The aggressions of the bands of Pindarees, who made incursions into the territory subject to Great Britain, and committed great depredations, occasioned the regiment to be again called into the field in October of this year. Colonel Watson having received the appointment of Brigadier-General, and been nominated to a command under Major-General Sir Dyson Marshall, the command of the regiment devolved on Major Johnstone. The Pindarees were a community of professed marauders, and they were encouraged to make ravages in the British dominions in India, by the Mahratta states. Being all horsemen subsisting by plunder, the services of the corps employed against them were of an arduous and trying character:—traversing extensive districts by forced marches, passing rivers and thickets, and attempting to surprise these bands of plunderers, were duties calculated to exhaust the strength of European soldiers, when performed under an Indian sun. The regiment continued actively employed on these services until April, 1818, when it proceeded to the military cantonment of Meerut.
1825
At the pleasant quarters of Meerut, situated on an extensive grass plain, the regiment was stationed during the seven following years, and it preserved a high reputation for good conduct in quarters, while employed in this part of India. Events, however, occurred in 1825, which occasioned it to take the field, when it had another opportunity of gaining laurels in combat with the enemies of Great Britain, under the following circumstances:
The Rajah of Bhurtpore, Baldeo Singh, had become attached to the English government, with which he formed an alliance, offensive and defensive, and procured a guarantee for the succession of his youthful son, Bhulwunt Singh, to the throne; but amongst many of the rajah's subjects, a strong feeling of hostility to the British existed, particularly in the army, and his nephew, Doorjun Sal, was at the head of the party opposed to the British alliance. After the rajah's decease his nephew excited a rebellion, gained possession of the capital, and assumed the sovereign power. To fulfil the engagements made with the deceased rajah, by removing the usurper, and placing the youthful prince on the throne, a British army was assembled under General Viscount Combermere, and in November, 1825, the Fourteenth Foot, mustering upwards of nine hundred officers and soldiers, were withdrawn from Meerut, to join the division assembling at Muttra, for the purpose of engaging in this enterprise. The most important part of this war, it was well known, would consist in the siege of the capital, the fortified city of Bhurtpore; and great confidence being placed by the natives in the strength of this place, from which a British army under Lord Lake had been forced to retire in 1805, after a short siege, a body of troops was assembled, and a train of artillery brought forward, such as have seldom taken the field in Indian warfare. The Fourteenth, commanded by Major Matthias Everard, were formed in brigade with the Twenty-third and Sixty-third Regiments of Native Infantry, under Lieutenant-Colonel John M'Combe, of the Fourteenth, who had the rank of brigadier-general; Lieutenant-Colonel W. T. Edwards, of the Fourteenth Regiment, also commanded a brigade, with the rank of brigadier-general.
On the 10th and 11th of December the British army appeared before the celebrated city and fortress of Bhurtpore, which contained a garrison nearly equal in numbers to the besieging force. The Bhurtporees had cut a sluice into the embankment of a lake near the town, to fill the ditch round the works with water, but they were speedily driven from the spot; the sluice was stopped, the embankment was turned into a military post, which was intrusted to a company of the Fourteenth Foot, and some Sepoys: about eighteen inches of water, only, had flowed into the ditch, and this sudden seizure of the embankment facilitated the progress of the siege by keeping the ditch nearly empty. The several corps took up their ground; the investment became complete, several reconnoisances were made, and working parties cut down orange and date trees from the groves, and converted them into fascines and gabions. At an early hour on the morning of the 24th of December the fires of two batteries were opened on the town; additional works were constructed, the batteries became more numerous, and the siege was prosecuted with vigour; each successive day giving birth to fresh undertakings, and the progress, though tardy, becoming hourly more and more perceptible. It was, however, found particularly difficult to effect practicable breaches in the singularly constructed walls of Bhurtpore, which were thickly studded, in many places, with large trees of a peculiarly tough description of timber, which resisted shot with remarkable pertinacity. The process of mining was adopted, several explosions took place, and the result soon rendered it evident to every one present that the horrors of an assault were drawing near. The Bhurtporees, however, evinced great bravery and perseverance, exposing themselves to the fire of the besieging force with singular resolution; they built up in the night the works which were knocked down during the day, labouring under a ceaseless fire, and evincing a firm determination to persevere in the defence. The roar of cannon and musketry continued day and night like a ceaseless peal of thunder; and the explosions of the mines deafened, for an instant, all who were near the place.
