TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
A superscript is denoted by ^x or ^{xx}. For example, iv^s (four
shillings), or Esq^{re}.
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
More detail can be found 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 Generals Office, Horse Guards._
London
_Printed by Authority_:]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE FOURTEENTH,
OR,
THE BUCKINGHAMSHIRE REGIMENT OF FOOT:
CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF
THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT IN 1685,
AND OF
ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES TO 1845.
_ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES._
LONDON:
PARKER, FURNIVALL, AND PARKER,
_MILITARY LIBRARY, WHITEHALL_.
M.DCCC.XLV.
LONDON:
HARRISON AND CO., PRINTERS,
ST. MARTIN'S LANE.
THE FOURTEENTH,
OR
THE BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
REGIMENT OF FOOT,
BEARS ON ITS REGIMENTAL COLOUR,
"TOURNAY"--"CORUNNA"--"WATERLOO"--"JAVA"--"BHURTPORE,"
AND
THE ROYAL TIGER SUPERSCRIBED "INDIA,"
IN COMMEMORATION OF ITS DISTINGUISHED SERVICES ON THE
CONTINENT OF EUROPE, AND IN THE EAST INDIES.
[Illustration: (Regimental badge)]
The Regiment also bears on the Caps of the Grenadiers and Drummers,
THE WHITE HORSE, with the motto _Nec aspera terrent_.
CONTENTS.
Year Page
1685 Formation of the Regiment 9
---- Names of the Officers 10
1689 Proceeds to Scotland 13
1692 Embarks for Flanders --
---- Returns to England --
---- Forms part of an expedition against the coast of
France --
---- Proceeds to Ostend 14
1693 Battle of Landen --
1694 Forms part of the covering army during the
siege of Huy 16
1695 Operations against the Fortress of Kenoque --
---- Siege of the Fortress of Namur 17
1696 Returns to England 20
1698 Embarks for Ireland --
1715 Proceeds to Scotland 22
---- Battle of Sheriffmuir 23
1719 Action at Glenshiel 24
---- Returns to England 25
1727 Defence of Gibraltar 26
1742 Returns to England --
1745 Embarks for Flanders 27
---- Returns to England 28
---- Marches to Scotland --
1746 Battle of Falkirk --
---- -------- Culloden 29
1751 Uniform and Colours of the Regiment 31
1752 Returns to England 31
---- Embarks for Gibraltar --
1759 Returns to England 32
1765 Alterations in the Clothing 33
1766 Embarks for North America 34
1771 Proceeds to the West Indies --
---- Employed against the Caribbees --
1773 Returns to North America --
1775 Detachment employed against the entrenchments
at Great Bridge 35
1777 Returns to England 36
1782 Embarks for Jamaica --
---- Styled the Bedfordshire Regiment 37
1791 Returns to England 38
1793 Embarks for Holland 39
---- Engaged at Famars --
---- Siege of Valenciennes 40
---- Siege of Dunkirk 42
1794 Attack on the village of Prêmont 43
---- Siege of Landrécies 44
---- Battle of Tournay 47
---- Forms part of the garrison of Nimeguen 50
1795 Action at Gueldermalsen 51
---- Returns to England 53
---- Embarks for the West Indies, but returns to port 54
1796 Resumes the voyage to the West Indies --
---- Capture of the Islands of St. Lucia and St.
Vincent 55 & 57
1797 Capture of Trinidad --
---- Forms part of the Force destined to act against
Porto Rico --
1803 Returns to England 60
1804 A Second Battalion added 61
1805 The First Battalion embarks for Hanover --
1806 Returns to England --
1806 Proceeds to Ireland 62
1807 The First Battalion embarks for India --
1808 Expedition against Tranquebar --
---- The Second Battalion embarks for Spain 63
1809 Battle of Corunna 64
---- The Second Battalion returns to England 65
---- County Title changed from "Bedfordshire" to
"Buckinghamshire" --
---- The Second Battalion proceeds to Walcheren --
---- Siege of Flushing --
---- Battalion returns to England 66
1810 The Second Battalion embarks for Malta --
---- Capture of the Isle of France 67
1811 Capture of Java 70
1813 Attack on the piratical state of Sambas on the
western coast of Borneo 72
---- A Third Battalion added --
1814 The Second Battalion forms part of an expedition
against the north-west coast of Italy 73
---- The Second Battalion stationed at Genoa --
1815 The Third Battalion embarks for Flanders 74
---- Battle of Waterloo --
---- Attack on the Citadel of Cambray 77
---- The Second Battalion leaves Genoa and proceeds
to France --
---- The Second Battalion proceeds to Malta 78
---- The Third Battalion returns to England --
1816 The Third Battalion disbanded --
---- The Second Battalion embarks from Malta for
the Ionian Islands --
1817 Capture of the fortified town of Hatrass 79
---- The Second Battalion proceeds to Malta 80
---- -------------------- returns to England --
---- -------------------- disbanded --
---- Employed against the Pindarees --
1825 Capture of Bhurtpore 83
1830 Returns to England 87
1832 Proceeds to Ireland 88
1836 Embarks for the West Indies --
1841 Proceeds to Canada 89
1845 The Conclusion 90
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS.
