long musket called a fusil, with a sword and bayonet, from which peculiarity in the arming, the regiment obtained the designation of "Fusiliers;" and the King being desirous of appearing publicly to patronize this new corps, conferred upon it the title of "Royal Fusiliers."[6]

Regiments of infantry had, originally, a colour to each company, which was called an ensign, and was carried by the junior subaltern officer of each company, who was styled "ancient," and afterwards "ensign," which term signified "colour-bearer." The regiments of fusiliers did not have colours or ensigns to each company, consequently the title of ensign or colour-bearer was not given to the junior subaltern officer of each company; but having, in consequence of the peculiar services they were called upon to perform, a care and responsibility equal to that of a lieutenant, both the subaltern officers of each company were styled lieutenants. They were both placed on the same rate of pay; but the terms first lieutenant and second lieutenant were used in their commissions for several years, and afterwards discontinued.

The regiment consisted of thirteen companies,—twelve[3] of fusiliers and one of miners; each company consisting of three officers, three serjeants, three corporals, two drummers, and one hundred private men. The two first companies were of very old date; having been independent companies in the Tower of London many years; the other ten companies were raised in London and its vicinity by George Lord Dartmouth,[7] Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Talmash or Tollemache, afterwards colonel of the fifth foot and second foot guards; Richard Fowler, Major Beckman, Henry Cornwall, Sir John Morgan, John Boyce, Thomas Whalley, Charles Fitzwilliams, and Henry Vaughan; and the company of[4] miners by Captain James Adams. Thomas Talmash was appointed to the lieutenant-colonelcy; and Robert St. Clair, who commanded one of the old independent companies, obtained the commission of major. The uniform was scarlet coats, lined with yellow; grey breeches and grey stockings; and the men wore yellow cloth caps, ornamented with military devices similar to those afterwards adopted for grenadiers; the other regiments of foot wore round hats with broad brims turned up on one side.

The regiment was speedily raised, and on the 4th of July the several companies were directed to proceed to the Tower of London, and perform the duties of that fortress. The rebellion being soon afterwards suppressed, and the Duke of Monmouth beheaded, the regiment was reduced to eleven companies of fusiliers, of three officers, three serjeants, three corporals, two drummers, and fifty private soldiers each; and one company of miners, of two officers, one serjeant, two corporals, one drummer, and forty miners.

After the suppression of the rebellion, King James formed a camp on Hounslow-heath; where the Scots brigade in the service of Holland, and a numerous body of English cavalry and infantry, were assembled, and the Royal Fusiliers proceeded to the camp in charge of the train of artillery. When the camp was broken up, the regiment returned with the guns to the Tower of London, from whence three companies were detached to Sheerness, where they were directed to remain in garrison.[8]

[5]

During the summer of 1686 the Royal Fusiliers were again encamped in charge of the train of artillery on Hounslow-heath. The corps assembled on the heath consisted of three troops of life guards, nine regiments of cuirassiers, three of dragoons, and thirteen battalions of foot. In a description of the camp, written at the time, and published in the Antiquarian Repertory, it is stated:—"The horse, foot, and dragoons are encamped in a straight line; the intervals between the foot is seventy paces, the intervals between each regiment of horse about fifty paces, and the interval between the horse on the left and the dragoons (because of the ground) is near half mile. The lieutenants' and ensigns' tents are in the rear of the respective companies in a direct line, seventeen paces from the soldiers' huts or tents; the captains' tents twelve paces behind the lieutenants'; the colonels' tents behind the captains', ten paces; the lieutenant-colonel on the right of the colonel, and the major on the left in a direct line. The brigadier-generals have their tents twenty paces behind the colonels'. The King's tent and chappel is in the rear of the left of the horse on the left, and the general officers' tents behind the[6] King's. The Fusiliers are encamped in the rear of the line, a good distance behind the interval between the Earl of Craven's regiment and the Scots guards; and in several parties about the horse carriages. The guns are planted about a hundred paces before the line, before the interval between the Scots guards and Prince George's regiment, guarded by a party of Fusiliers; each gun having two gunners and a matrosse to attend it. The suttling booths are about two hundred paces in the rear of the line."

In August the Royal Fusiliers struck their tents, and, returning to the Tower with the guns, were stationed at that fortress during the remainder of the year.

The establishment was again augmented to thirteen companies in the spring of 1687, as appears by the following warrant:—

"JAMES R.

"Whereas we have thought fit to add one company more to Our Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, and to apply the pay of one of the non-regimented companies mentioned in Our establishment to the entertainment of the said company of Fusiliers, with the addition of one shilling per diem to the youngest lieutenant, and one shilling and sixpence for the pay of one serjeant, and one shilling for one drummer more, Our will and pleasure is, that you include the pay of the said company, and additional allowances, within the certificates or debentures you shall from time to time make out for the pay of Our said Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, to commence from the 1st of January last; and for so doing this shall be your sufficient warrant.

[7]

"Given at Our Court at Whitehall this 12th day of March, 1686-7, in the third year of Our reign.

"By His Majesty's Command.

"To the Paymaster-General,
&c.    &c.    &c."

In the summer of 1687 and 1688, the Royal Fusiliers were again encamped on Hounslow-heath. On the 1st of September, 1688, an augmentation of ten men per company was made to the establishment, which consisted, at this period, of eleven companies of fusiliers, one of grenadiers, and one of miners.

The King having manifested a determination to establish papacy and arbitrary government, many noblemen and gentlemen solicited the aid of William Henry Prince of Orange to enable them to oppose the proceedings of the court. On the receipt of information of warlike preparations in Holland, a strong detachment of the Royal Fusiliers embarked on board of men-of-war, to serve as marines, and sailed to the Nore. The fleet was commanded by their colonel, Admiral Lord Dartmouth, whose loyalty to King James II. was not doubted; but the rear-admiral, Sir John Barry, and many of the captains, inferior officers, and seamen, entertained sentiments favourable to the Prince of Orange; no collision, however, took place. While the English fleet was wind-bound at the mouth of the Thames, the Dutch armament passed along the British Channel with little molestation; the wind becoming more favourable, the English navy put to sea; but the Prince of Orange was so far in advance, that he landed on the Devonshire coast, on the[8] 5th of November, without interruption; and the wind changed immediately afterwards, and blew with such violence, that the English fleet was driven into Portsmouth harbour in a damaged condition. The sentiments entertained in the navy were also prevalent in the army; the troops refused to fight in the cause of Papacy and arbitrary government, and King James fled to France. The Royal Fusiliers landed and were ordered by the Prince of Orange to occupy quarters at Barnet.

From this period the Royal Fusiliers ceased to be considered exclusively as an Ordnance Regiment, and took their turn of duty with the regular regiments of the line: the regiment was not, however, furnished with a division of pikemen; but every man continued to be armed with a fusil.

Six companies were removed from Barnet to Yarmouth, where they took part, in February, 1689, in the proclamation of the accession of King William III. and Queen Mary to the throne. Shortly afterwards the regiment embarked for Holland, forming part of the force under Lieutenant-General the Earl of Marlborough, sent to assist the Dutch in their war with France in the place of the troops which the Prince of Orange had brought with him to England.

The Royal Fusiliers joined the Dutch army at Tongres, and served the campaign of this year under Prince Waldeck. On the 25th of August a piquet under Colonel Hodges was attacked by the French forces under Marshal de Humières near Walcourt, and a sharp action ensued, in which the English infantry evinced firmness and intrepidity. The French were defeated with the loss of two thousand men killed and wounded; and King William, writing to the Earl of Marlborough[9] on this subject, observed,—"I am very happy that my troops behaved so well at Walcourt. It is to you that this advantage is principally owing."[9] In a few days after this event King William conferred the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers, which had been vacant some time, in consequence of the removal of Lord Dartmouth for adhering to the interests of King James, on the Earl of Marlborough, who held also the colonelcy of the third troop of life guards.

Before the following campaign the regiment returned to England, where it was stationed while King William was in Ireland, endeavouring to rescue that country from the power of King James, who had proceeded thither with a body of troops from France.

King William having defeated the Irish forces and their French allies at the Boyne, besieged Limerick. "During the time His Majesty was before the town, it was proposed by the Earl of Nottingham to My Lord Marlborough, and afterwards approved of in council, as very advantageous to their Majesties' affairs, to send a party from England, who, joining with a detachment from the King's army, might reduce the two important garrisons of Cork and Kinsale, and arrangements were made accordingly; but not being ready so soon as was designed, His Majesty, upon his return to England, sent the Earl of Marlborough, with his own regiment of Fusiliers, Brigadier Trelawny's (now fourth), Princess Anne's (eight), Colonel Hastings' (thirteenth), Colonel Hales', Sir David Collier's, Colonel Fitzpatrick's, one hundred of the Duke of Bolton's, two hundred of Monmouth's under Major Johnston, with Lord Torrington's[10] and Lord Pembroke's marine regiments, to undertake this service."[10] Arriving at Cork roads on the 21st of September, the fleet entered the harbour on the following day, and the co-operation of part of the army on shore having been secured, the Royal Fusiliers and other corps landed and commenced the siege. A breach having been made, the Royal Fusiliers and three other English regiments, commanded by Brigadier-General Churchill, and a body of Danes, passed the river wading up to the arm-pits to the east marsh, in order to storm the wall on that side. The grenadiers led the attack; but before they gained the breach, the Irish hung out a white flag, and agreed to surrender; the garrison, consisting of six regiments, became prisoners of war.

From Cork the Royal Fusiliers advanced towards Kinsale; the garrison vacated the town and retired to two strong forts. One of these forts was speedily reduced; the other held out until the middle of October, when the garrison surrendered on the condition of being permitted to proceed to Limerick.

The Royal Fusiliers were afterwards placed in garrison at Kinsale, where they remained three months.

The loss of the battle of Fleurus on the 21st of June, 1690, by the Dutch troops under Prince Waldeck, gave the French the ascendancy over the confederates in Flanders; and the Royal Fusiliers were selected to augment the forces in that country, where His Majesty resolved to command in person. The regiment embarked from Cork in January 1691, and sailing for Flanders experienced very severe weather at sea, and[11] two vessels, having on board part of the Fusiliers, were wrecked on the English coast, and many men perished. The remainder of the regiment landed at Ostend and went into quarters in West Flanders, where it was joined by a fine body of recruits and by a number of men who had been left sick at Kinsale.

When the army took the field, the Royal Fusiliers were formed in brigade with the regiments of Bath (tenth), Hodges (sixteenth), and Fitzpatrick (afterwards disbanded), commanded by Brigadier-General Churchill, and served the campaign of this year with the main army commanded by King William; but no general engagement occurred. The regiment passed the winter in cantonments among the Belgic peasantry.

The Earl of Marlborough, having fallen under the displeasure of King William, was removed from his commands, and was succeeded in the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers by Lord George Hamilton by commission dated the 23rd of January, 1692.

On the army taking the field, the regiment was again placed in the brigade commanded by Brigadier-General Churchill, and it served at the battle of Steenkirk on the 24th of July, 1692. On this occasion the leading column attacked the French forces commanded by Marshal Luxemburg with signal gallantry and success; but owing to the thick woods, with narrow and difficult defiles, which the army had to pass, together with the tardiness of Count Solms in obeying His Majesty's commands, some delay occurred. The Royal Fusiliers and a few other corps hastened through the defiles, and formed line at the skirts of the wood, where they were exposed to a heavy cannonade, and lost several men. In consequence of the delay which had occurred, the King ordered a[12] retreat, and the French did not venture to attack the army in its retrograde movement.

Sir Robert Douglas having been killed in the act of rescuing the colours of the first battalion of the Royals from the enemy, was succeeded in the colonelcy of that regiment by Lord George Hamilton; and the command of the Royal Fusiliers was conferred on Colonel Edward Fitzpatrick, from a newly-raised regiment, which had been disbanded.

On the 22nd of August the regiment was detached from the main army, with several other corps, under Lieutenant-General Talmash, to Furnes, where the troops encamped until the fortifications were put in a state of defence; the Royal Fusiliers afterwards proceeded to Dixmude, and were employed in repairing the works;[11] and after the completion of this service, they marched into quarters at Ghent, where they passed the winter.

[13]

Leaving Ghent in May, 1693, the regiment was in line at the celebrated position of Parck camp, where it was formed in brigade with the Royals (first), Queen Dowager's (second), Prince George of Denmark's (third), and the Queen's (fourth) regiments under Brigadier-General Churchill. After several movements the army was posted near the village of Landen, where it was attacked on the 19th of July by a French army of very superior numbers under Marshal Luxemburg.

The Royal Fusiliers were posted near the right of the confederate army, where a slight entrenchment had been made during the preceding night. As the first rays of morning light appeared in the horizon, waving masses of glittering arms, traversing the undulating grounds in front, gave indication of an approaching enemy, when the artillery opened a heavy fire, and the battle began. For some time the Fusiliers were spectators of the action, while much fighting took place at the villages of Laér, Neer-Winden, Neer-Landen, and the fortune of the day was everywhere in favour of the confederates; but eventually the position was forced at the village of Neer-Winden, and the Hanoverian Cavalry were broken. Heavy columns of pikemen and musketeers, consisting of the French brigades of Vermandois, Nice, Roussillon, and Sare, flanked by dragoons, and preceded by a cloud of grenadiers, approached the ground where the Royal Fusiliers were posted. Colonel Fitzpatrick was at the head of the regiment, and directed the men to reserve their fire until the near approach of their opponents. As the French soldiers sprang forward with their characteristic energy, and threw a shower of hand-grenades over the breast-work, a well-directed volley from the Fusiliers rent chasms in the French[14] ranks; but the survivors, being supported by an immense superiority of numbers, and urged forward by Marshal Villeroy, renewed the attack; while the marshal led a chosen body of men to the charge, and forced the right of the entrenchment. The Royal Fusiliers, and other corps at this part of the field, were attacked in front and flank, and a sanguinary conflict ensued. Colonel Fitzpatrick was carried from the field wounded, yet the Fusiliers stood their ground; ranks of opponents ascended the breast-work, and were speedily cut down or forced back. At length the British battalions were overpowered and driven from their ground. Stung with resentment at this disaster, they speedily rallied, and, rushing sword in hand upon their opponents, they once more regained the lost ground. A momentary pause ensued; but soon a fresh body of opponents renewed the fight, and the British regiments were again overpowered by superior numbers. The Fusiliers evinced the stern valour of British soldiers; their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Whalley, fell mortally wounded; Major Wilson was removed bleeding to the rear; yet they disputed the ground with sanguinary tenacity until all chance of ultimate success had passed away, when they withdrew from the field, and joining a large body of infantry under Lieutenant-General Talmash, retired by the brook Beck upon Dormal, and thence to Lewe. The enemy attempted to interrupt the retreat; but the British battalions facing about to confront their pursuers, the French halted, and the retrograde movement of this body of men was performed with trifling loss; the remainder of the army had, however, to pass the river Gheet by a narrow bridge, and the defiles becoming choked with gun-carriages, the rear was severely[15] handled by the French, and the King narrowly escaped being taken prisoner.

The loss of the regiment on this occasion was very severe: among the killed were Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Whalley, an officer of distinguished merit, who raised one of the companies of the regiment at its formation in 1685, and Lieutenants Fairbrother, Cooper, and Blackmore; Captain Ruthwin died of his wounds: among the wounded were Colonel Edward Fitzpatrick, Major Wilson, Captains Harte, Betsworth, and Withers, and Lieutenant Fletcher; the loss in non-commissioned officers and private soldiers was very great; but the exact number has not been ascertained.

The regiment was employed in the movements of the main army until the end of the campaign, when it returned to Ghent, where it was stationed during the winter, together with three battalions of foot-guards, and the Queen Dowager's regiment of foot.

In the spring of 1694 a numerous body of recruits from England replaced the losses of the preceding campaign, and when the regiment took the field, it was reviewed by King William, and complimented on its martial appearance, and the steadiness with which it performed the simple manœuvres practised at that period. It served in the brigade under the orders of Brigadier-General Erle, and performed many long and toilsome marches in Flanders and Brabant; but no general engagement occurred, and it passed another winter in barracks at Ghent.

When the season for taking the field, in the spring of 1695, arrived, the British monarch appeared at the head of a splendid army of British, Spaniards, Dutch, and Germans; in the preceding years His Majesty had been[16] satisfied with arresting the progress of the French arms; but in 1695 he resolved to wrest the strong and important fortress of Namur from the power of Louis XIV. Colonel Fitzpatrick, having been eighteen months in England to recover of his wounds, rejoined the army on the 19th of June, and was placed at the head of a brigade, of which his own regiment of Fusiliers formed part. King William attacked Fort Kenoyne, and having drawn the French forces to the Flanders side of their line of entrenchments, he invested Namur. The Royal Fusiliers were detached from the army at Wonterghem to take part in the siege, and pitched their tents at Templeaux, a post about five miles from the town. On the 6th of July they were on duty in the trenches; on the 8th they marched into the lines of circumvallation, and in the evening of the same day a detachment was engaged in a successful attack on the covered way upon the hill of Bouge. The attack was made about seven in the evening; and such were the spirit and energy with which the British soldiers rushed upon their opponents, that the palisades were speedily broken down,—the covered way carried,—the French overpowered and chased among the works, many of them throwing themselves into stone pits to escape the fury of their assailants.