Considerable progress having been made towards effecting practicable breaches, the Fourteenth Regiment received orders to prepare to lead one of the attacks at the storming of this celebrated fortress, and at two o'clock on the morning of the 18th of January, 1826, it marched to the front opposite the left bastion, to await the explosion of a mine. The Fourteenth and Fifty-ninth Regiments had the honour of being selected to head the two attacks, and they were directed to wheel as soon as they had entered the breaches, one to the right and the other to the left, and, continuing their career round the ramparts, to drive the enemy before them till they met. Some delay occurred in the mine, and the soldiers stood seven hours anxiously waiting for the moment to commence the assault, during which time the thunder of the artillery was tremendous. General Lord Combermere arrived at the spot where the Fourteenth were formed, and seeing the mouth of the mine near, he anxiously enquired if all was safe, to which the engineer replied in the affirmative. His lordship returned soon afterwards, and repeated the question, when he was again assured that all was safe. In a few minutes afterwards the bastion, beneath which the mine had been formed, heaved, as if by the power of an earthquake; the ponderous wall rocked to and fro, and then sunk down again, when, with a sound far exceeding the loudest thunder, the exploding mine rent the massive bastion into fragments, forcing stones, logs of wood, guns, men, and earth, into the air, with a violence which it is impossible to describe, and filling the atmosphere for a considerable distance with so dense a cloud of smoke, dust, and fragments of the ruined bastion, that it was difficult to breathe. Brigadier M'Combe was stunned, and several soldiers of the Fourteenth were injured by the falling fragments and bursting mine. As soon as the tremendous crash was over, the soldiers rushed through the cloud of smoke and dust, and began to ascend the breach, led by Majors Everard and Bisshopp; they encountered some opposition, but nothing could withstand the bayonets of the Grenadiers of the Fourteenth,—their valour soon overpowered all resistance, and the regiment gained the summit with little loss. The native corps appointed to support the regiment not being near, a short pause ensued, when the enemy opened a heavy fire from the buildings near the breach. Undaunted by this, the Fourteenth dashed forward, cleared the walls as they went, and, turning to the right, they drove the enemy from bastion to bastion, and from tower to tower, with astonishing intrepidity and success, capturing a colour which was on one of the bastions. The enemy sprang a mine, which killed several soldiers of the regiment; the Bhurtpore artillerymen fought with great desperation, and the defenders of the walls evinced much personal bravery, but they could not withstand the superior prowess and discipline of the British troops.
As the Fourteenth were scouring the ramparts, and overcoming all opposition in gallant style, they arrived at the Anah gate, where they met the soldiers of the Fifty-ninth, who had turned to the left at the breach, and proved victorious over every opponent; it was a moment of intense interest, and a scene of glorious emotions: Bhurtpore was won! the stain of a former repulse was wiped from the British arms, and they hailed each other with a hearty and cordial cheer.
The light company of the Fourteenth, which mounted the breach with the grenadiers, pursued, with other troops, a body of the enemy towards the citadel, which they nearly entered with the fugitives; four hundred Bhurtporees were shut out, and bayonetted at the gate. The citadel surrendered a few hours afterwards; the commander-in-chief entered it at the head of the Fourteenth Regiment, which he placed in garrison, as a compliment to the corps for its extraordinary gallantry: thus was accomplished the capture of this celebrated city, which was regarded throughout the East as impregnable, the natives being accustomed to remark that India was not subdued, because Bhurtpore had not fallen. That boast was rendered futile, and every native prince had a clear evidence that neither the number of his troops, nor the strength of his fortresses, would avail against the superior valour and discipline of the British forces.
The usurper, Doorjun Sal, was captured while attempting to escape, and was sent prisoner to Allahabad; the young Rajah, Bhulwunt Singh, was taken to the palace of his ancestors, and seated on the throne, in the presence of the Fourteenth Regiment; and the other towns of his dominions submitted. Thus was the cloud which darkened the horizon of British India dispersed, and the splendour of the British arms received additional lustre in the East. Lord Combermere stated in his public despatch,—"I have the pleasure to acquaint your lordship, that the conduct of every one engaged was marked by a degree of zeal which calls for my unqualified approbation; but I must particularly remark the behaviour of His Majesty's Fourteenth Regiment, commanded by Major Everard, and Fifty-ninth, commanded by Major Fuller; these corps having led the columns of assault, by their steadiness and determination decided the fate of the day."
In division orders it was stated,—"Major-General Reynell congratulates the troops of his division, European and Native, engaged in the storming of Bhurtpore this morning, upon the brilliant success which attended their gallant exertions. It is impossible for him to convey half what he feels in appreciating the conduct of His Majesty's Fourteenth Regiment, that led the principal storming column. It has impressed his mind with stronger notions of what a British Regiment is capable of, when led by such officers as Major Everard, Major Bisshopp, and Captain Mackenzie, than he ever before possessed. The Major-General requests that Major Everard will assure the officers and soldiers of the Fourteenth Regiment, that they more than realized his expectations."
Lieutenant-Colonel W. T. Edwards, of the Fourteenth, an officer of high character and lofty promise, fell at the head of the second brigade, pierced by many wounds; Captain Henry B. Armstrong was also mortally wounded while leading his men to victory on the ramparts. The regiment had likewise two serjeants, twenty-nine rank and file, and three Lascars, killed; Lieutenant-Colonel John M'Combe, Lieutenants Richard Stack, Robert Daly, and Edward C. Lynch, Volunteer W. Tulloh, two serjeants, ninety-eight rank and file, and three Lascars, wounded.
Colonel John M'Combe[16], who commanded the first brigade, and Major Matthias Everard, who commanded the regiment, were rewarded with the dignity of Companion of the Bath; and the Royal authority was afterwards given for the word "Bhurtpore" to be borne on the regimental colour, to commemorate its gallantry on this occasion.
The war having terminated, the regiment returned to the cantonment of Meerut, where it was stationed upwards of six months.
General Sir Harry Calvert, Baronet, G.C.B., died in September, 1826, when King George IV. conferred the colonelcy of the regiment on General Thomas Lord Lynedoch, G.C.B.
The regiment left Meerut in October; it subsequently embarked in boats, and, after a tedious passage down the river Ganges, arrived at Fort William in the beginning of 1827; and was stationed at that fortress twelve months.
1829
Early in 1828 the regiment quitted Fort William, and proceeded to the cantonment at Berhampore, where it was stationed during the year 1829.
1831
After performing the important duty of guarding the colonial possessions of Great Britain in India twenty-three years, the Fourteenth Regiment received orders to prepare to return to England; it left Berhampore in November, and proceeded to Fort William; the men who volunteered to remain in India were transferred to other corps; and in December, 1830, and January, 1831, it embarked from Calcutta for England. It landed at Gravesend in May and July,—was stationed at Chatham until September,—and at Albany Barracks during the remainder of the year.
