N.B. Of the above number of men to be reduced, there were about 680 men from the Militia, who were entitled to their discharge.

This reduction left the proportion of non-commissioned officers to gunners the same as before, viz. 1 to 6. During the American War, it had been as 1 to 5; after the peace of 1783, it fell to 1 to 7; and during the earlier wars of the French Revolution it rose to 1 to 6.

The strength of the Corps of Gunner-drivers in 1802 was as follows: Seven troops, each consisting of—

The gunner-drivers attached to, and doing duty with the Horse Brigade, are not included above, being by a Royal Warrant of 1st September, 1801, mustered and paid with the Troops to which they were attached. These were in number 336. There were also 18 quartermaster-commissaries awaiting absorption, having been struck off the establishment on reduction. The number of horses belonging to the Corps of Gunner-drivers at this time included 2300 draught-horses, and 178 riding-horses.

Colonel Macleod remained Deputy Adjutant-General: General Lloyd was commandant of Woolwich: General Blomefield, Inspector of Artillery: Sir William Congreve, Comptroller of the Laboratory; and General Duncan Drummond, Director-General of Artillery.

Chevrons were put on the arms of non-commissioned officers, according to the rules of the Army generally, instead of epaulettes, in the year 1802. The Royal Artillery Band was increased from 10 to 21 in the same year.

Two allusions to methods of discharging men at this time, which are found in the official correspondence, speak for themselves. The first is an order to discharge a man for his bad conduct, and to hand him over to the press-gang: and the second is a reply to a request from Lord Napier, that a man might be discharged, to enable him to support his Colonel Macleod to Colonel Hadden, 9 Jan. 1802. family; and is as follows: “Charles Copeland; 5 feet 11 inches in height; a wife and two children. It is observed that he would have been discharged, if he had been lucky enough to have three.”

Note.—By inadvertence, it was omitted to be noticed in the first volume of this work, in giving the list of Masters-General of the Ordnance, that Lord Chatham held that appointment from 18th June, 1801, to 14th February, 1806, and was reappointed on 4th April, 1807, the date given in vol. i. as that of his first appointment. Lord Moira was Master-General from 14th February, 1806, to 4th April, 1807.

CHAPTER VIII.
The Eighth Battalion.

The Treaty of Amiens was not destined to be carried out in its entirety by the nations concerned. Napoleon’s hostility to the English could not be concealed; and the evacuation of Malta, Alexandria, and the Cape of Good Hope, which had been commenced by the latter, in accordance with the terms of the Treaty, was never fully completed. On the 13th March, 1803, Lord Whitworth, the English Ambassador, was publicly insulted by Napoleon at the Tuileries; and on the 6th May he quitted Paris. The recommencement of hostilities with France was aggravated by another insurrection in Ireland, which was happily quelled with little difficulty. But the general state of affairs was so serious that an augmentation of the military forces in England became urgently necessary, as well as renewed activity on the part of the fleet. The Government received warm and cordial support from the people, both as a body and individually. Lord Chatham, then Master-General of the Ordnance, received Mr. J. Bagot, London, to Lord Chatham, dated 11 July, 1803. on the 18th July a letter from a Mr. John Bagot, to the following effect:—“Being anxious in the present awful crisis to come forward in any line that my services can be of use to my King and country, I beg leave to offer, for the consideration of your Lordship, to raise a Battalion of Artillery, of 300 men, for the war or such further period as may be necessary, and on such terms as your Lordship or His Majesty’s Government may direct....”