This success stimulated the soldiers to fresh exertions, and on the 17th of July, when the Royal Fusiliers were directed to take part in the storming of the counterscarp, they engaged in this service with a cheerful alacrity, which proved the ardour which glowed in every breast. The grenadiers led the assault, and, rushing to the glacis, cast their grenades over the palisades into the covered way. Following up this attack with spirit, the French were overpowered, the counterscarp was carried in gallant style,[17] and the Royal Fusiliers were thanked by King William for their distinguished bravery. They had Lieutenant Dancy killed and Captain Negus wounded; also a number of private men killed and wounded. The siege was prosecuted with vigour, and with such success that before the end of July the town was delivered up, Marshal Boufflers retiring with the garrison into the castle.

One hundred and thirty-six pieces of cannon and fifty mortars opened their fire on the castle of Namur on the 11th of August, and being continued without intermission, breaches were made in the Terra Nova and Cohorne, and on the night of the 20th of August, a detachment of the Royal Fusiliers was engaged under Lord Cutts in the attack of the counterscarp and breach of Terra Nova, and had several men killed and Captain Groves, Lieutenant Rainsford, and a number of men wounded. The fire of the artillery was continued, and preparations were made for another assault; but the further effusion of blood was prevented by the surrender of the place. After the repair of the works, the King, being satisfied with the capture of so important a place, dismissed the army to its winter quarters, and the Fusiliers returned to their usual station at Ghent.

During the following winter a conspiracy was formed in England for the assassination of King William: at the same time an insurrection was organised, and a French army was assembled near the coast to aid in the replacing of King James on the throne. A body of troops was immediately ordered to return from Flanders; and the Royal Fusiliers embarked at Sas van Ghent, sailed from thence to Flushing, where the transports were placed under the convoy of Dutch men-of-war, and, afterwards[18] resuming the voyage, arrived at Gravesend in March, 1696. The plot had, however, been discovered, the conspirators arrested, and the British fleet was manned and sent to sea; the French monarch's designs were thus frustrated, and the Fusiliers returned to Flanders without landing in England.

During the campaign of 1696 the regiment served with the Brabant army commanded by King William; but no fighting took place. In the beginning of September it joined the army of Flanders under the Prince of Vaudemont, and, encamping near the village of St. Michael, was employed in constructing works for the protection of Bruges. In October it marched to Ghent.

In November, 1696, Brigadier-General Sir Charles O'Hara was appointed colonel of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, in succession to Brigadier-General Fitzpatrick, drowned.

Leaving Ghent on the 13th of March, 1697, the regiment proceeded into village quarters between Brussels and Malines. Two companies were detached to form part of the garrison of Oudenarde, and the remainder subsequently encamped behind the forest of Soignies, where the men suffered much from wet weather and from the want of their clothing, which was due, but had not arrived from England.

The Royal Fusiliers took part in the operations of this campaign. In September a treaty of peace was signed at Ryswick, and during the winter the regiment returned to England; at the same time its numbers were reduced to a peace establishment.

In August, 1698, the regiment proceeded to Jersey and Guernsey, to relieve a corps of marines which was ordered to be disbanded.

[19]

The regiment remained in Jersey and Guernsey until 1702, when the accession of Philip Duke of Anjou (grandson of Louis XIV.) to the throne of Spain, to the prejudice of the House of Austria, had involved Europe in another war. This violation of existing treaties was followed by the Courts of France and Spain acknowledging the Pretender as King of Great Britain. Queen Anne declared war against France and Spain, and in the summer of 1702 three companies of the Royal Fusiliers were called from Jersey and Guernsey to take part in an expedition, under the Duke of Ormond, against the city of Cadiz; their colonel, Major-General Sir Charles O'Hara, was also employed in this enterprise. The fleet arrived off the coast of Andalusia in Spain, and a landing was effected in the middle of August, within a short distance from Cadiz. The wind being high, about thirty boats crowded with soldiers were overturned by the surge, and above twenty men of the Royal Fusiliers were drowned. The towns of Rota, and Port St. Mary's with Fort St. Catherine, were captured; but the fortress of Cadiz was found too strong, and the garrison too numerous to be reduced by the small expedition sent against it. The wealthy and flourishing town of Port St. Mary's was found deserted by the inhabitants, the houses well furnished, and much valuable merchandise in the warehouses. Strict discipline not being preserved, the town was plundered, and a great quantity of property was removed on board the fleet. Several officers were charged with participating in the plunder, and Sir Charles O'Hara was implicated and brought to trial, but was acquitted. The capture of Cadiz being found impracticable, the troops re-embarked, and sailed for England; but while at sea, information was received of the arrival of a valuable[20] Spanish fleet under a French convoy, at the harbour of Vigo, and the expedition immediately proceeded thither. A landing was effected on the south side of the river, above Vigo; a strong fort and a battery were captured; the British fleet forced an entrance, and the French and Spanish shipping were all captured or destroyed. The fleet afterwards returned to England; and the Duke of Ormond received the thanks of parliament for his success in this enterprize. The three companies of the Fusiliers were landed and placed in garrison at Tilbury, excepting fifty men, who were sent to the West Indies to complete Brigadier-General Gustavus Hamilton's regiment.

The war being continued, the Royal Fusiliers were employed during the summer of 1703 as marines on board the fleet: they afterwards landed, and were placed in garrison at Portsmouth, from whence a detachment was sent to the Isle of Wight in August, 1704. In 1705 the regiment was stationed at Plymouth.

In the meantime several regiments had been sent to Portugal; an armament under the Earl of Peterborough had captured Barcelona, and Catalonia and Valencia had declared in favour of Archduke Charles of Austria, who was acknowledged as sovereign of Spain by Great Britain, Holland, &c. The house of Bourbon assembled a well-appointed army and a powerful fleet to retake Barcelona, which was besieged by King Philip in April, 1706. King Charles remained in the city, that his presence might inspire confidence in the garrison, which was weak and ill provided with the means of defence. Succours were sent from England, and the Royal Fusiliers were embarked for this service. On the approach of the British squadron the French fleet retired. The Royal Fusiliers landed[21] at Barcelona on the 8th of May, and immediately marched to the breach to repel an expected attack by storm, which did not, however, take place. The arrival of the British fleet with reinforcements decided the fate of the town; and the army of King Philip raised the siege and retired, leaving its battering train and magazines behind.

From Barcelona the Royal Fusiliers marched a distance of forty-seven miles, to Gironne, a fortified town of Catalonia, situated at the base of a steep mountain, with the river Tar running through the town. Here the regiment passed in comfortable quarters among the Spaniards the remainder of the year 1706 and the early part of 1707. Provisions and wine were abundant, and the regiment was preserved in a state of efficiency.

While the Royal Fusiliers were at Gironne, the allied British, Portuguese, and Dutch army, was overpowered on the plains of Almanza on the 25th of April, 1707. Soon after this disaster the Royal Fusiliers traversed the country from Gironne to Lerida (anciently called Ilerda), a place celebrated in history for the beauty of its situation, the fertility of the adjacent country, and for having been the capital of the country of the Ilergetes long before the first invasion of Spain by the Romans. At this pleasant city, situated on the declivity of a hill on the west bank of the Segra, the Royal Fusiliers remained a short time, expecting the approach of the victorious French and Spanish forces. The officers and soldiers could view the ground where Scipio defeated Hanno, the Carthaginian general, and where Julius Cæsar conquered the lieutenants of Pompey; but no hope of victory could be entertained by the Royal Fusiliers in the approaching contest, the disparity of numbers being too great.

[22]

The garrison of Lerida consisted of the Royal Fusiliers, Wills's marines (now thirtieth regiment), with one Portuguese and two Dutch battalions, commanded by Prince Henry of Hesse d'Armstadt and Major-General Wills. A powerful French and Spanish army under His Royal Highness the Duke of Orleans and the Duke of Berwick invested the town on the 10th of September, and, having effected a breach, gave a general assault on the 12th of October. The garrison defended its post with admirable courage and resolution, and the firmness and steady valour of the Royal Fusiliers were conspicuous. The enemy having made a lodgment, the garrison vacated the town, and retired to the castle at the top of the hill, where a vigorous defence was continued until the water and provisions were expended, when the fortress was surrendered on honourable terms. The garrison marched, out on the 12th of November with colours flying, taking with them all their baggage and two pieces of cannon, and proceeded to join the army under the Earl of Galway.

The Royal Fusiliers, having sustained considerable loss in the defence of Lerida, returned to England in the spring of 1708 to recruit, and their colonel, Major-General Sir Charles O'Hara, was advanced to the peerage by the title of Baron Tyrawley.

During the winter of 1708 and spring of 1709 the regiment occupied extensive cantonments in Devonshire and Somersetshire, and its ranks were rapidly recruited.

This year Lieut.-General Stanhope formed the design of surprising Cadiz, and concerted measures with Admiral Sir George Byng, on board of whose squadron he embarked from Port Mahon with two regiments of foot, and sailed to Gibraltar to await the arrival of a body of troops from England. The Royal Fusiliers were selected to[23] take part in this enterprise, and they embarked at Portsmouth on board of the squadron commanded by Rear-Admiral Baker; but the fleet was detained so long by contrary winds, that it did not reach Portugal until October, when the season was too far advanced for prosecuting this adventure, and the regiment sailed to Barcelona.

The island of Minorca having been captured in 1708, the Royal Fusiliers were selected to form part of the garrison of that important place during the remainder of the war, which was terminated in 1713 by the Treaty of Utrecht. By this treaty Minorca was ceded to Great Britain, and the regiment was one of the corps destined to remain on the island.

On the 29th of January, 1713, the colonelcy was conferred on the Honourable James O'Hara, in succession to his father, James Lord Tyrawley.

The Royal Fusiliers remained at Minorca until the spring of 1719, when they were relieved, and arrived at Plymouth in May of that year; in July they proceeded to Ireland, where they continued until 1727.

In 1727, when the Spaniards besieged Gibraltar, the regiment was ordered to return to England, and it was subsequently held in readiness to join the Dutch in their war with Austria; but no embarkation took place.

The regiment remained in Great Britain until 1734, when it proceeded to Gibraltar.

Lord Tyrawley having been removed to the fifth horse (now fourth dragoon guards) in August, 1739, his lordship was succeeded in the colonelcy by Major-General William Hargrave, from the ninth foot.

Leaving Gibraltar in 1749, the regiment proceeded to Ireland, where it was stationed six years.

[24]

In the royal warrant dated 1st July, 1751, the Royal Fusiliers are authorized to bear the following distinctions. "In the centre of their colours, the Rose within the Garter, and the Crown over it; the White Horse in the corners of the second colour. On the grenadier caps the Rose within the Garter, and Crown as in the colours. White Horse and motto over it, Nec aspera terrent. The same device of the Rose within the Garter, and Crown on their drums and bells of arms, with the rank of the regiment underneath."

On the decease of General Hargrave in January, 1751, the command of the Royal Fusiliers was conferred on Colonel John Mostyn, who was removed, in August, 1754, to the thirteenth dragoons, and was succeeded by Colonel Lord Robert Bertie.

In the spring of 1755 the regiment embarked from Dublin, and, having landed at Liverpool, occupied quarters in England until the breaking out of the Seven Years' War, when it was embarked on board the fleet commanded by Admiral Byng, in March, 1756, to serve as marines, and sent to the Mediterranean to endeavour to preserve Minorca from the power of the French. It served at the engagement with the French fleet off Minorca on the 20th of May; but the enemy had previously landed an army, and captured the whole island excepting Fort St. Philip, and the relief of this fort was not attempted. The admiral was afterwards brought to trial and shot.

The Royal Fusiliers landed at Gibraltar, and were stationed at that fortress during the remainder of the war. In 1763 they embarked for England; in 1765 they proceeded to Scotland; but returned to England in the spring of 1770, and in April, 1773, they embarked for Canada.

Private Bn. Coy., 1742.

[25]

After performing garrison duty at Quebec several months, the regiment embarked for Montreal, and occupied several posts in Lower Canada.

While the Royal Fusiliers were in Lower Canada, the misunderstanding between Great Britain and her North American colonies, on the subject of taxes, attained a crisis; thirteen states united against the mother-country, and, hostilities having commenced, the Congress resolved to attempt the conquest of Canada. The only regular forces in Lower Canada, at this period, were the Seventh and twenty-sixth regiments, and their number being weak, they were unequal to the defence of this extensive province against the very superior numbers of the enemy: the eighth foot were in upper Canada.

In May, 1775, a body of Americans surprised and captured the posts of Ticonderoga and Crown-point; and this success was followed by the advance of two divisions of the American army at different points. The British governor, Lieut.-General Carlton, sent the Royal Fusiliers and twenty-sixth from Montreal to St. John's, where they were employed in constructing two redoubts.

In the autumn one division of the American army, under Colonel Montgomery (a native of Ireland, who had quitted the British service a short time before, and settled at New York), besieged St. John's. The garrison, consisting of five hundred and fifty men of the Seventh and twenty-sixth, and a few Canadian volunteers, commanded by Major Charles Preston of the twenty-sixth, had but a small supply of ammunition and provision, and the works were in an imperfect state, yet a most gallant resistance was made.

The American commander turned the siege into a blockade, and invested Fort Chambly, where Major the[26] Honourable Joseph Stopford of the Royal Fusiliers, and about eighty men, were in garrison. This post kept up the communication between St. John's and Montreal; but the works were not in a good condition; the place was not deemed capable of resisting artillery, and no effectual resistance could, consequently, be made against the very superior numbers of the enemy. The garrison surrendered on the 20th of October.

After this success Colonel Montgomery resumed the siege of St. John's, and the Seventh and twenty-sixth regiments made a determined resistance. The hardships they endured were borne with patience; they were often knee-deep in mire, and were reduced to half-allowance of provision; yet they held out with the most heroic bravery until their strength was exhausted, and no chance of being relieved remained, when they surrendered. Thus at the commencement of the war the Royal Fusiliers were nearly all made prisoners.

The enemy subsequently advanced upon Montreal, and Lieut.-General Carlton, being deserted by the Canadians, and without the means of defence, retired down the river St. Lawrence to Quebec, accompanied by a party of the Royal Fusiliers.

Quebec was besieged by two divisions of Americans under Colonels Montgomery and Arnold, and the garrison, of which sixty men of the Royal Fusiliers formed part, defended the place with firmness and intrepidity; the winter was particularly severe, and the soldiers of both sides served amidst ice and snow. About five o'clock on the morning of the 31st of December, during a storm of sleet and snow, the Americans made a general assault with the view of carrying the place by storm; but the garrison withstood the tempest of war with such determined[27] resolution, that the storming party was repulsed with the loss of between six and seven hundred men; Colonel Montgomery was killed, and Colonel Arnold wounded. The garrison only lost one officer and four private soldiers killed, and seven private soldiers wounded.

After this repulse the Americans turned the siege into a blockade, and placed their troops in village cantonments: in April, 1776, they resumed the siege, and the British defended the place with resolution. In the early part of May reinforcements arrived from England, and on the 6th of that month Lieut.-General Carlton marched out of the fortress at the head of the garrison to attack the American camp, when the besieging army made a precipitate retreat, leaving its artillery, stores, scaling ladders, &c., behind. The British followed their opponents up the country, recovered Montreal, and drove the Americans out of Canada.

In the meantime a detachment of the regiment had arrived at Boston from England, and on the evacuation of Boston, it proceeded to Halifax in Nova Scotia.

In October, 1776, Lord Robert Bertie was appointed to the command of the second troop (now second regiment) of life guards; and the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers was conferred on their lieut.-colonel, William Prescott, by commission dated the 12th of November, 1776.

In the autumn of this year the Royal Fusiliers transferred their services from Canada to New York; as the men taken prisoners were exchanged, the numbers of the regiment were increased; clothing and appointments arrived from England, and the regiment occupied quarters for the winter at Amboy in Middlesex county.

From Amboy the Royal Fusiliers were removed to Staten Island, which was attacked in August, 1777, by[28] the Americans under General Sullivan, who were repulsed with loss.

At this period a British force under Lieut.-General Burgoyne was advancing from Canada upon Albany; at the same time another British army under General Sir William Howe was proceeding against Philadelphia; and Lieut.-General Sir Henry Clinton, who commanded at New York, resolved to penetrate into Jersey for a diversion in favour of both armies. The Royal Fusiliers, with several other corps, were accordingly embarked for this service, and on the 12th of September effected a landing at four different places without meeting with serious opposition. The Seventh, twenty-sixth, and fifty-second regiments, with a body of German grenadiers and three hundred provincials under Brigadier-General Campbell, landed at Elizabeth-Town-Point, at about four in the morning, and advanced up the country: the enemy opposed the march, and a sharp firing was kept up throughout the day. The King's forces, however, had the advantage; they took Newark, and were advancing on Aquakinack, when they received orders to halt and wait the advance of the troops which had effected a landing at the other points. The enemy afterwards appeared in force, and several skirmishes occurred, but the British succeeded in capturing four hundred head of cattle, four hundred sheep, and a few horses. On the 16th of September the Royal Fusiliers marched to Bergen Point, where they re-embarked and returned to Staten Island, without the loss of one man in this expedition, and with only Lieutenant Haymer and one private soldier wounded.

