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HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT:
CONTAINING
AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT
FROM THE PERIOD OF ITS BEING RAISED
AS THE SECOND BATTALION
OF THE
FORTY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLANDERS,
IN 1780
AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES
TO 1851.
COMPILED BY
RICHARD CANNON, ESQ.,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL’S OFFICE, HORSE GUARDS.
ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES.
LONDON:
PARKER, FURNIVALL, & PARKER,
30, CHARING CROSS.
M DCCC LI.
GENERAL ORDERS.
_HORSE-GUARDS_,
_1st January, 1836_.
His Majesty has been pleased to command that, with the 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 Honorable
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 honorable 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 everything 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.
INTRODUCTION
TO
THE INFANTRY.
The natives of Britain have, at all periods, been celebrated for
innate courage and unshaken firmness, and the national superiority
of the British troops over those of other countries has been
evinced in the midst of the most imminent perils. History contains
so many proofs of extraordinary acts of bravery, that no doubts can
be raised upon the facts which are recorded. It must therefore be
admitted, that the distinguishing feature of the British soldier is
INTREPIDITY. This quality was evinced by the inhabitants of England
when their country was invaded by Julius Cæsar with a Roman army,
on which occasion the undaunted Britons rushed into the sea to
attack the Roman soldiers as they descended from their ships; and,
although their discipline and arms were inferior to those of their
adversaries, yet their fierce and dauntless bearing intimidated
the flower of the Roman troops, including Cæsar’s favourite tenth
legion. Their arms consisted of spears, short swords, and other
weapons of rude construction. They had chariots, to the axles of
which were fastened sharp pieces of iron resembling scythe-blades,
and infantry in long chariots resembling waggons, who alighted
and fought on foot, and for change of ground, pursuit or retreat,
sprang into the chariot and drove off with the speed of cavalry.
These inventions were, however, unavailing against Cæsar’s
legions: in the course of time a military system, with discipline
and subordination, was introduced, and British courage, being
thus regulated, was exerted to the greatest advantage; a full
development of the national character followed, and it shone forth
in all its native brilliancy.
The military force of the Anglo-Saxons consisted principally of
infantry: Thanes, and other men of property, however, fought on
horseback. The infantry were of two classes, heavy and light. The
former carried large shields armed with spikes, long broad swords
and spears; and the latter were armed with swords or spears only.
They had also men armed with clubs, others with battle-axes and
javelins.
The feudal troops established by William the Conqueror consisted
(as already stated in the Introduction to the Cavalry) almost
entirely of horse; but when the warlike barons and knights, with
their trains of tenants and vassals, took the field, a proportion
of men appeared on foot, and, although these were of inferior
degree, they proved stout-hearted Britons of stanch fidelity. When
stipendiary troops were employed, infantry always constituted a
considerable portion of the military force; and this _arme_ has
since acquired, in every quarter of the globe, a celebrity never
exceeded by the armies of any nation at any period.
The weapons carried by the infantry, during the several reigns
succeeding the Conquest, were bows and arrows, half-pikes, lances,
halberds, various kinds of battle-axes, swords, and daggers. Armour
was worn on the head and body, and in course of time the practice
became general for military men to be so completely cased in steel,
that it was almost impossible to slay them.
The introduction of the use of gunpowder in the destructive
purposes of war, in the early part of the fourteenth
century, produced a change in the arms and equipment of the
infantry-soldier. Bows and arrows gave place to various kinds of
fire-arms, but British archers continued formidable adversaries;
and, owing to the inconvenient construction and imperfect bore of
the fire-arms when first introduced, a body of men, well trained
in the use of the bow from their youth, was considered a valuable
acquisition to every army, even as late as the sixteenth century.
During a great part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth each company
of infantry usually consisted of men armed five different ways; in
every hundred men forty were “_men-at-arms_,” and sixty “_shot_;”
the “men-at-arms” were ten halberdiers, or battle-axe men, and
thirty pikemen; and the “shot” were twenty archers, twenty
musketeers, and twenty harquebusiers, and each man carried, besides
his principal weapon, a sword and dagger.
