| 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 67th, or the South Hampshire Regiment
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 67th, or the South Hampshire Regiment" ***
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
A superscript is denoted by ^x or ^{xx}, for example S^t or Esq^{re}.
Footnotes are referenced by [number], and have been placed at the
end of each major section.
Some minor changes to the text are noted at the end of the book.
[Illustration:
BY COMMAND OF His late Majesty WILLIAM THE IV^{TH}.
_and under the Patronage of_
Her Majesty the Queen.
HISTORICAL RECORDS,
_OF THE_
British Army
_Comprising the_
_History of every Regiment_
_IN HER MAJESTY'S SERVICE_.
_By Richard Cannon Esq^{re}._
_Adjutant General's Office, Horse Guards._
London.
_Printed by Authority._]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT,
CONTAINING
AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT
IN 1758,
AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES
TO 1849.
COMPILED BY
RICHARD CANNON, ESQ.,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, HORSE GUARDS.
ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES.
LONDON:
PARKER, FURNIVALL, & PARKER,
30, CHARING-CROSS.
MDCCCXLIX.
London: Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS, Stamford Street,
For Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT,
BEARS ON THE REGIMENTAL COLOUR THE FIGURE OF THE
"ROYAL TIGER,"
WITH THE WORD "INDIA" SUPERSCRIBED, IN COMMEMORATION OF
ITS SERVICES IN INDIA FROM 1805 TO 1826;
ALSO THE WORD
"BARROSA,"
AS A TESTIMONY OF THE GALLANTRY DISPLAYED BY THE SECOND
BATTALION, AT THE BATTLE OF BARROSA, ON THE 5TH OF MARCH, 1811;
AND THE WORD
"PENINSULA,"
IN COMMEMORATION OF THE SERVICES OF THE SECOND BATTALION,
IN THE EAST OF SPAIN, FROM 1810 TO 1814.
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT.
CONTENTS
OF THE
HISTORICAL RECORD.
YEAR PAGE
INTRODUCTION.
1758 Formation of the Regiment from second battalion
of the Twentieth Regiment 1
---- Appointment of Colonel James Wolfe to the
Colonelcy 2
---- Uniform and Facing of the Regiment --
---- Officers appointed --
1759 Station of the Regiment 3
---- Appointment of Lieut.-Colonel Lord Frederick
Cavendish to the Colonelcy, in succession to
Major-General Wolfe, killed at the Battle of
Quebec --
1760 Decease of King George II., and Accession of
George III. to the Throne --
---- Appointment of Major-General Sir Henry Erskine,
Bart., to the Colonelcy, in succession
to Lord Frederick Cavendish, removed to the
34th Regiment --
1761 Embarked with the expedition under the command
of Major-General Hodgson 4
---- Capture of Belle-Isle 6
1761 Congratulatory address to King George III.
from the Citizens of London 7
---- Appointment of Lieut.-Colonel Hamilton Lambert
to the Colonelcy, in succession to Major-General
Sir Henry Erskine, removed to the
25th Regiment --
1762 Embarked for Portugal 8
1763 Treaty of Peace concluded at Fontainebleau --
---- Embarked to take possession of _Minorca_, on its
being restored to Great Britain 9
1768 Regulations, prescribed by Royal Warrant,
for maintaining uniformity in the clothing,
standards, and colours of regiments, &c. &c. --
1771 Embarked from Minorca for England 10
1773 Proceeded to Scotland --
1774 Appointment of Lieut.-Colonel Edward Maxwell
Brown to the Colonelcy, in succession to
Lieut.-General Hamilton Lambert, deceased --
1775 Embarked for Ireland --
1782 Directed to assume the county title of _South
Hampshire_ Regiment, in addition to its
numerical title --
1785 Embarked for the West Indies --
1794 Returned to England --
---- Proceeded to Ireland --
1796 Embarked for St. Domingo to aid the planters
against the negro inhabitants --
1798 Proceeded to Jamaica 11
1801 Re-embarked for England --
1803 Appointment of Lieut.-General Francis D'Oyly
to the Colonelcy, in succession to General
Edward Maxwell Brown, deceased --
---- Appointment of General Peter Craig to the
Colonelcy, in succession to Lieut.-General
D'Oyly, deceased --
1803 Embarked for Ireland 12
---- A second battalion added to the regiment, and
formed from men raised in Ireland under the
_Army of Reserve_ and _Additional Force_ Acts --
---- First battalion embarked for Guernsey --
1804 ---- ---- embarked for Portsmouth --
---- The regiment augmented to 1200 rank and file --
1805 The first battalion embarked for the East Indies --
---- Arrived at Bengal, and proceeded to Dinapore;
thence to Benares, and to Ghazeepore --
1811 Appointment of Lieut.-General Sir William
Keppel, G.C.B., to the Colonelcy, in succession
to General Peter Craig, deceased --
1813 Marched from Ghazeepore to Cawnpore --
1815 Marched to Meerut 13
1817 Proceeded on field service, and joined the army
of reserve under Major-General Sir David
Ochterlony --
1818 Embarked for Bombay --
---- Six companies embarked for the Concan --
---- Engaged in the siege and capture of _Ryghur_ --
---- Four companies embarked for Surat 14
---- Capture of _Nunderbar_, and other towns and forts --
---- Embarked for the Deccan --
---- Surrender of _Amulneir_ and _Behauderpore_ 15
1819 Proceeded to _Asseerghur_, and joined the force
under General Doveton 16
---- Surrender of the fortress of Asseerghur 18
---- Marched to Mallygaum 21
1820 Proceeded to Sholapore in the Deccan --
1823 Proceeded to Poonah --
1826 Embarked for Calcutta --
---- Embarked for England 22
1826 Arrived at Chatham and proceeded to Windsor --
---- Received the Royal Authority to bear on its
colours and appointments the figure of the
"Royal Tiger," with the word "_India_" superscribed --
1827 Marched from Windsor to Weedon; thence to
Bolton, &c. &c. --
1828 Appointment of Major-General John Macdonald
to the Colonelcy, in succession to General Sir
William Keppel, removed to the 2nd Queen's
Royal Regiment --
1830 Embarked for Ireland 23
1832 Formed into six service and four depôt companies --
---- Service companies embarked for Gibraltar --
1833 Embarked for the West Indies --
1840 Embarked for Canada --
1842 Returned to England, and rejoined by the four
depôt companies 24
1843 Proceeded from Plymouth to Weedon, and thence
to Manchester --
1844 Appointment of Major-General John Clitherow
to the Colonelcy, in succession to Lieut.-General
Sir John Macdonald, G.C.B., removed to the
42nd Regiment --
---- Embarked for Ireland --
1846 Augmented to twelve companies, and formed into
two battalions --
1848 The first and the reserve battalions embarked at
Cork for Gibraltar 25
---- Report of the Governor of Gibraltar on the state
of discipline and efficiency of the regiment --
---- Depôt Company removed from Cork to the Isle
of Wight 26
CONTENTS
OF THE
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF THE SERVICES OF THE
SECOND BATTALION
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
YEAR PAGE
1803 Formed from men raised in Ireland under the
Army of Reserve Act 27
1804 Augmented by men raised under the Additional
Force Act 28
---- Embarked for Scotland --
1807 Embarked for Guernsey and Alderney --
1810 Six companies embarked for Gibraltar, and proceeded
from thence to Cadiz --
---- Four companies embarked from Guernsey for
England --
1811 The six companies formed part of the army employed
on an expedition under the command
of Lieut.-General Thomas Graham --
---- Engaged in the Battle of _Barrosa_ 29
---- Medals conferred on the general officers, and
the commanding officers of corps and detachments,
and on the chiefs of military departments,
who were present at the Victory of Barrosa 35
1811 Received the Royal Authority to bear the word
_Barrosa_ on the colours and appointments 36
---- Returned to Cadiz 37
---- Two companies embarked from Portsmouth, and
joined the six companies at Cadiz --
1812 Embarked for Carthagena, and proceeded to Alicant --
1813 Proceeded with the army under Lieut.-General
Sir John Murray against Tarragona 37
---- Capture of Fort San Philippe, in the Col de Balaguer 38
---- Siege of Tarragona raised 39
---- Lieut.-General Lord William Bentinck assumed
the command of the army in the East of Spain, in
succession to Lieut.-General Sir John Murray --
---- Re-embarked for Alicant --
---- Investment and capture of Tarragona --
---- Lieut.-General Lord William Bentinck's services
required in Sicily; and Lieut.-General Wm.
Clinton succeeded to the command of the army 40
---- Marched into quarters at Valls, and thence to
Vendrills --
1814 The French troops under Marshal Suchet withdrew
from Catalonia --
---- The battalion marched to Barcelona, and formed
part of the force for the investment of that place --
---- Hostilities ceased --
---- Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated the throne of France --
---- Louis XVIII. entered Paris, and ascended the throne 41
---- Order expressing the approbation of Field-Marshal
the Marquis of Wellington, of the conduct of the
division of the army employed in the East of Spain --
1814 The battalion proceeded from Barcelona to Tarragona,
and embarked for Gibraltar 41
1815 Return of Napoleon Bonaparte from the Island
of Elba to France --
---- War recommenced --
---- Victory at Waterloo --
---- Surrender of Napoleon Bonaparte, and his conveyance
to St. Helena --
---- The regiment received the Royal Authority to bear the
word _Peninsula_ on the colours and appointments 42
1817 The battalion embarked from Gibraltar for England --
---- Arrived at Chatham, and marched to Canterbury,
where it was disbanded on the 25th of May, 1817 --
Conclusion 43
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT.
YEAR PAGE
1758 James Wolfe 45
1759 Lord Frederick Cavendish 48
1760 Sir Henry Erskine, Bart. --
1761 Hamilton Lambert 49
1774 Edward Maxwell Brown --
1803 Francis D'Oyly 50
1803 Peter Craig 51
1811 Sir William Keppel, G.C.B. --
1828 Sir John Macdonald, G.C.B. 52
1844 John Clitherow --
PLATES.
Costume of the regiment _to face page_ 1
Colours of the regiment 26
Death of Major-General James Wolfe, from wounds
received at the Battle of Quebec, on the 13th of
September, 1759 44
GENERAL ORDERS.
_HORSE-GUARDS_,
_1st January, 1836_.
His Majesty has been pleased to command that, with the 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 Honorable
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 honorable 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, being 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
everything 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
civilized 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
TO
THE INFANTRY.
The natives of Britain have, at all periods, been celebrated for
innate courage and unshaken firmness, and the national superiority
of the British troops over those of other countries has been evinced
in the midst of the most imminent perils. History contains so
many proofs of extraordinary acts of bravery, that no doubts can
be raised upon the facts which are recorded. It must therefore be
admitted, that the distinguishing feature of the British soldier is
INTREPIDITY. This quality was evinced by the inhabitants of England
when their country was invaded by Julius Cæsar with a Roman army,
on which occasion the undaunted Britons rushed into the sea to
attack the Roman soldiers as they descended from their ships; and,
although their discipline and arms were inferior to those of their
adversaries, yet their fierce and dauntless bearing intimidated the
flower of the Roman troops, including Cæsar's favourite tenth legion.
Their arms consisted of spears, short swords, and other weapons of
rude construction. They had chariots, to the axles of which were
fastened sharp pieces of iron resembling scythe-blades, and infantry
in long chariots resembling waggons, who alighted and fought on
foot, and for change of ground, pursuit or retreat, sprang into the
chariot and drove off with the speed of cavalry. These inventions
were, however, unavailing against Cæsar's legions: in the course
of time a military system, with discipline and subordination, was
introduced, and British courage, being thus regulated, was exerted to
the greatest advantage; a full development of the national character
followed, and it shone forth in all its native brilliancy.
The military force of the Anglo-Saxons consisted principally of
infantry: Thanes, and other men of property, however, fought on
horseback. The infantry were of two classes, heavy and light. The
former carried large shields armed with spikes, long broad swords and
spears; and the latter were armed with swords or spears only. They
had also men armed with clubs, others with battle-axes and javelins.
The feudal troops established by William the Conqueror consisted (as
already stated in the Introduction to the Cavalry) almost entirely
of horse; but when the warlike barons and knights, with their trains
of tenants and vassals, took the field, a proportion of men appeared
on foot, and, although these were of inferior degree, they proved
stout-hearted Britons of stanch fidelity. When stipendiary troops
were employed, infantry always constituted a considerable portion of
the military force; and this _arme_ has since acquired, in every
quarter of the globe, a celebrity never exceeded by the armies of any
nation at any period.
The weapons carried by the infantry, during the several reigns
succeeding the Conquest, were bows and arrows, half-pikes, lances,
halberds, various kinds of battle-axes, swords, and daggers. Armour
was worn on the head and body, and in course of time the practice
became general for military men to be so completely cased in steel,
that it was almost impossible to slay them.