In October of the same year the Royal Fusiliers were embarked to join an expedition against the enemy's forts up Hudson's River. About three thousand men were[29] collected for this service from New York and the lines at Kingsbridge; and having embarked on board of transports, were convoyed up the river by some frigates and other armed vessels under Commodore Hotham. The troops landed at day-break on the 6th of October at Stony-point, and arrangements were immediately made for the attack of Forts Montgomery and Clinton. The troops had to march a distance of twelve miles over mountains, and to overcome many obstructions; they, however, surmounted every difficulty, and attacked the forts by storm on the same day. As the Americans were prepared, and their works strong, they made an obstinate defence; but nothing could withstand the ardour of the royal troops, and every corps gained a share in the glory. Fort Constitution was also taken on the 7th of October. Not far from these forts was a new settlement called Continential Village, where there was a barrack for fifteen hundred men. The Royal Fusiliers, with two German corps and two three-pounders, were sent against this place, and having destroyed the settlement and burnt the barrack and stores, the troops returned.

Notwithstanding these successful diversions, Lieut.-General Burgoyne experienced great difficulties in his advance, and eventually, his troops being exhausted with fatigue and privation, his advance opposed by superior numbers, and his retreat cut off, he capitulated. The army under General Sir William Howe had better success, and captured Philadelphia. The enemy having despatched part of the force originally opposed to Lieut.-General Burgoyne, to join their army of the south under General Washington, the Royal Fusiliers were sent from the vicinity of New York to reinforce the army in Pennsylvania, and in the early part of December they[30] were engaged in a skirmish with the Americans in front of Philadelphia; but only lost one man.

Louis XVI. having acknowledged the independence of the revolted British States in America, and concluded a treaty of alliance with them, Great Britain declared war against France; and as the French had agreed to assist the Americans, a concentration of the British forces was deemed advisable. The army accordingly retired in June, 1778, from Philadelphia, and crossed the Delaware, and proceeded through the Jerseys, from whence it embarked for New York. Numerous obstacles had to be overcome in this retreat, and the troops suffered much from the excessive heat of the weather: some sharp skirmishing also took place, but the Royal Fusiliers do not appear to have sustained any loss.

The regiment remained at the lines near New York until the summer of 1779, when it was employed in an expedition commanded by Major-General Tyron, sent into East Sound with a view of drawing General Washington from the strong post which he occupied in the mountains into Connecticut for the defence of the towns on that coast. The fleet arrived at the harbour of Newhaven on the 5th of July, and the first division of the Army, which consisted of the flank companies of the guards, Royal Fusiliers, fifty-fourth regiment, and a detachment of Jagars, with four field-pieces, under Brigadier-General Garth, landed about five o'clock in the morning a mile south of the town, and advanced, making a circuit of seven miles to gain the head of the creek on the western side of the place. Some skirmishing occurred on the march, but the King's troops overcame all opposition and took possession of the town: at the same time the second division landed and took post at Rock Fort.[31] On the following day the troops destroyed all the public stores, and part of the ordnance, with a number of vessels, and afterwards re-embarked, bringing off six field-pieces and an armed privateer. On the 7th of July the fleet anchored off the village of Fairfield; the British troops landed and defeated a party of Americans; the enemy kept firing from windows and the tops of houses, which provoked a band of loyal emigrants to set the place on fire, by which the town and a number of boats were destroyed. On the 11th of July the fleet sailed to the bay of Norwalk. The troops landed on the following day and advanced against the town. "The Fusiliers, supported by the light infantry of the guards, began the attack, and soon cleared the quarters—pushing the main body of the enemy and an hundred cavalry from the northern heights, and taking one piece of their cannon. After many of the salt-pans were destroyed, whale-boats carried away on board the fleet, and the magazines, stores, and vessels set in flames, with the greatest part of the dwelling-houses, the advanced-corps were drawn back, and the troops retired in two columns to the place of our first debarkation, and, unassaulted, took ship and returned to Huntingdon bay."[12] This expedition did not produce the desired effect in the movements of the American general. The troops were ordered to return to New York. Major-General Tyron stated in his despatch—"I should do injustice if I closed this report without giving every praise to the troops I had the honour to command."[13]

The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers lost five men in this expedition, and had three serjeants and nineteen men wounded.

[32]

During the autumn of this year the operations of the army were limited to defensive measures; but in December an attack on the opulent province of South Carolina was determined on, and the Royal Fusiliers formed a part of the force employed on this service, which was commanded by General Sir Henry Clinton.

The troops having embarked, the fleet and convoy sailed from New York on the 26th of December, and after experiencing much tempestuous weather, which separated the fleet and occasioned the loss of several transports, arrived at the Savannah about the end of January, 1780, and gained the harbour of North Edisto, on the coast of South Carolina, in February. The troops were immediately landed, and took possession of John's and James's Island, the Royal Fusiliers taking post at Stono-ferry on John's Island. The passage of the Ashley River was effected on the 29th of March, and on the 1st of April the army besieged Charlestown. The works were carried on with perseverance and judgment, and, on the 11th of May, all things being ready for a general assault, the governor capitulated, and ten American regiments, with three battalions of artillery, and the town and county militia, became prisoners of war.

The loss of the royal army in this siege was only seventy-six killed and one hundred and ninety wounded, including all ranks. The Royal Fusiliers had one man killed and two wounded.

The regiment appears to have been in garrison during the remainder of this year; and in January, 1781, it was ordered to proceed to Fort Ninety-Six, which place was then besieged by the Americans; but when on the march, the regiment received orders to join a body of troops under Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton, and march[33] against General Morgan, who was posted at Pacolet with a strong division of the American army. "The progress of the King's troops was greatly impeded by heavy rains, which swelled the rivers and creeks; yet Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton conducted his march so well, and got so near to General Morgan (who was retreating before him), as to make it dangerous for him to pass the Broad-River, and came up with him at eight o'clock A.M. on the 17th of January, at a place called Cow-Pens. The attack was begun by the first line of infantry, consisting of the Seventh regiment, the infantry of the legion, and the corps of light infantry annexed to it: a troop of cavalry was placed on each flank: the first battalion of the seventy-first, and the remainder of the cavalry, formed the reserve. The enemy's line soon gave way, and their militia quitted the field; but our troops having been thrown into some disorder by the pursuit, General Morgan's corps faced about and gave them a heavy fire: this unexpected event occasioned the utmost confusion in the first line. The two three-pounders were taken, and I fear the colours of the Seventh regiment shared the same fate."[14]

In this unfortunate engagement the Royal Fusiliers sustained a very serious loss in killed, wounded, and taken prisoners.

The regiment was subsequently placed in garrison in South Carolina, where it remained until 1782; when, the British Government having been induced to concede the independence of the United States, pacific overtures were made, which were succeeded by a cessation of hostilities. South Carolina was evacuated, and the[34] Royal Fusiliers proceeded to New York, where they remained until the conclusion of the treaty of peace in 1783, when they returned to England; at the same time the establishment was reduced to eight companies.

After occupying quarters at Gloucester and Plymouth, the regiment proceeded to Scotland in the spring of 1786.

On the decease of General Prescott in the autumn of 1788, the colonelcy was conferred on Major-General the Honourable William Gordon, who was removed in April, 1789, to the seventy-first regiment, and the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers was conferred on Prince Edward (fourth son of King George III.), afterwards Duke of Kent.

In 1790 the regiment embarked from Leith and the Isle of Man for Gibraltar, and, arriving at that important fortress in August, occupied the King's barracks, under the command of its colonel, His Royal Highness Prince Edward.

From Gibraltar the regiment embarked, in May, 1791, for Canada,—the right wing under Prince Edward on board His Majesty's ship "Ulysses," and the left wing under Captain Shuttleworth in the "Resistance;" both wings landed in August at Quebec, where the regiment was stationed, under Prince Edward's command, nearly three years: His Royal Highness afterwards proceeded to the West Indies, and acquired a reputation for valour and intrepidity at the capture of Martinique, St. Lucie, and Guadaloupe.

Two companies of the regiment were detached in June, 1794, from Quebec to Halifax, in Nova Scotia, and in October of the same year the regiment proceeded to that station.

[35]

A strong draft of recruits arrived from England in September, 1795, and the regiment was formed into two battalions. Both battalions were, however, incorporated, in April, 1796, into one,—consisting of fifty-four serjeants, twenty-two drummers, and a thousand rank and file; and the supernumerary men were transferred to the fourth, or the King's own regiment.

Prince Edward, having returned from the West Indies, was appointed Commander of the Forces in Nova Scotia and its dependencies, and was subsequently promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General. The Royal Fusiliers experienced the advantage of His Royal Highness's assiduous attention to their interests; his military virtues,—his liberality,—his care to bring merit into notice, and to procure suitable rewards for the well-conducted,[15] with his constant attention to everything calculated to promote the welfare of the regiment, endeared his name in the grateful remembrance of the officers and soldiers; at the same time, the facility with which he procured a constant supply of fine recruits for his corps, with his indefatigable efforts to inculcate the true principles[36] of subordination in the regiment, and to bring it into a state of perfection in discipline, occasioned the Royal Fusiliers to become one of the most efficient corps in the service,—distinguished alike for its uniform and warlike appearance,—excellent conduct in quarters,—and the superior style in which it performed its exercises and field movements. His Royal Highness having returned to England on account of ill health, was created, on the 23rd of April, 1799, Earl of Dublin in Ireland, and Duke of Kent and Strathearn in Great Britain.

In August, 1801, the Duke of Kent was removed to the first or the royal regiment; and was succeeded in the colonelcy by Lieut.-General Sir Alured Clarke from the fifth foot, who had commanded the Royal Fusiliers during a great part of the American war.

After passing eleven years in the protection of the British North American provinces, the regiment embarked from Nova Scotia, the right wing under Lieut.-Colonel Layard, for Bermuda, and the left wing under Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Burrows for the Bahamas; and both wings arrived at their destinations in October and November, 1802.

While the regiment was in the West Indies, a second battalion was added to its establishment, and formed of men raised for limited service in the West Riding of Yorkshire, under the provisions of the Additional Force Act, passed in July, 1804. The second battalion was placed on the establishment on the 25th of December, 1804, and in 1805 it marched from Yorkshire to Winchester.[16]

[37]

In July, 1806, five companies embarked from Bermuda, and landed at Plymouth in August; they were followed by the five companies from the Bahamas, which landed at Plymouth in November and December. The first battalion, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel the Honourable E. M. Pakenham, received a draft of between four and five hundred men from the second, and, embarking at Liverpool for Ireland, landed at Dublin in the beginning of January, 1807: the second battalion, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel William J. Myers, remained in England.

Information having been obtained that Napoleon, Emperor of France, purposed employing the navy of Denmark against Great Britain, an armament was prepared for obtaining possession of the Danish fleet by treaty or force. The first battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, having been inspected by Major-General Leith, and commended for its appearance and discipline, was withdrawn from Ireland to take part in this enterprise. It embarked from Dublin in July,—landed at Liverpool,—marched to Hull, from whence it sailed to Denmark, and, disembarking on the island of Zealand, joined the army under General Lord Cathcart, and was employed in the siege of Copenhagen. After a bombardment of three days the city surrendered, and the Danish fleet was delivered up. The British troops afterwards returned to England; the Royal Fusiliers landed in November at Portsmouth, from whence they proceeded to Lewes, where another draft of nearly four hundred men was received from the second battalion.

[38]

Returning to Portsmouth in January, 1808, the first battalion embarked immediately for Nova Scotia; the fleet called at Bermuda to leave the thirteenth regiment, and afterwards proceeding direct to Nova Scotia, the Royal Fusiliers landed at Halifax in the middle of April.

In May, 1808, the second battalion embarked at Tilbury Fort for Ireland, and landed at Monkstown in the middle of June.

Soon after its arrival at Nova Scotia, the first battalion was selected to proceed, with other corps under the command of Lieut.-General Sir George Prevost, to the West Indies to take part in an expedition against the French island of Martinique.

The armament assembled at Carlisle-bay in Barbadoes, under the command of Lieut.-General Beckwith, and sailing on the 28th of January, 1809, arrived off Martinique on the following day. At four o'clock on the afternoon of the 30th the Royal Fusiliers landed at Malgré Tout, in Bay Robert, and marched that evening through difficult roads to De Manceaux's estate. After a few hours' repose the troops resumed their march to Papin's, where part of the division halted; but the Royal Fusiliers and grenadier company of the first West India regiment pushed forward to the heights on De Bork's estate, where they passed the night. On the following day they were joined by the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and the light infantry battalion; when Lieut.-Colonel Pakenham advanced with the Royal Fusiliers, supported by the light battalion, to the heights of Morné Bruno. From this post the Royal Fusiliers, with the rifle company of the twenty-third, and grenadiers of the first West India regiment, advanced, supported by the[39] Welsh Fusiliers, against the height of Desfourneaux. The French, under General De Houdelot, were advantageously posted on the declivity of the hill, with a river in their front, and their left protected by artillery. Lieut.-Colonel Pakenham, with the flank companies of the Seventh, and rifle company of the twenty-third, turned the enemy's right; the light battalion moved against the enemy's left; and the battalion companies of the Seventh, and grenadiers of the first West India regiment, advanced against the front. Animated by a spirit of emulation and a thirst for glory, the British troops rushed onward with enthusiasm; the Royal Fusiliers forded the river under a heavy fire, and attacking their more numerous antagonists with signal gallantry, drove the French from their formidable position in disorder. Lieut.-Colonel Pakenham continued his victorious career against the heights of Surirey, and being gallantly supported by the twenty-third regiment, the soldiers under his orders, animated by the zeal and ardour of their brave leaders, overcame obstacles of a formidable character with heroic valour; they carried the hill, and, by a spirited charge, forced the French to take shelter under the guns of their redoubts. In this attack the valour and judgment of Lieut.-Colonel Pakenham, and the excellence of the Fusilier Brigade, were conspicuous. Lieut.-General Sir George Beckwith observed in General Orders:—"The Commander of the Forces desires to express his entire approbation of the manly conduct of the troops engaged yesterday, and desires that the general officers and soldiers will be pleased to accept his thanks, and to assure them that he will not fail to lay their merit before the King. Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost having reported the unremitting exertions[40] of Lieutenant-Colonel the Honourable Edward Michael Pakenham, of the Royal Fusiliers, the Commander of the Forces feels great pleasure in making this known to the army."

The regiment had Captain Taylor (acting Deputy Quarter-Master-General) and nine rank and file killed; two serjeants, one drummer, and fifty-six rank and file wounded; four rank and file missing.

The French occupied a second position, strengthened by two redoubts connected by an entrenchment. On the 2nd of February the British made a movement to extend their right, and the Royal Fusiliers were again engaged, and manifested the same heroic ardour and superiority over the enemy as on the preceding day. Lieutenant-Colonel Pakenham led the Fusiliers, supported by the light battalion, against the enemy's advanced redoubt, in open day, and the spirited conduct of the officers and men was again eminently displayed: but it appearing to the commander of the expedition that the redoubts would be gained with a loss beyond the value of the acquisition, the Fusiliers were ordered to desist. The loss of the regiment was one serjeant and twenty rank and file killed; Lieutenant-Colonel Pakenham, Captains Row and Cholwich, one serjeant, one drummer, and fifty-eight rank and file wounded, three men missing. The enemy afterwards abandoned the redoubt and spiked the cannon.

On the following day a general order was issued, in which it was stated—"The benefit the advanced corps under Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost have produced to His Majesty's service, from the gallant and successful attack made upon Morné Bruno and the heights of Surirey, on the 1st instant, by the first brigade[41] of the army and the light battalion under Brigadier-General Hoghton, demands from the Commander of the Forces a reiteration of his acknowledgments, and his assurance to the brigadier-general, and to the commanding officer of the Royal Fusiliers, of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, and of the light battalion, also to the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers of those regiments, that he will not fail to lay their meritorious exertions before the King. The exertions of all the corps engaged yesterday were conspicuous; and although the state of the works possessed by the enemy did not admit of their being carried by the bayonet, which rendered it the general's duty to direct the corps employed to retire, they manifested a spirit and determination which, when tempered by less impetuosity, will lead to the happiest results."

Fort Bourbon was afterwards besieged; and on the surrender of this place the French marched out (7th March) and laid down their arms; the Royal Fusiliers and the two other battalions of the first brigade receiving each an Eagle from the French regiments, with a proportion of brass drums, &c.

The capture of this valuable island having been achieved, the troops were again commended in general orders for their excellent conduct: and the Royal Fusiliers were subsequently honoured with the privilege of bearing the word "Martinique" inscribed on their colours, as a mark of royal favour and approbation. Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney received a gold medal for his conduct in this service.

After the completion of this brilliant enterprise, the Royal Fusiliers returned to Nova Scotia; before embarking they were again commended in general[42] orders. They sailed from Martinique on the 15th of March, and arrived at Halifax in April.

Lieutenant-Colonel Pakenham being anxious to stimulate the Royal Fusiliers to good conduct by distinguishing merit, assembled a board of officers for that purpose, and the names of the following non-commissioned officers and soldiers were recorded in the "Book of Merit."

Serjeant Thomas Simpson for meritorious and gallant conduct at Martinique. Quarter-Master-Serjeant Timothy Meagher, Serjeants John Ledsam, John Henry, John Day, William Harris, William Inchbold, Joshua Redshaw, Thomas Beale, Thomas Miller, George Kenney, —— Willson, George Clementson, Corporal Dove, Drummer Thomas Maud, Privates William Vagg, Mark Ewing, Benjamin Price, James Haughney, Nathaniel Moss, and James Delamy for general good conduct; Serjeants Meagher and Henry were afterwards promoted to commissions.

