| By Author | [ A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | Other Symbols ] |
| By Title | [ A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | Other Symbols ] |
| By Language |
|
Download this book: [ ASCII ] Look for this book on Amazon Tweet |
Title: Historical Record of the First or The Royal Regiment of Dragoons: From Its Formation in The Reign of King Charles the Second and of Its Subsequent Services To 1839
Author: Cannon, Richard
Language: English
As this book started as an ASCII text book there are no pictures available.
*** Start of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Historical Record of the First or The Royal Regiment of Dragoons: From Its Formation in The Reign of King Charles the Second and of Its Subsequent Services To 1839" ***
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
A superscript is denoted by ^x, for example und^r or iv^s.
Some minor changes are noted at the end of the book.
HISTORICAL RECORDS
OF THE
BRITISH ARMY.
PREPARED FOR PUBLICATION UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE
ADJUTANT-GENERAL.
THE FIRST,
OR
THE ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS.
LONDON
Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS.
14, Charing Cross.
GENERAL ORDERS.
_HORSE-GUARDS_,
_1st January, 1836_.
His Majesty has been pleased to command, that, with a view of doing
the fullest justice to Regiments, as well as to Individuals who
have distinguished themselves by their Bravery in Action with the
Enemy, an Account of the Services of every Regiment in the British
Army shall be published under the superintendence and direction
of the Adjutant-General; and that this Account shall contain the
following particulars: _viz._,
---- The Period and Circumstances of the Original Formation of
the Regiment; The Stations at which it has been from time to time
employed; The Battles, Sieges, and other Military Operations,
in which it has been engaged, particularly specifying any
Achievement it may have performed, and the Colours, Trophies,
&c., it may have captured from the Enemy.
---- The Names of the Officers and the number of Non-Commissioned
Officers and Privates, Killed or Wounded by the Enemy, specifying
the Place and Date of the Action.
---- The Names of those Officers, who, in consideration of their
Gallant Services and Meritorious Conduct in Engagements with the
Enemy, have been distinguished with Titles, Medals, or other
Marks of His Majesty's gracious favour.
---- The Names of all such Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers
and Privates as may have specially signalized themselves in
Action.
And,
---- The Badges and Devices which the Regiment may have been
permitted to bear, and the Causes on account of which such Badges
or Devices, or any other Marks of Distinction, have been granted.
By Command of the Right Honourable
GENERAL LORD HILL,
_Commanding-in-Chief_.
JOHN MACDONALD,
_Adjutant-General_.
PREFACE.
The character and credit of the British Army must chiefly depend
upon the zeal and ardour, by which all who enter into its service
are animated, and consequently it is of the highest importance that
any measure calculated to excite the spirit of emulation, by which
alone great and gallant actions are achieved, should be adopted.
Nothing can more fully tend to the accomplishment of this desirable
object, than a full display of the noble deeds with which the
Military History of our country abounds. To hold forth these bright
examples to the imitation of the youthful soldier, and thus to
incite him to emulate the meritorious conduct of those who have
preceded him in their honourable career, are among the motives that
have given rise to the present publication.
The operations of the British Troops are, indeed, announced in the
'London Gazette,' from whence they are transferred into the public
prints: the achievements of our armies are thus made known at the
time of their occurrence, and receive the tribute of praise and
admiration to which they are entitled. On extraordinary occasions,
the Houses of Parliament have been in the habit of conferring on
the Commanders, and the Officers and Troops acting under their
orders, expressions of approbation and of thanks for their skill
and bravery, and these testimonials, confirmed by the high honour
of their Sovereign's Approbation, constitute the reward which the
soldier most highly prizes.
It has not, however, until late years, been the practice (which
appears to have long prevailed in some of the Continental armies)
for British Regiments to keep regular records of their services
and achievements. Hence some difficulty has been experienced in
obtaining, particularly from the old Regiments, an authentic
account of their origin and subsequent services.
This defect will now be remedied, in consequence of His Majesty
having been pleased to command, that every Regiment shall in future
keep a full and ample record of its services at home and abroad.
From the materials thus collected, the country will henceforth
derive information as to the difficulties and privations which
chequer the career of those who embrace the military profession. In
Great Britain, where so large a number of persons are devoted to
the active concerns of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and
where these pursuits have, for so long a period, been undisturbed
by the _presence of war_, which few other countries have escaped,
comparatively little is known of the vicissitudes of active
service, and of the casualties of climate, to which, even during
peace, the British Troops are exposed in every part of the globe,
with little or no interval of repose.
In their tranquil enjoyment of the blessings which the country
derives from the industry and the enterprise of the agriculturist
and the trader, its happy inhabitants may be supposed not often to
reflect on the perilous duties of the soldier and the sailor,--on
their sufferings,--and on the sacrifice of valuable life, by which
so many national benefits are obtained and preserved.
The conduct of the British Troops, their valour, and endurance,
have shone conspicuously under great and trying difficulties; and
their character has been established in Continental warfare by the
irresistible spirit with which they have effected debarkations in
spite of the most formidable opposition, and by the gallantry and
steadiness with which they have maintained their advantages against
superior numbers.
In the official Reports made by the respective Commanders, ample
justice has generally been done to the gallant exertions of the
Corps employed; but the details of their services, and of acts of
individual bravery, can only be fully given in the Annals of the
various Regiments.
These Records are now preparing for publication, under His
Majesty's special authority, by Mr. RICHARD CANNON, Principal Clerk
of the Adjutant-General's Office; and while the perusal of them
cannot fail to be useful and interesting to military men of every
rank, it is considered that they will also afford entertainment and
information to the general reader, particularly to those who may
have served in the Army, or who have relatives in the Service.
There exists in the breasts of most of those who have served, or
are serving, in the Army, an _Esprit de Corps_--an attachment
to every thing belonging to their Regiment; to such persons a
narrative of the services of their own Corps cannot fail to prove
interesting. Authentic accounts of the actions of the great,--the
valiant,--the loyal, have always been of paramount interest with
a brave and civilised people. Great Britain has produced a race
of heroes who, in moments of danger and terror, have stood, "firm
as the rocks of their native shore;" and when half the World has
been arrayed against them, they have fought the battles of their
Country with unshaken fortitude. It is presumed that a record of
achievements in war,--victories so complete and surprising, gained
by our countrymen,--our brothers--our fellow-citizens in arms,--a
record which revives the memory of the brave, and brings their
gallant deeds before us, will certainly prove acceptable to the
public.
Biographical memoirs of the Colonels and other distinguished
Officers, will be introduced in the Records of their respective
Regiments, and the Honorary Distinctions which have, from time to
time, been conferred upon each Regiment, as testifying the value
and importance of its services, will be faithfully set forth.
As a convenient mode of Publication, the Record of each Regiment
will be printed in a distinct number, so that when the whole shall
be completed, the Parts may be bound up in numerical succession.
INTRODUCTION.
The ancient Armies of England were composed of Horse and Foot; but
the feudal troops established by William the Conqueror in 1086,
consisted almost entirely of Horse. Under the feudal system, every
holder of land amounting to what was termed a "knight's fee," was
required to provide a charger, a coat of mail, a helmet, a shield,
and a lance, and to serve the Crown a period of forty days in
each year at his own expense; and the great landholders had to
provide armed men in proportion to the extent of their estates;
consequently the ranks of the feudal Cavalry were completed with
men of property, and the vassals and tenants of the great barons,
who led their dependents to the field in person.
In the succeeding reigns the Cavalry of the Army was composed
of Knights (or men at arms) and Hobiliers (or horsemen of
inferior degree); and the Infantry of spear and battle-axe men,
cross-bowmen, and archers. The Knights wore armour on every part
of the body, and their weapons were a lance, a sword, and a small
dagger. The Hobiliers were accoutred and armed for the light and
less important services of war, and were not considered qualified
for a charge in line. Mounted Archers[1] were also introduced, and
the English nation eventually became pre-eminent in the use of the
bow.
About the time of Queen Mary the appellation of "_Men at Arms_"
was changed to that of "_Spears_ and _Launces_." The introduction
of fire-arms ultimately occasioned the lance to fall into disuse,
and the title of the Horsemen of the first degree was changed to
"_Cuirassiers_." The Cuirassiers were armed _cap-à-pié_, and their
weapons were a sword with a straight narrow blade and sharp point,
and a pair of large pistols, called petrenels; and the Hobiliers
carried carbines. The Infantry carried pikes, matchlocks, and
swords. The introduction of fire-arms occasioned the formation of
regiments armed and equipped as infantry, but mounted on small
horses for the sake of expedition of movement, and these were
styled "_Dragoons_;" a small portion of the military force of the
kingdom, however, consisted of this description of troops.
The formation of the present Army commenced after the Restoration
in 1660, with the establishment of regular corps of Horse and Foot;
the Horsemen were cuirassiers, but only wore armour on the head
and body; and the Foot were pikemen and musketeers. The arms which
each description of force carried, are described in the following
extract from the "Regulations of King Charles II.," dated 5th May,
1663:--
"Each Horseman to have for his defensive armes, back, breast,
and pot; and for his offensive armes, a sword, and a case of
pistolls, the barrels whereof are not to be und^r. foorteen
inches in length; and each Trooper of Our Guards to have a
carbine, besides the aforesaid armes. And the Foote to have
each souldier a sword, and each pikeman a pike of 16 foote long
and not und^r.; and each musqueteer a musquet, with a collar of
bandaliers, the barrels of which musquet to be about foor foote
long, and to conteine a bullet, foorteen of which shall weigh a
pound weight[2]."
The ranks of the Troops of Horse were at this period composed of
men of some property--generally the sons of substantial yeomen: the
young men received as recruits provided their own horses, and they
were placed on a rate of pay sufficient to give them a respectable
station in society.
On the breaking out of the war with Holland, in the spring of 1672,
a Regiment of Dragoons was raised[3]; the Dragoons were placed on
a lower rate of pay than the Horse; and the Regiment was armed
similar to the Infantry, excepting that a limited number of the
men carried halberds instead of pikes, and the others muskets and
bayonets; and a few men in each Troop had pistols; as appears by a
warrant dated the 2nd of April, 1672, of which the following is an
extract:--
"CHARLES R.
"Our will and pleasure is, that a Regiment of Dragoones which
we have established and ordered to be raised, in twelve Troopes
of fourscore in each beside officers, who are to be under the
command of Our most deare and most intirely beloved Cousin Prince
Rupert, shall be armed out of Our stoares remaining within Our
office of the Ordinance, as followeth; that is to say, three
corporalls, two serjeants, the gentlemen at armes, and twelve
souldiers of each of the said twelve Troopes, are to have and
carry each of them one halbard, and one case of pistolls with
holsters; and the rest of the souldiers of the several Troopes
aforesaid, are to have and to carry each of them one matchlocke
musquet, with a collar of bandaliers, and also to have and to
carry one bayonet[4], or great knife. That each lieutenant have
and carry one partizan; and that two drums be delivered out for
each Troope of the said Regiment[5]."
Several regiments of Horse and Dragoons were raised in the first
year of the reign of King James II.; and the horsemen carried a
short carbine[6] in addition to the sword and pair of pistols; and
in a Regulation dated the 21st of February, 1687, the arms of the
Dragoons at that period are commanded to be as follow:--
"The Dragoons to have snaphanse musquets, strapt, with bright
barrels of three foote eight inches long, cartouch-boxes,
bayonetts, granado pouches, bucketts, and hammer-hatchetts."
After several years' experience, little advantage was found to
accrue from having Cavalry Regiments formed almost exclusively
for engaging the enemy on foot; and, the Horse having laid aside
their armour, the arms and equipment of Horse and Dragoons were so
nearly assimilated, that there remained little distinction besides
the name and rate of pay. The introduction of improvements into the
mounting, arming, and equipment of Dragoons rendered them competent
to the performance of every description of service required of
Cavalry; and, while the long musket and bayonet were retained, to
enable them to act as Infantry, if necessary, they were found to be
equally efficient, and of equal value to the nation, as Cavalry,
with the Regiments of Horse.
In the several augmentations made to the regular Army after the
early part of the reign of Queen Anne, no new Regiments of Horse
were raised for permanent service; and in 1746 King George II.
reduced three of the old Regiments of Horse to the quality and pay
of Dragoons; at the same time, His Majesty gave them the title of
First, Second, and Third Regiments of _Dragoon Guards_: and in
1788 the same alteration was made in the remaining four Regiments
of Horse, which then became the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh
Regiments of _Dragoon Guards_.
At present there are only three Regiments which are styled _Horse_
in the British Army, namely, the two Regiments of Life Guards,
and the Royal Regiment of Horse Guards, to whom cuirasses have
recently been restored. The other Cavalry Regiments consist of
Dragoon Guards, Heavy and Light Dragoons, Hussars, and Lancers;
and although the long musket and bayonet have been laid aside by
the whole of the Cavalry, and the Regiments are armed and equipped
on the principle of the old Horse (excepting the cuirass), they
continue to be styled Dragoons.
The old Regiments of Horse formed a highly respectable and
efficient portion of the Army, and it is found, on perusing the
histories of the various campaigns in which they have been engaged,
that they have, on all occasions, maintained a high character for
steadiness and discipline, as well as for bravery in action. They
were formerly mounted on horses of superior weight and physical
power, and few troops could withstand a well-directed charge of
the celebrated British Horse. The records of these corps embrace a
period of 150 years--a period eventful in history, and abounding in
instances of heroism displayed by the British troops when danger
has threatened the nation,--a period in which these Regiments have
numbered in their ranks men of loyalty, valour, and good conduct,
worthy of imitation.
Since the Regiments of Horse were formed into Dragoon Guards,
additional improvements have been introduced into the constitution
of the several corps; and the superior description of horses now
bred in the United Kingdom enables the commanding officers to
remount their regiments with such excellent horses, that, whilst
sufficient weight has been retained for a powerful charge in line,
a lightness has been acquired which renders them available for
every description of service incident to modern warfare.
The orderly conduct of these Regiments in quarters has gained the
confidence and esteem of the respectable inhabitants of the various
parts of the United Kingdom in which they have been stationed;
their promptitude and alacrity in attending to the requisitions of
the magistrates in periods of excitement, and the temper, patience,
and forbearance which they have evinced when subjected to great
provocation, insult, and violence from the misguided populace,
prove the value of these troops to the Crown, and to the Government
of the country, and justify the reliance which is reposed on them.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] In the 14th year of the reign of Edward IV. a small force was
established in Ireland by Parliament, consisting of 120 Archers on
horseback, 40 Horsemen, and 40 Pages.
[2] Military Papers, State Paper Office.
[3] This Regiment was disbanded after the Peace in 1674.
[4] This appears to be the first introduction of _bayonets_ into
the English Army.
[5] State Paper Office.
[6] The first issue of carbines to the regular Horse appears
to have taken place in 1678; the Life Guards, however, carried
carbines from their formation in 1660.--Vide the 'Historical Record
of the Life Guards.'
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE FIRST,
OR
THE ROYAL REGIMENT
OF
DRAGOONS;
CONTAINING
AN ACCOUNT OF ITS FORMATION
IN THE REIGN OF
KING CHARLES THE SECOND,
AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES TO 1839.
_ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES._
LONDON:
PUBLISHED BY LONGMAN, ORME, AND CO.,
PATERNOSTER-ROW;
AND BY MESSRS. CLOWES AND SONS,
14, CHARING CROSS;
AND TO BE HAD OF ALL BOOKSELLERS.
1840.
LONDON:
Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS,
Stamford-street.
[Illustration: Eagle and Colour of the 105th Regiment of French
Infantry, captured at Waterloo by the First, or Royal Dragoons,
18th June, 1815.]
THE FIRST
OR
THE ROYAL REGIMENT
OF
DRAGOONS
BEARS ON ITS GUIDONS,
AS A
REGIMENTAL BADGE,
AN
"EAGLE,"
WITH THE FOLLOWING HONORARY INSCRIPTIONS--
"PENINSULA"--"WATERLOO."
CONTENTS.
Anno Page
1661 A troop of HORSE raised for service at TANGIER,
and equipped as CUIRASSIERS 1
---- Proceeds to Africa 3
1663 Skirmishes with the Moors 4
1664 Captures a splendid Moorish standard --
1664}
to } Skirmishes with the Moors 5
1679}
1680 Three additional troops of Horse raised and sent to
Tangier --
---- A general engagement with the Moors 7
1683 The Tangier Horse constituted the ROYAL REGIMENT
OF DRAGOONS 8
1684 Establishment 9
---- Returns to England, and equipped as dragoons 11
---- Description of the standards--Names of officers 12
---- Royal warrant respecting the rank of the regiment 13
1685 Battle of Sedgemoor 15
1688 The Revolution 18
1689 Proceeds to Scotland 21
---- Embarks for Ireland 22
1690 Siege of Charlemont 23
---- Battle of the Boyne 24
---- Embarks for England--Returns to Ireland --
---- Skirmishes with the Rapparees 25
1691 Actions with the Irish 26
---- Siege of Limerick 27
1692 Embarks for England 29
1694 Proceeds to the Netherlands --
---- Skirmishes near the Mehaine 30
1695 Covering the siege of Namur 31
1697 Returns to England 32
1702 Proceeds to Holland 33
---- Covering the sieges of Venloo, Ruremonde, Stevenswaert,
and Liege 34
1703 Covering the siege of Bonn 34
---- Skirmish with a French piquet --
---- Covering the sieges of Huy and Limburg 35
---- Proceeds from Holland to Portugal --
1704 Services on the frontiers of Spain 36
1705 Capture of Valencia de Alcantara and Albuquerque 37
---- ---------- Barcelona 38
---- Relief of St. Mattheo 40
1706 Services in Catalonia and Valencia --
---- -------- during the siege of Barcelona by the French 43
---- Advances to Madrid 44
---- Returns to Valencia 45
1707 Services after the battle of Almanza 46
1709 Capture of Balaguer and Ager 47
1710 Battle of Almanara 48
---- Skirmish at Penalva 49
---- Battle of Saragossa --
---- Advances to Madrid--Disaster at Brihuega 51
1712 Returns to England 53
1715 Rebellion of the Earl of Mar--Affair at Preston 54
1719 Proceeds to Scotland--Returns to England 56
---- Detachment to Spain--Capture of Vigo, &c. --
1720 Prices of commissions 57
1735 Proceeds to Scotland 59
1737 Returns to England --
1742 Embarks for Flanders 60
1743 Battle of Dettingen 61
1745 --------- Fontenoy 63
---- Embarks for England 64
1751 Description of the clothing and guidons 65
1755 A light troop added 67
1758 Expedition to St. Maloes and Cherbourg 68
1760 Embarks for Germany --
---- Battle of Warbourg 69
---- --------- Campen 70
1761 --------- Kirch Denkern 72
---- Skirmishes at Eimbeck and Foorwohle --
1762 Battle of Groebenstien 73
1763 Returns to England 74
---- The light troop disbanded 75
---- Proceeds to Scotland --
1764 Returns to England 75
1766 Drummers replaced by trumpeters --
1769 Proceeds to Scotland --
1770 Returns to England --
1773 Proceeds to Scotland 76
1775 Returns to England --
1781 Proceeds to Scotland 77
1784 Returns to England --
1790 Proceeds to Scotland --
1791 Returns to England --
1793 Embarks for the Netherlands --
---- Action at the Camp de Cæsar --
1794 --------- Prémont 78
---- --------- Villers en Couché --
---- Battle of Cateau --
---- --------- Tournay 79
---- Retreats to Germany 80
1795 Returns to England 81
1806 Proceeds to Scotland 83
1807 Embarks for Ireland --
1809 ----------- Portugal 84
1810 Skirmishes at Frexadas and Alverca 86
---- Battle of Busaco --
---- Skirmishes at Pombal and Quinta de Torre 87
1811 ------------- Pecoloo, Pombal, Redinha, Casal
Nova, Foz d'Aronce, Sernadilla, and Alverca 88
---- Battle of Sabugal 90
---- Skirmish near Fort Conception --
---- Battle of Fuentes d'Onor --
---- Skirmish near Barba del Puerco 91
---- -------- during the retreat to Nave d'Aver 92
---- -------- at Aldea de Ponte 93
1812 Covering the sieges of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz 94
---- Skirmishes at Llera, Maguilla, &c. 95
---- Advances to Madrid--Retreats to Portugal 97
---- Skirmish at Arguilla --
1813 Battle of Vittoria 98
---- Blockade of Pampeluna 99
1814 Battle of Toulouse 100
---- Returns to England --
1815 Embarks for Flanders 101
---- Battle of Waterloo 102
1815 Advances to Madrid 109
1816 Returns to England 110
1817 Proceeds to Scotland 111
1818 Embarks for Ireland --
1820 Returns to England --
1824 Proceeds to Scotland 112
1825 Embarks for Ireland 113
1829 Returns to England --
1835 Embarks for Ireland 115
1839 Returns to England --
---- The conclusion --
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS.
1683 John Lord Churchill 117
1685 Edward Viscount Cornbury 122
1688 Robert Clifford --
---- Edward Viscount Cornbury --
1689 Anthony Hayford 123
1690 Edward Matthews --
1697 Thomas Lord Raby --
1715 Richard Lord Cobham 124
1721 Sir Charles Hotham, Bart. 126
1723 Humphrey Gore --
1739 Charles Duke of Marlborough 127
1740 Henry Hawley --
1759 Honourable Henry Seymour Conway 128
1764 Henry Earl of Pembroke 129
1794 Philip Goldsworthy 130
1801 Thomas Garth --
1829 Lord Edward Somerset 131
1836 Sir Frederick C. Ponsonby --
1837 Sir Hussey Vivian, Bart. 133
LIST OF PLATES.
The regimental guidons;--with the Eagle and Colour of the 105th
French Infantry Regiment, captured at Waterloo; to follow the
title-page.
The capture of a Moorish Standard at Tangier in 1664, to face
page 4.
The uniform of 1839 to face 116.
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE FIRST,
OR
THE ROYAL REGIMENT
OF
DRAGOONS.
[Sidenote: 1661]
The anarchy, devastation, and bloodshed which had prevailed in
Britain during the rebellion and tyrannical usurpation of Cromwell,
having been succeeded by the restoration of monarchy,--the despotic
sway of sectarians and republicans put down by the establishment of
a regular government on constitutional principles,--and the army of
the commonwealth disbanded, King Charles II. directed his attention
to domestic concerns, and engaged in a matrimonial alliance with
Donna Catherina, Infanta of Portugal; and this event gave rise to
the formation of a troop of CUIRASSIERS, which was the nucleus of
the corps now bearing the distinguished title of THE ROYAL REGIMENT
OF DRAGOONS.
By the marriage treaty the ancient and once magnificent city of
TANGIER, in Africa, and the island of Bombay in the East Indies,
were ceded by the king of Portugal to the British crown; and,
with a sum equal to three hundred thousand pounds, constituted the
Infanta's dowry.
As the possession of the important fortress of TANGIER, with
its harbour and local advantages, appeared to open a new field
for commercial pursuits, and was expected to be followed by the
acquisition of extensive possessions in that part of the world,
four regiments of foot and a troop of horse were appointed
to garrison that fortress, and the EARL OF PETERBOROUGH was
constituted captain general, chief governor, and vice admiral of
that part of his Majesty's dominions.
Three of the regiments of foot, commanded by Sir Robert Harley, and
Colonels Fitzgerald and O'Farell, were withdrawn from the garrison
of Dunkirk, and were composed of men who had fought in the royal
cause during the civil war, and afterwards in the Netherlands. The
other regiment of foot, (now the second, or Queen's royal,) and
the troop of HORSE (now ROYAL DRAGOONS) were raised in England by
the Earl of Peterborough in the autumn of 1661, and were mustered,
the former on Putney Heath, and the latter in St. George's Fields,
Southwark, in October.[7]
The troop of HORSE consisted of three officers, one quarter-master,
four corporals, one trumpeter, and one hundred private men; the
ranks were completed with veterans of the civil war, who were armed
with cuirasses, iron head-pieces called potts, long swords, and
a pair of large pistols, to which a short carbine was afterwards
added: they were mounted on long-tailed horses of superior weight
and power, wore high boots reaching to the middle of the thigh, and
scarlet vests: the officers wore hats decorated with a profusion of
feathers; and both officers and men ornamented their horses' heads
and tails with large bunches of ribands. The officers of this troop
were,--
THE EARL OF PETERBOROUGH, Captain and Colonel.
ROBERT LEECH, Captain-Lieutenant.
JAMES MORDAUNT, Cornet.
The appearance and equipment of the officers and men were commended
in the ephemeral publications of that period. They embarked in the
middle of December, and in a letter to the Earl of Peterborough,
dated the 21st of December, the King observed: 'I desire you to
lett those honest men knowe who are along with you, y^t they
shall allwayes be in my particular care and protection as persons
y^t venture themselves in my service. And so, wishing you a good
voyage, I remain, &c., CHARLES R.'[8]
[Sidenote: 1662]
[Sidenote: 1663]
The troops arrived at Tangier in January, 1662, and a war
commencing soon afterwards between the British occupants of this
part of Africa and the Moors, frequent encounters occurred between
detachments of the garrison of Tangier and the barbarians, in which
the former had a decided superiority, and the English horsemen
became celebrated for gallant achievements.[9]
The veteran EARL OF TEVIOT, who was appointed governor of Tangier
in 1663, in succession to the Earl of Peterborough, occasionally
penetrated into the adjacent country at the head of a detachment of
horse, and many brilliant exploits were performed by the gallant
English troopers, among the rocks, in the woods, and on the plains
of this part of Africa, where they frequently surprised lurking
parties of Moors, and captured cattle and other booty. The Africans
were, however, expert horsemen, and fought with lance, sword, and
short fusils.
[Sidenote: 1664]
In February, 1664, a Moorish army, commanded by Gaylan, usurper
of Fez, appeared before Tangier to besiege the fortress. On the
1st of March the Earl of Teviot, observing a body of Moors, with a
splendid scarlet standard, stationed on an eminence near the city,
ordered the troop of HORSE to sally and bring in the standard. The
command was instantly obeyed; the brave troopers, led by Captain
WITHAM, issued from the city, traversed the intervening space with
signal intrepidity, routed the Moorish band, and captured the
standard, with which they returned in triumph to the fortress, and
erected it on the top of one of the towers, to the surprise and
chagrin of the Moorish chiefs, who, being posted at a distance with
the main body of their army, witnessed this brilliant exploit.
