division, by a movement to their left through a field of corn which
reached to the shoulders of the tallest men, encountered a column of
French infantry, and by a determined charge drove it from its ground.
The enemy's musketeers rallied under the protection of their formidable
cavalry, and opened a galling fire, which was returned by the ROYAL
SCOTS with steadiness and precision. The enemy, having the advantage
of a rising ground, poured down volley after volley of grape and
musketry with dreadful execution. The ROYAL SCOTS stood their ground
with unflinching firmness; and, after fighting for some time in line,
the battalion formed square, to resist the French cavalry, which was
advancing in great force. The valour and intrinsic merit of the corps
were now tested; but in vain the foaming squadrons of cuirassiers came
rushing forward--in vain the daring swordsmen sought to penetrate the
square; neither the superiority of their numbers, nor the fury of their
charge, availed against the ROYAL SCOTS; the battalion stood firm, and
resisted every attack of the enemy with an unshaken fortitude, which
reflected honour on the corps.[125] After repulsing the formidable
onsets of the enemy's steel-clad horsemen, the battalion deployed;
again the French cuirassiers and lancers advanced, and the battalion
once more formed square. The daring squadrons rushed forward in full
career; the battalion sent forward a shower of balls, which emptied a
hundred saddles, and the remaining horsemen wheeled round, and galloped
away.[126] Thus the ROYAL SCOTS were triumphant, and they were soon
afterwards moved to sustain the 28th regiment, which had suffered
severely: another furious onset was made by the French cavalry, when
the two corps formed one square, and repulsed their assailants with
firmness. The French, dismayed by the sanguinary resistance of their
adversaries, and being attacked in turn, were already giving way. Sir
Thomas Picton placed himself at the head of the ROYAL SCOTS and 28th
regiment, and leading them to the charge, the enemy was driven from his
position with loss.
The battalion passed the following night on the field. The Prussians
had been attacked on the 16th of June at Ligny, and forced to retreat
to Wavre; a corresponding movement was made by the Duke of Wellington,
to keep up the communication with the Prussians, and the ROYAL SCOTS,
retreated on the 17th of June, with the remainder of the army, to the
elevated grounds in front of the village of _Waterloo_, where the
troops passed a stormy night in the open fields, drenched with rain.
On the memorable 18th of June the battalion formed part of the reserve
under the gallant Sir Thomas Picton. At the commencement of the battle,
when the enemy sent forward a cloud of skirmishers, and developed his
massy columns of attack, the ROYAL SCOTS, commanded by Major Colin
Campbell, were instantly engaged with the legions of Napoleon. "I have
great pleasure," observes an officer, who was an eye-witness, "in
detailing the conduct of the gallant 3rd battalion of the ROYAL SCOTS,
and though I have been present with the battalion at the battles of
Busaco, Fuentes d'Onor, Salamanca, Vittoria, both stormings of St.
Sebastian, the passage of the Bidassoa, &c., &c., in all which they
bore a most conspicuous part, and suffered severely, I can assure you
they never evinced more steadiness, or more determined bravery, than at
the late battle.
"About nine o'clock on the morning of the 18th June, the battalion was
attacked by the enemy, and, with very little interruption, the entire
day it formed a line of skirmishers in front of the brigade.
"I have often seen the battalion engaged, but, I must confess, on this
trying day, it far excelled anything I had ever witnessed; and indeed,
so pleased was the late General Picton with its gallantry and good
conduct, that he several times expressed it himself to the battalion in
the most flattering terms."