In the early part of 1832, the regiment was stationed at Haslar Barracks, from whence it proceeded to Portsmouth, where it remained five months. In the middle of July it embarked for Ireland, and after landing at Cork, marched from thence to Buttevant.
1834
In 1833 the head-quarters were removed to Athlone; in 1834 to Dublin, and afterwards to Mullingar.
General Lord Lynedoch having been removed to the First, the Royal, Regiment of Foot, King William IV. conferred the colonelcy of the regiment on Lieutenant-General the Honorable Sir Charles Colville, G.C.B., G.C.H., by commission, dated the 12th of December, 1834. This officer was removed to the Fifth Fusiliers in March, 1835, and was succeeded in the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Regiment by Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Hope, G.C.B., who, as lieutenant-colonel, commanded the regiment in 1795.
The head-quarters were removed to Dundalk in the summer of 1835.
Five years had not elapsed from the period of the return of the regiment from India, when it received orders to prepare for embarkation for the West Indies. It was divided into six service and four depôt companies; the service companies embarked from Cork in February, 1836, arrived, in March, at Barbadoes, and were removed, in April, to the island of St Kitt's.
In February, 1837, the service companies were removed to Antigua.
On the 19th of May, General the Honorable Sir Alexander Hope, G.C.B., Lieutenant Governor of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea, died, and was succeeded in the colonelcy by Lieutenant-General Sir James Watson, K.C.B., who had commanded the regiment in India, as lieutenant-colonel, from the year 1807 to 1821, when he was promoted to the rank of major-general.
In June the depôt companies embarked from Waterford for England, and, landing at Bristol, proceeded from thence to Brecon.
During the year 1838, the service companies remained at Antigua.
The distinguished services of the Fourteenth Regiment in India, from 1807 to 1831, having been, at the special request of Lieutenant-General Sir James Watson, brought before Her Majesty by the Commander-in-Chief, the Royal authority was given for the badge of the "Royal Tiger," superscribed "India," to be borne upon the regimental colour and appointments, to commemorate its services in that part of Her Majesty's dominions.
1840
In December[17] orders were received for the removal of the service companies from Antigua to St. Lucia, where they arrived in the beginning of January, 1839: in April, 1840, they proceeded to Barbadoes, and in June to Trinidad. They suffered severely on these stations from yellow fever and other effects of a tropical climate.
The depôt companies proceeded from England to Ireland in June, 1840.
The regiment remained at Trinidad until the early part of 1841, when it was removed to Barbadoes. On the 27th of April it embarked from Barbadoes for Lower Canada, and landed at Quebec on the 2nd of June following.
The depôt companies were removed from Ireland to England, in December, 1844; and the service companies have remained in Canada until the year 1845, the period of the completion of this Record.
Among the splendid achievements of valour with which the annals of the British army abound, the gallant behaviour of the Fourteenth Foot, on several occasions, appears conspicuous for those bright qualities of intrepidity and heroism which distinguish the inhabitants of Great Britain and Ireland when arrayed under the standard of their Sovereign; and the conduct of this corps in quarters has been marked by those excellent features of order, subordination, and discipline, which adorn the character of the British soldier, procuring for him the admiration of the inhabitants of all countries. The inscriptions on the colour of the regiment bear testimony of the estimation in which its services have been held by its Sovereign; and the reports of the general officers, under whom it has served, have procured for it the confidence of the Government and the Country.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Afterwards Colonel of the Twelfth Foot.
[2] The strength of the regiment at the battle of Culloden was, 2 field officers, 7 captains, 14 subalterns, 21 serjeants, 11 drummers, and 304 rank and file.
"14th October, 1765.
"Alterations in the clothing which is to be delivered in the year 1766 to the Fourteenth Regiment of Foot, commanded by the Honorable Major-General Keppel, and which are approved of by His Majesty.
"The breeches to be buff.
"The Grenadiers to have black bear-skin caps, fronted with red, the motto and horse white metal.
"The drummers to have white bear-skin caps, with a red front, motto and horse white metal.
"By order of the King.
"Edward Harvey
"Adjutant-General."
[4] "The British troops who had this opportunity of distinguishing themselves were the brigade of the line, viz., the Fourteenth, Thirty-seventh, and Fifty-third Regiments, with the battalion formed from the Light Infantry and Grenadier companies, under the command of Major-General Abercromby; seven pieces of cannon and two hundred prisoners were taken in the redoubts."—London Gazette.
[5] Lieutenant Richard Goodall Elrington received a musket-ball in the right thigh: after the wound was healed, he returned to his duty, when an abscess formed in the left thigh from which the ball was extracted; it having passed, in the flesh, from the right to the left side of his body, and sunk down the thigh to the spot where the abscess formed. This officer entered the army as an ensign in 1790; was promoted from a lieutenantcy in the Fourteenth to be captain in the First West India Regiment in 1795: was removed to the Forty-seventh Regiment in 1803, and was promoted to the lieut.-colonelcy in June, 1813: he continued in command of the Forty-seventh Regiment until November, 1841, when he attained the rank of major-general. He died in London on 2nd August, 1845.
[6] Afterwards lieutenant-colonel of the Forty-eighth Regiment. Mr. Gilbert Cimitiere was appointed to an ensigncy in the Sixth West India Regiment on 1st July, 1795; promoted to a lieutenantcy in the Forty-eighth Regiment on the 15th June, 1796; in which he attained the rank of lieutenant-colonel, in 1824. He retired from the service in 1827.