[Illustration: Capture of a Moorish Standard by the English Horse,
at Tangier, in 1664. Now 1st Royal Dragoons.
[To face page 4
]
On the 13th of March the English horsemen had a sharp encounter
with some of the enemy's best cavalry; and on the 27th, the Earl
of Teviot led them against a horde of Moorish lancers and foot
who were concealed in ambush, and the barbarians were routed and
pursued among the woods and broken grounds with great slaughter.
The English horsemen, however, suffered severely on the 4th of May
in the same year, when the governor, having been deceived by a
false report, advanced too far into the country, and was surprised
by a numerous band of Moors in ambush. A fearful slaughter
followed, and the EARL OF TEVIOT was numbered among the slain.
[Sidenote: 1665]
[Sidenote: 1666]
Frequent encounters took place in the subsequent years between
detached parties of British and Moors, and in this desultory
warfare the English horsemen preserved their high character.
Hostilities were occasionally terminated, and renewed after short
intervals of peace; and during the period of seventeen years the
garrison resisted, with firmness and success, every attempt of the
Moors against the city.
[Sidenote: 1679]
[Sidenote: 1680]
In 1679 a numerous army of Moors appeared before Tangier, and
destroyed two forts situate at a distance from the town. They
afterwards withdrew, but re-appeared in the spring of 1680, with
augmented numbers, and swarms of expert Moorish lancers, on light
and swift horses, hovered round the fortress and confined the
Christians within narrow limits. King Charles II. sent a battalion
of foot guards and sixteen companies of Dumbarton's (now first
royal) regiment, to reinforce the garrison, and issued commissions
for raising a regiment of foot (now the fourth, or the King's own)
and six troops of HORSE in England: at the same time arrangements
were made for procuring the service of three troops of Spanish
cavalry.
The six troops of English horse were raised by Major-General
the EARL OF OSSORY, Lieutenant-Colonel SIR JOHN LANIER,[10]
Captains ROBERT PULTENEY, JOHN COY,[11] CHARLES NEDBY, and THOMAS
LANGSTON:[12] the three last-named officers having been captains
in the Duke of Monmouth's regiment of horse, which was disbanded
only a few months before, their troops were speedily completed with
disciplined men who had served in that regiment; and the demand for
cavalry at Tangier being urgent, they were furnished with horses
and equipment from the life guards,[13] and arrived at Tangier in
the early part of September: at the same time the three troops of
Spanish horse arrived from Gibraltar.
The cavalry at Tangier now consisted of seven efficient troops of
cuirassiers, who were engaged in a sally on the 12th of September,
when the Moorish horsemen were driven from under the walls, and
several outworks were recovered from the barbarians. Another sally
was made on the 21st of the same month, and on the following day
the English cuirassiers had a sharp skirmish with the Moorish
lancers, and had eight men killed and twenty wounded. An attack
was made on the enemy's lines on the 24th of September, when the
governor, SIR PALMES FAIRBORNE, was mortally wounded.
On the 27th of September, the garrison, amounting to about 4000
men, issued from the fortress and attacked the Moorish army of
about 15,000 men in its intrenched camp with signal gallantry. So
eager were the troopers to engage their adversaries that a dispute
occurred between the English and Spanish horse, each claiming
the honour of charging first: the subject was referred to the
lieutenant-governor, Colonel Sackville, who gave the Spaniards the
precedence on this occasion, because they fought as auxiliaries.
The Moors, having a great superiority of numbers, stood their
ground resolutely for some time; and the thunder of cannon, the
roll of musketry, the clash of arms, the loud shouts of the
British, the cries of the Africans, produced an awful scene of
carnage and confusion. The English horse stood in column of troops
until the first intrenchment was carried, and a space levelled
for the cavalry to pass, when they filed through the aperture
and rushed at speed upon the dark masses of barbarians, who were
broken, trampled down, and pursued with a dreadful slaughter;
while the musketeers, pikemen, and grenadiers followed, shouting
as the dismayed Africans fell in succession beneath the sabres of
the English and Spanish troopers. Many of the Moors faced about
and confronted their pursuers; numerous single combats took place,
and the vicinity of the camp was covered with slain. Captain
NEDBY'S troop of English horse particularly distinguished itself,
and captured a splendid Moorish colour of curious workmanship. The
Spaniards also captured a colour, Dumbarton's Scots another, and
a fourth was taken by a battalion of marines and seamen from the
fleet.[14]
The Moorish legions, having been driven from before the town with
severe loss, this victory was followed by a treaty of peace, and
the troops of horse raised by the Earl of Ossory, Sir John Lanier,
and Robert Pulteney, not having left England, were disbanded.
[Sidenote: 1682]
[Sidenote: 1683]
The improved military system introduced among the Moors by European
renegades, having rendered it necessary to employ a much stronger
garrison at Tangier than formerly, the subject was brought before
parliament; but the question of a popish successor to the throne
was agitating the people, and no grant was voted. The king, being
unwilling to bear the expense of the fortifications and troops
without pecuniary aid from parliament, resolved to destroy the
works and mole, and to withdraw the garrison.
At this period the attention of King Charles II. was directed to
the improvement of his army; and, resolving to retain the Tangier
HORSE in his service, he commissioned Colonel JOHN CHURCHILL
(afterwards the great DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH) to raise a troop of
dragoons at St. Alban's and its vicinity; and VISCOUNT CORNBURY
(son of the Earl of Clarendon) to raise another troop of dragoons
at Hertford; and His Majesty constituted these two troops, with
the four troops of Tangier horse, a regiment, to which he gave the
distinguished title of THE KING'S OWN ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS:
the words "KING'S OWN" were, however, discontinued soon afterwards,
and the regiment was styled "THE ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS."[15]
The colonelcy was conferred on JOHN CHURCHILL, who was advanced to
the peerage of Scotland by the title of Baron Churchill of Aymouth;
and the lieutenant-colonelcy on VISCOUNT CORNBURY, by commission
dated the 19th of November, 1683.
[Sidenote: 1684]
The establishment was fixed by a warrant bearing date the 1st of
January, 1684, from which the following is an extract:--
"CHARLES R.
"CHARLES THE SECOND, by the Grace of God, King of England,
Scotland, France, and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, &c.
"OUR WILL AND PLEASURE IS, that this establishment of our
Guards, garrisons, and land forces within our Kingdom of
England, Dominion of Wales, and Town of Berwick upon Tweed, and
the Islands thereunto belonging, and of all other officers and
charges therein expressed, do commence on the 1st day of January,
1683-4, in the Thirty-Fifth year of our Reign."
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HIS MAJESTY'S OWN ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS. |
+---------------------------------------------------+------------------+
| STAFF-OFFICERS. | Per Diem. |
+---------------------------------------------------+----+------+------+
| | £.| _s._ | _d._ |
| Colonel, _as Colonel_, xii^s, and iij horses } | | | |
| iij^s } | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Lieutenant-Colonel, _as Lieut.-Colonel_, vij^s, } | | | |
| and ij horses ij^s } | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Major, as Major v^s, and j horse j^s | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Chaplaine | 0 | 6 | 8 |
| | | | |
| Chirurgeon iv^s, and j horse to carry his chest,} | | | |
| ij^s } | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Adjutant iv^s, and for his horse j^s | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Quarter-Master and Marshal in one person iv^s, } | | | |
| his horse j^s } | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Gunsmith iv^s, and his servant i^s | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| +----+------+------+
| | 2 | 17 | 8 |
| +----+------+------+
| THE COLONEL'S TROOP. | | | |
| | | | |
| The Colonel, _as Captaine_, viii^s, and iij } | | | |
| horses iij^s. } | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Lieutenant iv^s, and ij horses ij^s | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Cornett iij^s, and ij horses ij^s | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Quarter-Master, for himself and horse | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Two Serjeants each j^s vi^d, and ij^s for horses | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Three Corporals each j^s, and iij^s for horses | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Two Drummers each j^s, and ij^s for horses | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Two Hautboys each i^s, and ij^s for horses | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | | | |
| Fifty Soldiers each i^s vi^d for man and horse | 3 | 15 | 0 |
| +----+------+------+
| | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| +----+------+------+
| Five Troops more at the same rate | 30 | 0 | 0 |
| | | | |
| The Major to have no Troop, but instead thereof } | | | |
| the pay of a Captain xi^s, in lieu of servants} | | | |
| iii^s } | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| +----+------+------+
| Total | 39 | 11 | 8 |
| +----+------+------+
| TOTAL PER ANNUM £14,447 18_s._ 4_d._ | | | |
+---------------------------------------------------+----+------+------+
The four troops at Tangier arrived in England in February,
1684;[16] and, having returned their armour into store, the whole
were equipped as dragoons with long muskets and bayonets.[17]
The uniform of the regiment was scarlet lined with blue. The men
wore hats bound with silver lace, and ornamented with blue ribands,
having a metal headpiece fastened inside the crown; also high
boots: their horse furniture was made of scarlet cloth trimmed
with blue, with the King's cipher embroidered in yellow characters
on the housings and holster-caps. The drummers and hautboys were
clothed in splendid liveries, which (according to the War-Office
Records) cost upwards of 10_l._ per suit; and each troop was
furnished with a crimson standard or guidon, with the following
devices embroidered thereon, namely:--
On the standard of THE COLONEL'S TROOP,--the King's cipher and
crown.
THE LIEUTENANT-COLONEL'S TROOP,--the rays of the sun, proper,
crowned, issuing out of a cloud, proper: a badge used by the Black
Prince.
THE FIRST TROOP,--the top of a beacon crowned, or, with flames of
fire, proper: a badge of Henry V.
THE SECOND TROOP,--two ostrich feathers crowned, argent: a badge of
Henry VI.
THE THIRD TROOP,--a rose and pomegranate impaled, leaves and stalk
vert: a badge of Henry VII.
THE FOURTH TROOP,--a phœnix in flames, proper: a badge of Queen
Elizabeth's.[18]
The following officers were at this period holding commissions in
the regiment:--
TROOPS. CAPTAINS. LIEUTENANTS. CORNETS.
Colonel's. Lord Churchill Thos. Hussey Wm. Hussey
Lieut.-Col.'s Visc. Cornbury Charles Ward Piercy Roche
1st Troop. Alex. Mackenzie H. Wyndham[19] John Cole
2nd " Chas. Nedby John Williams George Clifford
3rd " John Coy Charles La Rue Wm. Stamford
4th " Thos. Langston F. Langston[20] Thos. Pownel
Hugh Sutherland Major
Thomas Crawley Adjutant
Henry Hawker Quarter-Master & Marshal
Theobald Churchill Chaplain
Peregrine Yewel Chirurgeon
THE ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS being constituted, generally,
of men of military experience and approved valour, appears to
have advanced, at once, into royal favour; and as soon as it was
regularly organized, it marched into quarters in the borough of
Southwark. On the 1st of October it was reviewed, with several
other corps, by King Charles II., accompanied by the Queen, the
Duke of York, and many distinguished personages, on Putney Heath;
and on the 13th of that month marched into quarters at Newbury,
Abingdon, and Hungerford. Shortly afterwards the following order
was issued relative to the regiment:--
'CHARLES R.
'For the preventing of all disputes that might arise concerning
the rank of OUR ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS, or of any other
regiment of Dragoons that shall be employed in Our service, We
have thought fit hereby to declare Our pleasure,
'That OUR ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS, and all other regiments
of Dragoons which may be employed in Our service, shall have
precedency both as HORSE and FOOT, as well in garrison as in the
field, and in all councils of war and other military occasions;
and the Colonels and Officers of the said regiments of Dragoons
shall command as officers of Horse and Foot, according to the
nature of the place where they shall be: that is to say, that in
the Field the said regiments shall take place as regiments of
Horse, and the officers shall command and do duty as officers of
Horse, according to the dates of their commissions; and that in
Garrison they shall command as Foot officers, and their regiment
take place amongst the Foot according to their respective
seniorities from the time they were raised.
'Given at Our Court at Whitehall the 30th day of October, in the
thirty-sixth year of Our reign (1684).
'By His Majesty's Command,
'SUNDERLAND.'
[Sidenote: 1685]
The decease of King Charles II. took place on the 6th of February,
1685; and on the evening of the same day, his successor (James
II.) commanded the ROYAL DRAGOONS to march into quarters in the
immediate vicinity of the metropolis. Previous to the coronation
they were furnished with new standards, and the drummers and
hautboys with new liveries.[21] The ceremonial of their Majesties'
coronation was conducted with extraordinary magnificence: but the
agitated state of the United Kingdom gave early indication of
approaching contests; and, towards the end of April, two troops
of the ROYAL DRAGOONS were despatched to Carlisle, and placed
under the command of the governor, Sir Christopher Musgrave,
for the purpose of assisting in the seizure of 'divers outlawed
and seditious persons, who, for the avoiding of Justice, have
fled from Scotland into the county of Cumberland and parts
adjacent.'[22] These troops arrived at Carlisle on the 10th of
May, and several persons were apprehended. In the middle of that
month an insurrection, headed by the EARL OF ARGYLE, broke out in
Scotland; and in June, JAMES DUKE OF MONMOUTH raised the standard
of rebellion in the west of England and proclaimed himself king.
The establishment of the ROYAL DRAGOONS was immediately augmented
to sixty men per troop: an independent troop of dragoons, raised
by Colonel STROTHER in 1683, was incorporated in the regiment; and
five troops of dragoons were raised in the vicinity of London by
RICHARD LEVESON, JOHN WILLIAMS, EDWARD LEA, FRANCIS RUSSEL, and
THOMAS HUSSEY, and added to the ROYAL DRAGOONS: the numbers were
thus increased to twelve troops, amounting to about nine hundred
officers and men.
Two troops of the regiment, with some other forces, were despatched
under Brigadier-General Lord Churchill against the rebels in the
west; and on the 19th of June two other troops marched for the
same destination under the orders of Lieutenant-General the Earl
of Feversham, who was appointed to the chief command of the King's
army. The royal forces having been united, the four troops of
dragoons were placed under the orders of Viscount Cornbury; and the
whole marched in pursuit of the rebels.
After several marches and skirmishes the Duke of Monmouth took post
at Bridgewater; and the Earl of Feversham, having sent a troop of
the ROYAL DRAGOONS, commanded by Captain Coy, to Lamport, to secure
that pass, and to gain intelligence in the event of the rebels
marching westward, advanced with the royal army to Weston (about
three miles from Bridgewater), where he arrived on Sunday, the 5th
of July. Having quartered the cavalry in the village, and ordered
the infantry to encamp on a plain fronting _Sedgemoor_, he sent a
party of life guards to patrole in the direction of Bristol, and
posted a piquet of fifty of the ROYAL DRAGOONS with a squadron
of the blues supported by one hundred men of the royal regiment
of foot, on the moor, in front of the camp. A guard of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS was also posted over the artillery, which consisted of
sixteen pieces, and was drawn up on the high road from Weston to
Bridgewater.
During the night the Duke of Monmouth marched out of Bridgewater
with the view of surprising the royal army; but the piquet in
advance gave the alarm, and after exchanging a few shots with the
rebels, retreated to the camp, and formed on the right of the
infantry; at the same time the remainder of the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
being aroused in their quarters in the village of Weston, turned
out in the dark in good order, and formed on the left of the foot.
The rebels commenced the attack with loud shouts,--the contest
became general along the whole line,--and the moor sparkled with
fire. The rebel horse soon gave way and fled in disorder; but their
infantry stood firm and fought with great resolution. Day at length
began to break; and the King's foot advancing to the charge, whilst
the ROYAL DRAGOONS and other cavalry attacked the flanks of the
rebels and put them in disorder, their whole line then gave way and
fled in confusion, and were pursued across the moor and adjoining
corn-fields with great slaughter. Two troops of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
continued the pursuit as far as Bridgewater, where they were
ordered to halt by the Earl of Feversham.
In the mean time Captain Russel's troop of the ROYAL DRAGOONS had
been attached to three Scots regiments of foot, which had recently
arrived from Holland under the command of Major-General Mackay,
and ordered to join the army in the west; but, on the news of
Monmouth's defeat at Sedgemoor, these forces were directed to halt
at Bagshot; the ROYAL DRAGOONS were subsequently dispersed in small
parties into the adjoining counties to seize suspected persons; the
Scots regiments returned to Hounslow, and, after encamping a short
time on the heath, re-embarked for Holland.
One troop of the ROYAL DRAGOONS was ordered to Winchester to escort
the Duke of Monmouth and other prisoners to London; on its arrival
this troop was quartered in the Borough of Southwark, and it was
under arms when the Duke was beheaded on Tower Hill on the 15th of
July. Two other troops were ordered to Salisbury to mount guard
over the prisoners there, and were subsequently directed to attend
Judge Jeffries during the trial and execution of the captured
rebels; in which painful service the troopers were spectators of
numerous acts of barbarity perpetrated by the remorseless Judge,
who sacrificed the lives of upwards of two hundred persons in these
"bloody assizes," as historians have denominated them.
After the suppression of this rebellion the establishment of the
ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS was reduced to eight troops, of forty
private men per troop; and the supernumerary troops were embodied
into a regiment of dragoons, which was commanded by the Duke of
Somerset, and is now the third light dragoons.
On the 1st of August Lord Churchill was appointed colonel of the
third troop of life guards, and the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
was conferred on Lieutenant-Colonel Viscount Cornbury. The two
troops of the regiment having returned from Carlisle, the whole
were stationed in London in October, and subsequently marched into
quarters in Devonshire.
[Sidenote: 1686]
[Sidenote: 1687]
[Sidenote: 1688]
King James II., being a Roman Catholic, adopted measures calculated
to effect the subversion of the Protestant church; and, with the
view of overawing his subjects, he doubled the numbers of the
regular army, and had large bodies of troops encamped, from time
to time, on Hounslow Heath, where he frequently attended in person
and witnessed the exercise of the troops. The ROYAL REGIMENT OF
DRAGOONS formed part of the force at these encampments in the
summer of 1686, again in 1687, and in 1688. At this period many
noblemen and gentlemen, resolving to preserve the nation from papal
domination, solicited the Prince of Orange to come to England with
a Dutch force to assist them in opposing the proceedings of the
King, and the Prince provided an armament for that purpose.
The colonel of the ROYAL DRAGOONS appears to have been a zealous
Protestant, and to have entered warmly into the measures taken to
resist the proceedings of the Papists who surrounded the court.
In November, 1688, when the Prince of Orange had landed, VISCOUNT
CORNBURY, having marched with his regiment to Salisbury,[23] where
the King's army was ordered to assemble, and where the blues and
eighth horse had already arrived, resolved, in connexion with
Lieut.-Colonel Langston, of the eighth horse, and several officers
of the blues, to endeavour to take these three regiments over to
the Prince, in the following manner:--
On the night of the 11th of November, directions were given for the
adjutants and quarter-masters to await the arrival of the post, as
orders to march were expected. At twelve o'clock the post arrived,
when Colonel Langston opened the bag before the officers, and the
orders, apparently from the Secretary-at-War, were produced, and
carried to Viscount Cornbury, who gave directions for the regiments
to proceed, at five o'clock, towards the enemy. The regiments were
accordingly on the march before daylight on the 12th; continuing
their progress throughout that day and the following night
(excepting a few short halts to refresh the men and horses[24]),
on the afternoon of the 13th, they arrived at Axminster, within
six miles of the Prince of Orange's quarters, where they were
joined by the Earl of Abingdon, Sir Walter Clerges, and about
thirty other gentlemen, who pretended to be volunteers. It was
now asserted that a design of the Dutch to surprise the quarters
of the King's forces had been discovered, and orders were issued
for beating up the quarters of the enemy that night. Accordingly,
after dark, the three regiments were again in motion, and the
Prince of Orange, apprized of their approach by Lord Cornbury, sent
a large body of cavalry to meet them. The greater part of the men,
however, resolved not to join the Prince of Orange, and, when they
observed what was taking place, they galloped back. Major ROBERT
CLIFFORD, of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, marched back that regiment, with
the exception of a few officers and about fifty dragoons, who
accompanied Viscount Cornbury. The blues also returned, excepting
about twenty-seven. But the Duke of St. Alban's regiment (eighth
horse) having mustered at a distance, the men, ignorant of the
transaction, followed Colonel Langston to Honiton, where they were
received as friends by the Dutch general.[25] Many of the men,
however, returned to the King's service; and the Duke of Berwick,
having collected the remains of the three regiments, marched them
back to Salisbury.
The king arrived at Salisbury on the 20th of November, and his
Majesty rewarded the loyalty of Major Clifford by promoting him
to the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS. The King, however, soon
discovered that the defection among the officers was general,
and that the soldiers, although they were reluctant to desert
his service, were not disposed to fight in the cause of Papacy.
The superior officers of the army, with the nobility and gentry,
continued to flock to the Prince's standard, and King James,
alarmed for his personal safety, returned in haste to London;
at the same time the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched into garrison at
Portsmouth. The Prince of Orange advanced to the capital without
experiencing serious opposition; King James fled to France; and the
Prince, having assumed the reins of government, restored Viscount
Cornbury to the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, and ordered them
to occupy quarters at Farnham and Alton.[26]
[Sidenote: 1689]
After the flight of the King to France, the crown was conferred on
William and Mary, Prince and Princess of Orange. Their Majesties'
accession, however, met with opposition; and VISCOUNT DUNDEE having
induced several of the Highland clans to take arms in favour of
King James, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were immediately ordered to the
north.[27] At the same time, the Earl of Clarendon refusing to act
with the new government, his son, Viscount Cornbury, was superseded
in the command of the regiment by the lieutenant-colonel, ANTHONY
HAYFORD, whose commission as colonel was dated the 1st of July,
1689.
On the 27th of July, six battalions of infantry and two
newly-raised troops of Scots horse, commanded by Lieut.-General
Mackay, were defeated at _Killicrankie_ by the Highlanders and a
few Irish, under Viscount Dundee and Brigadier-General Cannon.
Immediately after the action, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were directed
to march to the assistance of Lieut.-General Mackay, and they
arrived at Perth in the early part of August. The object of the
Commander-in-Chief being the prevention of the descent of the
mountaineers into the lowlands, the regiment was posted a short
time at Forfar, under the command of Major-General Sir John
Lanier, and subsequently proceeded by forced marches to Aberdeen.
The Highlanders eventually retired over the mountains by paths
inaccessible to cavalry, and separated to their homes.
In the mean time, the lord-lieutenant of Ireland (Earl Tyrconnel)
had retained the greater part of that kingdom in the interest of
King James. King William sent an army to that country under the
veteran Duke Schomberg; and, immediately after the dispersion of
the rebel Highlanders, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were ordered to proceed
to Ireland. They embarked for this service in the early part of
October, landed at Carlingford on the 9th of that month,[28] and
were ordered to take post at Armagh and Clownish, from whence they
were removed to the isle of Maghee.
[Sidenote: 1690]
Several skirmishes occurred during the winter; and in the spring
of 1690 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were before _Charlemont_, which place
was blockaded by the King's forces. _Charlemont_ was defended
by a garrison of 500 men, commanded by Sir Teague O'Regan, a
humorist, who returned the following laconic answer to the summons
to surrender:--"Tell the General, from Teague O'Regan, that he's an
old knave; and, by St. Patrick, he shall not have the town at all."
He, however, surrendered on the 14th of May, and a detachment of
the ROYAL DRAGOONS escorted the garrison towards Armagh.[29] Soon
after the surrender of Charlemont Lieut.-Colonel Edward Matthews,
from Leveson's (now third) dragoons, was appointed colonel of the
regiment. In June it was encamped near Loughbritland, where it
was joined by a remount from England. On the 22nd of June King
William arrived at the camp, and "His Majesty was no sooner come
than he was in amongst the throng of the troops, and observed every
regiment very critically. This pleased the soldiers mightily, and
every one was ready to give what demonstrations it was possible
both of his courage and duty."[30]
The French and Irish, commanded by King James, took post on the
banks of the _Boyne_, to dispute the passage of that river. King
William marched to the opposite bank on the 30th of June, and,
on the morning of the 1st of July, the army forded the river and
drove the enemy from his position with great slaughter. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS and other British troops engaged in forcing the passage of
the _Boyne_ are reported to have "acquitted themselves well." King
James fled from the field and proceeded to France; and the British
army advanced on Dublin. A few days after the battle King William
reviewed the ROYAL DRAGOONS at Finglass, on which occasion they
brought 406 private troopers into the field.
On the 21st of July Major-General Kirke proceeded with the ROYAL
DRAGOONS and Queen Dowager's and Colonel Cambron's regiments of
foot to Waterford, and summoned the place, and on the 25th the
governor capitulated.
At the moment when success attended the operations of the army in
Ireland, the English and Dutch fleets, commanded by Lord Torrington
and Admiral Evertsen, were defeated by the French fleet under the
Count de Tourville, and the enemy afterwards menaced the descent
of a formidable force on the British coast. King William commanded
a troop of life guards, with Count Schomberg's horse (now seventh
dragoon guards), the ROYAL DRAGOONS, and Trelawny's and Hastings'
(fourth and thirteenth) foot to be immediately embarked for England.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS landed at Highlake, in Cheshire, in the early
part of August. The alarm of invasion, however, soon subsided;
and they were ordered to return to Ireland, in which country
they again landed on the 20th of October, and proceeded into
extended cantonments in the county of Cork. Many thousands of
the Roman Catholic peasantry of Ireland were, at this period, in
arms in behalf of King James: they were called _rapparees_, and
being formed into bands they made frequent incursions into the
cantonments of the English regiments. Several men of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were murdered in their quarters by these _rapparees_;
and detachments of the regiment were frequently sent out to scour
the country and chase these bands of marauders from the English
cantonments.