Companies of infantry varied at this period in numbers from 150
to 300 men; each company had a colour or ensign, and the mode of
formation recommended by an English military writer (Sir John
Smithe) in 1590 was:--the colour in the centre of the company
guarded by the halberdiers; the pikemen in equal proportions, on
each flank of the halberdiers: half the musketeers on each flank
of the pikes; half the archers on each flank of the musketeers,
and the harquebusiers (whose arms were much lighter than the
muskets then in use) in equal proportions on each flank of the
company for skirmishing.[1] It was customary to unite a number
of companies into one body, called a REGIMENT, which frequently
amounted to three thousand men: but each company continued to carry
a colour. Numerous improvements were eventually introduced in the
construction of fire-arms, and, it having been found impossible to
make armour proof against the muskets then in use (which carried
a very heavy ball) without its being too weighty for the soldier,
armour was gradually laid aside by the infantry in the seventeenth
century: bows and arrows also fell into disuse, and the infantry
were reduced to two classes, viz.: _musketeers_, armed with
matchlock muskets, swords, and daggers; and _pikemen_, armed with
pikes from fourteen to eighteen feet long, and swords.
In the early part of the seventeenth century Gustavus Adolphus,
King of Sweden, reduced the strength of regiments to 1000 men. He
caused the gunpowder, which had heretofore been carried in flasks,
or in small wooden bandoliers, each containing a charge, to be
made up into cartridges, and carried in pouches; and he formed
each regiment into two wings of musketeers, and a centre division
of pikemen. He also adopted the practice of forming four regiments
into a brigade; and the number of colours was afterwards reduced to
three in each regiment. He formed his columns so compactly that his
infantry could resist the charge of the celebrated Polish horsemen
and Austrian cuirassiers; and his armies became the admiration of
other nations. His mode of formation was copied by the English,
French, and other European states; but so great was the prejudice
in favour of ancient customs, that all his improvements were not
adopted until near a century afterwards.
In 1664 King Charles II. raised a corps for sea-service, styled
the Admiral’s regiment. In 1678 each company of 100 men usually
consisted of 30 pikemen, 60 musketeers, and 10 men armed with light
firelocks. In this year the King added a company of men armed with
hand grenades to each of the old British regiments, which was
designated the “grenadier company.” Daggers were so contrived as to
fit in the muzzles of the muskets, and bayonets, similar to those
at present in use, were adopted about twenty years afterwards.
An Ordnance regiment was raised in 1685, by order of King James
II., to guard the artillery, and was designated the Royal Fusiliers
(now 7th Foot). This corps, and the companies of grenadiers, did
not carry pikes.
King William III. incorporated the Admiral’s regiment in the second
Foot Guards, and raised two Marine regiments for sea-service.
During the war in this reign, each company of infantry (excepting
the fusiliers and grenadiers) consisted of 14 pikemen and 46
musketeers; the captains carried pikes; lieutenants, partisans;
ensigns, half-pikes; and serjeants, halberds. After the peace in
1697 the Marine regiments were disbanded, but were again formed on
the breaking out of the war in 1702.[2]
During the reign of Queen Anne the pikes were laid aside, and every
infantry soldier was armed with a musket, bayonet, and sword; the
grenadiers ceased, about the same period, to carry hand grenades;
and the regiments were directed to lay aside their third colour:
the corps of Royal Artillery was first added to the Army in this
reign.
About the year 1745, the men of the battalion companies of infantry
ceased to carry swords; during the reign of George II. light
companies were added to infantry regiments; and in 1764 a Board of
General Officers recommended that the grenadiers should lay aside
their swords, as that weapon had never been used during the Seven
Years’ War. Since that period the arms of the infantry soldier have
been limited to the musket and bayonet.
The arms and equipment of the British Troops have seldom differed
materially, since the Conquest, from those of other European
states; and in some respects the arming has, at certain periods,
been allowed to be inferior to that of the nations with whom they
have had to contend; yet, under this disadvantage, the bravery and
superiority of the British infantry have been evinced on very many
and most trying occasions, and splendid victories have been gained
over very superior numbers.
Great Britain has produced a race of lion-like champions who have
dared to confront a host of foes, and have proved themselves
valiant with any arms. At _Crecy_, King Edward III., at the head
of about 30,000 men, defeated, on the 26th of August, 1346, Philip
King of France, whose army is said to have amounted to 100,000
men; here British valour encountered veterans of renown:--the
King of Bohemia, the King of Majorca, and many princes and nobles
were slain, and the French army was routed and cut to pieces. Ten
years afterwards, Edward Prince of Wales, who was designated the
Black Prince, defeated, at _Poictiers_, with 14,000 men, a French
army of 60,000 horse, besides infantry, and took John I., King of
France, and his son Philip, prisoners. On the 25th of October,
1415, King Henry V., with an army of about 13,000 men, although
greatly exhausted by marches, privations, and sickness, defeated,
at _Agincourt_, the Constable of France, at the head of the flower
of the French nobility and an army said to amount to 60,000 men,
and gained a complete victory.
