troops.--_War-Office Records._
[9] The cuirass was not peculiar to this regiment, there being, in
the autumn of 1685, ten regiments of Cuirassiers in the English army,
besides the Life Guards, who were also Cuirassiers.
[10] War-Office Records.
[11] The Marquis de Miremont was a French nobleman, and cousin to
Louis Earl of Feversham.
[12] The three regiments were Colonel John Butler's Dragoons, Colonel
Anthony Hamilton's Foot Guards, and Colonel Roger McElligot's
Regiment of Foot--1500 men.--_War-Office Records._
[13] Memoirs of General Mackay.
[14] Mackay's Memoirs, p. 56.
[15] London Gazette.
[16] War-Office Records.
[17] D'Auvergne's History of the Campaigns in Flanders, &c.
[18] No record appears to have been preserved of the number killed
and wounded of the FOURTH HORSE; but according to the London Gazette,
No. 2895, the English cavalry lost 59 officers and 472 men.
[19] D'Auvergne's History of the Campaigns in Flanders; Boyer's Life
of King William III.; the London Gazette, &c.
[20] The present Second and Sixth Dragoon Guards:--Galway's Horse was
disbanded after the Peace of Ryswick in 1697.
[21] D'Auvergne.
[22] 'The Queen's Horse, now 1st Dragoon Guards; Carabiniers, now
6th Dragoon Guards; a squadron of Schomberg's Horse, now 7th Dragoon
Guards; with Stewart's and Stanley's Foot.'--_London Gazette_ and
_Millner's Journal._
[23] 'On the 31st of October the garrison marched out of the place,
being upwards of 1500 men, besides nearly 300 that deserted before
the capitulation. The troops of Liege came out first, and immediately
quitted the French service, marching off in a body. Of the Swiss
there deserted likewise above 400 as soon as they came out; so
that this garrison will be very much lessened before they get to
Antwerp, whither they are marching, being conducted by a squadron of
Brigadier-General Wood's regiment.'--_London Gazette, No. 3857._
[24] 'We generally began our march about three in the morning,
proceeded about four leagues, or four and a half, each day, and
reached our ground about nine. As we marched through the countries
of our Allies, commissaries were appointed, to furnish us with all
manner of necessaries for man and horse; these were brought to the
ground before we arrived, and the soldiers had nothing to do but to
pitch their tents, boil their kettles, and lie down to rest. Surely
never was such a march carried on with more regularity, and with less
fatigue both to man and horse.'--_Parker's Memoirs._
[25] 'All the troops in general behaved with the greatest bravery,
but none distinguished themselves more than Her Majesty of Great
Britain's subjects, who in this engagement had the post of honour,
which they sustained with the universal applause and approbation of
all the Generals of the several nations who were eye-witnesses of
their courage and resolution.'--_London Gazette, No. 4033._
[26] Annals of Queen Anne; Millner's Journal; Military History of
Marlborough and Prince Eugene, &c. &c.
[27] Parker's Memoirs.
[28] 'Here was a fine plain, without hedge or ditch, for the Cavalry
on both sides to show their bravery; for there were but few Foot to
interpose, these being mostly engaged at the villages.
'And now our squadrons charged in their turn, and thus for some hours
they charged each other with various success, all sword in hand. At
length the French courage began to abate, and our squadrons gained
upon them.'--_Parker's Memoirs._
[29] 'The bravery of all our troops on this occasion cannot be
expressed; the Generals, as well as the officers and soldiers,
behaving themselves with the greatest courage and resolution, the
Horse and Dragoons having been obliged to charge four or five several
times.'--_The Duke of Marlborough's Despatch._
[30] 'Not only Fame, but likewise the Generals of my forces--the
companions of your labours and victories--attributed the same chiefly
to your counsels, and the valour and bravery of the _English_,
and other forces who fought under your conduct.'--_The Emperor of
Germany's Letter to the Duke of Marlborough._
[31] 'The troops acquitted themselves with a bravery surpassing all
that could have been hoped of them.'--_Marlborough's Despatch._
[32] War-Office Records.
