1594. He learnt the duty of a musketeer as soon as he could carry a
musket; and when seventeen years of age he was Colonel of a Cavalry
corps, and served a campaign against the Danes. In the same year
(1611) his father died, and the young Gustavus succeeded to the
throne of Sweden; and he soon afterwards evinced, to the surprise
of all Europe, the most distinguished abilities as a commander, a
hero, and a politician. The discipline which he introduced into
his army was strict beyond all precedent, and to this many of his
victories may be attributed. His improvements in arms, equipment,
and in military tactics, were particularly important; and he was
brave even to rashness. He was wounded in action on six different
occasions, had three horses killed under him, and was several times
in the power of the enemy, but was rescued by his own men. On the
fatal 6th of November, 1632, he fought sword in hand at the head of
the Smoland cavalry, and was shot through the left arm, but continued
fighting until his voice and strength failed from loss of blood, when
he attempted to retire. At that instant an Imperial cavalier came
galloping forward, and, crying "_Long have I sought thee_," shot
the King through the body; and the next moment one of his Majesty's
attendants shot the cavalier dead on the spot. As the King and his
attendants were retiring, they were charged by a troop of cuirassiers;
his Majesty was held for a few moments on the saddle, but his horse,
being shot in the shoulder, made a desperate plunge, and threw the
rider to the ground. After his fall the King received five wounds in
different parts of his body, and was shot through the head. Thus fell
the brave Gustavus, the most distinguished warrior of his age; with
whose life the early services of HEPBURN'S regiment, now represented by
the FIRST, OR ROYAL REGIMENT OF FOOT, are intimately connected.
[33] Monro's Expedition.
[34] In the _Mercure François_ and other French works he is called
_Colonel Hebron_ and _Le Chevalier d'Hebron_; Père Daniel, the French
historian, gives the following reason for this change--"On l'appelloit
en France 'le _Chevalier d'Hebron_,' son nom d'_Hepburn_ étant
difficile à prononcer."
[35] This transfer of men from the service of the Crown of Sweden to
that of France was not peculiar to Hepburn's veterans; but the German
and Swedish forces which, after the defeat at Nordlingen, retreated,
under the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, towards the Rhine, were nearly all taken
into the pay of France.
[36] Mercure Françoise; Anderson's History of the Reign of Louis XIII.;
and the Complete History of Europe.
[37] "The most deplorable accident was the death of the Scottish
"Colonel Hepburn, who, with his usual coolness, surveying the breach,
received a ball in his neck, and died, extremely regretted in the army,
and by the Court of France."--_Anderson's History of France_, vol. v.
p. 90.
"Le combat fut fort opiniâtre en ceste prise, et de telle façon; que
le Colonel Hebron Escossois, y fut tué d'une mousquetade dans le col,
qui luy passoit dans les reins, ayant laissé une reputation digne de
sa valeur, fidelité, et experience au fait de la guerre."--_Mercure
François_, tom. xxi. p. 277.
[38] The following return of the establishment of the regiment in 1637
was procured by its Colonel, General Lord Adam Gordon, who died in
1801:--
Colonel (Lord James Douglas) 1
Lieutenant-Colonel (Colonel Monro) 1
Major (Sir Patrick Monteith) 1
Captains 45
Captain-Lieutenant 1
Lieutenants 45
Ensigns 48
Surgeons 4
Adjutants 6
Chaplains 2
Drum-Major 1
Piper 1
Sergeants 88
Corporals 288
Lance-Parade 288
Drummers 96
48 Companies of 150 Privates each 7200
----
Total 8316
----
[39] Mercure François.
[40] In a plan of the siege of Hesdin, published at Paris in 1639,
_Douglas' Scots Regiment_ appears formed in brigade with the Regiment
of Champaigne.
[41] The three Scots regiments in the service of France at this period,
are designated by the French historians, the regiments of DOUGLAS,
CHAMBERS, and PRASLIN.
[42] Père Daniel.
[43] Mercure François; and Le Histoire Militaire de Louis le Grand, par
M. Le Marquis de Quincy.
[44] This division consisted of the following corps; viz.: The French
Guards, the Swiss Guards, the regiments of Picardy, DOUGLAS, La
Meilleraie, Grancy, and Molondin.--_Mercure François._
[45] Account of the battle of Lens, published at the time; Life of the
Prince of Condé; and Histoire Militaire de Louis le Grand.
