OF THE

EIGHTY-SIXTH,

OR

THE ROYAL COUNTY DOWN REGIMENT

OF

 FOOT.

The last twelve years of the eighteenth century form a period, remarkable in the annals of Europe, for the efforts made to overthrow the governments of Christendom, and to establish the destructive domination of atheism and democracy, upon the ruins of institutions which had elevated the inhabitants of this quarter of the globe to an height of knowledge, refinement, wealth, and power, unknown in other parts of the earth. France was the great theatre of commotion: there the war of hostile principles produced the most sanguinary results;—the cry of “equality” was raised,—the blood of princes, nobles, and citizens was shed, and democracy appeared to triumph over the rights of society. In other countries, republican principles were spreading to an alarming extent; the sovereigns of Europe were forced to engage in war to oppose the progress of destruction, and to Great Britain pertains the honour of having persevered in this contest, for twenty years, when the overthrow of that tyrannical power which sprung out of the French revolution, was accomplished.

On the commencement of hostilities in 1793, the British army was augmented: upwards of fifty regiments of foot were raised, and one of the first corps embodied, on this occasion, was the regiment which now bears the title of the Eighty-sixth, or the Royal County Down Regiment.

This corps was raised by Major-General Cornelius Cuyler, who had served with reputation in North America, and also in the West Indies, where he had performed the duties of commander-in-chief; its general rendezvous was at Shrewsbury, and its designation was “General Cuyler’s Shropshire Volunteers;” but its ranks were completed with men, principally from Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire,—counties which have furnished many excellent soldiers. Major-General Cuyler’s appointment was dated the 30th of October, 1793, and the royal warrants for raising recruits were issued on the following day[1].

In February, 1794, the following officers were holding commissions in the regiment:—

From Shrewsbury, the regiment proceeded to Park-gate, where it embarked, in April, for Ireland, and after landing at Cork, marched to Kilkenny.

At this period the newly-raised corps were numbered, and this regiment received the designation of the Eighty-sixth, or Shropshire Volunteers.

On the 20th of June, 1794, Major-General Cuyler was appointed to the Sixty-ninth Regiment, and was succeeded in the colonelcy of the Eighty-sixth, by Lieutenant-General Russell Manners.

After remaining in Ireland ten weeks, the regiment embarked at Cork, and was held in readiness for active service; but it landed at Frome, in Somersetshire, in September, and proceeded from thence to the Isle of Wight.

The regiment having been brought into a state of discipline and efficiency, was selected to serve on board the fleet as marines; eight officers, and four hundred and fourteen non-commissioned officers and soldiers, embarked in January, 1795, on board the “Prince of Wales,” “Triumph,” “Brunswick,” and “Hector,” line-of-battle ships, and in February, seven officers, and two hundred and seventy-six non-commissioned officers and soldiers, embarked on board the “Prince,” “Saturn,” and “Boyne.” The “Boyne” caught fire at Spithead, and was destroyed, when the grenadier company of the regiment lost its arms, accoutrements, and baggage.

Lieut.-General Russell Manners was removed to the Twenty-sixth Light Dragoons, in March, 1795, and was succeeded by Major-General William Grinfield, from Lieut.-Colonel in the Third Foot Guards.

The head-quarters of the regiment were at Newport, in the Isle of Wight, where they were inspected by His Royal Highness the Duke of York, who expressed his approbation of their appearance; and in October the establishment was augmented to one hundred rank and file per company, its numbers being completed by drafts from the 118th and 121st Regiments; the men of the last-mentioned corps were then recently liberated from French prison. In December, the regiment was stationed at Portsmouth and Hilsea.

In the beginning of 1796, the establishment was augmented to twelve companies,—the eleventh and twelfth being recruiting companies; and as the ships of war came into port, the officers and soldiers of the Eighty-sixth landed and joined the regiment; they had served in several engagements in which the ships they were embarked in had taken part, during that eventful period. In April, the regiment proceeded to Guildford, and in June it returned to the Isle of Wight.

Meanwhile, Flanders and Holland had embraced the republican principles of France, and the British government resolved to deprive the Dutch of the settlement of the Cape of Good Hope; the Eighty-sixth embarked for the Cape, where they landed on the 22nd of September, six days after the Dutch governor had surrendered the colony to the forces under General Sir Alured Clarke.

The regiment was stationed at the Cape of Good Hope during the years 1797 and 1798, and received drafts from the 95th, and other corps. In February, 1799, it embarked for the East Indies, and landed, on the 10th of May, at Madras, upwards of thirteen hundred strong,—a splendid body of men, whose appearance excited much admiration.