The introduction of the use of gunpowder in the destructive purposes
of war, in the early part of the fourteenth century, produced a
change in the arms and equipment of the infantry-soldier. Bows and
arrows gave place to various kinds of fire-arms, but British archers
continued formidable adversaries; and, owing to the inconvenient
construction and imperfect bore of the fire-arms when first
introduced, a body of men, well trained in the use of the bow from
their youth, was considered a valuable acquisition to every army,
even as late as the sixteenth century.
During a great part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth each company
of infantry usually consisted of men armed five different ways; in
every hundred men forty were "_men-at-arms_," and sixty "_shot_;" the
"men-at-arms" were ten halberdiers, or battle-axe men, and thirty
pikemen; and the "shot" were twenty archers, twenty musketeers, and
twenty harquebusiers, and each man carried, besides his principal
weapon, a sword and dagger.
Companies of infantry varied at this period in numbers from 150
to 300 men; each company had a colour or ensign, and the mode of
formation recommended by an English military writer (Sir John Smithe)
in 1590 was:--the colour in the centre of the company guarded by the
halberdiers; the pikemen in equal proportions, on each flank of the
halberdiers: half the musketeers on each flank of the pikes; half
the archers on each flank of the musketeers, and the harquebusiers
(whose arms were much lighter than the muskets then in use) in equal
proportions on each flank of the company for skirmishing.[1] It
was customary to unite a number of companies into one body, called
a REGIMENT, which frequently amounted to three thousand men: but
each company continued to carry a colour. Numerous improvements
were eventually introduced in the construction of fire-arms, and,
it having been found impossible to make armour proof against the
muskets then in use (which carried a very heavy ball) without its
being too weighty for the soldier, armour was gradually laid aside by
the infantry in the seventeenth century: bows and arrows also fell
into disuse, and the infantry were reduced to two classes, viz.:
_musketeers_, armed with matchlock muskets, swords, and daggers; and
_pikemen_, armed with pikes from fourteen to eighteen feet long, and
swords.
In the early part of the seventeenth century Gustavus Adolphus, King
of Sweden, reduced the strength of regiments to 1000 men. He caused
the gunpowder, which had heretofore been carried in flasks, or in
small wooden bandoliers, each containing a charge, to be made up
into cartridges, and carried in pouches; and he formed each regiment
into two wings of musketeers, and a centre division of pikemen. He
also adopted the practice of forming four regiments into a brigade;
and the number of colours was afterwards reduced to three in each
regiment. He formed his columns so compactly that his infantry could
resist the charge of the celebrated Polish horsemen and Austrian
cuirassiers; and his armies became the admiration of other nations.
His mode of formation was copied by the English, French, and other
European states; but so great was the prejudice in favour of ancient
customs, that all his improvements were not adopted until near a
century afterwards.
In 1664 King Charles II. raised a corps for sea-service, styled the
Admiral's regiment. In 1678 each company of 100 men usually consisted
of 30 pikemen, 60 musketeers, and 10 men armed with light firelocks.
In this year the King added a company of men armed with hand grenades
to each of the old British regiments, which was designated the
"grenadier company." Daggers were so contrived as to fit in the
muzzles of the muskets, and bayonets, similar to those at present in
use, were adopted about twenty years afterwards.
An Ordnance regiment was raised in 1685, by order of King James II.,
to guard the artillery, and was designated the Royal Fusiliers (now
7th Foot). This corps, and the companies of grenadiers, did not carry
pikes.
King William III. incorporated the Admiral's regiment in the second
Foot Guards, and raised two Marine regiments for sea-service.
During the war in this reign, each company of infantry (excepting
the fusiliers and grenadiers) consisted of 14 pikemen and 46
musketeers; the captains carried pikes; lieutenants, partisans;
ensigns, half-pikes; and serjeants, halberds. After the peace in 1697
the Marine regiments were disbanded, but were again formed on the
breaking out of the war in 1702.[2]
During the reign of Queen Anne the pikes were laid aside, and every
infantry soldier was armed with a musket, bayonet, and sword; the
grenadiers ceased, about the same period, to carry hand grenades;
and the regiments were directed to lay aside their third colour: the
corps of Royal Artillery was first added to the Army in this reign.
About the year 1745, the men of the battalion companies of infantry
ceased to carry swords; during the reign of George II. light
companies were added to infantry regiments; and in 1764 a Board of
General Officers recommended that the grenadiers should lay aside
their swords, as that weapon had never been used during the Seven
Years' War. Since that period the arms of the infantry soldier have
been limited to the musket and bayonet.
The arms and equipment of the British Troops have seldom differed
materially, since the Conquest, from those of other European states;
and in some respects the arming has, at certain periods, been allowed
to be inferior to that of the nations with whom they have had to
contend; yet, under this disadvantage, the bravery and superiority of
the British infantry have been evinced on very many and most trying
occasions, and splendid victories have been gained over very superior
numbers.
Great Britain has produced a race of lion-like champions who have
dared to confront a host of foes, and have proved themselves valiant
with any arms. At _Crecy_, King Edward III., at the head of about
30,000 men, defeated, on the 26th of August, 1346, Philip King of
France, whose army is said to have amounted to 100,000 men; here
British valour encountered veterans of renown:--the King of Bohemia,
the King of Majorca, and many princes and nobles were slain, and
the French army was routed and cut to pieces. Ten years afterwards,
Edward Prince of Wales, who was designated the Black Prince,
defeated, at _Poictiers_, with 14,000 men, a French army of 60,000
horse, besides infantry, and took John I., King of France, and his
son Philip, prisoners. On the 25th of October, 1415, King Henry
V., with an army of about 13,000 men, although greatly exhausted by
marches, privations, and sickness, defeated, at _Agincourt_, the
Constable of France, at the head of the flower of the French nobility
and an army said to amount to 60,000 men, and gained a complete
victory.
During the seventy years' war between the United Provinces of the
Netherlands and the Spanish monarchy, which commenced in 1578 and
terminated in 1648, the British infantry in the service of the
States-General were celebrated for their unconquerable spirit and
firmness;[3] and in the thirty years' war between the Protestant
Princes and the Emperor of Germany, the British Troops in the
service of Sweden and other states were celebrated for deeds of
heroism.[4] In the wars of Queen Anne, the fame of the British army
under the great MARLBOROUGH was spread throughout the world; and
if we glance at the achievements performed within the memory of
persons now living, there is abundant proof that the Britons of the
present age are not inferior to their ancestors in the qualities
which constitute good soldiers. Witness the deeds of the brave men,
of whom there are many now surviving, who fought in Egypt in 1801,
under the brave Abercromby, and compelled the French army, which had
been vainly styled _Invincible_, to evacuate that country; also the
services of the gallant Troops during the arduous campaigns in the
Peninsula, under the immortal WELLINGTON; and the determined stand
made by the British Army at Waterloo, where Napoleon Bonaparte,
who had long been the inveterate enemy of Great Britain, and had
sought and planned her destruction by every means he could devise,
was compelled to leave his vanquished legions to their fate, and
to place himself at the disposal of the British Government. These
achievements, with others of recent dates, in the distant climes of
India, prove that the same valour and constancy which glowed in the
breasts of the heroes of Crecy, Poictiers, Agincourt, Blenheim, and
Ramilies, continue to animate the Britons of the nineteenth century.
The British Soldier is distinguished for a robust and muscular
frame,--intrepidity which no danger can appal,--unconquerable
spirit and resolution,--patience in fatigue and privation, and
cheerful obedience to his superiors. These qualities, united with
an excellent system of order and discipline to regulate and give
a skilful direction to the energies and adventurous spirit of the
hero, and a wise selection of officers of superior talent to command,
whose presence inspires confidence,--have been the leading causes
of the splendid victories gained by the British arms.[5] The fame
of the deeds of the past and present generations in the various
battle-fields where the robust sons of Albion have fought and
conquered, surrounds the British arms with a halo of glory; these
achievements will live in the page of history to the end of time.
The records of the several regiments will be found to contain a
detail of facts of an interesting character, connected with the
hardships, sufferings, and gallant exploits of British soldiers in
the various parts of the world where the calls of their Country and
the commands of their Sovereign have required them to proceed in the
execution of their duty, whether in active continental operations,
or in maintaining colonial territories in distant and unfavourable
climes.
The superiority of the British infantry has been pre-eminently set
forth in the wars of six centuries, and admitted by the greatest
commanders which Europe has produced. The formations and movements of
this _arme_, as at present practised, while they are adapted to every
species of warfare, and to all probable situations and circumstances
of service, are calculated to show forth the brilliancy of military
tactics calculated upon mathematical and scientific principles.
Although the movements and evolutions have been copied from the
continental armies, yet various improvements have from time to time
been introduced, to insure that simplicity and celerity by which the
superiority of the national military character is maintained. The
rank and influence which Great Britain has attained among the nations
of the world, have in a great measure been purchased by the valour
of the Army, and to persons who have the welfare of their country
at heart, the records of the several regiments cannot fail to prove
interesting.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] A company of 200 men would appear thus:--
__|
| |
|__|
|
20 20 20 30 2|0 30 20 20 20
|
Harquebuses. Muskets. Halberds. Muskets. Harquebuses.
Archers. Pikes. Pikes. Archers.
The musket carried a ball which weighed 1/10th of a pound; and the
harquebus a ball which weighed 1/25th of a pound.
[2] The 30th, 31st, and 32nd Regiments were formed as Marine corps
in 1702, and were employed as such during the wars in the reign of
Queen Anne. The Marine corps were embarked in the Fleet under Admiral
Sir George Rooke, and were at the taking of Gibraltar, and in its
subsequent defence in 1704; they were afterwards employed at the
siege of Barcelona in 1705.
[3] The brave Sir Roger Williams, in his Discourse on War, printed
in 1590, observes:--"I persuade myself ten thousand of our nation
would beat thirty thousand of theirs (the Spaniards) out of the
field, let them be chosen where they list." Yet at this time the
Spanish infantry was allowed to be the best disciplined in Europe.
For instances of valour displayed by the British Infantry during the
Seventy Years' War, see the Historical Record of the Third Foot, or
Buffs.
[4] _Vide_ the Historical Record of the First, or Royal Regiment of
Foot.
[5] "Under the blessing of Divine Providence, His Majesty ascribes
the successes which have attended the exertions of his troops in
Egypt to that determined bravery which is inherent in Britons; but
His Majesty desires it may be most solemnly and forcibly impressed
on the consideration of every part of the army, that it has been a
strict observance of order, discipline, and military system, which
has given the full energy to the native valour of the troops, and
has enabled them proudly to assert the superiority of the national
military character, in situations uncommonly arduous, and under
circumstances of peculiar difficulty."--_General Orders in 1801._
In the General Orders issued by Lieut.-General Sir John Hope
(afterwards Lord Hopetoun), congratulating the army upon the
successful result of the Battle of Corunna, on the 16th of January,
1809, it is stated:--"On no occasion has the undaunted valour of
British troops ever been more manifest. At the termination of a
severe and harassing march, rendered necessary by the superiority
which the enemy had acquired, and which had materially impaired the
efficiency of the troops, many disadvantages were to be encountered.
These have all been surmounted by the conduct of the troops
themselves: and the enemy has been taught, that whatever advantages
of position or of numbers he may possess, there is inherent in
the British officers and soldiers a bravery that knows not how to
yield,--that no circumstances can appal,--and that will ensure
victory, when it is to be obtained by the exertion of any human
means."
[Illustration: SIXTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
_Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t. Strand_
_For Cannon's Military Records_]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT OF FOOT.
[Sidenote: 1756]
The French Government having failed to fulfil the conditions
stipulated in the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, and having committed
certain encroachments on the British Territories in North America,
and other acts of aggression, King George II. again prepared for
war, which was proclaimed against France on the 18th of May, 1758.
The Army and Navy were consequently increased, and, among other
augmentations, fifteen of the regiments of infantry were authorised
to raise second battalions from the 25th of August, 1756.[6]
[Sidenote: 1758]
In 1758, these additional battalions were formed into distinct corps,
and numbered from the sixty-first to the seventh-fifth regiments. By
this arrangement the second battalion of the Twentieth regiment was
constituted the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, and His Majesty was pleased
to confer the colonelcy on Colonel James Wolfe, on the 21st of April
of that year, from the Twentieth (Kingsley's) regiment in which he
had served from 1749, and which had acquired, under his command,
a high character for its exactness of discipline and other useful
qualities.
The SIXTY-SEVENTH, being thus formed from the Twentieth regiment,
assumed the _pale yellow_ facing as worn by the Twentieth, which it
has since retained.
The following officers were appointed to commissions in the
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on its formation from the 21st of April, 1758.
_Colonel_, James Wolfe from 20th Regt.
_Lieut.-Colonel_, Robert Robinson from 20th Regt.
_Major_, Thomas Bowyer from 14th Foot.
_Captains._
Chas. Veaitch, from 20th Regt.