[7] "Major-General Fox, with the Fourteenth, Thirty-seventh, and Fifty-third Regiments, was engaged with the whole of the French column which had marched from Lisle, and the different corps which had driven the rest of the army back fell upon his flanks and rear; perhaps there is not on record a single instance of greater gallantry or more soldier-like conduct than was exhibited on that day, by these three regiments. At length General Fox, finding that the whole army had left him, began to think of retreating, to effect which it was necessary to get possession of the causeway leading to Leers; but before that could be accomplished he was obliged to charge several battalions of the enemy, who were astonished that such a handful of men should presume to give them battle, and expected every moment that they would lay down their arms; but with a degree of intrepidity that words cannot describe, and is, indeed, scarcely conceivable, they gained the wished-for point, and then formed with such regularity that the enemy could not assail them: they secured their retreat towards Leers, and the next morning joined General Otto's column."—Captain Jones' Journal.
[8] While the troops were forming outside the village, a hare ran across the line, a man named Tovey knocked it down with his musket, and placed it in his haversack, with surprising coolness, although under so heavy a fire that it was difficult to form the men, from the frequent and numerous casualties which occurred; thus exemplifying that distinguished feature in the character of the British soldier, "cool and collected in the midst of danger."
[9] Private Ryan served many years afterwards with deep marks in his cheeks.
[10] "The Duke of York detached seven Austrian battalions, and the second brigade of British infantry, (Fourteenth, Thirty-seventh, and Fifty-third,) under Major-General Fox, who, though they had lost so many men only four days before, anxiously wished to get into action. Nothing could exceed their spirit and perseverance; they stormed the village of Pontechin, and after firing a few shot rushed with fixed bayonets into the heart of the enemy, and turned the fate of the day once more in favour of the allies. The charge was conducted with such skill and activity that it immediately threw the enemy into confusion, and forced them to give way. At this time the artillery came into action and directed their fire so well, and followed it up with such activity, the enemy could never be rallied so as to renew the attack, although they had fresh troops constantly coming up, but continued to lose ground till dark. Such a battle has seldom been fought; the enemy was in action, under an incessant fire of cannon and musketry, upwards of twelve hours, and left twelve thousand dead in the field, five hundred taken, and seven pieces of cannon.
"The loss of the allies, in this memorable action, amounted to four thousand men; one hundred and ninety-six were British, and all, except three, from General Fox's brigade. It is a fact, although it appears almost impossible, that a single British brigade, and that brigade less than six hundred men, on that great day, absolutely won the battle; for had it not come up, the allies would have been beaten."—Captain Jones' Journal.
[11] Every man of the Fourteenth was proud of the reputation which the regiment had acquired, with which he identified himself; even the recruits possessed the same esprit de corps. After the capture of Gueldermalsen a young soldier, named Sullivan, struck the butt-end of his musket against a cask, when the musket went off, and the ball passed through the soldier's body. He instantly called to Lieutenant Graves, and said, "I hope, Sir, you will let my friends know that I always behaved as became a good soldier," and immediately expired.
[12] Captain Jones, speaking of the conduct of the Fourteenth, Twenty-seventh, and Twenty-eighth Regiments, at Gueldermalsen, states in his Journal, "These regiments behaved with their usual gallantry, and faced every danger with that cheerfulness and perseverance which has peculiarly distinguished them."
[13] Sir Ralph Abercromby entertained a high opinion of the Fourteenth; in the West Indies he always landed with the flank companies, and the regiment furnished a corporal's guard at his quarters. When he was appointed to the command of the troops in the Mediterranean, with whom he proceeded to Egypt, he wrote to Captain Graves, stating, "I regret extremely that I cannot take you with me, as I intended, having found all my staff appointed when I got to London." He afterwards added, with great pleasantry, "I also greatly regret that the Fourteenth are not on the expedition, as I do not think any service can go on well without them."
[14] "It is peculiarly incumbent upon the Lieutenant-General to notice the vigorous attack made by the second battalion of the Fourteenth Regiment, under Lieut.-Colonel Nicolls, which drove the enemy out of the village on the left, of which he had possessed himself."—General Orders.
[15] "The gallant Fourteenth proceeded to scour the ramparts, and the capture of the Sultan rendered the victory complete."—London Gazette.
[16] Colonel John M'Combe died at Calcutta on the 12th October, 1828.
[17] A brigantine, having on board the head-quarters of the regiment, with six officers, one hundred and eight soldiers, and thirty women, under Lieut.-Colonel Everard, C.B., K.H., was wrecked on the rocks off Guadaloupe, before daylight on Christmas day; but the inhabitants came to their aid in boats, and no lives were lost.
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF
THE FOURTEENTH,
OR
BUCKINGHAM REGIMENT
OF
FOOT.
Sir Edward Hales, Baronet.
Appointed 22nd June, 1685.
This officer was the son of Sir Edward Hales, of Woodchurch, in the county of Kent, who was a distinguished loyalist in the reigns of Charles I. and Charles II., and being forced to flee from England for his loyal attempts during the rebellion, he died in France a few years after the restoration in 1660.