The capture of Seringapatam had rendered the services of the regiment at this station unnecessary, and after a month’s repose at Madras, it embarked for Bombay, where it arrived on the 22nd of July, and sent detachments by sea, under Major Bell, and Captain James Richardson, to Tannah and Surat: these detachments returned to Bombay, in December following.

From Bombay, three companies sailed, towards the end of 1800, for Ceylon, in the expectation of taking part in the reduction of the Isle of France[3]; but orders had, in the meantime, arrived for an army from India, to co-operate with a body of troops from Europe, in the expulsion of the French “Army of the East” from Egypt, and the detachment returned, in January, 1801, to Bombay, where Major-General Baird assumed the command, and the expedition sailed for the Red Sea.

It was originally designed, that the army from India should land at Suez, a city of Egypt, situate at the head of the Red Sea, on the borders of Arabia; and a small squadron under Admiral Blanquett, having on board three companies of the Eighty-sixth (the grenadier, light, and colonel’s companies) under Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd, a detachment of Bombay artillery, a battalion of sepoys, with other detachments, sailed some time before the main body of the expedition, to attack Suez, and interrupt the formation of any establishment there by the French. This small force left Bombay in December 1800, arrived at Mocha in the middle of January 1801, where the fleet remained two days to procure provisions, when it sailed for Jedda, where one of the ships was lost on a bank. The navigation of the Red Sea, from Jedda to Suez, proved particularly difficult and tedious, on account of the want of a sufficient depth of water, the fleet having to anchor daily, and take advantage of the tides. On reaching Suez, the French had evacuated the place in consequence of the arrival of the army from Europe, under General Sir Ralph Abercromby, on the Mediterranean shores of Egypt, and the success of the British arms near Alexandria, where Sir Ralph Abercromby was killed.

The troops landed at Suez, and Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd, in reporting his arrival, solicited permission to cross the Desert and share in the dangers and honours of the army, which was advancing up the Nile, and approaching Cairo, the modern capital of Egypt, which it was expected the French would defend. Lieut.-General Hutchinson acquiesced in Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd’s wishes, and preparations were accordingly made to pass the Desert.

At six o’clock, on the evening of the 6th of June, the three companies of the Eighty-sixth commenced their march, with only three pints of water per man; the distance in a straight line, was only fifty-eight miles; but the Arab Sheiks, furnished for guides by the Vizier, and made responsible for the safe passage of the detachment, represented that a detour of ten or twelve miles would be necessary to prevent the French intercepting the detachment.

After marching two hours over a hard sandy country, Captain Cuyler, Lieutenant Morse, and Lieutenant Goodfellow, were taken so ill as to be unable to proceed. At eleven the troops halted for two hours, then resumed the march until seven in the morning, when they again halted, having performed twenty-six miles of the journey. The day became so intolerably hot, that Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd ordered the tents to be pitched to shelter the men from the sun; but at ten o’clock the guides stated it was necessary to march, as the camels would be so debilitated by the heat, if they rested on the sand, as to require water before they could move again; but if kept in motion they would not be affected in so fatal a degree; adding, if the soldiers slept, the camel drivers might steal the water, which they feared would be found scarcely sufficient. The guides being responsible for the safety of the detachment, Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd acceded to their wishes; the tents were struck at eleven, and the march resumed; the thermometer being at 109. Captain Cuyler soon fainted again, and fell from his horse, and a camel and two men were left to attend him and bring him forward. The men beginning to drop fast in the rear, Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd halted about one o’clock, cut his own baggage from the camels, which example was followed by all the officers, as many men as could be carried were then mounted on the camels, and the whole proceeded. At two o’clock a camseen, or south wind began to blow, the thermometer rose to 116, and afterwards much higher; the officers and soldiers were seized with dreadful sensations:—some were affected with giddiness and loss of sight, and others fell down gasping for breath, and calling for drink. At four o’clock, Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd was forced to halt. The skins had been cracked by the sun, and the water had become of a thick consistence; the men who drank it were seized with vomiting and violent pains. The officers had brought with them some Madeira wine, which they divided among the soldiers; a proportion of spirits were mixed with the remaining water, which was issued to the men, accompanied with the warning, that every drop was in their own possession, half the journey had not been performed, and on their own prudence, in reserving a portion in their canteens, must depend whether or not they should be enabled to accomplish the remainder of the distance.

Between six and seven o’clock the wind ceased; as the sun declined, the air became more temperate, and the detachment being a little refreshed, though still a languor pervaded the whole, the order for marching was given at seven o’clock. Seventeen men, unable to travel, were left on the ground, and camels were left to bring them forward as soon as they could be moved.

During the march several officers and soldiers experienced an extraordinary sensation of seeing horses, camels, and all kinds of animals, moving with rapid transition before them, which false perception their judgment could not correct. At eleven the detachment halted; the night was excessively dark, and the officers and soldiers were so exhausted, that unconquerable sleep seized upon all.