During the seventy years’ war between the United Provinces of the
Netherlands and the Spanish monarchy, which commenced in 1578 and
terminated in 1648, the British infantry in the service of the
States-General were celebrated for their unconquerable spirit and
firmness;[3] and in the thirty years’ war between the Protestant
Princes and the Emperor of Germany, the British Troops in the
service of Sweden and other states were celebrated for deeds of
heroism.[4] In the wars of Queen Anne, the fame of the British
army under the great MARLBOROUGH was spread throughout the world;
and if we glance at the achievements performed within the memory
of persons now living, there is abundant proof that the Britons
of the present age are not inferior to their ancestors in the
qualities which constitute good soldiers. Witness the deeds of
the brave men, of whom there are many now surviving, who fought in
Egypt in 1801, under the brave Abercromby, and compelled the French
army, which had been vainly styled _Invincible_, to evacuate that
country; also the services of the gallant Troops during the arduous
campaigns in the Peninsula, under the immortal WELLINGTON; and
the determined stand made by the British Army at Waterloo, where
Napoleon Bonaparte, who had long been the inveterate enemy of Great
Britain, and had sought and planned her destruction by every means
he could devise, was compelled to leave his vanquished legions to
their fate, and to place himself at the disposal of the British
Government. These achievements, with others of recent dates, in the
distant climes of India, prove that the same valour and constancy
which glowed in the breasts of the heroes of Crecy, Poictiers,
Agincourt, Blenheim, and Ramilies, continue to animate the Britons
of the nineteenth century.
The British Soldier is distinguished for a robust and muscular
frame,--intrepidity which no danger can appal,--unconquerable
spirit and resolution,--patience in fatigue and privation, and
cheerful obedience to his superiors. These qualities, united with
an excellent system of order and discipline to regulate and give
a skilful direction to the energies and adventurous spirit of
the hero, and a wise selection of officers of superior talent to
command, whose presence inspires confidence,--have been the leading
causes of the splendid victories gained by the British arms.[5]
The fame of the deeds of the past and present generations in the
various battle-fields where the robust sons of Albion have fought
and conquered, surrounds the British arms with a halo of glory;
these achievements will live in the page of history to the end of
time.
The records of the several regiments will be found to contain a
detail of facts of an interesting character, connected with the
hardships, sufferings, and gallant exploits of British soldiers in
the various parts of the world where the calls of their Country
and the commands of their Sovereign have required them to proceed
in the execution of their duty, whether in active continental
operations, or in maintaining colonial territories in distant and
unfavourable climes.
The superiority of the British infantry has been pre-eminently set
forth in the wars of six centuries, and admitted by the greatest
commanders which Europe has produced. The formations and movements
of this _arme_, as at present practised, while they are adapted
to every species of warfare, and to all probable situations
and circumstances of service, are calculated to show forth the
brilliancy of military tactics calculated upon mathematical and
scientific principles. Although the movements and evolutions have
been copied from the continental armies, yet various improvements
have from time to time been introduced, to insure that simplicity
and celerity by which the superiority of the national military
character is maintained. The rank and influence which Great Britain
has attained among the nations of the world, have in a great
measure been purchased by the valour of the Army, and to persons
who have the welfare of their country at heart, the records of the
several regiments cannot fail to prove interesting.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] A company of 200 men would appear thus:--
__|
| |
|__|
|
20 20 20 30 2|0 30 20 20 20
|
Harquebuses. Muskets. Halberds. Muskets. Harquebuses.
Archers. Pikes. Pikes. Archers.
The musket carried a ball which weighed 1/10th of a pound; and the
harquebus a ball which weighed 1/25th of a pound.
[2] The 30th, 31st, and 32nd Regiments were formed as Marine corps
in 1702, and were employed as such during the wars in the reign
of Queen Anne. The Marine corps were embarked in the Fleet under
Admiral Sir George Rooke, and were at the taking of Gibraltar, and
in its subsequent defence in 1704; they were afterwards employed at
the siege of Barcelona in 1705.
[3] The brave Sir Roger Williams, in his Discourse on War, printed
in 1590, observes:--“I persuade myself ten thousand of our nation
would beat thirty thousand of theirs (the Spaniards) out of the
field, let them be chosen where they list.” Yet at this time the
Spanish infantry was allowed to be the best disciplined in Europe.
For instances of valour displayed by the British Infantry during
the Seventy Years’ War, see the Historical Record of the Third
Foot, or Buffs.
[4] _Vide_ the Historical Record of the First, or Royal Regiment of
Foot.