1685 Sir Edward Hales, Bart. 91
1688 William Beveridge 93
1692 John Tidcomb --
1713 Jasper Clayton --
1743 Joseph Price 95
1747 The Honorable William Herbert --
1753 Edward Braddock 96
1755 Thomas Fowke --
1756 Charles Jefferies 97
1765 The Honorable William Keppel 98
1775 Robert Cunninghame --
1787 John Douglas 99
1789 George Earl Waldegrave --
---- George Hotham 100
1806 Sir Harry Calvert, Bart., G.C.B. --
1826 Thomas Lord Lynedoch 105
1834 The Honorable Sir Charles Colville, G.C.B. --
1835 The Honorable Sir Alexander Hope, G.C.B. --
1837 Sir James Watson, K.C.B. 106
PLATES.
Colours of the Regiment _to face_ 9
Uniform of the Regiment " 90
HISTORICAL RECORDS
OF
THE BRITISH ARMY.
GENERAL ORDERS.
_HORSE-GUARDS_,
_1st January, 1836_.
His Majesty has been pleased to command, that, with a view of doing
the fullest justice to Regiments, as well as to Individuals who
have distinguished themselves by their Bravery in Action with the
Enemy, an Account of the Services of every Regiment in the British
Army shall be published under the superintendence and direction
of the Adjutant-General; and that this Account shall contain the
following particulars, viz.,
---- The Period and Circumstances of the Original Formation of
the Regiment; The Stations at which it has been from time to time
employed; The Battles, Sieges, and other Military Operations,
in which it has been engaged, particularly specifying any
Achievement it may have performed, and the Colours, Trophies,
&c., it may have captured from the Enemy.
---- The Names of the Officers and the number of Non-Commissioned
Officers and Privates, Killed or Wounded by the Enemy, specifying
the Place and Date of the Action.
---- The Names of those Officers, who, in consideration of their
Gallant Services and Meritorious Conduct in Engagements with the
Enemy, have been distinguished with Titles, Medals, or other
Marks of His Majesty's gracious favour.
---- The Names of all such Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers
and Privates as may have specially signalized themselves in
Action.
And,
---- The Badges and Devices which the Regiment may have been
permitted to bear, and the Causes on account of which such Badges
or Devices, or any other Marks of Distinction, have been granted.
By Command of the Right Honourable
GENERAL LORD HILL,
_Commanding-in-Chief_.
JOHN MACDONALD,
_Adjutant-General_.
PREFACE.
The character and credit of the British Army must chiefly depend
upon the zeal and ardour, by which all who enter into its service
are animated, and consequently it is of the highest importance that
any measure calculated to excite the spirit of emulation, by which
alone great and gallant actions are achieved, should be adopted.
Nothing can more fully tend to the accomplishment of this desirable
object, than a full display of the noble deeds with which the
Military History of our country abounds. To hold forth these bright
examples to the imitation of the youthful soldier, and thus to
incite him to emulate the meritorious conduct of those who have
preceded him in their honourable career, are among the motives that
have given rise to the present publication.
The operations of the British Troops are, indeed, announced in the
"London Gazette," from whence they are transferred into the public
prints: the achievements of our armies are thus made known at the
time of their occurrence, and receive the tribute of praise and
admiration to which they are entitled. On extraordinary occasions,
the Houses of Parliament have been in the habit of conferring on
the Commanders, and the Officers and Troops acting under their
orders, expressions of approbation and of thanks for their skill
and bravery, and these testimonials, confirmed by the high honour
of their Sovereign's Approbation, constitute the reward which the
soldier most highly prizes.
It has not, however, until late years, been the practice (which
appears to have long prevailed in some of the Continental armies)
for British Regiments to keep regular records of their services
and achievements. Hence some difficulty has been experienced in
obtaining, particularly from the old Regiments, an authentic
account of their origin and subsequent services.
This defect will now be remedied, in consequence of His Majesty
having been pleased to command, that every Regiment shall in future
keep a full and ample record of its services at home and abroad.
From the materials thus collected, the country will henceforth
derive information as to the difficulties and privations which
chequer the career of those who embrace the military profession. In
Great Britain, where so large a number of persons are devoted to
the active concerns of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and
where these pursuits have, for so long a period, been undisturbed
by the _presence of war_, which few other countries have escaped,
comparatively little is known of the vicissitudes of active
service, and of the casualties of climate, to which, even during
peace, the British Troops are exposed in every part of the globe,
with little or no interval of repose.
In their tranquil enjoyment of the blessings which the country
derives from the industry and the enterprise of the agriculturist
and the trader, its happy inhabitants may be supposed not often to
reflect on the perilous duties of the soldier and the sailor,--on
their sufferings,--and on the sacrifice of valuable life, by which
so many national benefits are obtained and preserved.
The conduct of the British Troops, their valour, and endurance,
have shone conspicuously under great and trying difficulties; and
their character has been established in Continental warfare by the
irresistible spirit with which they have effected debarkations in
spite of the most formidable opposition, and by the gallantry and
steadiness with which they have maintained their advantages against
superior numbers.
In the official Reports made by the respective Commanders, ample
justice has generally been done to the gallant exertions of the
Corps employed; but the details of their services, and of acts of
individual bravery, can only be fully given in the Annals of the
various Regiments.
These Records are now preparing for publication, under His
Majesty's special authority, by Mr. RICHARD CANNON, Principal Clerk
of the Adjutant-General's Office; and while the perusal of them
cannot fail to be useful and interesting to military men of every
rank, it is considered that they will also afford entertainment and
information to the general reader, particularly to those who may
have served in the Army, or who have relatives in the Service.