Edward Hales succeeded, on the decease of his father, to the family estate at Woodchurch, and to the dignity of a Baronet; and when the Court began to evince a disposition to favour Papacy, he changed his religion from Protestant to Roman Catholic. He was in great favour with King James II., and having raised a company of foot for the service of that monarch, in June, 1685, he was appointed colonel of a regiment, which is now the Fourteenth Foot. He was also constituted a member of the privy council, one of the lords of the Admiralty, deputy governor of the cinque ports, and lieutenant-governor of the Tower of London. Being unable, from his religion, to take the required oaths on appointment to the colonelcy of his regiment, he was prosecuted and convicted at Rochester assizes; but he moved the case to the Court of King's Bench, pleaded the King's dispensation and had judgment in his behalf:—eleven out of the twelve judges being of opinion that the King might dispense in that case.
Sir Edward Hales was in the King's confidence; and at the Revolution, in 1688, he was employed to make arrangements for His Majesty's flight to France. On the night of the 10th of December, Sir Edward, with the quarter-master of his regiment, Edward Syng[18], quitted Whitehall Palace with the King—proceeded in a hackney coach to Horse-ferry, crossed the Thames in a boat, and continued their flight in disguise to Feversham, where they went on board of the Custom-House hoy, designing to cross the channel to France; but they were suspected of being Popish priests, and were apprehended on board the vessel by the country people. The King being afterwards recognised, he was induced to return to London; but he subsequently escaped from Rochester and proceeded to France. Sir Edward Hales attempted to conceal himself, to escape the fury of the populace, who were enraged against him for changing his religion, and at the time he was apprehended at Feversham the country people were plundering his house, killing his deer, and wantonly destroying his property in Kent.
He was detained in custody, and afterwards confined in the Tower of London for eighteen months; on his release he proceeded to France, and he was at La Hogue ready to embark for England when Admiral Russel defeated the French fleet. His eldest son served in King James's army in Ireland, and was killed at the battle of the Boyne.
While in France, Sir Edward Hales was created by King James, Earl of Tenterden, in Kent. He died in France in 1695, and was buried in the church of St. Sulpice in Paris.
William Beveridge.
Appointed 31st December, 1688.
William Beveridge served under the Prince of Orange in the Netherlands, in one of the British regiments in the service of the States-General of Holland; and at the Revolution, in 1688, His Highness promoted him to the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Regiment of Foot. He commanded the regiment nearly four years; and was killed in a duel with one of his captains, on the 14th of November, 1692.
John Tidcomb.
Appointed 14th November, 1692.
This officer entered the army in the reign of King James II., and was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the Thirteenth Foot, on the 31st of December, 1688. He served under Major-General Mackay in Scotland, and displayed great gallantry at the battle of Killicrankie: he also served under King William III., in Ireland, and was at the battle of the Boyne. He returned to England soon afterwards; but accompanied the expedition to Ireland, under Lieutenant-General the Earl of Marlborough, (afterwards the celebrated John Duke of Marlborough,) and was at the capture of Cork and Kinsale, and also in several skirmishes. His excellent conduct on all occasions was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot, in 1692: he afterwards served in the Netherlands, was at the battle of Landen, and was engaged in the siege of Namur. He was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general, in 1703; to that of major-general, on the 1st of January, 1704; and to lieutenant-general, on the 1st of January, 1707. He died at Bath, in June, 1713.
Jasper Clayton.
Appointed 15th June, 1713.
Jasper Clayton obtained a commission in the army on the 24th of June, 1695, and afterwards acquired great celebrity as a gallant and meritorious officer. He served under King William until the peace of Ryswick, in 1697. He also served under the great Duke of Marlborough, in the reign of Queen Anne; and was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the Eleventh Foot, with which he served in Spain. His regiment suffered severely at the battle of Almanza, in 1707, and he returned with it to England in 1708, to recruit. In 1709, he served in Flanders, and distinguished himself at the siege of Mons, where he was wounded[19]. He also served at the forcing of the French lines, in 1710, and was rewarded with the colonelcy of a newly-raised regiment of foot, on the 8th of December of that year. In 1711 he served in the disastrous expedition against Quebec, and his regiment had three officers and seventy-one soldiers drowned in the river St. Lawrence, then called the river of Canada.
At the peace of Utrecht, in 1713, his regiment was disbanded; and in June of the same year, he was appointed colonel of the Fourteenth Foot. He served in Scotland under the Duke of Argyle, during the rebellion of the Earl of Mar, and commanded a brigade at the battle of Dumblain, on the 13th of November, 1715. He was subsequently appointed lieutenant-governor of Gibraltar; he commanded the troops in that fortress when it was besieged by the Spaniards, in 1727, and his conduct in the successful defence of that important place, called forth the approbation of his sovereign and country. The rank of major-general was conferred on this excellent officer, on the 2nd of November, 1735; and that of lieutenant-general, on the 2nd of July, 1739. In 1743, he served under King George II. in Germany; and highly distinguished himself at the battle of Dettingen, on the 16th of June in that year. He was killed as he was giving orders for the artillery to play upon the bridge as the French retreated, and his fall was equally regretted by his sovereign, the officers, and soldiers of the army. He was interred with military honors in the chapel of Prince George of Hesse, at Hanau.
Joseph Price.
Appointed 22nd June, 1743.
Joseph Price obtained a commission of ensign in a regiment of foot in 1706; and subsequently rose to the rank of captain and lieutenant-colonel in the First Foot Guards. In January, 1741, he was promoted to the colonelcy of the Fifty-seventh (now Forty-sixth) regiment, which was then first raised; and in 1743 he was removed to the Fourteenth Foot. He was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general on the 6th of June, 1745. During the campaign of 1747, he commanded a brigade of infantry in the Netherlands, under His Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland. At the battle of Val, on the 2nd of July of that year, he highly distinguished himself. His brigade was posted in the village of Val, and his gallantry during the action was commended by the Duke of Cumberland in his public despatch. He died in November of the same year, at Breda, in Holland.