The state of recruiting in England was, however, so favourable, that the Master-General was not compelled to have recourse to private enterprise to obtain the necessary augmentations to the Regiment. The number of non-commissioned officers and men in the Horse Brigade and Marching Mem. to Master-Gen^l. from Colonel Macleod, 13 Aug. 1803. Battalions of the Royal Artillery on the 1st January, 1803, was 6777; on the 1st June, notwithstanding the loss of 306 men by death or discharge, the total had increased to 7119; and in two months more, it stood at 7439, besides 131 recruits in the country districts, not yet posted. The Corps of Gunner-drivers had increased in the same period by 1109 men. It was therefore resolved to increase the Regiment by another battalion, the 8th, and the first intimation of this resolution is found in a private letter from Colonel Macleod to Lieut.-Colonel Willington, dated 7 Sept. 1803. the Deputy Adjutant-General. “It is at last, I believe, determined,” he wrote, “to increase the Artillery, even under all the disadvantages of a deficiency in officers. The cadets are doubled; and the winter may do a good deal for us: in the mean time we take twenty of the most forward. Our companies will only have two 1st Lieutenants: there will be hardly a 2nd Lieutenant upon the establishment.”

On the 13th September seven companies were formed, and on the 6th December, three additional companies were added to the battalion. The establishment of each company was as follows:—

Many of the men for the 8th Battalion were obtained by calling for volunteers from the Army of Reserve; and although every obstacle was thrown in the way of this method of obtaining recruits, by the officers commanding the Reserve Battalions, which were this year called out for service, very many excellent men were thus obtained.

It is unfortunate that the Battalion record-book of the 8th Battalion has been lost since 1859, the year when Battalion Head-quarters were abolished, because, although these books were, as a rule, very meagre in the information they afforded, they nevertheless supplied facts which it would have been difficult to obtain elsewhere without great Lieut. J. Ritchie, Staff-Officer, Coast Brigade, R.A. labour. That labour, in the case of the 8th Battalion, has been readily undertaken by an officer at Head-quarters, and to his industry the reader is indebted for the following tables.

Unfortunately, the history of the companies of the 8th and 9th Battalions, after 1850, must be postponed until the separate work on the Crimean services of the Artillery shall be written. But these tables give the earlier history, and the various stations—down to about 1850—on which the companies served, as well as the succession of Captains: and the war services of most of the companies will be found in the subsequent accounts of the various campaigns.

No. 1 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “H” BATTERY, 1st BRIGADE, R.A.10

No. 2 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “H” BATTERY, 11th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 3 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,11
Afterwards “1” Battery, 11th Brigade; “3” Battery, 14th Brigade; “C” Battery, 14th Brigade, and “8” Battery, 13th Brigade. (Vide vol. i. p. 441.)

Reduced 1st February, 1871.

No. 4 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “7” BATTERY, 12th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 5 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “G” BATTERY, 1st BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 6 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “D” BATTERY, 9th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 7 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “H” BATTERY, 8th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 8 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “1” BATTERY, 7th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 9 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Now “7” BATTERY, 17th BRIGADE, R.A.

N.B.—This Company was in the Crimea from 1854-56, and was present at the Battle of Inkerman. (11th Battalion Records.)

Reduced at Woolwich, 31st Jan., 1819.

Reformed at Woolwich, 7th Aug., 1848.

Transferred to 11th Battalion as No. 8 Company, on 1st November, 1848. Became 7 Battery, 5th Brigade, on 1st July, 1859, and 7 Battery, 17th Brigade, on 1st Oct., 1867.

No. 10 COMPANY, 8th BATTALION,
Reduced at Woolwich on 28th February, 1819.