[Sidenote: 1691]
Towards the end of December a detachment of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
proceeded, with some other troops, on an expedition commanded by
Major-General Tattea, and on the 1st of January, 1691, attacked
an Irish fort near _Scronclaird_, which was taken in two hours,
although the enemy had employed five hundred men during two months
to build it.[31]
In the spring, when the army took the field, the ROYAL DRAGOONS
were ordered to remain in the county of Cork to restrain the
incursions of the _rapparees_, and to prevent the several forts
and small garrisons from being attacked. In the early part of June
Major Culliford, with a detachment of the ROYAL DRAGOONS and some
militia, penetrated that part of the country from whence the enemy
received their supplies, defeated the Irish troops, and captured
several droves of cattle. At length General St. Ruth, who commanded
the French and Irish forces, detached two thousand horse and foot
to cover this part of the country. Major Culliford, however,
continued to make inroads, and having advanced with one hundred
and twenty men of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, and fifty militia foot, he
encountered two troops of Irish cavalry. The English dragoons
advanced boldly to the charge, defeated their opponents, killed
twenty men upon the spot, and pursued the remainder to Newmarket,
where the Irish, being reinforced, made another stand. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS, however, attacked them again with great bravery, and
having sabred fifteen, the remainder fled in disorder, leaving
a quantity of provision and some cattle behind. Major Culliford
despatched eleven dragoons and twenty-four of the militia to the
rear with the booty, and then pursued the fugitives four miles
farther, when he encountered five hundred of the enemy's horse
commanded by Sir James Cotter. Notwithstanding their disparity of
numbers, the ROYAL DRAGOONS boldly confronted their opponents, and
made a gallant resistance, but were eventually overpowered; and
forty men having fallen, Major Culliford made good his retreat
with the remainder. In retiring, the dragoons,--chafed in spirit
and burning with revenge,--often turned round upon their pursuers;
and at length Captain Bower and twenty men boldly faced about and
killed about twenty of the Irish horsemen, whose eagerness in the
chase had caused them to advance in front of their main body. In
the meantime the eleven dragoons and twenty-four of the militia,
with the captured cattle and stores, arrived at _Drumaugh_, where
they were attacked by a detachment of the enemy, but defended
themselves with success until relieved by a body of troops under
Colonels Hastings and Ogleby.
At the time the ROYAL DRAGOONS were making these diversions, the
main army, commanded by Lieutenant-General De Ginkell, gained a
decisive victory over the French and Irish at Aghrim; and on the
1st of August the regiment joined the army at Banagher-bridge.
The enemy collected the remains of their defeated regiments at
_Limerick_; and towards the end of August Lieutenant-General De
Ginkell besieged that city, commencing his work on the right bank
of the Shannon: the Irish army lay encamped at the same time on the
opposite side of the river.
A pontoon bridge having been prepared, several regiments were
ordered to cross the river at daybreak of the 16th of September.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS took the lead; and Brigadier-General
Clifford,[32] who commanded four regiments of King James's
dragoons, being taken by surprise, made little opposition: some
infantry, however, attempted to make a stand; but a squadron of the
ROYAL DRAGOONS dashed forward and routed them in an instant. Two
or three French and Irish battalions retired to a bog and wood in
their rear, from whence they were driven with the loss of several
men killed, and a French lieut.-colonel, a captain, and a number
of men made prisoners. The regiments which had passed the river
advanced upon the enemy's camp, where a curious spectacle presented
itself:--many of the Irish were running about in their shirts, some
were pulling down tents, others driving away cattle, many were
making their escape into the town, and others hurrying towards the
mountains; a regiment of dragoons, whose horses were two miles
distance at grass, dispersed in confusion: at the same time a party
of horse buckled on their arms and made a show of fighting; but
they fled on the advance of the English, who took possession of the
camp, where they found a quantity of beef, brandy, and corn, with
the saddles and appointments of three hundred dragoons. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS were commended by Lieut.-General De Ginkell for their
gallant conduct, and they returned to the other side of the river
on the same day.[33]
On the 22nd of September the regiment, with several other
corps, crossed the Shannon into the county of Clare; when the
advance-guard, which consisted of eighteen men of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS, was attacked by a squadron of the Irish cavalry: this
small party sustained the first onset with admirable firmness,
but were forced to retire; part of the regiment, however, soon
advanced to their assistance, when the enemy was defeated and
chased under the range of their batteries, and three small pieces
of brass ordnance were captured. Orders were then given for the
infantry to attack the works which covered Thoumond bridge. These
works were carried after a sharp struggle; when the troops which
had defended them endeavoured to enter the town; but the drawbridge
had been raised, and they were left to the mercy of the English,
who slaughtered such numbers, that the dead bodies lay in heaps
on the bridge higher than the parapet walls. Five colours were
taken on this occasion, and so many men slain, drowned, and taken
prisoners, that the enemy surrendered the place in a few days
afterwards.
[Sidenote: 1692]
[Sidenote: 1693]
The conquest of Ireland having been effected, the ROYAL DRAGOONS
returned to England, where they arrived in January, 1692, and
marched into dispersed cantonments in Leicestershire; and during
a part of the summer a detachment was stationed in garrison at
Portsmouth. The regiment was subsequently stationed, on revenue
duty, in the maritime towns on the southern coast of the kingdom;
and in the autumn of 1693 it had the honour of furnishing a relay
of escorts to attend King William from Margate to London, when His
Majesty returned from Holland.
[Sidenote: 1694]
The war with France, which was commenced in 1689, had been
continued with varied success; and in the spring of 1694 the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were ordered to proceed on foreign service. They left
England in May; joined the army encamped near Tirlemont in South
Brabant, on the 21st of June, and were reviewed by King William
on the following day. On arriving at this camp they were ordered
to take post in front of the village of Camtich, and this quarter
being much exposed to attacks from the enemy, they were reinforced
by two regiments of Dutch infantry. The army marched from Tirlemont
on the 13th of July, and encamped at Mont St. André and Ramilies,
where the regiment was formed in brigade with the royal Scots and
Fairfax's (now second and third) dragoons, under the command of
Brigadier-General Matthews, and this brigade was encamped on the
left of the line. The French army encamped near Huy, with their
left upon the Mehaine. On the 17th of July a foraging party of
the allies crossed the river, and, meeting with several French
squadrons, a skirmish ensued, when the ROYAL DRAGOONS lost eight
horses and had three men wounded. On the 28th of the same month
another foraging party encountered a detachment of the enemy, when
the regiment had two men and several horses killed. The allied
army was again in motion on the 8th of August: much manœuvring,
and some skirmishing took place between the hostile squadrons, but
no general engagement occurred. On the 29th of August the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were stationed at Wacken--a post situate at the junction
of the Mandel and the Scheldt; and in October they marched into
cantonments in the villages between Ghent and Sans-van-Ghent.[34]
[Sidenote: 1695]
In the spring of 1695 the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched to Dixmude,
forming part of a division of the army commanded by Major-General
Ellenberg, and were brigaded with Lloyd's (now third) dragoons
and a regiment of Danish cavalry. On the 7th of June the Duke of
Wirtemberg took command of this division, and attacked the French
forts at _Kenoque_ as a diversion to conceal King William's design
upon the strong and almost impregnable fortress of _Namur_, which
he commanded to be invested shortly afterwards. The ROYAL DRAGOONS
joined the covering army towards the end of June; but were detached
to Bruges in July: they were subsequently recalled from thence
and joined the camp between Genappe and Waterloo, from whence
they proceeded to the vicinity of _Namur_, to protect the troops
employed in the siege from a threatened attack of the French army.
After the surrender of the important fortress of _Namur_, the
regiment marched into cantonments behind Ghent.
[Sidenote: 1696]
The French menaced an attack upon the quarters of the allied army
in Flanders in the spring of 1696, when the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
suddenly called from their cantonments to encamp on the banks
of the canal between Ghent and Bruges, where they were reviewed
by King William on the 29th of May. They served the campaign of
this year with the army of Flanders, commanded by the Prince
of Vandemont, and were brigaded with the royal Scots and royal
Irish (second and fifth) dragoons, commanded by Brigadier-General
Matthews. The object of this army was the protection of Ghent,
Bruges, and the maritime towns of Flanders: no general action
occurred; but a party of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, with a detachment of
Langston's horse (now fourth dragoon guards), surprised one of the
French out-guards on the night of the 20th of September and took
thirty prisoners. This appears to be the only action in which the
regiment took part during the campaign of this year; and on the
6th of October it marched into quarters in the villages behind the
Bruges canal.
[Sidenote: 1697]
During the campaign of 1697 the regiment served under King William
in the army of Brabant, and was brigaded with the royal Scots and
Eppinger's dragoons.
On the 28th of May Brigadier-General Matthews died; and on the 30th
His Majesty conferred the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS on THOMAS
LORD RABY, afterwards Earl of Strafford.
[Sidenote: 1698]
The enemy, having great superiority of numbers, besieged and took
_Aeth_, and afterwards menaced Brussels; but were frustrated in
their designs by King William. The ROYAL DRAGOONS were encamped
before Brussels in June; and subsequently at Wavre. Hostilities
were terminated in September by the treaty of Ryswick, and
after the conclusion of peace, the regiment embarked from the
Netherlands,--landed at the Red House in Southwark on the 21st of
November, and, at the end of the same month, marched into extensive
quarters in Yorkshire, where the establishment, which during the
war had been eight troops, amounting to five hundred and ninety
officers and men, was reduced to six troops of two hundred and
ninety-four officers and men.
[Sidenote: 1699]
[Sidenote: 1700]
During the two succeeding years the ROYAL DRAGOONS occupied
quarters in Lancashire and Leicestershire. In June, 1700, they
assembled on Hounslow Heath and were reviewed by King William
III., who was pleased to express his royal approbation of their
appearance and discipline. Leaving the south of England in July,
they proceeded into quarters in Yorkshire and Cumberland, with one
troop stationed in garrison at Carlisle and another at Hull.
[Sidenote: 1701]
[Sidenote: 1702]
In 1701 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were stationed in Yorkshire, with three
troops in garrison at Hull; at this period the ambitious Louis XIV.
of France violated the treaties he had entered into, and procured
the accession of his grandson, Philip, Duke of Anjou, to the throne
of Spain. War was resolved upon, and the establishment of the
regiment was augmented to eight troops amounting to five hundred
and thirty-two officers and men; and it embarked for Holland in
the beginning of March, 1702. Before the transports sailed, the
death of King William occurred (8th March, 1702), when the regiment
was disembarked and placed in cantonments in the villages in the
immediate vicinity of the metropolis. In a few days afterwards,
Her Majesty Queen Anne having resolved to pursue the foreign
policy of her predecessor, the regiment re-embarked, and after
landing at Williamstadt, went into quarters at Breda, where it was
formed in brigade with the royal Scots and royal Irish (second and
fifth) dragoons, under the command of that excellent officer,
Brigadier-General Ross, and was placed as a guard to the English
train of artillery.[35]
[Sidenote: 1703]
A powerful French army was in the field menacing the frontiers of
Holland. The EARL OF MARLBOROUGH assembled the forces under his
orders towards the end of June, and in July the ROYAL DRAGOONS
joined the army with the train of artillery. By a daring advance
the British commander disconcerted the designs of his opponents,
who retired without venturing an engagement. The ROYAL DRAGOONS
were employed in covering the sieges of _Venloo_, _Ruremonde_,
and _Stevenswaert_; and took part in the capture of the city
of _Liege_: they afterwards marched back to Holland, and were
quartered at Arnheim, the capital of the province of Guelderland,
where they were reviewed in April, 1703, by their colonel, LORD
RABY, who was passing through Holland on his way to Prussia, as
envoy extraordinary to that court.[36]
At the commencement of the campaign of 1703 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
employed in covering the siege of _Bonn_, and afterwards joined the
army near Maestricht, with six battalions of infantry commanded
by the Prince of Hesse, and were formed in brigade with the same
regiments as in the preceding year.
On the advance of the allied army commanded by the DUKE OF
MARLBOROUGH, the French retreated, and took post behind their
fortified lines.
On the 27th of July the British commander proceeded, with four
thousand horse and dragoons, towards the enemy's intrenchments,
and Lieutenant BENSON, with thirty men of the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
who formed the advance-guard, charged and defeated a piquet of
forty French horsemen, and chased them to the barriers of their
intrenchments with signal gallantry, which gave his Grace an
opportunity of advancing within musket-shot of the lines. He was
desirous of attacking these formidable works, but was prevented
by the timidity and pertinacity of the Dutch generals and field
deputies. In August, when the siege of _Huy_ was undertaken, the
ROYAL DRAGOONS were encamped on the banks of the river Maese, to
secure the bridge, and to keep up the communication. They were
subsequently engaged in the siege of _Limburg_, a city situated on
a pleasant eminence among the woods near the banks of the little
river Wesdet. Spanish Guelderland having been delivered from the
power of France, and the Dutch freed from the dread of an invasion,
the ROYAL DRAGOONS quitted the vicinity of Limburg and marched
back to Holland. In the mean time circumstances had occurred which
occasioned their removal from the army commanded by the celebrated
DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH, to another theatre of war.
During the summer the Emperor of Germany and Prince Joseph
renounced their pretensions to the Spanish monarchy in behalf
of Archduke Charles, who was acknowledged as King of Spain by
several of the states of Europe; and a treaty of alliance having
been concluded with the King of Portugal, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
selected to accompany the Archduke to Lisbon, and to take part in
the attempt to place him on the throne of Spain by force of arms.
[Sidenote: 1704]
The Portuguese monarch having engaged to provide horses for the
English cavalry, the ROYAL DRAGOONS transferred their horses to the
British regiments in Holland, and embarked, dismounted, in October;
but were so long detained by contrary winds and severe weather,
that they did not arrive at the capital of Portugal before March,
1704, when they landed with the remainder of the British and Dutch
forces commanded by DUKE SCHOMBERG.
In consequence of the horses produced by the Portuguese authorities
being of so inferior a description that the English officers
rejected the greater part of them, only twenty men per troop of
the ROYAL DRAGOONS were mounted; the dismounted men proceeded
to Abrantes to await the arrival of horses, and the mounted men
advanced to the frontiers of Portugal, and encamped on a pleasant
plain near Estremos. Tardiness and inability were, however,
manifested by the Portuguese authorities to such an extent, that
the DUKE OF BERWICK, having arrived from France with eighteen
battalions of infantry and nineteen squadrons of cavalry, and
taken the command of the French and Spanish forces, attacked the
frontiers of Portugal before the allies were prepared to take the
field. The court of Lisbon was alarmed, the provinces were in
consternation; the DUKE SCHOMBERG solicited to be recalled, and
the EARL OF GALWAY was sent with reinforcements to Portugal, and
appointed to the command of the British forces in that country.
One hundred and twenty men of the ROYAL DRAGOONS formed part of a
body of cavalry, which crossed the frontiers and made a successful
incursion into the Spanish territory. Extraordinary measures were
adopted to procure horses, and at the close of the summer the
regiment had upwards of three hundred mounted men in the field. In
the autumn the army was enabled to act on the offensive, and the
ROYAL DRAGOONS were among the forces which penetrated Spain; but
on arriving at the vicinity of Ciudad Rodrigo, the enemy was found
so advantageously posted on the opposite side of the Agueda, that
the Portuguese generals would not venture the passage of the river;
and, after reconnoitring the hostile army several times, the allies
returned to Portugal, and the ROYAL DRAGOONS went into village
cantonments in the Alentejo.[37]
[Sidenote: 1705]
During the winter and the spring of 1705 the regiment procured an
additional supply of horses, and when it again took the field it
was much better mounted than in the preceding year. It joined the
army in April, and, advancing into Spanish Estremadura, formed part
of the force which invested _Valencia de Alcantara_, which fortress
was captured in the early part of May.
_Albuquerque_ was subsequently besieged and taken; and the capture
of Badajoz was contemplated, but that undertaking was abandoned
until the summer's heat was abated.
In the mean time an expedition had been fitted out in England, and
a land force, commanded by Lieut.-General the Earl of Peterborough,
embarked for the purpose of furthering the designs of the house of
Austria. The fleet arrived at Lisbon in June, and, King Charles
resolving to accompany the expedition, the ROYAL and Cunningham's
(now eighth) dragoons, and four regiments of foot, were embarked
to strengthen the land force. The fleet put to sea, and, after
several consultations among the general and naval officers, an
attack on _Barcelona_ was resolved upon. The fleet arrived before
that fortress on the 22nd of August (N.S.), and on the 24th the
ROYAL DRAGOONS landed near a river called Bassoz, on the east side
of the city, and encamped about a mile from the walls, in a place
well fortified by nature, where the army was joined by many of the
country people, who were formed into bands, and acted as a guerilla
force: "they were" (as Bishop Burnet observes) "good at plundering,
but could not submit to regular discipline, nor were they willing
to expose themselves to dangerous services."
The siege of _Barcelona_ was considered a romantic enterprise, and
it excited a lively interest in every nation in Christendom. The
garrison equalled in strength the besieging army within about two
thousand men, and, according to the ordinary rules and chances
of war, success appeared impossible. The siege was, however,
commenced, and on the 14th of September an attack was made on the
strong fortress of _Montjuich_, situate on an eminence overlooking
the town, on which occasion a detachment of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
was posted between this detached fortress and the city to prevent
a sally of the Spanish cavalry. The garrison of Fort Montjuich
held out three days, and then surrendered. During the remainder
of the siege the ROYAL DRAGOONS were almost constantly on duty,
the besieging army not having a sufficient number of men to form
two reliefs of the ordinary guards in the trenches and on the
batteries: the siege was, however, persisted in, and the governor
capitulated on the 9th of October. The garrison was preparing to
march out on the 14th, when numbers of the guerillas and armed
peasantry, having entered by the breach in hopes of obtaining
plunder, united with the inhabitants of the town, and attacked
the houses of the French and other persons known to be in the
interest of the Duke of Anjou; they also threatened to massacre
the governor and garrison: but the Earl of Peterborough marched
into the town at the head of a troop of the ROYAL DRAGOONS and a
detachment of grenadiers, and restored order and tranquillity. On
this occasion his lordship narrowly escaped falling a sacrifice
to his humanity. A Spaniard having fired at the Duke of Popoli,
the ball passed through the Earl of Peterborough's periwig. The
valour and perseverance of the British and Dutch having achieved
the conquest of Barcelona, at which (as Dr. Freind observes) "all
Europe wondered," nearly every town in Catalonia declared for
King Charles III., and the ROYAL DRAGOONS were placed in garrison
at Tortosa, excepting a detachment which remained at Barcelona.
Shortly afterwards Valencia declared in favour of the house of
Austria.
A French and Spanish force, commanded by the Conde de las Torres,
was detached to retake the revolted towns, and in December the
enemy besieged _St. Mattheo_, which place was defended by a party
of Spaniards, commanded by a stout-hearted Welshman, named JONES,
who made a resolute defence. The Earl of Peterborough advanced with
two hundred of the ROYAL DRAGOONS and a thousand British foot to
relieve the place. This force was not more than one-fifth of the
numbers of the besieging army: but, by night marches among the
woods and mountains, and by circulating false reports, the British
succeeded in surprising their opponents; and the Spanish commander,
not knowing the numbers of his enemy, and being deceived by spies,
made a precipitate retreat, and his rear-guard was pursued by the
ROYAL DRAGOONS over the mountains to Albocazar.
[Sidenote: 1706]
The French and Spanish army continued to retire, and was pursued by
the Earl of Peterborough with a force so much inferior in numbers,
that the record of these events appears almost incredible,[38] and
exhibits the native valour, spirit of enterprise, and temerity of
the British commander, with the pusillanimity and credulity of the
Spaniards, in a strong light. Four troops of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
formed part of that small body of men with which the Earl of
Peterborough pursued a numerous army. The services in which they
were engaged partook of the nature of a guerilla warfare, and put
to a severe test the discipline, bravery, and intelligence of the
men. Being divided into small parties, and united with bands of
armed peasantry, they were continually performing night marches
among the woods and mountains, and, hovering about the rear and
flanks of the Spanish army, keeping it in a state of alarm, which
services were performed in concert with spies; and although, under
these circumstances, it must have been difficult to preserve
subordination and discipline, yet the ROYAL DRAGOONS performed
these duties to the satisfaction of the commander-in-chief. On one
occasion "the Spaniards employed by my lord Peterborough informed
the Conde de las Torres of a considerable force that was upon his
left, somewhat before him, and certainly designed, as they told
him, to take some passes which might prevent his entrance into the
plains leading to Valencia, and that there were English troops
among them. This the Spanish general thinking impossible, one of
the spies offered to give any two or three officers he pleased to
appoint the satisfaction of seeing what he affirmed. Upon this two
officers, in the country habit, went along with him to a place
where, pretending to alight and refresh themselves, they were
seized by ten English dragoons that were posted there on purpose,
and had marched in the mountains all night with the spies. The
Spaniards being thus surprised and seized, the spy pretended the
guard was drunk, and the officers, seeing a couple of dragoons
lying apparently in that condition, slipped into the stable and
took three of the horses, and so returned to the Conde de las
Torres. This was enough to confirm the intelligence and gain credit
to the spy, as officers of that country never fail to magnify their
dangers and escapes. Sometimes the dragoons were brought prisoners,
by consent, into the Spanish camp, by country people, seeming
in their interest. By such artful means, and by such diligent
application, a little body of men, about twelve or thirteen hundred
cavalry and two thousand infantry, were brought to join in the
neighbourhood of Castillon de la Plana."[39] Such were the services
in which the ROYAL DRAGOONS were engaged, and an immense tract of
country was delivered from the power of the enemy. A most romantic
part of the adventure was, that the Earl of Peterborough, being
deficient in cavalry, procured eight hundred Spanish horses, and
constituted Lord Barrymore's regiment (now thirteenth foot) a corps
of dragoons, of which he appointed the lieut.-colonel, Edward
Pearce, colonel.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS accompanied the Earl of Peterborough to
_Valencia_. The enemy brought forward a numerous army to besiege
this important place; but the British commander issued from the
city with his gallant horsemen, and surprised and captured the
Spanish battering-train; he also penetrated, by a night march,
to the rear of their army, and attacked and defeated their
reinforcements; and by these and other achievements of a similar
character, which exhibit the valour and excellent conduct of the
troops under his orders, he frustrated the designs of the enemy.
These brilliant successes alarmed the courts of France and Spain,
and a powerful attempt to regain the possession of the towns
which had acknowledged King Charles was determined upon. The
Spaniards were desirous of commencing with Valencia, but they were
overruled by orders from France; and, the English fleet having left
_Barcelona_ in the autumn, the siege of that place was undertaken
by a land force commanded by King Philip in person, and the French
fleet under the Count de Toulouse.
The Earl of Peterborough hastened from Valencia with the ROYAL
DRAGOONS and a select number of men from the other corps, and
on his arrival at the vicinity of Barcelona he found the town
invested by a numerous army and a fleet. He immediately took to the
mountains with his hardy dragoons and about two thousand foot, and,
being joined by numbers of the armed peasantry, he was constantly
hovering near the besieging army with his detachments, interrupting
the enemy's communications, cutting off their supplies, and
attacking their out-guards; and on one occasion he succeeded in
throwing a number of men into the town. At length the British
fleet arrived with reinforcements; the French admiral withdrew
with precipitation, and, Barcelona being thus relieved, the enemy
raised the siege on the 12th of May, 1706, and retreated towards
Roussillon, leaving behind his artillery, ammunition, stores,
and sick and wounded men. A squadron of the ROYAL DRAGOONS and
some other cavalry were ordered to pursue the retiring army, and,
being joined by hundreds of armed peasantry, they attacked the
enemy's rear-guard several times, and took a number of prisoners.
The Spaniards killed every man who fell into their hands; but the
prisoners taken by the English and Dutch met with good treatment.
After the flight of the enemy from before Barcelona, the ROYAL
DRAGOONS returned to Valencia, from whence they expected to advance
with King Charles immediately upon Madrid, to join the allied army
commanded by the Marquis das Minas and the Earl of Galway, which
being superior in numbers to the French and Spanish forces on the
frontiers of Portugal, arrived at the capital of Spain towards the
end of June. King Charles, however, delayed to proceed to Madrid,
and being guided by pernicious councils, he eventually went round
by way of Arragon. Meanwhile the French and Spanish forces which,
after raising the siege of Barcelona, had retired to France,
re-entered Spain, and uniting with the forces under the Duke of
Berwick, compelled the army of Portugal to retire from Madrid.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS marched from Valencia in July, together with
Pearce's dragoons, a regiment of Castilian foot, and a regiment
of Germans, and on the 8th of August joined the army of Portugal
at Guadalaxara, from whence they marched to Chinchon, a town of
Toledo, eighteen miles from Madrid, where they remained about a
month.
The allied army, being unable to make head against the superior
numbers of the enemy, retired, and having crossed the Tagus at
Fuente Duennas, continued their march through the fine champaign
country of La Mancha, and took up their winter quarters in
Valencia, extending their cantonments from Requena to Denia.
[Sidenote: 1707]
In the spring of 1707 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were ordered to take the
field, and after a long and difficult march they joined the army in
the beginning of April; but no expectation of a general engagement
being entertained, and land carriage being difficult to procure,
they were detached on the 9th of April as far as Denia, for their
clothing, and to refresh their horses a short time in village
cantonments. While they lay at Collera, a town situate at the mouth
of the river Xucar, in the province of Valencia, the battle of
Almanza was fought on the 25th of April, when the allied army,
commanded by the Marquis das Minas and the Earl of Galway, was
nearly annihilated by the French and Spaniards under the Duke of
Berwick.
Soon after this disaster the ROYAL DRAGOONS joined the wreck of
the allied army, which had been collected by the Earl of Galway,
and were employed for three months in marches and countermarches,
observing the motions of the opposing army and endeavouring to
preserve the rich and extensive province of Catalonia from the
power of the enemy. They afterwards formed part of the force
assembled for the relief of Lerida, but the undertaking was found
to be impracticable. The enemy gained possession of Arragon and
Valencia, but were prevented acquiring all the advantages from the
victory at Almanza which had been anticipated.
[Sidenote: 1708]
During the winter and succeeding spring exertions were made to
bring the regiments in Catalonia into as efficient a state as
possible; and when the ROYAL DRAGOONS took the field to serve
the campaign of 1708, they were reported to be "in excellent
condition."[40] The allied army in Catalonia was under the orders
of Marshal Count Guido de Staremberg, an officer of reputation,
who had commanded the Imperial troops in Hungary. The services
of the ROYAL DRAGOONS were of a defensive character; sending out
detachments to reconnoitre, furnishing piquets and patroles, and
traversing the mountain districts of Catalonia in small parties,
were the only duties they were called upon to perform. They were
encamped a short time in a valley near Monblanco, subsequently on
a fertile plain near Cervera, and they passed another winter in
cantonments in Catalonia.