At four o’clock the guides awoke Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd, and the soldiers formed in order of march with difficulty, a heavy dew having fallen upon them, and their limbs being benumbed with cold. The march was, however, resumed; the south wind began to blow at the same hour as on the preceding day, but the men were not affected in the same severe degree; and by strenuous exertions the detachment arrived at the springs of Elhanka, between four and five o’clock in the evening of the same day, when the joy experienced by every one was very great. By eight o’clock all the camels had come up, and the men, who, from giddiness had fallen from their backs, joined during the night. Eight of the seventeen men left behind, joined on the 9th of June, and the other nine perished in the Desert.

No man had partaken of food after quitting Suez, as it would have increased the thirst, and the rations of salt pork were thrown away on the first morning. On arriving at the springs, the soldiers partook of the water with caution; but two officers’ horses having broke loose drank till they died on the spot. During the march of seventy miles, no vegetation, bird, or beast, had been seen.

After halting at the springs of Elhanka until the evening of the 9th of June, the detachment commenced its march in the dark, to prevent being discovered by the enemy, and at eleven o’clock on the following day, it joined the Turkish army, encamped at Chobra, under the Grand Vizier; the British, under Lieut.-General Hutchinson, being encamped on the other side of the river Nile. The Eighty-sixth pitched their tents with Colonel Stuart’s division, which was with the Vizier’s army; the soldiers had suffered the loss of their uniforms, which had been burnt in consequence of the plague, and they had been forced to abandon their knapsacks on the march; being very fine men, their appearance excited great interest. On the 16th, the three officers left behind on the march, joined; they had returned to Suez, and afterwards passed the Desert with a caravan.

Advancing towards the metropolis of modern Egypt, the army made preparations for investing that extensive fortress; but on the 22nd of June a flag of truce arrived from the French Commandant, General Belliard, who agreed to surrender Cairo, on condition of himself and garrison being sent back to France.

On the surrender of Cairo, the three companies of the Eighty-sixth marched into the citadel, which the French had evacuated a few hours previously. On the same day they took possession of Fort Ibrahim.

In the mean time, the other three companies of the regiment which had returned from Ceylon to join the expedition, had been delayed by the difficult navigation of the Red Sea, and had landed at Cosseir, from whence a march of above one hundred and twenty miles had to be performed across the Desert to Kenna on the Nile. This distance was divided into stages, stores were formed at several points, relays of camels were placed to convey water, wells were found, and others digged, and the march was performed by the army with much less suffering than was experienced by the three companies under Lieut.-Colonel Lloyd, in the passage of the Desert from Suez to the springs of Elhanka. At the third stage, called Moilah, some soldiers of the Eighty-sixth dug a well at the foot of a hill, under the direction of Captain Middlemore, and found an excellent spring, for which they received the thanks of the commander of the forces.

Arriving on the banks of the Nile, the troops embarked in boats and proceeded down the river to the island of Rhonda, where they encamped, while the forces from Europe were engaged in the siege of Alexandria. At Rhonda the six companies of the Eighty-sixth were united; four companies remaining in India.

In the beginning of September, Alexandria surrendered; Egypt was thus delivered from the power of the French “Army of the East,” and Europe saw the dawn of liberty in the horizon. The Eighty-sixth received, in common with the other corps which served in this enterprise, the approbation of their Sovereign, the thanks of Parliament, and the royal authority to bear on their colours the Sphynx, with the word “Egypt,” to commemorate the share taken by the regiment in this splendid achievement.

To perpetuate the remembrance of the services rendered to the Ottoman Empire, the Grand Seignor established an order of knighthood, which he named the order of the Crescent, of which the superior officers of the army and navy were constituted members. The officers of the Eighty-sixth, and other corps, had gold medals presented to them by the Grand Seignor, which they were permitted by King George III., to accept and wear.

The object of the expedition having been accomplished, the Eighty-sixth sailed up the Nile in boats, in order to return to India; they arrived at El Hamed on the 14th of October, and on the 30th proceeded to Gheeza, where they remained several months.

In April of this year, one of the four companies left in India, proceeded from Bombay to Surat, a town situate on the south bank of the river Taptee, in the province of Guzerat; and in November, two companies sailed for Dieu in the same province.

The two companies at Dieu returned to Bombay in February, 1802, and in March they sailed to Cambay, under the command of Captain Richardson, and joined the company from Surat, which had arrived there a short time previously. They encamped at Cambay, with part of the Seventy-fifth, five companies of the Eighty-fourth, a battalion of native infantry, and some artillery, under Colonel Sir William Clarke.