Between the formation of the 8th and 9th Battalions, an augmentation of five troops of Horse Artillery took place, as has been mentioned elsewhere. Very little interest attaches to this period, except that in 1806 the commencement of a garrison of Royal Artillery in Italy and Sicily took place, which remained in these countries for some years. In 1806, six companies of the Royal Artillery were stationed there; in 1807 there were five; in 1808, four; in 1809, five; in 1810, five; and in 1814, the last year of the occupation, there were four. The war in Italy, which was distinguished in 1806 by the English victory of Maida, is thus described by the officer who commanded the Royal Artillery on the Major Lemoine, R.A., to Brig.-Gen^l. Macleod. expedition. “On the 28th June (1806) I received orders from the Commander-in-Chief to have in readiness for a particular service a detachment of Artillery with some light guns. In consequence I made a collection, and on the 30th embarked with the greater part of the army, the Commander-in-Chief (Sir John Stuart) taking the field. On the 2nd July we anchored on the coast of Calabria, near St. Eufemia, and landed immediately. After taking a position, and reconnoitring the country, we moved forward at daylight on the 4th to the Plains of Maida, near where the enemy, under the command of General Regnier, had assembled. On our approach, he descended to the plains, and having formed his line, which we had already done, the two armies met near the centre of the plain, and came to immediate action, which lasted nearly an hour and a quarter, when the French were charged by our Light Infantry, and their left completely turned; the right also gave way shortly after. We pursued them the whole extent of the plain, nearly six miles, and gained a complete victory. The prisoners acknowledge to have had in action 8000 men: the British army had 4600. Our loss very trifling—only one officer killed, 41 men, and 253 wounded. The loss of the enemy cannot be correctly ascertained, though we have taken and killed upwards of 2000. Many of their wounded got off to the mountains, and General Regnier among them, severely wounded. General Piegri was killed; General Coupère wounded, and prisoner; the rest of the army has retired in a confused state some distance, and is much harassed by the natives. Sir John Stuart, finding the army retiring so fast, thought it most desirable to return to the coast, and marched to this place (Monteloine) on the 8th, where we found 200 French, and great quantities of stores, which we are now embarking. There are also two or three other posts along the coast which they left in the same manner, and which are now in our possession. I understand that as soon as everything is embarked, the army will return to Messina. I have the honour to enclose you the General Orders of the 4th instant, and have to add that the whole of the Artillery in this little expedition were in the front of the action, and behaved in the most cool and gallant manner. Captain Pym, on the right of the Grenadiers, with two 6-pounders and a howitzer, repulsed two squadrons of cavalry in attempting to break our line. Lieutenant Bayley, with two 4-pounders, in front of the Light Infantry, made good use of his case-shot, till that corps charged, when they ran over his guns; indeed every officer and soldier gave me his utmost assistance, and I should be wanting in gratitude to them did I not acknowledge it; though to you, sir, I should be doubly wanting, did I not take the earliest opportunity of thanking you for having entrusted to my command a detachment of Artillery that have so gallantly distinguished themselves, before an enemy nearly double their numbers.”12

CHAPTER IX.
The Ninth Battalion.

This Battalion of the Royal Artillery was formed in an eventful year. Whether we regard it from a political or a purely military point of view, the year 1806 had an important influence on those which followed it.

The previous year, the year of Austerlitz, had witnessed the collapse of Pitt’s coalition against Napoleon, and the consequent isolation of England. But it was also the year of Trafalgar; and left England still mistress of the seas.

With 1806 came the Battle of Jena, Napoleon’s triumphal entry into Berlin, and the issue of his famous declaration against English commerce, which, if obeyed to the letter, would have put England virtually in a state of blockade. It was a critical year for a country whose commerce was her very life-blood; and in this very year, those who had so long steered the ship of the State, William Pitt and Charles James Fox, were removed by death. But the country took up the gauntlet thrown down by Napoleon, and from this year conducted with sternness and determination a war which, from being one of resistance, became one for existence as well.

It was a year, too, which should be remembered fondly in the annals of the British Army—the year of the Battle of Maida, described in the last chapter, where the gallantry of the British troops against Napoleon’s tried legions obtained a victory, which had a moral influence both in England and on the Continent, which is perhaps rarely realised now.

Grasping the importance of the situation, and greatly assisted by the ease of obtaining recruits, the Board of Ordnance resolved on an augmentation of the Royal Artillery to the extent of yet another battalion. The strength of the Regiment, and its periodical increase and decrease, are ascertainable from a return which used to be furnished annually to the Board, called the “Wear and Tear of the Regiment for the year ending,” &c. From this return it would appear that during the year 1805, the number of gunner-recruits who joined the Horse Artillery and Marching Battalions was no less than 2574. But the wear and tear by death, transfer, desertion, &c., during the same period was 1017, so that the net increase was 1557; the Regiment rising from 10,203, at which it stood on 1st January, 1805, to 11,760, its strength on the 31st December in the same year. During the same period the Corps of Royal Artillery Drivers, and Drivers attached to the Horse Brigade, had received 489 recruits, and, allowing for the wear and tear during the year, had increased from 4897 to 4986 of all ranks, excluding officers.