[Sidenote: 1709]
The early part of the campaign of 1709 was also passed in defensive
movements: the ROYAL DRAGOONS were encamped with the army on the
banks of the Segré, and having forded that river in August, the
town of _Balaguer_, situate at the foot of a hill on the banks of
that stream and in a district of uncommon fertility, was captured;
also _Ager_, a place twelve miles from Balaguer. After placing
garrisons in these towns the army repassed the river, and the
regiments went into cantonments.
[Sidenote: 1710]
The campaign of 1710 was distinguished by more important events,
the two claimants to the throne of Spain heading their armies in
person. The enemy was first in the field, and commenced operations
with the siege of Balaguer, but retired on the approach of the
allied army. The ROYAL DRAGOONS were subsequently encamped on the
banks of the Segré; and when King Charles joined the army, they
were detached to meet his Majesty and to escort him to the camp.
After some manœuvring, Lieutenant-General STANHOPE (afterwards EARL
STANHOPE), who commanded the British troops in Spain, being at the
head of the leading column of the allied army on the march towards
Alfaras, discovered, on the evening of the 27th of July, a body
of the enemy's forces in front of the village of _Almanara_, and
obtained the King's permission to attack them with the cavalry, of
which the ROYAL DRAGOONS had the honour to form part.
The sun was declining from the horizon, and the shades of evening
were gathering over the valleys of Catalonia, when the British
commander led forward his warlike horsemen. Before him appeared
twenty-two squadrons of Castilian cavalry, the pride and flower
of the Spanish army, with King Philip's life guards on the right;
a second line of the same numbers was seen in the rear, and nine
battalions of infantry supported the cavalry. Against this force
the gallant STANHOPE advanced at the head of Harvey's horse (now
second dragoon guards); his front line consisted of sixteen
squadrons, with a reserve of six squadrons. The Spaniards came
forward to meet their opponents in all the pomp of war, and a noble
spectacle presented itself. The foaming squadrons dashed upon each
other, but the contest was of short duration. The enemy's left soon
gave way,--the Spanish life guards were routed with the loss of a
standard and a pair of kettle drums,--their second line fled in
confusion,--the infantry were seized with a panic; and STANHOPE'S
troopers chased the fugitives from the field with great slaughter,
following them among the rocks and dells until the darkness
rendered it impossible to distinguish friends from foes.
The result of this cavalry action disconcerted the plans of the
enemy; King Philip called in his detachments and retired; and
the allied army moved forward in pursuit. After following the
retiring army many days, sometimes crossing valleys, and at other
times traversing wild but beautiful regions among rocks and
mountains, and obtaining possession of numerous towns in Arragon,
the ROYAL DRAGOONS overtook the enemy's rear-guard in the pass of
_Penalva_, on the 15th of August, when a sharp skirmish ensued, and
Lieut.-Colonel COLBERG, who commanded the regiment, was wounded and
taken prisoner.
Continuing the pursuit during the four succeeding days, the
ROYAL DRAGOONS passed the Ebro with the leading column under
Major-General Carpenter, and on the evening of the 19th of August
the French and Spanish forces were discovered in order of battle on
the right of _Saragossa_, a city pleasantly situated on the river
Ebro, in a very plentiful country, abounding with every necessary
for the support and convenience of life, and once the delight of
Julius Cæsar, who erected a splendid palace there. Preparations
were made to attack the enemy on the following day; the ROYAL
DRAGOONS formed part of the cavalry of the left wing, commanded by
Lieut.-General STANHOPE, and were opposed to the enemy's right on
the brow of a steep hill.
Early on the morning of the 20th of August a heavy cannonade
commenced; and as the mountains re-echoed the sound, and the smoke,
tinged with the rays of the sun, rose in curling clouds and formed
a glittering dome over the opposing armies, King Charles and his
suite galloped along the line, and his Majesty's presence infused
a glowing ardour into the troops. About mid-day Lieut.-General
Stanhope led the ROYAL DRAGOONS and other British horsemen on the
left against their adversaries, and a sharp cavalry action ensued,
in which the French troopers (being superior in numbers) had the
advantage; but Stanhope's second line of cavalry repulsed the
enemy. The British dragoons rallied, and returning to the charge, a
sanguinary sword-fight took place at the foot of the hill; but six
squadrons of Portuguese dragoons on the extreme left fled before
the troops advancing against them, without waiting to be attacked.
The battle extended along the front to the banks of the Ebro, and
the Imperial, Dutch, and Palatine troops vied with the British
in feats of gallantry. The Royals, Pepper's (now eighth) and
Stanhope's dragoons, continuing the fight, gained some advantage;
Harvey's horse signalized themselves; and four English battalions,
commanded by Major-General WADE, being mixed with the cavalry of
the left wing, behaved with remarkable intrepidity and heroism.
The British infantry, throwing off their knapsacks, sprang up the
acclivity and attacked their opponents sword in hand: finally, the
enemy was driven from the field with prodigious slaughter, and
the loss of six thousand prisoners, twenty-two pieces of cannon,
seventy-two standards and colours, the ammunition, baggage, and
plate of King Philip; and the city of _Saragossa_ was captured,
with its military stores of ammunition, provision and clothing. The
ROYAL DRAGOONS passed the night in the fields near the town, and
were thanked by King Charles for their distinguished gallantry.
After this victory the army once more advanced to Madrid, and King
Charles made his public entry into the capital on the 28th of
September; but the army of Portugal not advancing to sustain this
forward movement, the most disastrous results followed. King Philip
called to his aid troops from Estremadura,--reinforcements arrived
from France,--the Castilian peasantry took arms in his behalf,--and
the allied army was once more forced to retire.
On the 11th of November King Charles withdrew from the army,
taking with him the ROYAL DRAGOONS and Staremberg's Imperialists,
and proceeded to Cienpoznelos. The ROYAL DRAGOONS appear to have
become a favourite corps with his Majesty, and when he retired
to Barcelona he took with him two squadrons of the regiment as a
body-guard. The other squadron remained with the army, and during
the retreat it formed part of the rear column on the left commanded
by Lieut.-General STANHOPE. This retrograde movement was performed
under great difficulties from the hostile spirit of the Castilians,
inclement weather, and a scarcity of forage and provision. On the
6th of December the column of which the ROYAL DRAGOONS formed
part arrived at _Brihuega_, a village of about a thousand houses,
situate in the mountains of Castile, near the river Tajuna, where
they halted on the following day. While the troops were reposing
in this rural seclusion, the town was suddenly surrounded by the
French and Spanish forces commanded by the Duke of Vendosme. The
British, though invested by a force of more than ten times their
own numbers, resolved on a vigorous defence; but unfortunately they
had no artillery, very little ammunition, and the wall round the
village was in a ruinous condition. The enemy forced the gates,
battered down part of the wall with their cannon, and assaulted
the place by storm, but were repulsed with severe loss. A second
assault was given, and the British troops, having spent all their
ammunition, defended themselves a short time with stones and other
missiles; but were eventually forced to surrender prisoners of
war.[41]
[Sidenote: 1711]
The officers and men of the ROYAL DRAGOONS who were thus made
prisoners were sent to France, and, after being exchanged, were
removed to England, and subsequently to Scotland. The remainder
of the regiment continued in Spain, where it served under
Lieut.-General the Duke of Argyle.
[Sidenote: 1712]
In 1711 the Emperor Joseph died, King Charles proceeded from Spain
to Germany, and was elected Emperor of the Romans. This event
removed one of the competitors for the throne of Spain. King Philip
made a formal renunciation of his claim to succeed to the throne
of France, and the danger of an union of the kingdoms of France
and Spain was thus removed. Negotiations for a general peace were
commenced, and in the summer of 1712 the officers and men of the
ROYAL DRAGOONS quitted Spain and returned to England. They were
mounted on Spanish horses; but before they quitted Catalonia their
horses were sold, and the men returned home dismounted.
[Sidenote: 1713]
After their arrival in England the ROYAL DRAGOONS were stationed in
dispersed quarters in Yorkshire; and the establishment was fixed at
twenty-seven officers, eight quarter-masters, and three hundred and
twenty-eight non-commissioned officers and private men. During the
summer of 1713 a detachment of the regiment proceeded to Dover, and
received a draft of two hundred horses from Kerr's (now seventh)
dragoons, which regiment was ordered to proceed, dismounted, to
Ireland, where it was disbanded.
[Sidenote: 1714]
On the decease of Queen Anne on the 1st of August, 1714, the ROYAL
DRAGOONS left Yorkshire, and marched into quarters in the villages
near London; but after the arrival of King George I. from Hanover
they returned to Yorkshire, and a reduction of fifty men was made
in the establishment.[42]
[Sidenote: 1715]
In January, 1715, two troops of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, with three
troops of the Scots greys, and a newly-raised troop of dragoons,
were incorporated into a regiment--the present seventh hussars.[43]
The establishment was thus reduced to six troops; and on the 13th
of June in the same year the colonelcy was conferred on RICHARD
LORD COBHAM, who was advanced to the dignity of Viscount three
years afterwards.
At this period Jacobite principles were very prevalent in the
United Kingdom; and in September, 1715, the Earl of Mar raised
the standard of rebellion in Scotland, and excited the clans
to take arms in favour of the Pretender. The ROYAL DRAGOONS
were immediately ordered to the North; and in the early part
of October they arrived at Edinburgh, from whence they marched
immediately afterwards, and, being placed under the command of
Lieutenant-General Carpenter, went in pursuit of a body of rebels.
[Sidenote: 1716]
After several marches and countermarches Lieutenant-General
Carpenter arrived at Jedburgh on the 30th of October: three days
afterwards he ascertained that a division of the rebel army had
marched in the direction of Carlisle, and he instantly went in
pursuit of them. The rebels, however, eluded his vigilance,
and arrived without opposition at _Preston_, in Lancashire.
Major-General Wills, who commanded in Cheshire, assembled
several regiments, and marched towards Preston. In the mean
time Lieutenant-General Carpenter, with the ROYAL, Molesworth's,
and Churchill's dragoons,[44] were marching with all possible
expedition from Scotland; and they arrived before Preston about
mid-day on Sunday, the 13th of November, when they found the town
surrounded by the troops under Major-General Wills: some sharp
fighting had previously taken place, but on the arrival of the
forces from Scotland, the rebels surrendered at discretion. On
the same day another division of the rebel army was defeated at
Sheriff-moor, near Dumblain; and in the early part of 1716 the
Pretender and insurgent chiefs made their escape to France, and the
common people retired to their homes.
[Sidenote: 1717]
After the suppression of this rebellion, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
stationed in Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, from whence they
marched, in February, 1717, to Newcastle upon Tyne, and were placed
under the command of Major-General Wills. This march was occasioned
by the preparations made by Charles XII., King of Sweden, for an
expedition to England to place the Pretender on the throne; but
the measures taken by the British government defeated the project.
The journals of this period speak highly of the condition of the
British army, particularly the _cavalry_, which they represent as
the _best in the world_.[45]
[Sidenote: 1718]
In the spring of 1718 the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched into quarters
in Yorkshire and Lancashire; and, the King of Sweden having
been compelled to relinquish his projected expedition, the
establishment was reduced to two hundred and seven officers and men.
[Sidenote: 1719]
The peace of Europe was disturbed in 1719 by Philip V. of Spain,
who was desirous of recovering the places ceded by him in the
treaty of Utrecht; and among the measures contemplated by the
Spaniards was placing the Pretender on the throne of Great Britain,
that the interest of this country might be insured in favour of
the projected innovations. An expedition, commanded by the Duke
of Ormond, was prepared in Spain for a descent on the British
coast; but the fleet was dispersed and disabled by a storm: two
ships, however, reached the coast of Scotland, and between three
and four hundred Spaniards landed, and were joined by a number of
Highlanders. When information of this event reached London, orders
were issued for the ROYAL DRAGOONS to proceed with all possible
expedition to Scotland, where they arrived in May. Major-General
Wightman advanced with a body of foot and three troops of the Scots
greys, and attacked the Spaniards and Highlanders on the 10th of
June at the pass of _Glenshill_, and forced them to retire with
considerable loss. On the following day the Highlanders dispersed,
and the Spaniards surrendered themselves prisoners of war. The
ROYAL DRAGOONS returned to England in July, and were quartered in
Yorkshire; and a detachment was ordered to embark at Portsmouth
and accompany the expedition commanded by their colonel, VISCOUNT
COBHAM, intended to make an attack on Corunna. The design on that
place was, however, abandoned; but the troops effected a landing on
the coast of Spain, and took _Vigo_, where they obtained possession
of several pieces of brass ordnance, with a magazine of muskets
and other arms. _Rondendella_ and _Pont-a-Vedra_ were also taken,
and additional captures of military stores effected. The Spanish
court made overtures for a treaty of peace; and in November the
expedition returned to England.
[Sidenote: 1720]
In February, 1720, His Majesty issued a regulation, fixing the
amount of purchase-money to be paid for regimental commissions, and
the following prices were established for the
ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS.
Colonel and Captain £7000
Lieutenant-Colonel and Captain 3200
Major and Captain 2600
Captain 1800
Captain-Lieutenant[46] 1000
Lieutenant 800
Cornet 600
Adjutant 200
[Sidenote: 1721]
The ROYAL DRAGOONS left Yorkshire in April, 1721, and were
stationed at Nottingham and Derby; and on the 10th of that month
the colonelcy was conferred on SIR CHARLES HOTHAM, Baronet,
Viscount Cobham having been removed to the second horse, now first
dragoon guards.
[Sidenote: 1722]
[Sidenote: 1723]
During the summer of 1722 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were encamped near
Durham; and on the 12th of January, 1723, the colonelcy, having
become vacant by the decease of Sir Charles Hotham, was conferred
on Brigadier-General HUMPHREY GORE, from the tenth dragoons.
[Sidenote: 1724]
[Sidenote: 1725]
[Sidenote: 1726]
The regiment occupied extensive quarters in Nottinghamshire and
Derbyshire in 1724; in the following year it furnished detachments
to assist the revenue officers in their duties on the coast; and in
October, 1726, it was stationed in Sussex and Essex.
England having agreed to furnish ten thousand men to assist the
States-General in their war with the Emperor of Germany, the
ROYAL DRAGOONS were augmented to nine troops, of five hundred and
fifty-two officers and men, and selected to form part of this
force. No embarkation was, however, required.
[Sidenote: 1727]
[Sidenote: 1728]
The decease of King George I. took place on the 11th of June, 1727;
and a few days previous to the coronation of his successor, George
II., the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched into quarters near London, and
were reviewed in brigade with Honeywood's (now eleventh) dragoons
by his Majesty on Hounslow Heath, on the 17th of October. They
subsequently proceeded into Leicestershire and Derbyshire; and in
the beginning of the succeeding year the establishment was again
reduced to six troops.
[Sidenote: 1730]
[Sidenote: 1731]
[Sidenote: 1732]
[Sidenote: 1733]
In the spring of 1730 the regiment marched into cantonments in
Worcestershire and Gloucestershire; in 1731 it was stationed in
Kent, with detachments on coast duty; and in the month of March
in the following year proceeded into Somersetshire, from whence it
detached, in the spring of 1733, several parties to the maritime
towns and villages on the Suffolk coast, where frequent rencounters
took place between the military and smugglers.
[Sidenote: 1734]
[Sidenote: 1735]
[Sidenote: 1737]
[Sidenote: 1738]
The several detachments were collected in May, 1734, and the six
troops assembled at Taunton, where they were reviewed by their
colonel, Major-General Gore. One troop was afterwards detached
into Sussex; and in August another troop proceeded to Bath, and
furnished a daily guard for the Princess Amelia during her Royal
Highness's residence at that city. In August, 1735, the five troops
in Somersetshire marched to the north, and were placed under the
orders of Lieut.-General Wade, commander-in-chief in Scotland.
They, however, returned to England in April, 1737, and were
quartered in Lancashire; and during the summer of the following
year the six troops were stationed in Essex and Kent, with
detachments on coast duty.
[Sidenote: 1739]
In July, 1739, the ROYAL DRAGOONS were ordered to call in their
detachments and march into quarters at Hounslow and its vicinity;
and on the 28th of that month they were reviewed on Hounslow Heath
by his Majesty. In the beginning of August they marched into
quarters in Worcestershire; and their colonel, Major-General Gore,
died on the 18th of that month. On the 1st of September his Majesty
conferred the colonelcy on CHARLES, second DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH,
from the 38th regiment of foot.
The Spaniards having repeatedly violated the existing treaties
in regard to the commerce of England with America, his Majesty
declared war against Spain; and the establishment of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS was augmented to four hundred and thirty-five officers and
men.
[Sidenote: 1740]
In May, 1740, the colonelcy, vacant by the removal of the Duke
of Marlborough to the second troop (now second regiment) of life
guards, was conferred on Major-General HAWLEY, from the thirteenth
dragoons.
[Sidenote: 1741]
During the summer of 1740 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were encamped (with
three other regiments of cavalry and six of infantry) near Newbury,
and afterwards near Devizes, under the orders of General Wade. In
October they marched from camp into quarters in Leicestershire; and
in November, 1741, removed into Somersetshire.
[Sidenote: 1742]
In the mean time hostilities had commenced on the continent, and
France, Bavaria, and Prussia were endeavouring to deprive the house
of Austria of its hereditary dominions. King George II. resolved
to support the Austrians; and in the summer of 1742 his Majesty
sent Field Marshal the Earl of Stair with sixteen thousand men
to Flanders. The ROYAL DRAGOONS were selected for this service,
and, having been reviewed by his Majesty on Hounslow Heath, they
embarked in August, and after their arrival in Flanders were
stationed in the cavalry barracks at Ghent.
[Sidenote: 1743]
Leaving Ghent in February, 1743, the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched for
Germany; and in June they were encamped, with the other forces,
near Aschaffenburg, on the river Maine, where they were joined by
King George II. and the Duke of Cumberland. On the 26th of June
the army marched for Hanau, a town of Hesse-Cassel, and the ROYAL
DRAGOONS formed part of the advance-column. When on the march the
French were discovered in position near _Dettingen_: his Majesty
commanded the army to form opposite the enemy, and the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were posted near the right of the line.
The French advanced from their position and attacked the left of
the allied army; the contest soon became general, and the English
cavalry engaged the French cuirassiers with varied success. The
MOUSQUETAIRES NOIRS, a choice corps of French cavalry, separated
themselves from their line, and, passing between two columns of
infantry, rushed headlong towards the British cavalry. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS, undaunted by this audacity, met the French horsemen with
a cool, determined bearing, and, encountering them in mid-onset,
overthrew the presumptuous squadrons, cut them down with a dreadful
slaughter, and captured a STANDARD. The ROYAL DRAGOONS were
afterwards engaged with the enemy's household troops; they were
again victorious, and, though without armour, fought and triumphed
over their steel-clad opponents, and received the thanks of his
Majesty for their gallant conduct. Eventually the French army was
overthrown, and driven from the field with great loss.
In this action the ROYAL DRAGOONS had six men and thirty-four
horses killed and wounded. The STANDARD of the MOUSQUETAIRES NOIRS
was taken by a serjeant of the right squadron. It was of white
satin, embroidered with gold and silver: in the middle a bunch of
nine arrows tied with a wreath, with the motto _Alterius Jovis
altera tela_. The lance was broken, the standard was stained with
blood; the cornet who carried it was killed without falling, being
buckled to his horse, and his standard buckled to him.[47]
The ROYAL DRAGOONS passed the night near the field of battle,
exposed to a heavy storm of rain, and on the following day marched
with the army to Hanau, and encamped on the banks of the river
Kinzig, where they remained until the early part of August, when
they advanced, and, having crossed the Rhine above Mentz, were
employed in operations in West Germany. Nothing of importance,
however, transpired; and in October they commenced their march
for Mentz, where they repassed the Rhine, and, proceeding through
the duchy of Nassau, the principality of Liege, and province of
Brabant, entered Flanders, and, arriving at Ghent on the 18th of
November, again occupied part of the cavalry barrack at that place.
[Sidenote: 1744]
The campaign of 1744 passed without any general engagement. The
army penetrated the French territory; but the services of the
ROYAL DRAGOONS were limited to piquets, out-guards, and protecting
foraging parties from the attacks of the French garrisons; and in
October they returned to their former station at Ghent.
[Sidenote: 1745]
In April, 1745, the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched from their winter
quarters, and encamped near Brussels. The enemy assembled a
numerous army, and invested _Tournay_, the chief town of a district
in the province of Hainault; and the Duke of Cumberland, though
inferior to the French in numbers by above thirty thousand men,
resolved to attack them. His Royal Highness accordingly advanced;
and on the 10th of May (N.S.) a squadron of the ROYAL DRAGOONS was
engaged, with other forces, in driving in the enemy's out-guards
and piquets. The French army was discovered in order of battle
on a gentle ascent protected by batteries, and rising gradually
from the plain near _Fontenoy_. At daybreak on the morning of the
11th of May the allies moved forward, but, having many defiles
to pass, the attack did not commence until near ten o'clock. The
British infantry advanced against the enemy, and throughout the
day they displayed the greatest valour and intrepidity; but the
Dutch did not evince equal resolution, and their failure occasioned
the most unfortunate results. It was near the conclusion of the
action before the ROYAL DRAGOONS were called upon to charge, when
they advanced through a hollow way abounding with difficulties,
and were exposed to the destructive fire of two batteries: they
charged by alternate squadrons with all the spirit and resolution
which characterizes the attack of British cavalry. But the Duke
of Cumberland, perceiving that, from the failure of the Dutch and
other causes, it was impossible to retrieve the fortune of the day,
ordered a retreat, and the army marched from the field of battle,
and encamped near Aeth.
The loss of the regiment in this engagement was fifteen men and
sixty-nine horses killed; with Lieutenant-Colonel Naizon, Cornets
Hartwell, Desmeret, and Creighton, thirty-one men, and forty-seven
horses wounded.
The allied army afterwards encamped on the plain of the Dender,
near Lessines; and subsequently near Brussels.
In the mean time Charles Edward, eldest son of the Pretender,
arrived in Scotland with a ship laden with arms, and, being joined
by several of the Highland clans, took the opportunity of the
King's army being abroad to make a desperate effort to gain the
throne. Several regiments were immediately ordered to England; and
in November the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched to Williamstadt, in North
Brabant, and embarked; but the shipping was delayed for some time
by contrary winds, and several horses were lost from the transports
being stranded.
[Sidenote: 1746]
After their arrival in England the ROYAL DRAGOONS formed part of
the army assembled near the metropolis to repel the threatened
descent of a French force on the southern coast of the kingdom.
[Sidenote: 1747]
[Sidenote: 1748]
The rebellion having been suppressed by the victory at Culloden,
the ROYAL DRAGOONS continued in the south of England: they were
stationed at Windsor, Reading, and Colnbrook, and had the honour
of furnishing travelling escorts for the royal family: in July,
1746, one troop attended the Princess Caroline at Bath. On the 26th
of December, 1747, they were reviewed by His Majesty on Hounslow
Heath: in the following summer they were employed on coast duty
in Lincolnshire, and in suppressing riots among the weavers in
Lancashire.
[Sidenote: 1749]
[Sidenote: 1750]
After the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle the establishment was reduced
to two hundred and eighty-five officers and men; and in 1750 the
regiment marched to Scotland.
[Sidenote: 1751]
A regulation was issued in 1751 relative to the clothing and
standards of the several regiments; from which the following
particulars have been extracted relative to the ROYAL DRAGOONS:--
COATS--scarlet; double breasted; without lappels; lined with
blue; slit sleeves turned up with blue; the button-holes worked
with narrow yellow lace; the buttons of yellow metal, set on two
and two; a long slash pocket in each skirt; and a yellow worsted
aiguillette on the right shoulder.
WAISTCOATS and BREECHES--blue.
HATS--bound with gold lace, and ornamented with a yellow metal
loop, and a black cockade.
BOOTS--of jacked leather.
CLOAKS--of scarlet cloth, with a blue collar, and lined with blue
shalloon; the buttons set on two and two upon yellow frogs or
loops, with a blue stripe down the centre.
HORSE FURNITURE--of scarlet cloth; the holster-caps and housings
having a border of royal lace, with a blue stripe down the centre;
the crest of England within the garter, embroidered on each corner
of the housing; and on the holster-caps, the King's cipher and
crown, with I.D underneath.
OFFICERS--distinguished by gold lace; their coats and waistcoats
bound with gold embroidery; the button-holes worked with gold; and
a crimson silk sash worn across the left shoulder.
QUARTER-MASTERS--to wear a crimson sash round the waist.
SERJEANTS--to have narrow gold lace on the cuffs, pockets, and
shoulder-straps; gold shoulder-knots or aiguillettes, and yellow
and blue worsted sashes tied round the waist.
DRUMMERS and HAUTBOYS--clothed in scarlet coats lined with blue,
and ornamented with royal lace with a blue stripe down the centre;
their waistcoats and breeches of blue cloth.
_Guidons._--The first or King's guidon to be of crimson silk,
embroidered and fringed with gold and silver; in the centre the
rose and thistle conjoined and crown over them, with the motto
_Dieu et mon Droit_ underneath: the white horse in a compartment in
the first and fourth corners, and I.D in gold characters on a blue
ground in a compartment in the second and third corners. The second
and third guidons to be of blue silk, in the centre the crest of
England within the garter on a crimson ground: the white horse on a
scarlet ground in the first and fourth compartments, and I.D within
a wreath of roses and thistles upon a scarlet ground in the second
and third compartments.
[Sidenote: 1752]
[Sidenote: 1753]
[Sidenote: 1754]
In 1752 the ROYAL DRAGOONS returned to England, and were stationed
at York, from whence they marched, in October, 1753, into quarters
in Norfolk and Essex, and in September of the following year they
proceeded into extensive cantonments in Kent.
[Sidenote: 1755]
Disputes having occurred between England and France relating to the
boundaries of the British possessions in North America, hostilities
commenced in 1755, when an augmentation of one hundred men was
made to the establishment: a _light troop_, consisting of three
officers, one quarter-master, two serjeants, three corporals, two
drummers, and sixty private soldiers,[48] was raised and added
to the regiment on the same principle as the light companies to
regiments of infantry.