The Honorable William Herbert.
Appointed 1st December, 1747.
The Honorable William Herbert, fifth son of Thomas, eighth Earl of Pembroke, and father of Henry, first Earl of Caernarvon, was appointed to a commission in the army on the 1st of May, 1722. He was promoted on the 15th December, 1738, to the commission of captain and lieutenant-colonel in the First Foot Guards; and in December, 1747, to the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot. In January, 1753, he was removed to the Second Dragoon Guards. He was subsequently advanced to the rank of major-general: he was groom of the bedchamber to King George II., and a member of parliament for Wilton, in Wiltshire. He died on the 31st of March, 1757.
Edward Braddock.
Appointed 17th February, 1753.
Edward Braddock was appointed ensign in the Second Foot Guards on the 11th October, 1710; lieutenant of the grenadier company in 1716[20]; captain and lieutenant-colonel in 1736; major in 1743; and was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the same regiment on the 21st of November, 1745. In 1753 he was appointed to the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot; in the following year he was promoted major-general, and sent with a body of troops to North America; and in 1755 he was commander-in-chief in that country. Having completed arrangements for opening the campaign against the French, who had made aggressions on the British territory, he took the field with a body of regular troops, provincials, and Indians; and on the 9th of July, while marching with twelve hundred men through the woods towards Fort du Quesne, he was suddenly attacked by a body of French and Indians, who had concealed themselves behind the trees and bushes, and his men were put into some confusion. "He exerted himself to remedy this disaster as much as man could do, and, after having had five horses killed under him, he was shot through the arm and through the lungs, of which he died four days afterwards[21]."
Thomas Fowke.
Appointed 12th November, 1755.
This officer had been upwards of fifty years in the army when he was appointed to the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot, his first commission being dated the 25th of May, 1705. After serving the Crown fifteen years, he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Seventh Dragoons, by commission dated the 25th of June, 1720. In January, 1741, he was promoted to the colonelcy of the Fifty-fourth (now Forty-third) regiment, which was then first raised; and in August of the same year he was removed to the Second, or Queen's Royal regiment. His commissions of general officer were dated,—brigadier-general, 1st June, 1745; major-general, 18th of September, 1747; and lieutenant-general, 30th of April, 1754. He was governor of Gibraltar in 1756, when the island of Minorca, which was then subject to the British Crown, was attacked by the French; and having disobeyed the directions, which he received from the Secretary at War, to send a reinforcement to that island, he was tried by a general court-martial, and sentenced to be suspended for nine months; but the King, George II., directed that he should be dismissed from the service.
Charles Jefferies.
Appointed 7th September, 1756.
After a progressive service in the subordinate commissions, this officer was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the Fourteenth Foot on the 12th of September, 1745, and in February following he was removed to the Thirty-fourth regiment. In January, 1756, he was promoted to colonel-commandant of a battalion of the Sixty-second Royal American regiment, now the Sixtieth, or King's Royal Rifle Corps. At this period he was with the Thirty-fourth regiment at the island of Minorca, which was soon afterwards attacked by the French, and he signalized himself in the defence of Port Mahon, particularly in repulsing an attack on the place by storm, on which occasion he was taken prisoner. His gallantry was shortly afterwards rewarded with the colonelcy of the Fourteenth regiment. He was promoted to the rank of major-general on the 27th of June, 1759. He died in 1765.
The Honorable William Keppel.
Appointed 31st May, 1765.
The Honorable William Keppel, fourth son of William-Anne, second Earl of Albemarle, was appointed captain and lieutenant-colonel in the First Foot Guards on the 28th of April, 1750; and gentleman of the horse to His Majesty King George II. in December, 1752. On the 21st of July, 1760, he was promoted to second major, with the rank of colonel, in the First Foot Guards; and in December of the following year, to the colonelcy of the Fifty-sixth Foot. In the succeeding spring he proceeded with his regiment on an expedition against the Havannah, with the local rank of major-general. In August the Havannah capitulated, when he took possession of the fort La Punta; and being afterwards left commander-in-chief at that station, he re-delivered the city to the Spaniards according to the conditions of the Treaty of Peace in 1763. He was promoted to the rank of major-general on the 10th of July, 1762; was removed from the colonelcy of the Fifty-sixth to the Fourteenth Foot in 1765; and was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-general in May, 1772. In 1773 he was appointed commander-in-chief in Ireland. In 1775 he was removed to the colonelcy of the Twelfth Dragoons. He was several years a representative in parliament for the borough of Windsor. His decease occurred on the 1st of March, 1782.
Robert Cunninghame.
Appointed 18th October, 1775.
This officer served several years in the Thirty-fifth Foot, in which regiment he rose to the rank of captain in December, 1752. He was soon afterwards appointed adjutant-general in Ireland, which office he held for many years. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel in 1757;—to that of colonel in 1762;—and to the colonelcy of the Fifty-eighth Regiment in 1767. In 1772 he was advanced to the rank of major-general; three years afterwards he was removed to the command of the Fourteenth Foot; and in August, 1777, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general. On the 4th of April, 1787, he was removed to the colonelcy of the Fifth, Royal Irish, Dragoons, and he was advanced to the rank of general in 1793. He died in 1797.
John Douglas.
Appointed April 4th, 1787.
