blockade, resolved to try the power of their numerous artillery.
Scarcely had the fleet cast anchor, when the enemy’s batteries
opened, and the fire of upwards of one hundred guns and mortars
enveloped the fortress in a storm of war; a number of gun-boats
augmented the iron tempest which beat against the rock, and the
houses of the inhabitants were soon in ruins. On the 8th of May,
Captain James Foulis, of the second battalion of the regiment, was
wounded in the lines.
On the night of the 17th of September the following incident
relating to the battalion occurred in an attack of the enemy, the
account of which is extracted from the “History of the Siege of
Gibraltar,” by Colonel John Drinkwater, of the late Seventy-second
Regiment, or Royal Manchester Volunteers:--
“A shell during the above attack fell in an embrasure opposite
the King’s lines bomb-proof, killed one of the SEVENTY-THIRD,
and wounded another of the same corps. The case of the latter
was singular, and will serve to enforce the maxim, that, even in
the most dangerous cases, we should never despair of a recovery
whilst life remains. This unfortunate man was knocked down by
the wind of the shell, which, instantly bursting, killed his
companion, and mangled him in a most dreadful manner. His head was
terribly fractured, his left arm broken in two places, one of his
legs shattered, the skin and muscles torn off part of his right
hand, the middle finger broken to pieces, and his whole body most
severely bruised, and marked with gunpowder. He presented so horrid
an object to the surgeons, that they had not the smallest hopes of
saving his life, and were at a loss what part to attend to first.
He was that evening trepanned, a few days afterwards his leg was
amputated, and other wounds and fractures dressed. Being possessed
of a most excellent constitution, nature performed wonders in his
favour, and in eleven weeks the cure was completely effected. His
name is Donald Ross, and he long continued to enjoy his sovereign’s
bounty in a pension of ninepence a day for life.”
On the 4th of November, Lieutenant John Fraser, of the second
battalion, had his leg shot off on Montague’s Bastion, and two of
the soldiers of the battalion were likewise wounded by the enemy’s
fire.
General Eliott, afterwards Lord Heathfield, which title was
conferred for the services performed by him when Governor of
Gibraltar, in order to free himself from the contiguity of the
besiegers, resolved to make a _sortie_. The favourable opportunity
presented itself; and, on the evening of the 26th of November, the
following garrison order was issued:--
“COUNTERSIGN, STEADY.--All the grenadiers and light infantry in
the garrison, and all the men of the Twelfth and Hardenberg’s
regiments, with the officers and non-commissioned officers on
duty, to be immediately relieved and join their regiments; to
form a detachment, consisting of the Twelfth and Hardenberg’s
regiments complete; the grenadiers and light infantry of all
the other regiments; one captain, three lieutenants, ten
non-commissioned officers, and a hundred artillery; three
engineers, seven officers, ten non-commissioned officers,
overseers, with a hundred and sixty workmen from the line,
and forty workmen from the artificer corps; each man to have
thirty-six rounds of ammunition, with a good flint in his
piece, and another in his pocket; the whole to be commanded by
Brigadier-General Ross, and to assemble on the red sands, at
twelve o’clock this night, to make a _sortie_ upon the enemy’s
batteries. The thirty-ninth and fifty-eighth regiments to parade
at the same hour, on the grand parade, under the command of
Brigadier-General Picton, to sustain the _sortie_, if necessary.”
The flank companies of the second battalion, consisting of eight
officers, ten serjeants, and 202 rank and file, formed part of the
centre column. The moon shone brightly as the soldiers assembled
on the sands at midnight. Between two and three o’clock darkness
overspread the country, and the troops issued silently from the
fortress. They were challenged and fired upon by the enemy’s
sentries, but the British soldiers rushed forward with their native
ardour, overpowered the Spanish guards, and captured the batteries
in gallant style. The enemy’s soldiers, instead of defending the
works, fled in dismay, and communicated the panic to the troops in
their rear. The wooden batteries were soon prepared for fire; the
flames spread with astonishing rapidity, and a column of fire and
smoke arose from the works, illuminating the surrounding objects,
and shedding a fiery lustre upon this unparalleled scene.