[Sidenote: 1756]
[Sidenote: 1757]
War was declared against France in 1756, when the French monarch
made preparations for a descent on the British coast, and the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were stationed in the maritime towns in the southern
counties: during the summer of 1757 they were encamped near
Salisbury.
[Sidenote: 1758]
The British military establishment having been considerably
augmented, His Majesty was prepared to act offensively against
France; and in 1758 the _light troop_ of the ROYAL DRAGOONS formed
part of an expedition commanded by Charles, Duke of Marlborough,
which landed on the coast of Brittany and destroyed the French
shipping and magazines at _St. Maloes_. This troop was afterwards
engaged in a second expedition to the coast of France, commanded
by General Bligh, when a landing was effected in the Bay des
Marées, and _Cherbourg_ was taken: it was also engaged in the
second descent on the coast of Brittany.
[Sidenote: 1759]
[Sidenote: 1760]
On the 5th of April, 1759, the colonelcy, having become vacant
by the decease of General Hawley, was conferred on HENRY SEYMOUR
CONWAY, from the fourth Irish horse, now seventh dragoon guards. In
the same year the establishment of each of the six heavy troops was
augmented to sixty private men, and the light troop to eighty-nine;
making a total of five hundred and forty-four officers and men; and
in the following year the light troop was further augmented to four
officers, one quarter-master, four serjeants, four corporals, two
drummers, and one hundred and eighteen private men.
In the mean time a British army had proceeded to Germany,
and was serving in conjunction with the Hanoverian, Hessian,
and Brunswick troops, commanded by Prince Ferdinand, Duke of
Brunswick; and in the spring of 1760 the ROYAL DRAGOONS, commanded
by Lieutenant-Colonel JAMES JOHNSTON,[49] embarked for foreign
service, and, having landed at Bremen, in Lower Saxony, on the 16th
and 17th of April, joined the army encamped near Fritzlar, in the
principality of Lower Hesse, on the 21st of that month. On the 22nd
they were reviewed by the Duke of Brunswick, who was pleased to
express his approbation of their appearance.
After much manœuvring and skirmishing, thirty thousand French
troops, commanded by the Chevalier de Muy, crossed the Dymel to
cut off the communication of the allied army with Westphalia. The
ROYAL DRAGOONS, with several other corps, were immediately sent
forward to Liebenau, under the command of the Hereditary Prince
of Brunswick, to secure the bridge across the Dymel; and being
followed by the main body, the Prince advanced to the vicinity of
_Warbourg_, and reconnoitred the French forces in position near
that place, whom he resolved to attack on the following day.
At daybreak on the morning of the 31st of July the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel JAMES JOHNSTON, left their camp
on the heights of Corbeke, and making a detour through several
villages gained the left flank of the French army. Several other
corps having arrived at the same point, the attack was immediately
commenced, and after a sharp dispute the enemy gave way and retired
upon _Warbourg_, where he was again attacked and driven across
the Dymel with great loss. The ROYAL DRAGOONS encountered the
French cavalry corps of royal Piedmont, and acquitted themselves
with their accustomed gallantry. They afterwards charged a corps
of Swiss infantry (the regiment of Planta) with distinguished
bravery, broke its ranks, and after sabring many of the men took
twenty-one officers and two hundred soldiers prisoners: many of
the Swiss attempting to escape were drowned in the Dymel. Three
troops of the ROYAL DRAGOONS formed part of the force under the
Marquis of Granby, which pursued the enemy across the Dymel and
halted that night on the heights of Wilda: the other three, having
suffered severely in the attack on the Swiss infantry, remained
at Warbourg.[50] In a general order issued on the occasion,
Prince Ferdinand declared that "ALL THE BRITISH CAVALRY PERFORMED
PRODIGIES OF VALOUR."
The ROYAL DRAGOONS lost in this action eight men and twenty-one
horses killed; and twelve men and thirteen horses wounded.
The regiment was subsequently encamped on the banks of the Dymel,
and on the 1st of October was despatched towards the Lower Rhine,
forming part of a separate corps under the Hereditary Prince, which
invested _Wesel_, a town in the duchy of Cleves.
The enemy advanced in force to relieve the besieged, and encamped,
on the 14th of October, behind the convent of _Campen_. Immediately
after dark on the evening of the same day, the ROYAL DRAGOONS and
other corps advanced towards the enemy, the Hereditary Prince
designing to surprise him in the night; but it was found necessary
to dislodge a corps which occupied the convent of _Campen_, and
this occasioned some firing, which alarmed the French camp, and
the troops were immediately formed in order of battle.
The action commenced before daybreak, and a succession of attacks,
repulses, and charges were kept up until nine at night, in which
the ROYAL DRAGOONS took an active part, and they are reported to
have "behaved extremely well." Two pieces of cannon and a pair of
colours were captured; but at length the Prince perceived that it
was impossible to drive the enemy out of a wood of which he had
possessed himself, and, the allied infantry having expended all
their ammunition, his Highness ordered a retreat.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS had eight men and ten horses killed;
Lieut.-Colonel Johnston, two men, and four horses, wounded; Captain
Wilson, Lieutenant Goldsworthy, Cornet Duffe, and twenty-five men,
taken prisoners. The regiment repassed the Rhine on the 18th of
October, and was cantoned in the principality of Hesse, where the
officers received orders to wear mourning for his late Majesty King
George II.
[Sidenote: 1761]
In February, 1761, the regiment was engaged in an incursion into
the French cantonments, and took part in several skirmishes with
the enemy. In the spring a remount joined from England.
After much manœuvring, the allied army took post in Prussian
Westphalia, on the rivers Asse and Lippe, and the ROYAL DRAGOONS
were encamped on the heights between Illingen and Hohenover.[51] On
the 15th of July the enemy attacked the troops under the Marquis
of Granby at _Kirch Denkern_, when the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched
across the Asse by the bridge at Hans Hohenover, and advanced to
support the corps attacked. After a sharp action the enemy was
repulsed with loss. The fire of the skirmishers was, however, kept
up throughout the night, and on the following morning the enemy
renewed the engagement with great fury. During this day the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were posted near Vellinghausen, and, when the enemy's
columns of attack were repulsed, advanced to charge, but were
prevented by the hedges and marshy hollows which intersected the
country. They were subsequently employed in military operations on
the Dymel, and afterwards marched into the electorate of Hanover,
and were engaged in a skirmish near _Eimbeck_ in the early part
of November. On the same night they marched through a heavy
snow to _Foorwohle_, where they encountered and drove back some
French cavalry. On the 9th of November they had another skirmish
at _Foorwohle_, and subsequently marched into quarters in East
Friesland.
[Sidenote: 1762]
The ROYAL DRAGOONS left their winter quarters in May, 1762, and
on the 18th of June joined the army encamped at Brackel, in the
bishopric of Paderborn, from whence they marched to the heights
of Tissel. The French army, commanded by Marshals d'Estrées and
Soubise, took post at _Groebenstien_, where Prince Ferdinand
resolved to attack them on the 24th of June, and the army was
ordered to move forward in several columns for that purpose.
Moving from their camp-ground at daybreak, the ROYAL DRAGOONS
passed the Dymel at Liebenau about four in the morning, and
advanced against the enemy's camp. The manœuvre was conducted with
such address, that the army was in presence of the French before
they had the least apprehension of an attack, and, being instantly
assaulted in front, flank, and rear, they retired in confusion,
leaving all their equipage behind them. The ROYAL DRAGOONS had
advanced against the enemy's front, and they were subsequently
employed in surrounding a division of the French army commanded by
General Stainville in the woods of _Wilhelmsthal_, where several
corps were made prisoners. The pursuit was continued, and the
French took refuge under the cannon of Cassel; the ROYAL DRAGOONS
then retired a few miles, and encamped near Holtzhausen.
During the remainder of the campaign the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
employed in operations on the Fulde, the Eder, and the Lahn, which
were attended with such signal success, that a considerable portion
of territory was wrested from the power of the enemy, and the
allies took Cassel.
These successes were followed by a treaty of peace, and the ROYAL
DRAGOONS proceeded into quarters in the bishopric of Munster.
At the close of the military operations of the year, when the
army marched into winter quarters, Colonel JAMES JOHNSTON, of the
ROYAL DRAGOONS, who had commanded the regiment since the 7th of
April, 1759, and during the campaign of 1762 had commanded the
brigade composed of the ROYALS and second dragoon guards, received
a most flattering mark of the approbation of the Hereditary Prince
of Brunswick (afterwards reigning Duke, who married Princess
Augusta, sister to George III.; he died of the wounds he received
at the battle of Jena in 1808), namely, a valuable gold snuff-box,
embellished with highly-chased military trophies, accompanied by an
autograph letter, of which the following is a copy:--
"_Munden_, ce 17 de Nov. 1762.
"Monsieur,
"Vous m'obligerez sensiblement en acceptant la babiole que je
joins ici, comme une marque de l'estime et de la considération
parfaite que je vous porte, et comme un souvenir d'un ami qui
jamais ne finera d'être,
"Monsieur,
"Votre très humble et très dévoué serviteur,
"CHARLES PR. HER. DE B.
"_A Mons. le Col. Johnston._"
[Sidenote: 1763]
During the winter shipping arrived from England to convey the
troops home. The ROYAL DRAGOONS commenced their march for
Williamstadt in February, 1763, and embarked at that port for
England. According to the official returns, the strength of the
regiment was fourteen officers, three hundred and twenty-nine men,
and four hundred and twenty-three horses, with twenty-four servants
and thirty-five women.
After their return from Germany the ROYAL DRAGOONS were ordered
to proceed to Scotland; at the same time the light troop was
disbanded, and the establishment was reduced to two hundred and
thirty-one officers and soldiers. Eight men per troop were equipped
as light dragoons, and mounted on small horses for skirmishing and
other light services; the remainder of the regiment was mounted on
large horses of superior weight and power.
[Sidenote: 1764]
In 1764 the regiment marched to South Britain; and an order was
received to remount with long-tailed horses. On the 9th of May
in the same year the colonelcy was conferred on HENRY EARL OF
PEMBROKE, who had recently distinguished himself in the campaigns
in Germany.
[Sidenote: 1766]
[Sidenote: 1767]
[Sidenote: 1768]
[Sidenote: 1769]
[Sidenote: 1770]
[Sidenote: 1771]
[Sidenote: 1772]
[Sidenote: 1773]
The six drummers borne on the establishment were, in 1766,
ordered to be replaced by trumpeters; and on the 4th of May in
the following year King George III. reviewed the regiment in Hyde
Park, and expressed his approbation of its appearance and high
state of discipline.[52] After the review it marched to the north
of England; and in 1769 was stationed in Scotland; but returned
to England in the following year, and, after occupying various
quarters in the southern and western counties, was again reviewed
by his Majesty on the 17th of May, 1773, on Finchley Common; and,
according to the journals of that period, its excellent condition
and correct manœuvring procured the approbation of the King, and
excited the admiration of the princes, noblemen, general officers,
and other spectators.
[Sidenote: 1774]
[Sidenote: 1775]
[Sidenote: 1777]
During the summer the ROYAL DRAGOONS again proceeded to the north,
and, after occupying quarters for a short period in Yorkshire,
marched to Scotland, where they were stationed during the summer of
1774; but returned to England in the succeeding year; and on the
24th of May, 1777, were reviewed in brigade with the second dragoon
guards, on Wimbledon Common, by the King, accompanied by several
of the young princes, and attended by a retinue of noblemen and
general officers.
[Sidenote: 1778]
Hostilities having commenced between Great Britain and the colonies
in North America, an augmentation was made in the strength of
the regular army; and in 1778 six serjeants, six corporals, and
one hundred and twenty-six private men were added to the ROYAL
DRAGOONS. During the summer they were encamped, with several other
corps, on Coxheath, near Maidstone, where they were reviewed by the
King.
[Sidenote: 1779]
In 1779 the men of the ROYAL DRAGOONS, equipped as light
dragoons, with the light troops of the third dragoon guards, and
sixth and eleventh dragoons, were incorporated into a regiment
which was numbered the twentieth light dragoons.[53] During the
summer the third dragoon guards, ROYALS, fifteenth, twentieth,
and twenty-first dragoons were encamped on Lexden Heath, near
Colchester.
[Sidenote: 1780]
[Sidenote: 1781]
[Sidenote: 1783]
During the great riots in London in 1780 the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
ordered to march thither. In the following year they proceeded to
Scotland; and at the termination of the American war, in 1783, the
establishment was reduced to two hundred and thirty-one officers
and soldiers.
[Sidenote: 1784]
[Sidenote: 1789]
[Sidenote: 1790]
[Sidenote: 1791]
The regiment left Scotland in 1784, and occupied various quarters
in the western and northern counties of England six years. On
the breaking out of the revolutionary proceedings in France, the
establishment was augmented nine men per troop, and in the spring
of 1790 the six troops proceeded to Scotland; they, however,
returned to England in the following year, and were employed in
suppressing riots at Birmingham.
[Sidenote: 1792]
[Sidenote: 1793]
A further augmentation was made to the establishment in 1792, and
again in the spring of 1793, when four troops were ordered to be
held in constant readiness for foreign service.
The enormities committed by the French republicans occasioned
another war; Holland was attacked; a body of British troops was
sent to assist the Dutch; and on the 10th of June, 1793, four
troops of the ROYAL DRAGOONS embarked for the Netherlands to join
the army commanded by his Royal Highness the Duke of York. After
landing at Ostend the four troops marched up the country, and
formed part of the force which drove a body of French from the
_Camp de Cæsar_, behind the Scheldt, on the 8th of August. The
ROYAL DRAGOONS were also with the covering army during the siege
of Dunkirk, and after the attempt on that place was abandoned, they
were employed in operations near the frontiers of Flanders, where
they had a sharp encounter with a corps of French cavalry on the
27th of October.
[Sidenote: 1794]
On the 28th of January, 1794, the colonelcy of the regiment, being
vacant by the decease of the Earl of Pembroke, was conferred on
Major-General PHILIP GOLDSWORTHY.
In April the four troops on foreign service were assembled with the
army near Cateau, and were engaged in the general attack made on
the enemy's positions at _Prémont_, &c. on the 17th of April, when
Captain-Lieutenant the Honourable Thomas Carlton, of the regiment,
was killed. The siege of Landrécies was immediately undertaken: the
ROYAL DRAGOONS formed part of the covering army, and on the 24th
of April were engaged in an affair with the enemy at _Villers en
Couché_, when the French lost twelve hundred men and three pieces
of cannon: the ROYALS had one man and two horses killed, and two
men and three horses wounded.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS had another opportunity of distinguishing
themselves on the 26th of April at _Cateau_. The enemy had marched
out of Cambray, and at daybreak attacked the British army. The Duke
of York detached the ROYALS and seven other cavalry regiments to
turn the left flank of the French army: this movement was attended
with the most brilliant success; the enemy was overthrown with
immense slaughter; the rout became general--cavalry and infantry,
mingled in promiscuous crowds, were scattered over the plains, and
the fugitives fell beneath the sabres of the British dragoons,
who captured the French commander, Lieut.-General Chapuy, and
thirty-five pieces of cannon. The Duke of York, in his account of
this action, observes, "THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE BRITISH CAVALRY HAS
BEEN BEYOND ALL PRAISE." The ROYAL DRAGOONS were among the corps
which were declared in general orders to have "ACQUIRED IMMORTAL
HONOUR." Their loss on this occasion was six men and twelve horses
killed; with Lieutenant Froom, two serjeants, eleven men, and
fourteen horses wounded.
After the capture of _Landrécies_ the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched to
the vicinity of _Tournay_, where they were again engaged with the
enemy on the 10th of May; and the Duke of York observed in his
public despatch, that the troops had "well supported the reputation
acquired on the 26th of last month." The loss of the ROYALS was
only two horses killed, and one man and three horses wounded.
The ROYALS were in reserve when the attack was made on the French
positions on the 17th of May. The army afterwards resumed its
post before _Tournay_, where it was attacked on the 22d of May by
General Pichegru with an immense force. The British heavy cavalry
had, it appears, become a terror to the enemy, for Brown, in his
Journal, observes (22d May), "A column of five or six thousand men
made its appearance towards our left, on which account the brigade
of guards and the British heavy cavalry remained ready for action
on their camp ground; but the French, observing our advantageous
situation, _and dreading the thought of meeting the British cavalry
a second time on an open plain_, thought proper not to approach."
Finally the French were repulsed at every point of attack, and
retreated in the evening.
At length the enemy defeated the Austrians, and brought forward
such immense numbers that the English army had no chance of
success: the Duke of York retreated, and the final evacuation of
Flanders followed.
In the mean time another squadron of the ROYALS embarked for
foreign service; but having been driven back by severe weather, the
officers and men were ordered to disembark and remain in England.
In July that part of the regiment which was in England marched
from Salisbury to Weymouth, in consequence of his Majesty visiting
that place; and in October, when the King returned to London, they
marched to Dorchester barracks.
During the winter the four troops on foreign service were exposed
to privations and inclement weather, which occasioned the death of
many men and horses. The winter was particularly severe, the Dutch
people were favourable to the French, and the British troops, in
their retreat through Holland during a hard frost and storms of
snow and sleet, were treated as enemies by the inhabitants; at
length the troops arrived in the duchy of Bremen, where they had
repose and kind treatment.
[Sidenote: 1795]
The ROYAL DRAGOONS were not engaged in any further hostilities on
the continent. During the summer of 1795 they were encamped on one
of the plains of Westphalia, and in the winter embarked for England.
[Sidenote: 1796]
Meanwhile, that part of the regiment which was on home service was
again employed on King's duty at Weymouth, during his Majesty's
stay at that place, and afterwards proceeded to Dorchester, where
the four troops returning from the continent arrived in January,
1796. In July of the same year the regiment encamped on Barham
Downs, near Weymouth, and in September marched into quarters at
Canterbury.
[Sidenote: 1797]
[Sidenote: 1798]
[Sidenote: 1799]
In October, 1797, the regiment marched for Birmingham and Coventry;
in July, 1798, for Exeter and Taunton; and in the following summer
proceeded to Radipole barracks, Weymouth; but marched from thence,
in November of the same year, for Salisbury, Warminster, &c.
In August, orders were received for the regiment to be mounted
on nag-tailed black horses;[54] and the horse's tails were
consequently cut.
[Sidenote: 1800]
During the summer of 1800 an encampment of about thirty thousand
men was formed on Swinley common, near Windsor; the ROYAL DRAGOONS
joined the camp in July; the troops were frequently exercised in
the presence of the royal family, and the King reviewed the several
corps previous to their departure. On the 11th of August the
regiment quitted the camp, and proceeded to Croydon barracks and
Epsom, with a squadron detached on coast duty in Sussex.
[Sidenote: 1801]
On the 7th of January, 1801, his Majesty conferred the colonelcy
of the regiment on Major-General THOMAS GARTH, in succession to
Lieut.-General Goldsworthy, deceased.
Towards the end of May the regiment marched to Canterbury, and
furnished numerous detachments on the revenue duty at the maritime
towns and villages on the coast of Kent, where they assisted in
making large seizures of smuggled goods, for which they received a
reward of upwards of one pound per man.
[Sidenote: 1802]
A treaty of peace with the French republic having been signed at
Amiens, a reduction of two troops was made in the establishment,
and the officers were placed on half-pay.
[Sidenote: 1803]
In July, 1802, four troops were ordered to Trowbridge to aid the
civil power in the suppression of riots. In October following the
regiment proceeded to Exeter and Taunton, with detached troops
on coast duty in Cornwall; and in April, 1803, it was removed to
Dorchester, Radipole, and Wareham barracks, from whence it marched
in July following to Arundel and Chichester. At the same time, the
war with France having recommenced, the establishment was augmented
from eight to ten troops.
[Sidenote: 1804]
A change of quarters took place in April, 1804, and the regiment
was stationed at Ipswich and Woodbridge; from whence it proceeded,
in November following, to Colchester, where it passed the winter.
[Sidenote: 1805]
[Sidenote: 1806]
The regiment quitted Colchester in April, 1805, and proceeded to
York, Newcastle-on-Tyne, and Birmingham. In January, 1806, it
returned from the north, and was again stationed at Woodbridge;
and in March of the same year it once more proceeded northward,
and, on arriving in Scotland, its head-quarters were established at
Edinburgh, with detached troops at Dunbar, Haddington, and Perth,
having marched upwards of six hundred miles in three months.
[Sidenote: 1807]
[Sidenote: 1808]
Embarking from Scotland in January, 1807, the regiment proceeded
to Ireland, from which country it had been absent one hundred and
fifteen years; and on its arrival the head-quarters were stationed
at Dundalk, with detached troops at Belturbet, Lisburn, Monaghan,
Enniskillen, Sligo, and Londonderry. In June, 1808, it proceeded to
Dublin, with detached troops at Carlow and Athy.
In the mean time important events had transpired in the Peninsula.
Napoleon Buonaparte (whom the French had elevated to the throne)
had obtained possession of the kingdoms of Portugal and Spain by
treachery; had placed his brother Joseph on the throne of Spain,
and supported these usurpations by an immense French army. The
Spaniards and Portuguese, being impatient of the bondage into which
they were brought, made energetic struggles for liberty, and, a
British force proceeding to their aid, Portugal was delivered from
the power of Buonaparte. Lieut.-General Sir John Moore advanced
from Lisbon into Spain to aid the patriots; and the ROYAL DRAGOONS
were directed to proceed on foreign service to reinforce the army
in the Peninsula; but, on arriving at Cork for embarkation, news of
the result of Sir John Moore's expedition occasioned the order to
be countermanded.
[Sidenote: 1809]
The regiment remained at Cork barracks until April, 1809, when it
proceeded into extensive cantonments (head-quarters at Clonmell),
from whence it was withdrawn in August following, and eight troops,
of eighty rank and file and eighty horses per troop, embarked at
Cork for Portugal. The transports sailed on the 2nd of September,
and on the 12th and 13th of that month the regiment landed at
Lisbon, and occupied the barracks at Belem.
[Sidenote: 1810]
The British army in Portugal, commanded by Lord Wellington, was
occupying quarters on the Mondego. The ROYAL DRAGOONS marched a
few stages up the country in January, 1810, and were stationed at
Santarem and Torres Novas, in the province of Estremadura; from
whence they marched, in February, to Niza and Alphalo, in the
Alentejo.
The enemy having an immense superiority of numbers, the British
commander was reduced to the necessity of acting on the defensive,
and his ultimate object was the protection of Lisbon. He, however,
resolved to maintain a frontier position as long as possible;
and, Ciudad Rodrigo being menaced in the end of April, the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were ordered to advance to Belmonte, in the province of
Beira, where they arrived on the 5th of May. The French army,
commanded by Marshal Massena, Prince of Esling, proved so numerous,
that all hope of preserving Ciudad Rodrigo was abandoned. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS left Belmonte on the 9th of June, and proceeded to Villa
Velha, from whence they marched, on the 1st of July, to Ville de
Touro, and towards the end of the same month to Alverca; the enemy
having taken Ciudad Rodrigo and besieged Almeida, the advanced
posts of the British army were removed to _Frexadas_.
The French took Almeida on the 27th of August, and on the
following day attacked a squadron of the ROYALS and a squadron
of the fourteenth light dragoons on piquet at _Frexadas_, under
the command of Major Dorville. The enemy brought forward a
superior force of cavalry, supported by infantry; but the two
British squadrons, undaunted by superior numbers, charged the
French horsemen with signal gallantry, and drove them from the
field with the loss of many men killed and wounded, and five taken
prisoners.[55] The ROYALS lost, in this encounter, two men and one
horse killed, and two men and one horse wounded.
The allied army retired a short distance. The ROYAL DRAGOONS
continued to be actively employed, and, in a skirmish with the
enemy on the 2nd of September at _Alverca_, on the main road to
Almeida, they had a serjeant wounded. The regiment retired from its
advanced position on the same day, and on the 19th of that month
was stationed at Santa Comba Dão.
The enemy continued to press upon the rear of the British army, and
a party of the ROYAL DRAGOONS had another encounter with the French
on the 21st of September, and had one man wounded, and another
wounded and taken prisoner.
Lord Wellington having resolved to make a stand on the heights
of _Busaco_, the army retired to that position, covered by the
ROYALS and fourteenth light dragoons. During the severe contest
in the mountains on the 27th of September, the ROYALS were formed
in reserve behind the position; and when the army retired to
the celebrated lines of _Torres Vedras_, the ROYALS once more
occupied the post of honour in the rear of the line of march. The
French pressing upon the retiring army near _Pombal_ on the 5th
of October, their audacity was punished by a piquet of the ROYALS
commanded by Lieutenant Carden, who charged the enemy and drove
them back with loss; but, having advanced too far in pursuit,
the lieutenant and one man, who were both wounded, were taken
prisoners: the piquet, however, captured and brought off a French
cavalry officer. The enemy's leading corps, being supported by
immense columns, continued to hover round the rear of the allied
army; and the temerity of their cavalry was again chastised on the
9th of October, near _Quinta de Torre_, by a squadron of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS, which made a gallant charge, driving the French horsemen
back with loss, and forcing them to take shelter behind a corps of
infantry. This corps was too strong to be attacked by the squadron,
and the ROYALS, having received a volley, retired with the loss of
six horses killed, and one serjeant-major and two men wounded, with
four men wounded and taken prisoners.
On the following day the allied army was in position in the
fortified lines, where it opposed to the advance of the enemy
a barrier so formidable that Marshal Massena, after several
reconnoisances, declined to attack it, and retired during the
night of the 14th of November. On the 15th the ROYAL DRAGOONS were
despatched after the enemy, and a piquet of the regiment took a
serjeant and five French dragoons prisoners.
The French army took post on the heights of Santarem; and the ROYAL
DRAGOONS were stationed at Cazal Diera, Quinta, St. Christol, and
Porto de Mugem, from whence they sent out detachments on piquet and
outpost duty.