Edw. Goodenough, ditto
William Delaune, ditto
James Dunne, ditto
Thos. Osborne, from 20th Regt.
John Baldwin, from 51st Regt.
Geo. Sherwin, from 20th Regt.
_Lieutenants._
James Nesbitt, from 20th Regt.
William Dughe, ditto
William Edwards, ditto
Francis Raper, ditto
Freeheville Dykes, ditto
Marmaduke Green, ditto
John Gardner, ditto
John Cane, ditto
Richard Faulkner, ditto
George Smith, from 20th Regt.
William Yorke, ditto
Philip Hales, ditto
Henry Nesbit, ditto
Thos. Wilkinson, ditto
Alexander Rose, ditto
John Matson, ditto
Despard Croasdale, ditto
_Ensigns._
Wm. Massey, from 20th Regt.
Thomas Barker, ditto
Joseph Collings, ditto
Royston Barton, ditto
George Sladdan.
Robert Griffiths.
Thomas Lowe.
_Quarter-Master_, James Kirkman.
_Chaplain_, George Carleton.
_Surgeon_, Joseph Harris, from 20th Regiment.
_Adjutant_, James England, ditto
[Sidenote: 1759]
After its formation as a distinct regiment, the SIXTY-SEVENTH
remained at various stations in England during the years 1759 and
1760. Its Colonel, James Wolfe, had been appointed, in January, 1758,
Brigadier-General in North America, and afterwards distinguished
himself in the operations preceding the capture of _Cape Breton_,
which surrendered on the 26th of July, 1758, and again in the
expedition against _Quebec_, when he died of the wounds received at
the battle on the heights of Abraham, above Quebec, on the 13th of
September, 1759.
On the 24th of October, 1759, His Majesty was pleased to confer
the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment on Lieut.-Colonel Lord
Frederick Cavendish, from the First Foot Guards, in succession to
Major-General James Wolfe, deceased.
The decease of King George II. occurred on the 25th of October, 1760,
and on the day following His Majesty George III., grandson of the
late Sovereign, was proclaimed King of Great Britain and Ireland.
[Sidenote: 1760]
On the 30th of October, 1760, His Majesty King George III.
was pleased to remove Colonel Lord Frederick Cavendish to the
Thirty-fourth regiment, and to appoint Major-General Sir Henry
Erskine, Bart., to succeed him as Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment.
[Sidenote: 1761]
In the spring of 1761 the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment formed part of
the force selected to proceed, under the command of Major-General
Studholme Hodgson, against _Belle-Isle_, a French island in the Bay
of Biscay, off the coast of Brittany. Major-General Hodgson had the
undermentioned officers and regiments placed under his orders, which
amounted to nearly nine thousand men:--
Major-General John Craufurd; Brigadier-Generals William Rufane,
Hamilton Lambert (afterwards Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH), Guy
Carleton, Honorable William Howe, Robert Douglas, and Philip
Jennings; _Deputy-Adjutant-General_ Lieutenant-Colonel Sir
Thomas Spencer Wilson, Bart.; _Deputy-Quartermaster-General_
Lieutenant-Colonel Lewis Thomas.
REGIMENTS. COMMANDING OFFICERS. MEN.
16th Light Dragoons Lieut.-Col. Burgoyne 200
9th Foot " R. Phillips 800
19th ditto " R. Douglas 800
21st ditto " Edw. Maxwell 800
30th ditto " John Jennings 800
67th ditto " Thomas Shirley 800
69th ditto " Christopher Teesdale 800
76th ditto[7] " D. Erskine 1300
85th ditto, 1st Batt.[7] " Viscount Pulteney 700
90th ditto[7] " Hugh Morgan 500
97th ditto[7] Lieut.-Col. Commandant J. Stuart 600
98th ditto[7] " Major Purcell 600
----
8,700
-----
The expedition appeared before _Belle-Isle_ on the 7th of April, and
a landing was attempted on the following day; but the whole island
appeared like one vast fortress;--the little which nature had left
undone by rocks and crags, having been supplied by art; so that
when the grenadiers gained the shore, the enemy was discovered so
strongly fortified, that no efforts of the few men which could be
landed at once, were of any avail. A boat of Erskine's grenadiers
(SIXTY-SEVENTH), commanded by Captain Thomas Osborne, landed at a
point, and drew up undiscovered. His situation flanked the enemy,
but no other boat followed. The French immediately came out, and
Captain Osborne advanced to meet them. Twice brought to the ground
by a shot, he pressed on, and approached so close to the enemy, that
he exchanged thrusts with the French officer in command. The English
fired, and then charged with the bayonet. The commanders on both
sides were killed, when the English, being without leaders, were
unable to maintain their position.--Attempts to secure a landing
on other points of the island being also unsuccessful, orders were
given to desist from the attempt, and the men returned to the boats,
and proceeded back to their several ships. Many of the boats were
destroyed or damaged in this attempt, and about five hundred men were
lost in killed, wounded, and missing.
Commodore Keppel stated in his letter, of the 13th of April, 1761, to
the Right Honorable Mr. Secretary Pitt, afterwards created the Earl
of Chatham, that
"One of the flat boats landed sixty of Erskine's grenadiers
(SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment), who got up a very difficult place to the
top of the hills, where they formed with great skill, but were so
immediately routed by a much more numerous body of the enemy, that
all attempts to succour them were ineffectual, any further than the
boats bringing from the rocks about twenty of them." On the 8th
of April, 1761, the SIXTY-SEVENTH had Captain Thomas Osborne and
Lieutenant John Gardner killed. Lieutenants Marmaduke Green and
William Herdsman were taken prisoners. The other casualties were, two
serjeants, one drummer, and six rank and file killed; and sixteen
rank and file wounded.
Major-General Hodgson subsequently received the following
reinforcements:--
REGIMENTS. COMMANDING OFFICERS. MEN.
3rd Foot. Major J. Biddulph 800
36th ditto. Lieut.-Col. W. Preston 800
75th ditto[8] " C. Parry 800
85th ditto, 2nd Batt.[8] Major Sir Hugh Williams 600
----
3000
----
and another attempt to effect a landing was resolved upon.
Brigadier-General Hamilton Lambert, on the 22nd of April, 1761,
effected a landing on the rocks near Point Lomaria, where the
difficulty of ascending the precipice had made the enemy least
attentive to that part. Beauclerk's grenadiers (Nineteenth foot),
with Captain Patterson of that regiment, gained the summit before the
enemy saw what was intended, who immediately marched a body of three
hundred men to attack them; the grenadiers, however, maintained their
ground till the remainder of Brigadier Lambert's troops arrived.
The success, thus gained, was promptly followed up; the French
were eventually repulsed, and three brass field-pieces, with a few
prisoners, were captured.
The cannon was afterwards landed from the ships and dragged up the
rocks; the lines which covered the town of Palais were carried by
assault, and the siege of the citadel was prosecuted with vigour.
The garrison under their Governor, the Chevalier de St. Croix, made
a gallant defence, but on the 7th of June were forced to surrender,
and were permitted to march through the breach with the honours of
war in consideration of their bravery. The capture of the island was
thus achieved, with the loss of about eighteen hundred men killed and
wounded.[9]
On the 29th of May, 1761, Major-General Sir Henry Erskine was
removed to the Twenty-fifth regiment, and King George III. was
pleased to promote Lieut.-Colonel Hamilton Lambert, from the
Thirty-first regiment, to the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, as a reward for
his gallantry at the capture of Belle-Isle.
[Sidenote: 1762]
While success attended the arms of Great Britain, in various parts
of the world, the Sovereigns of France and Spain were negotiating
a compact, which gave a new turn to the nature of the war; and the
two crowns attempted to coerce Portugal to unite in their designs
against Great Britain. Portugal at this period was particularly weak;
the capital, Lisbon, had been destroyed by an earthquake five years
previously, when nearly thirty thousand inhabitants had been buried
in its ruins. This disaster had been followed by a conspiracy against
the life of the King, while the country was shaken by internal
commotions; at the same time the military force of the kingdom
was weak in numbers, scantily furnished with arms, and without
experienced officers. Notwithstanding these adverse circumstances,
the King of Portugal resolved to adhere to his ancient alliance
with Great Britain; and in consequence of this decision, France and
Spain declared war against him. A powerful Spanish army assembled
on the frontiers, and threatened to crush the Portuguese, when a
military force, with artillery, arms, stores, provisions, and money,
was furnished by Great Britain to assist its faithful ally; and the
SIXTY-SEVENTH, which had returned with the expedition from the coast
of France, was one of the regiments selected for service in Portugal.
The regiment proceeded to Portugal, and continued in that country
until the termination of hostilities by the treaty of Fontainebleau,
the preliminary articles of which were signed by the Duke of Bedford
at Fontainebleau, on the 3rd of November, 1762.
[Sidenote: 1763]
Peace was proclaimed in London on the 22nd of March, 1763, and by
its provisions it was settled that the Island of _Minorca_, which had
been captured by the French in April, 1756, should be restored to
Great Britain. The SIXTY-SEVENTH and the Third foot from Portugal,
the Eleventh, Thirty-third, and Thirty-seventh regiments from
Germany, and the Fifty-seventh from Gibraltar, were embarked in order
to form the garrison of Minorca.[10]
[Sidenote: 1768]
[Sidenote: 1771]
In the Royal Warrant of King George III. dated 19th of December,
1768, containing regulations for the colours, clothing, &c. of the
regiments of foot, it was directed that the regimental colour of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment should be _pale yellow_, being similar to the
colours of the Twentieth regiment, from which it was formed. The
SIXTY-SEVENTH remained on duty at Minorca until July, 1771, when the
Third, Eleventh, and SIXTY-SEVENTH regiments embarked for England,
on being relieved by the Royals (second battalion), the Fifty-first
and Sixty-first regiments.
[Sidenote: 1773]
In the year 1773 the regiment proceeded to Scotland, where it
remained until the year 1775.
[Sidenote: 1774]
On the decease of Lieut.-General Hamilton Lambert in 1774, His
Majesty was pleased to promote Lieut.-Colonel Edward Maxwell Brown,
from the Twenty-first, Royal North British Fusiliers, to the
colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on the 11th of March, 1774.
[Sidenote: 1775]
The regiment embarked for Ireland in 1775, to replace the
Forty-second, Royal Highland regiment, and continued on duty in that
country until the year 1785.
[Sidenote: 1782]
On the 31st of August, 1782, His Majesty directed that the regiment
should be designated the SIXTY-SEVENTH, or the SOUTH HAMPSHIRE
regiment, with a view that a connexion might be cultivated between
the corps and that county, in order to promote the success of the
recruiting service.
[Sidenote: 1785]
Early in the year 1785 the regiment embarked from Ireland for the
West Indies, to relieve the Fifty-fifth regiment.
The regiment proceeded from Barbadoes to Antigua in the autumn of
1785.
[Sidenote: 1788]
During the years 1788, 1789, 1790, 1791, and 1792, the regiment was
stationed at Grenada.
[Sidenote: 1793]
In the year 1793 the regiment was stationed at Barbadoes, and in
July, 1794, returned to Great Britain: the regiment subsequently
proceeded to Ireland.
[Sidenote: 1796]
On the 25th of February, 1796, the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment embarked
from Ireland for the island of St. Domingo. An expedition had
proceeded to St. Domingo in 1794, in order to aid the planters
against the persecution of the negro inhabitants, who had imbibed the
doctrines of liberty and equality, propagated at that period. The
distracted state of France afforded the inhabitants no prospect of
relief, and they were therefore desirous of placing themselves under
the protection of Great Britain. Much resistance was experienced from
the negroes, and the English took possession of Port-au-Prince, the
capital of St. Domingo, now the republic of Hayti; but no effectual
steps could be taken for the reduction of the island, as the yellow
fever destroyed the Europeans with frightful rapidity on their
arrival on its fatal coast: the British evacuated the place in 1798.
[Sidenote: 1798]
Towards the end of the year 1798 the regiment proceeded from St.
Domingo to Jamaica, after having suffered severely by disease at the
former island.
[Sidenote: 1801]
On the 21st of October, 1801, the regiment embarked at Jamaica for
England, greatly reduced in numbers from the effects of the climate
of the West Indies.
[Sidenote: 1802]
During the year 1802, the regiment was stationed in South Britain.
[Sidenote: 1803]
On the 25th February, 1803, His Majesty was pleased to appoint
Lieut.-General Francis D'Oyly, from Colonel Commandant of the
Fifteenth foot, to the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on
the decease of General Edward Maxwell Brown; and on the 9th of March
following General Peter Craig was appointed Colonel of the regiment,
in succession to Lieut.-General D'Oyly, whose decease occurred on the
4th of March, 1803.
In consequence of the renewal of war with France, and the extensive
preparations made in the ports of that country, particularly at
Dunkirk and Boulogne, for carrying into effect the threatened
invasion of Great Britain, the most active measures were adopted by
the British Government to frustrate the designs of the French ruler.