In an hour the object of the _sortie_ was effected; trains were
laid to the enemy’s magazines, and the soldiers withdrew. As they
entered the fortress, tremendous explosions shook the ground, and
rising columns of smoke, flame, and burning timber proclaimed
the destruction of the enemy’s immense stores of gunpowder to be
completed. General Eliott declared in orders, “The bearing and
conduct of the whole detachment, officers, seamen, and soldiers, on
this glorious occasion, surpass my utmost acknowledgments.”
For several days the Spaniards appeared confounded at their
disgrace. The smoke of the burning batteries continued to rise,
and no attempt was made to extinguish the flames; but several
executions took place in their camp, probably of persons who fled
so precipitately from the batteries. In the beginning of December
they began to arouse themselves, and a thousand workmen commenced
labouring to restore the batteries, in which they were retarded by
the fire of the garrison.
While the besiegers were thus employed, the gallant defenders of
the fortress were equally indefatigable; every serjeant, drummer,
musician, officer’s servant, and private soldier, used the musket,
shovel, and pick-axe, as his services were necessary.
[Sidenote: 1782.]
[Sidenote: 1st bat.]
At the opening of the campaign in India, in the beginning of 1782,
the army did not muster a larger force than at the commencement of
the former year. The first and most important object in view was
the relief of _Vellore_, kept in strict blockade by the enemy. The
safety of this fortress was of paramount consequence, being the
only key the British possessed to the Passes of the Ghauts, through
which an invasion of the enemy’s country could be accomplished;
and the army being put in movement, pushed through the Sholingur
Pass, and by the 11th of January the relief of _Vellore_, with
a supply of rice for six months, was fully effected. After the
accomplishment of this object the army retired, and on the 20th of
January arrived at Poonamallee, having lost upon this expedition
six officers and about thirty Europeans, with one hundred sepoys,
killed and wounded.
The following anecdote is extracted from the narrative of Captain
Munro, relating to the fall of John Mackay, a corporal of the
battalion, in one of the skirmishes with the enemy, when the army
was on the march to Vellore:--“For the satisfaction of my Highland
friends, I take this opportunity of commemorating the fall of
John Mackay, _alias_ Donn, a corporal in the _Seventy-third_ (now
SEVENTY-FIRST) regiment, son of Robert Donn, the famous Highland
bard, whose singular talent for the beautiful and extemporaneous
composition of Gaelic poetry was held in such esteem by the
Highland Society. This son of the bard has frequently revived the
drooping spirits of his countrymen upon the march, by singing in a
pleasant manner the humorous and lively productions of his father.
He was killed by a cannon ball on the 13th of January, and on the
same evening was interred by his disconsolate comrades with all the
honors of war.”
For the first three months of the year 1782, the army of
Lieut.-General Sir Eyre Coote was kept in a state of inactivity
at St. Thomas’s Mount, where it would appear the Government of
the presidency, apprehensive for its own safety, had detained
this force, while a judicious movement to Porto Novo might have
prevented the junction of the forces under Tippoo Saib with the
strong reinforcement of French troops that had arrived from Europe
on board the fleet of Admiral Suffrein, or at all events have
prevented the loss of Permacoil and Cuddalore.
At length Sir Eyre Coote, having been reinforced by the
Seventy-eighth, afterwards the Seventy-second regiment, recently
arrived from England, was permitted to put the army in movement.
In the beginning of April he marched in a southerly direction by
Carangooly and Wandewash towards the enemy, encamped upon the Red
Hills of Pondicherry. The object, which the Commander-in-chief
appeared to have in view, was to separate the French and Mysorean
troops, and he manœuvred accordingly between Chitaput and Arnee,
until Hyder Ali, apprehensive for the safety of the latter place,
where he had established magazines, made a rapid movement on the
2d of June, so as to overtake and attack the rear-guard of the
British, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel John Elphinston[14], of the
_Seventy-third_, who maintained his ground with great spirit and
intrepidity until the line had completed its formation. The troops
were ordered to advance immediately upon the enemy’s guns, the
action became very warm, and the foe was soon forced across the
river of _Arnee_, and in the pursuit several tumbrils were taken
by the Honorable Captain James Lindsay, of the battalion. This
gallant and intelligent officer, perceiving an enemy’s battalion
endeavouring to extricate the tumbrils in the bed of the river,
dashed forward at the head of his grenadier company, supported
by the remainder of the corps under Major George Mackenzie’s
command, and, quickly dispersing all opposed to his progress, took
possession of his prize. This movement of the _Seventy-third_ was
supported on the left by a battalion of Bengal Sepoys, who had
captured one of the enemy’s guns, and both corps, equally animated
by success, pushed on, driving the enemy before them as long as
pursuit was prudent.
