OF THE

MARINE CORPS.

The advantages arising from the services of corps trained to the use of arms on board of ship, as well as on land, were found when the British navy acquired a superiority over that of other nations of Europe; and as the safety of Great Britain, from its insular position, chiefly depends on the efficiency and excellence of her fleets, the importance and value of Marine Forces have consequently been at all times acknowledged and appreciated by the Sovereign, as well as by the Nation at large.

The first corps raised for Sea-service, of which history gives an account, is that which was formed by King Charles II., in the year 1664, when the war with Holland took place: this corps was commanded by the Duke of York (afterwards King James II.), then Lord High Admiral of Great Britain, and was designated “The Admiral’s Maritime Regiment.”[44]

In the year 1672 a dispute on the subject of naval precedence, and other causes, gave rise to another war with the Dutch, and battalions for Sea-service were formed, as the occasions of the State required, by drafts from the land forces, which were embarked on board the fleet; several companies of the Foot Guards were employed on the Marine duty; these companies were engaged in a sharp fight with the Dutch fleet on the 28th of May, 1672, in which upwards of two thousand men were killed; they were also engaged in several other actions during the war which ended in February, 1674.

In 1689 King William III. incorporated “the Admiral’s Regiment” (which was then considered the third regiment of Infantry) in the Second, now the Coldstream, regiment of Foot Guards. Two Marine regiments were, about the same time, established for service on board the fleet, which were disbanded in 1698.

On the recommencement of hostilities, in 1702, with France and Spain, both of which nations possessed powerful fleets as well as numerous armies, the British Parliament felt the expediency of enabling the Queen to increase the efficiency of her navy, by forming Corps of Marines, which could act at sea as well as on land.

Six regiments were accordingly added in the year 1702 to the regular Army as Marine corps, and six other of the regular regiments of Infantry were appointed for Sea-service; as shown in the following list.

The six Regiments of Marines were:—

Colonel Thomas Saunderson’s, now thirtieth foot.
Colonel George Villiers’s, now thirty-first foot.
Colonel Edward Fox’s, now thirty-second foot.
Colonel Harry Mordaunt’s; disbanded in 1713.
Colonel Henry Holl’s; disbanded in 1713.
Colonel Viscount Shannon’s; disbanded in 1713.

The six regiments of Foot for Sea-service were:—

Colonel Ventris Columbine’s, now sixth foot.
Colonel Thomas Erle’s, now nineteenth foot.
Colonel Gustavus Hamilton’s, now twentieth foot.
Colonel Lord Lucas’s, now thirty-fourth foot.
Colonel Earl of Donegal’s, now thirty-fifth foot.
Colonel Lord Charlemont’s, now thirty-sixth foot.

Her Majesty’s Order for levying this body of men was contained in the following Royal Warrant, dated 1st of June, 1702:—

Other regiments were also embarked, at different periods, during the war, on board the fleet to act as Marines, and the efficiency and usefulness of these corps, while so employed, were attested by the capture of several fortresses in Spain; more especially that of Gibraltar in 1704, the taking of which was effected by the Navy and Marines.

Rules and Instructions for the better government of the Marine regiments were issued by authority of Her Majesty Queen Anne, on the 1st of July, 1702, in which it was directed, “That when on shore they were to be quartered in the vicinity of the dock-yards, in order to guard them from embezzlement, or from any attempt that might be made on them by an enemy.”

Full instructions were also given as to their pay, subsistence, and clothing, which directed, “that the same deductions should be made for clothing as was usual in the land forces. Also that one day’s pay in every year be deducted from officers and soldiers for the Hospital.

“When on board ship they were to have an equal proportion of provisions with the seamen, without any deductions from their pay, the soldiers receiving short allowance money like the seamen.”

In order to render such portions of the Marine regiments as might be on shore, useful on all occasions when their services might be required, Her Majesty directed, that it should rest with herself, or with the Lord High Admiral, the Prince George of Denmark, to dispose of them at such places nearest to the several dock-yards as might be judged most convenient; and as there might be occasion for labourers to despatch necessary public works, Her Majesty empowered the High Admiral, or the Commissioners for executing that office, to cause to be employed in the dock-yards so many of the marine soldiers as might be judged fitting, and to make them such daily allowance for their labour, besides their ordinary pay, as should seem reasonable.