Thus, while the thunder of 400 cannon, the roll of musketry, the
occasional explosion of caissons, the hissing of balls and grape-shot,
the clashing of arms, and the impetuous shouts of the combatants,
produced an awful scene of carnage and confusion, the ROYAL SCOTS were
seen amidst the storm of battle, boldly confronting the torrent of
superior numbers, and fighting with a constancy and valour which the
enemy could not overcome. Corps after corps advanced; but amidst the
dense smoke which often prevented the combatants from distinguishing
each other, the British colours waved triumphant, and the shout of
victory rose above the din of combat. Paralyzed by the astonishing
resistance of the British arms, the attacks of the enemy relaxed; the
Prussians arrived on the left, to co-operate, the Anglo-Belgian army
formed line, and with one impetuous charge overthrew the French host,
and drove it in wild confusion from the field of battle, with the loss
of its cannon and equipages. Those warlike and numerous legions, which
a few hours before meditated only rapine and conquest, were mingled
in utter confusion along the road, and over the fields, while the
allied squadrons poured on their shattered flanks and rear, and sabred
the panic-struck fugitives without mercy or intermission. Thus ended
a battle, the greatest of past or present times, the importance and
character of which are above the reach of sophistry or mis-statement; a
battle, which may in itself be considered an era, and the story of it,
serving as a monument to commemorate the national glory, will survive
when the brightest historical epochs on record shall be lost amid the
obscurity and confusion of ages. In the important conflicts on the 16th
and 18th of June, the ROYAL SCOTS had Captain Buckley, Lieutenants
Armstrong, O'Niel, and Young, Ensigns Kennedy, Robertson, and Anderson,
1 serjeant-major, 4 serjeants, and 29 rank and file, killed; Major
Campbell; Brevet-Majors Arguimbeau, M'Donald, Massey, and Dudgeon;
Lieutenants Rea, Ingram, Simms, Clark, Mann, G. Stewart, Alstone,
Dobbs, Morrison, Miller, Lane, Black, Scott, and Adjutant Cameron;
Ensigns Cooper, Stephens, and M'Kay; Quarter-Master Griffith; Volunteer
Blacklin; 20 serjeants, and 275 rank and file, wounded.
The battalion advanced with the main army into France, and encamped on
the 6th of July at Clichy, on the banks of the Seine, two miles from
Paris, where it remained nearly four months.
[Sidenote: 1st and 4th Batts.]
In the meantime the 1st and 4th battalions had arrived at Portsmouth
from Canada (as before stated), and the 4th having been completed to
1000 effective rank and file, by the transfer of men from the 1st,
sailed for the Netherlands, to join the allied army under the Duke of
Wellington; at the same time the remainder of the 1st battalion sailed
for Scotland, and was stationed in Edinburgh Castle.
[Sidenote: 4th Batt.]
The 4th battalion having landed at Ostend, marched up the country to
Paris, and pitched its tents at Clichy, where the 3rd battalion was
also encamped.
[Sidenote: 3rd Batt.]
After the flight of Bonaparte, and the restoration of Louis XVIII. to
the throne of France, rewards were conferred on the officers who had
distinguished themselves during the war;[127] and the honour of bearing
the word "WATERLOO" on its colours, was conferred on the 3rd battalion
of the ROYAL SCOTS; every officer and man present at the battles on
the 16th and 18th of June, 1815, also received a silver medal, to be
worn on the left breast, attached by a crimson and blue riband, and
the soldiers had the privilege of reckoning two years' service towards
additional pay and pension on discharge.
The 3rd battalion quitted the camp at Clichy on the 29th of October
to go into cantonments for the winter: it occupied successively Maule,
Montmorency, and Gillecourt, and their adjacents.
[Sidenote: 4th Batt.]
[Sidenote: 1816]
During the winter the 4th battalion was ordered to return to
England,[128] where it arrived in the early part of 1816. From the
period of its formation the 4th battalion was considered as a depôt to
the other battalions of the regiment, until it embarked for Germany,
in 1813. All recruits enlisted for the regiment, volunteers from the
militia, and sick and wounded men sent home from foreign service with
any prospect of being again fit for military duty, joined the 4th
battalion; and the recruits were completely drilled before they were
sent to join the other battalions.[129] Peace having been restored, the
battalion was disbanded at Dover on the 24th of March, 1816.
[Sidenote: 1st Batt.]