An Act of Parliament was passed in 1803 for raising men for limited
service in Great Britain and Ireland, which was termed the _Army of
Reserve Act_, and the men so raised were formed into additional and
distinct battalions.
The SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, which had embarked for Ireland in the
beginning of 1803, was authorised to receive men raised in Ireland
under the Army of Reserve Act, and a _Second Battalion_ was added to
the establishment on the 9th of July, 1803.
On the 13th of October the first battalion embarked at Dundalk for
Guernsey, where it arrived on the 25th of November following.
[Sidenote: 1804]
About the middle of November, 1804, the regiment was removed from the
island of Guernsey to Portsmouth, where it arrived on the 30th of
November.
[Sidenote: 1805]
On the 25th of March, 1805, the regiment was augmented to an
establishment of 64 serjeants, 22 drummers, and 1200 rank and file.
From Portsmouth the first battalion embarked on the 22nd of April,
1805, for the East Indies, and arrived in the Presidency of Bengal on
the 15th of September of the same year.
[Sidenote: 1807]
In December, 1807, the SIXTY-SEVENTH proceeded from Fort William to
Dinapore, at which station the regiment arrived in March following.
[Sidenote: 1810]
The regiment marched for Benares, in January, 1810, and from thence
to Ghazeepore.
[Sidenote: 1811]
In January, 1811, the regiment again proceeded to Benares, and
returned to Ghazeepore in the month of February of that year.
Lieut.-General Sir William Keppel, G.C.B., Colonel Commandant of the
Sixtieth, was appointed by His Majesty Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment, on the 7th of February, 1811, on the decease of General
Peter Craig.
[Sidenote: 1813]
The regiment proceeded from Ghazeepore to Cawnpore in January, 1813.
[Sidenote: 1815]
On the 10th of October, 1815, the regiment marched from Cawnpore to
Meerut, where it arrived on the 7th of November.
[Sidenote: 1817]
The first battalion of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment marched from Meerut
on the 15th of October, 1817, on field service, and joined the army
of reserve under the command of Major-General Sir David Ochterlony.
On the 27th of November, the first battalion marched from Rewarree,
with the reserve of the grand army, to Jeypoor, a city which derives
its name from its founder Sevai Jye Singh, a celebrated Hindoo
warrior and statesman.
[Sidenote: 1818]
The battalion marched from Dungurter to Oojein in the middle of
February, where it joined the Bombay division of the army, under
Major-General Sir William Grant Keir, on the 7th of March. It
proceeded from Oojein for Baroda on the 13th of March; and on the 9th
of April following, marched from Baroda to Tankaira, being the first
regiment of His Majesty's army that crossed the Peninsula of India.
It embarked for Bombay, where the battalion arrived on the 23rd of
April.
On the 30th of April, 1818, six companies embarked from Bombay for
the southern Concan,[11] and were present at the siege and surrender
of the strong fortress of _Ryghur_ on the 10th of May following.
This important stronghold is situated upon the Ghauts which bound
the eastern frontier of the Concan, in a line between Poonah and
Bancoote, and was one of the fortresses which the Peishwah, Bajee
Rao, had surrendered on the 8th of May, 1817, as a pledge of his
sincerity. Notwithstanding the stupendous height and extensive area
on the top of the fortress, shells were thrown into every part of it,
and the palace set on fire, which greatly tended to determine the
enemy to surrender. The garrison held out a flag for terms, and after
three days of communication and treaty, Lieut.-Colonel David Prother,
C.B., of the Ninth Native Infantry, was induced to allow the garrison
honorable terms, permitting them to march out with their arms and
private property, on the 10th of May. The wife of His Highness the
late Peishwah was found in the fort on taking possession, and public
property, in specie, to the amount of five lacs.
Lieut.-Colonel Prother stated in Brigade Orders on the 12th of May--
"The surrender of the fortress of Ryghur having closed the
operations, the Commanding Officer has peculiar pleasure in offering
a public acknowledgment to the merits of those by whom this event has
been so much accelerated....
"Although Major Benjafield and the detachment of His Majesty's
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, did not arrive until nearly the end of the
siege, yet the share taken by them fully deserves the Commanding
Officer's thanks."
The six companies of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment returned to
head-quarters on the 26th of May.
On the 11th of May, four companies embarked from Bombay for
Surat, and were present on the 8th, 18th, 21st, and 28th of June,
when possession was taken of the towns and forts of Nunderbar,
Cokermundaye, Toulodah, and Kopriel.
In the middle of September the first battalion embarked in three
divisions for the Deccan, and arrived at Seroor on the 5th of
October following; on the 30th of October the regiment marched from
Seroor, and arrived at Mallygaum, the head-quarters of the troops in
Candeish, on the 11th of November. Colonel Huskinson,[12] of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH, being the senior officer, assumed the command of the
troops.
His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the name and on the behalf
of His Majesty, was pleased, on the 24th of October, 1818, to appoint
Lieut.-Colonel John Frederick Ewart, of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment,
to which he had exchanged from half-pay of the Fifth West India
regiment, on the 5th of February, 1818, a Companion of the most
Honorable Military Order of the Bath.
The force commanded by Colonel S. Huskinson, of which the
SIXTY-SEVENTH formed part, marched on the 25th of November for the
attack of the towns and forts of _Amulneir_ and _Behauderpore_,
which surrendered at discretion on the 30th of November and the 1st
of December, and of which possession was taken, the first place by
the flank companies of the regiment, and the latter by the auxiliary
horse under Captain Swanton.
Colonel Huskinson, commanding the troops at Candeish, in his despatch
to the Resident, the Honorable Mountstuart Elphinstone, dated Camp
before Amulneir, 30th of November, 1818, stated,--
"It gives me the greatest satisfaction to have to announce to you,
for the information of the Most Noble the Governor-General in India,
that the fort of Amulneir surrendered unconditionally to the force
I have the honor to command, about noon this day, where, as soon
after as possible, Brevet Major Owen, of His Majesty's SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment, by my orders, occupied the whole of the gates and fort with
part of the flank companies of that regiment. This service, I am
happy to say, was effected without firing a shot. May I request your
orders respecting the disposal of Ally Jemadar and his followers, who
are now prisoners in camp."
Here the four companies, which left head-quarters in May, rejoined
the regiment.
Leaving Amulneir on the 4th of December, the SIXTY-SEVENTH proceeded
to Malligaum, where the battalion arrived on the 14th of that month.
[Sidenote: 1819]
The SIXTY-SEVENTH marched for Amulneir, with the force under the
command of Colonel Huskinson, on the 25th of February, 1819. On
the 3rd of March eight companies of the regiment, under Brevet
Lieut.-Colonel Maxwell,[13] proceeded to Asseerghur, and joined
the force under Brigadier-General Doveton, before the fortress
of _Asseerghur_,[14] which, on account of its strength, has been
designated the "Gibraltar of the East."
The fortress of Asseerghur, which had been held by one of Scindiah's
refractory chiefs, is situated on a detached hill between the rivers
Nerbudda and Tapty: it consists of an upper and lower fort; the upper
one is of an irregular form, about 1100 yards from east to west, and
about 600 from north to south; it crowns the top of the hill, which
is about 750 feet in height; a perpendicular precipice from 80 to 120
feet, surmounted with a low wall full of loopholes, surrounds it,
with the exception of one place, which is strongly fortified. Below
are two lines of works, the outer one forming the lower fort, which
rises directly above the Pettah,[15] and the entrance to which is
protected by strong gateways and flanking works. Immense labour and
great skill had been employed to render this naturally strong post
almost impregnable; and at the siege of which the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment was present.
The Hyderabad division was encamped at Neembolah, about seven miles
from Asseerghur, and negotiations having failed, about twelve o'clock
on the night of the 17th of March five companies of the Royal Scots
(First regiment of foot) with the flank companies of the Thirtieth,
SIXTY-SEVENTH, and Madras European regiment, five companies of native
infantry, and a detachment of sappers and miners, the whole commanded
by Lieutenant-Colonel Fraser, of the Royal Scots, and a reserve
commanded by Major Dalrymple, of the Thirtieth, assembled at the
camp for the attack of the pettah of Asseer; another party was also
directed to co-operate in this service from Brigadier-General Sir
John Malcolm's division.
The column commenced its march between one and two o'clock, advancing
up the bed of a deep nullah, or small river, nearly dry at the time;
the assaulting party arrived unobserved within five hundred yards
of the pettah, then rushed upon the gate with the greatest ardour
and steadiness, the Royal Scots leading the way. The enemy was
surprised, and, after discharging a few rounds of grape, retired.
The head of the attacking column forced the gate, and proceeding up
the main street, encountered an advanced piquet of the enemy, which
retired to the lower fort, firing occasionally at the head of the
column. Major Charles MacLeod, of the East India Company's service,
Deputy-Quartermaster-General, acted as guide on the occasion; by his
direction the leading files of the Royal Scots pursued the enemy
close under the walls of the fortress, from whence an incessant fire
of artillery and matchlocks was kept up; a few ill-directed rockets
were also discharged.
The leading sections of the Royal Scots, which had pursued the enemy
up the hill, were joined by one or two files of the Thirtieth and
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiments, the whole amounting to about 25 or 30 men.
As soon as the enemy saw the small force before which he had so
precipitately fled, he immediately rallied, and came shouting down
the hill with augmented numbers to attack this small party, but was
repulsed by a spirited charge with the bayonet, which, with a few
rounds of musketry, obliged him to retreat within the works, some of
which were within about fifty yards of this handful of men, leaving
the Chief, who was shot in the _melée_, and several men on the field.
The pettah of Asseerghur was thus captured on the morning of the
18th of March, with trifling loss; but on the evening of the
following day a desperate sally was made by a part of the garrison
on the advanced post of the troops in the pettah, on which occasion
Lieutenant-Colonel Fraser, of the Royal Scots, was unfortunately
killed, while gallantly rallying the party under his command, and
keeping the advance in their position. The enemy was, however,
immediately driven back, and compelled to retire into the fort.
During the progress of constructing new batteries on elevated and
commanding situations, the dragging of ordnance into many of them
was performed by the European soldiers, who literally worked like
horses; during the whole of the time they were annoyed by a constant
fire of matchlocks from the walls of the upper fort (the lower
fort had been taken possession of on the 30th of March, by part of
Brigadier-General Sir John Malcolm's division), but which was too
distant to prevent the execution of this Herculean labour, which was
performed with that ardour and cheerfulness so characteristic of
British soldiers, when necessity demands from them any extraordinary
exertions.
On the 31st of March, part of the Bengal army, consisting of 2200
native troops, with 22 pieces of heavy ordnance, commanded by
Brigadier-General Watson, joined the besieging force; and these
guns were soon placed in battery, and opened on the fort. The storm
of war now raged furiously round Asseerghur, and a breach was soon
effected in the outer wall at the only assailable part of the fort;
at the same time two batteries were directed against the inner wall.
This unremitting fire was continued until the 6th of April, when the
garrison forced the Killedar to sue for terms, namely, "liberty to
preserve their arms, and to depart with their personal property."
These conditions were refused, and hostilities recommenced; the
Killedar, however, accepted the terms offered on the 8th, and agreed
to surrender the fort on the morning of the 9th, when the firing
ceased; but as he stated that he could not answer for the garrison,
the control of which he had lost, preparations were made for renewing
operations in case of refusal.
The garrison surrendered unconditionally on the 9th of April, and
five hundred men of the SIXTY-SEVENTH, under the command of Major
Benjafield, with the 7th Madras light cavalry, and the second
battalion of the 13th Madras native infantry, took possession of the
fortress, on the garrison marching out and laying down their arms on
the public parade.
The following was the return of ordnance, &c. taken in the fortress
of Asseerghur by the troops under the command of Brigadier-General
Doveton. Brass and iron ordnance, 128; about 36,000 stone and iron
shot, of different sizes; two hundredweight of gunpowder; 2000
wall-pieces, of different sizes; and about four hundredweight of
grape-shot.
During the siege the SIXTY-SEVENTH had Lieutenants J. Adair and
John Hannah severely wounded; Lieutenant Adair[16] was twice
severely wounded by matchlock balls in the left arm and right side,
on the 19th of March, in repulsing the sortie of the garrison of
Asseerghur:--one serjeant, one drummer, and eleven rank and file were
wounded.
Major Owen, who commanded the flank companies of His Majesty's
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, was particularly mentioned in Orders by
Brigadier-General Doveton, who also reported that "the fall of Asseer
leaves to the Brigadier-General only the pleasing task of recording
his sense of the merits and exertions of the officers and troops, and
of bringing them to the notice of superior authority, where they can
alone be fully and properly appreciated.