[Sidenote: 1811]
The French Marshal, having consumed his resources and wasted the
numbers and physical power of his army, retired from Santarem
on the night of the 5th of March, 1811. The ROYALS were again
despatched in pursuit, and in the series of brilliant exploits
which followed they took a distinguished part. They had a skirmish
with the enemy near _Pecoloo_ on the 7th of March, when they took
three prisoners, and had one man and one horse wounded. They had
another encounter with the French on the 8th of March, and had two
men and one horse wounded. They again came in contact with the
enemy on the 11th of March, near _Pombal_, and took two serjeants
and seventy-six men prisoners.
Resuming the pursuit on the following day the allies discovered
in their front a body of French cavalry, infantry, and artillery,
posted on a high table land near _Redinha_. Lord Wellington ordered
the troops to form in line, and the ROYAL DRAGOONS were directed to
support the attack of the infantry. Three shots from the British
centre was the signal to advance, and suddenly a most splendid
spectacle of war was exhibited. The woods seemed alive with troops,
and in a few moments thirty thousand men, forming three lines
of battle, were stretched across the plain, bending in a gentle
curve, and moving majestically onwards, while the horsemen and
guns, springing forward simultaneously from the centre and left
wing, charged under a general volley from the French battalions:
the latter were instantly hidden by the smoke, and when that had
cleared away, no enemy was to be seen, the French having made a
precipitate retreat to Condeixa.
The British again moved forward in pursuit, and on the 14th of
March the ROYAL DRAGOONS supported a successful attack of the
infantry on a French force posted in the mountains at _Casal Nova_:
they also supported the attack on the French position at _Foz
d'Aronce_ on the 15th; and on the 18th they encountered a party of
the enemy near _Sernadilla_, when they took a serjeant and twelve
men prisoners, and captured twelve mules: the ROYALS had only one
man wounded on this occasion. They continued hovering near the
French army; and on the 26th of March a patrole of the ROYALS,
commanded by Lieutenant Foster, with a patrole of the sixteenth
light dragoons, attacked a detachment of French cavalry near
_Alverca_ with distinguished gallantry, sabred several dragoons,
and took an officer and thirty-seven men prisoners.[56]
The ROYALS had another affair with a party of the enemy on the 28th
of March, when they captured a car laden with officers' baggage
near Ardés, and had one man wounded. On the third of April they
were posted in reserve during the action at _Sabugal_; and, on the
retreat of the French, they were detached in pursuit, and captured
several mules laden with baggage near _Alfayates_.
On the 7th of April the ROYALS were sent to the relief of a corps
of Portuguese militia, commanded by Colonel Trant, who had taken
post near _Fort Conception_. A brigade of French infantry was
within half a mile of the militia, whose destruction appeared
inevitable, when suddenly two cannon shots were heard to the
southward,--the French formed squares in retreat,--and in a few
minutes six squadrons of British cavalry and a troop of horse
artillery came sweeping up the plain in their rear. The Portuguese
were rescued from impending danger. The enemy, however, contrived
to effect their escape, with the loss of about three hundred men
killed, wounded, and taken prisoners, and part of their baggage:
among the other captures the ROYAL DRAGOONS took a drove of
fourteen bullocks and a horse.
The French army having been driven out of Portugal, the allies
blockaded _Almeida_. Marshal Massena advanced to relieve that
place, and he found the allied army posted on a fine table land,
the left at Fort Conception, and the right at the beautiful village
of _Fuentes d'Onor_. The village was attacked on the 3rd of May,
and on the 5th a general assault was made on the British army. The
French drove in the cavalry out-guards, and by the impetuosity of
their attacks gained some advantage; when two squadrons of the
ROYALS, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel CLIFTON, made a gallant
and successful charge on the enemy's cavalry, took a serjeant and
twenty-three men, and released a party of the foot guards who had
been made prisoners by the French. A party of the enemy's cavalry
made a gallant charge, and captured two guns belonging to Captain
Bull's troop of horse artillery; when a squadron of the ROYALS
dashed forward, routed the enemy, and retook the guns, which they
brought back to the British line, with several French prisoners.
Finally, the French were repulsed at every point of attack, and
forced to relinquish their design of relieving _Almeida_. The
ROYAL DRAGOONS had four men and nineteen horses killed; also two
serjeants, thirty-four men, and twenty-four horses wounded; and
they subsequently occupied their former quarters at Villa de Ceirva.
About midnight on the 10th of May the French garrison in _Almeida_
blew up the works, then rushed in one column out of the town,
forced their passage through the blockading troops, and directed
their march on Villa de Ceirva; but finding it occupied by the
ROYALS they changed the direction of their march and moved on Barba
del Puerco. A party of the ROYAL DRAGOONS having been suddenly
called out in the night, overtook the rear of the French column,
which they attacked, and took a serjeant and nine men prisoners.
The fourth and thirty-sixth foot also pursued the enemy; but the
main body of the garrison made good their retreat. The regiment had
two men wounded on this occasion.
After this affair Lord Wellington proceeded to Estremadura, to
besiege Badajoz: but the ROYAL DRAGOONS remained with the forces
left on the frontiers of Portugal, near Ciudad Rodrigo; and they
were stationed in advance to cover the front from Villa de Egua to
Espejo.
The French army, having been reinforced, and placed under the
command of Marshal Marmont, advanced at daybreak on the morning
of the 6th of June in two columns, when the light division
was directed to retire from Gallegos upon _Nave d'Aver_, and
subsequently upon Alfayetes; and the ROYALS, commanded by
Lieutenant-Colonel CLIFTON, with a troop of the fourteenth light
dragoons, were assembled at Gallegos to cover the retreat. The
French brought forward about two thousand cavalry, six thousand
infantry, and ten guns; and the ROYALS confronted this immense
force with a degree of fortitude and valour seldom equalled.[57]
That celebrated French cavalry officer, General Montbrun, manœuvred
to outflank the ROYALS; but his squadrons were attacked and
defeated twice, and the retreat was effected with little loss.
For their distinguished conduct on this occasion the ROYALS were
publicly thanked by Lieutenant-General Sir Brent Spencer, who
commanded, in the absence of Lord Wellington in Estremadura. They
lost on this occasion a troop-serjeant-major, three men, and six
horses killed; and nine men wounded.
The ROYALS subsequently bivouacked near Sabugal, from whence they
proceeded to Arronches, and were encamped at the conflux of the
Caya and Algrette: towards the end of July they marched to Idanha a
Nova, on the frontiers of Portugal; and in August to Villa de Toura
and Iteura. Meanwhile Lord Wellington returned from Estremadura,
and afterwards blockaded Ciudad Rodrigo. Marshal Marmont advanced;
when his lordship raised the blockade, and took up a defensive
position, and the ROYAL DRAGOONS were posted on the 22nd of
September on the Upper Azava. A series of attacks and manœuvres
followed, and on the 25th the ROYALS were in the position of Fuente
Guinaldo: from whence they were ordered to retire on the following
day; and on the 27th were posted near Alfayates, with a piquet at
_Aldea de Ponte_, which was attacked by the enemy, when Lieutenant
Ross had his horse killed under him, and three men and six horses
were wounded. On the following day the ROYALS were with the army
in position behind Soito; and Lord Wellington offered battle, but
the enemy retired, and the allied army went into cantonments. The
ROYALS were stationed at Adão; subsequently at Espejo, and towards
the end of November marched for Meda.
[Sidenote: 1812]
Lord Wellington having resolved to besiege _Ciudad Rodrigo_, the
ROYAL DRAGOONS marched to the vicinity of that city in January,
1812, and took post at Villa Turpina, to cover the troops employed
in the siege. This city was taken by storm on the 19th of that
month, and, when the works were put in a state of defence, the
ROYALS marched to St. Jao de Presquere. The siege of _Badajoz_--the
capital of Spanish Estremadura, situate on a beautiful plain on
the banks of the Guadiana, was next determined upon: the army was
accordingly put in motion for the south, and the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
proceeding by way of Abrantes into Spanish Estremadura, were placed
under the command of Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Graham; and,
having crossed the Guadiana on the 16th of March, advanced upon
Valverde and Santa Martha, and thence towards Llerena,--an old town
of Estremadura, which once belonged to the knights of St. John.
On the 19th of March the ROYALS were at Villa Franca; but on the
advance of Marshal Soult, with a considerable force, they retired.
_Badajoz_ was taken on the 6th of April, and Lord Wellington
afterwards proceeded to the north; but the ROYAL DRAGOONS remained
in Estremadura, forming part of the force left in the south under
the command of Lieutenant-General Sir Rowland Hill.
On the 25th of May a squadron of the ROYALS, commanded by Major
DORVILLE, proceeded on out-post duty to _Llera_. On the 27th, at
night, the commanding officer ascertained that a French brigade
had advanced within a short distance of his post: he therefore
retired to a wood about a mile behind the village, and having
placed a small piquet on an eminence, with a support at the
ford of a rivulet in front of the wood, the squadron bivouacked
for the night. In the mean time a brigade of French cavalry,
commanded by Brigadier-General L'Allemand, advanced to _Llera_,
and surrounded the village at midnight, expecting to surprise the
squadron in its quarters; but on discovering that it had marched,
he advanced towards the wood, and, attacking the piquet, wounded
and took prisoners one serjeant and five men. Meanwhile the support
commenced a brisk fire, and gallantly defended the passage of the
ford, and the squadron, not having drawn bit, immediately mounted
and formed; when the French, being foiled in their object, retired:
the squadron followed, and continued skirmishing with the enemy
until they had passed _Llera_, and then resumed its former post.
On the 11th of June the seventeenth and twenty-ninth regiments
of French dragoons, commanded by Brigadier-General L'Allemand,
again proceeded to the vicinity of _Llera_, when Major-General
Slade advanced with the ROYALS and third dragoon guards, and
having attacked the French, routed them, and continued the pursuit
about nine miles. On arriving at the vicinity of _Maguilla_ the
British regiments had another opportunity of charging, when they
broke the enemy's first line, sabred many of the men, and took
one of General L'Allemand's aides-de-camp prisoner. The British
regiments rushed forward in pursuit with too much eagerness, each
vying with the other which should most distinguish itself; and in
a moment of confusion the French brought forward a reserve, and
charged the broken squadrons with such fury that they were obliged
to retire.[58] The ROYALS lost in this encounter one serjeant,
eleven men, and six horses killed; also nineteen men, and eight
horses wounded; and Lieutenant Windsor, with four serjeants and
thirty-nine men, taken prisoners. Lieutenant Windsor and most of
the men were wounded before they were taken.
Patroles were afterwards sent on the road to _Maguilla_, and on
the 14th of June a serjeant and twenty-five men of the ROYALS,
with the like number of the third dragoon guards, encountered a
squadron of French dragoons, which they charged with distinguished
gallantry, and having sabred a number of men, took a captain (the
commanding officer of the squadron), with a serjeant and twenty
men, prisoners; and captured twenty-three horses.
On the 18th of June the ROYALS marched for Albuhera: they were
subsequently encamped near Llerena, from whence they marched
to Los Santos. Meanwhile the forces under Lord Wellington had
defeated the French at _Salamanca_; and on the news of this success
Lieutenant-General Sir Rowland Hill advanced. The ROYALS were in
motion on the 30th of July, and proceeded to Villa Franca, and
subsequently to Fuente del Maestre.
The main army having marched to Madrid, Sir Rowland Hill advanced
to act in concert with Lord Wellington. The ROYALS advanced on the
27th of August, and on the 6th of September were at Villa Nova;
left that place on the 13th of September; crossed the pontoon
bridge at Almarez on the 19th, and arrived at Talavera, in the
valley of the Tagus, on the 28th; from whence they proceeded to
Tembleque, in New Castile. Lord Wellington having left Madrid and
besieged the castle of Burgos, Lieutenant-General Sir Rowland
Hill took up a position on the Tagus, and the ROYALS marched by
Aranjuez,--a beautiful palace of the kings of Spain,--to Morata.
The enemy, however, concentrated his forces, and advanced, with
an immense superiority of numbers, to relieve Burgos, when Lord
Wellington raised the siege and retired, and Lieutenant-General Sir
Rowland Hill made a corresponding movement. The ROYALS commenced
retiring on the 27th of October by Madrid and the pass of the
Guadarama mountains, and arrived, on the 12th of November, at
Salamanca; from whence they proceeded on the 15th to _Arguilla_,
and on the 17th had an encounter with the enemy, when four men and
one horse were wounded. Leaving Arguilla on the 28th of November
they proceeded to Zelreira, and towards the end of December to
Alcantara.
[Sidenote: 1813]
The ROYAL DRAGOONS passed the winter and spring of 1813 in Spanish
Estremadura, from whence they advanced, in the middle of May, to
turn the enemy's position on the northern bank of the Douro; and,
arriving at Salamanca on the 26th of that month, they forded the
river Tormes above the town, and encountered a body of French
infantry and a few cavalry under General Villatte, who was retiring
from Salamanca in the direction of Alba de Tormes, when the right
squadron, led by Lieutenant-Colonel CLIFTON, charged the enemy with
signal gallantry, sabred a number of men, and took one hundred
and forty-three prisoners, with four tumbrils. In this action
the ROYALS had five horses killed, and ten men and three horses
wounded: Major Purvis's charger was also killed under him.
After this action the ROYALS bivouacked near La Orbado until the
3rd of June, when they advanced, with the army, on Valladolid. The
enemy withdrew his troops from Madrid, and retired on Burgos; and
on the approach of the allied army blew up the castle and fell
back towards the Ebro, and subsequently to _Vittoria_, where he
prepared to give battle. The allied army followed in pursuit; and
in this long and toilsome march the ROYALS were subjected to much
fatigue and privation,--frequently marching from daybreak in the
morning until dusk in the evening, through a romantic and difficult
tract of country, and climbing mountains and passing defiles and
rugged precipices heretofore deemed impracticable. The horses, from
practice, ascended and descended the mountains with astonishing
facility; and on the 20th of June the troops were in front of the
enemy's position.
At daylight on the morning of the 21st of June the ROYAL DRAGOONS
left their bivouac, and advanced to support the attack of the
infantry on the heights in front of _Vittoria_. The face of the
ground was so rugged that the operations of the cavalry were
impeded, and for some time the services of the ROYALS were limited
to supporting the columns of attack: towards the evening they,
however, advanced to charge, but the enemy fled in confusion,
leaving behind them cannon, ammunition, baggage, and the military
chest of the army. The ROYALS moved forward in pursuit, and
bivouacked about three miles beyond _Vittoria_: their loss was
only one man and two horses killed, and one horse wounded.
On this occasion the regiment was commanded by Major Purvis,
Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton being in command of the brigade.
The ROYALS advanced in pursuit of the enemy on the following
morning, and on the 2nd of July they were at Suista and other
villages near _Pampeluna_, which place was blockaded by the allied
army. They left that quarter, however, on the 18th of July, for
Sanguesa, a town of Navarre, on the river Arragon, twenty-five
miles from _Pampeluna_. Towards the end of that month the French
army advanced to relieve _Pampeluna_, when the ROYALS were
immediately ordered to return to the vicinity of that place, and
they were formed in column at the foot of the mountains during the
battle of the _Pyrenees_. They remained with the blockading force
near _Pampeluna_ until the 10th of August, when, forage becoming
scarce, they again proceeded to the plains of the Arragon, where
they remained, together with General Mina's division of Spaniards,
as a corps of reserve and support to the blockade, until after the
surrender of that fortress. They were subsequently stationed at
Villa Franca during the winter.
[Sidenote: 1814]
In the mean time the main army had entered France. On the 3rd of
February, 1814, the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched to Tauste: from whence
they proceeded, in the beginning of March, through the Pyrenean
mountains, and entered France on the 9th of that month. For a
short period they were stationed near _Bayonne_, which place was
blockaded by the allied army; but they subsequently advanced up the
country, and on the 10th of April were at the battle of _Toulouse_,
when they were employed in covering the light brigade of guns, and
in driving the piquets of the enemy under the walls of the city,
which was immediately besieged. The French, having retired, the
ROYALS were ordered forward to Villa Franche, and afterwards to
Gardouch. These brilliant successes of the British troops were
followed by the abdication of Buonaparte, and the restoration of
peace.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS returned to Villa Franche on the 23rd of April,
where they remained about a month, and then moved to Montguiscarde;
and on the 2nd of June commenced their march through France to
Calais, where they arrived on the 17th of July. They embarked on
the following day, landed at Dover on the 19th, and marched from
thence to Bristol, where they arrived on the 11th of August; and
shortly afterwards the establishment was reduced from ten to eight
troops. In November the quarters were removed from Bristol to
Exeter; and the brilliant services of the regiment were rewarded
with permission to bear the word "PENINSULA," as an honorary
distinction, on the standards and appointments.
[Sidenote: 1815]
The prospect of a lasting peace soon vanished, and unexpected
events brought the ROYAL DRAGOONS again into the field of conflict.
The return of Buonaparte to France, the flight of Louis XVIII. from
Paris, and the appearance of a British army near the frontiers of
France, followed in rapid succession. An express arrived at the
quarters of the ROYALS on the morning of the 24th of April, 1815,
with orders to march on the following morning for Canterbury,
and afterwards to Dover and Ramsgate, and to embark for the
Netherlands. An augmentation of two troops was at the same time
ordered; a hundred horses were received at Canterbury by transfer
from the fifth dragoon guards; and about the middle of May the
ROYALS were in Belgium, in quarters in the villages between Ghent
and Brussels, where, to pass away the time unemployed by military
duties, the officers amused themselves with horse-races and
athletic sports.[59]
On the morning of the 16th of June the ROYALS were suddenly aroused
before daybreak by the loud notes of the bugle sounding "to
horse." The summons had a highly exhilarating effect on the spirits
of the men: they turned out with alacrity, not doubting but the day
was big with events, and in a short time they were advancing on
_Quatre Bras_, where the enemy had commenced a furious attack on
the advanced-posts. After continuing the march about fifty miles,
the ROYALS arrived at the scene of conflict about dusk in the
evening:[60] the fighting had ceased, and the troops bivouacked on
the field of battle.
The Prussians had been defeated at Ligny and forced to retire;
the Duke of Wellington made a corresponding movement; and the
ROYAL DRAGOONS, after passing the night under arms in the open
fields, were formed in line, on the forenoon of the 17th of June,
with the other cavalry regiments, to cover the retreat of the
infantry. The British cavalry, manœuvring, and, by their varied
evolutions, masking and covering the retreat of the infantry,
exhibited a splendid spectacle of war. One squadron of the ROYALS,
commanded by Major Radclyffe, was sent to the front to skirmish.
"I was detached," observes the major, in his narrative, "with my
squadron to cover the brigade by skirmishing, and Major-General
Sir William Ponsonby, and the brigade generally, were pleased
to applaud the style in which we acquitted ourselves. It rained
with greater violence than I ever witnessed before, which I found
to my advantage when it was my turn to skirmish. The enemy had
two squadrons of Chasseurs opposed to me, and as they could not
overpower us by their fire, they huzzaed and endeavoured to excite
each other on with 'Vive l'Empereur!' and once actually charged
towards my skirmishers, but they stopped short, not daring to come
to daggers with us." Towards the evening the ROYALS arrived at
the position in front of _Waterloo_, where they halted, and again
passed the night in the open fields, without provisions, without
drink, and exposed to continued rain.
On the morning of the 18th of June the army was formed in order of
battle. "We" (the ROYALS) "found ourselves," states the Major, in
his journal, "in our place in close column behind the second line
of infantry, fetlock deep in mud; no baggage for the officers, and
neither provision nor water for the men (though some stray cattle
had been killed and eaten, and a small supply of spirits had, a
short time before, been found on the road), so that we might be
said to go _coolly_ into action, for every man was wet to the
skin." Notwithstanding these disadvantages the ROYALS proved "true
Britons."
At ten o'clock the French army was seen forming on the opposite
heights, from whence a cloud of skirmishers rushed forwards: the
fire of the artillery gradually opened, and about noon the columns
of attack came sweeping through the valley in all the pomp and
majesty of war. A succession of attacks was made at various points,
and the ROYALS were formed in column, awaiting the moment when
their services should be required. At length, twenty thousand
French infantry (Count d'Erlon's corps) suddenly appeared on the
opposite heights, and rushing forward, such was the celerity of
their course, that, scarcely seeming to traverse the intermediate
space, they quickly ascended the position,--dispersed a Belgic
brigade with which they first came in contact,--forced the
artillery-men, posted in the rear of the double hedge and narrow
road, to abandon their guns,--broke through parts of the British
supporting infantry,--and several thousand of French foot having
passed La Haye Sainte, had actually crowned the allied position,
when Lieutenant-General the Earl of Uxbridge came galloping to
that part of the field. A few words issued from his lips: speedily
the ROYALS, the Scots Greys, and Inniskillen dragoons were seen
advancing in line; the noble bearing of these distinguished
horsemen was characteristic of the innate valour of the officers
and men, and the spectacle was singularly imposing. The three
regiments halted a few moments to permit the broken battalions to
pass through the intervals of squadrons, and then rushed forward,
with terrific violence, upon the enemy's infantry. The effect was
magical: the heads of the French columns were instantly broken
and forced back,--a general flight commenced; the firing ceased,
and the smoke having cleared away, those formidable masses, a
moment before so menacing and conspicuous, had almost disappeared,
or left only the traces of a dispersed rabble flying over the
plain. Some, despairing to escape, abandoned their arms, and threw
themselves on the ground, and the ROYALS, Greys, and Inniskillen
dragoons were seen trampling down and sabring the French infantry
with uncontrollable power. Crowds of French soldiers appeared
at different points, surrendering as prisoners: many, however,
defended themselves to the last; and others again, rising up, after
being ridden over or passed by the dragoons, were observed firing
on their rear, the slope of the position being left literally
covered with dead.
During the heat of this conflict, Captain ALEXANDER KENNEDY
CLARK,[61] commanding the centre squadron of the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
having led his men about two hundred yards beyond the second
hedge on the British left, perceived in the midst of a crowd of
infantry the EAGLE of the French 105th regiment, with which the
bearer was endeavouring to escape to the rear. Against this body
of men, Captain Clark instantly led his squadron at full speed,
and plunging into the midst of the crowd, overtook and slew the
French officer who carried the EAGLE; and several men of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS coming up at the moment, the EAGLE was captured, and
Captain Clark, giving it to Corporal Stiles,[62] directed him to
carry it to the rear.[63]
Another EAGLE was captured by the Greys; and the three regiments,
animated by this tide of success, pursued their advantage too far.
They crossed the ravine; carried several batteries; and continued
their course even to the rear of the enemy's position. The latter,
recovering confidence from the disorder too apparent in the
movements of this insulated and unsupported brigade, fell upon
it with a large body of lancers and some cuirassiers. The three
regiments being broken and dispersed in the pursuit, were forced
back, and they sustained considerable loss. Their gallant leader,
Major-General SIR WILLIAM PONSONBY was killed,[64] and the command
of the brigade devolved on Colonel Muter[65] of the Inniskillen
dragoons.
In this attack the ROYALS took an immense number of prisoners:
their conduct excited great admiration, and has been commended by
historians. The following is an extract from one of the numerous
accounts of the battle of Waterloo:--"The Marquis of Anglesey,
galloped up to the second brigade (1st, 2nd, and 6th dragoons),
and the three regiments, wheeling into line, presented a beautiful
front of about one thousand men. The noble Marquis ordered a
charge, which was most gallantly executed. They took the enemy in
flank and a most tremendous fight commenced. Every man fought with
unparalleled heroism, for every man had his own individual task to
perform. The ROYALS, fired with a noble emulation, rushed into a
column of four thousand men, where they captured the Eagle of the
105th regiment and bore it off in triumph. The greater part of this
column then threw down their arms, and were immediately conducted
to the rear. The Greys also captured an Eagle. Thus the great
attack of the enemy on the left was finally overthrown, and two
thousand men made prisoners."
After returning from the charge, the ROYALS resumed their post in
position, and were exposed to a heavy cannonade. In the afternoon
the brigade was moved to its right; and, Colonel Muter having been
wounded, Lieut.-Colonel CLIFTON of the ROYALS took the command of
the three regiments; when the command of the ROYALS devolved on
Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Dorville. The enemy made several attacks on
various points, but was uniformly repulsed. At length the Duke of
Wellington assumed the offensive. The ROYALS again advanced, and
the allied army made a simultaneous rush upon the enemy, who was
overthrown, cut down, and pursued with dreadful slaughter from the
field of battle. Thus ended a day glorious to the British arms
beyond precedent. The distinguished services of the HEAVY CAVALRY
did not fail to excite admiration:--by their powerful attacks
they more than once restored the battle; and they were especially
noticed by the Duke of Wellington in his despatch.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS had Captain Windsor, Lieutenant Foster, Cornets
Magniac and Sykes, Adjutant Shepley, six serjeants, eighty-six
men, and one hundred and sixty-one horses killed: Brevet Major
Radclyffe[66], Captain Clark, Lieutenants Gunning, Keily,
Trafford, Wyndowe, Ommaney, Blois, and Goodenough, with six
serjeants, eighty-two men, and thirty-five horses, wounded; also
two men wounded and taken prisoners.
On the following morning the allied army advanced, directing its
march upon Paris, which city was surrendered in the early part
of July. The ROYALS accompanied the army, and on the 7th of July
marched into quarters at Nanterre, a village situate about seven
miles from the French capital. The Bourbon dynasty was restored to
the throne, and the campaign terminated.
[Sidenote: 1816]
The ROYALS left Nanterre on the 30th of July, and proceeded to
Rouen, and in October to Montevilliers; from whence they marched,
in December, to the vicinity of the coast; and in the early part
of January, 1816, embarked at Calais. The regiment landed at Dover
and Ramsgate on the 15th of that month, and proceeding from thence
to Ipswich barracks, arrived there on the 23rd; and, on the 25th,
the establishment was reduced from ten to eight troops. For their
distinguished gallantry on the 18th of June, 1815, permission was
granted for the ROYAL DRAGOONS to bear the word "WATERLOO" and an
"EAGLE" on their standards and appointments: every officer and man
present at that engagement received a silver medal to be worn on
the left breast, and the subaltern officers and soldiers had the
privilege of reckoning two years' service for that day, towards
increase of pay and pension.
The following officers of the ROYAL DRAGOONS received medals and
marks of royal favour for their services during the war:--
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL.