In April, 1809, Lieutenant and Adjutant Orr, a most meritorious officer, was promoted to a company, on which occasion the serjeants presented him with an address, expressive of their regard and gratitude for the manner in which he had performed the duty of adjutant. This circumstance was, however, deemed a departure from strict discipline, and the Commander-in-Chief in North America, General Sir James Craig, declared in General Orders, that the serjeants had been guilty, unintentionally, of an act of insubordination.[17] The sentiments[43] expressed in this order obtained the concurrence of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, who stated in[44] orders;—"The reason for which the Commander-in-Chief has directed the circulation of this Order, is, that he may avail himself of this opportunity of declaring to the army his most perfect concurrence in the sentiments therein expressed by the distinguished and experienced officer by whom it was framed, on a subject which appears to have been by some very much misunderstood.—The circumstance of inferiors of any class of military men assembling for the purpose of bestowing praise and public marks of approbation on their superiors, implies a power of deliberation on their conduct which belongs to the Sovereign alone, or to those officers who may be intrusted with the command and discipline of the troops. It is a procedure[45] equally objectionable whether in the higher or lower ranks of the army; and as the Commander-in-Chief cannot but regard it as a principle subversive of military discipline, he trusts it is a practice which will be for ever banished the British service: and he directs commanding officers to act accordingly.

"By command of the Right Honourable the Commander-in-Chief,

"Harry Calvert,
"Adjutant-General."

In the meantime the second battalion had embarked from Cork to join the British army in Portugal under Lieutenant-General Sir John Craddock; it landed at Almeda, opposite to Lisbon, in April, and mustered upwards of six hundred and fifty officers and men, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, baronet: the Royal Fusiliers and second battalion of the fifty-third regiment, with one company of the sixtieth, formed a brigade under Brigadier-General Alexander Campbell. Soon afterwards Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Wellesley arrived in Portugal to command the army.

In May the combined British and Portuguese forces advanced against the French under the celebrated Marshal Soult, who had captured Oporto by assault about five weeks previously, and occupied that city with a numerous body of veterans. The British general advanced upon Oporto, and the Royal Fusiliers had the honour of taking part in the masterly movements by which the legions of Napoleon were driven from that city on the 12th of May, pursued through the wild and mountainous[46] districts in the north of Portugal, and forced to abandon their artillery and ammunition, and to save themselves by a precipitate flight.

After this success the army retired to Abrantes, where the Royal Fusiliers were encamped nearly three weeks; they subsequently advanced into Spain to aid the patriotic Spaniards in their attempts to expel the French from their country, the British being joined by a Spanish force under General Cuesta. Having entered Spain, the army proceeded along the valley of the Tagus, and halted near Talavera de la Reyna. The Spaniards pushed forward, but were speedily driven back by the advance-guard of the French army under Joseph Buonaparte, who bore the title of King of Spain. A British brigade covered the retreat of the Spaniards, and the allied army went into position near Talavera, the Spaniards occupying the strong ground on the right, and the British extending to the left along the more exposed part of the field. In the centre, between the two armies, there was a commanding spot on which a redoubt had been commenced, with some open ground in its rear; at this important post the Royal Fusiliers were stationed, with several other corps under Brigadier-General Campbell, and they proved themselves worthy of the trust reposed in them.

The French attacked the left of the British position on the evening of the 27th of July, and were repulsed. The attack was renewed at daylight on the following morning, and British skill and valour were again triumphant. A short respite ensued while the French generals held a council of war; but soon after mid-day their army was seen in motion. The British stood to their arms and calmly awaited the approach of the[47] hostile legions; a cloud of light troops covered the front of the French army; they were followed by four dense columns, protected by eighty guns; and the Royal Fusiliers beheld the torrent of battle advancing towards them with the fury of a tempest, threatening instant destruction to all opposition. The fourth corps came rushing forward with such impetuosity that it speedily cleared the intersected ground in front, and attacked the Royal Fusiliers and other corps on the right of the British line with terrific violence. The British regiments met the storm of war with unshaken firmness, and breaking in on the front of the advancing columns, and assailing their wings with a heavy fire, forced them back with a terrible carnage: the Royal Fusiliers rushed gallantly forward to the muzzles of the French artillery, and, after an obstinate resistance, captured seven guns, which the enemy endeavoured to re-capture, but in vain. The French veterans rallied on their supports, and appeared resolute on another attack, but they were assailed by so tremendous a fire of artillery and musketry, that they retired in disorder, and thus victory was secured in this part of the field. Sir Arthur Wellesley observed in his despatch,—"I was highly satisfied with the manner this part of the position was defended;" he also mentioned the second battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, among the corps which had particularly distinguished themselves, and thanked the battalion and its commanding officer in orders. The French were repulsed at every point of attack, and they withdrew from a contest in which the superiority of the British troops was eminently displayed.

The Royal Fusiliers had Lieutenant Beaufoy and six rank and file killed; Lieutenants Kerwan and Muter,[48] Adjutant Page, one serjeant, two drummers, and fifty-one rank and file wounded; one private soldier missing. Their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, was rewarded with a gold medal; and the regiment was subsequently authorised to bear the word "Talavera" inscribed on its colours as an honorary distinction for its gallantry on this occasion.

In the subsequent part of this campaign the battalion sustained considerable loss from disease; but it was not engaged in actual conflict with the enemy.

During the summer Lieutenant-Colonel the Honourable Edward Michael Pakenham, commanding the first battalion in Nova Scotia, was placed on the staff of the army in Portugal. The affable deportment, amiable disposition, and liberality of this brave and zealous officer, with his gallantry in the field, and his assiduous attention to the interests, comfort, reputation, and efficiency of the regiment during the series of years he had served with the Royal Fusiliers, had procured him the regard and esteem of every member of the corps. Previously to his leaving the battalion, the officers obtained his consent to have his portrait taken, and presented him with a sword valued at two hundred guineas, as a mark of their sincere regard for him as an officer and a gentleman, and of their admiration of his manly virtues and zeal for the service. The command of the first battalion devolved on Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Blakeney, who devoted himself to the good of the service, and preserved the battalion in its high state of discipline and efficiency; it was employed at the out-posts of Nova Scotia, and occupied George's Island, Melville Island, Point Pleasant, York Redoubt, &c.

[49]

On the 1st of January, 1810, the first battalion mustered upwards of a thousand officers and soldiers, and events occurred soon afterwards which occasioned the removal of this fine body of men from North America to the theatre of war in the Peninsula, where the Spaniards and Portuguese were struggling for independence against the forces of France, and where a British army sent to aid the patriots was acquiring never-fading laurels under Sir Arthur Wellesley, who had been created Viscount Wellington.

The French army in Spain having received numerous reinforcements, a powerful and well-appointed force advanced under Marshal Massena, Prince of Esling, to complete the conquest of Portugal; and the very superior numbers of the enemy rendered it necessary for the British army to limit itself to the defence of Lisbon. Lord Wellington, however, resolved to maintain a forward position as long as possible, and among the reinforcements sent to his aid was the first battalion of the Royal Fusiliers. On this occasion, Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost stated in orders:—"On the departure of the Royal Fusiliers the Lieutenant-General commanding acknowledges with pride and pleasure that this corps is an instance among British soldiers of the union of regularity and good conduct in quarters with patience and valour in the field of battle. Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost has that opinion of the commanding officer, the officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates of this already distinguished corps which induces him to pronounce his confidence that the Royal Fusiliers will maintain their reputation on whatever service they may be employed, and that when called upon to face the enemy of their country,[50] they will again add to their own fame, and exalt the glory of the British arms."

The first battalion landed at Lisbon on the 27th of July, every man in health and under arms, and after a short repose advanced up the country to join the army in the field. On passing Thomar, the battalion halted a few days, and was reviewed by Major-General Leith and the Portuguese General, Miranda, who expressed their admiration of the appearance of the officers and men, and of the ease and steadiness with which they manœuvred in battalion and performed light infantry movements. After the review the battalion advanced to Villa Cortez; and on the surrender of Almeida the army withdrew to the rocks of Busaco, where it took up a position to oppose the superior numbers of the enemy, whose commander vaunted he would drive the English into the sea, and plant the eagles of France on the towers of Lisbon. The first battalion of the Royal Fusiliers was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney, and formed in brigade with the seventy-ninth, under Colonel the Honourable Edward M. Pakenham, in the first division commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Brent Spencer; the second battalion was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, Baronet.

The British and Portuguese troops were in line on the ridge of the lofty and precipitous hills of Busaco; in front lay the army of Massena on another range of heights, and the dark mountains were crowned with the bivouac fires of the opposing bands. On the morning of the 27th of September, as the light appeared, the fire of musketry commenced between the advanced posts stationed in the deep hollows which separated the two armies: shortly afterwards the French columns of attack[51] appeared, and throwing forward crowds of skirmishers, they speedily emerged from the hollow beneath, and assailed the British position with that impetuosity which distinguishes the first onset of French soldiers. They were opposed by the unconquerable firmness of British soldiers; the heads of columns were pierced by musketry, and charged with the bayonet; and the formidable masses of veteran Frenchmen were overthrown and driven down the mountain sides with a terrible clamour and confusion, leaving crowds of killed, wounded, and prisoners behind. Being unable to overcome the steady valour of the British infantry, the French commander desisted, and the allied army stood triumphant on the contested heights. The Royal Fusiliers were stationed on a portion of this range of rocks which was not seriously attacked, and their loss was limited to two private soldiers killed, Lieutenant Mair, and twenty-two rank and file wounded. Colonel Pakenham, commanding the brigade, was rewarded with a gold medal. After this vain attempt to force the rocks of Busaco, the French commander made a flank movement to turn the left of his opponent's position; when the allied army withdrew to the lines of Torres Vedras, and there opposed a resistance which the French marshal did not attempt to force.

While the opposing armies confronted each other, several sharp actions took place between the advanced posts; and on the 13th of October a company of the Royal Fusiliers was ordered to drive back a reconnoitring party of the enemy which had entered the village of Burlada, situate between the two armies. This service was performed with distinguished gallantry, and the French were driven back at the point of the bayonet.

After searching in vain for a vulnerable part in the[52] British lines, the French commander, instead of driving the English leopards into the sea, retired to the strong position of Santarem; Lord Wellington advanced, and, establishing a series of posts to watch his opponents, placed his army in cantonments.

The twenty-third, or Royal Welsh Fusiliers, having arrived from America, the two battalions of the Seventh and first battalion of the twenty-third were constituted a brigade under the command of Colonel the Honourable Edward M. Pakenham: it was designated the "Fusilier Brigade," and attached to the fourth division commanded by Major-General the Honourable Lowry Cole: the first battalion of the Seventh was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, and the second by Lieut.-Colonel Blakeney.

In January, 1811, Colonel the Honourable E. M. Pakenham was placed at the head of the Adjutant-General's department, and the command of the Fusilier Brigade was intrusted to Major-General Houstoun. The brigade was stationed, at this period, at Aveiras de Cima.

At length disease, want of provisions, and the impregnable lines of Torres Vedras, turned the vain boasting of the French commander into defeat; he retraced his steps towards Spain, covering wantonly, and with brutal cruelty, the line of his retreat with rapine, bloodshed, devastation, and burning villages. The Royal Fusiliers moved forward in pursuit; several skirmishes occurred, and, on the 12th of March, the brigade was in line near Redinha (a town in the central part of Portugal, in the province of Beira), and advancing to attack the rear column of the French army under one of Napoleon's most active and enterprising generals, Ney; but as the British ranks moved majestically forward in[53] firm array, the French fired a volley and instantly fled under the cover of the smoke towards Condexia.

In the meantime Marshal Soult, being at the head of another French army, had captured Badajoz, the capital of Spanish Estremadura; also Olivenza, another fortified town on the west frontier of Spain; and a detachment from his army had besieged Campo Mayor, a barrier fortress of Portugal, in the province of Alemtejo; and on the 14th of March the Royal Fusiliers were detached to the Alemtejo, to join the forces under Marshal Sir William Carr Beresford, and take part in the relief of Campo Mayor, and in the re-capture of Badajoz and Olivenza. While on the march, Campo Mayor surrendered; and the British, continuing their route, arrived before the town on the 25th of March, as the French columns were marching out, when the thirteenth light dragoons and some Portuguese cavalry charged with great gallantry, and threw the enemy into confusion.

The Royal Fusiliers were stationed at Campo Mayor about a fortnight, and were subsequently employed in the siege of Olivenza, which was terminated in seven days by the surrender of the garrison on the 15th of April. The loss of the regiment was limited to one man killed and one wounded.

This success was followed by the siege of the strong fortress of Badajoz, situated on a beautiful plain on the Guadiana,—a noble river five hundred yards broad; and the Royal Fusiliers were employed in this service. Marshal Soult, who had retired after the capture of this fortress in March, quitted Seville, and, assembling a powerful force, advanced to its relief. The allied army turned the siege into a blockade, and moving forward to meet the advancing foe, took up a position at Albuhera.[54] The Royal Fusiliers formed part of the blockading force, but were subsequently ordered to join the army; and they arrived in position about nine o'clock on the morning of the 16th of May, at the moment when the French were advancing to commence one of the most obstinate and sanguinary actions in which British troops were ever engaged. The Fusilier Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers, of the Seventh, was ordered to form in an oblique line behind the right; the first battalion of the Seventh was commanded by Major John Mervin Nooth, and the second by Lieut.-Colonel Edward Blakeney.

Being favoured by a height which the allies had neglected to occupy, the French commander concentrated behind it fifteen thousand men and forty guns, within ten minutes' march of the right wing of the allied army, without his opponent's knowledge; at the same time he extended the remainder of his forces along the woody banks of the Feria, towards its confluence with the Albuhera. A little before nine on the morning of the 16th of May, these troops issued from the woods in one massive column, supported by a second, flanked by cavalry and preceded by artillery, and attacked the bridge, where they met with a formidable resistance. The British general, anticipating the principal effort would be against his right, directed the Spaniards under General Blake to change front, and the second division to support them: but the Spanish general delaying to execute the movement, the enemy was among his troops before they were completely formed. A destructive cannonade, a heavy fire of musketry, and the approach of some French squadrons menacing to charge, put the Spaniards into disorder, and they fell back fighting.[55] The French columns pushed forward; their reserves mounted the heights in their rear, and their batteries were brought into line.

The retrograde of the Spaniards laid open the position of the allied army, and the only good road by which a retreat could be conducted was exposed. To remedy this disaster, the leading brigade of the second division rushed forward; it was speedily under a destructive fire; a heavy rain concealing distant objects; and four regiments of French lancers and hussars having turned the right flank in the obscurity, charged the British battalions in the rear at the moment when they developed their attack, and slew or took prisoners nearly two-thirds of their numbers: one battalion, being in column, maintained its ground, while the French horsemen overthrew all other opposition, and captured six guns. A lancer attacked Marshal Beresford, who pushed the lance aside, and, grappling with the lancer, threw him from his horse. Another British brigade came boldly into the fight, repelling a charge of lancers on its flank; the remaining brigade of the second division arrived; a Spanish corps moved forward, and the enemy's infantry recoiled; but soon recovering, renewed the conflict with greater violence than before. The fighting became vehement, and more than two-thirds of every British corps engaged had fallen, when their ammunition began to fail, and the enemy established a column in advance upon the right flank. The tide of success was evidently flowing in favour of the French, when the fourth division was ordered to the heat of the conflict, and a brigade of the second division, which had only been slightly engaged, rushed forward into the fight. At this moment a number of captured British soldiers were being hurried to the rear of the[56] French army; the enemy's reserves were pushing forward to reinforce their front;—the field was covered with heaps of dead bodies;—the lancers were riding furiously about the upper part of the hill spearing wounded men, and six pieces of artillery were in the hands of the French.

A crisis had arrived, and a mighty—a determined—a desperate—effort alone could save the allied army from defeat; at this critical moment Major-General Sir Lowry Cole led the Fusilier Brigade up the contested heights to stem the torrent of battle and wrest the palm of victory from Napoleon's veteran legions. The Fusiliers—admired for their appearance—applauded for their order and discipline—moved forward with a resolute step to confront a host of foes; they felt the importance of the task which devolved upon them, and knew the high character of the troops they had to contend with; and national pride,—an esprit de corps,—a noble enthusiasm to rival the regiments which triumphed at Busaco,—and to exceed their own achievements at Martinique and Talavera,—animated every breast; they were flanked by a battalion of the Lusitanian legion; and mounting the hill at the moment when a regiment of Spanish cavalry was fleeing before a body of French dragoons, they soon drove the lancers from the contested height, and recovered five of the captured guns. Encouraged by this presage of victory, the Fusiliers marched sternly onward in line, over heaps of killed and wounded, to encounter three heavy columns of French infantry, supported by cavalry and artillery, and each column mustering about twice the numbers of the Fusilier Brigade.