The conduct of Captain the Honorable James Lindsay, although he had
acted without orders, received all the praise it merited from the
commander-in-chief, Lieut.-General Sir Eyre Coote. At the battle
of _Arnee_ the staff of the regimental colour was shattered by a
cannon ball, and the ensign severely wounded.
The army encamped for the night on the field of battle, and on the
following morning took up a position before Arnee; but a scarcity
of grain compelled the general to retrace his steps towards Madras,
and on the 20th of June he arrived at St. Thomas’s Mount.
In the months of July and August the army made two expeditions,
one to Wandewash, in which it was foiled by the active and politic
Hyder, the other for the relief of _Vellore_, in which it was more
fortunate, having succeeded in throwing a large quantity of grain
into that fortress.
The siege of Cuddalore having been determined on, the army moved
on the 26th of August in a southerly direction, and on the 4th
of September halted on the Red Hills of Pondicherry. Deserters
reported the garrison of Cuddalore to consist of 800 Europeans, 300
Africans, and 600 Sepoys, who, having expelled the inhabitants,
and covered the walls with cannon, were resolved to defend the
place to the last extremity. The failure of the supplies, which
Sir Eyre Coote had been led to expect from Madras by the fleet,
excited so much anxiety and disappointment in the veteran’s mind,
that a severe illness ensued, which obliged him to quit the army,
and ultimately to proceed to Bengal for the benefit of his health.
The command then devolved upon Major-General James Stuart, who
commenced his retreat in the evening of the 10th of October.
On the 15th of October, the monsoon set in with unusual severity,
and the army went into cantonments in the vicinity of Madras.
Hyder Ali, at the same time, took up his old position near Arcot.
Shortly after, Rear Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton, with a large
fleet from England, came to anchor in Madras roads, having on board
considerable reinforcements for the army, which was joined in the
cantonments by the Twenty-third Light Dragoons, the 101st and
102d British regiments, and the Fifteenth regiment of Hanoverian
Infantry.
In the month of December occurred the decease of that extraordinary
man, HYDER ALI, who was succeeded, without any of the commotions
usual in the East on such occasions, by his son, TIPPOO SAIB, to
whom he left a kingdom of his own acquisition, which made him one
of the most powerful princes in India.
[Sidenote: 2d bat.]
All ordinary means of attack appearing to be unavailing against the
resolute garrison of Gibraltar (of which the second battalion of
the regiment formed part), stupendous preparations were made on a
new principle, and floating batteries were constructed with great
art and labour. These were accounted the most perfect contrivance
of the kind ever seen. The combined power of France and Spain was
directed against the fortress. The Duke of Crillon assumed the
command of the besieging army, and was assisted by a celebrated
French engineer, Monsieur d’Arcon, and by Admiral Moreno, and a
French army arrived to take part in the siege.
A crisis was evidently approaching, and in the spring and summer
of 1782 the garrison of Gibraltar made preparations with cool
determination for the hour of trial. The officers and soldiers
appeared to be impressed with their peculiar situation; an
important fortress was confided to their protection; they had
defended it against the efforts of the Spanish army and navy
upwards of two years; and the eyes of all Europe were directed
towards them. The damaged works were carefully repaired, new ones
were constructed, extensive subterraneous works were prepared, and
forges for heating red-hot shot were got ready. Every serjeant,
drummer, musician, and officer’s servant, as well as the corporals
and private soldiers, used a shovel, pickaxe, or musket, according
as their services were required. The effect of the red-hot shot was
proved on some of the enemy’s wooden batteries on the sands, which
were speedily destroyed.
The Duke of Crillon anticipated the most signal success from the
extensive preparations he was making. His camp was visited by
princes of the royal blood of France, by Spanish nobility, and
other dignified characters of Europe, who came to be spectators of
the fall of the fortress, under the heavy fire of artillery which
was about to be opened upon it. The new batteries on shore were
unmasked, and fired a volley of sixty shells, which was followed
by the thunder of one hundred and seventy guns of large calibre.