COLONEL ARTHUR BENJAMIN CLIFTON.
Medal and one clasp for Fuentes d'Onor, and Vittoria.
Companion of the order of the Bath.
Medal for Waterloo.
The second class of the Russian order of St. Anne.
The fourth class of the order of Wilhelm of Holland.
MAJORS.
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL PHILIP DORVILLE.
Companion of the order of the Bath.
Waterloo Medal.
CHARLES PURVIS.
Medal for Vittoria.
MEDALS FOR WATERLOO.
CAPTAINS.
Major Charles E. Radclyffe
Alexander Kennedy Clark
Paul Phipps
LIEUTENANTS.
Henry Robert Carden
Sigismund Trafford
George Gunning
Townshend Richard Keily
Samuel Windowe
Cornthwaite Ommaney
Charles Blois
Stephen Goodenough
CORNETS.
C. B. Stephenson
Honourable John Massey
Quarter-Master W. Waddell
Surgeon George Steed
Veterinary-Surgeon W. Ryding
[Sidenote: 1817]
[Sidenote: 1818]
Towards the end of August, 1817, the ROYAL DRAGOONS marched for
Scotland, and were stationed at Hamilton, Ayr, Dumfries, Stirling,
and Glasgow. In June, 1818, they embarked at Portpatrick for
Ireland, and, having landed at Donaghadee, proceeded to Ballinrobe,
Sligo, Longford, Roscommon, and Dunmore. In November a reduction of
eight serjeants, ninety-six men, and fifty-six horses, was made in
the establishment.
[Sidenote: 1819]
[Sidenote: 1820]
In June, 1819, the regiment proceeded to Dublin, where it remained
on garrison duty until August of the following year, when it
embarked for England; and, after landing at Liverpool, marched to
Manchester, Oldham, Ashton, and Altringham.
[Sidenote: 1821]
On the 19th of March, 1821, the ROYALS commenced their march for
Radipole barracks, from whence a number of parties were detached on
revenue duty; and, for the seizure of smuggled goods made whilst on
this duty, the regiment received upwards of £200. In September the
establishment was reduced to six troops, of three officers, three
serjeants, one trumpeter, one farrier, fifty rank and file, and
forty-two horses each.
[Sidenote: 1822]
The regiment marched, on the 13th of June, 1822, from the west
and south-west districts, to Richmond and other villages near the
metropolis, and was reviewed on Wormwood Scrubbs by His Royal
Highness the Duke of York on the 6th of July. Two days after the
review it marched for Canterbury, detaching troops and parties on
the revenue duty.
[Sidenote: 1823]
Having called in the detachments, the regiment marched from
Canterbury, on 1st of July, 1823, for the cavalry barracks near
the Regent's Park, London, and on their arrival took the King's
duty--the life guards and royal horse guards having marched into
quarters near Hounslow, preparatory to a review, which took place
on the 15th of July, when the ROYALS furnished a guard of honour
for His Royal Highness the Duke of York, and a squadron to assist
in keeping the ground. They were relieved from the King's duty
on the following day, and marched for York barracks, where they
arrived on the 29th of July.
[Sidenote: 1824]
From York the ROYALS marched, on the 24th of May, 1824, for
Scotland, and occupied Piershill barracks, Edinburgh, and
Perth,--with detachments at Cupar, Angus, and Forfar; and were
employed, during the calamitous fire in Parliament Square,
Edinburgh, in November, on three successive days, in preserving
order, protecting property, and rendering assistance to the
unfortunate sufferers; and the dismounted men, with the barrack
engine, assisted materially in extinguishing the fire in the Tron
church. The services of the regiment, on this occasion, were
commended in a general order, issued by the commander of the
forces in Scotland; and in a vote of thanks from the lord provost,
magistrates, and town council of Edinburgh.
[Sidenote: 1825]
In the early part of March, 1825, the regiment proceeded to
Hamilton, and Glasgow, and in the following month embarked for
Ireland; after landing at Donaghadee, it marched to Dundalk and
Belturbet, from whence several strong escorts were detached for the
safe-conduct of specie,--the currency of the two kingdoms having
been assimilated.
[Sidenote: 1826]
[Sidenote: 1827]
[Sidenote: 1828]
On the 30th of March, 1826, the ROYALS marched for Dublin, where
they remained until April, 1827, and then marched for Newbridge;
and in October following proceeded to Cork, Fermoy, and Bandon. The
whole assembled at Cork in March, 1828, and proceeded from thence
to Ballincollig.
[Sidenote: 1829]
The regiment commenced its march for Dublin on the 28th of April,
1829, embarked for England in the early part of May, and, after
disembarking at Liverpool, proceeded into quarters in the town of
Manchester,--the barracks at that place having been pulled down for
the purpose of being rebuilt. During their stay at this place the
ROYALS furnished a number of piquets and parties for the prevention
of riot and open violation of the law by the operatives, who were
in a state of disaffection: detachments were also sent to Blackburn
and Bolton for the same purpose.
The death of Lieutenant-General Garth having taken place on the
18th of November, 1829, on the 23rd of that month, His Majesty
conferred the colonelcy on Lieut.-General Lord R. E. H. Somerset,
G.C.B. from the seventeenth lancers.
[Sidenote: 1830]
In the summer of 1830 the regiment marched to Norwich and Ipswich;
at the same time the establishment was reduced to two hundred and
seventy rank and file. In the autumn of this year the agricultural
labourers, having been excited by designing men, committed
numerous acts of incendiarism and effected the destruction of
property to a most alarming extent in several counties. The ROYAL
DRAGOONS were, in consequence, called upon to furnish a number of
detachments to assist the civil authorities in suppressing these
outrages. A resolution of thanks from the magistrates of Norfolk,
acknowledging the very effective services rendered by the officers,
non-commissioned officers, and privates, was forwarded by the
lord-lieutenant of the county, to the general commanding-in-chief,
who was pleased to express the satisfaction he experienced in being
presented with so honourable a testimonial of their behaviour.
[Sidenote: 1831]
[Sidenote: 1832]
[Sidenote: 1833]
[Sidenote: 1834]
[Sidenote: 1835]
The regiment remained at Norwich and Ipswich during the whole of
the year 1831. In the spring of 1832 it marched to Canterbury[67];
in 1833 to Dorchester; and in 1834 to Brighton. During the
following winter it proceeded to Bristol, from whence it embarked,
in January, 1835, for Ireland; and, after landing at Dublin, was
stationed at Newbridge for sixteen months.
[Sidenote: 1836]
On the removal of Lieutenant-General Lord Edward Somerset to the
fourth dragoons in March, 1836, the colonelcy of the ROYALS was
conferred on Major-General Sir Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby,
K.C.B., G.C.M.G., and K.C.H., from the eighty-sixth foot.
[Sidenote: 1837]
During the summer of 1836 the regiment proceeded to Dublin; and,
while stationed at that place, its colonel, Sir Frederick Cavendish
Ponsonby, died; and was succeeded, on the 20th of January, 1837, by
Lieutenant-General the Right Honourable Sir Hussey Vivian, K.C.B.
and G.C.H.
[Sidenote: 1838]
[Sidenote: 1839]
The regiment left Dublin in the autumn of 1837, and was stationed
during the following year at Cork; from whence it embarked, in May,
1839, for Liverpool; and, after landing at that port, was removed
to Sheffield, where it has remained until the conclusion of this
memoir.
In taking a retrospective view of the services of the ROYAL
REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS, its conduct cannot fail to excite admiration.
The details given in the preceding pages afford numerous instances
of determined bravery, steady discipline, and constant efficiency.
These qualities were eminently displayed when charging the Moorish
legions on the confines of _Africa_, and bearing away in triumph
the Mahomedan colours in 1664 and 1680;--when routing the insurgent
bands at _Sedgemoor_ in 1685;--forcing the passage of the Boyne
in 1690;--on detached services in Ireland in 1691; and opposing
the troops of Louis XIV. in the Netherlands from 1694 to 1697. Nor
were they less conspicuously evinced when serving on the frontiers
of Holland under the great Duke of Marlborough in 1702 and
1703;--skirmishing in the mountains of Catalonia and in the valleys
of Valencia, under the Earl of Peterborough, in 1705 and 1706;--and
charging the Spanish forces at _Almanara_, and at _Saragossa_ in
1710.
The ROYAL DRAGOONS also distinguished themselves under the eye
of their sovereign when fighting the French cuirassiers at the
battle of _Dettingen_ in 1743, where they captured the standard
of the _mousquetaires noirs_; they again displayed signal valour
at _Warbourg_ in 1760; and under the Duke of York in _Flanders_
in 1794. In numerous fights with the legions of Napoleon in the
_Peninsula_, from 1810 to 1814, they acquired new honours: they
were also engaged at the glorious battle of _Waterloo_ on the 18th
of June, 1815, where they captured one of the two French Eagles
taken on that day.
On all occasions the ROYAL DRAGOONS have evinced a dauntless
bearing, united with steady valour, and unshaken firmness, the
characteristics of a British corps. These qualities, as well as the
temper, patience, and forbearance which have distinguished their
conduct, when employed in aiding the civil power on duties at home,
have rendered the regiment a valuable acquisition to the crown,
and have afforded the strongest proofs of its usefulness to the
country.
[Illustration: First, or Royal Dragoons, 1839.
[To face page 116.
]
FOOTNOTES:
[7] Bibl. Harl. No. 1595.--Mercurius Publicus.--Kingdom's
Intelligencer.--War-Office Records.--History of Tangier, &c.
[8] Bibl. Harl. 6844.
[9] History of Tangier, 8vo., 1664.
[10] Sir John Lanier was afterwards colonel of the Queen's horse,
now first dragoon guards.
[11] John Coy was afterwards colonel of the seventh horse, now
fifth dragoon guards.
[12] Thomas Langston was celebrated for taking the Princess Anne
of Denmark's regiment of horse over to the Prince of Orange at
the Revolution in 1688: he was appointed colonel of that regiment
on the 31st of December, 1688, and died in Ireland in 1689: the
regiment was disbanded in 1692.
[13] Vide the Historical Record of the Life Guards.
[14] Narrative of the great engagement at Tangier: Tangier's
Rescue, by John Ross; London Gazettes, &c. &c.
[15] One of the regiments of dragoons raised in 1678 was styled
_the Royal Regiment of Dragoons_; but it was disbanded after the
peace of Nimeguen.
[16] 'CHARLES R.
'OUR WILL AND PLEASURE IS, that as soon as the troop of OUR ROYAL
REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS, whereof Charles Nedby, Esq., is Captain,
shall arrive from our garrison at Tangier, you cause the same
forthwith to march to the town of Ware, in Our county of Hertford,
where they are to remain until further orders. And the officers of
the said troop are to take care that the soldiers duly pay their
intended quarters.
'Given at Our Court at Whitehall this 1st day of February, 1683-4.
'By His Majesty's command,
'WILLIAM BLATHWAYTE.'
A similar order was given for Captain Thomas Langston's troop to
quarter at Hoddesdon, Captain John Coy's at Hampstead, and Captain
Alexander Mackenzie's (the troop raised in 1661) at Watford and
Bushey.--_War-Office Records._
[17] The following arms and appointments were issued from the Tower
of London for the equipment of the regiment, viz.--
318 Muskets and bayonets
12 Halberds
12 Partizans
12 Drums
318 Cartouch boxes and belts
318 Waist belts and bayonet frogs
358 Saddles and bridles
358 Sets of holster caps and housings.--_Ibid._
[18] Nathan Brook's Complete List, Military: London, 1684.
[19] Hugh Wyndham was afterwards colonel of the seventh horse, now
sixth dragoon guards.
[20] Francis Langston was afterwards colonel of the fifth horse,
now fourth dragoon guards.
[21] War-Office Records.
[22] Ibid.
[23] War Office Records.
[24] Mémoires de Berwick.
[25] Lingard's History of England.
[26] London Gazette; War Office Records; Life of King James II., &c.
[27] War Office Route Book.
[28] London Gazette.
[29] "There were two priests in the garrison of _Charlemont_, and
there happened a pleasant adventure between one of them and a
dragoon of Colonel Hayford's regiment (the Royal Dragoons) as they
were guarding the Irish towards Armagh. They fell into a discourse
about religion; the point in hand was _Transubstantiation_: the
dragoon, being a pleasant, witty fellow, drolled upon the priest,
and put him so to it, that he had little to say, upon which he grew
so angry that he fell a-beating the dragoon, who, not being used
to put up with blows, thrashed his fatherhood very severely. Upon
which, complaint being made to Teague, as he was at dinner with
our officers at Armagh, all that he said was, he was very glad of
it, adding, 'What te de'il had he to do to dispute religion with a
dragoon?'"--_Story's History of the Wars in Ireland_, p. 63.
[30] Story's History.
[31] Story.
[32] Colonel Clifford, of the Royal Dragoons, adhered to King James
at the Revolution, and having proceeded to Ireland he was appointed
a Brigadier-General.
[33] Story.--London Gazettes, &c. &c.
[34] D'Auvergne's History of the Campaigns in Flanders.
[35] Official Records, London Gazettes, &c.
[36] London Gazettes, Millner's Journal, and Annals of Queen Anne.
[37] London Gazettes; Present State of Europe; Mémoires de Berwick;
Annals of Queen Anne; and Official Records in the War-Office.
[38] "Notwithstanding King Charles has received no reinforcements
since he landed in Catalonia, his partisans, and the small army
under the Earl of Peterborough, have been so active, that their
progress looks altogether romantic, and will hardly be believed
by posterity. They have not only maintained their conquest of the
whole principality of Catalonia, but they have gained the kingdom
of Valencia, and carried their arms as far as Alicant; at the same
time they blockaded Roses, though the two places were above four
hundred miles one from the other."--_Present State of Europe_,
January, 1706.
[39] Doctor Freind's Account of the Earl of Peterborough's Conduct
in Spain.
[40] The Present State of Europe for 1708.
[41] List of British troops which surrendered in the village of
Brihuega, 9th December, 1710:--
Harvey's horse, now second dragoon guards.
Royal Dragoons (one squadron), now first, or the royal dragoons.
Pepper's dragoons, now the eighth light dragoons.
Stanhope's dragoons, disbanded.
Foot Guards, one battalion.
Harrison's foot, now the sixth.
Wade's ditto, now the thirty-third.
Dormer's ditto, disbanded.
Bowle's ditto, ditto.
Gore's ditto, ditto.
Munden's ditto, ditto.
Dalzel's ditto, ditto.
[42] Marching Order Books and Establishment Books in the War-Office.
[43] The seventh and eighth regiments of dragoons were disbanded
after the Peace of Utrecht; but the seventh was restored, as stated
above, and the eighth in a few months afterwards.
[44] Two newly-raised corps, afterwards disbanded.
[45] Annals of George I., &c.
[46] The Lieutenant of the Colonel's troop was styled
Captain-Lieutenant.
[47] London Gazette.
[48] War-Office Establishment Book.
[49] Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston rose to the rank of general: he
was, at different periods, colonel of the ninth dragoons, first
horse (now fourth dragoon guards), and sixth dragoons: he was also
governor of Quebec. He died 13th December, 1797, and was interred
in Westminster Abbey. He wrote a Journal of the Campaign of 1760,
which has been forwarded to the compiler of this record by his
grandson, Major Frederick Johnston, unattached.
[50] Journal of Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston, Royal Dragoons, MS.
[51] Journal of the Campaigns in Germany, by an Officer present
with the Army.
[52] On the 19th of December, 1768, a royal warrant was issued for
regulating the clothing, horse-furniture, and standards of the
regiments of cavalry, which contained similar directions to the
warrant of the 1st of July, 1751. See page 65.
[53] Official Records, Adjutant-General's Office.
[54] GENERAL ORDERS.
"The heavy cavalry, with the exception of the two regiments of life
guards and royal regiment of horse guards, are to be mounted on
nag-tailed horses.
"The first, or King's regiment of dragoon guards; the first, or
royal regiment of dragoons; the third, or King's own regiment of
dragoons, are to be mounted on _black_ nag-tailed horses.
"The second, or Queen's regiment of dragoon guards, are to be
mounted on nag-tailed horses of the colours of _bay_ and _brown_.
"The second, or royal North British regiment of dragoons, are to be
mounted on nag-tailed _grey_ horses.
"All other regiments of heavy cavalry on the British establishment
are to be mounted on nag-tailed horses of the colours of bay,
brown, and chestnut.
"The custom of mounting trumpeters on grey horses is to be
discontinued, and they are in future to be mounted on horses of the
colour or colours hereby prescribed for the regiment to which they
belong.
"HARRY CALVERT,
Adjutant General.
"_Horse Guards_,
_10th August, 1799_."
[55] 28th Aug. "A piquet of this regiment (ROYALS) made a _gallant
and successful charge_ on a party of the enemy's cavalry and
infantry, and took some prisoners."--_Lord Wellington's Despatch._
[56] "I have received a report of a gallant action of one of our
patroles yesterday evening, under the command of Lieutenant Persse,
of the 16th Light Dragoons, and Lieutenant Foster, of the Royals,
who attacked a detachment of the enemy's cavalry between Alverca
and Guarda, and killed and wounded several of them, and took the
officer and 37 men prisoners."--_Lord Wellington's Despatch, 27th
March, 1811._
[57] "It is with great pleasure I have to mention _the
very admirable conduct of the Royals_ under the command of
_Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton_, and one troop of the fourteenth
light dragoons, which being all that were employed in covering the
front from Villa de Egua to Espejo, were assembled at Gallegos,
and retreated from thence agreeably to my directions. And
notwithstanding all the efforts of General Montbrun (who commanded
the French cavalry) to outflank the British, pressing them at the
same time in front with eight pieces of cannon, _their retreat to
Nave d'Aver merits the highest commendation_.
"Major-General Slade speaks in much praise of _Major Dorville_,
of the _Royal Dragoons_, and of _Captain Purvis_, of the
same regiment, who had opportunities of distinguishing
themselves."--_Lieutenant-General Sir Brent Spencer's Despatch._
[58] "Nothing could exceed the gallantry displayed by the
officers and men on this occasion. Sir Granby Calcraft, and
Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton, commanding the two regiments,
particularly distinguished themselves, as well as all the officers
present.
"I beg particularly to report the conduct of Brigade Major
Radclyffe, of the Royal Dragoons, to whom I feel particularly
indebted for his assistance on this occasion."--_Major-General
Slade's Despatch._
[59] Journal of Major Radclyffe, of the Royal Dragoons--MS.
[60] "The infantry complained they had suffered much from our
absence and tardy arrival, though, God knows, we had lost no
time."--_Major Radclyffe's Journal._
[61] Now Colonel A. K. Clark Kennedy, C.B. and K.H.,
lieutenant-colonel of the seventh dragoon guards.
[62] Francis Stiles was rewarded with an ensigncy in the sixth
West India regiment on the 11th of April, 1816, and was placed on
half-pay on the 28th of December, 1817: he died in London on the
9th of January, 1828.
[63] "I was in command of the centre squadron of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
in this charge. While following up the attack, I perceived, a
little to my left, in the midst of a body of infantry, an Eagle
and Colour, which the bearer was making off with towards the rear.
I immediately gave the order, 'Right shoulders forward,' to my
squadron, at the same time leading direct upon the Eagle, and
calling out to the men with me to 'Secure the colours.' The instant
I got within reach of the officer who carried the Eagle, I ran my
sword into his right side, and he staggered and fell, but did not
reach the ground on account of the pressure of his companions.
As the officer was in the act of falling, I called out, a second
time, to some men close behind me, 'Secure the colour; it belongs
to me!' The standard coverer, Corporal Stiles, and several other
men, rushed up, and the Eagle fell across my horse's head, against
that of Corporal Stiles, who came up on my left. As it was falling
I caught the fringe of the flag with my left hand, but could not
at the first pull up the Eagle: at the second attempt, however,
I succeeded. Being in the midst of French troops, I attempted to
separate the Eagle from the staff, to put it into the breast of my
coatee; but it was too firmly fixed. Corporal Stiles said, 'Pray,
Sir, do not break it!' to which I replied 'Very well; carry it off
to the rear as fast as you can,' which he did. Though wounded, I
preferred remaining in the field in the command of my squadron,
which I did until near seven o'clock in the evening, when I was
obliged to withdraw; having had two horses killed under me, and
having received two wounds, which confined me to my quarters at
Brussels nearly two months."--_Captain Clark's Narrative of the
Capture of the Eagle._
[64] This respected and lamented officer (Major-General Sir
William Ponsonby), beloved by all who served with or under him,
met his death in a manner which conferred upon it an interesting
character. When the order was given for attacking the enemy, he led
the three regiments forward with that noble ardour for which he
had been distinguished in the campaigns in the Peninsula. Having
cut through the first column, he proceeded where the ROYALS were
so hotly engaged, and found himself outflanked by a regiment of
Polish lancers in a newly-ploughed field, the ground of which was
so soft that his horse became blown, and was unable to proceed. He
was attended by only one aide-de-camp. At this instant the lancers
were approaching him at full speed. His own death, he knew, was
inevitable, but supposing his aide-de-camp might escape, he drew
forth the picture of his lady and his watch, and was in the act of
delivering them to his attendant to be conveyed to his family, when
the enemy came up and they were both speared upon the spot.
[65] Now Lieutenant-General Sir Joseph Straton, K.C.H. and C.B.,
colonel of the eighth royal Irish hussars, who was authorised to
take and use the surname of _Straton_, instead of Muter, on the
28th of September, 1816.
[66] Major Radclyffe was wounded in the first charge, and taken
from the field. He was an excellent swordsman, and had taught
many of his men his peculiar method of giving point, and he was
afterwards much delighted on being informed that the troopers, by
adhering to his instructions, had been signally successful in their
attacks. The decease of this gallant and excellent officer, clever
man, and good scholar, took place on the 24th of February, 1827:
the following is an extract from a periodical work respecting him:--
"Died on the 24th of February, 1827, in Connaught-square,
Lieutenant-Colonel Radclyffe, Major of Brigade to the Cavalry in
Great Britain, aged 53.--This distinguished officer served in
all the campaigns of the late revolutionary war, commencing with
the Duke of York's, in Flanders, in 1793, and ending with the
sanguinary battle of Waterloo. There he received a severe wound
from a musket-ball, which lodged in his knee, the constant pain
and irritation of which (as it could not be extracted) has thus
prematurely destroyed his valuable life. His Lieut.-Colonelcy took
its date from that glorious day. He was present at the battles
of Salamanca, Vittoria, Busaco, Fuentes d'Onor, the blockade of
Pampeluna, and the attack of Bayonne, besides numerous engagements
of minor note. He was Major of Brigade during the campaigns in
Spain to the battle of Toulouse in April, 1814; after which he
was appointed Assistant-Adjutant General to the Cavalry, and
accompanied it as such through France to England. So entirely was
his mind devoted to his profession, that almost the last words he
spoke (only two hours before his death), in answer to a question
from his physicians as to how he felt, were, 'I am retreating,
retreating, retreating: I cannot advance.' He was a most scientific
and dexterous swordsman, a skilful officer, and able tactician.
Witness a small work which he printed on those subjects. He was a
sincere and ardent friend, a conscientious Christian, and a brave
and good man. He lived highly and universally respected, and died
sincerely lamented."
[67] A guard of honour, consisting of one major (Major Marten), two
captains, two subalterns, four serjeants, and one hundred rank and
file, with the royal standard, was ordered, by the king's special
command, from Canterbury to Windsor Castle, for the purpose of
escorting their majesties on the occasion of the presentation of a
new standard to the royal horse guards (blues) by King William IV.
on the 13th of August, 1832.
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF
THE ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS.
JOHN LORD CHURCHILL.
_Appointed 19th November, 1683._
At its formation the ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS had the honour of
being commanded by one of the most distinguished officers Great
Britain has produced,--a general who acquired celebrity in the
field and in the cabinet,--who never fought a battle he did not
win, nor besiege a town which he did not capture.
JOHN CHURCHILL was born on the 24th of June, 1650. At sixteen
years of age he was page of honour to the Duke of York, who
procured him an ensign's commission in the first foot guards;
and he soon afterwards resigned the pleasures of the court to
acquire a practical knowledge of his profession at Tangier, in
Africa, where he served as a volunteer against the Moors, and gave
presage of those bright qualities for which he afterwards became
distinguished. On the breaking out of the Dutch war in 1672 he was
appointed captain in the Duke of Monmouth's regiment of foot, in
the service of the King of France, with which corps he served in
the Netherlands, where he signalised himself by a regular attention
to his duties, and by volunteering his services on occasions of
difficulty or danger; and he evinced signal gallantry in 1673, at
the siege of Maestricht,[68] where he was wounded. He subsequently
served with the French army on the Rhine,--attracted the particular
attention and regard of the celebrated Marshal Turenne,--and in
1674 he was appointed colonel of one of the English regiments in
the service of the French monarch, in succession to the Earl of
Peterborough. His regiment was recalled from France in 1678, and
he was appointed to the command of a brigade of foot in Flanders;
but the peace of Nimeguen taking place, he returned to England, and
his regiment was disbanded. He became the constant attendant of
the Duke of York, and being employed in several delicate missions
between His Royal Highness and the King, he evinced great address.