The Marine forces being thus placed under the control of the Lord High Admiral, His Royal Highness was pleased in 1702, to nominate Colonel William Seymour (of the fourth regiment of foot) to superintend the whole, with the rank of Brigadier-General, whose peculiar duties were to observe, that the men were comfortably quartered, that the officers were attentive in their respective departments, and that the marine soldiers, when embarked on board of ship, were supplied with proper sea-clothes and other suitable necessaries. When the Marines were serving afloat, they were to be under the command of the Naval Officers of the ships.

The Uniform of the Marine forces consisted of high-crowned leather-caps, covered with cloth of the same colour as the facings of the regiment, and ornamented with devices, the same as the caps worn by the grenadiers; scarlet frock-coat; buff waist-belt; black pouch carried in front, with bayonet-belt attached; buff gaiters.

During the reign of Queen Anne, certain Independent Companies of Marines were raised for the purpose of aiding in the defence of the British possessions in the West Indies.

The first important service on which the Marine corps were employed in this reign, was on board the fleet under Admiral Sir Cloudesly Shovel, then commanding in the Mediterranean, who was instructed to make every possible arrangement, by conciliation or by conquest, among the dependencies of the French and Spanish monarchies, in order to ensure a cordial reception of the Archduke Charles of Austria, in opposition to Philip, Duke of Anjou, of France, to the throne of Spain.

After some delays, the Archduke arrived at Lisbon under Admiral Sir George Rooke, on the 25th of February, 1704, in order to concert a plan of future operations with his ally the King of Portugal.

Sir George Rooke, after cruising with the fleet on the coast of Portugal, returned to Lisbon, and took the Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt on board, with whom he sailed on the 20th of April to Barcelona. On the arrival of the fleet before Barcelona, the Prince of Hesse sent a letter to Don Velasco, the governor, requiring him to surrender the town, which he refused. Information, however, being received that the city would declare for Charles III. if a show of attack were made,—sixteen hundred Marines were accordingly landed at the request, and under the command, of Major-General the Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt, on the 19th of May, 1704: this force, being found to be inadequate for the purpose, was re-embarked on the following day.

The next object of attack was the Rock of Gibraltar, where the Prince of Hesse landed in the afternoon of the 21st of July, 1704, with 1800 British and Dutch Marines. Acting upon the decision of a council of war, His Highness proceeded to cut off all communication with the mainland, to bombard the place, and to reduce it to the obedience of Charles III., King of Spain. The governor, on being summoned, refused to surrender, alleging that all the garrison had taken an oath of allegiance to King Philip V.

Admiral Sir George Rooke having directed a strong force to proceed against the South Mole, the enemy was driven from his guns; several boats, manned and armed, were then detached under the command of Captain Whitaker, of the Navy, who soon obtained possession of the great platform: about one hundred of the besiegers, whose impetuous bravery had carried them within the effects of a mine connected with the fort, were killed or wounded by the explosion; the rest, advancing rapidly, gained a redoubt half-way between the mole and the town. The Governor, at the urgent desire of the inhabitants, was induced to capitulate, and the Prince of Hesse took possession of the garrison on the evening of Sunday the 24th of July 1704. The loss in effecting the capture of this important fortress was sixty-one killed, and two hundred and six wounded. The attack of the seamen was one of the boldest and most difficult ever made, being obliged to climb up rocks and precipices. Thus was taken, in three days, a fortress since made impregnable to all assaults.

The loss of Gibraltar disconcerted the measures of Philip V., and of his grandfather Louis XIV. Eight thousand men, under the Marquis de Villadarias, were immediately detached from the Spanish army to retake the fortress; and the French Admiral received orders to engage the British and Dutch fleets, and to co-operate in the recapture of Gibraltar. The hostile fleets engaged on the 24th of August, about eleven leagues south of Malaga, and, after each had suffered severely, they were separated in the night. The enemy retired to Toulon, and Sir George Rooke sailed to Gibraltar. Here, after having held a Council of War, it was determined to return home; and the confederate fleet sailed for England, arriving at Spithead on the 25th of September. Sir John Leake and Admiral Vanderdussen were left at Lisbon to protect the coast of Portugal, and relieve Gibraltar, if it should be besieged as was anticipated.