"To the means placed at the Brigadier-General's disposal, by
the rapid advance of the division under the personal command of
Brigadier-General Sir John Malcolm, K.C.B., as well as of the troops
from the Nerbudda field force and from Saugur, under the personal
command of Brigadier-General Watson, C.B., to the science and
skill of the engineer and artillery branches, and finally to the
distinguished gallantry and persevering exertions of the whole of
the officers and troops whom the Brigadier-General has the honor to
command, are principally to be attributed the fall of so stupendous a
fortress in eleven days from the opening of the trenches....
"He requests also that Lieutenant-Colonels MacDowell, Dewar, Ewart
(Lieut.-Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment), Greenstreet, and
Pollock, commanding brigades of infantry, will be fully persuaded
of the high estimation in which he holds the eminent services
rendered by them, as well as by the officers and men of their several
brigades"....
Brigadier-General Sir John Malcolm also reported:--
"I have to state my sense of the zeal and activity of my
Aide-de-Camp, Ensign G. Pasley, of His Majesty's Fourteenth foot,
and extra Aide-de-Camp Lieutenant J. Pasley, of His Majesty's
SIXTY-SEVENTH foot."
On the 12th of April, the SIXTY-SEVENTH marched from Asseerghur, and
arrived at Mallygaum on the 26th of the same month.
The decease of Major Nathaniel Benjafield, of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment, occurred on the 2nd of June, 1819.
[Sidenote: 1820]
The regiment proceeded on the 6th of December, 1820, from Mallygaum,
in Candeish, and arrived at Sholapore, in the Deccan, on the 29th of
that month.
[Sidenote: 1823]
Colonel Samuel Huskinson, the Lieut.-Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment, was promoted on the 19th of July, 1821, to the rank of
Major-General, and on the 10th of January, 1837, was advanced to the
rank of Lieutenant-General.
Marching from Sholapore on the 23rd of April, the regiment arrived at
Poonah on the 10th of May, 1823.
[Sidenote: 1826]
On the 2nd of January, 1826, the first battalion of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment embarked in three divisions at Bombay for Calcutta, and
arrived there on the 2nd of March following. On the 13th of March the
battalion proceeded to Rangoon, and arrived opposite the town on the
27th of the same month. The battalion returned to Calcutta on 5th of
April following.
Major S. B. Taylor, Captain W. Webster, and Lieutenant J. Hassall,
of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, died at Fort William during April and
May of this year.
The SIXTY-SEVENTH embarked for England in the ships Zenobia,
Caroline, and Catherine Stewart Forbes, under the command of Major
Poyntz on the 9th of June, 1826. The head-quarters and second
division arrived at Gravesend on the 28th of November following,
after an absence of twenty-one years in India; the remainder of the
regiment arrived at Gravesend on the 16th of April, 1827.
On the 20th of December, 1826, the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment was
authorised by His Majesty King George IV. to bear on its colours and
appointments, in addition to any other badges or devices heretofore
granted, the figure of the ROYAL TIGER, with the word "INDIA"
superscribed, in commemoration of its services in that part of the
world from the year 1805 to 1826.
The regiment marched from Chatham to Windsor in December, 1826.
In March, 1827, the regiment proceeded from Windsor to Weedon, and in
October the head-quarters were stationed at Bolton, in Lancashire.
[Sidenote: 1828]
Towards the end of July, 1828, the regiment proceeded to Manchester,
and in October it marched to Liverpool.
His Majesty King George the Fourth was pleased to appoint
Major-General John Macdonald, C.B. (Deputy Adjutant-General to the
Forces) to the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on the 25th
of August, 1828, in succession to General Sir William Keppel, removed
to the Second or Queen's Royal regiment of foot.
[Sidenote: 1829]
The regiment marched from Liverpool to Stockport in January, 1829,
and in May following proceeded to Chester.
Major the Honorable H. R. Molyneux was promoted to the rank of
Lieut.-Colonel in the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on the 9th of April,
1829, Lieut.-Colonel Nathaniel Burslem having retired from the
service.
[Sidenote: 1830]
On the 18th of May, 1830, the regiment proceeded from Chester to
Liverpool, and embarked for Dublin, from whence it proceeded to
Mullingar.
On the 23rd of December, 1830, the regiment proceeded from Mullingar
to Newry, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel the Honorable Henry
R. Molyneux.
[Sidenote: 1832]
On the 14th of January, 1832, the SIXTY-SEVENTH, under the command of
Lieutenant-Colonel the Honorable H. R. Molyneux, embarked at Dublin
in the Stentor and Prince Regent transports for Gibraltar, and the
service companies arrived at that fortress on the 25th of February.
The depôt companies of the regiment remained in Ireland.
[Sidenote: 1833]
The service companies embarked in His Majesty's ship Revenge, from
Gibraltar, on the 28th of February, 1833, for the West Indies, and
arrived at Barbadoes on the 29th of March.
[Sidenote: 1834]
[Sidenote: 1836]
In May, 1834, the service companies proceeded to St. Christopher's;
and in May, 1836, were removed to Demerara.
The depôt companies were removed from Cork to Sheerness, in August,
1836, and in September, 1839, proceeded from Gosport to Cork.
[Sidenote: 1837]
The service companies remained at Demerara during the year 1837.
[Sidenote: 1838]
In January, 1838, the service companies proceeded to Berbice, but
returned to Demerara in June following.
[Sidenote: 1839]
The service companies proceeded from Demerara to Barbadoes, in June,
1839.
[Sidenote: 1840]
On the 21st of April, the service companies, consisting of 30
serjeants, 8 drummers, and 449 rank and file, embarked, under the
command of Brevet Major T. C. Harpour, from Barbadoes for North
America, in Her Majesty's ships Sapphire and Athol. The regiment
disembarked at Chambly, in Canada, on the 21st of May.
During the year 1840 the depôt companies were stationed at Buttevant
and Galway.
[Sidenote: 1841]
The service companies proceeded from Chambly to Drummondville, in
May, 1841.
In June, 1841, the depôt companies were removed from Galway to
Templemore.
[Sidenote: 1842]
The head-quarters, under the command of Major E. B. Brooke, marched
from Drummondville on the 19th of May, and arrived at St. Helen's,
Montreal, on the 25th of May, 1842. On the 3rd of November, 1842, the
service companies embarked in the Pestonjee Bomonjee transport at
Quebec, and disembarked at Plymouth on the 15th of December following.
The depôt companies joined the regiment on the 15th of December,
1842, having been removed from Ireland to Plymouth in October.
[Sidenote: 1843]
In May, 1843, the regiment proceeded from Plymouth to Weedon, and in
July marched to Manchester.
[Sidenote: 1844]
Lieutenant-General John Clitherow was appointed by Her Majesty to be
Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on the 15th of January, 1844,
upon Lieutenant-General Sir John Macdonald, G.C.B. (Adjutant-General
to the Forces), being removed to the Forty-second, Royal Highland,
regiment.
In December, 1844, the regiment was removed from Manchester to Dublin.
[Sidenote: 1845]
During the year 1845 the regiment continued to be stationed at Dublin.
[Sidenote: 1846]
In January, 1846, the regiment marched to Limerick, and in May
proceeded to Cork.
At this period the regiment was augmented to twelve companies,
consisting of 67 serjeants, 25 drummers, and 1200 rank and file,
and was subsequently organised into two battalions, preparatory to
embarking on foreign service.
On the 9th of November, 1846, Colonel Thomas Bunbury, K.H.,
commanding the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, was promoted to the rank
of Major-General, and Major Edward Basil Brooke was promoted to
the lieutenant-colonelcy, vacant by the promotion of Major-General
Bunbury.[17]
[Sidenote: 1847]
During the year 1847 the SIXTY-SEVENTH continued at Cork.
[Sidenote: 1848]
The first battalion embarked at Cork, under the command of
Lieut.-Colonel Edward Basil Brooke, in the Herefordshire
freight-ship, on the 8th of January, 1848, and arrived at Gibraltar
on the 19th of that month.
On the 20th of January, 1848, the reserve battalion of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel William
Nesbitt Orange, embarked at Cork, in the Bombay freight-ship, and
arrived at Gibraltar on the 8th of February following.
General Sir Robert Wilson, then Governor of Gibraltar, in his report,
dated the 18th of May, 1848, on the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, remarked,
"It is a corps composed of a superior body of men, well regulated and
well conducted, having had since its arrival but nine courts-martial.
"Its interior economy is carefully superintended by
Lieutenant-Colonel Brooke.
"Her Majesty's Regulations are strictly observed in all the
prescribed cases.
"It discharges every duty commendably, and is an efficient portion of
the Garrison for every service."
The depôt company was removed from Cork to the Isle of Wight, in
February, 1848.
[Sidenote: 1849]
On the 1st of May, 1849, the period to which this Record has been
continued, the two battalions of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment were
stationed at Gibraltar.
1849.
FOOTNOTES:
[6]
3rd Foot, 2nd Battalion, constituted the 61st Regiment.
4th " " " 62nd Regiment.
8th " " " 63rd Regiment.
11th " " " 64th Regiment.
12th " " " 65th Regiment.
19th " " " 66th Regiment.
20th " " " 67th Regiment.
23rd " " " 68th Regiment.
24th " " " 69th Regiment.
31st " " " 70th Regiment.
32nd " " " 71st Regiment.
33rd " " " 72nd Regiment.
34th " " " 73rd Regiment.
36th " " " 74th Regiment.
37th " " " 75th Regiment.
The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, and 75th regiments, were disbanded after
the peace of Fontainebleau in 1763.
[7] Disbanded in 1763.
[8] Disbanded in 1763.
[9] On the 17th June, 1761, the Right Honorable the Lord Mayor,
Aldermen, and Commons of the City of London, in Common Council
assembled, waited on His Majesty, and the Recorder, Sir William
Moreton, spoke the following address, referring to the capture of
_Belle-Isle_:--
To the King's _most excellent_ Majesty. _The humble Address of the
Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons of the City of London, in Common
Council assembled._
Most Gracious Sovereign,
With reverential awe and gratitude to the Supreme Giver of all
victory, we, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the
Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons of your City of London, in Common
Council assembled, humbly approach your Royal Presence, to express
our joy and exultation on the entire reduction of the important
island of _Belle-Isle_, by the conduct, intrepidity, and perseverance
of your Majesty's land and naval forces:--a conquest which, after
more than one fruitless attempt in former times, seems to have been
reserved by Divine Providence to grace the auspicious beginning of
your Majesty's reign, and confirms our hopes of a long continuance of
wise, steady, and successful measures.
A blow so humiliating to the pride and power of France, cannot but
impress that haughty nation with a due sense of the superiority of a
Patriot King ruling over a free, brave, and united people, and will,
we trust, convince them of the danger of delaying to accept such
terms of peace as Your Majesty's equity, wisdom, and moderation shall
think fit to prescribe.
What therefore have we more to wish, but that Your Majesty may long,
very long, continue the guardian and protector of the religious,
civil, and commercial rights of Great Britain and her Colonies; and
that Your Majesty's wisdom may ever be seconded by equally faithful
and spirited councils; and your commands executed with no less
ardour, emulation, and success.
On our part, permit us humbly to assure Your Majesty, that
your faithful citizens of London will, with unwearied zeal and
cheerfulness, contribute to support a vigorous prosecution of this
just and necessary war; until Your Majesty, having sufficiently
vindicated the honor of your Crown, and secured the trade,
navigation, and possessions of your subjects, shall enjoy the
blessing and the glory of giving repose to Europe, of wholly
attending to and promoting the virtue and happiness of your people,
and of cultivating all the softer arts of peace.
Signed by Order of the Court,
JAMES HODGES.
[10] Minorca, an island in the Mediterranean, on the eastern coast
of Spain, is about thirty miles in length and twelve in breadth,
and is chiefly valuable for the excellent harbour of Port Mahon. In
September, 1708, Minorca was taken by Admiral Leake and a land force
under Lieut.-General Stanhope, after a siege of about three weeks.
The island was ceded to Great Britain by the treaty of Utrecht,
and remained in its possession until 1756, when, in April of that
year, it was besieged by the French, under Marshal the Duke de
Richelieu. After a brave defence by the Governor, General Blakeney,
the garrison surrendered, and in consideration of their gallantry
were permitted to march out with all the honours of war. At the peace
of Fontainebleau, in 1763, Minorca was restored to the English in
exchange for Belle-Isle. In February, 1782, the garrison, under the
Governor, Lieut.-General the Honorable James Murray, after suffering
severely from sickness, surrendered to the Duke de Crillon, the
Commander-in-Chief of the combined French and Spanish forces, and
Minorca was retained by Spain by the treaty of peace of 1783. Minorca
again surrendered to a British force under General the Honorable
Charles Stuart, on the 15th of November, 1798; and at the peace of
Amiens, in 1802, Minorca was restored to the Spaniards, under whose
sway it remains at the present period.
[11] The _Concan_ is the territory situated between the range of
hills which bounds the Deccan on the west and the sea-coast, and is
now under the Bombay Government.
[12] Now Lieut.-General Samuel Huskinson.