There exists in the breasts of most of those who have served,
or are serving, in the Army, an _Esprit de Corps_--an attachment
to every thing belonging to their Regiment; to such persons a
narrative of the services of their own Corps cannot fail to prove
interesting. Authentic accounts of the actions of the great,--the
valiant,--the loyal, have always been of paramount interest with
a brave and 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.
[Illustration: 14th Regiment.]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE FOURTEENTH,
OR
THE BUCKINGHAMSHIRE REGIMENT
OF
FOOT.
[Sidenote: 1685]
In the summer of 1685 England was in a state of tranquillity; the
minds of men were not, however, at ease respecting the religion
of their king, James II., but they put the best construction on
his conduct, and manufactures and commerce were flourishing;
when suddenly James Duke of Monmouth invaded the western shores
with a few followers, and asserted his claim to the sovereignty
of the realm. The din of hostile preparation instantly resounded
throughout the kingdom, and thousands of His Majesty's subjects
laid aside the pursuits of industry, and arrayed themselves under
the royal standard, to oppose the invader and his adherents. At
this juncture SIR EDWARD HALES, Baronet, of Woodchurch, in the
county of Kent, stood forward in the support of the Crown, and
raised a company of one hundred musketeers and pikemen, for the
king's service, at Canterbury and in its vicinity. Companies were
also raised by the following loyal gentlemen:-- ---- Boynton, Esq.,
Robert Middleton, Henry Vaughan, Richard Brewer[1], William Broom,
John Gifford, Thomas Gifford, Mark Talbot, John Chappell, and
Rowland Watson, and these companies were constituted a regiment,
of which SIR EDWARD HALES was appointed colonel, ---- Boynton
lieutenant-colonel, and Robert Middleton major, by commissions
dated the 22nd of June, 1685; and the corps thus formed now
bears the title of the FOURTEENTH REGIMENT OF FOOT. The general
rendezvous of the regiment was at Canterbury; two companies
had their rendezvous at Rochester and Chatham, and others at
Sittingbourne and Feversham.
While the formation of the regiment was in progress, the rebel army
was defeated at Sedgemoor, and the Duke of Monmouth was captured
and beheaded. SIR EDWARD HALES'S regiment was, however, one of
the corps which the King resolved to retain in his service; the
establishment was fixed at ten companies of sixty men each, and in
the middle of August the regiment was encamped on Hounslow-heath,
where it was reviewed by His Majesty; it afterwards marched to
Gravesend and Tilbury, detaching two companies to Jersey, one to
Guernsey, and two to Windsor.
[Sidenote: 1686]
On the 1st of January, 1686, the establishment was estimated at the
following numbers and rates of pay, viz.:--
SIR EDWARD HALES'S REGIMENT.
Pay per Day.
STAFF. £ _s_ _d._
The Colonel, _as Colonel_ 0 12 0
Lieut.-Colonel, _as Lieut.-Colonel_ 0 7 0
Major, _as Major_ 0 5 0
Chaplain 0 6 8
Chirurgeon, iv^s., one mate ii^s. vi^d. 0 6 6
Adjutant 0 4 0
Quarter Master and Marshal 0 4 0
------------
2 5 2
------------
THE COLONEL'S COMPANY.
Pay per Day.
£ _s_ _d._
The Colonel, as Captain 0 8 0
Lieutenant 0 4 0
Ensign 0 3 0
2 Serjeants, xviii^d. each 0 3 0
3 Corporals, xii^d. each 0 3 0
1 Drummer 0 1 0
50 Soldiers, at viii^d. each 1 13 4
------------
Total for 1 Company 2 15 4
------------
Nine Companies more at the same rate 24 18 0
------------
Total per day 29 18 6
------------
Per annum £10,922 12_s._ 6_d._
[Sidenote: 1687]
The regiment was again encamped on Hounslow-heath in the summer of
1687, and a grenadier company was added to its establishment. At
this period the following officers were holding commissions in the
regiment, viz.:--
_Captains._ _Lieutenants._ _Ensigns._
Sir Edw. Hales, (_Col._) Thomas Butler Dudley Van Burgh
G. Barclay, (_Lt.-Col._) Robert Seaton Austin Belson
John Gifford, (_Major_) Richard Boucher Thomas Heyward
John Chappell Gaven Talbot Philip Overton
Rowland Watson James Nicholson Dudley Van Colster
Thomas Weld Bryce Blair Clifford Brexton
George Latton William Carew George Blathwayt
Richard Brewer Nicholas Morgan Edward Hales
Thomas Gifford Edward Gifford Edward Pope
George Aylmer Augustin Gifford Cæsar Gage
{William Fielding }
Peter Shackerly {Francis Sanderson } Grenadier Company
_Chaplain_, Nicholas Trapps.--_Adjutant_, James Nicholson.
_Chirurgeon_, John Ridley.--_Quarter-Master_, Edward Syng.
After passing in review before the King and Queen, and other
members of the royal family, the regiment struck its tents and
marched to Plymouth, where it was stationed during the winter.
[Sidenote: 1688]
From Plymouth the regiment marched to London in June, 1688, and
took the duty at the Tower until the middle of August, when it was
relieved by the Royal Fusiliers, and marched to Canterbury, and in
September to Salisbury.