[46] A detailed account of this action is given in the Life of King
James II., from the memoirs written with his own hand, and published
by the Rev. J. S. Clarke in 1818. His Majesty was then (1652) Duke of
York, and was serving with the French Army, of which DOUGLAS' Regiment
formed part.
[47] Life of King James II., from the Memoirs written with his own hand.
[48] The forces were designated by the following titles:--
HORSE GUARDS
The Duke of York's Troop afterwards the third troop of
Life Guards, and disbanded in
1746.
FOOT.
The King's Regiment of Guards, afterwards constituted, with a
battalion of Guards raised in
England in 1661, the FIRST
FOOT GUARDS.
{ The few remaining men of these
The Duke of York's Regiment { regiments were, in 1660, placed
The Duke of Gloucester's Regt. { in garrison at Dunkirk; they
The Earl of Bristol's Regiment { were afterwards removed to
Lord Newborough's Regiment { Tangier, and incorporated in
Colonel Richard Grace's Regt. { the SECOND, or QUEEN'S REGIMENT
{ OF FOOT.
[49] "Ce Régiment de Douglas, étant en garnison à Avesnes en 1661,
eut ordre de passer en Angleterre, où il rendit des services très
considerables au Roy Charles II.
"Il n'était que de huit compagnies en partant de France, et se trouva
en y revenant, un an aprés, de trente-trois compagnies, qui étoient
composées pour le moins de cent hommes chacune. Mylord George Douglas
l'a toujours commandé en France."--_Père Daniel._
[50] London Gazette; and Military Records in the State Paper Office.
[51] "_Le Régiment de Douglas Escossois._ Ce Régiment a servi
plusieurs années en France, et s'y est fort distingué. Je trouve dans
l'Ordonnance de Louis XIV., de l'an 1672, pour le rang des Régimens,
qu'il étoit un des premiers."--_Père Daniel._
[52] Comte de Chamilly's despatch, in the original correspondence
respecting the campaign of 1672, published in France.
[53] See the Historical Record of the Life Guards, p. 43.
[54] Histoire du Vicomte de Turenne par L'Abbé Raguenet.
[55] Mémoires de deux dernieres Campagnes de Monsieur de Turenne en
Allemagne.
[56] London Gazette.
[57] The Colonel of the Regiment, Lord George Douglas, was created
_Earl of Dumbarton_ on the 9th of March, 1675; but the French
historians continued to designate the corps, "_Le Régiment de Douglas_."
[58] In the order of battle for the French army on the Rhine in 1677,
printed in the _Histoire Militaire de Louis le Grand_, the First
Battalion of DOUGLAS' Regiment appears formed in brigade with the
regiments of _La Marine_, _Couronne_, and _Vendôme_, and the second
battalion is posted between two cavalry brigades, on the left of the
line.
[59] "Captain Hume, who commanded our advance-party, showed great
conduct and courage, standing several charges of the enemy's horse;
and when the action was over, and he was upon his retreat to the main
body, one of the Moors' chief commanders charged the rear of his party
and overthrew him; but the Moor's horse falling, he was immediately
killed."--_London Gazette._
[60] Tangier's Rescue by John Ross, fol. 1681.
[61] Tangier's Rescue by John Ross, fol. 1681.
[62] "This day the Scots and their grenadiers charged first, if
there was any time at all between their charging: for, like fire and
lightning, all went on at once."--_Tangier's Rescue._
[63] Tangier's Rescue.
[64] Four colours were captured in this action; one by DUMBARTON'S
Scots, one by the Admiral's battalion, one by the English horse, and
one by the Spaniards. Three guns were also taken; two by the Foot
Guards, and one by the battalion of Marines and Seamen.