The jealousy of the native chiefs at the accession of territory acquired by the British in India, often produced hostilities, and circumstances occurred which occasioned a detachment of the Eighty-sixth, under Lieutenant William Purcell Creagh, to take part in an attempt to surprise the hostile fortress of Kareah, one hundred and twenty miles from Cambay, on the night of the 17th of March. The soldiers were advancing to storm the place with the greatest gallantry, when their progress was arrested by a deep ditch, cut through the rock a short time previously, and the Arabs in garrison being numerous and prepared, opened a heavy fire. Lieutenant Creagh was killed by a cannon ball, while in the act of leading the soldiers to the attack; Lieutenant Lovell was also killed, and many officers and soldiers were wounded; soon after day-break the troops were obliged to retire.

In consequence of this repulse, the three companies of the Eighty-sixth, with the other detachments encamped at Cambay, were ordered to advance upon Kareah. The enemy having formed for battle a short distance from the fort, with a numerous force, were routed by the British on the 30th of April; and immediately afterwards the town was captured, also some out-works, in one of which an explosion took place, killing an officer and twenty-five soldiers.

The siege of the fort was commenced; but when the batteries opened their fire, the garrison surrendered. The chief, Mulhar Rao, was sent a prisoner to Bombay. After placing a garrison in the fort, the troops marched for Surat, (170 miles,) where they arrived on the 12th of June, having captured Tarrapore, and other small places, while on the march.

The six companies of the regiment in Egypt remained at Gheeza until May, when they traversed the Desert to Suez, and from thence to “Moses’ Well,” or the “Font of Moses,” on the Arabian side of the Gulf of Suez. While at Gheeza they received two hundred and seven volunteers from the Twentieth, Thirty-fifth, Forty-eighth, and Sixty-third Regiments; Major Henry Torrens joined at that station.

While at Moses’ Well, several soldiers died of the plague, when the men’s clothing, bedding, and tents were burnt, and the six companies embarked for India; no other cases of the plague occurring, the companies landed at Bombay on the 4th of July. In November, the three companies arrived from the province of Guzerat, and the regiment was once more united at Bombay.

The Eighty-sixth were only permitted to enjoy a short repose at Bombay: the hostile demonstrations of some of the predatory states composing the Mahratta power, rendering it necessary for the British forces to be held in readiness for active operations, and assembled on the verge of the British territory. The Mahratta states were united by a sentiment of interest founded upon their common origin, civil and religious usages, and habits of conquest and depredation; the chiefs acted as independent sovereigns, but nominally acknowledged the supreme authority of the Peishwah. They, however, viewed with jealousy the treaties between the British and the Peishwah, as tending to restrain their predatory habits, and prevent their acquisition of power; and this acknowledged head of the Mahratta states found his independence controlled, and the existence of his government menaced by the violence and ambition of his feudatory chieftains; at the same time he was unable to fulfil his engagements with the British, the safety of whose possessions was endangered. In consequence of these events, connected with other causes, the Eighty-sixth left Bombay in the middle of November, for the province of Guzerat, and landed at Cambay, from whence they marched towards the hostile fortress of Baroda, in the vicinity of which place they encamped, with several other corps, on the 3rd of December. An enemy’s force was assembled to protect the fortress, and on the 18th of December the British advanced, leaving their tents standing, and engaged their opponents. During the fight the garrison made a sally; but the English proved victorious, routing their adversaries with great slaughter, and capturing a pair of Arab colours and many prisoners.

During the night the erection of batteries commenced; on the 21st of December the fire of the artillery was opened, and the flank companies of the Eighty-sixth stormed an outwork, defended by Arabs, who refused quarter, and were nearly all destroyed, very few escaping. In four days the breach was practicable, and the storming parties were ready; but the garrison surrendered. The Eighty-sixth had seven men killed, and twenty-three wounded in these services. Captain John Grant distinguished himself during the siege, and at the storming of the outwork.

Towards the end of this year, the usurpations of Jeswunt Rao Holkar, one of the Mahratta chiefs, forced the Peishwah to abandon his capital, and to seek British aid, when a treaty was concluded with him; and the refractory chiefs persisting in aggression, hostilities were commenced to reinstate the deposed chieftain.

On the third of February, 1803, three companies of the Eighty-sixth, under Captain James Richardson, were detached, with other forces, the whole commanded by Major Holmes, of the Bombay army, in pursuit of the Mahratta chieftain, Canojee Rao Guickwar, who had taken the field with a considerable force.

While in quest of the enemy, the advance-guard of the Seventy-fifth Regiment was suddenly attacked, when emerging from a defile, on the 6th of February, and overpowered, with a loss of many men and a gun. The three companies of the Eighty-sixth, being at the head of the column of march, moved forward, encountered the enemy, and, by a determined charge, routed the hostile forces, chasing them across the bed of a river into the jungle, where they dispersed, leaving their tents, baggage, camels, horses, and the captured gun behind. The regiment lost very few men in this gallant exploit.