In the mean time the measures adopted by King James II. to
establish Papacy and arbitrary government had filled the country
with alarm. Among other proceedings the King claimed the power
of dispensing with the oaths, required by law, on appointment to
office; the colonel of the FOURTEENTH Regiment, SIR EDWARD HALES,
had espoused the Roman Catholic religion; he, therefore, could
not take the oaths, and was not eligible for his commission; he
was prosecuted and convicted at Rochester assizes; but he moved
the case into the Court of the King's Bench, and had judgment
in his behalf; eleven of the twelve judges taking part with the
King against the law. Many of the nobility solicited the Prince
of Orange to aid them in opposing the measures of the court, and
when the Prince arrived with a Dutch army, the King assembled his
forces at Salisbury. The result may be told in a few words:--the
English army refused to fight in the cause of Papacy and arbitrary
government; the King, accompanied by Colonel Sir Edward Hales,
and Quarter-Master Edward Syng, of this regiment, attempted to
escape to France in disguise; but they were apprehended on board
of a Custom-house vessel at Feversham, and Sir Edward Hales was
afterwards confined in the Tower of London. The King made a second
attempt, and arrived in France in safety. The Prince of Orange
issued orders for the regiment to occupy quarters at Waltham, in
Hampshire, and conferred the colonelcy on William Beveridge, an
officer of the English brigade in the Dutch service, by commission
dated the 31st of December, 1688.
[Sidenote: 1689]
The accession of William Prince of Orange and his consort to the
throne was opposed in Scotland, and in the spring of 1689 the
regiment was ordered to march towards the north; it was stationed
a short time at Berwick, where it was inspected on the 14th of
June by the commissioners for re-modelling the army: in August it
received orders to march to Edinburgh.
[Sidenote: 1690]
[Sidenote: 1691]
The regiment was employed in various services in Scotland and
the north of England until the insurgent clans had lost all hope
of success, and in 1691 they tendered their submission to the
government of King William III.
[Sidenote: 1692]
In the spring of 1692, the regiment embarked for Flanders, to
take part in the war in which the British monarch was engaged, to
preserve the liberties of Europe against the ambitious projects of
the court of France. Scarcely had it arrived at the seat of war,
and taken post in one of the fortified towns of West Flanders, when
the French monarch assembled his army near La Hogue, and prepared a
fleet to convey the troops to England, for the purpose of replacing
King James on the throne. The regiment was immediately ordered to
return, and having landed at Greenwich in the early part of May, it
was held in readiness to repel the invaders, should they venture to
land on the British shores; but while the menace of invasion was
producing considerable alarm in England, the French fleet sustained
a decisive defeat off La Hogue, and the danger instantly vanished:
the hopes of the Jacobites were frustrated, and the ascendancy of
Protestant principles insured. The regiment was afterwards encamped
near Portsmouth, and it formed part of an expedition under the
Duke of Leinster, afterwards Duke Schomberg, against the coast of
France; but the French naval force having been nearly annihilated
at the sea-fight off La Hogue, Louis XIV. expected a descent, and
had drawn so many troops from the interior to the coast, that the
Duke of Leinster did not venture to land. After menacing the French
shores at several points, to produce a diversion in favour of the
confederate army in the Netherlands, the fleet sailed to the Downs,
from whence it proceeded to Ostend, where the troops landed: they
took possession of and fortified the towns of Furnes and Dixmude,
and several regiments afterwards returned to England.
On the 14th of November Colonel William Beveridge was killed in
a duel with one of the captains; and King William afterwards
conferred the colonelcy of the regiment on Lieutenant-Colonel John
Tidcomb, from the Thirteenth Foot.
[Sidenote: 1693]
The FOURTEENTH was one of the regiments which remained in Flanders,
and it took the field in May, 1693, to serve the campaign of that
year with the confederate army, commanded by King William in
person, who took possession of the camp at Parck, near Louvain, to
prevent the designs of Louis XIV. on Brabant.
After taking part in several movements, the regiment was in
position at _Landen_, on the morning of the 19th of July, when
the French army, of very superior numbers, commanded by Marshal
Luxembourg, advanced to attack the forces under King William. On
this occasion the FOURTEENTH Regiment had its first opportunity of
proving its prowess in action with the enemy, and it gave presage
of that gallantry for which it afterwards became distinguished. The
French commenced the action with great spirit, but were repulsed
several times; their superior numbers enabled them to bring
forward fresh troops, and they eventually carried the village of
Neer-Winden. The King ordered a retreat, which was executed with
difficulty, and was attended with serious loss.
The FOURTEENTH Regiment had Captains Van Burgh, Cassin, and
Henriosa, and Lieutenant Worley, killed; Lieutenant Nicholson
died of his wounds; Captains Devaux and Stanwix, Lieutenants
Campbell, Forbes, and Pettitpiere, Ensigns Revison and Perrott,
wounded; Lieutenant-Colonel Graham taken prisoner: the number of
non-commissioned officers and soldiers of the regiment, killed and
wounded, has not been ascertained.
In the autumn, when the army separated for winter quarters, the
regiment marched into garrison at Bruges; at the same time parties
were sent to England to procure recruits, to replace the losses
sustained during this campaign.