Thus was Gibraltar assailed by a storm of iron, which threatened
to reduce the fortress to a heap of ruins, and this was only a
prelude to the tremendous fire which was afterwards opened upon the
garrison. Lieutenant Phipps Wharton, of the second battalion, was
dangerously wounded by the enemy’s fire.
On the 13th of September, the ten battering ships took their
station before the fortress, in the presence of the combined fleets
of France and Spain. The enemy’s camp and neighbouring hills were
crowded with spectators from various parts of Europe, to witness
the effect of these stupendous vessels, and such a storm of war was
opened upon the garrison as was probably never heard before since
the invention of cannon. The batteries of the fortress answered
this tremendous fire with vigour, and the deafening thunder of four
hundred pieces of heavy artillery was heard for many miles. For
some hours the attack and defence were so equally well supported as
scarcely to admit any appearance of superiority in the cannonade
on either side. The wonderful construction of the battering ships
seemed to bid defiance to the heaviest ordnance; shells rebounded
from their tops, and a thirty-two pound shot scarcely seemed to
make any impression on them. The effect of the red-hot shot was
doubted; sometimes smoke came from the ships, but the fire-engines
within soon occasioned it to cease, and the result was uncertain.
The fire was, however, persevered in, and incessant showers of
red-hot bullets, shells, and carcases flew through the air. In the
afternoon the effects of the red-hot shot became apparent, and
volumes of smoke issued from the flag-ship; the Admiral’s second
ship was perceived to be in the same condition, and confusion
prevailed. The Spaniards expected that the firing of red-hot
bullets could not be persevered in beyond a few rounds; but the
fire was continued with the same precision and vivacity as cold
shot. The effects of the hot balls occasioned the enemy’s cannonade
to abate, and about eight o’clock it almost totally ceased. The
battering ships made signals to inform the combined fleets of
their extreme danger and distress, and several boats were sent to
their aid. At this period the fire of the garrison produced great
carnage, and the most pitiable cries and groans were heard, as the
incessant showers of shot and shells were poured into the floating
batteries. Soon after midnight one ship was in flames, and by
two o’clock she appeared one sheet of fire from head to stern; a
second was soon in the same state; the flames enabled the British
artillery to point their guns with precision, and soon after
three o’clock six more ships exhibited the effects of the red-hot
shot. The burning ships exhibited one of the grandest spectacles
of destruction ever beheld; and amidst this dreadful scene of
conflagration, the British seamen in boats were seen endeavouring
to rescue the Spaniards from the blazing ships. They preserved
between three and four hundred; and while they were thus engaged,
one of the ships blew up with a dreadful explosion; four others met
the same fate before seven o’clock, and another shortly afterwards,
and the remainder burnt to the water’s edge, their magazines having
been inundated; not one could be preserved as a trophy.
Thus did the mighty efforts of France and Spain end in defeat
and destruction, and the gallant efforts of the brave soldiers
who defended Gibraltar elicited the admiration of the nations in
Europe. In England the most enthusiastic applause was universal;
illuminations and other modes of testifying the joy of the people
followed the receipt of the news of the destruction of the boasted
invincible battering ships, and every family which could claim
a defender of Gibraltar belonging to it was proud of the honor.
The loss of the garrison, on the 13th and 14th of September, was
limited to one officer, two serjeants, and thirteen rank and file
killed; five officers and sixty-three rank and file wounded; that
of the enemy exceeded two thousand officers and soldiers. Captain
Alexander Mackenzie, of the second battalion, was one of the
officers wounded.
Although the enemy gave up all hopes of reducing Gibraltar by
force of arms, yet some expectation was entertained, that, if the
blockade was continued, the garrison might be forced to surrender
from the want of provisions; the combined fleet therefore remained
in the bay, the besieging army continued in the lines, and about
a thousand shots were fired every day from the Spanish batteries.