[65] The following return shows the loss sustained by the British
troops in this engagement:--
+---------------------------------------+-----------++-----------+
| | Killed. || Wounded. |
| +---+---+---++---+---+---+
| | O | | || O | | |
| | f | | || f | | |
| | f | | H || f | | H |
| Corps. | i | | o || i | | o |
| | c | | r || c | | r |
| | e | M | s || e | M | s |
| | r | e | e || r | e | e |
| | s | n | s || s | n | s |
| | . | . | . || . | . | . |
+---------------------------------------+---+---+---++---+---+---+
| Four troops of English Horse, now | | | || | | |
| Royal Dragoons | | | 5|| 2| 5| 9|
| Three do. of Spanish Horse, disbanded | | | || | | |
| in 1683 | 1| 13| 24|| 6| 30| 25|
| Battalion of Foot Guards | | 7| || 1| 51| |
| The Earl of Dumbarton's Regiment, now | | | || | | |
| 1st Royal | 6| 36| || 15|100| |
| The Earl of Inchiquin's do., now 2nd | | | || | | |
| or Queen's Royal | 2| 34| || 10|124| |
| Vice Admiral Herbert's Battalion, | | | || | | |
| consisting of Marines and Seamen | 2| 10| || | 24| |
| +---+---+---++---+---+---+
| Total | 11|100| 29|| 34|334| 34|
+---------------------------------------+---+---+---++---+---+---+
_Narrative of the Siege of Tangier, published by authority, fol. 1680._
[66] The First Regiment of Foot Guards was for several years designated
the _Royal Regiment_. There was also at this period a _Royal Regiment_
in _Ireland_, which was sometimes styled Foot Guards. This corps
adhered to King James II. at the Revolution in 1688. One battalion had
previously arrived in England, and, being composed of papists, it was
disbanded by William III. The men were confined a short time in the
Isle of Wight, and afterwards transferred to the service of the Emperor
of Germany. The other battalion fought in the cause of James II. in
Ireland, until the surrender of Limerick in 1691, when it proceeded to
France, and remained in the French service until it was disbanded.
[67] The author of the account of this review here means two battalions
of the 1st Foot Guards.
[68] War-Office Records.
[69] War-Office Records.
[70] Sixteen field-pieces were employed. Nine were sent from the Tower
of London, and seven from Portsmouth.
[71] Lediard, and several other historians, attribute the preservation
of the King's army from a complete overthrow at Sedgemoor to the
excellent conduct of the ROYALS, in being under arms so quickly as to
be able to hold the rebels in check until the other corps had time to
form their ranks.
[72] Fountainhall's Diary, p. 59.
[73] War-Office Establishment Book.
[74] Sir John Dalrymple, and several other historians who wrote many
years after these events occurred, have mistaken the Royal Regiment of
Scots Horse for the Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons, now the 2nd or
Royal North British Dragoons, or _Scots Greys_; but the latter regiment
did not mutiny. The Scots Horse escaped to Scotland, and many of them
joined the Highlanders in their resistance to King William III.; and
the regiment was taken off the establishment of the army and was not
afterwards restored.
[75] List of troops sent to the Netherlands, in 1689, under the Earl of
Marlborough:--
Second troop of Guards, now 2nd Regiment of Life Guards.
Royal Regiment of Horse Guards.
One Battalion of the 2nd Foot Guards.
One Battalion of the Scots Foot Guards, now 3rd Foot Guards.
One Battalion of the Royal Regiment.
Prince George of Denmark's Regiment, now 3rd Foot, or the
Buffs.
Royal Fusiliers, now 7th Royal Fusiliers.
Col. John Hales' Regiment, afterwards disbanded.
" Sir David Collier's " " "
" Robert Hodges' " now 16th Foot.
" Edwd. Fitzpatrick's " afterwards disbanded.
" Fergus D. O'Ffarrel's " now 21st Royal Scots Fusiliers.
[76] This officer commanded the _Grenadier Company_ of the ROYAL
Regiment when it was raised in 1678; and frequently distinguished
himself against the Moors at Tangier in 1680. In October, 1688,
Lieut.-Col. Archibald Douglas of the ROYAL Regiment was appointed
Colonel of a newly-raised regiment, now the 16th Foot; and was
succeeded in December of the same year by Lieut.-Col. Hodges, from the
ROYAL Regiment, who was killed at the battle of Steenkirk.
[77] D'Auvergne's History of the Campaigns in Flanders.
[78] D'Auvergne.
[79] "The bravery of our men was extraordinary, and admired by all; ten
battalions of ours having engaged above thirty of the French at one
time, and _Sir Robert Douglas_, at the head of _one_ battalion of his
own regiment, having driven _four_ battalions of the enemy from their
cannon."--_London Gazette._
[80] Memoirs of Captain George Carleton.