[Sidenote: 1694]
When the army took the field in the spring of 1694, the regiment
was left, with several other corps, under Brigadier-General Sir
David Collier, encamped near Ghent, to form a guard for the
artillery, which was conveyed by water to Malines. The regiment
joined the army at the camp near Louvain, on the 4th of June, and
on the 6th it was reviewed by His Majesty, who was pleased to
express to Colonel Tidcomb his high approbation of its appearance.
The regiment was afterwards employed in several movements, and
it formed part of the splendid body of troops encamped at Mont
St. André, near the village of Ramilies, where the forces of the
confederate states were assembled under King William III., and
presented a magnificent spectacle of war.
The FOURTEENTH was one of the corps which attempted, by a forced
march, to pass the enemy's fortified lines, and penetrate French
Flanders; but by extraordinary exertions the French gained the
pass first, and thus preserved their country from an invasion.
The regiment was subsequently encamped near _Rousselaer_, forming
part of the covering army during the siege of _Huy_. The vicinity
of the camp was infested by detachments of the enemy, and on one
occasion the waggons conveying the bread to the army were attacked,
when a detachment of the FOURTEENTH, forming part of the guard, was
engaged, and the regiment had Captain Sacheverel mortally wounded,
who was the only British officer killed by the enemy during this
campaign.
Having to remain in the field during cold and wet weather, the
soldiers erected huts of wood and straw, and on the 1st of October
the huts of the FOURTEENTH Regiment were accidentally set on
fire, and destroyed: the Second Foot Guards had experienced the
same misfortune a few days previously. The fortress of Huy having
surrendered, the army separated for winter quarters, and the
regiment returned to Bruges in the second week in October.
[Sidenote: 1695]
From Bruges, the regiment marched, in May, 1695, to Dixmude,
where it pitched its tents, and remained several days. The Duke
of Wirtemberg took the command of the troops assembled at this
point, and advancing to the junction of the Loo and Dixmude canals,
encamped before the fortress of _Kenoque_, upon which an attack
was made for the purpose of drawing the French army that way, for
the protection of their lines in West Flanders. The FOURTEENTH
Regiment took part in this service; its grenadier company was
engaged in driving the French from the intrenchments and houses
near the Loo canal, and in repulsing the attempts of the enemy to
regain possession of them. A redoubt was afterwards taken, and a
lodgment effected in the works at the bridge, in which services the
regiment had several men killed and wounded. This demonstration
having produced the desired effect, the strong fortress of _Namur_
was exposed to an attack from the main army, and it was accordingly
invested, and the siege commenced.
The attack on Kenoque was then desisted in; the FOURTEENTH Regiment
was one of the corps withdrawn from West Flanders, and joined the
covering army, under the Prince of Vaudemont, at Wouterghem.
From Wouterghem, the regiment marched towards Namur, to take part
in the siege of that important fortress, which was deemed nearly
impregnable, and was defended by a numerous garrison, under the
celebrated Marshal Boufflers. On arriving before Namur the regiment
pitched its tents at Templeux, from whence it advanced and took its
turn of duty in the trenches.
On the 8th of July, the regiment was on duty before Namur, and
it was ordered to support the attacks to be made that evening on
the covered-way near the hill of _Bouge_: the storming party was
commanded by Major-General Ramsay. About seven o'clock in the
evening, the signal for the attack was given, and the storming
party rushed forward with the most distinguished heroism. The
FOURTEENTH moved forward to support the attack, and mingling with
the combatants evinced signal intrepidity. The soldiers rushed up
to the enemy's palisades, and placing the muzzles of their muskets
between the staves, fired a volley, which put the French into some
confusion. The palisades were afterwards broken;--the supporting
corps joined in the assault,--the second covered-way was carried,
and the French overpowered, driven from their works, pursued among
the batteries on the brow of the hill, and many of them were killed
in the stone pits in which they took refuge. This post having been
thus captured, the FOURTEENTH Regiment retired, and being relieved
from duty in the trenches, it returned to its camp at Templeux,
a league and a half from Namur. Its loss was severe:--Lieutenant
Ravisson was killed; Captain Carew and Ensign Perott died of their
wounds; Captains Pope, Jackson, and Forbes, and Ensign Cormach,
were wounded, but afterwards recovered.
The regiment quitted its post at Templeux, took its station in the
lines of circumvallation, and mounted guard in the trenches, on
the 10th of July; it was again on duty in the trenches on the 16th
of July, when it had Captain Forbes and several private soldiers
killed.
A detachment of the grenadiers of the regiment was engaged, on the
17th of July, in an attack upon the counterscarp; the assault was
made about five o'clock in the evening; the French disputed the
post with great bravery, defending the glacis for some time; but
they could not withstand the prowess of the British grenadiers,
who effected a lodgment, and obliged the enemy to abandon the
counterscarp. Lieutenant Williams of the grenadier company of
the regiment was killed, and Captain Devaux was wounded with the
working party.
The regiment was again on duty in the trenches on the 19th and 24th
of July. On the following day the town surrendered, the garrison
retiring to the castle.
After the surrender of the town of Namur, the regiment quitted
the lines of circumvallation, and joined the covering army under
the Prince of Vaudemont, which encamped, on the 8th of August,
near the village of Waterloo, and afterwards took up a position
near _Namur_. A numerous French army commanded by Marshal Villeroy
advanced to raise the siege of the castle, but the covering army
occupied a position which was deemed too formidable to be attacked,
and the French Marshal withdrew without hazarding an engagement.