[33] 'The headmost regiments of English Horse that pursued the
enemy's centre were those of Major-General Wood, commanded by
himself, and Wyndham's Carabiniers, headed by Major Pertry. When they
came upon a rising ground they espied seven squadrons of the Spanish
and Bavarian Guards, with whom the Elector of Bavaria and Marshal
Villeroy hoped to make good their retreat and save their cannon,
which was marching in a line before them. General Wood gallopped
with his own regiment upon the enemy's left, and charged them so
vigorously that he broke them all to pieces, killing many of them and
taking not a few prisoners, amongst whom were two Lieut.-Colonels,
one Major, four Captains, with several subalterns and men. _He took
also the Standard of the Elector's Guard_, two of the Elector's own
Trumpeters, and killed his Kettle-Drummer, the Elector himself and
Marshal Villeroy narrowly escaping.'--_Annals of Queen Anne._
[34] 'One of the Lieut.-Colonels, who was much wounded, remembering
me last war, cried out to me to save his life, which I did. The other
Lieut.-Colonel came to me and yielded himself prisoner also. Both
these assured me the day after the battle, that the Elector himself
and Marshal Villeroy were in the crowd, and not ten yards from me
when they two called out to me for quarter, and that they narrowly
escaped us; which, had I been so fortunate as to have known, I had
strained Coriolanus (on whom I rid all the day of the battle) to have
made them prisoners.'--_Extract of a Letter from Lieut.-General Wood._
[35] War-Office Records.
[36] London Gazette.
[37] Now the First, Third, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Dragoon Guards.
[38] Major-General Webb received the thanks of Parliament for his
excellent defence of the convoy.
[39] War Office Records.
[40] War Office Records.
[41] The Tenth Horse was raised in February, 1693, and disbanded
after the peace of Utrecht.
[42] War-Office Records, London Gazette, &c. &c.
[43] Annals of George I., vol. iii., p. 179.
[44] The following corps were encamped on Lexdon Heath:
Horse--Pembroke's, Montague's, and Wade's (First, Second, and Third
Dragoon Guards); Dragoons--Hawley's, Campbell's, Honeywood's, and
Cadogan's (First, Second, Third and Sixth); with seven regiments
of Foot, viz., Third, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Twenty-first,
Twenty-third, and Thirty-first.
[45] War-Office Establishment Book.
[46] List of cavalry corps of the right wing under Lord George
Sackville, at the battle of Minden.
_1st Brigade._--Blues, 1st Dragoon Guards, and Inniskilling
Dragoons.
_2nd Brigade._--3rd Dragoon Guards, Scots Greys, and 10th
Dragoons.
Hanoverian Regiments of Bremen and Veltheim.--_History of the
Campaign in Germany._
[47] 'Bland's squadrons and Howard's Regiment of Dragoons (First and
Third Dragoon Guards) _charged_ the enemy _so furiously_ as to enable
our infantry to make a safe retreat.'--_London Gazette._
'The Hereditary Prince, as a last resource, put himself at the head
of a squadron of Bland's and Howard's Regiment of Dragoons. By these
the uncommon heroism of their young leader was perfectly seconded.
_They charged the enemy with the utmost fury, stopped the career of
their victorious horse, and enabled the allied battalions to make an
undisturbed retreat._'--_Annual Register, 1760._
'Bland's squadrons and Howard's Regiment of Dragoons MADE A MOST
FURIOUS CHARGE ON THE ENEMY.'--_Operations of the Allied Army.
London, 1764._
'One squadron of Bland's, commanded by Major Mill, and Howard's
Regiment of Dragoons gained great honour.'--_Ibid._
[48] London Gazette.
[49] 'My Lord Granby, with the English cavalry, contributed
materially to the success of the day.'--_Prince Ferdinand's Despatch._
'I should do injustice to the general officers, and _to every officer
and private man of the cavalry_, if I did not beg your Lordship would
assure His Majesty that _nothing could exceed their gallant behaviour
on that occasion_.'--_The Marquis of Granby's Despatch._
'The English cavalry outdid his (Prince Ferdinand's) expectation, and
indeed all former examples. They came up five miles on a full trot
(the Germans call it a gallop) without being blown, without the least
confusion or disorder, and attacked the enemy's cavalry and infantry
several times.'--_Annual Register, 1760._
[50] London Gazette.
[51] It appears from the Official Returns that no less than 1666
women were with the British army in Germany.
[52] Records in the Adjutant-General's Office.
[53] Heights above Cateau, 26th April, 1794.
'SIR,
'It is from the field of battle that I have the satisfaction to
acquaint you, for His Majesty's information, with the glorious
success which the army under my command has had this day.
'At day-break this morning the enemy attacked me on all sides. After
a short but severe conflict, we succeeded in repulsing them with
considerable slaughter.
'The enemy's General Chapuy is taken prisoner, and we are masters
of thirty-five pieces of the enemy's cannon. THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE
BRITISH CAVALRY HAS BEEN BEYOND ALL PRAISE. It is impossible for me,
as yet, to give a full account of the loss sustained by His Majesty's
troops: I have reason to believe that it is not considerable.