On the same day five companies of the regiment, under Captain Cuyler, marched from Baroda to reinforce Major Holmes’ detachment, leaving two companies behind under Captain Grant.

The Chief Canojee was at the head of a considerable force, but he avoided an engagement, which occasioned many harassing marches in endeavouring to come up with him. On the 25th of February, a party of the Eighty-sixth was detached against the fort of Kirrella, which was captured without experiencing serious opposition.

On the 1st of March, when near Copperbund, information was received that Canojee’s force was not far distant; and by extraordinary exertions, the detachment came up with the hostile bands, which were in full retreat. The Mahratta horse, attached to the British detachment, did not act with spirit; but the Eighty-sixth, though nearly exhausted with the march, made a gallant effort, and encountered the enemy, who was in the act of passing the bed of a river. The adverse bands being nearly all cavalry, and the British nearly all infantry, the enemy escaped with little loss. The Eighty-sixth had two men killed; Lieutenant Alexander Grant, and a few men wounded.

The forces of Canojee Rao Guickwar having been, in a great measure, dispersed, the Eighty-sixth were allowed a short period of repose; and these districts were annexed to the British possessions in India.

Operations having commenced for the restoration of the Peishwah, the Eighty-sixth were stationed a short time in Guzerat, where a force was detained to afford security to that valuable and important province, and also a reserve disposable for active operations. The regiment formed part of the disposable force stationed in front of Brodera, the residence of the Guickwar, and to the northward of the Nerbudda river.

In May, the regiment advanced and pitched its tents before the fortress of Keira, belonging to one of Doulat Rao Scindia’s chiefs, where some native infantry and battering guns also arrived; but the garrison surrendered without waiting for a breach having been made in the works.

From Keira the regiment marched to Nerriade, where it was joined by two companies left at Baroda under Captain Grant; but the rains setting in, the operations were suspended.

Information having been received that a body of the enemy was levying contributions about thirty miles from the quarters of the regiment, Captain Grant performed a forced march with four companies and some sepoys, and making a night attack with great success, killed and took prisoners many of the enemy, and captured some horses, &c. Lieutenant Procter and a few men of the regiment were wounded on this occasion.

A body of Canojee’s troops threatening to cross the river about fifteen miles above Baroach, and plunder the country, four hundred rank and file of the regiment, with a battalion of sepoys, and four guns, under Captain James Richardson, advanced, on the 14th of July, during the heavy rains, in search of the enemy. The gun-bullocks failed, and the country being inundated by the rains, the soldiers had to drag the guns, up to their waists in water; but by extraordinary efforts they arrived at the bank of the river on the 16th of July, and attacking a number of Canojee’s troops which had crossed the stream, routed them, and forced them into the water, where many lost their lives, the river being full and rapid.

The river having fallen considerably during the night, the soldiers passed the stream on the following day, under cover of the fire of the guns, and assaulting the breast-works of the main body of Canojee’s legions, carried them at the point of the bayonet, and pursued the routed enemy two miles with great slaughter. A body of Arabs disdaining to seek their safety in flight, fought with great desperation until overpowered.

Captain Richardson and Lieutenant Lanphier distinguished themselves on this occasion; and the enterprise being accomplished with the loss of a few men killed and wounded, the troops returned to Baroda.

In pursuance of the plan suggested to the Governor-General by Major-General Hon. Arthur Wellesley, five hundred men of the Eighty-sixth, a small detachment of the Sixty-fifth, a proportion of European artillery, and a battalion of Sepoys, advanced, under Lieut.-Colonel Woodington, to besiege the strong fortress of Baroach. On the 23rd of August, this small body of troops encamped on the bank of the river within a few miles of the fortress, expecting the arrival of the battering train in boats. The baggage of the regiment was this day attacked by a numerous body of the enemy’s horse, when nearly every soldier and follower was killed or wounded, and the baggage captured and plundered.

A schooner and gun-boat having arrived with cannon and ammunition, the troops advanced on the 25th of August, and arriving within two miles of the fortress, discovered a numerous body of hostile cavalry, infantry, and Arabs, in order of battle on the plain. These opponents were speedily routed with the loss of their flag and a number of killed and wounded; and the armament soon afterwards attacked, and carried, the pettah with great gallantry; Ensign D’Aguilar distinguished himself on this occasion.