A detachment from the grenadier company of the regiment quitted
the covering army, and was engaged, on the 20th of August, in
assaulting the breaches of the Terra Nova and Coharne, under
the command of Lord Cutts. This proved a desperate service,
particularly the assault of the Terra Nova, where the British
grenadiers were engaged, and a serious loss was sustained in
consequence of the regiments ordered to support the attack not
advancing in time. The FOURTEENTH Foot had several men killed and
wounded, and Lieutenant Sewell, who commanded the detachment from
the grenadier company, was also wounded.
Preparations were made for a second assault, when Marshal Boufflers
agreed to surrender on honorable terms, which were granted. Thus
was captured this important fortress, which the French had boasted
might be restored, but could not be taken; and the achievement
reflected great credit on the confederate arms; it was the most
important event of the war.
After the surrender of the castle of _Namur_, the regiment
remained a short time in the field, and subsequently marched into
cantonments in the villages near the Bruges canal.
[Sidenote: 1696]
The French monarch not only found his career of conquest arrested,
by the efforts of the sovereign of Great Britain, but the towns he
had captured were also being re-taken, and it became a point of
great importance to him to detach England from the confederacy,
which could only be accomplished by re-placing King James on the
throne. For this purpose measures were privately concerted for
exciting a rebellion in England; the Duke of Berwick, and several
other English officers in the French service, were sent across the
Channel in disguise, and through their persuasions a number of
men were prepared to rise at a moment's notice; at the same time
a conspiracy was formed in London to assassinate King William,
and fifty men were engaged and prepared with arms to commit the
diabolical act: a French naval and land force was also held in
readiness for a descent on the English coast, and King James was at
Calais prepared to embark. At this juncture, the FOURTEENTH, and a
number of other regiments, received orders to return to England,
and they arrived at Gravesend in March, 1696. The conspiracy was,
however, discovered; a British fleet was sent to blockade the
French ports, and the designs of the King of France being thus
defeated, King William was left at liberty to prosecute the war for
the security of the civil and religious liberties of the nations
of Europe. Several of the corps which had arrived from Flanders
returned to the seat of war immediately; but the FOURTEENTH was
one of the regiments selected to remain on home service; it landed
at Gravesend on the 22nd of March, and proceeded to Canterbury and
Feversham, from whence it was removed to London in November, and
took the duty at the Tower.
[Sidenote: 1697]
In 1697, King William saw his efforts for the preservation of
national independence attended with success; the French monarch was
humbled, and the treaty of Ryswick fixed the balance of power in
Europe.
[Sidenote: 1698]
Soon after the restoration of peace, the regiment received orders
to proceed to Ireland, and it landed at Belfast and Cork in March,
1698; at the same time it was placed upon a peace establishment.
[Sidenote: 1701]
[Sidenote: 1702]
King James died in France in 1701, when Louis XIV. proclaimed the
Pretender King of Great Britain by the title of James III.; this
event, with the elevation of the Duke of Anjou, grandson of Louis
XIV., to the throne of Spain, in violation of solemn engagements,
was followed by a sanguinary war with France and Spain, during
which the continent of Europe, and the peninsula of Portugal and
Spain, became theatres for the display of British valour, but
the FOURTEENTH Regiment was selected to remain in Ireland. The
proclamation of the Pretender, and the death of King William III.,
in March, 1702, revived the hopes of the partisans of the Stuart
family, who were conspiring to elevate the Pretender to the throne,
and Queen Anne deemed it expedient to detain a few trusty corps, of
approved devotion to the Protestant interest, in Ireland.
[Sidenote: 1703]
Although the honorable distinction of being selected to remain in
Ireland, prevented the regiment acquiring laurels in the field,
yet it sent several drafts of men on foreign service, who had
opportunities of distinguishing themselves. In the autumn of 1703
it furnished a draft of fifty men to complete Lord Montjoy's,
and another draft of the same strength for Colonel Brudenel's
regiments, (afterwards disbanded,) on their embarkation to
accompany the Archduke Charles of Austria to Portugal. The regiment
was in garrison at Dublin from the 7th of August to the 31st of
December, 1703.
[Sidenote: 1705]
In the autumn of 1704, and the spring of 1705, additional
detachments were sent to Portugal, to serve under General the
Earl of Galway; they were conducted thither by Captain Laffit,
Ensigns Schackford and Blount, and three serjeants, whose expenses,
amounting to 70_l._ 19_s._ 4½_d._, were directed to be paid by
a warrant dated the 5th of July, 1705. In August of the same
year the regiment furnished a captain, lieutenant, ensign, two
serjeants, and fifty rank and file towards completing the regiments
of Charlemont, George, and Caulfield, (afterwards disbanded,) on
their embarkation with the expedition under General the Earl of
Peterborough, who captured Barcelona, and had astonishing success
in Catalonia and Valentia.
[Sidenote: 1706]
The regiment was quartered at Dublin from March to November, 1706,
and the private soldiers received a penny a day in addition to
their pay, granted by King William III. in 1699, to all regiments
employed on duty at Dublin. The FOURTEENTH had, however performed
the duty of two regiments for some time, and the allowance was
extended to all detachments, in consideration of the good conduct
of the corps.
[Sidenote: 1707]
[Sidenote: 1712]
The FOURTEENTH Regiment remained in Ireland during the whole of
the war, continuing to send detachments abroad from time to time,
particularly to Portugal and Spain, and its excellent conduct on
home service occasioned it to be held in high estimation by the
Government.