The Marquis de Villadarias commenced the siege of Gibraltar on the 22nd of October, and the garrison, composed of Marines, under the command of the Prince of Hesse, sustained a siege by seven thousand men. The purpose of the enemy was to have stormed from the South Mole, united with the desperate attempt of a Spanish forlorn-hope climbing the rock, and a general attack from the mainland. The fortress was maintained against very superior numbers; and the fire of the enemy’s batteries having damaged the works, a body of men was landed from the fleet to assist in the defence. Brigadier Fox, and several other officers and men, having been killed on the 5th of December, 1704, aid was solicited from the army in Portugal. Admiral Sir John Leake accordingly sailed from Lisbon on the 10th of December, with a fleet, having on board a battalion of the first and second foot guards; Barrymore’s regiment, now thirteenth foot; Donegal’s regiment, now thirty-fifth foot; the Dutch regiment of Waes; and a Portuguese regiment; amounting in all to upwards of three thousand men. On their passage they fell in with the enemy’s squadron under Monsieur de Pointi, but they succeeded in arriving at Gibraltar, although some of the transports had separated.

These corps were safely landed on the 18th of December, and the Prince, strengthened by this reinforcement, made a sortie on the 23rd, and destroyed the lines, that had been erected within a hundred and sixty paces of the palisade.

The Marquis de Villadarias, having received a considerable reinforcement, evinced a disposition to storm the place, and on the 2nd of February, 1705, an attempt was made against the Round Tower, to ascertain what might be effected by a larger force. On the 7th the enemy attacked with five hundred chosen grenadiers, French and Walloons, commanded by Lieut.-General Thouy, and supported by one thousand Spanish troops. They ascended the hill in perfect silence at daybreak, and again attempted to storm the Round Tower, which was defended by Colonel Borr, of the Marines, now thirty-second regiment. The assailants, by throwing from above great stones and grenades on his men, at last obliged him to retire into that part of the works where the foot guards were posted. Flushed with success, they advanced too far; when they were gallantly charged by Colonel Moncall, of Barrymore’s (thirteenth) regiment, and driven from the Round Tower. Colonel Rivett, of the Coldstream foot guards, having got up the rock on the right of the covered-way with twenty grenadiers, favoured very much Colonel Moncall’s success. The garrison by this time had assembled, and kept up so destructive a fire that the enemy was obliged to make a precipitate retreat, losing seventy men killed on the spot; upwards of two hundred wounded; and one captain, four lieutenants, and forty men taken. The loss on the part of the garrison was twenty-seven men killed, and one hundred and twenty wounded.

Marshal de Tessé arrived with additional troops to carry on the siege; the garrison also received fresh reinforcements from Portugal, besides supplies of every description. Admiral Sir John Leake sailed from the Tagus on the 6th of March, 1705, and his arrival in the bay of Gibraltar on the 10th, was again so sudden, that he completely surprised the Baron de Pointi, together with the whole of his squadron, consisting of live ships of the line, three of which were captured, and two were driven on shore, and burnt by the enemy.

After a siege of seven months the enemy retired, in April, giving up all hopes of being able to make any impression on the fortress: his efforts were then confined to a very feeble blockade.

The fortress of Gibraltar, seated upon the territory of Spain, was thus rendered subject to the British crown by the bravery of its Navy and Marines: its possession was subsequently secured by the defence made against the renewed efforts of the Spaniards in 1727, and by the glorious defence sustained by the troops, under General Lord Heathfield, for three years, from 1779 to 1782, when it exhibited to the nations of Europe a brilliant instance of the combined exertions of the British navy and army against the repeated, but unsuccessful, attempts of Spain and France to recover this important fortress.

After the Spaniards and French had desisted from further attempts to retake Gibraltar, the Marine corps were distributed in the several ships of war which were collected in the Tagus, in order to co-operate with the land forces on the coast of Spain.

Towards the end of May, the English fleet, with about five thousand land forces on board, under the joint command of Admiral Sir Cloudesly Shovel and General the Earl of Peterborough, sailed from St. Helen’s, and arrived at Lisbon on the 20th of June. King Charles went on board the Ranelagh on the 23rd of July, and the Dutch fleet having joined in the Tagus, the confederate squadron sailed on the 28th, and anchored at Gibraltar on the 11th of August. The Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt, with the battalion of foot guards, and the thirteenth and thirty-fifth regiments, embarked, and the fleet sailed for Altea Bay: form thence it again proceeded on its voyage, and anchored before Barcelona on the 22nd of August.