The siege of the fort was commenced, and a breach was reported practicable; at one o’clock on the 29th of August, the storming parties assembled in the streets under the command of Major Cuyler; the bayonets were firmly fixed by the introduction of a piece of cotton cloth, to prevent the Arab swordsmen disengaging them, and the soldiers proceeded quietly to their post behind the battery. At three the signal to attack was fired, and the forlorn hope, consisting of Serjeant John Moore and twelve soldiers of the Eighty-sixth, sprang forward; a hundred soldiers of the Eighty-sixth, and a hundred Sepoy grenadiers, under Captain Richardson, rushed towards the breach, followed by three hundred men under Major Cuyler, and a reserve of two hundred under Captain Bethune.

Passing the ditch knee-deep in mud, and climbing the long steep and difficult ascent to the breach, the soldiers encountered the Arab and Scindian defenders, who made a desperate resistance. Hand to hand the combatants strove for mastery, and amidst the clash of steel and turmoil of deadly contest, many feats of valour were performed. Captain Maclaurin, who evinced great ardour, was wounded and made prisoner, but he was rescued from the Arabs, by Private John Brierly. Captain Richardson and Captain Grant signalized themselves, and Serjeant Bills was conspicuous for the heroic courage with which he fought. At length British valour proved triumphant, and the breach was won, when the Eighty-sixth crowned the rampart, the Scindian colours were pulled down, and the British standard planted in their place, by Serjeant Moore.

Having overpowered all resistance at the breach, Captain Richardson’s party swept the works to the Cuttoopore gate; Major Cuyler led his detachment at a running pace to the Jaraseer gate, and firing upon the Scindians and Arabs who were escaping by that avenue, wounded one of the elephants in the passage. The Arabs threw down their matchlocks, drew their creesis, and rushing upon their assailants with deadly fury, refused to give or receive quarter. The contest was of short duration; British discipline and prowess were again victorious; two hundred Arab horsemen and foot lay on the ground, and the Eighty-sixth stood triumphant on the scene of conflict. Among the trophies of the day, were fifteen stand of Scindian and Arab colours, which were sent to head-quarters, excepting two, retained by the Eighty-sixth regiment, as trophies of the valour displayed by the corps on this occasion.

Thus was captured a fortress of great importance to the commercial interests of Britain, with a territory yielding a considerable revenue, which were added to the British dominions. In his public despatch, Lieut.-Colonel Woodington highly commended the conduct of Major Cuyler and Captain Richardson, and added,—“The whole of the officers and men employed on this service have conducted themselves so much to my satisfaction, that I cannot express myself too strongly in their commendation.”

The Governor-General in Council, also, signified in general orders,—“his particular approbation of the valour and judgment manifested by Major Cuyler, of His Majesty’s Eighty-sixth regiment, throughout the service at Baroach, and in commanding the storm of the fort, and by Captain Richardson of the same corps, leading the assault. His Excellency in Council, also, observes with particular satisfaction the conduct of Captain Cliffe, of the Engineers of Bombay. To all the officers and troops, European and Native, employed on this honorable occasion, His Excellency in Council signifies his high commendation.”

Serjeant Bills was rewarded with the appointment of serjeant-major; Serjeant Moore received a donation of five hundred rupees from the Government for his gallantry, and Private Brierly was promoted corporal, and afterwards serjeant.

The loss of the regiment was Captain William Semple, killed in the breaching battery on the 25th of August—an excellent officer, whose fall was much regretted; also two serjeants and ten rank and file killed; Major Cuyler, Captain Richardson, Captain Maclaurin, and twenty-three rank and file wounded.

From Baroach the regiment proceeded to Baroda, from whence five hundred rank and file of the Eighty-sixth, a battalion of Sepoys, some irregular horse, and a battering train, marched to attack the fort of Powanghur, situated on a stupendous rock of extraordinary height and of difficult ascent. Arriving before this place on the 14th of September, and the garrison refusing to surrender, the walls were battered until the 17th, when orders were issued to prepare to attack the lower fort by storm. The garrison was intimidated by the knowledge of the fact, that if they defended the breach, their communication with the fort on the top of the mountain would be cut off, and their escape rendered impossible; they therefore surrendered. Thus a fort of great strength by nature and art fell into the hands of the British.

The district of Champaneer, the only territory remaining to Scindia, in the province of Guzerat, had thus been reduced, and annexed to the British dominions. Lieut.-Colonel Murray, of the Eighty-fourth regiment, assumed the command of the troops at Baroda, and advanced towards Scindia’s territories, in the province of Malwa, in quest of Holkar’s forces, but it was found impossible to bring the armed bands of that chieftain to action. On the 18th of October the city and fortress of Godera was taken possession of, the enemy retiring as the British approached. At this place information was received of the victory of Assaye, gained by the troops under Major-General the Hon. Arthur Wellesley, on the 23rd of September, which was followed by the submission of two of the hostile chiefs, Scindia and the Rajah of Berar, leaving Holkar, Canojee, and some minor chiefs in the field.