The garrison was encouraged to continue resolute in the defence of
the fortress by assurances of their Sovereign’s favour and high
approbation. The principal Secretary of State, writing to General
Eliott, stated,--“I am honored with His Majesty’s commands to
assure you, in the strongest terms, that no encouragement shall be
wanting to the brave officers and soldiers under your command. His
royal approbation of the past will no doubt be a powerful incentive
to future exertions, and I have the King’s authority to assure
you, that every distinguished act of emulation and gallantry,
which shall be performed in the course of the siege by any, even
of the lowest rank, will meet with ample reward from his gracious
protection and favour.”
On the 4th of October Lieutenant Kenneth Mackenzie, of the second
battalion, was wounded in the communication from the King’s to the
Queen’s lines.
In October the combined fleet was much damaged by a storm, and
soon afterwards a British naval force arrived, and the garrison
was again relieved, when two regiments, the Twenty-fifth and
Fifty-ninth, landed to take part in the defence of the fortress.
On the 23d of November Lieutenant John Mackenzie, of the second
battalion, was dangerously wounded by the enemy’s cannonade.
[Sidenote: 1783.]
[Sidenote: 1st bat.]
At the opening of the campaign of 1783, Tippoo Saib encamped his
army upon the plains of Arnee, where he was joined by a strong
detachment of French auxiliaries from Cuddalore.
Major-General Stuart put the British army in movement, having first
in view the demolition of the useless fortresses of Wandewash and
Carangooly. He arrived at the latter place on the 6th of February,
and, leaving there all heavy baggage and encumbrances, proceeded
lightly equipped towards Wandewash, the works of which were
accordingly destroyed. The army then returned to Carangooly, which
experienced the same fate as Wandewash, and on the 23d of February
arrived at Poonamallee.
[Sidenote: 2d bat.]
Meanwhile, the siege of Gibraltar had terminated, hostilities
having ceased in February 1783, in consequence of the preliminaries
of the treaties between Great Britain, France, and Spain having
been signed at Versailles on the 20th of the preceding month. The
second battalion during the siege was commanded by Lieut.-Colonel
the Honorable George Mackenzie.
[Sidenote: 1st bat.]
Notwithstanding private information having been received from
respectable sources, overland, of a peace having been concluded
between Great Britain and the other belligerent powers in
Europe, still the Madras Government was determined to persevere
in its original plans for the attack of _Cuddalore_. With this
view, Major-General Stuart put the army in movement on the
21st of April, marching by brigades in a southerly direction.
Major-General Stuart’s army consisted of the present SEVENTY-FIRST
and Seventy-second regiments, the 101st regiment, a considerable
body of native troops, and a detachment of Hanoverians under
Colonel Wangenheim. Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Elphinston, of the first
battalion of the regiment, took the lead, with the fifth brigade,
to the command of which he had been appointed, in consideration of
his distinguished conduct and important services in the field.
Lieut.-Colonel James Stuart, of the Seventy-eighth Highlanders (the
present Seventy-second regiment), commanded the first or European
brigade, of which the first battalion of the _Seventy-third_ (now
the SEVENTY-FIRST) regiment formed part, and which amounted to
sixteen hundred men.
Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Elphinston, in his advance, possessed himself
of Permacoil ruins, from whence could be plainly distinguished the
enemy’s advanced parties upon the Red Hills of Pondicherry. The
remainder of the army joined at Permacoil on the 2d of May.
About this period accounts were received of the decease of
Lieut.-General Sir Eyre Coote, which intelligence threw a peculiar
gloom over those officers and men who had had the honor to serve
under his command in India. Major-General Stuart succeeded to the
command of the forces in India for the time being.
After leaving Permacoil, the army advanced to Killinoor, and from
thence directed its course towards the Red Hills of Pondicherry.
[Sidenote: 2d bat.]
In May 1783, the second battalion embarked in transports, and
sailed from Gibraltar for Portsmouth, where it landed in July
following.
[Sidenote: 1st bat.]
On the 4th of June, Major-General Stuart placed the British camp
close to the Pannar River, about five miles west of _Cuddalore_,
behind which the French army was descried in an entrenched camp.
The British crossed the Pannar River on the 6th of June, without
being molested, passed the Bandipollam Hills, and took up a strong
position not more than two miles from the south face of the
fortress of _Cuddalore_, having their right flank covered by the
sea, and the left by the Bandipollam Hills. The enemy, commanded
by General de Bussy, had in the meantime been occupied in throwing
up works along his front.