In February of the same year the 1st battalion marched from Edinburgh
Castle to Port Patrick, where it embarked for Ireland, and remained in
that country nearly ten years.
[Sidenote: 3rd Batt.]
[Sidenote: 1817]
The 3rd battalion, forming part of the army of occupation in France,
marched from Gillecourt in January, 1816, and went into garrison at
Valenciennes. It quitted this place in March, 1817, and proceeded to
Calais, where it embarked for England, and landed at Dover on the
24th of the same month. It shortly afterwards marched to Canterbury
barracks, where it was disbanded on the 24th of April, 1817.
[Sidenote: 1st and 2nd Batts.]
The regiment was thus reduced to its former establishment of TWO
BATTALIONS; and the men of the 3rd battalion having been transferred
to the 1st and 2nd battalions, His Royal Highness the Prince Regent
was pleased to grant permission to the 1st and 2nd battalions to bear
the words "BUSACO," "SALAMANCA," "VITTORIA," "ST. SEBASTIAN," "NIVE,"
"PENINSULA," and "WATERLOO," on their colours, in commemoration of the
distinguished services of the 3rd battalion of the regiment, as before
narrated.
[Sidenote: 2nd Batt.]
In the meantime the 2nd battalion had continued actively employed in
the East Indies against the _Pindarees_, and these barbarous hordes
being composed entirely of horsemen, the services of the corps were of
an arduous and trying nature; traversing extensive districts by forced
marches, passing rivers and thickets, and attempting to surprise these
bands of plunderers, were duties calculated to exhaust the physical
powers of Europeans when performed under an Indian sun.
While the ROYAL SCOTS were engaged in these services, several of the
native princes prepared to wage war against the British. Their designs
were partly discovered and disconcerted by the Marquis of Hastings.
Hostilities, however, followed, and the battalion was called upon to
engage in the contest. The eight battalion companies formed part of the
second division under the command of Brigadier-General Doveton; and the
flank companies were destined to form part of the 1st division of the
army of the Deccan, under Lieut.-General Sir Thomas Hislop, Baronet.
The battalion was stationed at Jaulnah; from whence the flank companies
marched on the 11th of October, 1817, under the command of Captain
Hulme, with two regiments of native cavalry, and four guns, to join
the head-quarters of the 1st division, and arrived at Hurda on the
22nd. The battalion companies quitted Jaulnah on the 15th of October,
under the command of Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Fraser, (Lieut.-Colonels
N. M'Leod,[130] and Neil M'Kellar having the command of brigades,)
and arrived, with the remainder of the 2nd division, its train of
elephants, camels, and horses, at Meiker, on the 23rd. From this
place the ROYAL SCOTS were detached, with the battering train, down
the Berar Ghats, with the design of taking part in the reduction of
Asseerghur, an important fortress, belonging to a native sovereign
named Scindia; but the order was suddenly countermanded, and the
division was directed to proceed to _Nagpore_, the capital of the
Mahratta territories, an attack having been made on the British
force at that place. The division proceeded for this station without
delay; and the ROYAL SCOTS, following by forced marches, rejoined the
head-quarters on the 7th of November, at Oomrouttee. From this place
Brigadier-General Doveton pushed forward with the ROYAL SCOTS, and part
of his division, and having encountered excessive fatigue, by constant
marching, arrived on the 12th in the vicinity of Nagpore, where he
was joined by the remainder of the division on the following day. In
the meantime the British troops at this place had taken post on two
strong eminences near the residency, on which attacks had been made
by the Rajah's forces, and one of the eminences had been carried by a
great superiority of numbers; but the other, though attacked, had been
maintained.