[13] Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Maxwell died at Asseerghur, on the 5th of
April, 1819.
[14] Named after its founder Assa, a celebrated Hindu zemindar, or
landholder, of the Aheer tribe, which has been corrupted from Assa
Aheer, to Asseer.
[15] Pettah, the suburbs of a fortified town.
[16] Now major in the regiment.
[17] Now commanding the troops at Jamaica and its dependencies.
[Illustration: SIXTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
_Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t. Strand_
_For Cannon's Military Records_]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SECOND BATTALION
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT OF FOOT.
[Sidenote: 1803]
Europe gained a short cessation from hostilities by the Treaty of
Amiens, and the interval of peace was employed by Napoleon Bonaparte
in furthering his views for the aggrandizement of France, to enable
him to become the dictator of Europe. The British Government and
people, suspicious of Napoleon's projects, and roused to active
measures by the threat of invasion, were enthusiastic in devising
means to frustrate his designs, and the "_Army of Reserve Act_" was
passed, for raising men for home service by ballot, while numerous
volunteer and yeomanry corps were formed in every part of the kingdom.
To these circumstances the SECOND BATTALION of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment owes its origin, and the battalion was formed of men raised
in Ireland, for limited service under the provisions of the "Army
of Reserve Act," which was passed in June, 1803; the battalion was
placed on the establishment from the 9th of July following.
[Sidenote: 1804]
The _Second Battalion_ was also authorised to receive men raised in
Ireland, for limited service, under the "_Additional Force Act_,"
which was passed on the 14th of July, 1804.
The battalion was stationed in Ireland until the 20th of January,
1804, when it embarked at Warren's Point, and arrived at Greenock on
the 23rd of the same month.
[Sidenote: 1807]
On the 29th of February, 1804, the battalion proceeded to Guernsey,
where it remained until the 17th of November, 1807, when it was
removed to Alderney.
[Sidenote: 1810]
From Alderney the battalion returned to Guernsey in July, 1810.
Six companies of the battalion, under the command of
Lieutenant-Colonel William Prevost, embarked for Gibraltar on the
29th of July, 1810, at which station they arrived on the 24th of
September.
The four companies left at Guernsey, embarked for England in August,
1810, where they continued to be stationed during the remainder of
that year.
The six companies of the second battalion remained at Gibraltar
until the 22nd of November, 1810, when they embarked for Cadiz, to
join the army under the command of Lieutenant-General Thomas Graham,
afterwards Lord Lynedoch.
The six companies arrived at Cadiz on the 9th of December, 1810,
which was at that period besieged by a powerful French army, under
Marshal Soult, who subsequently proceeded on an expedition into
Estremadura, leaving Marshal Victor to blockade Cadiz.
[Sidenote: 1811]
The SIXTY-SEVENTH remained at Cadiz until the 18th of February,
1811, when they proceeded with the army under the command of
Lieutenant-General Thomas Graham, which consisted of a British
force of about three thousand, and a body of seven thousand troops
commanded by General La Pena. The design of the expedition was to
make a combined attack on the rear of the French army blockading
Cadiz. The forces disembarked at Algesiras on the 23rd of February,
and being all united at Tarifa, marched from thence on the 28th of
February.
General Zayas pushed a strong body of Spanish troops across the river
Santi Petri, near the coast, on the 1st of March, threw a bridge
over, and formed a _tête-de-pont_. This post was attacked by the
enemy on the nights of the 3rd and 4th of March, who was repulsed,
though the Spaniards sustained considerable loss.
On the 5th of March, 1811, Lieutenant-General Graham and the army
under his command arrived on the low ridge of _Barrosa_, where a
brilliant victory was gained over the French army under Marshal
Victor, composed of the two divisions of Generals Rufin and Laval.
Lieutenant-General Graham in his despatch to the Earl of Liverpool,
dated Isla de Leon, March 6th, 1811, stated:--
"The circumstances were such as compelled me to attack this very
superior force. In order as well to explain to your Lordship the
circumstances of peculiar disadvantage under which the action was
begun, as to justify myself from the imputation of rashness in the
attempt, I must state to your Lordship, that the allied army, after
a night march of sixteen hours from the camp near Veger, arrived, on
the morning of the 5th, at the low ridge of Barrosa, about four miles
to the southward of the mouth of the Santi Petri river. This height
extends inland about a mile and a half, continuing on the north the
extensive heathy plain of Chiclana. A great pine forest skirts the
plain, and circles round the height at some distance, terminating
down to Santi Petri; the intermediate space between the north side
of the height and the forest being uneven and broken.
"A well-conducted and successful attack on the rear of the enemy's
lines near Santi Petri, by the vanguard of the Spanish army, under
Brigadier-General Ladrizabel, having opened the communication with
the Isla de Leon, I received General La Pena's directions to move
down from the position of Barrosa to that of the Torre de Bermesa,
about half-way to the Santi Petri river, in order to secure the
communication across the river, over which a bridge had been lately
established. This latter position occupies a narrow woody ridge, the
right on the sea cliff, the left falling down to the Almanza creek on
the edge of the marsh. A hard sandy beach gives an easy communication
between the western points of these two positions.
"My division, being halted on the eastern slope of the Barrosa
height, was marched about twelve o'clock through the wood towards
the Bermesa, cavalry patrols having previously been sent towards
Chiclana, without meeting with the enemy. On the march I received
notice that the enemy had appeared in force on the plain, and was
advancing towards the heights of Barrosa.
"As I considered that position as the key of that of Santi Petri, I
immediately countermarched in order to support the troops left for
its defence, and the alacrity with which this manœuvre was executed,
served as a favourable omen. It was, however, impossible in such
intricate and difficult ground to preserve order in the columns, and
there never was time to restore it entirely.
"But before we could get ourselves quite disentangled from the wood,
the troops on the Barrosa Hill were seen returning from it, while
the enemy's left wing was rapidly ascending. At the same time his
right wing stood on the plain, on the edge of the wood, within
cannon-shot. A retreat in the face of such an enemy, already within
reach of the easy communication by the sea-beach, must have involved
the whole allied army in all the danger of being attacked during the
unavoidable confusion of the different corps arriving on the narrow
ridge of Bermesa nearly at the same time.
"Trusting to the known heroism of British troops, regardless of
the numbers and position of their enemy, an immediate attack was
determined on. Major Duncan soon opened a powerful battery of ten
guns in the centre. Brigadier-General Dilkes with the brigade
of Guards, Lieut.-Colonel Browne's (of the Twenty-eighth) flank
battalion, Lieut.-Colonel Norcott's two companies of the second
Rifle corps, and Major Acheson with a part of the SIXTY-SEVENTH foot
(separated from the regiment in the wood) formed on the right.
"Colonel Wheatly's brigade, with three companies of the Coldstream
Guards, under Lieut.-Colonel Jackson (separated likewise from his
battalion in the wood) and Lieut.-Colonel Barnard's flank battalion,
formed on the left.
"As soon as the infantry was thus hastily got together, the
guns advanced to a more favourable position, and kept up a most
destructive fire.
"The right wing proceeded to the attack of General Rufin's division
on the hill, while Lieut.-Colonel Barnard's battalion, and
Lieut.-Colonel Bushe's detachment of the twentieth Portuguese, were
warmly engaged with the enemy's tirailleurs on our left.
"General Laval's division, notwithstanding the havoc made by Major
Duncan's battery, continued to advance in very imposing masses,
opening his fire of musketry, and was only checked by that of the
left wing. The left wing now advanced firing; a most determined
charge by the three companies of Guards and the eighty-seventh
regiment, supported by all the remainder of the wing, decided the
defeat of General Laval's division.
"The eagle of the eighth regiment of light infantry, which suffered
immensely, and a howitzer, rewarded this charge, and remained in
possession of Major Gough,[18] of the Eighty-seventh regiment.
These attacks were zealously supported by Colonel Belson with the
Twenty-eighth regiment and Lieut.-Colonel Prevost with a part of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH.
"A Reserve formed beyond the narrow valley, across which the enemy
was closely pursued, next shared the same fate, and was routed by the
same means.
"Meanwhile the right wing was not less successful; the enemy,
confident of success, met General Dilkes on the ascent of the hill,
and the contest was sanguinary: but the undaunted perseverance of
the brigade of Guards, of Lieut.-Colonel Browne's battalion, and of
Lieut.-Colonel Norcott's, and Major Acheson's detachment, overcame
every obstacle, and General Rufin's division was driven from the
heights in confusion, leaving two pieces of cannon.
"No expressions of mine could do justice to the conduct of the troops
throughout. Nothing less than the almost unparalleled exertions of
every officer, the invincible bravery of every soldier, and the most
determined devotion to the honor of His Majesty's arms, in all, could
have achieved this brilliant success, against such a formidable enemy
so posted.
"In less than an hour and a half from the commencement of the action,
the enemy was in full retreat. The retiring division met, halted, and
seemed inclined to form; a new and more advanced position of our
artillery quickly dispersed them.
"The exhausted state of the troops made pursuit impossible. A
position was taken on the eastern side of the hill; and we were
strengthened on our right by the return of the two Spanish battalions
that had been attached before to my division, but which I had left
on the hill, and which had been ordered to retire. These battalions
(Walloon Guards and Ciudad Real) made every effort to come back in
time, when it was known that we were engaged....
"When all have so distinguished themselves, it is scarcely possible
to discriminate any as the most deserving of praise. Your Lordship
will, however, observe how gloriously the brigade of Guards under
Brigadier-General Dilkes, with the commanders of the battalions,
Lieut.-Colonel the Honorable C. Onslow and Lieut.-Colonel Sebright
(wounded), as well as the three separated companies under
Lieut.-Colonel Jackson, maintained the high character of His
Majesty's household troops. Lieut.-Colonel Browne, with his flank
battalion, Lieut.-Colonel Norcott, and Major Acheson deserve equal
praise.
"I must equally recommend to your Lordship's notice, Colonel Wheatly,
with Colonel Belson, Lieut.-Colonel Prevost, and Major Gough, and the
officers of the respective corps composing his brigade....
"The assistance I received from the unwearied exertions
of Lieut.-Colonel Macdonald,[19] and the officers of the
Adjutant-General's department, of Lieut.-Colonel the Honorable
C. Cathcart, and the officers of the Quartermaster-General's
Department, of Captain Birch and Captain Nicholas, and the officers
of the Royal Engineers, of Captain Hope, and the officers of my
Personal Staff, (all animating by their example,) will ever be most
gratefully remembered....
"I cannot conclude this despatch without earnestly recommending to
His Majesty's gracious notice for promotion, Brevet Lieut.-Colonel
Browne, Major of the 28th foot, Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Norcott,
Major of the 95th Rifle Regiment, Major Duncan, Royal Artillery,
Major Gough of the 87th, Major the Honorable E. Acheson of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH, and Captain Birch of the Royal Engineers, all in the
command of corps or detachments on this memorable service; and I
confidently trust that the bearer of this despatch, Captain Hope, (to
whom I refer your Lordship for further details,) will be promoted, on
being permitted to lay the Eagle at His Majesty's feet."
Such are the details of the battle of _Barrosa_, in which the enemy
lost about three thousand men in killed, wounded, and prisoners,
while that of the English amounted to 1243 killed and wounded.
The SIXTY-SEVENTH had Lieut.-Colonel Prevost, Captain Patrickson,
Lieutenant W. Ronald, and Ensign Sutherland wounded; ten men of the
regiment were killed; and one serjeant and thirty rank and file were
wounded.
The British captured an Eagle, six pieces of cannon, and among the
prisoners were the General of Division Rufin, the General of Brigade
Rosseau; the Chief of the Staff, General Bellegrade; an Aide-de-Camp
of Marshal Victor, the Colonel of the eighth regiment, and several
other officers. The prisoners amounted to two General Officers, one
field-officer, nine captains, eight subalterns, and 420 rank and
file.
Both Houses of Parliament unanimously voted their thanks to
Lieut.-General Graham, and the officers and men under his command,
for this victory, and their valour and ability were highly applauded
by the nation. On the 11th of November following, His Majesty's
commands were communicated in the subjoined memorandum:--
_Horse Guards, November 11th, 1811._
MEMORANDUM.
The Prince Regent having been graciously pleased, in the name and
on the behalf of His Majesty, to command that, in commemoration of
the brilliant victory obtained over the enemy by a division of His
Majesty's army under the command of Lieut.-General Thomas Graham,
at Barrosa, on the 5th of March, 1811, the undermentioned officers
of the army, present upon that occasion, should enjoy the privilege
of bearing a Medal, and His Royal Highness having approved of the
medal which has been struck, is pleased to command, that it should
be worn by the General Officers, suspended by a riband, of the
colour of the sash, with a blue edge, round the neck, and by the
Commanding Officers of corps and detachments, and the Chiefs of
Military Departments, attached by a riband of the same colour to the
button-hole of their uniform:--
Lieutenant-General Thomas Graham.
Major-General William Thomas Dilkes.