The Earl of Peterborough commenced active operations against Barcelona by an attack on the strong fortress of Montjuich, situated on the opposite part of the town, at which the disembarkation took place, the troops having landed near the river Bassoz, about three miles east of Barcelona, on the 23rd and 24th of August. On the 28th, King Charles went on shore, when the inhabitants of the neighbouring towns and villages flocked to the camp, and many took arms to act as guerilla-bands and miquelets. A difference of opinion on the part of the Dutch General occasioned some delay, but it was ultimately determined to attack the fortress of Montjuich by storm.

The storming party, consisting of four hundred grenadiers, with a support of six hundred musketeers, commanded by the Earl of Peterborough and the Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt, commenced their march about ten o’clock on the night of Sunday the 13th of September round the mountains, and were followed by another detachment, and a party of dragoons. After traversing many miles of rugged mountain scenery, by different tracks, the storming party appeared about break of day at the foot of the mountain. Colonel Southwell of the sixth foot, which was then acting as Marines, was ordered to head the attack, and he succeeded in driving the enemy from the outworks into the castle. Upon this success the Prince of Hesse, advancing with great eagerness through all the fire, was shot with a musket-ball in the thigh, and upon being carried to an adjacent cottage, expired: this accident somewhat damped the spirits of the soldiers;—at the same time a large reinforcement was seen advancing from the town to aid the garrison in the Castle, and the troops received orders from some inferior officer to retire. The Earl of Peterborough rushed to the spot, countermanded the order, seized the half-pike out of Lord Charlemont’s hand, and rallied and led back the soldiers to the posts they had so nobly won. The Spaniards, who were advancing from the town, turned back, and the outworks of the Fortress of Montjuich were thus gained; batteries were constructed, and the inner works were assailed with cannon-balls, bombs, and grenades. On the 17th of September the Fort surrendered, and thus facilitated the siege of the City of Barcelona, which was prosecuted with vigour. The Admirals even relinquished for a time their natural element, and acted on shore as General Officers;—they came daily from their ships with a body of men formed into companies, having captains and lieutenants of their own. Cannon and mortars were dragged up steep precipices by the men; and a breach being declared practicable, a body of soldiers prepared to attack the town: further effusion of blood was spared, however, by the surrender of the garrison, which capitulated on the 9th of October.

The capture of Barcelona gave additional reputation to the arms of the allies, and this splendid achievement was regarded with astonishment throughout Europe. It was accompanied by the submission of nearly all Catalonia; and Boyer, in his history of these wars, observes, “all the generals, admirals, officers, private soldiers, and seamen, engaged in this memorable expedition, deserved each their share of the honour.”

King Charles and his counsellors, instead of exerting themselves to provide for the security of the towns which had come into their possession, and collecting the means for future conquests, spent their time and money in balls and public diversions. The breaches in Barcelona, and the fortress of Montjuich, were left unrepaired, and the garrison unprovided for a siege. Meanwhile King Philip was obtaining reinforcements from the favourers of his cause in Portugal, Italy, Provence, Flanders, and the Rhine, and he soon appeared at the head of above twenty thousand men to recapture the provinces he had lost. A powerful French and Spanish force approached Barcelona by land; a French fleet appeared before the town, and the garrison, being weak in numbers, regiments were hurried from other places, one English regiment travelling one hundred and twenty miles on mules, in two days, to take part in the defence of Barcelona. The siege was commenced in the beginning of April, 1706, when the soldiers repaired the breaches, and entered upon a resolute and desperate defence. A severe conflict took place on the 21st of April at Montjuich, in which Lord Donegal, of the thirty-fifth regiment, lost his life, and several prisoners were taken by the enemy; but when the garrison was nearly exhausted, its numbers decreased by deaths, wounds, sickness, and other causes, to about a thousand effective men, and a practicable breach was ready for the enemy to attack the place by storm, the English and Dutch fleet arrived with five regiments of foot; the French fleet hurried from before the town; and the reinforcements were landed.