[5] “Under the blessing of Divine Providence, His Majesty ascribes
the successes which have attended the exertions of his troops in
Egypt to that determined bravery which is inherent in Britons; but
His Majesty desires it may be most solemnly and forcibly impressed
on the consideration of every part of the army, that it has been a
strict observance of order, discipline, and military system, which
has given the full energy to the native valour of the troops, and
has enabled them proudly to assert the superiority of the national
military character, in situations uncommonly arduous, and under
circumstances of peculiar difficulty.”--_General Orders in 1801._
In the General Orders issued by Lieut.-General Sir John Hope
(afterwards Lord Hopetoun), congratulating the army upon the
successful result of the Battle of Corunna, on the 16th of January,
1809, it is stated:--“On no occasion has the undaunted valour of
British troops ever been more manifest. At the termination of a
severe and harassing march, rendered necessary by the superiority
which the enemy had acquired, and which had materially impaired
the efficiency of the troops, many disadvantages were to be
encountered. These have all been surmounted by the conduct of the
troops themselves: and the enemy has been taught, that whatever
advantages of position or of numbers he may possess, there is
inherent in the British officers and soldiers a bravery that knows
not how to yield,--that no circumstances can appal,--and that will
ensure victory, when it is to be obtained by the exertion of any
human means.”
THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT
BEARS ON THE REGIMENTAL COLOUR AND APPOINTMENTS
THE WORD “MANGALORE,”
IN COMMEMORATION OF THE GALLANT DEFENCE OF THAT FORTRESS IN 1783;
ALSO,
THE WORD “SERINGAPATAM,”
FOR THE SIEGE AND CAPTURE OF THAT PLACE IN 1799;
AND,
THE WORD “WATERLOO,”
IN TESTIMONY OF THE GALLANTRY OF THE SECOND BATTALION
AT THAT BATTLE ON THE 18th OF JUNE, 1815.
THE
SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.
CONTENTS
OF THE
HISTORICAL RECORD.
Year Page
INTRODUCTION 1
1780 Formation of the second battalion of the forty-second,
afterwards the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment 5
1781 Embarked for India 6
1782 Campaign against Hyder Ali, and Tippoo Saib --
---- Operations before _Paniané_ 7
---- Defeat of Tippoo’s army 8
---- Decease of Hyder Ali, and succession of Tippoo to the
throne of Mysore --
1783 Siege and capture of _Onore_ 9
---- Action at the Hussanghurry Ghaut --
---- Occupation of _Mangalore_ by the British --
---- _Mangalore_ invested by Tippoo Sultan --
---- Defence of _Mangalore_ 10
---- The Royal authority granted for bearing the word
“_Mangalore_” on the regimental colour and
appointments --
---- Armistice between the British and Tippoo --
---- Renewal of hostilities --
---- Second siege of Mangalore 10
---- Termination of hostilities --
---- Embarkation of the battalion for Calcutta --
---- Employed on service in the Upper Provinces --
1786 The second battalion of the forty-second numbered
the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment 11
---- Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart. appointed
colonel of the regiment --
---- Alteration of the facings from _blue_ to _dark green_ --
---- Establishment of the regiment --
---- Major-General Medows appointed colonel of the regiment --
1789 Hostilities renewed by Tippoo --
1790 The SEVENTY-THIRD regiment removed to the seat of war 12
---- And ordered to compose part of the force under
Major-General Abercromby --
1791 Action with the Sultan, and the siege of _Seringapatam_
deferred by the British --
1792 Operations of the troops under Major-General Abercromby --
---- Preparations for the siege of _Seringapatam_ 13
---- Cessation of hostilities --
---- Effects of the French revolution on the affairs of
India --
1793 Expedition against the French settlement of
_Pondicherry_ --
1795 Capture of the Dutch settlements in _Ceylon_ 15
1796 The regiment stationed in that island, and employed
in completing its conquest --
---- Major-General Lake appointed colonel of the regiment --
1797 The regiment embarked for Madras --
1798 Removed to Poonamallee --
1798 Alliances formed by Tippoo for renewing hostilities 15
1799 The regiment ordered to take the field 16
---- Action at _Mallavelly_ --
---- Siege and capture of Seringapatam 17
---- Death of Tippoo, and termination of the campaign 18
---- Casualties of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment 19
---- Authorised to bear the word “SERINGAPATAM” on the
regimental colour and appointments --
---- General Orders issued on the occasion of the above
victory --
---- Partition of the late Sultan’s territory 20
1800 Major-General George Harris appointed colonel of the