[Sidenote: 1713]
On the 14th of June, 1713, Lieutenant-General Tidcomb died at Bath;
and Queen Anne conferred the colonelcy of the regiment on Colonel
Jasper Clayton, from the half-pay of a newly-raised corps which was
disbanded a short time previously.
[Sidenote: 1714]
[Sidenote: 1715]
The decease of Queen Anne, and the accession of King George I.,
in 1714, was followed by renewed efforts on the part of the
partisans of the Pretender to procure his elevation to the throne;
these exertions began to assume an alarming appearance in the
summer of 1715, when the well-known attachment of the FOURTEENTH
Regiment to the Protestant succession, occasioned it to be recalled
from Ireland, and ordered to Scotland, where the Jacobites were
numerous, and it landed at Saltcoats in Ayrshire early in the
summer.
In the autumn the Earl of Mar assembled his vassals, erected the
standard of the Pretender in the Highlands, and summoned the
clans to take arms. The royal forces in Scotland were encamped at
Stirling under Major-General Wightman; the FOURTEENTH Regiment
joined the camp in October, and the Duke of Argyle assumed the
command; but his Grace had not four thousand men to confront ten
thousand under the Earl of Mar.
When the rebel army advanced towards the Firth, the King's troops
quitted the camp at Stirling and proceeded towards _Dumblain_;
and on the morning of the 13th of November the hostile forces
confronted each other on Sheriffmuir: the FOURTEENTH foot were
posted in the left wing of the royal army. The rebels advanced to
commence the engagement, and at that moment it was deemed necessary
to make some alteration in the position of the royal forces; as
the left wing was taking up the new alignment, it was attacked
by a body of the clans of very superior numbers, and put into
some confusion: at the same time the right wing of the royal army
overpowered the left wing of the rebel host, and drove it from
the field; each commander having one wing triumphant and one wing
defeated. The FOURTEENTH, and several other corps on the left,
resisted the charge of the clans a short time, but being attacked
in the act of forming, and engaged by very superior numbers,
they fell back a short distance; they thus became separated from
the remainder of the army, and retiring beyond Dumblain, took
possession of the passes to prevent the clans penetrating towards
Stirling. Both armies retained their position during the day,
and the rebels, being defeated in their design of penetrating
southward, afterwards retired; when the King's troops returned to
their camp at Stirling.
The FOURTEENTH Foot had one lieutenant and six rank and file
killed; fourteen rank and file wounded; Captain Barlow, Lieutenant
Griffin, and several private soldiers were made prisoners.
The Pretender arrived in Scotland soon afterwards, and his presence
appeared to give new life to his adherents.
[Sidenote: 1716]
Additional forces joined the army under the Duke of Argyle: the
FOURTEENTH was formed in brigade with the Third, Twenty-first,
and Thirty-sixth regiments, under Brigadier-General Morrison; and
in January, 1716, the royal troops advanced, marching through
snow, over ice, and exposed to severe weather, when the Pretender
retreated, and losing all hope of success he escaped, with the
leaders of the rebellion, to France: the Highlanders, finding
themselves deserted by their commanders, dispersed. After pursuing
the insurgents some distance, the FOURTEENTH was quartered a short
time at Dunkeld.
[Sidenote: 1717]
[Sidenote: 1718]
The rebellion being suppressed, the regiment was stationed in
garrison at Fort William, which was built in the reign of King
William III., in a plain, on a navigable arm of the sea called
Loch Eil, near the influx of the Lochy and Nevis, in the shire of
Inverness. At this place the regiment was stationed during the year
1717, and in 1718 it marched from thence to Perth, and afterwards
to Inverness, where it remained until June of the following year.
[Sidenote: 1719]
In the mean time Scotland had not enjoyed a state of tranquillity;
but the minds of the people had been constantly agitated by the
projects of the friends of the Pretender. When the Earl of Mar's
rebellion was suppressed, the King of Sweden made preparations
for a descent in favour of the Pretender; and when that project
failed, the King of Spain fitted out an armament to place the
Pretender on the throne. The Spanish fleet was dispersed by a
storm; but two ships arrived on the coast of Scotland, in April,
1719, and four hundred Spaniards, with about a hundred Scots and
English gentlemen, landed at Kintail, on the main within Skye, and
encamped opposite the castle of Donan, where they were joined by
about fifteen hundred men of the clans. To oppose this force the
FOURTEENTH left Inverness on the 5th of June, and being united
with three troops of the Scots Greys, the Eleventh and Fifteenth
Regiments, under Major-General Wightman, arrived about four o'clock
on the afternoon of the 10th of June at _Glenshiel_, when the
Spaniards and Highlanders retreated and formed for battle on the
romantic mountain scenery of the pass of Straichell. The King's
troops advanced, and at five o'clock the signal for battle was
given, when the infantry climbed the rocky crags and opened a sharp
fire of musketry, which was re-echoed in the hollows beneath;
at the same time the Greys charged along the road to force the
pass. The enemy returned the fire, but soon gave way, and were
chased from rock to rock for some time; on gaining the top of
the hill they made a momentary stand, but the King's infantry
sent forward a shower of bullets and advanced at a running pace
to charge with bayonets, when the Spaniards and Highlanders fled
in every direction. The soldiers passed the night in the hills;
the Spaniards surrendered on the following day; the Highlanders
dispersed; and the Marquis of Tullibardine, the Earl of Seaforth,
and other rebel leaders, fled to the continent.