Leaving Godera, the troops took possession of Balinsanere in the beginning of November; and advanced towards Lunawarrah. On the march, the rearguard, consisting of five companies of Sepoys, and some native cavalry, was suddenly attacked, while passing through an extensive jungle, by a numerous body of the enemy in ambush.

The hostile bands did not venture to attack the Europeans of the advance-guard, nor the column, but rushed with great fury upon the native troops in the rear, occasioning the loss of many Sepoys and camp followers, with some baggage, before assistance could arrive from the column. The Eighty-sixth had several men killed and wounded on this occasion.

Lunawarrah was evacuated by the enemy, and Dhowd was taken, about six weeks afterwards, with little opposition.

In this part of the country, the Eighty-sixth, and other corps, with Lieut.-Colonel Murray, remained about two months[4], watching Holkar, who had power to concentrate an overwhelming force, which rendered vigilance particularly necessary.

On the death of Lieut.-General Grinfield, King George III. conferred the colonelcy of the regiment on Lieut.-General Sir James Henry Craig, K.B., from the Forty-sixth Foot, by commission dated the 5th of January, 1804.

From Dhowd, the Eighty-sixth, and other corps under Lieut.-Colonel Murray, retired to Godera, and from thence to Jerode, in order to obtain supplies, and protect the province of Guzerat. At this period a dreadful famine raged in the Deccan, and other parts of the country hitherto the seat of war.

After three weeks’ repose at Jerode, the Eighty-sixth, Sixty-fifth, Sepoys and native cavalry, advanced once more into the province of Malwa, under Lieut.-Colonel Murray, and arrived at Dhowd on the 12th of June, having lost many men from the excessive heat. On the march Major Stuart, of the Sixty-fifth, died and was buried, (9th June,) under the colours of the Eighty-sixth, on which day twenty-one men of the Sixty-fifth, and eleven of the Eighty-sixth, died from the effects of the hot winds.

From Dhowd, the troops advanced to Ongein, the capital of Scindia, from whence the Eighty-sixth, three battalions of Sepoys, a train of artillery, and a body of Scindia’s cavalry, were immediately pushed on to Indore, the capital of Holkar’s dominions, where they arrived on the 14th of August; the city having been evacuated on the previous evening.

From Indore, the flank companies of the regiment, and a battalion of Sepoys, advanced with scaling ladders, under Captain Richardson, twenty miles, to surprise a fort, which was reported to be full of troops and provisions; but when the soldiers scaled the walls, they found the place empty; the enemy having fled a few hours previously.

Having penetrated so far beyond the boundaries of Guzerat, the troops under Lieut.-Colonel Murray found their communication with that country cut off, and Holkar threatening to enter and lay waste the province; their supplies were nearly exhausted; they were in a territory devastated by famine and disease; the rainy season was approaching, and a small force, under Lieut.-Colonel Monson, sent by General Lord Lake to effect a junction with Lieut.-Col. Murray, was pursued by Holkar’s numerous legions, and forced to make a precipitate flight, abandoning its cannon and baggage. Under these circumstances, a sudden advance was made, of two marches, to deceive the enemy, and on the third march the troops faced about and retreated. The rain set in with such violence as to destroy the tents;—the artillery and baggage oxen and camels died in great numbers;—much of the baggage was abandoned;—the soldiers had to drag the guns through the cotton-grounds waist-deep in water;—no cover or shelter for officers or soldiers;—the inhabitants dying in great numbers from famine;—the European soldiers dying also from excessive fatigue, the inclemency of the weather and privation;—the native troops and followers also perishing in great numbers: such were the distressing circumstances under which this retrograde movement was executed, but, by the perseverance of the Europeans, the guns were preserved, and the troops arrived at Ongein, where the Sixty-fifth, Eighty-sixth, and artillery, were accommodated with a building in the fort. This force had been reduced by its sufferings, from six to three thousand men.

Exertions were made to re-equip this diminished force for the field, and orders being received to advance, it was again in motion in the middle of October, advancing in the direction of Kota and Rhampoorae, and capturing, on the route, the hill fort of Inglehur by escalade, also several other small forts.

The army of Holkar was routed and dispersed by the troops under General Lord Lake; but the war was protracted by the defection of the Rajah of Bhurtpore, and the Eighty-sixth were destined to transfer their services to the rajah’s dominions.