John Douglas was many years an officer in the Scots' Greys, with which corps he served several campaigns in the Netherlands previously to the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748–9. He also served with his regiment in Germany, under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, from 1759 to 1762, distinguishing himself on several occasions; and on the 14th of November, 1770, he was promoted to the lieutenant colonelcy of the regiment (the Greys). In 1775 he was appointed Aide-de-Camp to the King, with the rank of colonel in the army;—in February, 1779, he was promoted to the rank of major-general; and in April of the same year he obtained the colonelcy of the Twenty-first Light Dragoons, which corps was then first embodied. His regiment was disbanded at the conclusion of the American war in 1783; and in 1787 he obtained the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot; he was also promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the same year. In 1789 he was removed to the colonelcy of the Fifth Dragoon Guards, which he retained until his decease in 1790.
George Earl Waldegrave.
Appointed 27th August, 1789.
Viscount Chewton was appointed ensign in the Third Foot Guards on the 10th of May, 1768; lieutenant and captain on the 12th of August, 1773; and captain-lieutenant and lieutenant-colonel in the Second Foot Guards in 1778. In the following year he was appointed lieutenant-colonel commanding the Eighty-seventh Foot, then first raised; and in 1782 he was promoted to the rank of colonel. He succeeded, on the decease of his father, in 1784, to the dignity of Earl Waldegrave; and was also appointed master of the horse to the Queen, and aide-de-camp to the King. In August, 1789, he was appointed colonel of the Fourteenth Foot. He died about six weeks afterwards.
George Hotham.
Appointed 18th November, 1789.
George Hotham procured the appointment of ensign in the First Foot Guards on the 14th of May, 1759; he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and captain in 1765; and to that of captain and lieutenant-colonel in 1775. In 1781 he was appointed aide-de-camp to the King, with the rank of colonel in the army; and in 1789 he obtained the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot. His commissions of general officer were dated,—major-general, 28th of April, 1790, lieutenant-general, 26th of January, 1797, and general, 29th of April, 1802. He died in 1806.
Sir Harry Calvert, Baronet, G.C.B.
Appointed 8th February, 1806.
Sir Harry Calvert, Baronet, was appointed second lieutenant in the Twenty-third, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, in April, 1778; he was several months at the Royal Military College at Woolwich, and proceeding to North America in the following year, he joined his regiment, which was then employed on the outpost duty of the army. In December, 1779, he served with his regiment in the expedition, under Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Clinton, to South Carolina, and was at the siege and capture of Charlestown. He afterwards served under the Marquis Cornwallis, and shared in all the difficulties, dangers, and privations, in the campaigns of the southern provinces, until the siege of York Town, when the Marquis Cornwallis was forced to surrender, with the troops under his command, to General Washington. He remained a prisoner of war from October, 1781, until the peace in 1783, when he proceeded with his regiment to New York. In the early part of 1784 he returned to England, when he procured permission to pass the remainder of the year on the Continent. In October, 1786, he purchased the command of a company in his regiment, with which he did duty until the spring of 1790, when he exchanged into the Coldstream Guards. On the breaking out of the war of the French revolution, in 1793, he proceeded with the brigade of Foot Guards, commanded by Major-General (afterwards Lord) Lake, to Holland, and when the Duke of York assumed the command of the British and Hanoverian troops in Flanders, Captain Calvert was nominated one of His Royal Highness's aides-de-camp. After serving in this capacity until the surrender of Valenciennes, he was sent to England with the account of that event, on which occasion King George III. was pleased to confer on him the rank of major. He obtained the rank of lieutenant-colonel in December, 1793, by the purchase of a company in the Coldstream Guards. He served with the allied army during the year 1794, and returned to England on the recall of the British troops early in 1795. In May of that year he was employed on a confidential mission to the court of Berlin; and in 1796 he was appointed Deputy Adjutant-General to the Forces: he obtained the rank of colonel in June 1797, and in 1799 he was appointed to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Sixty-third Regiment.
On the 9th of January, 1799, His Majesty was pleased to appoint Colonel Calvert to the important situation of Adjutant-General to the Forces, in which capacity he was enabled to perform important and valuable services to the crown and to the country, during one of the most eventful periods in the history of Great Britain. In August, 1800 he was nominated to the colonelcy of the Fifth West India regiment; in 1803 he was promoted to the rank of major-general; in 1806 he was removed to the Fourteenth Foot, and in 1810 he was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-general.