Gallantly issuing from amidst the smoke and broken fragments of discomfited corps, the Fusiliers marched[57] with a firm and solemn step over the carcases of men and horses which obstructed their way, and their bearing was that of men determined to decide the fortune of a battle. The French columns were pressing onward to complete the overthrow of the allied army, when suddenly the surprising spectacle of a majestic line of Fusiliers burst upon their sight; they halted; fired a volley; then endeavoured to deploy; and their numerous artillery sent a storm of bullets against the British ranks. The commander of the brigade, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Myers of the Royal Fusiliers, was killed; the commander of the division, Major-General Sir Lowry Cole, Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney, commanding a battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, and a number of other officers, fell wounded; the colour staves of the Seventh were shattered, and the colours torn; at the same time chasms were rent in the ranks of the brigade; a momentary pause ensued: but instantly recovering, the Fusiliers braved the tempest of iron and lead, and boldly confronted the fierce and numerous bands opposed to them. As the smoke cleared, the French beheld a line of bayonets coming upon them, and the next moment, the thundering volleys of the Fusiliers broke the heads of formations. The French commander urged his veterans forward; individuals, spurred on by an unavailing intrepidity, sacrificed their lives to gain time for their companions to deploy;—the columns responded to the calls of their leader, and, striving to extricate themselves, fired on friends and foes;—the lancers on the flanks threatened to charge; but British intrepidity could not be shaken;—the Fusiliers knew not how to quail! The brigade preserved its firm array; the murderous volleys of the Fusiliers swept down hundreds of Frenchmen, and suddenly raising a loud shout, they[58] precipitated themselves upon the opposing multitudes, and plunging fearlessly into the crowds, they closed with desperate energy upon their opponents. The fortune of the day was no longer doubtful; British prowess prevailed, and the French were overpowered, slaughtered, and forced back in irremediable confusion upon their reserves. The supporting columns endeavoured to stem the torrent of British valour; but in vain;—the whole were driven headlong down the ascent;—the key of the position was thus nobly recovered, and the Fusiliers,—breathless,—besmeared with sweat and mud and gore,—stood triumphant upon the contested height, surrounded with heaps of dying and dead, and wondering at the brilliant success which crowned their manly efforts.

While the Fusiliers were contending on the height, fresh men were brought forward; the French generals perceived that the day was irretrievably lost, and withdrew their broken masses beyond the river.[18] Numerous [59]instances of individual gallantry occurred, and Serjeant Gough of the first battalion having recovered the regimental[60] colour of the third foot, or buffs, which corps had been nearly annihilated by the charge of the lancers,[61] was rewarded with a commission in the second West India regiment.

To the Royal Fusiliers, the honour of having triumphed over superior numbers of Napoleon's veteran bands, and the glory of having added lustre to the British arms, were justly due; but the splendour of victory was shrouded with grief at the loss of many brave officers and soldiers. Among others, the fall of their commander, the brave, the chivalrous Sir William Myers, caused a sense of deep sorrow. His career, though short, had been brilliant; his manners were those of a finished gentleman and scholar, and every action was marked with the enthusiasm of a soldier whose noblest pride was his profession, and whose solicitude was always alive to the interests and honour of his corps. At the early age of twenty-eight he closed a life of honour in a death of glory.

Return of killed and wounded of the Royal Fusiliers at the battle of Albuhera.

Names of officers of the Royal Fusiliers present at the battle of Albuhera.

The list of killed and wounded, containing about seven hundred officers and soldiers, proclaims with dreadful eloquence the sanguinary character of the contest in which the Royal Fusiliers were engaged. Their heroic conduct was subsequently rewarded with the privilege of bearing the word "Albuhera" inscribed on their colours. Major Blakeney was promoted to the[63] lieutenant-colonelcy vacant by the death of Sir William Myers; Major Nooth was rewarded with the rank of lieutenant-colonel in the army, and Captain Despard (who succeeded to the command of the second battalion after the fall of Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney), with that of major. A gold clasp was sent to the relatives of Sir William Myers; Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney was rewarded with a gold clasp, and Major Nooth and Captain Despard with gold medals.

After the battle, the brigade was attached to the remains of the second division commanded by Major-General the Honourable William Stewart, whose estimation of the conduct of the Fusiliers is attested by the following letter.

"Almandrelejo, 26th May, 1811.

"Sir,

"As you have been so kind as to permit me to transmit to you the names of the officers of my division who commanded corps on the 16th instant, it may not be deemed irregular if, during the absence of Major-General Cole, I forward to you the names of the officers of the Fusilier Brigade who were similarly situated.

"The remains of that gallant corps having been attached to the second division, immediately after the action of Albuhera, and the major-general of the second division having been obliged to leave the field from a wound, I am induced to lay before you, for such favourable report on the subject as you may deem expedient to the Commander of the Forces, the enclosed returns which have been put in my possession by the officer now in command of the Fusilier Brigade, and who commanded the same in action, after the successive incapacity from wounds of his four senior officers.[64] I am afraid lest by further delay the exertions of that brigade be not sufficiently known. From the circumstance of the Fusilier Brigade having been joined with my third brigade in the hard-fought defence of our centre position for above three hours, and from the severe loss sustained by the Fusiliers on the spot, and from the testimony of the surrounding allied army, I feel myself authorised in stating that the conduct of the Fusilier Brigade on the 16th instant was admirable, and such as effectually secured the victory of that day.

"It is a duty, moreover, which I owe to the brave soldiers under my temporary command, to report that the second division is indebted to the Royal Fusiliers for the recapture of a six pounder, and of a regimental colour of the third, or buffs, both of which had been lost in the too successful attack of the enemy's cavalry, on my first brigade, in the beginning of that day.

"I am, &c.
"William Stewart,
"Major-General.

"To Marshal Beresford."

Both battalions having sustained so severe a loss, the second battalion transferred its men to the first, and the officers and staff serjeants returned to England to recruit.

After the victory at Albuhera the siege of Badajoz was resumed, the Seventh forming part of the covering army. A concentration of the enemy's force having taken place, the allies withdrew behind the Caya, where they awaited the attack of their opponents. The French generals had drained the provinces of troops to assemble a powerful army; but the stern character of British soldiers had been proved, and, having relieved Badajoz, they retired without hazarding an engagement.

[65]

The allied army broke up from the Caya in July, and the Royal Fusiliers moved towards the northern frontiers of Portugal; they halted a short period at the village of Aldea de Santa Margaritta, and afterwards marched to Aldea de Bispo. Meanwhile Lord Wellington blockaded Ciudad Rodrigo.

Marshal Marmont assembled sixty thousand men, and advanced to relieve Ciudad Rodrigo. Lord Wellington's forces were not sufficiently numerous to warrant his hazarding a general engagement, excepting under very advantageous circumstances; he however held his positions; and on the 25th of September the Fusilier Brigade, under Major-General the Honourable E. M. Pakenham, advanced to sustain a small body of troops under Major-Generals Colville and Alten, which had been attacked at El Bodon by forty squadrons of French cavalry and fourteen battalions of infantry with cannon. This portion of the allied army having retrograded, the French cavalry menaced the Fusiliers; but were deterred charging by the steady and determined countenance of the brigade.

During the night Lord Wellington strengthened his position; but afterwards withdrew to a post twelve miles behind Guinaldo. The enemy coming forward with overwhelming numbers, his lordship withdrew during the night of the 26th of September, covered by the Fusiliers and a body of cavalry.

The French, pressing the British rear during the retrograde movement on the 27th of September, attacked the Fusiliers, who were halted on a height behind the village of Aldea de Pont. Lord Wellington directed the Seventh to charge in line down the hill, and supported them with some Portuguese infantry. The Royal Fusiliers dashed forward in line with the steadiness of[66] old soldiers at a review, routed the French, and drove them down the height, to the admiration of all present; Lord Wellington witnessed the firm conduct of the Royal Fusiliers, and expressed his approbation of their steady and gallant bearing. The French were afterwards repulsed in an attempt to turn the flank of the brigade by a wood: the twenty-third Fusiliers and Portuguese Caçadores turned the French left, and Aldea de Pont was again occupied by the allies. It was, however, subsequently abandoned, and the army went into position on the Coa. The French withdrew, and the Royal Fusiliers went into quarters at Villa Ciervo. The regiment had been joined, a short time before, by three hundred and sixty-four young soldiers from England: its loss at Aldea de Pont was nine men killed; Captain Wylly, Lieutenants Barrington, Wallace, and Seaton, one Serjeant, and thirty-six private soldiers wounded.[20]

On the 1st of January, 1812, the first battalion mustered upwards of thirteen hundred officers and soldiers, and it was immediately afterwards employed in the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo, which was undertaken in the winter. This fortress was captured by storm during the night of the 19th of January, 1812, while the French marshal was assembling an army to advance to its relief. The loss of[67] the Royal Fusiliers, during the siege, was limited to two men killed and eight wounded. After the capture of Ciudad Rodrigo the regiment remained at the village of Cileçes el Chico, where it was detained several days by the swelling of the Agueda from heavy rains: it subsequently retired and went into cantonments.

After withdrawing from before Ciudad Rodrigo, the regiment was allowed only a short period of repose before it was called upon to march to Spanish Estremadura, to take part in wresting the strong fortress of Badajoz from the enemy. Leaving its cantonments near Fuentes d'Onor on the 27th of February, it proceeded southwards; boats were laid over the Guadiana on the 15th of March, and on the following day Badajoz was invested by the third, fourth, and light divisions; the Royal Fusiliers, forming part of the fourth division, were engaged in the siege. The batteries were opened, and, notwithstanding the sallies of the French garrison under the resolute General Phillipon, inundations from heavy rains, and other obstructions, practicable breaches were ready in the early part of April; and on the evening of the 6th of that month the Royal Fusiliers were under arms to take part in the storming of that stupendous fortress. The fourth and light divisions were to march against the breaches; the light division was to assault the bastion of Santa Maria, and the fourth, the Trinidad, with the breach in the curtain connecting the two bastions; one body of the grenadiers of the fourth division, under Captain John Mair, of the Royal Fusiliers, led the attack against the bastion of Trinidad; and another body, under Captain William Francis Cholwick, also of the Seventh, led the assault on the breach in the curtain.

[68]

Moving silently from their camp-ground along the left of the river Rivillas and the inundations, the fourth and light divisions made a short detour, and arrived at the glacis at the moment the third division attacked the castle. Ladders were placed, and about five hundred men of the light division had descended into the ditch with the most heroic bravery, cheering as they went, when suddenly a loud report like thunder was heard, and the storming parties were blown to pieces by the explosion of hundreds of shells and powder barrels. Undismayed by this terrific destruction, the men of the light and fourth divisions raised a loud shout and plunged into the ditch, where many men perished in the inundations; others, after overcoming numerous difficulties, approached the breach exposed to a most destructive fire. As they ascended, loose planks studded with sharp iron points wounded their feet and produced great mischief, and a range of sword-blades with sharp points and keen-edges, firmly fixed in beams chained together and set deep in the ruins, arrested the progress of the soldiers; at the same time a terrible fire of musketry thinned their ranks. Again the assailants rushed up the breaches with the most determined resolution; but the sword-blades stopped their career, and the thundering powder-barrels and hissing shells exploded continually. Numerous and astonishing efforts of valour and intrepidity were made, and the most heroic bravery displayed, yet the obstacles were such as could not be overcome; and about midnight, when two thousand brave soldiers had fallen, the survivors received orders to retire, and re-form for a second attack. In the meantime the third division had captured the castle, and a brigade had carried the bastion of San Vincente; the town was[69] thus forced; partial actions afterwards took place in various places; and the governor escaped to the fort of St. Christoval, where he surrendered. Thus, by the union of ability, energy, and valour, two important fortresses were captured in three months, in the face of two French armies: the British commander was enabled to enlarge the sphere of his operations, and these successes appeared as the first rays of the coming glory which was about to shine resplendently on the British arms.

The Royal Fusiliers were subsequently honoured with the royal authority to bear the word "Badajoz" on their colours; Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney and Captain John Mair received medals; but the regiment had to regret the loss of many brave men; the casualties among the officers were so great that the command of the division devolved on a major, all the general officers and lieutenant-colonels being wounded. The loss of the Seventh may be seen in the following returns.

List of the Officers of the Royal Fusiliers at the siege of Badajoz.

From Estremadura the Royal Fusiliers retraced their steps to the Agueda, and the army, advancing into Spain in June, drove the French from Salamanca. The inhabitants of this city illuminated their houses, shouted, sang, and wept for joy as the British troops took up a position on the mountain of St. Christoval, about five miles in advance; at the same time the forts (fortified convents) at Salamanca were besieged.

The French general, Marmont, advanced with a powerful army, and a series of manœuvres followed; but he was unable to relieve the forts, and they fell into the hands of the allies towards the end of June, when he withdrew beyond the Douro, followed by Lord Wellington.

On the night of the 16th of July the Royal Fusiliers marched to Castrejon, to which place the fourth and light division and a brigade of cavalry proceeded, preparatory to the assembling of the army on the Guarena; but the French commander, having been reinforced, passed the Douro, and attacked the troops at Castrejon on the morning of the 18th of July. Some sharp skirmishing occurred, and the Royal Fusiliers[71] had two men killed and fourteen wounded; but this small body of British, being opposed to the whole French army, withdrew behind the Guarena. A series of manœuvres brought the allied army back to the position of St. Christoval, in front of Salamanca, in the vicinity of which city the two armies confronted each other on the 22nd of July.

In the early part of this day about five hundred French gained possession of a village in front of the fourth division, and Captain John Crowder advanced with two companies of the Royal Fusiliers to dislodge them, which service was performed with such distinguished firmness and resolution, that Lord Wellington, who witnessed the affair, requested to know the name of the officer, and Captain Crowder was rewarded with the rank of major in the army.

During the day, as the enemy attempted to gain the road leading to Ciudad Rodrigo, his left wing was separated, during a complicated manœuvre, from the remainder of his army; Lord Wellington was watching the movements of his opponents from the summit of a rock, and, detecting the fault, ordered his divisions to attack. Thus the two armies came in contact under circumstances which proved the superior abilities of the British commander; the Royal Fusiliers, under Major John Walwin Beatty, were soon hotly engaged, and they steadily gained ground on the French forces opposed to them, driving their opponents from one height to another. Eventually a numerous body of French made a determined stand against the fourth division; but after a severe contest they were obliged to give way. An eminence in the centre of the enemy's position, on which he had planted thirty pieces of artillery, was carried by the[72] Fusilier Brigade with the most distinguished gallantry. Finally the French were overthrown and driven from the field with great loss; and they were indebted to the darkness of the night, the advantage of a thick wood, and other circumstances, for the safety of those who escaped the field of battle.

List of Officers of the Royal Fusiliers at the Battle of Salamanca.

The distinguished bravery of the regiment on this occasion was subsequently rewarded with the royal authority to bear the word "Salamanca" inscribed on its colours; and Major Beatty was presented with a gold medal.

Following up the advantages gained on the plains of Salamanca, the army advanced boldly into the heart of Spain, and the French were driven from Madrid, at which city Lord Wellington arrived on the 12th of August amidst the joyful acclamations of the people. The[73] Royal Fusiliers were stationed at Madrid, and afterwards occupied quarters for about eight weeks at the fine palace of the Escurial, about twenty-two miles from Madrid, from whence they were removed in the early part of October to Val de Moro and Campo; meanwhile the siege of Burgos had been undertaken by the main body of the allied army. The concentration of the enemy's forces having given him so great a superiority of numbers that a retrograde movement was necessary on the part of the British commander, the Royal Fusiliers quitted Val de Moro and Campo, and the troops retired on Salamanca. The army went into position; but on the enemy menacing the communication with Ciudad Rodrigo, the allies withdrew to the Agueda, the soldiers suffering extreme hardship from the want of food and inclement weather. The fourth division moved to St. Joā de Pisquiera, where the Royal Fusiliers remained until the beginning of the following year.[22]

On the 1st of January, 1813, the battalion mustered upwards of twelve hundred men, including about three hundred in hospital from wounds, &c. On the 3rd of that month sixteen serjeants and three hundred and eleven rank and file joined from England; on the 7th the battalion moved to Arvidiza, and in February to Castello Melhor on the right bank of the Coa, where it remained until the army took the field in May.

Advancing from the banks of the Coa towards the interior of Spain, the Royal Fusiliers once more confronted the legions of Napoleon; the battalion was[74] strong in numbers, bringing into the field a fine body of men on whose natural strength and valour the qualities of order, subordination, and discipline had been engrafted, which rendered them fit for any service.

By a daring advance the French were once more driven from Salamanca; by combinations evincing consummate skill, and by efforts of an extraordinary character, the enemy's positions on the Douro were turned; the field was then clear for the shock of battle, and the British commander, seeing the way of victory open, ordered forward his divisions; but the French evaded the torrent of war, and withdrew behind the Pisuerga, and afterwards behind the Ebro. Pressing onward with a conquering violence, the allied army traversed rocks and mountains, and marched through regions deemed impracticable for an army, and the French were forced back upon Vittoria, where they prepared for a determined effort to stem the tide of war.

Arriving at the Bayas on the 19th of June, the British found a division of the French army posted behind the river, and an action was commenced. The Royal Fusiliers were directed to attack the village of Montevite. Approaching this rural seclusion through a rocky mountainous country, abounding with trees, the foliage of which concealed their advance, they arrived close to the village unperceived; a few musket-shots alarmed the French, who instantly fled, leaving their cooking utensils and dinner on the fire, and some arms and accoutrements. The Royal Fusiliers pursued, some skirmishing took place, and several men fell in the conflict. The loss of the Seventh was limited to three wounded. The enemy was driven from the position on the Bayas, and forced back upon the Zadora.