Reinforcements having arrived from Bombay, Major-General Jones assumed the command, and marched towards the city of Bhurtpore, the capital of the hostile rajah’s territory[5]. After a long and harassing march, the troops approached that fortress on the 10th of February, 1805, when a large body of hostile horsemen surrounded the column and impeded its movements across a level country. Half the force was employed in protecting the baggage, and the guns were repeatedly unlimbered, to keep the adverse cavalry at a distance. On the following day, Major-General Jones’s division joined the army before Bhurtpore, and was inspected by Lord Lake, who expressed his satisfaction at the bearing of the troops. The soldiers of the Sixty-fifth and Eighty-sixth presented a motley appearance: their worn-out uniforms were patched with various colours, or replaced by red cotton jackets; many of the men wore sandals in the place of shoes, and turbans instead of hats; but beneath this outward war-worn appearance, the innate courage of Britons still glowed.

The siege of Bhurtpore had unfortunately been undertaken without a battering train of sufficient weight, and necessary to insure the reduction of so strong a fortress; the siege was, however, persevered in. At three o’clock, on the 20th of February, two hundred and fifty men of the Eighty-sixth, and two companies of Sepoys, commanded by Captain Grant, of the Eighty-sixth, stormed an out-work, covering one of the principal gates, with the bayonet, driving the Arabs, who fought with their usual determination, into the city, and capturing eleven brass guns; in which service Lieutenants Lanphier and D’Aguilar distinguished themselves, the former receiving a spear wound in the neck. As the Arabs fled to the gate, Captain Grant followed, in the hope of being able to enter with them, but he found it closed, and, after destroying the fugitives, who were shut out, he retired to the Pettah, to await the result of the other attacks, which did not succeed. While the soldiers of the Eighty-sixth and Sepoys were dragging the captured guns to the camp, they were attacked by a numerous body of the enemy, who issued from the fortress to retake the guns, but were repulsed by the steady valour of the soldiers. Captain Grant formed a square round the guns, and under a heavy fire from the Fort, succeeded in bringing them to camp; this was the only successful part of this attack. The enemy’s numerous cavalry also attacked the British camp, but were defeated by the troops not engaged in the trenches, or in the assault. Lord Lake commended the determined bravery of the storming party of the Eighty-sixth in orders, and directed the captured guns to be placed in front of the camp of the regiment,—a mark of distinction highly prized by the corps, and by the Bombay division of the army to which they belonged.

At three o’clock on the following day, the flank companies of the Sixty-fifth and Eighty-sixth, supported by the Seventy-fifth and Seventy-sixth regiments, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Monson, stormed a large and high bastion. After passing the ditch, the forlorn hope was destroyed in attempting to ascend the breach, which was extremely steep, and knee-deep in mud and loose stones. Every effort was made, the men climbing over the dead bodies of their comrades, and struggling to gain the rampart, but in vain. Some strove to climb by the shot holes made by the British guns, and others drove their bayonets into the mud walls to ascend by, while the enemy above hurled large stones, logs of timber, packs of flaming oiled cotton, and jars filled with combustibles, upon their heads, with a terrible destruction; the killed and wounded lay by hundreds, crushed beneath the falling timbers, or burning under the flaming oiled cloth, when Lieut.-Colonel Monson, seeing the impossibility of succeeding, ordered the survivors to return to the camp.

In the two attacks, the Eighty-sixth had two serjeants and twenty-three rank and file killed; Captain Moreton, Lieutenants Travers, Baird, Lanphier, D’Aguilar, one serjeant, one drummer, and seventy-three rank and file wounded. A great number of the wounded soldiers died. Lieutenant Baird received five wounds; Lieutenant Lanphier was wounded on each day; this officer and Lieutenant D’Aguilar distinguished themselves on both occasions. Serjeant George Ibertson was commended in regimental orders for his conduct at the breach, and Corporal Crawford was rewarded with the rank of serjeant, for his behaviour on this occasion.

The capture of Bhurtpore without additional means, being found impracticable, the British withdrew from before that fortress, and proceeded to Dhoolpore; negotiations for peace having been concluded, the army was broken up in May; the Bengal troops proceeding to Muttra, and the Bombay division to Tonk, where they remained during the monsoon in huts.

After the rainy season, the Bombay force commenced its march, proceeding through the territories of the Rajah of Jeypore, in pursuit of the forces of Holkar, who was still in the field. Having been chased to the banks of the Hyphasis river, on the borders of the great desert, the Mahratta chieftain was forced to submit, and the war was terminated by a treaty of peace[6].

In orders dated Riapoora Ghaut, on the left bank of the Hyphasis, 13th December, 1805, General Lord Lake returned thanks to Major-General Jones, the officers, and soldiers, of the division of the army from Bombay, for the important services rendered by them during the war; and, alluding to the period they had been under his immediate command, added, “His Lordship has been proud to witness, on every occasion on which they have been employed, the steady conduct and gallantry in action of all the troops composing the division.”