regiment --
---- The regiment employed against the Polygars 21
1801 Removed to Gooty --
1802 Proceeded to Bellary --
1803 Returned to Gooty --
---- Proceeded to Pondicherry --
1804 Removed to Madras --
1805 Embarked for England --
1806 Disembarked at Greenwich --
---- Proceeded to Scotland --
1807 New colours received by the regiment 22
1808 Formation of the second battalion 23
1809 Discontinuance of the _Highland_ dress by the
SEVENTY-THIRD and five other regiments --
---- The first battalion embarked for New South Wales 24
1810 Arrival at Sydney --
1812 Augmentation of establishment 25
1814 The first battalion embarked for Ceylon --
1814 Complimentary General Order issued on the occasion 25
---- Aspect of affairs in Ceylon 27
1816 Invasion of the kingdom of Candy by the British 28
---- Deposition of the king of Candy, and annexation of
his territory to the British Crown --
1817 Disbandment of the second battalion 30
---- Reduction of the refractory Candian chiefs --
1818 Casualties sustained on this service 31
---- Medals struck for acts of individual gallantry 32
1821 The regiment embarked for England --
---- Landed at Gravesend, and proceeded to Weedon --
---- Reduction of establishment --
1823 The regiment proceeded to Scotland 33
---- Removed to Ireland --
1825 Augmentation of establishment --
---- Riots in Lancashire and Yorkshire --
1826 Embarked for England --
---- Tranquillity restored, and return of the regiment
to Ireland 34
1827 Formed into service and depôt companies --
---- Service companies embarked for Gibraltar --
1829 Casualties from fever at Gibraltar --
---- Major-General Sir Frederick Adam, K.C.B. appointed
colonel of the regiment 35
---- Service companies proceeded to Malta, and
complimentary order prior to embarkation from
Gibraltar --
1830 Depôt companies removed from Ireland to Great
Britain 36
---- Address from Major-General Maurice O’Connell on his
promotion from the regiment --
1831 Depôt companies proceeded to Jersey 38
1834 Service companies embarked for the Ionian Islands --
1835 Depôt companies removed to Ireland 38
---- Major-General William George Lord Harris, K.C.H.
appointed colonel of the regiment --
1838 Embarkation of the service companies for Nova Scotia 39
---- Service companies removed to Canada --
1839 Depôt companies proceeded to Great Britain --
1841 Return of the service companies to England --
---- Consolidation of the regiment at Gosport --
1842 Stationed at Woolwich, subsequently at Bradford, and
afterwards at Newport, in Monmouthshire --
1844 Embarked for Ireland --
1845 Major-General Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B., appointed
colonel of the regiment --
---- Formed into service and depôt companies --
---- Embarkation of the former for the Cape of Good Hope --
---- Detained at Monte Video --
1846 Major-General Sir John Grey, K.C.B., appointed colonel
of the regiment --
---- The service companies employed in the protection of
Monte Video 40
---- Re-embarkation of the service companies for the Cape
of Good Hope --
---- Employed against the Kaffirs --
1847 Casualties on this service --
1848 Removed to Cape Town --
1849 Major-General Richard Goddard Hare Clarges appointed
colonel of the regiment --
1850 Removal of the service companies to the frontier 41
1851 Employed against the Kaffirs --
CONTENTS
OF THE
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SECOND BATTALION
OF
THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.
Year Page
INTRODUCTION 43
1808 Formation of the Second Battalion 44
1809 Received volunteers from the Militia --
1810 Removed from Ashborne to Derby, and subsequently to
Ashford --
1811 Augmentation of establishment --
1812 Removed to Deal, and afterwards to the Tower --
1813 Augmentation of establishment --
---- Embarked for Swedish Pomerania 45
---- Joined the allied forces under Lieut.-General Count
Wallmoden --
---- Action at _Gorde_ --
---- The second battalion proceeded to the north of
Germany --
---- Proceeded to England, but embarked, without landing,
for Holland 46
1814 Bombardment of Antwerp --
---- Action at _Merxem_ --
---- March of the British troops to Breda 47
1814 Bombardment of a detachment of the battalion in Fort
Frederick by a French gun-ship 47
---- Conclusion of peace --
1815 Return of Napoleon from Elba to Paris 48
---- Renewal of hostilities --
---- Rapid advance of Napoleon --
---- The British proceeded to Charleroi 49
---- Action at _Quatre Bras_ 50
---- Casualties of the battalion --
---- Battle of WATERLOO 51
---- Casualties of the battalion 52
---- Honors conferred for the victory 53
---- Authorised to bear the word “WATERLOO” on the colour
and appointments --
---- Return of Louis XVIII. to Paris --
---- Surrender of Napoleon, and his conveyance to St.