[75]

From the banks of the Bayas the allied army advanced on the morning of the 21st of June, to fight the French under Joseph Buonaparte in position in front of Vittoria. The Royal Fusiliers formed part of the force destined for the attack of the enemy's centre under the immediate direction of Lord Wellington. They moved from Montevite down by Olabarre, along the valley in the centre. The Royal Fusiliers advanced in line under fire, through fields of corn more than breast high, the French retreating before them; and they overcame numerous obstructions and difficulties with a regularity which excited great admiration. Arriving at the Zadora, they were posted opposite the bridge of Nanclares; and when ordered to cross the bridge they sprang forward with cheerful alacrity and perfect order. The French were eventually driven from the field with the loss of their artillery, baggage, and an immense quantity of treasure. Many soldiers of different corps quitted their ranks to plunder; but it was observed that, when the Royal Fusiliers, pursuing the enemy, passed the French baggage and treasure-waggons, they were so impressed with a sense of the necessity of preserving order, so accustomed to perfect obedience, and jealous of the honour of their corps, that they refrained from irregularities, and followed the enemy with unbroken ranks. A decisive victory was gained: and the excellent conduct of the regiment was rewarded with the honour of bearing the word "Vittoria" on its colours. Lieutenant-Colonel Blakeney was also rewarded with an honorary distinction. The loss of the battalion was only two men killed and two wounded.

The Royal Fusiliers pursued the French army in the direction of Pampeluna, and when the enemy had[76] effected his escape through the Pyrenean mountains, they were employed in the blockade of Pampeluna, a fortress of great strength, and provided with an efficient garrison. They were, however, soon relieved from this duty, and detached against a French division under General Clausel, which was at Logroño when the battle of Vittoria was fought; after a forced march of six days the Fusiliers halted;—the enemy having effected his escape by the pass of Jaca. The regiment afterwards returned to the vicinity of Pampeluna, where it remained a few days, and subsequently penetrated the Pyrenean mountains; the fourth division taking post at Viscayret, in the valley of Urroz, and the Royal Fusiliers being at Espinal, two miles in advance.

Thus the British army, after years of toil and conflict, endured to procure liberty for the oppressed inhabitants of the Peninsula, had forced the intrusive monarch of Spain from his throne, and stood triumphant on the lofty pinnacles of the Pyrenees; but another mighty struggle was at hand, in which the innate valour and hardihood of the British soldiers were about to be tested. The French army had been re-organized by Marshal Soult, who pushed his divisions boldly forward to drive the British from the mountains. The enemy having made a demonstration of an attack on the front posts, two companies of the Royal Fusiliers advanced on the 24th of July to a height westward of Roncesvalles, where they were joined by the remainder of the battalion during the night; on the following morning the enemy attacked Major-General Byng's post in Roncesvalles, and the fourth division was ordered to advance. A detachment of the twentieth regiment evinced signal gallantry in its attacks on the head of a French column; but was forced back by superior[77] numbers. Some sharp fighting occurred during the day, and the Royal Fusiliers had Lieutenant Knowles and six men killed; one serjeant and twenty-three rank and file wounded. The British maintained their positions during the day; but being opposed to very superior numbers, they withdrew after sunset: the Fusilier Brigade being in the rear of the column, under Major-General Ross, the Seventh underwent a night of incessant toil and intense anxiety among the mountains. At day-light they fell in with posts of Major-General Byng's brigade, and the retrograde movement was continued, with short intermissions, until the allies gained a position in front of Pampeluna, where a determined stand was made.

Posted on the heights in front of the village of Villalba, the Royal Fusiliers awaited the approach of their opponents, resolving to perform their duty to their King and country in whatever circumstances they might be placed. Privations, and violent rains soaking the bleak hills, on which the soldiers were posted without any shelter, did not damp their courage, and on the 28th of June they witnessed the approach of the massy columns of the enemy without dismay. The heights occupied by the fourth division were attacked with great fury: the Royal Fusiliers were hotly engaged, and sternly, and with sanguinary tenacity, was the ground contested. Appalling shouts smote the ears of the French soldiers as they stormed the position, and the next moment ranks of British bayonets met them in mid-onset, and in the shock of steel the French soldiers were forced back with a horrid carnage. Four times the Royal Fusiliers precipitated themselves on the hosts of opponents which assailed their post, and on every occasion they proved victorious. The Marquis of Wellington observed in his[78] despatch:—"In the course of this contest the gallant fourth division, which has so frequently been distinguished in this army, surpassed their former good conduct. Every regiment charged with the bayonet,—the fortieth, the Seventh, twentieth, and twenty-third, four different times. Their officers set them an example; and Major-General Ross had two horses killed under him." The battle was renewed on the 29th and 30th of July, and the French commander, being foiled in every attempt by superior skill and unconquerable valour, retired towards France, closely pursued by the victorious allied army.

Officers present at the battle of the 28th of July.

This display of valour on the part of the Royal Fusiliers was rewarded with the honour of bearing the word[79] "Pyrenees" on their colours as a mark of royal favour and approbation; and their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Blakeney, was also rewarded with an honorary distinction.

The Royal Fusiliers took part in the movements by which the enemy was driven through the Pyrenean mountains back to France; they were also engaged, on the 7th of October, in the operations connected with the passage of the Bidassoa, when the French were forced from several strong mountain positions defended with field-works. The light and fourth divisions advanced against the posts of Vera and Liran, and the attack was successful.

After the passage of the Bidassoa the Seventh were encamped about a month near the bridge of Lezaca and heights of Liran; and drafts amounting to about two hundred serjeants and rank and file were received from the second battalion, then quartered in the isle of Jersey.

On the 10th of November the allied army drove the enemy from his positions on the river Nivelle; the British now stood triumphant and firmly established in France, and the admirers of unprincipled aggression beheld the day of retribution overtake a country which had been vainly styled "sacred;" the deep wrongs of insulted nations were, however, not avenged on the French peasantry, who received less harsh treatment from the allies than from their own countrymen in arms; but the tyrant who had hurled the thunders of war against the unoffending nations of the Peninsula saw them recoil with accumulated fury upon his own head.

Major-General the Honourable Edward Michael Pakenham, Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal Fusiliers (an officer of such distinguished valour and ability that[80] the regiment was truly proud of its lieutenant-colonel), was promoted on the 21st May, 1813, to the colonelcy of the sixth West India regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Blakeney, who had so often and so nobly headed the regiment in the field of battle, obtained permission to return to England, and the command devolved on Major John Beatty.[23]

A train of military and political events, not immediately affecting the fame or testing the valour of the Royal Fusiliers, took place in December, 1813, and January 1814. The passage of the Adour and Gave d'Oleron, with the blockade of Bayonne, took place in February, and the French withdrew to a position at Orthes, where they were attacked on the 27th of February. The Royal Fusiliers advanced against the enemy's right at St. Boës, and were thrown forward to commence the action as light troops, and to cover the advance of the columns of attack, a service which the nature of the ground particularly favoured. The brigade, composed of the Seventh, twentieth, and twenty-third regiments, was warmly engaged until two in the afternoon, when the fifth division arrived and took the brunt of the action at that point. Finally the French Marshal was forced to retire with severe loss.

The Royal Fusiliers had one serjeant and five rank and file killed; Lieutenants Burke, Nantes, Lorentz, and Cameron, four serjeants, and fifty-two rank and file wounded; and their gallantry procured them the honour of bearing the word "Orthes" on their colours. Major John Walwin Beatty, commanding the battalion, was rewarded with a gold clasp.

[81]

In March the Royal Fusiliers were detached, with other corps, towards Bourdeaux: the French garrison fled at the approach of the British, and the inhabitants declared in favour of the Bourbon dynasty.

The Royal Fusiliers returned to the army, and had the honour to take part in the battle of Toulouse on the 10th of April, when the French were once more defeated. The battalion was not seriously engaged on this occasion, and its loss was limited to one man killed and three wounded. Its gallant bearing was conspicuous, and was rewarded with the word "Toulouse" on its colours, and an honorary distinction for its commander, Major John W. Beatty, who was also promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Major S. B. Auchmuty, commanding the light companies of the brigade, was rewarded with a medal and the rank of lieutenant-colonel.

The French army withdrew within the town, with the view of defending the place to the last extremity, but subsequently retired, and hostilities were soon afterwards terminated by the abdication of Napoleon and the restoration of Louis XVIII. to the throne of France.

Thus years of toil and bloodshed, which had developed—in vast combinations—in astonishing exhibitions of skill, firmness, iron hardihood, heroic valour—the true character of Wellington and the soldiers he led from kingdom to kingdom, from victory to victory, and had forced all the nations of Europe to confess the glory of the British arms, terminated in the restoration of peace to the troubled states of Europe. The Royal Fusiliers had fought and toiled for the good of other countries; at this glorious termination of their labours, they were placed in quarters of refreshment among the French peasantry, and they received the blessings[82] of the people they had delivered from usurpation and tyranny.

Among the numerous instances in which a very excellent spirit had been displayed by individuals during this arduous struggle, the Record Book of the Royal Fusiliers bears extraordinary testimony of the most laudable and indefatigable exertions of Adjutant James Hay, who, making the duties of his appointment the business of his life, aided with praiseworthy zeal his commanding officer in maintaining the efficiency, discipline, and reputation of his corps, in which he took a lively interest; he was never absent from his regiment during the whole of the Peninsular campaigns, excepting from wounds, and he thus earned an imperishable fame in the annals of the Royal Fusiliers.

At the end of May the regiment was withdrawn from its cantonments, and, proceeding towards Bourdeaux, was encamped a few days near that city; on the 14th of June it was embarked at Pouillac in transport brigs, and conveyed down the Garonne to the "Clarence" (a British seventy-four), lying in Verdun roads. In this ship the regiment sailed to England, where it arrived, after an absence of nearly seven years, towards the end of June, and on landing at Plymouth was greeted with the hearty cheers of crowds of countrymen assembled on the occasion, who testified their admiration of the brilliant career of the regiment in a most lively manner.

After landing, the regiment occupied quarters at Totness for several weeks; it subsequently proceeded to Portsmouth, where both battalions were stationed in garrison; the second battalion having returned in August from Jersey, where it had been stationed since November, 1811.

[83]

At the termination of the Peninsular War, Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Blakeney was honoured with the dignity of Knight of the Tower and Sword by the Prince Regent of Portugal; he was also rewarded with a cross and clasp for his services at Martinique, Albuhera, Badajoz, Vittoria, and in the Pyrenees.

The Royal Fusiliers were not long permitted to enjoy repose, before an order from the Horse Guards summoned them to engage in scenes of conflict beyond the Atlantic ocean. The impressing of British seamen on board of American vessels, with the enforcing of certain Orders in Council, designed to counteract the decrees of Buonaparte, who, in the height of his power, endeavoured to destroy the commerce of Great Britain, had been followed by a war with the United States, and the Seventh were selected to proceed with the forty-third light infantry under Major-General Lambert, to join the troops engaged in active service against the American coast. The first battalion was completed to a thousand rank and file from the second, and embarked on the 4th of October, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Blakeney; it proceeded, in the first instance, to Plymouth, from whence it sailed to the West Indies.[24]

From the West Indies the regiment sailed towards the southern states of North America, and arrived, on the first of January, 1815, off the coast of Louisiana; it was there removed into small boats, to proceed along Lake[84] Barque to join the army commanded by Major-General the Honourable Sir Edward Michael Pakenham, K.C.B., near New Orleans, a place of some note, situate on the eastern bank of the Mississippi. After a difficult navigation of eighty miles in small boats, the regiment landed (having lost a serjeant and sixteen men by the sinking of a boat on the lake); and on the following day joined the army at its camp on the bank of the Mississippi. Arrangements had previously been made for the attack by storm of a line of entrenchments and redoubts which the Americans had constructed behind a canal to cover the approach to New Orleans, and behind which they had collected an army treble the numbers of the British. A short time before day-light, on the morning of the 8th of January, the Royal Fusiliers were at their post, and forming, with the forty-third, the reserve to the storming party. Some delay occurred; the ladders were not ready at the proper moment; and when the soldiers rushed forward to storm the enemy's works, difficulties were encountered which it was found impossible to overcome. A serious loss had been sustained in killed and wounded; the commander-in-chief had fallen;[25][85] and no chance of ultimate success remained: when the storming parties fell back, the Seventh and forty-third,[86] deploying into line, and making a forward motion, presented the appearance of a renewed attack, by which the Americans were so much awed that they did not venture to pursue the retreating soldiers; at the same time the two regiments presented so steady and confident a front under a heavy fire as to excite great admiration, and the storming parties rallied and formed in support. No prospect of ultimate success appearing, the troops withdrew to their camp. The loss of the Seventh on this occasion was Major King, Captain Henry, one serjeant, and twenty-three rank and file killed; Captains Mullins and Page, Lieutenant Lorentz and Higgins, six serjeants, and sixty-two rank and file wounded.

The Royal Fusiliers were subsequently employed in occupying posts close to the enemy's position; meanwhile a temporary road was constructed through a morass to the lake, and the British, withdrawing by a night march, embarked in boats and returned to the fleet: the Fusiliers and piquets remained before the enemy until the morning of the 19th of January, when they retired. During the few days the Royal Fusiliers had been before New Orleans, privations and sufferings of every kind had been endured with a cheerfulness which redounded to the honour of the officers and soldiers.

The Fusiliers were afterwards landed on Isle Dauphin, north of Mobile Bay, West Florida. An[87] attack on Mobile was resolved on, and Fort Bowyer, which commanded the entrance to the harbour, was besieged and captured, and two companies of the Seventh garrisoned the fort. Further hostilities were, however, prevented by a treaty of peace; and in March the regiment embarked from the Isle Dauphin, West Florida, for England; two vessels were delayed on the voyage; the remainder, landing at Deal, occupied the barrack at that place until the middle of June. Napoleon Buonaparte had, in the meantime, regained the throne of France: a British army had assembled in the Netherlands, under the Duke of Wellington, to wage war against the usurper; and the Royal Fusiliers were ordered to embark for Flanders to share in the conflict. The first division of the regiment, consisting of the head-quarters and four companies, landed at Ostend on the 18th of June, the day the French army was overthrown at Waterloo, and proceeded in boats up the canal to Bruges. These companies were afterwards assembled at Ghent, from whence they advanced up the country, in charge of treasure for the allied army, and arrived in the vicinity of Paris on the 6th of July. The war had terminated; the Bourbon dynasty was restored; and the Royal Fusiliers were encamped near Paris three months, during which time the remainder of the battalion arrived at the camp. The regiment was present at several reviews of the British forces, in the presence of the Emperor of Russia, King of Prussia, and other sovereigns. In September the regiment occupied a temporary barrack beyond the town and forest of St. Germain. In December it returned to Paris and occupied a large public building, which was fitted up for a barrack, the officers being quartered on the inhabitants.

[88]

On the 24th of December the second battalion transferred its men fit for service to the first, and was disbanded at Dover; at the same time a recruiting company was added to the establishment of the first battalion.

Honorary distinctions were this year conferred on many officers of the army. Colonel Sir Edward Blakeney, of the Royal Fusiliers, was honoured with the dignity of Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath, and the following officers were appointed Companions of the Order of the Bath:—Lieutenant Colonels John Walwin Beatty, Samuel Benjamin Auchmuty, and Alexander Campbell Wylly.

On the 1st of January, 1816, the effective strength was one thousand and twenty-eight; the regiment left Paris on the 16th of January, and marching to the Pas de Calais, was placed in village-cantonments in the vicinity of Bapaume, forming part of the Army of Occupation in France.

The Royal Fusiliers were highly commended at the half-yearly inspection on the 22nd of May: they were reviewed by Lieutenant-General Lord Hill in August, and obtained his lordship's approbation; and in September Lieutenant-General Sir Lowry Cole made a minute inspection of the regiment, and expressed his entire satisfaction of its appearance and discipline.

In September the regiment was removed to the vicinity of Cambray, and was subsequently encamped near Denain, with the remainder of the first division, the other divisions being encamped about two miles distant. On the 22nd of October the British, Saxon, and Danish contingents of the Army of Occupation were reviewed by the Duke of Wellington, in presence of their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of Kent and Cambridge, who[89] expressed their admiration of the appearance and discipline of the troops. After the review the regiment returned to its village cantonments, and at the half-yearly inspection in November, Major-General Sir James Kempt expressed his satisfaction at its appearance and condition.

In the early part of 1817 the establishment was reduced to eight hundred and sixty seven non-commissioned officers and private soldiers; and in April the regiment marched to the city of Valenciennes, and with the twenty-third, forty-third, fifty-seventh, and ninety-first, formed the garrison of that fortress.

On the 6th of September the Royal Fusiliers were present at the review of the British and Danish contingents by the King of Prussia; on the 9th of that month they were reviewed by Lieutenant-General Lord Hill; and on the 15th of October, by his Grace the Duke of Wellington.

Having passed the winter at Valenciennes, the Seventh were reviewed, in June, near that fortress with the British, Danish, and Saxon contingents, by the Grand Duke Michael of Russia, for whom the regiment furnished a guard of honour. The British troops were subsequently reviewed by Lieutenant-General Lord Hill on the 3rd of September; by the Duke of Wellington in presence of their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Kent, on the 10th of that month; and on the 23rd of October by the Emperor of Russia, King of Prussia, Prince of Orange, &c. &c.