[81] The General History of Europe.
[82] D'Auvergne.
[83] The French brigades, which attacked the post occupied by the first
battalion of the _Royal_ Regiment, were those of Bourbonnois, Lyonnois,
Anjou, and Artois, and King James' Royal Regiment, or Irish Guards,
were amongst them.--(_D'Auvergne._)
[84] Official Records in Ireland.
[85] Millner's Journal of the Marches, Battles, and Sieges of the
British troops on the Continent from 1701 to 1712.
[86] Portmore's, now 2nd or Queen's Royals, and Elsts, afterwards
disbanded.
[87] Now the 9th, 15th, 23rd, and 24th Regiments.
[88] Now the 10th, 16th, 21st, and 26th Regiments.
[89] The following Return shows the number of Officers killed and
wounded in each British Regiment at the battle of Blenheim:--
Officers.
Killed. Wounded.
The Queen's Horse, now 1st Dragoon Guards 0 2
Lieut.-Gen. Wood's Regt. 3rd " " - 2 5
Colonel Cadogan's " 5th " " - 1 0
Lieut.-Gen. Wyndham's 6th " " - 5 5
Duke of Schomberg's 7th " " - 3 3
Royal Scots Dragoons 2nd Drags. (Greys) 0 0
Royal Irish Dragoons, late 5th " - - 0 1
Foot Guards, one battalion - - - - 1 5
Royals two do., now 1st Foot - - 3 7
Prince George's Regt., " 3rd " - - 2 9
Brig.-Gen. Webb's " " 8th " - - 0 2
Ld. North & Grey's " " 10th " - - 8 9
Brig.-Gen. Howe's " " 15th " - - 5 13
Earl of Derby's " " 16th " - - 4 12
Royal Irish " " 18th " - - 3 10
Brig.-Gen. Row's " " 21st " - - 6 12
Lt.-Gen. Ingoldsby's " 23rd " - - 0 9
Dk. of Marlborough's " 24th " - - 3 9
Brig.-Gen. Fergusson's " 26th " - - 5 14
Colonel Meredith's " " 37th " - - 0 3
---- ----
Total - 51 130
[90] Milner's Journal.
[91] London Gazette, &c.
[92] War-Office Marching-Order Book.
[93] War-Office Establishment Book.
[94] Records of the Adjutant-General's Office.
[95] Extract of a letter from an officer.
[96] "The troops did honour to their country, particularly the 1st
battalion of the Royal Scots, who were put to the hardest trials,
behaved heroically, and suffered much."--_Scots Magazine._
[97] London Gazette, &c. &c.
[98] In 1684, and for many years afterwards, the facing of the regiment
was _white_.
[99] His Majesty's commands were issued in October, 1832, directing
that the colours of both battalions of the Royal Regiment should bear
the same devices and distinctions.
[100] South Carolina Gazette.
[101] Return of troops engaged in the assault of Fort Moro, on the 30th
July, 1762.
Officers. Serjeants. Rank and File.
Royal Regiment 6 5 102
Marksmen 8 8 129
90th Regiment 8 2 50
To sustain them--
56th Regiment 17 14 150
-- -- ----
Total 39 29 431
[102] Stedman's History of the American War.
[103] Naval and Military Memoirs of Great Britain from 1727 to 1783, by
Robert Beatson, Esq., LL.D.
[104] Lieut.-General Stuart's despatch.
[105] Afterwards General Sir William Hutchinson, K.C.H.
[106] Rainsford's Historical Account of the Black Empire of Hayti.
[107] The Duke of York's despatch.
[108] This officer rose to the rank of Major-General, and was killed
before Bayonne in 1814.
[109] Journal of Quartermaster-General Brownrigg, laid before
Parliament.
[110] Captain Mullen was on the Staff at Barbadoes, but volunteered his
services on this expedition.
[111] Now Lieut.-General Sir J. Stevenson Barns, K.C.B., Colonel of the
Twentieth Regiment of Foot.
[112] In this year (1811) was living at the village of Delmes, in
Scotland, John Reed, aged 100 years; he was a private in the 2nd
battalion of the ROYAL Regiment at the battle of _Culloden_, in 1746,
and was in the battalion upwards of 40 years.