On the arrival of Brigadier-General Doveton's division, the Rajah
was inclined to come to terms, and he at length agreed to surrender
his guns and disperse his troops; but the treachery he had already
evinced induced the Brigadier-General to dispose his troops in order
of battle when he advanced to take possession of the guns. The troops
were accordingly formed in the following order:--Two regiments of
native cavalry and six horse artillery six-pounders on the height;
on its left Lieut.-Colonel M'Leod's brigade, composed of a wing of
the ROYAL SCOTS, four regiments of native infantry, and the flank
companies of another native regiment; Lieut.-Colonel M'Kellar's
brigade, consisting of a division of the ROYAL SCOTS, a regiment of
native infantry, and a detachment of horse artillery with four guns;
on its left was Lieut.-Colonel Scot's brigade, of a division of the
ROYAL SCOTS, a regiment of native infantry, and a detachment of foot
artillery with sappers and miners, and two guns; a reserve of native
infantry supported the line, and the principal battery of the artillery
was posted in the rear of Lieut.-Colonel M'Leod's brigade. On the left
of the position was an enclosed garden; beyond it the Nagah Nuddee; a
small river ran from thence past the enemy's right; and three parallel
ravines, terminating in the bed of the river, crossed the space
between the infantry and the enemy; but in front of the cavalry, and
on their right, the country was open. The enemy's position was masked
by irregularities of the ground and clusters of houses and huts, and a
thick plantation of trees, with ravines, and a large reservoir. On this
ground the Rajah had formed an army of 21,000 men, of which 14,000 were
horse, with seventy-five guns. Such was the ground on which the battle
of _Nagpore_ was fought. Beyond the river lay the city, from the walls
of which the movements of both armies could be perceived.
The Rajah had agreed, after much procrastination, to surrender his
guns at noon on the 16th of December; and the British force was put
in motion to receive them. The first battery was taken possession
of without opposition; but on the troops entering the plantation,
the enemy treacherously opened a sharp fire of musketry on them.
The action then commenced. The columns deployed. The brigades under
Lieut.-Colonels M'Leod and M'Kellar carried the enemy's right battery
with great gallantry, and afterwards drove the right wing from its
ground. The other batteries were also carried, and the supporting
troops routed, and the enemy was driven from all his positions, and
pursued a distance of five miles. The enemy's camp equipage, 40
elephants, and 75 guns were captured; and the ROYAL SCOTS added to
their former honours that of standing triumphant in the interior
of India, over an immense superiority of numbers of the enemy. The
battalion lost on this occasion 9 rank and file killed, and 26 wounded.
After this success the siege of the city of _Nagpore_ was commenced.
The troops which defended this place, consisting of about 5000 Arabs
and Hindoostanees, insisted upon extraordinary terms; and these not
being granted, they resolved on a desperate defence. On the 23rd of
December a breach was made at the Jumma Durwazza gate, and an assault
on the place was resolved on. One company of the ROYAL SCOTS, under
the command of Lieutenant Bell, with five of native infantry, and a
proportion of sappers and miners, were allotted for this service; and
two other companies of the ROYAL SCOTS, under the command of Captain H.
C. Cowell, were destined to attack the city at another gate; and the
remaining five companies were kept for the protection of the batteries.
At half-past eight o'clock on the morning of the 24th of December the
signal was given, when the storming party, rushing from the trenches,
gained the breach, but were instantly assailed by a heavy fire of
matchlocks from the adjoining buildings; at the same time the British
troops were unable to injure their numerous antagonists, either by
the fire of musketry or coming to close quarters. The Arabs, thus
sheltered behind walls, each marked with fatal aim, and with impunity,
his destined victim; and their fire under these circumstances is
destructive at distances beyond that where European musketry is
considered effective. Lieutenant Bell, of the ROYAL SCOTS, a most
promising officer, who had served with the 3rd battalion during a great
part of the war in Spain, was killed while gallantly leading his men
to the attack; and the breach being found untenable, the troops were
ordered to withdraw. The other storming parties succeeded in gaining
the desired points; yet their positions were also untenable, and they
were ordered to retire.