The French, who had prepared to storm the place on the 10th of May, relaxed in their efforts, and raised the siege on the following day, making a precipitate retreat.

The important city of Barcelona being thus relieved, the fleet sailed on the 12th of May, and landed the forces of every description on the coast of Valencia. This was preparatory to an attack on Alicant. The capture of Carthagena was in the interim effected, and a garrison of six hundred marines under Major Hedges was established for its defence.

The fleet arrived off Alicant on the 26th of June, when the Governor-General Mahoni, was summoned to surrender: a refusal being made by the garrison, consisting of one thousand soldiers, and many inhabitants of the town who had volunteered in its defence, the bombardment of the city was resolved upon.

Brigadier Richard Gorges, who succeeded the Earl of Donegal, as colonel of the thirty-fifth regiment, then serving as marines, moved from Elcho on the 21st of July to within a mile of Alicant, and all the marines of the fleet, with eight hundred seamen, were landed on that day, and on the following morning:—the bombardment commenced on the evening of the 22nd. A detachment of the navy, under Admiral Sir George Byng, rendered very essential service by dismounting many of the enemy’s guns on the coast. On the 24th of July the marines arrived from Carthagena, and were immediately landed; after four days the troops had gained possession of the suburbs, and all the boats were manned, and armed, in order to attack the town. On the 29th of July the ships having made a practicable breach on the Round Tower, at the west end of the place, and another at the middle of the curtain, the soldiers advanced to storm them. General Mahoni retired into the Castle, and was again summoned by Brigadier Gorges, and was at length obliged to surrender his charge on the 25th of August, after a most gallant resistance, and a heavy loss.

The fleet proceeded to Iviça, where it arrived on the 9th of September: the governor immediately saluted, and tendered submission to King Charles III. It was next resolved to attack Majorca, which surrendered on the 14th of September: a garrison of one captain, one lieutenant, and one hundred marines, was placed in this island.

In June, 1707, an opportunity offered of co-operating with the Duke of Savoy and Prince Eugene, in an intended attack upon Toulon: the fleet proceeded for the coast of Italy, where it anchored, on the 28th of June, between Nice and Antibes, about a league from the Var: after a conference between the commanders-in-chief, it was decided that a joint attack should be made upon a part of the enemy’s army then entrenched upon that river: the positions, being evacuated by the enemy, were immediately occupied by six hundred British seamen and marines: the passage was thus secured for the Duke of Savoy to prosecute his designs, and frigates were stationed along different parts of the sea-coast: every aid was afforded by the fleet both as to men and cannon; but the enemy having daily augmented his forces, and having made a successful sally, the siege was raised on the 10th of August, 1707, after a loss of more than a thousand men. The French, from a sudden dread of consequences, sunk a number of their largest ships of war, which were ever after unfit for service.

King Charles having urged the reduction of Sardinia, with a view to open a passage for his troops in Naples to attack Sicily, as well as to secure a supply of provisions for his armies, a body of marines was withdrawn from Tarragona, a strong sea-port and garrison in Catalonia, to assist in this enterprise. On the 12th of August, 1708, the whole arrived before Cagliari, the capital of Sardinia; and on receiving an equivocal answer to the summons to surrender, the bombardment commenced on that evening, and continued, without intermission, until the next morning, when at the break of day Major-General Wills (thirtieth regiment) and the whole of the marines, with one Spanish regiment, were landed. The place, in consequence, almost immediately surrendered.

The whole having been re-embarked, the fleet again set sail on the 18th of August, 1708, for Minorca, and arrived at Port Mahon on the 28th of that month.

At this period two of the Marine regiments were drafted, and the officers and men were incorporated into the other four, now employed on this service: this measure had become necessary in order to supply the casualties which had occurred, and to render these corps effective. For this purpose all the marines capable of duty, were drawn from the fleet about to return home, in order to assist in the reduction of an island, which, it was expected, would make a spirited and tedious defence.

The first attack was against Fort Fornede, which was cannonaded by two of the ships, and surrendered after a contest of four hours; a detachment having been pushed to Citadella the capital, it surrendered without resistance:—the batteries were opened on the works defending the town of Port Mahon on the 17th of September, when, after a short but brisk fire, and the loss of only six men, a lodgment was effected under the walls of St. Philip’s Castle; and on the next day the place surrendered.