Soon after this review the establishment was reduced to seven hundred and forty-six officers and soldiers; and the Army of Occupation being withdrawn from France, the regiment marched to Calais, where it embarked for[90] England, and landed at Dover on the 2nd of November.

After occupying Dover Castle barracks a few days, the regiment marched to Deal, where it embarked for Ireland, and landed on the 26th and 27th of November at the Cove of Cork, from whence it proceeded to Fermoy, and, in December, to Dublin.

The regiment remained at Dublin until August, 1820, and its appearance, discipline, and interior economy were commended at the half-yearly inspections made by Major-Generals White, Buller, and Sir Colquhoun Grant. It subsequently occupied extensive cantonments, the head-quarters being at Londonderry, where it was inspected by Lieutenant-General Sir David Baird, and Major-General Sir Sidney Beckwith, and obtained the approbation of these distinguished officers. In November it embarked at Belfast for Scotland, and landing at Port Patrick, marched from thence to Edinburgh and Glasgow: its appearance and discipline were commended at the half-yearly inspection made by Major-General Sir Thomas Bradford; and in June, 1821, when it was ordered to march to England, this general-officer "expressed his warmest approbation of the uniform good conduct and regularity in quarters, as well as of the high state of discipline in the field and excellent interior economy;" at the same time requesting "Colonel Sir Edward Blakeney to convey these sentiments to the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers."

Leaving Scotland in July, the regiment proceeded to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Carlisle, Tynemouth, and Sunderland; and in August the establishment was reduced to six hundred and fifty officers and men.

In the spring of 1822 the regiment marched to Chatham[91] and Sheerness; from whence it was removed in June and July to Brighton and Windsor, and had the honour of performing the King's duty during the residence of King George IV. at the Royal Pavilion, Brighton.

In the summer of 1825 the regiment was divided into six service and four depôt companies; the service companies embarked at Gosport on the 14th and 15th of June for the Ionian Islands, where they were stationed until September 1828, when they were removed to Malta.

On the decease of General Sir Alured Clarke, the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers was conferred on Major-General Sir Edward Blakeney, K.C.B., G.C.H., by commission dated the 20th of September, 1832.

In December, 1833, the depôt companies embarked at Portsmouth for Ireland, where they arrived in January, 1834; they returned to England in October, 1835, and landed at Portsmouth.

The service companies remained at Malta until the early part of 1836, when they returned to England, and landing at Portsmouth, were stationed at that fortress until June, when they removed to Winchester.

In July the regiment marched to Windsor, and had the honour of performing the King's duty during the residence of His Majesty King William IV. at Windsor Castle.

While on duty at Windsor, a superb piece of plate for the officers' mess-table was directed by His Majesty King William IV. to be presented to the regiment, with the following inscription:—

"The Gracious Gift of King William the Fourth,
July 1836."

"His Majesty remembers with satisfaction, that he[92] became a member of the Mess of the Royal Fusiliers at Plymouth in the year 1786, and he has directed his son, Colonel Lord Frederick Fitz Clarence, who had the advantage of commanding the Regiment during some years,[26] to present this piece of plate as a mark of His Majesty's approbation;—of his high sense of the gallant and admirable services, and of the exemplary discipline and gentlemanly conduct, which have uniformly distinguished the Royal Fusiliers."

Leaving Windsor in August, the regiment proceeded into Lancashire, and the head-quarters were stationed at Bolton until the autumn of 1837, when the regiment proceeded to Ireland. During the year 1838 the Royal Fusiliers were stationed at Dublin; in May, 1839, they were removed to Kilkenny, and in August following to Cork.

In the autumn six companies of the regiment embarked for Gibraltar, and arrived at that fortress in November, leaving four depôt companies in Ireland.

The service companies remained at Gibraltar until the 19th December, 1844, when they embarked for the West Indies, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Farquharson, on board of Her Majesty's Troop Ship "Resistance," and arrived at Barbadoes on the 18th January, 1845.

The depôt companies remained in Ireland from the embarkation of the service companies for Gibraltar until November, 1841, when they proceeded from Cork to Dover, and remained in England until June, 1845, when they returned to Ireland, where they have remained to the present year, 1846.

7th Fusiliers, 1846.

[93]

The service companies at the end of the year 1846, when this Record concludes, were in the West Indies, the head-quarters at St. Vincent.

The foregoing pages contain a faithful history of the Royal Fusiliers from the period of their formation in the year 1685, and of the peculiar service for which this Regiment was originally established. The introduction of artillery, and the expert and proper management of field-guns, rendered it necessary that a suitable description of officers and men should be selected for such an important and scientific branch of the service, in order to ensure its usefulness; hence it may be inferred, that as qualifications of a superior kind were requisite, the Subaltern Officers in the Royal Fusiliers obtained, on their first appointment, the rank of Lieutenant, a distinction which is continued to the present time.

During a period exceeding one hundred and sixty years, the Royal Fusiliers have proved themselves to be a faithful and zealous Regiment in the cause of Royalty, and in the interests of their country. Their services in various parts of Europe and America, when war has required their presence and exertions, have, on all occasions, been conspicuous; and their conduct on home-service, when relieved from their tour of duty abroad, has been marked by a strict adherence to the rules of order and discipline: these qualities have rendered them a valuable corps to the Government of the country, and have obtained for them a continuance of the approbation of their Sovereign.

1846.

[94]
[95]

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

OF

THE SEVENTH REGIMENT;

OR,

THE ROYAL FUSILIERS.

GEORGE LORD DARTMOUTH,

Appointed 11th June, 1685.

Lord Dartmouth was the son of Colonel William Legge, a zealous royalist, who was with King Charles I. at the battle of Newbury and other engagements, was also in the design of the Earl of Holland to restore His Majesty in 1648, and was wounded and taken prisoner. The King was so sensible of Colonel Legge's services, and esteemed him so highly for his fidelity, that a short period before his execution, his Majesty requested the Duke of Richmond to inform the Prince of Wales (afterwards Charles II.) "that whenever he was restored to his rights, he should be sure to take care of honest Will Legge, for he was the faithfullest servant that ever any prince had."

Colonel Legge also displayed great devotion to the cause of King Charles II., and was one of the commissioners appointed by the King, in 1659, to promise pardon to all who should endeavour to effect His Majesty's restoration; excepting the individuals who sat as judges on his royal father. After the restoration His Majesty informed Colonel Legge of the message[96] of King Charles I. by the Duke of Richmond; but the colonel declined being advanced to the peerage, at the same time expressing a hope that his sons might deserve his Majesty's favour.

George Legge (the eldest son of Colonel William Legge) went to sea at the age of seventeen, under the care of Sir Edward Spragg, a distinguished officer who commanded the rear squadron of the combined English and French fleets against Holland in 1673, and fought the Dutch Admiral Tromp, ship to ship, until both their ships were so disabled that they quitted them, and, hoisting their flags in other vessels, renewed the battle with incredible fury. Sir Edward Spragg's ship being terribly torn, he designed to go on board of a third vessel; but his boat was struck by a shot and he was drowned. Under this gallant preceptor George Legge acquired a knowledge of his profession; in 1667 he commanded the Pembroke man-of-war; in 1671 the Fairfax; and in the following year the Royal Catherine. In 1672 he was appointed lieutenant-governor of Portsmouth; in 1673 he was appointed governor of that fortress; also master of the horse and gentleman of the bedchamber to His Royal Highness the Duke of York (afterwards King James II.). At the augmentation of the army in 1678 he was appointed colonel of a newly-raised regiment of foot, which was disbanded after the peace of Nimeguen; he was also lieutenant-general of the ordnance, and was sworn a member of the privy council in 1681; in 1682 he was constituted master-general of the ordnance, and was commissioned to inspect all the forts and garrisons in England.

On the 2nd of December, 1682, he was advanced to the dignity of Baron of Dartmouth, with remainder, in default of issue, to his brother William; which remainder the King particularly ordered himself "in justice" (as he was pleased to say) "to the memory of old Colonel Legge, whose modesty ought not to prejudice his children."

The preamble of the patent imports—"That His Majesty, remembering the great merits of William Legge, one of the grooms of the royal bedchamber to his late father King Charles I., especially in that unparalleled rebellion raised[97] against him, in which, being a person of singular skill and experience in military affairs, and also a valiant and expert commander, he faithfully served His Majesty in most of the battles and sieges of those unhappy times; that he also performed several eminent services to King Charles II. since his most happy restoration; and further, considering that George Legge, eldest son of the said William Legge, following his father's example in divers military employments, especially in sundry sharp and dangerous naval fights, wherein he did freely hazard his life, for which respect, being made general of the ordnance and artillery, and one of His Majesty's most honourable privy council, His Majesty has thought fit to dignify him with some further honour. &c."

In 1683 Lord Dartmouth was sent with the fleet to Africa, to destroy the works of Tangier and bring home the garrison and English inhabitants; on his return he was rewarded by his Majesty with a grant of ten thousand pounds. On the accession of King James II. his lordship was continued as master-general of the ordnance, and one of the privy council; he also held the appointment of constable of the Tower of London; and on the augmentation of the army in 1685, he was appointed Colonel of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. In 1687, when King James II. was making a tour through part of his dominions, the city of Coventry presented His Majesty with a large gold cup and cover, which he immediately delivered to Lord Dartmouth, telling him, "There was an acknowledgment from the citizens of Coventry for his father's sufferings in their town:"—Colonel Legge having endured a long imprisonment there, after being wounded and taken prisoner at the battle of Worcester, in 1651, and he escaped from thence by a stratagem on the part of his wife, in woman's attire.

When the Prince of Orange prepared an armament for a descent on the English coast, Lord Dartmouth was appointed admiral of the fleet of England sent out in the autumn of 1688 to intercept the Dutch. He accepted this employment out of gratitude to the King, "who," as Bishop Burnet[98] observes, "loved him, and in whose service he had long been." The bishop adds,—"He was, indeed, one of the worthiest men of his court, and, although much against the conduct of his affairs, he was resolved to stick to him at all hazards." His conduct while in command of the fleet has been variously represented; but it appears evident he was only prevented fighting the Dutch fleet by unfavourable weather.

On the accession of the Prince of Orange to sovereign power, Lord Dartmouth was deprived of his appointments, and in 1691 he was imprisoned in the Tower of London for corresponding with King James. After three months' confinement, he died suddenly of apoplexy, and King William commanded the same honours to be paid at his lordship's funeral which would have been due to him if he had died possessed of all his late employments. He was interred near his father, in a vault in Trinity Chapel, in the Minories.

JOHN, EARL OF MARLBOROUGH,

Appointed 26th August, 1689.

This talented and brave nobleman attained the summit of military fame, and was equally celebrated for sound judgment in the cabinet, and for persuasive eloquence in conversation; while he swayed the councils of foreign courts, and reconciled conflicting interests among the states of Christendom, he led their armies to battle and to victory, acquiring a renown which will live in the page of history to the remotest ages, and the record of his achievements serves as a monument to commemorate the national glory. He was born on the 24th of June, 1650, and before he was sixteen years of age he was page of honour to the Duke of York, who procured him the commission of ensign in the first foot guards in 1666. Being an enthusiast in his profession, he resigned the pleasures of the court to engage in actual warfare on the shores of Africa, and distinguished himself as a volunteer against the Moors[99] under the walls of Tangier. In 1672 he was appointed captain of a company in the Duke of Monmouth's regiment of foot, and served with the French army, commanded by Louis XIV. in person, against the Dutch, where he signalized himself by a regular attention to duty, and volunteered his services on every occasion of difficulty and danger. He soon attracted the attention of the celebrated Marshal Turenne; distinguished himself at the siege of Nimeguen in 1672; and, in 1673, added to his rising honours by his gallantry at the siege of Maestricht, where he was wounded. In the following campaign he served with the French army on the Rhine, and was rewarded on the 3rd of April, 1674, with the colonelcy of an English regiment in the pay of Louis XIV., with which corps he continued to serve in the German war. In 1678 his regiment was recalled from France; and he proceeded to Flanders in command of a brigade of infantry; but the peace of Nimeguen taking place, he returned to England, and his regiment was disbanded. He continued in the suite of the Duke of York, whose constant attendant he became, and was employed in several delicate missions between His Royal Highness and the King, in which he evinced signal address. In 1633, he raised a troop of dragoons, and was appointed colonel of the royal regiment of dragoons,—a corps formed of two newly-raised troops of dragoons and four troops of Tangier horse. He was also elevated to the peerage of Scotland by the title of Baron Churchill of Aymouth; and soon after the accession of the Duke of York to the throne, he was created an English peer by the title of Baron Churchill of Sundridge, and promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. On the breaking out of the rebellion of the Duke of Monmouth, in June, 1685, Lord Churchill was detached with a body of troops against the insurgents, and his excellent conduct at the battle of Sedgemoor was rewarded with the colonelcy of the third troop of Life Guards, which gave him the privilege of taking the court duty of gold stick; but his devotion to the Protestant cause having induced him to join the standard of the Prince of Orange at the revolution in 1688, he was deprived of his appointment.

[100]

On the accession of King William III. and Queen Mary, Lord Churchill was restored to the command of the third troop of Life Guards; advanced to the title of Earl of Marlborough; and subsequently appointed colonel of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. He commanded the troops on the continent in 1689; gained additional laurels at the battle of Walcourt; and was appointed commander-in-chief in June, 1690. In the autumn of the same year he reduced Cork and Kinsale in Ireland;—and served at the head of the British infantry under King William III. in Flanders, in 1691; but, in May, 1692, he was sent prisoner to the Tower on a charge of high treason, which was not substantiated. In 1698 he was again received into royal favour; and in 1701 King William III. appointed him to the command of the British troops in the Netherlands, and to negotiate the treaties to be formed with foreign powers on the prospect of a war with France; he also appointed him, on the 12th of February, 1702, colonel of the twenty-fourth regiment of foot. On the accession of Queen Anne, he was appointed captain-general of the forces, and to the chief command of the English, Dutch, and auxiliary armies employed against the French; and all his operations were crowned with success. He took Venloo, Ruremonde, Stevenswaert, and Liege with surprising rapidity;—extended and secured the Dutch frontiers, and forced the enemy to seek shelter behind their lines. His great ability had become so conspicuous that on his return to England he was raised to the rank of Duke of Marlborough. In the spring of 1703 he once more took the field;—forced Bonn, Huy, and Limburg; but was impeded in his brilliant career by the jealousy or timidity of the Dutch generals. In April, 1704, he was appointed colonel of the first foot guards;—and in the succeeding campaign his grace led the army from the Ocean to the Danube;—he attacked the enemy on the 2nd of July, 1704, and forced the intrenchments at Schellenberg with distinguished gallantry. The decisive battle of Blenheim was fought on the 13th of August following, and the legions of France and Bavaria were overthrown;—there, the heaps of slain gave dreadful proofs of British valour; and[101] whole legions of prisoners were proofs of their mercy. This victory, which exalted the reputation of the Duke of Marlborough, and displayed in its true light the distinguished character of the British troops, produced the most important results;—Bavaria was subdued:—Ratisbon, Augsburg, Ulm, Meminghen,—all were recovered. From the Danube he marched towards the Rhine and Moselle. Landau, Treves, and Traerback were taken; and the British commander was created a Prince of the Empire. His abilities in the field were equalled by his judgment in the cabinet; and his council guided the confederate princes of Europe. In the spring of 1705 he once more took the field, and menaced the French in Alsace. From the Moselle he proceeded to the Maese. Liege was relieved, Huy retaken, and the boasted impregnable French lines were forced at Helixem and Neer-Hespen; but his career of victory was again impeded by the opposition he met with from the Dutch generals. These difficulties were however removed. In the spring of 1706 another campaign opened,—when the discipline he had introduced, and the confidence he inspired, again proved invincible. He met, attacked, and triumphed over the French and Spaniards at Ramilies on the 23rd of May, 1706. This decisive victory was followed by the surrender of Louvain, Brussels, Malines, Liere, Ghent, Oudenarde, Antwerp, Damme, Bruges, and Courtray: in the meantime Ostend, Menin, Dendermond, and Aeth, were taken:—places which had resisted the greatest generals for months—for years:—provinces disputed for ages were the conquests of a summer. So great was the reputation of the armies of the allies, and of their distinguished commander, that throughout the campaign of 1707 the enemy avoided a general engagement; but in the following summer a gallant French army, led by the princes of the blood, was overcome at Oudenarde:—new armies and new generals appeared; but the career of Marlborough could not be stopped. The barriers of France on the side of the Low Countries, the work of half a century, were attacked. A numerous French army were spectators of the fall of Lisle,—the bulwark of their barriers. Every[102] campaign added new conquests. Tournay was taken. The French army—posted near Malplaquet, in a position covered by thick woods, defended by treble entrenchments—was attacked. The battle was bloody—the event decisive. The woods were pierced. The fortifications were trampled down. The enemy fled. After this victory Mons was taken; and in the succeeding years, Douay, Bethune, Aire, St. Venant, Bouchain,—all underwent the same fate. Nothing availed against a general whose sagacity foresaw everything, whose vigilance attended to everything, whose constancy no labour could subdue, whose courage no danger could dismay, and whose intuitive glance always caught the decisive moment and insured victory; while the discipline he maintained and the confidence he inspired were equivalent to an army. The ambitious Louis XIV. saw his generals over-matched,—his armies beaten and dispirited,—his possessions wrested from him,—the barriers of his kingdom trampled down, and a powerful army ready to carry the horrors of war into the heart of his kingdom. The disasters of ten campaigns having proved that Marlborough was invincible, the French monarch sued for peace. The din and calamities of war were succeeded by the smile of plenty, tranquillity, and enjoyment: but, for some political cause, the gallant Marlborough was divested of all his offices dependent on the British crown. Continuing a stedfast adherent to the Protestant succession, he retired to the continent until the accession of George I., and was then replaced in his former posts, in which he continued until his decease in 1722. His unremitting exertions to inculcate the principles of order and discipline; his discernment in bringing merit into notice; his impartiality; and a series of glorious victories by which he upheld the national honour, and proved himself a valuable servant of the crown and kingdom, occasioned his memory to be deeply engraved on the hearts of the brave men who had fought under his command.