Colonel William Wheatley, 1st Foot Guards.
Lieut.-Colonel Charles P. Belson, 28th Foot.
" William Augustus Prevost, SIXTY-SEVENTH Regt.
" the Hon. T. Cranley Onslow, 3rd Foot Guards.
" Andrew F. Barnard, 95th Rifle Regt.
" John Macdonald, _Deputy-Adjutant-General_.
" Edward Sebright, 1st Foot Guards.
" John Frederick Brown, 28th Regt.
" Amos Godsill Norcott, 95th Rifle Regt.
" the Hon. Charles M. Cathcart,
_Deputy-Quartermaster-General_.
" Richard Bushe, 20th Portuguese Regt.
" Alexander Duncan, Royal Artillery.
" Hugh Gough, 87th Regt.
Major A. F. Baron Bussche, 2nd Light Dragoons, King's
German Legion.
"By the command of His Royal Highness the
Prince Regent, in the name and on the
behalf of His Majesty.
"FREDERICK, _Commander-in-Chief_.
"HENRY TORRENS, _Lieut.-Colonel
and Military Secretary_."
Major the Honorable Edward Acheson, of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment,
was promoted to the brevet rank of Lieut.-Colonel in the army on
the 30th March, 1811, for his gallantry at Barrosa, as particularly
noticed in Lieut.-General Graham's despatch.
On the 26th May, 1817, the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment received the Royal
Authority to bear the word "_Barrosa_" on the regimental colour and
appointments, to commemorate the gallantry of the second battalion on
that occasion.
Lieut.-General Graham, after this conflict, remained some hours at
the Barrosa heights, without being able to procure any supplies
for the exhausted troops, in consequence of the commissariat mules
having been dispersed on the enemy's first attack of the hill. Major
Ross, with the detachment of the third battalion of the Ninety-fifth
Rifle regiment, was left, while the remainder of the division was
withdrawn, and early the next morning crossed the Santi Petri river.
The favourable opportunity gained by British valour was not improved
by the Spanish General, who did not strike a severe blow at the
remains of the French army retreating in disorder. The inactivity of
the Spaniards continuing, the English army returned to Cadiz.
On the 11th of December, 1811, two companies embarked at Portsmouth
for Spain, and joined the six companies at Cadiz, in January, 1812.
[Sidenote: 1812]
In January, 1812, the battalion embarked at Cadiz for Carthagena, and
shortly afterwards proceeded to Alicant, to join the troops under
the command of Major-General Andrew Ross. On the 21st of August the
SIXTY-SEVENTH returned to Carthagena, where they remained until the
20th of April, 1813, when they again embarked for Alicant.
[Sidenote: 1813]
On the 31st of May, 1813, the battalion proceeded with the army,
under Lieut.-General Sir John Murray, intended for the reduction of
_Tarragona_, and on arrival formed part of the force detached under
Lieut.-Colonel Prevost, of the SIXTY-SEVENTH, for the purpose of
investing the fort of _San Philippe_, in the Col de Balaguer, which
blocks the direct road from Tortosa to Tarragona.
The fort of San Philippe is situated upon the eastern extremity of an
insulated village, in the centre of the Col de Balaguer, commanding
completely the great road through the pass. It was a square fort with
some bastions, and commanded on two sides by almost inaccessible
mountains.
Lieut.-Colonel Prevost and the brigade under his command, consisting
of the second battalion of the SIXTY-SEVENTH, the battalion of
Roll Dillon, and a detachment of royal artillery, landed, about
eleven o'clock in the forenoon of the 3rd of June, about one mile
to the eastward of the entrance to the pass from Tarragona, where
he was joined by the Spanish regiments of Barcelona and Palma,
under the command of Don Jose Charles. On the 3rd of June the fort
was invested, and on the day following a summons was sent to the
commanding officer to surrender, offering favourable terms, which
were, however, rejected.
On the 5th of June the batteries continued a heavy fire upon the
fort, which was returned by the enemy, who kept up a heavy and
galling fire of shells, round and grapeshot, during the whole of the
night, which occasioned some loss.
About ten o'clock a most violent storm of thunder and lightning
commenced, which impeded the works greatly, and as the seamen and
troops were quite exhausted, it became expedient to delay bringing
the guns upon the platforms, and to keep the embrasures masked. In
the evening of the 6th of June a battery of two eight-inch mortars
was placed upon the road, within a few hundred yards of the Castle,
under the breaching battery; one four-pounder was likewise placed
upon the heights to the right, where the riflemen were stationed.
At daybreak on the 7th, three batteries opened to protect the working
party at the breaching battery, and kept up a tremendous fire until
six o'clock, when that of the Castle having ceased, their magazines
upon the batteries having been blown up by the shells from the
mortars, the white flag was hoisted upon the Castle, and the garrison
offered to surrender upon conditions of marching out and grounding
their arms upon the glacis, with permission to carry off the personal
baggage, which terms were granted, as Marshal Suchet's approach was
hourly expected, and Lieutenant-Colonel Prevost would be enabled to
put the fort in a good state of defence. Possession was taken of the
Castle on the 7th of June.
Lieutenant-General Sir John Murray, in his despatch to the Marquis of
Wellington, stated--
"This capture, in the present situation of our affairs, is of great
importance, as it blocks up the nearest and most accessible road from
Tortosa to Tarragona....
"The troops of both nations bore their fatigue, and performed their
duty with the greatest alacrity and spirit, and deserve every
commendation. Lieutenant-Colonel Prevost has in a former despatch
particularly noticed the gallantry and good conduct of Ensign Nelson,
of the SIXTY-SEVENTH, and Ensign John Dermot, of Roll Dillon's
battalion."
The SIXTY-SEVENTH had two rank and file killed, and eight rank and
file wounded.
Marshal Suchet advancing with an army of superior numbers, the siege
of _Tarragona_, which had been invested by Lieutenant-General Sir
John Murray on the 3rd of June, was raised, and on the 12th of that
month the troops embarked for the Col de Balaguer.
Lieutenant-General Lord William Bentinck assumed the command of the
troops in the East of Spain, in succession to Lieutenant-General Sir
John Murray. His Lordship joined the army at the Col de Balaguer on
the 17th of June, and re-embarked with it for Alicant, at which place
the SIXTY-SEVENTH and the rest of the troops arrived about the 24th
of June.
The battle of Vittoria, on the 21st of June, 1813, gained by the
army under the Marquis of Wellington, changed the aspect of affairs
in Spain, and the troops under Marshal Suchet made some retrograde
movements. The Anglo-Sicilian army, under Lieut.-General Lord William
Bentinck, advancing into Catalonia, proceeded to invest _Tarragona_.
On the 4th of July the army, under the command of Lieutenant-General
Lord William Bentinck, marched for Tarragona. The SIXTY-SEVENTH
were employed in the subsequent operations, and were present at the
occupation of Tarragona by the British, which place was blown up by
the French under Marshal Suchet on the night of the 18th of August,
after which the enemy retired towards Barcelona.
Lieutenant-General Lord William Bentinck continued in command of
this division of the army until the 23rd of September, 1813, when
his Lordship embarked for Sicily, where fresh changes injurious
to the British policy required his presence, and was succeeded by
Lieutenant-General William Clinton. Previously to his embarkation his
Lordship issued the following General Order, dated _Tarragona_, 23rd
of September, 1813:--
"The Commander of the Forces deeply laments that he is compelled
to leave the army. It is a pleasing part of his duty to express
his perfect satisfaction with the subordination and perseverance
displayed by the troops upon all occasions.
"He only regrets that the part assigned to this army in the plan
of the campaign has not permitted the troops to partake in those
brilliant triumphs which would have been the just recompense of their
valour and discipline."
In September the battalion marched into quarters at Valls, and in
October it was removed to Vendrills.
[Sidenote: 1814]
Napoleon's reverses in Germany, and the brilliant successes of the
allied army under the Marquis of Wellington, had a great effect upon
the war in Catalonia, and the troops under Marshal Suchet withdrew
from several posts. The SIXTY-SEVENTH marched, in February, 1814, to
the vicinity of _Barcelona_, and formed part of the force employed in
the investment of that place.
Hostilities were terminated in April by a treaty of peace. Napoleon
abdicated the throne of France, and the island of Elba was ceded
to him in full sovereignty with the imperial title for life, and a
pension payable from the revenues of France; and on the 3rd of May,
1814, Louis XVIII. entered Paris, and ascended the throne of his
ancestors.
Field-Marshal the Marquis of Wellington, in his despatch dated
Toulouse, 19th of April, 1814, alluded to the conduct of the troops
under Lieutenant-General William Clinton in the following terms:--
"Upon the breaking up of this army, I perform a most satisfactory
duty in reporting to your Lordship my sense of the conduct and merit
of Lieutenant-General William Clinton, and of the troops under his
command since they have been employed in the Peninsula. Circumstances
have not enabled those troops to have so brilliant a share in the
operations of the war as their brother-officers and soldiers on
this side of the Peninsula; but they have not been less usefully
employed; their conduct, when engaged with the enemy, has always been
meritorious; and I have had every reason to be satisfied with the
General Officer commanding, and with them."
The SIXTY-SEVENTH withdrew from Barcelona, marched to Tarragona, and
embarked at that port on the 24th of April for Gibraltar, where they
arrived on the 4th of May.
[Sidenote: 1815]
Peace was of short duration. The return of Bonaparte to France, and
his enthusiastic reception at Paris, caused Louis XVIII. to retire
to Ghent. The Allied Powers, however, refused to acknowledge the
sovereignty of Napoleon, and he was obliged to trust once more to
the chances of war. The campaign was brief; totally defeated in the
celebrated battle of Waterloo, on the 18th of June, 1815, Bonaparte
was subsequently compelled to surrender himself a prisoner to Captain
Maitland, commanding the Bellerophon ship of war; and the island of
St. Helena was afterwards appointed for his future residence.
On the 6th of April, 1815, the second battalion of the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment received the royal authority to bear on its colours and
appointments the word "PENINSULA," in commemoration of its services
in Spain.
[Sidenote: 1817]
During this period the SIXTY-SEVENTH remained at Gibraltar, from
which station the battalion embarked for England, on the 25th of
March, 1817, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel H. P. Davison,
and arrived at Chatham on the 14th and 15th of May following.
All apprehensions that the peace of Europe would be disturbed having
ceased, the Government decided on making certain reductions in the
army, and the second battalion of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment was
disbanded at Canterbury on the 25th of May, 1817.
1817.
CONCLUSION.
The details contained in the foregoing pages show, that the
reputation acquired by the Twentieth Regiment in the wars during the
reigns of King William III. and of Queen Anne,--in the defence of
Gibraltar in 1727,--and at the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy, has
been preserved unsullied by the SECOND BATTALION of that corps since
the year 1758,--at which period it was constituted the SIXTY-SEVENTH
regiment.
In the rocky and almost impregnable position of _Belle-Isle_ may be
traced an analogy between its capture, and that of _Quebec_, although
in the acquisition of the former the Nation had not to regret the
loss of such a Commander as MAJOR-GENERAL JAMES WOLFE, the first
Colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, whose death cast a gloom over
the triumphs of the British Arms in the conquest of Canada.
The _Royal Tiger_, and the word "_India_" superscribed, borne on the
regimental colour, record the services of the FIRST BATTALION in the
East during a period of twenty-one years from 1805 to 1826; while the
inscriptions of "_Barrosa_" and "_Peninsula_" denote the share taken
by the SECOND BATTALION in support of Spanish Independence from 1810
to 1814.
Services like these, combined with arduous duties in the Colonies
of Great Britain, have acquired for the regiment the confidence of
the Nation and the approbation of the Sovereign, while its orderly
conduct in quarters has obtained the commendation of the Military
Authorities under whom it has been employed.
[Illustration:
_Benjamin West Pinx^t._ _Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t. Strand_
THE DEATH OF MAJOR-GENERAL JAMES WOLFE, THE FIRST COLONEL OF THE
SIXTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT; KILLED AT THE BATTLE OF QUEBEC ON THE
13^{TH}. SEPTEMBER 1759.
_For Cannon's Military Records_]
FOOTNOTES:
[18] Now General Lord Gough, G.C.B., and Colonel of the
Eighty-seventh, Royal Irish Fusiliers.
[19] Now Lieut.-General Sir John Macdonald, G.C.B., _Adjutant-General
to the Forces_.
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF
THE SIXTY-SEVENTH,
OR
THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE REGIMENT OF FOOT.
JAMES WOLFE.