The only officers of whom I have any information as yet, and
who I believe are all that have fallen upon this occasion, are
Major-General Mansell, Captain Pigot, and Lieutenant Fellowes, of the
THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS.'--_Extract from the Duke of York's Despatch._
[54] Annual Register.
[55] 'Every horror that could make war hideous attended this dreadful
march! Distress, conflagration, death, in all modes! from wounds,
from fatigue, from water, from the flames, from starvation. On every
side unlimited violence--unlimited vengeance.'--_Napier._
'_This retreat has been marked by a barbarity seldom equalled and
never surpassed._'--_Lord Wellington's Despatch._
[56] Colonel Napier.
[57] Major-General Lumley's Despatch.
[58] 'Newcastle-upon-Tyne,
10th December, 1822.
'Sir,
'I have the honor to announce to you the happy termination of the
disturbances amongst the keelmen of this river, and at the same time
to express the gratitude of the civil authorities for the promptitude
with which Colonel Holmes of the Third Dragoon Guards has afforded
them support on all occasions, and their entire approbation of the
conduct of the troops under his command.
'I have, &c.
'ROBERT BELL, Mayor.
'To Major-General
Sir John Byng, K.C.B.'
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF THE
THIRD, OR PRINCE OF WALES' REGIMENT OF DRAGOON GUARDS.
THOMAS EARL OF PLYMOUTH,
_Appointed 15th July, 1685._
On the decease of THOMAS, sixth LORD WINDSOR, on the 6th of December,
1642, without issue, his titles became extinct, but his estates
descended to his nephew THOMAS WINDSOR HICKMAN, then in the fifteenth
year of his age. The rebellion breaking out immediately, this youth
displayed an ardent and chivalrous spirit, with a fixed devotion to
his sovereign and to monarchical government. He raised and maintained
a troop of horse at his own charge, with which he joined King
Charles I., and became an active and an enterprising leader amongst
the loyalists, distinguishing himself in many skirmishes and sharp
encounters with the rebels. At the battle of _Naseby_, fought on the
14th of June, 1645, he commanded a regiment of horse, and stoutly
charged through and through the enemy's ranks; when the King, taking
special notice of the gallantry of this youth, commanded that that
regiment, with its valiant leader, should be the royal guard for
that day. The King's army was, however, defeated, and his Majesty
retreated to Ashby-de-la-Zouch, in Leicestershire; where, remembering
the signal service of that regiment of horse, and the particular
merits of Colonel Windsor Hickman, he gave command for preparing
a patent for reviving the title and dignity of LORD WINDSOR, to
the said THOMAS WINDSOR HICKMAN. But, from that period, a series
of disasters befalling the unfortunate monarch, nothing further
transpired on that subject until the restoration of King Charles II.,
when his Majesty, taking into consideration the many good services
performed by this THOMAS WINDSOR HICKMAN throughout the whole course
of that rebellion (amongst which the raising of the siege of his
Majesty's garrison of High-Ercall, in Shropshire, was not the least),
as also his sufferings in the Royal cause, by imprisonment, plunder,
and otherwise, did, by a declaratory patent under the great seal,
bearing date the 16th of June, 1660, restore unto him the title and
dignity of LORD WINDSOR, with the same rank and precedence which were
held by his maternal uncle, Thomas, late Lord Windsor.
On the 18th of July following, LORD WINDSOR was appointed
lord-lieutenant of Worcestershire; and, in 1665, he was sent governor
to Jamaica. During his stay in the West Indies, LORD WINDSOR
assembled the troops under his command, defeated 3000 Spaniards,
and captured seven ships in the harbour of St. Jago de la Cuba; and
eventually took the town and castle, with the cannon of the works,
and five hundred barrels of powder. Not enjoying his health in that
climate, his Lordship received permission to return to England;
and, after his arrival, he was appointed one of his Majesty's Privy
Council in Ireland. At length his Majesty, taking into consideration
the eminent services of Lord Windsor, advanced him to the dignity of
EARL OF PLYMOUTH, by patent dated the 6th of December, 1682.
The EARL OF PLYMOUTH enjoyed the affection and confidence of King
James II., who conferred upon him the Colonelcy of the FOURTH
REGIMENT OF HORSE (now 3rd Dragoon Guards), and also appointed him
one of the Privy Council. He died on the 3rd of November, 1687, and
was buried in the church of Tarbick.
SIR JOHN FENWICK, BART.,
_Appointed 6th November, 1687_.