[103]

LORD GEORGE HAMILTON,

Appointed 23rd January, 1692.

Lord George Hamilton, fifth son of William Duke of Hamilton, was an officer in the Royal Regiment in the reign of Charles II., and also of James II., and, adhering to the Protestant interest at the Revolution in 1688, he was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and on the 1st of March, 1690, to the brevet rank of colonel. He served under King William III. in Ireland, and distinguished himself at the battle of the Boyne; and in 1691 he was at the siege of Athlone, at the battle of Aghrim, and the capture of Limerick. In January, 1692, he was appointed colonel of the Royal Fusiliers, at the head of which corps he distinguished himself at the battle of Steenkirk, and his gallantry was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Royal Regiment. Continuing to serve under King William in the Netherlands, he distinguished himself in 1693 at the unfortunate battle of Landen, and in 1695 at the siege of Namur, and while engaged in this service he was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. On the 3rd of January, 1696, he was advanced to the peerage by the titles of Baron Dechmont, Viscount of Kirkwall, and Earl of Orkney; and in March, 1702, he was promoted to the rank of major-general. He served the campaign of this year under the Earl of Marlborough, and was engaged in the siege of Stevenswaert. He commanded a brigade of infantry during the campaign of 1703, was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-general, and invested with the order of the Thistle in 1704; and, having proceeded with the army into the heart of Germany, took part in gaining the glorious victories of Schellenberg and Blenheim. In 1705 he distinguished himself at the siege and capture of Huy; and in the following year at the battle of Ramilies, and the siege of Menin. He also took a distinguished part in the battle of Oudenarde in covering the siege of Lisle; and in forcing the passage of the Scheldt in 1708. In 1709 he distinguished himself in the movements which preceded and led to the battle of Malplaquet, and[104] during this hard-contested action he signalized himself at the head of fifteen battalions of infantry. He also signalized himself at the siege of Douay in 1710; and in the beginning of the following year he was promoted to the rank of general. He was also engaged in passing the French lines in 1711, and commanded twenty battalions of infantry at the siege of Bouchain.

On these occasions the Earl of Orkney had evinced personal bravery and military talents of a superior character. At the close of the war he was a member of the privy council, and governor of Edinburgh Castle. On the accession of George I. he was appointed one of the lords of the bedchamber to his Majesty, and governor of Virginia; and in January, 1736, he was promoted to the rank of field marshal. He was many years one of the sixteen representatives of the Scottish peerage; and died in January, 1737.

EDWARD FITZPATRICK,

Appointed 1st August, 1692.

Edward Fitzpatrick was many years an officer of the Holland Regiment, now third foot or buffs, in which corps he rose to the rank of captain, and was so distinguished for a regular attention to duty, and for devotion to the Protestant interest, that at the revolution in 1688 he was promoted to the colonelcy of a regiment of foot (afterwards disbanded) with which he served in King William's wars. He was at the battle of Walcourt in 1689; and at the siege of Cork and Kinsale in 1690; and having signalized himself at the battle of Steenkirk in 1692, he was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers. In 1693 he was wounded at the battle of Landen; and in 1694 he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. In 1695 he commanded a brigade of infantry at the siege of Namur, and he acquired the confidence of his sovereign, and the esteem of his companions in arms. He was drowned on the 10th November, 1696.

[105]

SIR CHARLES O'HARA,

Appointed 12th November, 1696.

Charles O'Hara was an officer of the English brigade in the Dutch service in the time of King Charles II., and commanded a company in the Earl of Ossory's regiment. He subsequently held a commission in the first foot guards, was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the regiment, and was knighted by King William III. at Whitehall in 1689. He subsequently served under His Majesty in Flanders; was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general in 1695, and was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers in 1696. On the breaking out of the war of the Spanish succession, he was advanced to the rank of major-general, and he commanded a brigade under the Duke of Ormond in the expedition against Cadiz in 1702, on which occasion he was charged with participating in the plunder of Port St. Mary's, and brought to trial, but acquitted: in 1704 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general. In 1706 Queen Anne advanced him to the dignity of a peer of Ireland by the title of Baron of Tyrawley in the county of Mayo; and proceeding to Spain, he commanded the left wing of the allied army at the battle of Almanza, in 1707, where he was wounded. His Lordship was sworn a member of the privy council of Queen Anne in 1710; and also of King George I. in 1714; and in November, 1714, he was promoted to the rank of general. He had previously resigned the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers in favour of his son; and on the breaking out of the rebellion in 1715 he raised a regiment of foot in Ireland; this corps was, however, disbanded in 1718. He held, for several years, the appointment of commander-in-chief in Ireland; also the government of Minorca, and of the Royal Hospital near Dublin. He died on the 8th of June, 1724.

[106]

THE HONOURABLE JAMES O'HARA,

Appointed 29th January, 1713.

The Hon. James O'Hara was appointed lieutenant in the Royal Fusiliers, commanded by his father, on the 15th of March, 1703, and in 1706 he proceeded with his regiment to the relief of Barcelona. In the following year he served on the staff of the army in Spain, and was wounded at the battle of Almanza, where, it is said, he was instrumental in saving the Earl of Galway's life. He served several years at Minorca, and in 1713 he succeeded his father in the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers. In 1721 King George I. advanced him to the dignity of Baron of Kilmaine; and in 1724 he succeeded his father in the title of Baron of Tyrawley, and was sworn a member of the privy council in the same year. The rank of brigadier-general was conferred on his lordship on the 23rd of November, 1735; that of major-general on the 2nd of July, 1739; and in August of the latter year he was removed from the Royal Fusiliers to the fifth horse, now fourth dragoon guards. In March, 1743, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general, and in the following month obtained the colonelcy of the second troop of horse grenadier guards, from which he was removed, in 1745, to the third troop of life guards, which gave him the privilege of taking the court duty of Gold Stick. In 1746, when King George II. had resolved to disband the third and fourth troops of life guards, his lordship was removed to the tenth foot; he was again removed, in 1749, to the fourteenth dragoons; in 1752, to the third dragoons; and, in 1755, to the second, or Coldstream regiment of foot guards. He was appointed governor of Portsmouth on the 1st of May, 1759, and was promoted to the rank of general on the 7th of March, 1761. He held the appointment of governor of Minorca for several years; and was employed as envoy and ambassador to the courts of Portugal and Russia. He died at Twickenham on the 13th of July, 1773.

[107]

WILLIAM HARGRAVE,

Appointed 27th August, 1739.

This Officer entered the army in April, 1694, and served under King William in Flanders. He also served with distinction in the wars of Queen Anne; was major of the thirty-sixth regiment, with the rank of colonel in the army, at the battle of Dumblain in 1715; and in 1730 he was appointed to the colonelcy of the thirty-first foot: from which he was removed to the ninth foot in 1737, and in 1739 King George II. gave him the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers, which he retained until his decease in January, 1751.

JOHN MOSTYN,

Appointed 26th January, 1751.

John Mostyn obtained a commission in the army in February, 1732; he rose to the rank of captain in the thirty-first foot, and was appointed captain-lieutenant in the second foot guards in 1742. He served with his regiment on the continent; was wounded at the battle of Fontenoy, and in December, 1747, he was appointed aide-de-camp to the King, who gave him the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers in 1751. In 1754 he was removed to the thirteenth dragoons; in 1757 he was promoted to the rank of Major-General; in 1758 he obtained the colonelcy of the fifth dragoons, and was removed to the seventh dragoons in 1760. He had previously been promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general, and he highly distinguished himself at the head of the British cavalry in Germany in numerous actions and skirmishes in 1759, and the three succeeding years. In 1763 he obtained the colonelcy of the first dragoon guards, and he was promoted to the rank of general in 1772. He died in 1779.

[108]

LORD ROBERT BERTIE,

Appointed 20th August, 1754.

Lord Robert Bertie, son of the Duke of Ancaster, entered the army in July, 1737, as ensign in the second foot guards, and in 1744 he was promoted to the rank of captain and lieutenant-colonel. He was wounded at the battle of Fontenoy in 1745, and appointed aide-de-camp to the King in 1752: in 1754 he obtained the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers. He accompanied his regiment on board the fleet in 1756, and was in the engagement off the island of Minorca. In 1758 he was promoted to the rank of major-general; in 1760 to that of lieutenant-general; in 1776 he obtained the colonelcy of the second troop (now second regiment) of life guards; and was promoted to the rank of general in 1777. He died in 1782.

RICHARD PRESCOTT,

Appointed 12th November, 1776.

This Officer entered the army in the reign of George II. He saw much service; and on the augmentation, in 1755, he was appointed major of the fiftieth foot. In 1761 he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers, and the zeal and attention with which he performed the duties of commanding officer during the succeeding fifteen years was rewarded with the colonelcy of the regiment in 1776. In 1777 he was promoted to the rank of major-general, and in 1782 to that of lieutenant-general. He died in 1788.

[109]

THE HONOURABLE WILLIAM GORDON,

Appointed 20th October, 1788.

This Officer was appointed captain in the sixteenth light dragoons in 1759; he subsequently held the commission of major in the eighty-fourth, and lieutenant-colonel in the one hundred and fifth regiment, which was disbanded at the peace in 1763. In 1777 he was appointed colonel of the eighty-first regiment, and was promoted to the rank of major-general in 1781: in 1783 his regiment was disbanded; in 1787 he was appointed colonel commandant in the sixtieth, and in 1788 he obtained the colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers, from which he was removed in the following year to the seventy-first regiment. In 1793 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general. He obtained the colonelcy of the twenty-first regiment in 1803, which he retained until his decease in 1816.

HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS PRINCE EDWARD,

Afterwards Duke of Kent,

Appointed 9th April, 1789.

During the early part of this century the Royal Fusiliers had the honour of being commanded by a Prince who was distinguished alike for his social and military virtues:—namely, Prince Edward, afterwards Field Marshal His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the father of Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen Victoria.

Prince Edward, fourth son of His Majesty King George III., was born on the 2nd of November, 1767. Being destined for the profession of arms, in the eighteenth year of his age he proceeded to Germany for the completion of his studies, and resided successively at Lunenberg and Hanover, and was appointed, on the 30th of May, 1786, colonel of the Hanoverian[110] Guards. During the succeeding year he removed to Geneva, and while pursuing his studies at this place, His Majesty conferred upon him the Colonelcy of the 7th Royal Fusiliers. Early in 1790 he returned to England; and after passing a few days with his family he embarked, in obedience to the King's commands, for Gibraltar, in order to acquire a knowledge of garrison duty under Major-General O'Hara. While at Gibraltar he commanded for several months the 2nd, or Queen's Regiment, until the arrival of the 7th Royal Fusiliers, as a reinforcement to the garrison, in August, 1790. In 1791 he sailed with his regiment from Gibraltar for Quebec; and while serving in Canada he was promoted to the rank of major-general. From North America he proceeded, during the winter of 1793-4, through the United States to Boston, where he embarked for the West Indies, and joined the army under General Sir Charles Grey, at the commencement of the siege of Fort Bourbon, in the island of Martinique, and commanded the detached camp at La Coste, above Point Petre. During the several attacks His Royal Highness's conduct excited the admiration of the army; his life was frequently exposed to the most imminent peril; and his aides-de-camp, Captain, the late General Sir Frederick Wetherall, and Lieutenant Vesey, were wounded near his Royal Highness's person.[27] In compliment to the gallantry evinced by His Royal Highness on this occasion, the lower fort, called Fort Royal, was subsequently named Fort Edward.

After the capture of Martinique the array proceeded to St. Lucie; and His Royal Highness commanded the grenadier brigade, which, in conjunction with the light infantry brigade, under Major-General Thomas Dundas, formed the storming-party which carried Morné Fortuné. From St. Lucie the army proceeded to the island of Guadaloupe; and the flank companies were detached under Prince Edward and Major-General[111] Dundas, who succeeded in gaining possession of Morné Marscot, and Fleur D'Epée, commanding Point à Petre. His conduct during this course of active and perilous service again excited admiration, and His Royal Highness received the thanks of Parliament. After the capture of the French West India Islands[28] His Royal Highness returned to North America, and was shortly afterwards appointed Commander of the Forces in Nova Scotia and its dependencies. On the 12th of January, 1796, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General; and, having returned to England on account of ill health, he was created, on the 23rd of April, 1799, Earl of Dublin, in Ireland, and Duke of Kent and Strathearn, in Great Britain; in the following month he was promoted to the rank of General, and appointed Commander-in-Chief of all the forces in British North America. On his return to North America his arrival was greeted by all ranks; and during his stay in that country he introduced numerous improvements in the system of conducting public business. In August, 1800, His Royal Highness returned to England; and in the following year he was appointed to the Colonelcy of the Royal Regiment of Foot. In 1802 he was appointed Governor of the important fortress of Gibraltar, whither he immediately proceeded. His habits were abstemious and regular; and he was himself a model of that strict attention to duty and discipline which he required from others; but while attempting[112] to effect the removal of several long existing abuses and irregularities, His Royal Highness experienced that opposition which has attended every attempt to remedy evils, when the private interests and privileges of individuals are concerned. The Duke of Kent returned in 1803 to England, where he continued to reside upwards of fifteen years. He was promoted to the rank of Field-Marshal on the 5th of September, 1805; he was also elected a Knight of the Garter, constituted a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath, and appointed Keeper and Ranger of Hampton Court Park.

During the period His Royal Highness resided in England, the Royal Regiment of Foot experienced the advantage of his constant care and anxiety for its interests, and of his influence in the kingdom; and the service was benefited by the care he bestowed in the introduction of regimental schools. His concern, however, embraced the welfare of all His Majesty's subjects, and there was scarcely a public charity in the metropolis which did not derive benefit from his patronage, personal eloquence, and contributions, and over many he presided. His private acts of benevolence in the cases of widows and orphans who were known to His Royal Highness as deserving objects of relief were very numerous, and the instances of his charity and philanthropy were attested by the grateful acknowledgments of those who had no claim on His Royal Highness's bounty beyond the circumstance of a husband, father, or other relative having performed faithful service under his command. The provision made by His Majesty's Government for His Royal Highness had not been equal to his necessary expenditure to support the dignity of a Prince of the royal blood; particularly for the periods he was on foreign service; and in 1816 economical views induced him to proceed to the Continent. In May, 1818, he was married at Coburg, according to the Lutheran rites, to Her Serene Highness Victoria Maria Louisa, youngest daughter of the late reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg. Shortly after the solemnities the royal pair proceeded to England, and were remarried at Kew Palace on the 11th of July, 1818, according[113] to the rites of the Church of England. In a few weeks after this ceremony the Duke returned with his bride to the Continent; in the succeeding year they revisited England; and on the 24th of May, 1819, the Duchess gave birth, at Kensington Palace, to a daughter, named Alexandrina Victoria, Her present Majesty.

In a few months after this happy event this amiable Prince, whose social, private, and public virtues endeared him to his family and friends, and procured him a place in the affections of the British people, was attacked by pulmonary inflammation, produced by accidental cold, and he died at his temporary residence at Sidmouth on the 23rd of January, 1820. The remains of His Royal Highness were removed from Sidmouth and deposited in the royal vault at St. George's Chapel, in Windsor Castle, on the 12th of February, 1820, with the usual honours and solemnity observed at the funerals of the members of the Royal family.

SIR ALURED CLARKE, G.C.B.,

Appointed 21st August, 1801.

Alured Clarke was appointed ensign of the fiftieth foot in 1755, and lieutenant of the same corps in 1760. He served under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick in Germany, in the Seven Years' War; and was appointed to the command of a company in the fifth foot in 1767; in 1771 he was promoted to the majority of the fifty-fourth regiment, and in 1777 to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Royal Fusiliers, with which corps he served in America, and obtained the rank of colonel in 1781. In 1790 he was promoted to the rank of major-general, and in 1794 he was rewarded with the colonelcy of the fifth foot. In 1795 he commanded the land force at the capture of the Cape of Good Hope; his services were afterwards transferred to the East Indies, in which country he obtained the local rank of lieutenant-general in 1796, and he[114] was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the army in 1797. In 1801 he was removed to the Royal Fusiliers, and in 1802 he was promoted to the rank of general: he was advanced to the rank of field-marshal on the 22nd July, 1830. He died in 1832.

SIR EDWARD BLAKENEY, G.C.B.

Appointed 20th September, 1832.

London: Printed by W. Clowes and Sons, Stamford Street,
For Her Majesty's Stationery Office.