[Sidenote: 1721]
After this service the regiment marched to the castle of Bran, near
Kainloch-Benchven, Inverness-shire; and in 1721 it proceeded to
Edinburgh.
[Sidenote: 1722]
The regiment quitted Scotland in May, 1722, and marched to
Hungerford: in the summer it was encamped, with several other
corps, on Salisbury-plain, where it was reviewed by King George I.
on the 30th of August, and afterwards returned to Hungerford.
[Sidenote: 1723]
Early in 1723 the regiment marched to Reading and Windsor; it was
subsequently encamped in Hyde-park, and in the autumn marched to
Bristol.
[Sidenote: 1725]
[Sidenote: 1726]
[Sidenote: 1727]
In May, 1725, the regiment commenced its march for Berwick; in
July, 1726, it was removed to Lancashire; and in January, 1727, it
marched to Canterbury, from whence four companies were detached to
Dover, Ashford, Sandwich, and Feversham.
At this period the Spaniards had commenced the siege of
_Gibraltar_, which fortress had been captured by a British and
Dutch armament in 1704, and had been ceded to Great Britain at the
treaty of Utrecht, in 1713. The colonel of the FOURTEENTH, Jasper
Clayton, was Lieutenant-Governor of Gibraltar; he proceeded thither
in January, 1727, and took the command of the garrison, which
opened its fire on the Spanish troops on the 21st of February; and
in March the regiment embarked to take part in the defence of that
important fortress, where it arrived on the 21st of April, together
with a battalion of Foot Guards, and the Governor, General the Earl
of Portmore. The regiment landed immediately, and it had the honor
to take an active share in the successful defence of this valuable
entrepôt to the Mediterranean. The Spaniards continued the siege
until many men had perished in the attempt, and the tremendous fire
of their artillery had produced little effect besides the bursting
and damaging of their own cannon. In the early part of June the
fire slackened, and on the 18th of that month hostilities ceased.
[Sidenote: 1729]
The regiment was afterwards selected to form part of the garrison
of Gibraltar, where it was stationed during the following fifteen
years. Previously to quitting England, two companies were added to
its establishment; these companies remained on home service; they
were stationed in the south of England until 1729, when they were
disbanded.
[Sidenote: 1739]
[Sidenote: 1740]
[Sidenote: 1742]
War between Great Britain and Spain was resumed in 1739; and the
claims of the Elector of Bavaria on the kingdoms of Bohemia and
Hungary, which were attempted to be enforced after the death of
the Emperor, Charles VI., in 1740, involved Great Britain in
hostilities with France and Bavaria. King George II. resolved
to support the House of Austria; the garrison of Gibraltar was
reinforced, and the FOURTEENTH Regiment, having been relieved from
duty at that fortress, arrived at Portsmouth in September, 1742.
After reposing a few days in barracks at Portsmouth, the regiment
marched into quarters in Yorkshire, the head-quarters being at York.
[Sidenote: 1743]
In the summer of this year, His Majesty sent an army to Flanders
to support the House of Austria, and on the 16th of June, 1743,
the colonel of the FOURTEENTH Foot, Lieutenant-General JASPER
CLAYTON, who was employed on the staff of the British army in
Flanders, was killed at the battle of Dettingen; he was an officer
of distinguished merit; his fall was regretted by the King and the
whole army, and his remains were interred, with great solemnity,
in the Chapel of Prince George of Hesse. The King conferred
the command of the regiment on Colonel JOSEPH PRICE, from the
Fifty-seventh, now Forty-sixth Foot, by commission dated the 22nd
of June, 1743.
[Sidenote: 1744]
From Yorkshire the regiment marched into Northumberland, and
was stationed at Berwick; in 1744, it marched to Dunstable and
afterwards to Colchester.
[Sidenote: 1745]
Immediately on the receipt of the news of the loss of the battle of
Fontenoy, on the 30th of April, 1745, the regiment received orders
to proceed to Flanders, to join the allied army commanded by His
Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland; it embarked at Tilbury, on
the 15th of May, landed in West Flanders, and joined the camp on
the plain of Lessines, before the end of the month. The regiment
took part in several operations; it was encamped at Grammont, and
afterwards on the Brussels' canal, in order to cover Dutch Brabant;
but the French had so great a superiority of numbers, that it was
found impossible to prevent their capturing several fortified towns.
In the mean time, Charles Edward, eldest son of the Pretender, had
arrived in Scotland, and being guided by desperate and designing
men, and joined by a number of the clans, he resolved on the
romantic enterprise of attempting to dethrone a beloved monarch,
to overturn the constitution of a brave and free people, and
to establish the authority of a dynasty which had been removed
for arbitrary attacks on the established religion and laws. The
FOURTEENTH was one of the regiments ordered home on this occasion;
it arrived in the north of England, and formed part of the army
assembled by Field-Marshal Wade, at Newcastle, to prevent the
rebels penetrating into South Britain; and, in the second week of
November, it was detached to Berwick, where it arrived in time to
prevent the rebels capturing that town. The regiment afterwards
marched to Scotland, and when the clans made a precipitate retreat
from Derby, back to Scotland, it took up its quarters in the city
of Edinburgh.
[Sidenote: 1746]