Helena --
---- Embarkation of the battalion for England 54
1816 Stationed at Nottingham --
1817 The second battalion disbanded --
1851 CONCLUSION 55
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS
OF
THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.
Year Page
1786 Sir George Osborn, Bart. 57
---- Sir William Medows 58
1796 Gerard, afterward Viscount Lake 59
1800 George Lord Harris, G.C.B. 61
1829 The Right Honorable Sir Frederick Adam, G.C.B. 63
1835 William George Lord Harris, C.B. and K.C.H. 64
1845 Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B. and K.C.H. 66
1846 Sir John Grey, K.C.B. 68
1849 Richard Goddard Hare Clarges, C.B. --
APPENDIX.
Memoir of Major-General Lachlan Macquarie 69
Memoir of Lieutenant-General Sir Maurice Charles
O’Connell, K.C.H. 70
British and Hanoverian army at Waterloo on the 18th
of June 1815 73
PLATES.
Colours of the Regiment _to face_ 1
Storming of Seringapatam, 4th May, 1799 ” 18
Costume of the Regiment ” 56
[Illustration: LXXIII REGIMENT
_Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t Strand_
_For Cannon’s Military Records_]
INTRODUCTION
TO THE
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF THE
SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.
During the last century several corps, at successive periods, have
been borne on the establishment of the army, and numbered the
SEVENTY-THIRD; the following details are therefore prefixed to the
historical record of the services of the regiment which now bears
that number, in order to prevent its being connected with those
corps which have been designated by the same numerical title, but
whose services have been totally distinct.
* * * * *
In the spring of 1758, the second battalions of fifteen regiments
of infantry, from the 3rd to the 37th, were directed to be formed
into distinct regiments, and to be numbered from the 61st to the
75th successively, as follows:--
_Second Battalion_ _Constituted_
3rd Foot the 61st regiment.
4th ” ” 62nd ”
8th ” ” 63rd ”
11th ” ” 64th ”
12th ” ” 65th ”
19th ” ” 66th ”
20th ” ” 67th ”
23rd ” the 68th regiment.
24th ” ” 69th ”
31st ” ” 70th ”
32nd ” ” 71st ”
33rd ” ” 72nd ”
34th ” ” 73rd ”
36th ” ” 74th ”
37th ” ” 75th ”
The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, and 75th regiments, thus formed, were
disbanded in 1763, after the peace of Fontainebleau.
Several other corps were likewise disbanded at this period, which
occasioned a change in the numerical titles of the following
regiments of Invalids.
The 81st regiment (Invalids) was numbered the 71st regiment.
” 82nd ” ” ” 72nd ”
” 116th ” ” ” 73rd ”
” 117th ” ” ” 74th ”
” 118th ” ” ” 75th ”
The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, and 75th regiments, thus numbered,
were formed into independent companies of Invalids in the year
1769, which increased the number of Invalid Companies from eight to
twenty; they were appropriated to the following garrisons, namely
four companies at Guernsey, four at Jersey, three at Hull, two at
Chester, two at Tilbury Fort, two at Sheerness, one at Landguard
Fort, one at Pendennis, and one in the Scilly Islands.
These numerical titles became thus extinct until October, 1775,
when the seventy-first regiment was raised. In December, 1777,
further augmentations were made to the army, and the regiments
which were directed to be raised, were numbered from the
seventy-second to the eighty-third regiment.
The army was subsequently increased to one hundred and five
regular regiments of infantry, exclusive of eleven unnumbered
regiments, and thirty-six independent companies of Invalids.
The conclusion of the general peace in 1783, occasioned the
disbandment of several regiments (commencing with the seventy-first
regiment), and thus changed the numerical titles of certain
regiments retained on the reduced establishment of the army.
In 1786 the SEVENTY-THIRD was directed to be numbered the
seventy-first regiment; the seventy-eighth to be numbered the
seventy-second; and the second battalion of the forty-second to
be constituted the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment. These corps had been
directed to be raised in Scotland in 1777 and 1779, and were
denominated Highland regiments.
The details of the services of the present SEVENTY-THIRD regiment
are contained in the following pages; the histories of the
seventy-first and seventy-second regiments are given in distinct
numbers.
1851
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT;
ORIGINALLY RAISED AS
THE SECOND BATTALION OF THE FORTY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLAND REGIMENT.