It is hardly possible that this large increase to the establishment had been allowed by the Board without a motive; and it may indeed be assumed with tolerable certainty that the formation of the 9th Battalion had been to some extent contemplated during Napoleon’s successes in 1805. This impression is confirmed by reference to the returns for the year 1806, which show that the increase to the Regiment during that year was only half what had taken place during the year preceding.

The increase which had been permitted during the year 1805 proved to be greater than was necessary for the wants of the new Battalion; and the establishment of the Regiment was found on the 1st May, 1806, to have been exceeded by over 400 men. This excess, however, was soon swallowed up by the year’s wear and tear, which in 1806 amounted to 874 men.

The promotions consequent on the formation of the new Battalion were gazetted on 22nd May, 1806, and Major-General Thomas Blomefield was appointed Colonel-Commandant. The record-book of the Battalion, like that of the 8th, has been lost since the introduction of the Brigade system. It was permitted to accompany the head-quarters of the 9th Brigade, and during their frequent changes of station it has been mislaid—offering another argument, if one were needed, in favour of the centralization of all military records. As in the case of the 8th Battalion, so in Lieut. J. Ritchie, Staff-Officer Coast Brigade, R.A. the present instance the Regiment is indebted to an officer at Head-quarters for the following facts connected with the companies prior to 1850. Their present designations, and the stations in which they served, have been given, and the succession of Captains down to a certain date. The war services of some companies will be found mentioned in the succeeding narrative, and the tables will be completed, should the compilation of the separate work on the Crimea be at some future time accomplished.

No. 1 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Now “G” BATTERY, 9th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 2 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Now “E” BATTERY, 8th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 3 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Afterwards “8” Battery, 11th Brigade; then “7” Battery, 14th Brigade; then “G” Battery, 14th Brigade;

Now “B” BATTERY, 14th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 4 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Now “6” BATTERY, 12th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 5 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Now “2” BATTERY, 3rd BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 6 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION,
Reduced 28th February, 1819.

No. 7 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION.

This Company became No. 6 Company on March 1st, 1819; was called No. 8 Battery, 14th Brigade, on July 1st, 1859; its designation was again altered on January 1st, 1860, to No. 8 Battery, 13th Brigade; and on the 1st October, 1862, it became, what it now is,

“C” BATTERY, 14th BRIGADE, R.A.

No. 8 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION.

Reduced on 28th February, 1819.

No. 9 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION.

This Company became No 7 Company on 1st March, 1819; and No. 8 Battery, 10th Brigade, on the 1st July, 1859. It was reduced on 1st February, 1871.

No. 10 COMPANY, 9th BATTALION.

This Company became No. 8 Company, 9th Battalion, on 1st March, 1819; and on the introduction of the Brigade system, in 1859, it became No. 5 Battery, 9th Brigade, or, as now called,

“E” BATTERY, 9th BRIGADE, R.A.

CHAPTER X.
The Siege of Copenhagen.

The decree of the French Emperor, dated 20th November, 1806, forbidding all commerce and correspondence between the countries under his influence, and Great Britain, received an alarming force from his subsequent rapid successes, culminating in the Treaty of Tilsit.

After that date it was evident that, in addition to injuring the commercial marine of England, Napoleon was resolved to make a great effort to overthrow her yet unquestionable naval supremacy. This he hoped to effect by a union of his own fleet with those of his allies and subjects; and one of the most powerful which he hoped to secure for his purpose was the Danish fleet.