Thus was this strong fortress, and the important Island of Minorca, gained by a force of only two thousand four hundred men; the garrison consisted of one thousand soldiers, with upwards of one hundred pieces of cannon mounted.

Admiral Sir George Byng arrived at Lisbon on the 14th of October, from Portsmouth, having Her Majesty the Queen of Portugal on board; but although many other objects of service were in contemplation, nothing further was attempted during the remainder of the year 1708.

On the 28th of October, 1708, the decease of His Royal Highness the Prince George of Denmark, Consort of Her Majesty Queen Anne, and Lord High Admiral of England, took place.

In the early part of the year 1709 a plan was formed to attack Port Royal in the province of Nova Scotia, at that time in possession of the French: for this purpose a body of four hundred marines was embarked, and the expedition was entrusted to the joint conduct of Colonel Nicholson of the Marine forces, and Captain Martin of the Navy. The squadron proceeded for Boston, where they were reinforced by some ships, and provincial auxiliaries: for this intended conquest a council of war was held, and arrangements were made for the debarkation of a body consisting of two thousand five hundred men, which took place on the 24th of September. On the 1st of October the Governor surrendered the fortress, and a garrison of Marines took possession. The fortress was named Anna-polis Royal, in honour of Queen Anne, in whose reign it was conquered.

At this period the prospects of King Charles III. in obtaining the monarchy of Spain, had become very gloomy and doubtful. The town of Alicant had sustained along and obstinate siege, against very powerful forces of Spain and France. The garrison, consisting principally of Marines, exhibited the most heroic perseverance in maintaining the place. The fleet under Admiral Sir George Byng, and the troops on board, under the command of General Stanhope, were to have attempted its relief, and the squadron was at the same time to have attacked the enemy’s lines along the sea shore; but the weather continuing severe, and heavy gales preventing communication with the town, the Commander-in-Chief deemed it necessary to propose terms of surrender, and the remainder of the brave troops were embarked on board of the fleet, which now proceeded to Tarragona, Port Mahon, and afterwards to Barcelona. During the remainder of the year 1709, the fleets attempted nothing beyond the protecting of the convoys of provisions, where they were considered necessary, and in harassing the commerce of the enemy.

On the 13th of March, 1710, Admiral Sir John Norris arrived at Port Mahon, as Commander-in-Chief of the Naval forces. After making arrangements for disposing of the ships and troops in attacks upon the enemy, he proceeded to Barcelona on the 18th of June, in order to concert future operations with His Majesty King Charles III.

An expedition was planned against the Isle of Cette in the province of Languedoc, where the troops and Marines were landed on the 13th of July. The place made a feeble resistance, and the Fort, upon which were mounted eighteen pieces of cannon, surrendered on the same day. The regiment of Stanhope, and three hundred Marines, advanced against Adge, and the town was delivered up without resistance.

The Isle of Cette was shortly afterwards recovered by the French army, under the Duke of Roquetaine; but the British troops had previously re-embarked.

In the early part of the year 1711 it was resolved to make an attack on the town of Quebec, the capital of the French possessions in Canada, for which service Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker and Major-General John Hill were appointed Commanders-in-Chief; a large fleet of ships of war formed part of the armament, which was to be further strengthened by troops from the American colonies; they were directed to proceed to Boston in New England, and to make arrangements for this undertaking. They reached Naerlaskel near Boston on the 24th of June, and having collected the provincial corps, and withdrawn the Marines from Anna-polis Royal, which had been occupied by these corps since its surrender in 1709, they sailed for the object of their destination, after many delays, on the 30th of July.

The expedition did not reach the River St. Lawrence until the 21st of August, when it encountered storms, and being furnished with pilots who were unacquainted with the navigation of that river, eight transports, a store ship, and a sloop were lost by shipwreck, and upwards of eighty persons, including officers, soldiers, and women, principally belonging to Colonel Kane’s fourth regiment, and Colonel Clayton’s thirty-seventh regiment, perished in this fatal service.

A scarcity of provisions had arisen, and it was then determined by a council of war that further operations should be abandoned. Some of the corps proceeded to Anna-polis Royal, and the squadron returned to England in the month of October, 1711, after having left the provincial auxiliaries upon their own coast.