[Sidenote: 1779]
[Sidenote: 1780]
The present SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was authorised, on the 30th
of July 1779, to be raised as the _Second Battalion of the
Forty-second Royal Highlanders_, and was embodied at Perth,
on the 21st of March 1780. Its establishment consisted of one
lieut.-colonel (and captain), one major (and captain), eight
captains, twelve lieutenants, eight ensigns, one chaplain, one
adjutant, one quarter-master, one surgeon, one mate, thirty
serjeants, forty corporals, twenty drummers, two pipers, and seven
hundred private men. Soon after its formation, the battalion
marched to Fort George to be drilled and disciplined, and in
the course of the year was ordered to proceed to England for
embarkation for India, where events had occurred which occasioned
reinforcements to be sent to that country.
[Sidenote: 1781]
Hyder Ali, a soldier of fortune, had risen to the chief command of
the army of the Ruler of Mysore, and when the Rajah died, leaving
his eldest son a minor, Hyder Ali assumed the guardianship of the
youthful prince, whom he placed under restraint, and seized on
the reins of government. Having a considerable territory under
his control, he maintained a formidable military establishment,
which he endeavoured to bring into a high state of discipline
and efficiency. He soon evinced decided hostility to the British
interests in India, and formed a league with the French.
Hostilities had also commenced between Great Britain and Holland,
and the British troops were employed in dispossessing the Dutch of
their settlements in Bengal, and on the coast of Coromandel. Thus
three powers were opposed to the British interests in India, and
the _Second Battalion of the Forty-second Royal Highland_ regiment
was ordered to proceed to that country.
About the end of the previous year the battalion had arrived
at Gravesend from North Britain, and on the 21st of January
1781, embarked at Portsmouth for India, under the command of
Lieut.-Colonel Norman Macleod.
One division of the regiment landed at Madras on the 18th of May:
but the other divisions, consisting of seven companies and a half,
had a voyage of thirteen months and thirteen days; they ultimately
landed at Bombay in February 1782.
[Sidenote: 1782]
These divisions, soon after landing, took the field, and
the battalion was subsequently united under the command of
Lieut.-Colonel Macleod, when it shared in the campaign against
Hyder Ali and his son Tippoo Saib.
The situation of Colonel Thomas Frederick Mackenzie Humberston
(Lieut.-Colonel Commandant of the seventy-eighth, now
seventy-second regiment) who had been despatched with troops
to the Malabar coast, having become very perilous, the second
battalion of the _Forty-second_ regiment, with other troops,
proceeded to his relief at Mungarry Cottah. In the meantime Tippoo
Saib, with his usual activity, suddenly collected a body of troops,
and proceeded to cut off the force at that station. Notwithstanding
the secrecy of the expedition, Colonel Humberston received some
vague intelligence of its arrival on the northern banks of the
Coleroon, and suspecting at once the design of the enemy, destroyed
the fortifications at Mungarry Cottah, and retreated to Ramgaree;
where receiving certain information that Tippoo was approaching
with the utmost rapidity, he withdrew to _Paniané_, fighting every
step of the march. Upon arriving at the river Paniané, a deep ford,
after a search of two hours, was found, and the troops passed over,
up to the chin in water, with the loss of only two camp followers.
He gained the Fort of _Paniané_ on the 20th of November, much to
the surprise of Tippoo, who had expected an easy conquest.
Colonel Macleod, of the second battalion of the _Forty-second_
regiment, having arrived at _Paniané_ from Madras, the command
of the forces devolved upon him, and the place was immediately
invested by Tippoo Saib and Monsieur Lally, with an army amounting
to eight thousand infantry, including some hundreds of French and
Europeans; ten thousand cavalry, and above six thousand polygars.
The enemy kept up a considerable but ineffectual cannonade for some
days; the British commander at length endeavoured to surprise the
enemy’s camp, but after forcing an outpost or two, and taking a few
prisoners, the colonel found it necessary to relinquish the design.
This sally was returned by Tippoo in a few days, who made a
vigorous attack with his combined army on the 28th of November,
being led by Monsieur Lally at the head of his Europeans. Tippoo’s
forces were everywhere repulsed with the greatest gallantry, and
the victors profited by their success as much as their disparity in
numbers would admit. About two hundred of the dead of the enemy,
whom he was not able to carry off, were buried by the British; and
a French officer, who led one of the columns to the attack, was
taken prisoner. Colonel Macleod and the troops under his command
acquired great praise for their gallantry at _Paniané_.
Tippoo acknowledged his defeat by repassing the river Paniané, and
placing it as a barrier against the British. A state of inaction
succeeded on both sides for several days: but in the night between
the 11th and 12th of December, Tippoo suddenly broke up his camp,
and returned by rapid marches to Palacatcherry, from whence he
proceeded directly back to the Carnatic.