The King having resolved to add to the regular army a regiment of
dragoons for permanent service, Colonel Churchill was commissioned
to raise a troop of dragoons, and was appointed colonel of the
regiment, which was honoured with the distinguished title of the
ROYAL REGIMENT OF DRAGOONS. He was also advanced to the peerage of
Scotland by the title of Baron Churchill of Aymouth. Soon after the
accession of King James II. he was created an English peer by the
title of Baron Churchill of Sandridge. On the 14th of May, 1685, he
was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general: on the breaking out
of the rebellion of the Duke of Monmouth he was sent, with a body
of cavalry, to the west of England, and he was second in command
at the battle of Sedgemoor. His meritorious conduct during this
rebellion was rewarded with the colonelcy of the third troop of
life guards, and the rank of major-general. No ties of interest,
or charms of royal favour, could, however, induce him to abandon
the best interests of his native country; and at the Revolution in
1688 he joined the standard of the Prince of Orange, for which he
was removed from the life guards by King James. On the accession of
King William III. he was restored to the command of the third troop
of life guards,--appointed colonel of the royal fusiliers,--sworn
a member of the privy council,--made lord of the bedchamber to his
Majesty,--created EARL OF MARLBOROUGH, and appointed to the command
of the British troops sent to the Netherlands, to be employed
in the war with France. During the campaign of 1689 he served
under Prince Waldeck, and gave proof of his personal bravery, and
ability to command, at the battle of Walcourt. In June, 1690, he
was appointed commander-in-chief, and proceeding, in the autumn
of that year, with a body of troops to Ireland, captured Cork and
Kinsale. In 1691 he commanded the British infantry under King
William in the Netherlands. In the following year he was confined
in the Tower of London on a charge of high treason; but was
subsequently released without being brought to trial, and restored
to royal favour. On the breaking out of the war in 1701, he was
selected by King William to command the British forces sent to
the Netherlands, and to negotiate the treaties to be formed with
foreign powers; and he was appointed colonel of a regiment of foot
(now twenty-fourth). Queen Anne confirmed these appointments;
also advanced him to the post of captain-general of her forces,
and procured him the chief command of the united British, Dutch,
and auxiliary troops. At the head of these forces he evinced the
abilities of a great captain; he forced the enemy to take shelter
behind their lines; took Venloo, Ruremonde, Stevenswaert, and Liege
with surprising rapidity; extended and secured the Dutch frontiers;
and was rewarded with the thanks of parliament, the approbation
of his sovereign, and the dignity of DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH. In the
campaign of 1703 he was again victorious; he captured Bonn, Huy,
and Limburg; but his career of victory was impeded by the jealousy
or timidity of the Dutch, which he bore in a manner corresponding
with the greatness of his mind. On the 25th of April, 1704, he
was appointed colonel of the first foot guards. The succeeding
campaign was splendid in glorious achievements. He led his army
from the ocean to the Danube; forced the heights of Schellenberg
on the 2nd July, 1704, and compelled the enemy to take shelter
behind the lines of Augsburg. New armies and new generals appeared,
and their overthrow, at the decisive battle of Blenheim on the
13th of August, added new lustre to the reputation of the British
commander: there the heaps of slain gave dreadful proofs of British
valour, and whole legions of prisoners of their mercy. This
victory displayed the distinguishing character of MARLBOROUGH,
and produced important results: Bavaria was subdued; Ratisbon,
Augsburg, Ulm, Meninghen,--all were recovered. From the Danube he
marched to the Rhine and the Moselle; Landau, Treves, and Traerbach
were taken; and the British commander,--courted and honoured by
sovereign princes,--applauded by nations, became the pride of
armies, and was rewarded with the dignity of a PRINCE OF THE ROMAN
EMPIRE. While his judgment swayed the councils of the states of
Christendom, he led their armies to battle and victory. In 1705
he experienced disappointment from the princes he had delivered
in the preceding year; but, suddenly changing the scene of his
operations, he led his army from the Moselle to the Maese; Liege
was relieved; Huy retaken; and the boasted impregnable French lines
forced. In the spring of 1706 another campaign opened, when the
discipline he had introduced, and the confidence he had inspired,
again proved invincible. He met, attacked, and triumphed over the
French, Spaniards, and Bavarians, at Ramilies, on the 23rd of May.
This decisive action was followed by the surrender of Louvain,
Brussels, Malines, Liege, Ghent, Oudenarde, Antwerp, Damme, Bruges,
and Courtray; and by the capture of Ostend, Menin, Dendermond,
and Aeth,--places which had resisted the greatest generals for
months--for years; provinces, disputed for ages, were the conquests
of a summer. So great was his reputation, that, throughout the
campaign of 1707, the enemy avoided a general engagement: but in
the following summer a gallant French army, led by the princes of
the blood, was overcome at Oudenarde; and, although new armies
and new generals appeared, the career of Marlborough could
not be stopped. The barriers of France on the side of the Low
Countries,--the work of half a century,--were attacked. A numerous
French army were spectators of the fall of Lisle, the bulwark of
their barriers. Every campaign added new conquests. In 1709 Tournay
was taken; and a powerful French army posted near Malplaquet, in a
position covered by thick woods, defended by triple intrenchments,
was attacked. The battle was bloody,--the event decisive; the
woods were pierced; the fortifications were trampled down; and the
enemy fled. After this victory Mons was taken. In the succeeding
year Douay, Bethune, Aire, St. Venant, shared the same fate; and
the campaign of 1711 was distinguished by splendid success. A
new series of lines were passed, and Bouchain captured. Nothing
availed against a general whose sagacity foresaw everything,
whose vigilance attended to everything, whose constancy no labour
could subdue, whose courage no danger could dismay, and whose
intuitive glance always caught the decisive moment and insured
victory; while the discipline he maintained, and the confidence he
inspired, were equivalent to an army. The French monarch saw with
alarm his generals overmatched, his armies beaten and discouraged,
his fortresses wrested from him, and an invincible leader with
a victorious army on the confines of France, ready to carry all
the horrors of war into the heart of his kingdom, and he sued for
peace. A change of the ministry in England, with the adoption of
a policy favourable to the French interest, was followed by the
removal of the great MARLBOROUGH from all his offices dependent on
the British crown. He retired to the Continent, where he remained
until the accession of King George I., when he was replaced in his
former posts, in which he continued until his decease in 1722.
EDWARD VISCOUNT CORNBURY.
_Appointed 1st August, 1685._
EDWARD HYDE VISCOUNT CORNBURY, son of the second Earl of Clarendon,
was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the ROYAL DRAGOONS when that
corps was first embodied; and having distinguished himself at the
battle of Sedgemoor, he succeeded Lord Churchill in the colonelcy
of the regiment. The circumstances of his removal are stated at
page 19 in the 'Historical Record of the Royal Dragoons.'
ROBERT CLIFFORD.
_Appointed 24th November, 1688._
MAJOR ROBERT CLIFFORD of the ROYAL DRAGOONS was firmly devoted
to the Roman Catholic interest, and in November, 1688, by his
exertions he recovered the regiment for the service of King James,
as stated at page 19 in the Historical Record of the corps. At the
revolution he adhered to King James, and he commanded a corps of
dragoons in Ireland, until the siege of Limerick in 1691, when he
was imprisoned by the Irish on a charge of favouring the passage of
the Shannon by the English; and would have been condemned to death,
if the town had not surrendered soon afterwards.
EDWARD VISCOUNT CORNBURY.
_Re-appointed 31st December, 1688._
LORD CORNBURY was restored to the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS
by the Prince of Orange; but was removed from his command a few
months afterwards. He was governor of New York, in the reign of
Queen Anne; and in October, 1709, succeeded to the title of EARL OF
CLARENDON. His decease occurred on the 31st of March, 1723.
ANTHONY HAYFORD.
_Appointed 1st July, 1689._
This Officer served in the life guards as a private gentleman, and
afterwards in the Duke of Monmouth's regiment of horse in the reign
of Charles II. In 1684 he was appointed lieutenant in the horse
grenadier guards. In 1687 he was lieutenant-colonel of the ROYAL
DRAGOONS. He joined the Prince of Orange in November, 1688; and
succeeding Lord Cornbury in the colonelcy of the regiment in 1689,
served in Scotland and Ireland.
EDWARD MATTHEWS.
_Appointed in June, 1690._
This Officer served as a volunteer at Tangier, in Africa; also in
Ireland in 1690 and the following year, and distinguished himself
on several occasions. He also commanded a brigade of dragoons under
King William in Flanders, in 1694, 1695, and 1696; and died on the
28th of May, 1697.
THOMAS LORD RABY.
_Appointed 30th May, 1697._
THOMAS WENTWORTH, son of Sir William Wentworth, baronet, was
appointed cornet of the fourth horse, now third dragoon guards, on
the 31st of December, 1688; and in the following summer served with
his regiment against the rebel Highlanders in Scotland. In 1692
he served in Flanders, and was in the advance-guard at the battle
of Steenkirk on the 3rd of August in that year, where he highly
distinguished himself, and the squadron he was with, being exposed
to a heavy cannonade, only brought off fifty men alive out of one
hundred and fifty. His gallantry on this occasion was especially
reported to his sovereign, and he was appointed aide-de-camp to His
Majesty: in which capacity he served at the battle of Landen, on
the 19th of July, 1693, when his conduct obtained the approbation
of King William III., who promoted him to the commission of cornet
and major in the first troop, now first regiment, of life guards.
Major Wentworth served with the life guards in the subsequent
campaigns in the Netherlands, and rose to the rank of lieutenant,
and lieutenant-colonel. He succeeded, on the decease of William
Earl of Strafford, to the title of LORD RABY; was appointed
colonel of the ROYAL DRAGOONS in May, 1697; and attended the
Earl of Portland in the interviews with Marshal Boufflers, which
preceded the conclusion of peace at Ryswick. In 1698 his lordship
accompanied King William to Holland, and, on one occasion, when
hunting with His Majesty, he went alone and attacked a wild boar;
the animal, however, threw him down, and had already torn his
clothes and lacerated his flesh, when the King sent two huntsmen to
his aid, who speared the boar.
In the first year of the reign of Queen Anne, Lord Raby served
with his regiment on the Continent, and in January, 1703, he was
promoted to the rank of brigadier-general. In the spring of the
same year he was appointed envoy extraordinary to the King of
Prussia, and subsequently ambassador extraordinary at the same
court; and on the first of January, 1705, was advanced to the
rank of major-general. His lordship served in the army under the
Duke of Marlborough, during the brilliant campaign of 1706; and,
on the 1st of January following, he was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant-general. In 1711 he was sworn of the privy council,
and appointed ambassador extraordinary to the States-General of
Holland; and in September of the same year he was advanced to the
dignity of EARL OF STRAFFORD. His Lordship took an active part in
negociating the treaty of peace at Utrecht; but after the accession
of George I., he was removed from his public employments. The Earl
of Strafford died on the 15th of November, 1739.
RICHARD LORD COBHAM.
_Appointed 13th June, 1715._
SIR RICHARD TEMPLE served under King William in the Netherlands;
and, on the breaking out of the war of the Spanish succession,
he was promoted to the colonelcy of a newly-raised regiment of
foot, which was disbanded at the peace of Utrecht. He served under
the great Duke of Marlborough, and was conspicuous for a noble
bearing, a greatness of soul, and a contempt of danger, which he
exhibited in a signal manner at the sieges of Venloo and Ruremonde,
at the battle of Oudenarde, and at the siege of the important
fortress of Lisle. In January, 1709, he was promoted to the rank
of major-general, and his conduct at the siege of Tournay, the
sanguinary battle of Malplaquet, and siege of Mons, was rewarded,
in the following year, with the rank of lieutenant-general and
the colonelcy of the fourth dragoons. He served under the Duke
of Marlborough in 1711, and had the honour of taking part in the
forcing of the French lines at Arleux, and the capture of the
strong fortress of Bouchain. After the change in the ministry, and
the adoption of a new system of policy by the court, the well-known
attachment of this officer to the Protestant succession, occasioned
him to be removed from his regiment; but on the accession of King
George I. he was elevated to the peerage by the title of BARON OF
COBHAM, and in 1715 he was appointed colonel of the ROYAL DRAGOONS.
In 1717 he was appointed governor of Windsor Castle; in 1718 he
was advanced to the dignity of VISCOUNT COBHAM; and in 1721 he was
removed to the King's horse, now first dragoon guards. He was also
one of the privy council, and governor of the island of Jersey; but
resigned his appointments in 1733. On the change of the ministry in
1742 he was promoted to the rank of field-marshal, and in December
of the same year King George II. conferred upon him the colonelcy
of the first troop of horse grenadier guards. In 1744 he was
removed to the sixth horse, and in 1745 to the tenth dragoons, the
colonelcy of which corps he retained until his decease in 1749.
SIR CHARLES HOTHAM, BARONET.
_Appointed 10th April, 1721._
CHARLES HOTHAM, eldest son of the Rev. Charles Hotham, Rector of
Wigan, succeeded to the dignity of baronet on the decease of his
uncle in 1691. He served with distinction in the wars of King
William III., and also under the great Duke of Marlborough in the
reign of Queen Anne; and in 1705 he obtained the colonelcy of a
regiment of foot, with which he proceeded to Spain in 1706, and was
in garrison at Alicant when the unfortunate battle of Almanza was
fought. Sir Charles served with reputation during the remainder
of the war; but his regiment, having suffered severely in the
defence of several fortified towns, was disbanded in Catalonia
in 1708. He was appointed brigadier-general in 1710; and shortly
after the accession of King George I., he was commissioned to
raise a regiment of foot, which, after the suppression of the
rebellion of the Earl of Mar, was sent to Ireland, and disbanded
in the following year, when Sir Charles was appointed colonel of a
newly-raised regiment of dragoons, which was, however, disbanded in
November, 1718.
On the 7th of July, 1719, the colonelcy of the thirty-sixth
regiment of foot was conferred on Sir Charles Hotham; he was
removed to the eighth foot in December 1720; and in April following
to the ROYAL DRAGOONS. His decease occurred on the 8th of January,
1723.
HUMPHREY GORE.
_Appointed 12th January, 1723._
This Officer entered the army as ensign in 1689, and saw much
service in the campaigns of King William on the Continent. On the
1st of February, 1707, he was appointed colonel of a newly-raised
regiment of foot, with which he proceeded to Spain in 1709, and
was appointed brigadier-general on the 1st of January following.
He was at the battles of Almanara and Saragossa in 1710, and was
taken prisoner by the French in the unfortunate affair at the
village of Brihuega in December of the same year.[69] At the peace
of Utrecht his regiment of foot was disbanded; but proving a loyal
and faithful adherent to the Protestant succession, at a time when
Jacobite principles had become prevalent in the kingdom, he was
commissioned by King George I., in July, 1715, to raise a regiment
of dragoons--the present tenth royal hussars. He was removed to
the ROYAL DRAGOONS, in 1723; appointed major-general on the 6th of
March, 1727; lieutenant-general on the 29th of October, 1735; and
he died on the 18th of August, 1739.
CHARLES DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH, K.G.
_Appointed 1st September, 1739._
CHARLES SPENCER, fourth Earl of Sunderland, succeeded to the title
of DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH in 1733; and five years afterwards he was
appointed colonel of the thirty-eighth regiment of foot. In 1739
he was removed to the ROYAL DRAGOONS, in the following year to the
second troops of life guards, and in 1742 to the second regiment
of foot guards; and he commanded the brigade of foot guards at the
battle of Dettingen. In 1755 he was appointed master-general of the
ordnance; and in 1758 commanded the expedition against France, when
the enemy's magazines and shipping at St. Maloes were destroyed. He
was subsequently appointed to command the forces sent to Germany;
and died on the Continent in October, 1758.
HENRY HAWLEY.
_Appointed 12th May, 1740._
This Officer served the crown in four successive reigns, and held
a commission in the army during a period of sixty-five years. His
first appointment was dated the 10th of January, 1694; and having
signalized himself in the wars of Queen Anne, he obtained the
rank of colonel by brevet dated the 16th of October, 1712. He was
wounded at the battle of Dumblain in 1715. On the 19th of March,
1717, he was promoted from the lieutenant-colonelcy of the fourth
dragoons to the colonelcy of the thirty-third regiment of foot;
and on the 7th of July, 1730, he was removed to the colonelcy of
the thirteenth dragoons. In 1735 he was promoted to the rank of
brigadier-general; in 1739 to that of major-general; and in the
following year obtained the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS. In
1742 Major-General Hawley proceeded with the army to Flanders, he
was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the following
spring, and served at the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy. In
1746 he commanded against the rebel Highlanders in Scotland, and
the troops under his orders had a sharp encounter with the enemy
near Falkirk, and sustained considerable loss. He was afterwards
on the staff of the army in Ireland; was many years governor of
Portsmouth; and died on the 24th of March, 1759.
THE HONOURABLE HENRY SEYMOUR CONWAY.
_Appointed 5th April, 1759._
THE HONOURABLE HENRY SEYMOUR CONWAY, second son of Lord Conway,
and brother of Francis Earl of Hertford, was appointed lieutenant
in the first foot guards in 1737, captain and lieutenant-colonel
in 1741, and in 1746 he was appointed aide-de-camp to the Duke of
Cumberland, and promoted to the colonelcy of the fifty-ninth (now
forty-eighth) foot. He was removed to the thirty-fourth foot in
1749, to the thirteenth dragoons in 1751, and to the fourth horse
in 1754. In 1756 he was promoted to the rank of major-general,
and in 1759 to that of lieutenant-general: he was removed to the
ROYAL DRAGOONS in the same year. He commanded a division of the
allied army in Germany, under the Duke of Brunswick, in 1761; and
the British forces in Germany were placed under his orders during
the absence of the Marquis of Granby. He was also one of the grooms
of the bedchamber to his Majesty, and a member of parliament;
and having voted against ministers on the great question of
military warrants, in 1764, he resigned his court appointment and
military commands: but in 1768 he was appointed colonel of the
fourth dragoons. In 1770 he succeeded the Marquis of Granby in
the colonelcy of the royal regiment of horse guards; in 1772 he
was promoted to the rank of general; and in 1782 he was appointed
commander-in-chief of the army: in 1793 he was promoted to the rank
of field-marshal. He died in 1795; at which period he was eldest
general officer and first field marshal in the army.
HENRY EARL OF PEMBROKE.
_Appointed 9th May, 1764._
HENRY HERBERT, tenth Earl of Pembroke, entered the army in 1752; in
1754 he obtained a captaincy in the first, dragoon guards; in 1756
he was appointed captain and lieutenant-colonel in the first foot
guards; and on the 8th of May, 1758, he was appointed aide-de-camp
to King George II. with the rank of colonel. In the following
year he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the fifteenth light
dragoons, and proceeding to Germany, he served with distinction
under the Marquis of Granby during the remainder of the seven
years' war. The rank of major-general was conferred on his lordship
in 1761, and in 1764 King George III. gave him the colonelcy of
the ROYAL DRAGOONS. On the 30th of April, 1770, he obtained the
rank of lieutenant-general, and was promoted to that of general in
November, 1782. The Earl of Pembroke was author of an excellent
work on horsemanship; was many years governor of Portsmouth; and
died on the 26th of January, 1794.
PHILIP GOLDSWORTHY.
_Appointed 28th January, 1794._
This Officer was many years in the ROYAL DRAGOONS, with which
corps he served in Germany during the Seven years' war. On the
18th of April, 1779, he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy
of the regiment; obtained the rank of major-general on the 20th
of December, 1793; and in the following month succeeded the Earl
of Pembroke in the colonelcy. On the 26th of June, 1799, he was
promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general. He died in 1801.
THOMAS GARTH.
_Appointed 7th January, 1801._
THOMAS GARTH was appointed cornet in the ROYAL DRAGOONS on the 12th
of April, 1762, and he served the campaign of that year with his
regiment in Germany. He was appointed lieutenant in the same corps
in 1765, captain in 1775; and in 1779 exchanged to the twentieth
light dragoons, with which corps he proceeded to the West Indies,
where he served many years. In 1792 he was appointed major in the
second dragoon guards; and, in 1794, lieutenant-colonel of the
ROYAL DRAGOONS. He served under the Duke of York in Flanders; and
was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Sussex fencibles, from which
he was removed to the twenty-second light dragoons. He was promoted
to the rank of major-general in 1798; and in 1801 he obtained the
colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS. The rank of lieutenant-general was
conferred on him in 1805, and that of general in 1814. He died in
1829.
LORD ROBERT EDWARD HENRY SOMERSET.
_Appointed 23rd November, 1829._
LORD R. EDWARD H. SOMERSET (third son of Henry fifth Duke of
Beaufort) was appointed in 1793 cornet in the tenth dragoons,
with which corps he served six years. In 1799 he was appointed
major in the twelfth light dragoons; in 1800 he was removed to the
twenty-eighth light dragoons; and in 1801 he was promoted to the
lieutenant-colonelcy of the fourth, or Queen's own dragoons, which
regiment he commanded at the battles of Talavera and Salamanca,
where he particularly distinguished himself. He was promoted to
the rank of major-general in 1813; commanded a brigade of cavalry
at the battles of Vittoria, Orthes, and Toulouse; and signalized
himself at the head of the household cavalry brigade at the battle
of Waterloo. He also commanded a brigade of cavalry in the army
of occupation in France. His services were rewarded with a cross
and one clasp; and the grand cross of the order of the Bath. He
subsequently performed the duties of inspecting general of the
cavalry; he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in
1825; and in 1829 obtained the colonelcy of the ROYAL DRAGOONS,
from which his lordship was removed in 1836, to the fourth light
dragoons.
HON. SIR FREDERICK CAVENDISH PONSONBY, K.C.B., G.C.M.G., and K.C.H.
_Appointed 31st March, 1836._
HON. FREDERICK CAVENDISH PONSONBY, second son of Frederick third
earl of Besborough, was appointed cornet in the tenth dragoons
in 1800, and rose in 1803 to the rank of captain in the same
corps, from which he exchanged to the sixtieth regiment in
1806. In 1807 he was appointed major in the twenty-third light
dragoons, at the head of which corps he distinguished himself
at the battle of Talavera in 1809; and in 1810 was promoted
to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the regiment. In 1811 he served
under lieutenant-general Graham at Cadiz; and at the battle of
Barossa, in March of that year, he attacked, with a squadron
of German dragoons, the French cavalry covering the retreat,
overthrew them, took two guns, and even attempted, though vainly,
to sabre Rousseau's battalions. On the 11th of June, 1811, he
was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the twelfth light dragoons;
at the head of which corps he served under Lord Wellington, and
distinguished himself, in April, 1812, at Llerena, in one of the
most brilliant cavalry actions during the war. At the battle of
Salamanca he charged the French infantry, broke his sword in the
fight, and his horse received several bayonet wounds. He repeatedly
evinced great judgment, penetration, and resolution in out-post
duty, and was wounded in the retreat from Burgos, on the 13th of
October, 1812. At the battle of Vittoria he again distinguished
himself: his services at Tolosa, St. Sebastian, and Nive were also
conspicuous; and, on the king's birth-day in 1814, he was promoted
to the rank of colonel in the army. He commanded the twelfth light
dragoons at the battle of Waterloo, where he led his regiment to
the charge with signal intrepidity,--received sabre cuts on both
arms,--was brought to the ground by a blow on the head,--pierced
through the back by a lancer,--plundered by a tirailleur,--ridden
over by two squadrons of cavalry,--and plundered a second time
by a Prussian soldier; but afterwards recovered of his wounds.
His services were rewarded with the following marks of royal
favour:--Knight companion of the order of the Bath,--Knight
grand cross of the order of St. Michael and St. George,--Knight
commander of the Hanoverian Guelphic order,--a cross,--a Waterloo
medal,--Knight of the Tower and Sword of Portugal,--and Knight
of Maria Theresa of Austria. In January, 1824, he was appointed
inspecting field-officer in the Ionian islands: he was promoted
brigadier-general upon the staff of those islands on the 4th of
March, 1824; and in June, 1825, he was advanced to the rank of
major-general: he was removed to the staff at Malta, and retained
the command of the troops in that island until May, 1835. In 1835
he obtained the colonelcy of the eighty-sixth regiment, from which
he was removed to the ROYAL DRAGOONS in the following year. He
was an ornament to his profession. In him, military talent was
united with the most chivalrous bravery,--calm judgment,--cool
decision,--resolute action,--and modest deportment. He died on the
10th of January, 1837.
SIR HUSSEY VIVIAN, BARONET, G.C.B., AND G.C.H.
_Appointed 20th January, 1837._
LONDON:--Printed by W. CLOWES and SONS, Duke-street,
Stamford-street.
FOOTNOTES:
[68] Vide the Historical Record of the Life Guards.
[69] Vide page 51 in the 'Historical Record of the Royal Dragoons.'
HISTORICAL RECORDS
OF THE
BRITISH ARMY.
UNDER THE SPECIAL AUTHORITY, AND BY COMMAND, OF
HIS LATE MAJESTY,
WHICH HAVE RECEIVED THE GRACIOUS APPROBATION AND PATRONAGE OF
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN.
CAVALRY.
Of the Life Guards 12_s._
" Royal Horse Guards, or Blues 10_s._
" First, or King's Dragoon Guards 8_s._
" Second, or Queen's ditto 8_s._
" Third Dragoon Guards 8_s._
" Fourth ditto 8_s._
" Fifth ditto 8_s._
" Sixth ditto 8_s._
" Seventh ditto 8_s._
INFANTRY.
Of the First, or Royal Regiment of Foot 12_s._
" Second, or Queen's Foot 8_s._
" Third Foot, or the Buffs 12_s._
" Fourth Foot, or the King's Own. 8_s._
" Fifth, or Northumberland Fusiliers 8_s._
" Sixth, or Royal First Warwickshire 8_s._
" Eighty-eighth, or Connaught Rangers 6_s._
EACH ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES.
The above are Parts of a Series of Narratives of the several
Regiments of the British Army, from the Periods of their Formation
to the present time.
_Which are being prepared by_
RICHARD CANNON, ESQ.,
_Adjutant-General's Office, Horse-Guards_.
1840.
PUBLISHED BY
LONGMAN, ORME, and CO. Paternoster-row.
CLOWES and SONS, 14, Charing-cross.
RIDGWAY and SONS, Piccadilly.
CALKIN and BUDD, 118, Pall-mall.
PINKNEY, Military Library, Whitehall.
MILLIKEN and SON, Dublin.
SAVAGE and SON, Cork.
A. and C. BLACK, Edinburgh.
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. For example,
War Office, War-Office; field marshal, field-marshal; outpost,
out-post; situate; patrole; rencounter; piquet; negociating.
Pg 94, 'St. Jao de Presquere' should really be 'São João da Pesqueira'
but has not been changed in the etext.
Pg 99 et seq., the old name 'Pampeluna' (Pamplona) has not been
changed in the etext.
Pg 110, Sidenote '1816' moved one paragraph lower.
Pg 119, 'royal fusileers' replaced by 'royal fusiliers'.
Pg 125, 'Duke of Malborough' replaced by 'Duke of Marlborough'.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Historical Record of the First or The Royal Regiment of Dragoons: From Its Formation in The Reign of King Charles the Second and of Its Subsequent Services To 1839" ***
Copyright 2023 LibraryBlog. All rights reserved.