_Appointed 21st April, 1758._
Major-General James Wolfe, son of Lieut.-General Edward Wolfe,
was born at Westerham, in Kent, on the 11th of January, 1726, and
entered the army as a second lieutenant in Colonel Edward Wolfe's
First regiment of Marines, on the 3rd of November, 1741. On the
27th of March, 1742, he was removed to the Twelfth foot, in which
regiment he was promoted lieutenant on the 14th of July, 1743. He
was appointed to a company in the Fourth foot on the 23rd of June,
1744, and obtained his majority in the Thirty-third regiment on
the 5th of February, 1747. The war of the _Austrian Succession_
afforded him many occasions to show the bravery and decision of
his character; and at the battle of _Val_, or _Laffeld_, on the
2nd of July, 1747, when only twenty-one years of age, his masterly
exertions, at a critical juncture, procured his appointment as a
major of brigade, and the highest encomiums from His Royal Highness
the Duke of Cumberland, then at the head of the army. He was removed
to the Twentieth regiment on the 5th of January, 1749, in which he
was promoted to the rank of lieut.-colonel on the 20th of March,
1750. After the peace he cultivated the arts of war, and introduced
such exactness of discipline into his corps, that as long as the six
British battalions[20] on the plains of _Minden_ are recorded in the
annals of Europe, so long will Kingsley's (Twentieth) stand amongst
the foremost of that day. He received the brevet rank of colonel
on the 21st of October, 1757, and in January, 1758, was appointed
brigadier-general in America. He was appointed colonel of the
SIXTY-SEVENTH on the 21st of April, 1758, on the second battalion of
the Twentieth being constituted the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment. In July
following he distinguished himself at the capture of the island of
_Cape Breton_. On his return to England he was appointed to command
the important expedition against _Quebec_, with the local rank of
major-general. This was an expedition of considerable difficulty and
danger. He was to sail up the St. Lawrence and capture Quebec, which
is situated on its shores. The place was, by its natural formation,
very strong, and succours of all kinds had been thrown into the town;
and the garrison, consisting of French, Canadians, and Indians, was
prepared at all points for the attack. Major-General Wolfe on landing
at the Isle of Orleans found it necessary to seize and to fortify
Point Levi, and the western parts of the isle, as the Canadians
might otherwise prevent a ship approaching Quebec. These points
having been attained, he ordered works to be constructed there for
the bombardment of the town. The French endeavoured to prevent the
construction of these works, and crossed the river for that purpose,
but in vain. Finding, however, that an attack on the city from the
river side would be of small effect, Major-General Wolfe resolved
to carry on the attack on the land side. To effect this, he first
attempted to land his troops some miles below the town near the falls
of Montmorenci; here he was repulsed by a large division of the
French forces, with loss. Undismayed by his repulse near the falls
of Montmorenci, on the 31st of July, 1759, he saw, in this reverse,
the necessity of greater efforts, and conceived the bold design of
drawing the French from their unassailable position by scaling the
heights of Abraham. The soldiers clambered up the heights with great
difficulty, and the guns were hauled up by means of ropes and pulleys
fixed round the trees, which covered the banks from top to bottom.
At the top the plain commences, and extends close under the walls
of the city. By this arrangement he forced the French to come out
of the city. The Marquis de Montcalm was thus compelled to abandon
his camp, and risk a battle for the protection of Quebec. While
bravely animating his troops on the 13th of September, 1759, and at
the moment when victory was almost within his grasp, he received a
wound in the wrist, and another in the breast, which rendered it
necessary to bear him to the rear. There, roused from fainting, in
the agonies of death, by the cry of "They run! they run!" he eagerly,
asked "Who run?" and being told the French, and that they were
defeated, he exclaimed, "Then I thank God, and die contented;" and
almost immediately expired.[21] He was in the thirty-fourth year of
his age. Brigadier-Generals Monckton and Townshend, after the loss
of their commander, completed the victory. On the 18th of September
Quebec surrendered; and, like Gibraltar, conquered by a similar
bold exploit, has, to the present time, continued an appendage to
the crown of Great Britain. The remains of Major-General Wolfe were
conveyed to Portsmouth, and at night on the 20th of November were
deposited in the family vault at Greenwich. A handsome monument was
also erected, by order of Government, to his memory in Westminster
Abbey. The Major-General is represented as endeavouring to close,
with his hand, the wound made in his breast, and is supported by a
grenadier. An angel is seen in the clouds, holding a wreath ready to
crown the expiring hero. On the pyramid is represented, in relief,
the faithful Highland serjeant who attended him; and his sorrow
at witnessing the agonies of his dying master is so pathetically
expressed, that a spectator can scarcely view the sculpture unmoved.
In the front, in alto-relief, is depicted the landing at Quebec, with
a view of the precipices the troops had to ascend before the enemy
could be attacked. The inscription is as follows:-- "_To the memory
of James Wolfe, Major-General and Commander-in-Chief of the British
Land Forces on an expedition against Quebec, who, after surmounting,
by ability and valour, all obstacles of art and nature, was slain in
the moment of victory, on the 13th of September, 1759, the King and
the Parliament of Great Britain dedicate this monument._"
LORD FREDERICK CAVENDISH.
_Appointed 24th August, 1759._
Lord Frederick Cavendish, third son of William (third) Duke of
Devonshire, was honoured with having the Prince of Wales (father
of King George III.) for his godfather. Choosing the profession of
arms, he entered the army as ensign in the First foot guards, and
was appointed lieutenant and captain in the Second foot guards in
1752; in 1755 he was nominated lieutenant-colonel of the Twenty-ninth
regiment; he was honoured with the appointment of aide-de-camp to
King George II., with the rank of colonel, in 1758, and in 1759 he
obtained the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, from which
he was removed in 1760 to the Thirty-fourth. He was promoted to
the rank of major-general in 1761,--to that of lieutenant-general
in 1770,--general in 1782,--and field-marshal in 1796. In 1797 he
resigned the colonelcy of his regiment. He died in October, 1803.
SIR HENRY ERSKINE, Bart.
_Appointed 30th October, 1760._
Sir Henry Erskine was an officer of the Royal regiment, in which
corps he was appointed captain on the 12th of March, 1743; in April,
1746, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and held
the appointment of Deputy-Quartermaster-General to the expedition
under Lieutenant-General St. Clair, which made a descent on the
French coast, in which service he was wounded. In June, 1759, he
was promoted to the rank of major-general; and in October, 1760, he
obtained the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, from which he
was removed in 1761 to the Twenty-fifth regiment, and in 1762 to the
colonelcy of the Royals. He was a Member of Parliament, and Secretary
to the Order of the Thistle, and died in August, 1765.
HAMILTON LAMBERT.
_Appointed 29th May, 1761._
Lieutenant-Colonel Hamilton Lambert, of the Thirty-first regiment,
was promoted to the rank of colonel in the army on the 1st of March,
1761. Shortly afterwards he proceeded with the expedition for the
attack of Belle-Isle, in the Bay of Biscay, under Major-General
Hodgson. Colonel Lambert received the rank of brigadier-general
on this expedition, and highly distinguished himself in the
capture of Belle-Isle, which surrendered on the 7th of June, 1761.
Brigadier-General Lambert's services at Belle-Isle are narrated at
pages 5 and 6 of the Historical Record of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment,
the colonelcy of which was conferred upon him by His Majesty King
George III., on the 29th of May, 1761. On the 10th of July, 1762, he
was promoted to the rank of major-general, and was advanced to that
of lieutenant-general, on the 25th of May, 1772. Lieutenant-General
Lambert died in the year 1774.
EDWARD MAXWELL BROWN.
_Appointed 11th March, 1774._
The early services of this officer are connected with the
Twenty-first, Royal North British Fusiliers, which regiment served
in Germany during the war of the Austrian Succession, and was
present at the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy. At the battle of
Fontenoy, on the 11th of May, 1745, Lieutenant Maxwell was wounded.
On the 7th of August, 1749, he was promoted to a company in the
Twenty-first regiment; and on the 17th of September, 1757, was
advanced to the rank of major. Major Maxwell was promoted to the rank
of lieutenant-colonel in the same regiment on the 27th of April,
1758. In the year 1761, Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Maxwell commanded
the Twenty-first Fusiliers in the expedition under Major-General
Hodgson, for the attack of Belle-Isle. The island was captured with
much difficulty, but was restored to the French at the peace in
1763, in exchange for Minorca. Lieutenant-Colonel Maxwell obtained
the rank of colonel in the army on the 25th of May, 1772; and on
the 11th of March, 1774, was appointed by His Majesty King George
III. to the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment. He was further
advanced to the rank of major-general on the 29th of August, 1777;
and to that of lieutenant-general on the 20th of November, 1782. In
1786, Lieutenant-General Edward Maxwell was permitted to assume the
additional surname of Brown. On the 3rd of May, 1796, he was promoted
to the rank of general. The decease of General Edward Maxwell Brown
occurred in the year 1803.
FRANCIS D'OYLY.
_Appointed 25th February, 1803._
The regimental services of Lieutenant-General Francis D'Oyly are
associated with the First regiment of foot guards, in which he
obtained a company, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, on the
27th of April, 1780. On the 18th of November, 1790, he received the
rank of colonel in the army; and on the 3rd of October, 1794, was
advanced to that of major-general. On the 11th of October, 1797, he
became lieutenant-colonel in the First foot guards; and on the 25th
of November, 1799, was appointed, by His Majesty King George III.,
colonel-commandant of the Fifteenth regiment of foot. Major-General
D'Oyly was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general on the 1st of
January, 1801; and on the 25th of February, 1803, was appointed by
the King to the colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment. The decease
of Lieutenant-General D'Oyly took place suddenly on the 4th of March,
1803, at his residence in Half-moon Street, Piccadilly.
PETER CRAIG.
_Appointed 9th March, 1803._
General Peter Craig commenced his military career as ensign in the
Thirtieth foot, on the 28th of May, 1762; and on the 1st of June,
of the following year, obtained his lieutenancy. He was promoted
to a company in the Fifty-seventh regiment, on the 25th of March,
1768; and was advanced to the rank of major in that corps, on the
14th of December, 1774. On the 9th of January, 1779, he became
lieutenant-colonel of the Fifty-sixth regiment, then stationed at
Gibraltar, which had the honour of forming part of the garrison
in the successful and gallant defence of Gibraltar against the
combined power of France and Spain, from 1779 to 1783. On the 20th
of November, 1782, he obtained the brevet rank of colonel; and on
the 12th of October, 1793, Colonel Craig was promoted to the rank
of major-general; on the 1st of January, 1798, he was advanced to
that of lieutenant-general. His Majesty King George III. appointed
Lieut.-General Craig colonel-commandant of the Sixty-second regiment,
on the 25th of November, 1799; and on the 9th of March, 1803, he
was nominated colonel of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment. On the 25th
of September, 1803, he obtained the rank of general. His decease
occurred in the year 1810.
SIR WILLIAM KEPPEL, G.C.B.
_Appointed 7th February, 1811._
This officer served fifty-six years in the army, having entered the
service in the year 1778. He served in North America and the West
Indies, and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the
year 1803; and colonel-commandant of the Sixtieth regiment, on
the 24th of April, 1806; he was appointed by the Prince Regent, in
the name and on the behalf of His Majesty King George III., to the
colonelcy of the SIXTY-SEVENTH regiment, on the 7th of February,
1811, on the decease of General Peter Craig. His Majesty King George
IV. removed General the Right Honorable Sir William Keppel to the
colonelcy of the Second, or Queen's Royal regiment, in the year
1828, on the decease of Major-General Sir Henry Torrens. In 1813 Sir
William Keppel was raised to the rank of general in the army; and was
for many years Groom of the Bedchamber and Equerry to His Majesty
King George IV., who bestowed on him the appointment of Governor of
Guernsey, when it became vacant by the death of the Earl of Pembroke,
in 1827. The Right Honorable General Sir William Keppel, G.C.B., died
at Paris, on the 11th of December, 1834.
SIR JOHN MACDONALD, G.C.B.
_Appointed 25th August, 1828._
Removed to the FORTY-SECOND, ROYAL HIGHLAND REGIMENT, on the 15th of
January, 1844.
JOHN CLITHEROW.
_Appointed 15th January, 1844._
FOOTNOTES:
[20] Twelfth, twentieth, twenty-third, twenty-fifth, thirty-seventh,
and fifty-first regiments.
[21] The engraving prefixed to this memoir is from West's celebrated
picture, and represents the moment when news is brought that
the victory is in favour of the English. This picture attracted
extraordinary notice, not only for the event it represents, but
also for its general excellence, and from the circumstance of the
characters being dressed in appropriate costume, and not habited
as Greeks or Romans, which was considered the classic dress in
historical pictures of this period. It is one of the best of our
historical pictures, and the painter has happily and poetically
introduced the Indian warrior, who is watching the dying hero, to see
if he equalled in fortitude the warriors of his own savage race.
London.--Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, Stamford Street,
For Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Footnote [7] is referenced five times from page 4.
Footnote [8] is referenced two times from page 6.
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 the change noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.
Pg 43, 'with ardous duties' replaced by 'with arduous duties'.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Historical record of the 67th, or the South Hampshire Regiment" ***
Copyright 2023 LibraryBlog. All rights reserved.