JOHN FENWICK, Esq., was a loyal cavalier in the reign of King Charles
II., and an officer of the Queen's Troop (now Second Regiment) of
Life Guards. He served under the Duke of Monmouth, with the French
army, in the Netherlands, during the campaigns of 1672 and 1673. In
the succeeding year he obtained permission to proceed to Holland;
and, in 1675, he was appointed Colonel of an Irish regiment in the
Dutch service (the present Fifth Foot). He served with his regiment
during the campaign of that year under the Prince of Orange; and, in
the following summer, he served at the siege of Maestricht, where he
was severely wounded while on duty with his regiment in the trenches
(2nd August, 1676). Shortly afterwards some angry words passed
between him and the Prince of Orange, when he quitted the Dutch
service, and, returning to England, resumed his duties in the Life
Guards; and, from this period, a personal aversion is said to have
existed between his Highness and Colonel Fenwick. The Colonel was,
however, well received at the British court: he succeeded, on the
decease of his father, to the dignity of a baronet, and, in 1678,
King Charles II. promoted him to the rank of Brigadier-General, and
gave him the Colonelcy of a newly-raised regiment of foot, with which
he proceeded to Flanders; but, after the peace of Nimeguen, this
regiment was disbanded, and Sir John again resumed his duties in the
Life Guards, in which corps he rose to the rank of Lieutenant and
Lieutenant-Colonel. In 1686 he was appointed Inspecting General of
Cavalry (jointly with Brigadier-General Sir John Lanier), and, after
the decease of the Earl of Plymouth in 1687, he was promoted from
the Life Guards to the Colonelcy of the FOURTH HORSE. He was also
Governor of Holy Island, and a Member of Parliament for the county of
Northumberland.
Sir John Fenwick appears to have been devotedly attached to
the Stuart dynasty; and, having been advanced to the rank of
Major-General in November, 1688, he refused to take the required
oath to the Prince of Orange at the Revolution, and his regiment was
given to Viscount Colchester. After the accession of William and
Mary, Sir John did not abstain from corresponding with the dethroned
monarch. After the decease of Queen Mary, he assisted in planning
an insurrection in favour of King James, which was to have broken
out in the winter of 1695-6, and he agreed to command a body of
horse. At this time a plot for the assassination of King William was
discovered, and Sir John Fenwick was apprehended at New Romney, on
his way to France, on an attainder of high treason, and was brought
to trial before the Parliament. No proof of his guilt was produced;
but the written evidence of a witness on a former trial was produced
against him. This proceeding gave rise to much altercation amongst
the members; but the Bill was at length carried by a majority of
seven: forty-one Lords, including eight Prelates, entering a protest
against the decision. An offer of pardon was made to him by the
Peers, on condition that he would make a full discovery; but he
chose to suffer death rather than incur the disgrace of becoming an
informer. He was beheaded on Tower Hill on the 28th of January, 1697.
At the time of his execution, he professed his attachment to King
James, and expressed a wish that the exiled monarch might be restored
to the throne.
RICHARD VISCOUNT COLCHESTER,
_Appointed 31st December, 1688_.
This nobleman entered the Life Guards, in which corps he attained, in
the spring of 1686, the rank of Lieutenant and Lieutenant-Colonel. He
was one of the first officers who joined the Prince of Orange at the
Revolution in 1688, and he took with him several private gentlemen of
the fourth troop of Life Guards. On the removal of Sir John Fenwick,
the Colonelcy of the FOURTH REGIMENT OF HORSE was conferred on
Viscount Colchester, who attended King William in Ireland, and was at
the battle of the Boyne and the siege of Limerick. His lordship was
removed to the Colonelcy of the Third Troop of Life Guards in 1692,
which gave him the privilege of taking the court duty of Gold Stick,
and he served with distinction under his Majesty in several campaigns
on the Continent. He succeeded to the title of EARL RIVERS in 1694;
and, in the early campaigns of the wars of Queen Anne, he served
under the celebrated John Duke of Marlborough. In 1706 he commanded
an expedition designed to make a descent on the French coast; but
the fleet having been delayed by contrary winds until the design was
frustrated, he proceeded to Spain, where he left the troops under the
command of the Earl of Galway, and afterwards returned to England. He
was appointed to the Colonelcy of the Royal Horse Guards in 1712; and
died in the same year.
JOHN LORD BERKELEY,
_Appointed 23d January, 1692_.