On the following day the Arabs renewed their offer to surrender; and
their terms being acceded to, they marched out of the city on the 1st
of January, 1818, and were allowed to go where they pleased, with the
exception of proceeding to Asseerghur. The loss of the ROYAL SCOTS in
the attack on _Nagpore_ was 1 lieutenant (Bell) and 10 rank and file
killed, with 2 serjeants and 49 rank and file wounded.
Brigadier-General Doveton, in his despatch to the Commander-in-Chief in
India, stated--"During the operation in the field of the 2nd division
of the army of the Deccan under my command, the conduct of the 2nd
battalion of His Majesty's ROYAL SCOTS, under the immediate command
of Lieut.-Colonel Fraser, has been invariably such as to entitle
that valuable corps to my highest approbation and applause; and more
particularly in the action with the enemy's army at this place on the
16th ultimo, their gallantry, steadiness, and good conduct were most
exemplary."
Thus, whether Europe, Asia, Africa, or America be the scene of
conflict, the conduct of the ROYAL SCOTS appears to have been uniformly
the same; and the gallantry displayed by the 2nd battalion on this
occasion was rewarded by the royal permission, dated the 29th of
March, 1823, to bear the word "NAGPORE" on its colours.
In the meantime the two flank companies, commanded by Captain Hulme,
had been engaged in several movements with the 1st division of the
army of the Deccan, and passed the Nerbuddah in flat-bottomed boats on
the 30th of November. On the 8th of December the division arrived at
Peepleea, and after four marches encamped in the vicinity of Oojain, a
short distance from _Maheidpoor_, where the army of Mulhar Rao Holkur,
one of the coalesced Mahratta powers against the British interests
in India, was assembled. After various fruitless negociations, the
division advanced against the enemy on the morning of the 22nd of
December; and as the troops were crossing the ford of the Seeprah river
they were exposed to a powerful and concentrated cannonade. About half
a mile beyond the river stood the army of Holkur; and after passing the
stream Brigadier-General Sir John Malcolm advanced with two brigades of
infantry to attack the enemy's left and a ruined village situated on
an eminence near the centre. The companies of the ROYAL SCOTS formed
part of this force; and in the action which followed they evinced their
native valour in a signal way. The enemy's left was brought forward
in anticipation of the attack, and a destructive fire of grape shot
was opened on the British; yet, encouraged by the example of Sir John
Malcolm and Lieut.-Colonel M'Gregor Murray,[131] the ROYAL SCOTS rushed
forward in the face of this tremendous fire; the enemy's infantry
were driven from their position, and the village and batteries were
carried at the point of the bayonet; the enemy's artillerymen were
resolute, and stood their ground until they were bayoneted. While the
ROYAL SCOTS were victorious at their point of attack, the enemy's right
was overpowered; his centre gave way on the appearance of a brigade
ascending from the river; and his troops, occupying a position where
his camp stood, also fled on the advance of a British force to attack
them. Thus the army of Mulhar Rao Holkur was routed; and in a general
order, dated the 23rd of December, the Commander-in-Chief of the army
of the Deccan observed--"The undaunted heroism displayed by the flank
companies of the ROYAL SCOTS in storming and carrying, at the point of
the bayonet, the enemy's guns on the right of Lieut.-Colonel Scot's
brigade, was worthy of the high name and reputation of that regiment.
Lieutenant M'Leod fell gloriously in the charge, and the conduct of
Captain Hulme, Captain M'Gregor, and of every officer and man belonging
to it entitles them to his Excellency's most favourable report and
warmest commendation."
The loss of the ROYAL SCOTS on this occasion was Lieutenant Donald
M'Leod, 1 serjeant, and 7 rank and file, killed; Lieutenants John
M'Gregor and Charles Campbell, 4 serjeants, 1 drummer, and 27 rank and
file, wounded. In commemoration of the valour evinced by these two
companies the battalion obtained the royal permission to bear the word
"MAHEIDPOOR" on its colours.
[Sidenote: 1818]
[Sidenote: 2nd Batt.]