The English Government resolved on a bold step, in order to defeat Napoleon’s aim. They decided to request the Danish Government to hand over their fleet to England for safe keeping, and they supported their petition by the presence of a large naval and military force. This determination was arrived at on the 19th July, 1807; and before the 29th the whole force was ready to sail. The fleet Cust. consisted of 17 ships of the line, between 30 and 40 frigates, and other smaller ships of war, counting 90 pendants; together with 300 transports, having on board 20,000 troops, a number subsequently increased to 27,000. The Official MS. Returns, R. A. Record Office. Artillery force was as follows: Royal Artillery, 989; Royal Artillery drivers, 525; German Legion Artillery—horse, 182, and foot, 512.

The command of this large Artillery force was given to Major-General Thomas Blomefield on the 28th July, 1807, in the following terms.

“Woolwich, 28 July, 1807.

“Sir,

“The Master-General has directed me to notify officially an order for your embarking upon the present expedition with the command of the Artillery, and that you place yourself under the orders of Lieutenant-General Burrard, or the General commanding the troops.

“I have the honour to be, Sir,
Your most obedient humble Servant,
J. Macleod,
D.-A.-General.”

“P.S.—My dear General,

“Having performed the ex officio part, let me wish you every success and every happiness, and a safe return to Shooter’s Hill, where we shall talk over all your performances. The ordnance is all embarked, but not a ship arrived as yet for the officers and men.

“Believe me
Very truly yours,
J. Macleod.”

General Thomas Blomefield, who joined the Regiment on 1st January, 1759, had seen active service at the Havannah, in the West Indies, and during the American War. He had been severely wounded during the last-mentioned campaign. In 1780 he was made Inspector of Ordnance at Woolwich; and for many years held this appointment in a manner most advantageous to the country. He was a good mathematician, an excellent chemist, and most laborious in experiments in gunnery. His private character is thus described Family MSS. by one who knew him intimately:—“There was no display of his merits shown in his manner; all his duties and improvements were silently and unassumingly carried on, with a natural reserve and undeviating correctness, so that it was only the close observer who could duly appreciate his value. His being generally and greatly esteemed arose as much from his being the perfect gentleman as from the ingenuous turn of his mind, for there was no glare or obtrusive view, but rather a strong desire to improve the service with as little parade as possible.” The marked improvement in English ordnance while he was Inspector, was tested at the very siege over which he was to preside, and is thus alluded to by the same writer. “The late sieges of Copenhagen and in the Peninsula, where the mode of battering assumed a rapidity of firing unknown on former occasions, strongly marked the confidence his gallant brother officers had in the weapons placed in their hands, and surprised the enemy, who were known to declare that they could not have put their iron ordnance of this description to such a severe test. The complete success of these objects of his most serious and careful pursuit will be duly appreciated by those capable of judging of their merits. To such as are not, it may be allowed to suggest that many gallant lives have been saved to their country and families by the constant and most anxious endeavours he at all times pursued to put safe and perfect machines into the hands of the brave defenders of His Majesty’s dominions.”

The following is a nominal list of the officers of the Royal Artillery who accompanied General Blomefield to Copenhagen:—

Lieutenant-Colonels Harding, Cookson, and Robe; Captains May, Cockburn, Franklin, Newhouse, Fyers, P. Drummond, Brome, and Meadows; 2nd Captains Bolton, J. P. Adye, Paterson, Unett, Whinyates, Sandham, Holcroft, and Kettlewell; 1st Lieutenants Darby, Stewart, Collyer, Orlebar, Molesworth, Cubitt, Campbell, Sinclair, Coxwell, Dyneley, Macbean, Rayner, Cavines, Hunt, Somerville, and Lord; 2nd Lieutenants Wright, Swabey, Lyon, Wilson, Thomson, Fuller, Forster, and Maling.

Captain Fyers acted as Aide-de-Camp to General Blomefield, and Captains Drummond and Whinyates were on his Brigade Staff.

No less than 185 pieces of ordnance accompanied the Expedition. Of these, 84 were field guns, including 6, 9, and 12-pounders, and 5½ and 8-inch howitzers. The last-named, although included among the field-guns, were evidently for use in the trenches. The guns taken for siege purposes were as follows:—