This nobleman was the son of Sir John Berkeley, a descendant from
the ancient Barons of Berkeley Castle (and a distinguished loyalist
in the time of Charles I. and Charles II.), who was raised to the
peerage by the title of LORD BERKELEY, OF STRATTON. Having entered
the Royal Navy, he rose to the rank of Admiral, and was also Colonel
of a regiment of Marines (afterwards disbanded) in the reign of
Charles II. It was common at this period for the Admirals to hold
commissions in the army. After the Revolution of 1688, Lord Berkeley
sustained a military character, and was appointed Colonel of the
FOURTH REGIMENT OF HORSE in January, 1692. He, however, quitted the
regiment in the following year, and held a naval command, in which he
distinguished himself against the French. Lord Berkeley died on the
29th of February, 1697.
CORNELIUS WOOD,
_Appointed 24th January, 1694_.
This officer was the son of a clergyman of Staffordshire, and having
been unfortunate in commerce, in the reign of Charles II., he entered
Queen Catherine's Troop (now Second Regiment) of Life Guards, as a
private gentleman, at the time when the ranks of that corps contained
many young men of distinction who were aspiring to commissions in
the regular army. Mr. Wood evinced great attention in acquiring a
knowledge of his profession, which, with a strict performance of
all his duties, soon procured him the approbation and favour of Sir
Philip Howard, the Captain and Colonel, and of Sir George Hewytt, the
Lieutenant-Colonel, through whose recommendation he was advanced to
the post of Sub-Corporal with the rank of Cornet; and, on the 15th of
June, 1685, King James II. promoted him to the degree of Corporal (or
Brigadier) with the rank of Lieutenant. During the remainder of the
short reign of James II., Brigadier Wood is said to have witnessed
with regret the violent conduct of the King; and, being faithful to
the principles which he had imbibed in his youth, he adhered to the
Protestant interest at the Revolution in 1688, and was promoted, by
King William III., to the Captaincy of a troop in the Ninth Horse
(now Sixth Dragoon Guards), the command of which corps had been
conferred on his friend, Sir George Hewytt, afterwards Viscount
Hewytt. The intrepidity which he displayed in the wars in Ireland and
in Flanders[59] gained him a high reputation, and he was promoted to
the Lieutenant-Colonelcy of the regiment on the 31st of December,
1692. His gallant conduct at the battle of Landen, on the 19th of
July, 1693, attracted the attention of King William, who complimented
him on his bravery, made him a present of a valuable charger, and,
in January of the following year, His Majesty promoted him to the
Colonelcy of the FOURTH HORSE; at the head of which regiment he
served in Flanders until the peace of Ryswick in 1697.
On the breaking out of the war in 1702, Colonel Wood was promoted to
the rank of Brigadier-General, and sent with his regiment to Holland,
to serve under the celebrated John Duke of Marlborough; and, in the
following year, he was advanced to the rank of Major-General. The
several campaigns of this war form a glorious era in the military
history of Great Britain; and few officers acquired greater celebrity
than GENERAL WOOD. In the annals of that war his name is associated
with exploits of particular brilliancy; and he is mentioned among
those who materially contributed to the victories at Schellenberg,
Blenheim, and Ramilies. At the latter engagement, the Duke of Bavaria
and Marshal Villiers narrowly escaped being taken prisoners by him,
as more particularly stated in the record of the THIRD DRAGOON
GUARDS. He also distinguished himself at the battle of Malplaquet,
and in several skirmishes.
The death of this distinguished officer was occasioned by the fall of
his horse in May, 1712.
THOMAS VISCOUNT WINDSOR,
_Appointed 18th May, 1712_.
LORD THOMAS WINDSOR, second son of Thomas Earl of Plymouth, the first
Colonel of this regiment, served with distinction in the army in the
wars of King William III., and, on the 23rd of January, 1692, he
obtained the Lieutenant-Colonelcy of the FOURTH HORSE. On the 16th of
February, 1694, he was appointed to the Colonelcy of a newly-raised
regiment of horse, which was disbanded after the peace of Ryswick.
On the 19th of June, 1699, he was advanced to the peerage of Ireland
by the title of VISCOUNT WINDSOR. After the decease of the Earl of
Macclesfield, in 1701, the Colonelcy of the Tenth Horse was conferred
upon Viscount Windsor, who was promoted, on the 9th of March,
1702, to the rank of Brigadier-General, and on 1st of January,
1704, to that of Major-General. In October of the latter year his
regiment was given to Samuel (afterwards Lord) Masham. The rank of
Lieutenant-General was, however, conferred upon his Lordship in 1707;
in April, 1711, he was restored to the Colonelcy of the Tenth Horse;
and in December of the same year, he was made an English Peer, by the
title of Baron Montjoy, of the Isle of Wight. The Colonelcy of the
FOURTH HORSE was conferred upon his Lordship in 1712; from which he
was removed, by King George I., in 1717: he died in 1738.
GEORGE WADE,