[113] At a Scots corporation dinner, held in London on the 4th of May,
1811, on the health of the Duke of Kent, the Colonel of the ROYAL
Regiment, being drunk, his Royal Highness rose to return thanks, and,
in the course of his speech, said:--"My royal brother has been pleased
to praise the regiment in which I have been employed, and have had
the honour to command, and I too can bear testimony to the spirit
and gallantry of the Scottish soldiers. From the earliest days, when
I commenced my military life, it was always my utmost aim to arrive
at the command of a Scots regiment, and to bring that regiment into
action would have been the greatest glory I could have attained, as I
am well convinced the officers and men would have justified my most
sanguine expectations; their courage, perseverance, and activity,
being undoubtedly such as may always be relied on; and they are always
able and willing to do their duty, if not more than their duty." His
Royal Highness took great interest in the welfare of the regiment;
and he this year presented, by the hands of Lieut.-Colonel M'Leod, a
gold medal to Serjeant Manns of the regiment, for the very meritorious
manner in which he had educated upwards of 800 soldiers and soldiers'
children.
[114] This officer was shot through the hand whilst bearing the
colours, the ball passing through the flag.
[115]
"Demerara, 20th of April, 1812.
"GENERAL ORDER.
"Major-General Carmichael cannot refrain from expressing his regret
on the departure of the ROYAL SCOTS. The honourable testimony from
Governor Bentinck and the inhabitants of the good conduct of the
regiment for nearly nine years corresponds with the opinion the
Major-General has formed of their correct discipline and military
order in all respects, which evince the incessant attention of Colonel
Stewart and the officers of the corps. He sincerely wishes them every
happiness, and looks forward with the pleasing hope of meeting the
regiment on future service.
(Signed) "A. STEWART,
_Brigade-Major_."
[116] "The ROYALS led the attack, on which occasion the distinguished
gallantry of this corps was most conspicuous."
"The ROYALS refused to give way in the least, until General Hay
received orders, through General Oswald, from General Graham, to
retire, it having been found that success was physically impracticable,
as the defences round the breach were not destroyed; and, from the
showers of musketry, grape, hand-grenades, shells, and large stones,
with which the attacking column was assailed, it appears miraculous
that any escaped."--_Extract from Sir T. Graham's despatch._
"The ROYAL REGIMENT proved, by the numbers left in the breach, that it
would have been carried, had they not been opposed by real obstacles,
which no human prowess could overcome."--_Extract from Division Orders._
[117] "Major-General Hay speaks most highly of the conspicuous
gallantry of Colonel Barns in the successful assault of the coverlain,
with the brave battalion of the ROYAL SCOTS.
"Indeed I conceive our ultimate success depended upon the repeated
attacks made by the ROYAL SCOTS."--_Sir Thomas Graham's despatch_.
[118] Extract from General Orders.
[119] The Americans were about 6000 strong, and the British only
1500: namely, ROYAL SCOTS, 500; 1st battalion King's Own, 480; 100th
regiment, 450; one troop 19th Light Dragoons; and a proportion of
artillery.--_London Gazette._
[120] The Americans were 5000 strong; the British were 2800.--_London
Gazette._
[121] Lieut.-General Drummond's Despatch.
[122] General Orders.
[123] A stone was placed in the church at Montreal, Lower Canada, with
the following inscription:--
"In memory of Lieut.-Colonel JOHN GORDON, commanding the 1st battalion
Royal Scots Regiment of Foot, who departed this life on the 25th of
September, 1814, in consequence of a wound received in action with the
enemy in front of Fort Erie, on the 17th of the same month.
"This slab is placed by the officers of the battalion, to commemorate
their high esteem for him as a man, and their respect for his character
as a soldier."
[124] This valuable and gallant officer had served many years in the
Royal Regiment, in which he had a son, Captain George Hay, killed at
the battle of Vittoria.
A monument was erected to his memory in the cemetery of the church of
Etienne, Bayonne, with the following inscription:--
This tomb is placed here
By the officers of the 3rd battalion, 1st, or Royal Scots
Regiment of Foot,
As a testimony of respect to the memory of
The late
MAJOR-GENERAL ANDREW HAY,
Commanding the First Brigade of the Fifth Division of the British
Army in France,
Who gallantly fell on the morning of the 14th of
April, 1814,
In defence of the ground in which
His body is deposited,
Aged 52 years.