On the 17th of April, 1711, the decease of Joseph I., Emperor of Germany, occurred, and Charles III., of Spain, was elected Emperor of Germany at Frankfort, by the name of Charles IV., on the 12th October following. Further attempts on the part of the British Government, in the cause of King Charles were now unnecessary, as he was called upon to assume the Imperial throne of his country. His Majesty embarked at Barcelona, on the 27th of September, on board of the confederate fleet, and sailed for Italy.

In the year 1712 negotiations were entered into by Great Britain and France, and peace was restored by the treaty of Utrecht on the 31st of March, 1713. By this treaty it was settled, that Great Britain should retain possession of Gibraltar, Minorca, and Nova Scotia, which had been conquered during the late war, and in effecting which, the Marine corps, which had been formed during the reign of Queen Anne, greatly contributed.

On the return of peace, as concluded by the treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, the corps of Marines, which had been formed in the reign of Queen Anne, were ordered to be disbanded; they were considered to be part of a war establishment, and a spirit of public economy, as well as of jealousy against a standing army, particularly in the early periods after the Revolution of 1688, afforded to the leaders of parliamentary debates, and of popular prejudices, grounds of objection to the maintaining of such corps after the termination of hostilities.

The arrangements consequent on the general peace having been made, a great reduction in the forces took place. These arrangements had scarcely been decided, when the decease of Her Majesty Queen Anne took place on the 1st of August, 1714, and King George the First ascended the throne.

Soon after His Majesty’s accession, the peace of the kingdom was disturbed by the hostile designs of King Louis XV. of France, who had supported and encouraged James Francis Edward Stuart, son of His late Majesty King James II., in his endeavours to obtain the throne of Great Britain; but the loyalty of the people, and the courage of the troops, defeated the attempts for the restoration of the Stuart family.

King George I., being supported by the parliament, adopted active measures for increasing his army, and resisting the plans of his enemies. Six additional regiments of cavalry, from ninth to fourteenth dragoons, were raised. The establishments of the regiments of infantry were increased, and in consideration of the gallant and extensive services of the Marine corps during the late war, Wills’s, now thirtieth, Goring’s, now thirty-first, and Borr’s, now thirty-second, were incorporated with the regiments of infantry of the line, and ranked according to the dates of their original formation in 1702.

From the year 1714 to 1739 no corps of Marines, except four invalid companies, were kept on the establishment of the army.

For several years Spain had beheld with great jealousy the growing commerce and increasing naval consequence of Great Britain, particularly in the neighbourhood of her possessions in South America, where Spain had endeavoured to monopolize the whole commerce and wealth of Mexico and Peru; the vessels of foreign powers were forbidden, under severe penalties, to approach within a certain distance of her American possessions; and to enforce this, the American seas were filled with Spanish cruisers, whose enormities at length attracted the attention of the British parliament. After fruitless representations to the court of Madrid for redress, the British ministry at length determined on hostilities; and, with the acclamations of the nation, war was formally declared against Spain on the 23rd of October, 1739.

It was again considered necessary to form an efficient maritime force in distinct regiments, by which means the corps of the regular army could be embarked when required for continental services, and the marine regiments could be employed, either on board of ships of war, or at the naval stations, as might be considered best for the public service.

Orders were issued for augmenting the land forces, and also for forming six regiments of marines, each to consist of ten companies of seventy privates in each company, and to be commanded by

1st, Colonel Edward Wolfe, from 3rd Foot Guards;
2nd, Colonel W. Robinson, from Handasyd’s 22nd regiment;
3rd, Colonel Andrew Lowther, from 2nd Foot Guards;
4th, Colonel John Wynyard, from Tyrrell’s regiment;
5th, Colonel Charles Douglas, from Howard’s regiment;
6th, Colonel Lucius Ducie Moreton, from 3rd Foot Guards.

In order to facilitate the speedy formation of these corps, and to render them effective, five men from each company of the regiments of foot guards were appointed serjeants and corporals; and further, that they might be rapidly completed, a bounty of thirty shillings per man was allowed to 1800 men who volunteered from the regiments of infantry to the marine corps: by these energies, the whole of the marine regiments were soon raised and disciplined.