At the period of his appointment to the high and important station of Adjutant-General of the Forces, the want of efficient regulations, and of an adherence to a system founded on principles calculated to promote the advantage of every branch of service, was felt by all persons called upon to take a part in the concerns of the army, and serious inconvenience was experienced from the absence of such a system by His Royal Highness the Duke of York, who, at two different periods, had to contend against powerful continental armies, with troops, though eminently brave, and endued with the true spirit of their profession, yet not formed upon sound general principles of discipline. His Royal Highness, being appointed Commander-in-Chief, applied himself with great diligence to the correction of abuses, and to the improvement of the condition of the army in every particular: and his efforts, which were honoured with the encouragement and approbation of His Majesty, were ably seconded by his staff officers, who were judiciously selected to carry his views into effect; the ultimate accomplishment of these objects reflected the highest credit on those who planned, and on those who executed measures which have conduced to the safety and glory of the United Kingdom and of its numerous colonial possessions. Among these officers, Sir Harry Calvert held a distinguished station. As Adjutant-General, the discipline, equipment, and efficiency of the army came under his superintendence, and to improve and perfect these, he devoted his best energies and unwearied attention. The general orders of the army, in the successive editions which were brought forward from the year 1799, afford abundant proofs of the value of his labours, in the numerous and excellent regulations made from time to time for the better government of the army. In the clothing, messing, equipment, and every other branch of the interior economy, improvements were introduced to promote the health and comfort of the soldier, and the efficiency of corps; and the establishment of confidential inspection reports facilitated the accomplishment of these objects, by furnishing the Commander-in-Chief, and the authorities under him, with the means of forming a correct judgment of the state of each corps in all its details,—of correcting what was wrong,—of supplying what was deficient, and of ascertaining the merits and capabilities of the officers. The energies of his mind were also directed to the improvement of the morale, as well as to ameliorate the materiel of the army. Being a man of high and sensitive honor himself, he wished to inspire all his brother officers with the same sentiments, by impressing them with a just idea of what they owed to themselves, both as individuals, and as members of the profession of arms. Conscious that no man can be truly respectable who does not respect himself, he was always anxious to uphold and encourage this principle; in accordance with which, he was particularly careful to afford every officer charged with misconduct the fullest opportunity of explanation, and, in conveying disapprobation or censure, he avoided the use of terms calculated to affect the officer's personal feelings, or to degrade him in his own estimation: his verbal intercourse was conducted on the same principle. Such was the kindness of his look and demeanour, and the courtesy of his language, that it was impossible to offer him any personal disrespect; and with whatever sentiments a gentleman might have approached him in his official capacity, he could retire with those only of respect and esteem. To the officers of his own department, who were in daily intercourse with him, his orders were conveyed in the form of requests; and the urbanity of his manners, tempered with self-respect, ensured prompt and cheerful co-operation. In so extensive a branch of the service, the preparation of many documents was necessarily confided to assistants, and the alterations which suggested themselves to his refined discrimination, were proposed with delicacy,—a trait of character grateful to the feelings of his subordinates, and remembered with emotions of respect constantly increased by continued intercourse. In 1807, when the recruiting of the army was placed under his superintendence, he applied himself successfully to the improvement of that branch of the service. He interested himself in the Royal Military Asylum, and in the establishment of regimental schools; the condition of general hospitals also engaged his attention,—he visited them all in 1814, and suggested many improvements in their conduct and management. The invalid and the pensioner found a friend and protector in him, and the representations of a discharged private soldier were received and considered with the same care as those of the higher grades of the service. In this, and in every other respect, he acted in accordance with the desires of the Duke of York, whose innate goodness of heart, and natural generosity and condescension, led him to promote and encourage every species of kindness to the humblest members of the profession to which he was so devotedly attached; and Sir Harry Calvert was the faithful organ of His Royal Highness's benevolent intentions, delighting in the good he was thus enabled to effect.
Having conducted, in conjunction with the able officers associated with him in the other military departments, the details of the British army, when it was on a scale of magnitude surpassing anything previously known, and through the whole course of the most tremendous contest in which the nation ever was engaged, and having witnessed victory achieved, by the valour and discipline of the troops under their matchless chief, with the glorious termination of the war, he was rewarded with the dignity of Baronet, in October, 1818; and in the beginning of the year 1820, he retired from that high situation which he had so long and so ably filled, carrying with him the cordial good wishes of every rank. He had previously been appointed lieutenant-governor of Chelsea Hospital; honored with the dignity of Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, and Grand Cross of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order; and in 1826, he was promoted to the rank of general. He died suddenly of a fit of apoplexy, while on a visit with his family at Claydon Hall, in Buckinghamshire, on the 3rd of September, 1826.
Thomas Lord Lynedoch.
Appointed 6th September, 1826.
This nobleman, whose services, when General Graham, were of a most distinguished character, was removed to the First, or Royal, Regiment of Foot, on the 12th of December, 1834, the colonelcy of which corps he retained to the period of his decease, which took place on the 18th December, 1843.
The Honorable Sir Charles Colville, G.C.B. and G.C.H.
Appointed 12th December, 1834.
Sir Charles Colville, whose distinguished services during the late war are recorded in the history of Europe, was removed to the colonelcy of the Fifth Regiment of Foot, or Northumberland Fusiliers, on the 25th of March, 1835, in succession to General Sir Henry Johnson, deceased. He died on the 27th March, 1843.
The Honorable Sir Alexander Hope, G.C.B.
Appointed 25th March, 1835.
The Honorable Alexander Hope entered the army as ensign in the Sixty-third Regiment, on the 6th of March, 1786, and after a service of upwards of thirteen years he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Fourteenth Foot, on the 27th of August, 1794. He commanded the regiment during its retreat through Holland, and in the attack of the French post at Gueldermalsen, on the 8th of January, 1795, he received a wound in the shoulder which deprived him of the use of his right arm. He was appointed governor of Tynemouth and Clifford's fort, in 1797; lieutenant-governor of Edinburgh Castle, in 1798; and deputy adjutant-general to the expedition to Holland, in 1799. He was promoted to the rank of colonel in the army, on the 1st of January, 1800; and to the colonelcy of the Fifth West India Regiment, on the 30th of October, 1806. In April, 1808, he was further promoted to the rank of major-general. In April, 1813, he was removed to the colonelcy of the Forty-seventh Regiment; and in June of the same year, he was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-general. He obtained the rank of general, on the 22nd of July, 1830; and the colonelcy of the Fourteenth Regiment, in 1835. He was constituted a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath: he was lieutenant-governor of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea: he died on the 19th of May, 1837.
Sir James Watson, K.C.B.
Appointed 24th May, 1837.
London: Harrison and Co., Printers, St. Martin's Lane.