Near the north door of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, a monument
has also been erected to the memory of this gallant veteran. He is
represented falling into the arms of Valour, with a soldier standing,
lamenting the loss of his commander.
[125] "The 3rd battalion of the Royal Scots _distinguished itself in a
particular manner_. Being removed from the centre of the 5th division,
it charged and routed a column of the enemy. It was then formed in a
square, to receive the cavalry, and though repeated attacks were made,
not the slightest impression was produced. Wherever the lancers and
cuirassiers presented themselves, they found a stern and undismayed
front, which they vainly endeavoured to penetrate."--_Mudford's
Historical Account of the Campaign in the Netherlands in 1815._
[126] "Though charged six or seven times by an infinite superiority of
numbers, the French cavalry never for an instant made the slightest
impression upon the square of the Royal Scots."--_Narrative by an
Officer who was an eye-witness._
[127]
"Whitehall, 13th December, 1815.
"HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE PRINCE REGENT, taking into His Royal Highness's
consideration the highly distinguished services of COLONEL JAMES
STEVENSON BARNS, Lieut.-Colonel of the 1st, or ROYAL SCOTS REGIMENT OF
FOOT, Companion of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath, and
Knight of the Royal Portuguese Order of the Tower and Sword, manifested
by him on divers important occasions in the campaigns of Toulon,
Corsica, Holland, Egypt, and during the recent arduous operations and
splendid achievements of His Majesty's arms in Portugal, Spain, and
France, and being desirous of conferring upon that officer such a mark
of favour as may in an especial manner evince the sense his Royal
Highness entertains of the intrepidity and valour displayed by him
at the battle of Busaco, wherein, as Lieut.-Colonel of the Staff, he
commanded a brigade; at the capture of Badajoz, on the 6th of April,
1812; at the victory of Salamanca, where, in leading his battalion to
the charge, he was severely wounded; and his distinguished gallantry
at the assault and capture of St. Sebastian, and the battles of the
Nive, hath been pleased, in the name and on the behalf of His Majesty,
to grant unto the said Colonel Barns, His Majesty's Royal license and
authority that he and his descendants may bear the following honourable
augmentation to the arms of his family:--
"A chief, thereon the representation of the curtain of a fortification;
and above the words 'St. Sebastian,' as also a canton charged, with
the representations of the gold cross presented by His Majesty's
command to the said James Stevenson Barns, and of the badge of the
Royal Portuguese Military Order of the Tower and Sword pendant from the
ribands from which the said distinctions are respectively attached.
"And the following crest of honourable augmentation:--
"Issuant from a broken battlement, a dexter arm in armour, the hand
grasping a banner inscribed 'St. Sebastian;' in allusion to the
conspicuous conduct of the said Colonel Barns, on the 31st of August,
1813, when he gallantly led the 3rd battalion of the ROYALS, and
assaulted and carried the curtain of the fortress, thereby eminently
contributing to the ultimate capture of that important place; provided
the said armorial distinctions be first duly exemplified, according to
our law of arms, and recorded in the Herald's Office; otherwise His
Majesty's royal license and permission to be void, and of none effect."
[128]
"Port Chatlerain, 29th November, 1815.
"Brigade Order.
"The 4th battalion of the Royals, the 42nd and 92nd regiments, are to
march to-morrow morning for Meulans, on their route for Boulogne, to
embark for England.
"Major-General Sir Denis Pack, cannot allow these corps to depart from
his command without expressing his regret at losing them.
"The conduct of the 4th battalion, Royals, in camp and quarters has
been, like that of the 3rd battalion and the two regiments, orderly and
soldier-like; and he is confident, from the high state of discipline
these corps appear in, they would have emulated their comrades in the
3rd battalion, had the same glorious opportunity been afforded them."
[129] The following return shows the number of men drafted from the 4th
to the other battalions on foreign service:--
Key to table:
A.=To what Battalion.
S.=Serjeants.
C.=Corporals.
D.=Drummers.
P.=Privates.
B.=Boys.