On the prospect of the commencement of hostilities Admiral Vernon had sailed for Jamaica, where he arrived in October, 1739, with a fleet of five ships, having 200 marines on board, and proceeded from thence to Porto Bello, the destined object of his attach, which was at that time the great mart for the wealthy commerce of Chili and Peru; the attempt was fraught with many difficulties, but it was undertaken and performed with spirit and promptitude.

On the 21st of November, 1739, the attack was commenced by the ships, in line of battle, against the Iron Castle, a strong fort at the north point of the entrance into the harbour. The Spaniards flying from several parts of it, an instant debarkation of the seamen and marines from on board the Burford, Norwich, and Worcester took place under cover of those ships, and the fort was carried. Upon the 22nd an attack was intended against the whole, but the enemy displayed the white flag as a signal of surrender. After destroying the fortifications, which from their strength required some time, the Admiral with his squadron sailed for Jamaica on the 13th of December, 1739.

In the year 1740 an additional regiment, of four battalions, was authorised to be raised in America, and the royal standard was erected at New York, as the signal-post to which every volunteer marine was to repair. The field officers and subalterns were appointed by the King, and the captains of companies were nominated by the American provinces. Colonel Spotswood, of Virginia, was appointed colonel-commandant of the whole. It was supposed that, from climate, the natives of that continent were better calculated for the service to which they were destined, than Europeans. Their uniform was camblet coats, brown linen waistcoats, and canvas trousers. This regiment, which was afterwards commanded by Colonel Gooche, was considered as the FORTY-THIRD regiment of infantry of the line.

In January, 1740, an augmentation of 340 men, and of one lieutenant in each company, was made in each of the six regiments of marines, and twenty men were added to each of the four companies of invalids, and a similar number to the retired marine establishment.

The utility of the corps of marines was now universally admitted, and in a letter addressed to the Duke of Newcastle, then first lord of the treasury and prime minister, by Admiral Vernon, previously to his sailing with an expedition to the West Indies, he thus expressed himself on the subject of marine soldiers:—

The sentiments expressed by Admiral Vernon, in favour of the marines, were drawn from the acknowledged usefulness of the corps so employed in the naval expeditions during the reign of Queen Anne.

In the year 1740 four additional regiments of marines were raised, viz.:—

7th, Colonel W. Cornwall;     9th, Colonel C. Powlett;
8th, Colonel W. Hanmore;     10th, Colonel J. Jeffreys.

Each regiment consisted of ten companies of 100 men in each company, which, with officers included, amounted to 1155 in each regiment. The six regiments raised in 1739 were increased to the same numbers of officers and men.

In February, 1740, the town of Carthagena, the capital of an extensive and wealthy province in Terra Firma in South America, was bombarded, and an attack was made upon Chagre, a fort situate upon the mouth of a river of that name a little to the north-west of the Gulf of Darien. The latter surrendered, after a sharp contest, on the 24th of March, when the castle, situated on a rock, and the custom house under its protection, were demolished and burnt.

These were all that could be performed until the arrival of reinforcements and supplies from England. The fleet afterwards returned to Porto Bello, and from thence to Jamaica.

Considerable exertions were made in England during the year 1740 with the view of attacking, more effectually, the Spanish possessions in South America.

A large number of ships of war was assembled at Spithead under the command of Rear-Admiral Sir Chaloner Ogle, and a land force, consisting of Harrison’s (15th) regiment, Wentworth’s (24th) regiment, and part of Cavendish’s (34th) regiment, was collected in the Isle of Wight, and held in readiness, with the six regiments of marines, to be embarked for service under the orders of General Lord Cathcart, a nobleman of approved courage and experience in war.

The fleet, with the British armament, consisting of one hundred and seventy ships, sailed from St. Helen’s in October, 1740; but being overtaken by a tempest in the Bay of Biscay, it was dispersed. The greater part of the vessels, being re-collected, the Admiral prosecuted his voyage, and anchored at the neutral island of Dominica, in order to obtain a supply of wood and water.

Unfortunately for the service, General Lord Cathcart fell an early victim to the disease of the climate, and the command of the expedition devolved upon Brigadier-General Thomas Wentworth, of the 24th regiment.

The sixth regiment of foot, under the command of Colonel John Guise, who was appointed brigadier-general, was subsequently ordered to proceed to the West Indies to reinforce the troops employed in this enterprise.