In December 1782, occurred the decease of Hyder Ali, and he left
a kingdom of his own acquisition to his son Tippoo Saib, who now
became one of the most powerful princes in India.
[Sidenote: 1783]
Brigadier-General Mathews having determined to besiege the city
of _Onore_, situated midway between Paniané and Bombay, Colonel
Macleod embarked as many troops as the ships were capable of
receiving, but the place was taken in January 1783, before their
arrival.
The President and Council of Bombay had despatched orders to
Brigadier-General Mathews, that he should penetrate through the
Ghauts, (as the passes in the mountains on both sides of the Indian
Peninsula are termed,) into the Bednore or Canara country, and
particularly to gain possession of the capital, which along with a
strong fort on a small mountain that joins the city, were the great
depositories of the treasures collected by the late Hyder Ali, as
well as the grand magazines of his arms and military stores.
After the capture of _Onore_, Brigadier-General Mathews, in
pursuance of his orders, proceeded further down the coast, and took
the towm of Cundapore with little loss. He subsequently forced a
passage through the Ghauts, and the rich Canara kingdom, with its
capital, now lay open to the invaders. The city of Bednore had
recently changed its name to Hyder Nagur, or the Royal City of
Hyder.
The government and command of the city and country were lodged in
the hands of Hyat Saib, who surrendered the place to the British,
after an action had taken place at the Hussanghurry Ghaut.
This occurred early in February 1783; and on the 9th of March
_Mangalore_ fell into the hands of the British.
Tippoo Saib, who had now succeeded to the title of Sultan,
determined to use every effort for the recovery of these favorite
possessions. Having recovered Bednore, which surrendered on
the 28th of April, the Sultan, in defiance of the terms of the
capitulation, ordered Brigadier-General Mathews and his officers
into close confinement, from which they never returned, being
afterwards put to a violent death.
Tippoo next proceeded to invest _Mangalore_, on the Malabar coast,
and it required all the abilities of Lieut.-Colonel John Campbell,
major of the _Forty-second_, seconded by the well-tried valour of
the second battalion of that regiment, and other corps, to supply
the defects of the fortifications. The place was invested on the
18th of May by the whole of the enemy’s forces, commanded by Tippoo
in person. The garrison under Lieut.-Colonel Campbell (Colonel
Macleod being employed as a Brigadier-General), made a most gallant
and successful defence, subject to hardships and wants which have
seldom been exceeded in the annals of sieges.
In consequence of the General Peace which had been entered into
with the European Powers, Tippoo became deprived of his French
allies, and the Sultan entered into negociations for terminating
the war between Mysore and the British, when an armistice took
place.
This event terminated the siege of _Mangalore_ about the end of
September, at a time when all the works which defended the garrison
were nearly shattered to pieces; all the provisions exhausted, and
numbers of the brave soldiers were dying daily, victims of want and
disease.[6]
The contest was, however, again renewed, and the garrison was a
second time invested by Tippoo.
[Sidenote: 1784]
The fortress of _Mangalore_ was defended until the 25th of February
1784, when sickness, and the want of provisions, compelled
Lieut.-Colonel Campbell to evacuate the place, after obtaining the
most honorable terms from the enemy. Peace was afterwards concluded
with the Sultan of Mysore on the 11th of March following.
The battalion embarked in this year for Calcutta, and was employed
on active service in the Upper Provinces of Bengal.
[Sidenote: 1786]
The _Seventy-third_ Highland Regiment, having in the year 1786
been directed to be numbered the _Seventy-first_ Regiment, the
_Second Battalion_ of the _Forty-second_ Royal Highland Regiment
was constituted a distinct corps, and numbered the SEVENTY-THIRD
Highland Regiment, the colonelcy being conferred upon Major-General
Sir George Osborn, Bart., (Lieut.-Colonel of the Third Foot
Guards), from the 18th of April 1786. The facings were at the same
time altered from _blue_ to _dark green_.
The establishment of the regiment for the ten companies serving
in India, was fixed as follows:--One colonel, with an allowance
in lieu of a company; one lieut.-colonel and captain, one major
and captain; eight captains, twelve lieutenants, eight ensigns,
one chaplain, one adjutant, one quarter-master, one surgeon, one
surgeon’s mate, thirty serjeants, forty corporals, twenty drummers,
two fifers, and seven hundred private men. The company kept at
home for recruiting consisted of one captain, one lieutenant, one
ensign, six serjeants, eight corporals, four drummers, and seventy
private men: in all nine hundred and nineteen.
On the 11th of August 1786, Major-General William Medows was
appointed to be colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD, in succession to
Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart., who was removed to the
fortieth regiment.
[Sidenote: 1789]