Earl of Besborough, was appointed cornet in the tenth dragoons,
in 1800, and rose, in 1803, to the commission of captain in the
same corps, from which he exchanged to the sixtieth regiment, in
1806. In 1807, he was appointed major in the twenty-third light
dragoons, at the head of which corps he distinguished himself at
the battle of Talavera, in 1809, and was promoted, in 1810, to
the lieutenant-colonelcy of the regiment. In 1811 he served under
Lieut.-General Graham, at Cadiz: and at the battle of Barossa,
in March of that year, he attacked, with a squadron of German
dragoons, the French cavalry covering the retreat, overthrew
them, took two guns, and even attempted, though vainly, to sabre
Rousseau’s battalions. On the 11th of June, 1811, he was appointed
lieut.-colonel of the twelfth light dragoons; at the head of which
corps he served under Lord Wellington, and distinguished himself,
in April, 1812, at Llerena, in one of the most brilliant cavalry
actions during the war. At the battle of Salamanca he charged the
French infantry, broke his sword in the fight, and his horse received
several bayonet wounds. He repeatedly evinced great judgment,
penetration, and resolution in the out-post duty, and was wounded
in the retreat from Burgos, on the 13th of October, 1812. At the
battle of Vittoria he again distinguished himself: his services at
Tolosa, St. Sebastian, and Nive were also conspicuous; and, on the
king’s birth-day, in 1814, he was promoted to the rank of colonel
in the army. He commanded the twelfth light dragoons at the battle
of Waterloo, where he led his regiment to the charge with signal
intrepidity,--received sabre cuts on both arms,--was brought to
the ground by a blow on the head,--pierced through the back by a
lancer,--plundered by a tirailleur,--ridden over by two squadrons
of cavalry,--and plundered a second time by a Prussian soldier;
but afterwards recovered of his wounds. His services were rewarded
with the following marks of royal favour:--Knight Companion of the
order of the Bath,--Knight Grand Cross of the order of St. Michael
and St. George,--Knight Commander of the Hanoverian Guelphic
order,--a cross,--a Waterloo medal,--Knight of the Tower and Sword of
Portugal,--and Knight of Maria Theresa of Austria. In January, 1824,
he was nominated inspecting field officer in the Ionian Islands;
he was promoted brigadier-general on the staff of those islands,
in March, 1824; and in June, 1825, he was advanced to the rank of
major-general. He was removed to the staff of Malta, and retained the
command of the troops in that island until May, 1835. In December,
1835, he obtained the colonelcy of the EIGHTY-SIXTH Regiment, from
which he was removed to the royal dragoons in the following year.
He was an ornament to his profession. In him, military talent was
united with the most chivalrous bravery,--calm judgment,--cool
decision,--resolute action, and modest deportment. He died on the
10th of January, 1837.
JAMES WATSON.
_Appointed 31st March, 1836._
Removed to the fourteenth foot, 24th May, 1837.
SIR ARTHUR BROOKE, KCB.
_Appointed 24th May, 1837._
LONDON: HARRISON AND CO., PRINTERS, ST. MARTIN’S LANE.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] “GEORGE R.,
“Whereas we have thought fit to order a regiment of foot to
be forthwith raised, under your command, which is to consist
of ten companies, with three serjeants, three corporals, two
drummers, and fifty-seven private men in each company, with
two fifers to the grenadier company, besides a serjeant-major
and quarter-master-serjeant, together with the usual number of
commissioned officers; these are to authorise you, by beat of drum,
or otherwise, to raise so many men in any county or part of our
kingdom of Great Britain, as shall be wanted to complete the said
regiment to the above-mentioned numbers.
“And all magistrates, justices of the peace, constables, and other
our civil officers, whom it may concern, are hereby required to be
assisting unto you, in providing quarters, impressing carriages, and
otherwise, as there shall be occasion.
“GIVEN at Our Court, at St. James’s, this 1st day of November, 1793,
in the thirty-fourth year of Our reign.
“By His Majesty’s command,
“(Signed) GEORGE YONGE.”
“_To Our trusty and well-beloved C. Cuyler, Esq., Major-General in
our Army, and Colonel of a Regiment of Foot to be forthwith raised,
&c., &c., &c._”
[2] Now General Commanding-in-Chief.
[3] The troops designed for this service consisted of the tenth,
eightieth, and eighty-eighth regiments, seven companies of the
nineteenth, three of eighty-sixth, a battalion of native infantry,
and a proportion of artillery, under Colonel the Honourable Arthur
Wellesley.
[4] OFFICERS PRESENT,--_Majors_ Henry Torrens, (commanding,) George
Cuyler; _Captains_ James Richardson, John Grant, ---- Maclaurin;
_Lieutenants_ W. Martin, J. H. Wilson, Peter Drummond, John Harvey,
Alexander Grant, R. Travers, William Bourd, S. G. McKay, Thomas
Lanphier, J. Wilson, David Morrice, Edmund Carter, G. D’Aigular;
_Ensign_ Neill Maclaurin; _Adjutant_ W. Moreton; _Quarter-Master_ J.
Coor; _Surgeon_ P. W. Deane; _Assistant-Surgeons_ Bellars and Liddle:
53 serjeants, 22 drummers, 668 rank and file.
[5] OFFICERS PRESENT, 1st January, 1805:--_Major_ George Cuyler,
(commanding); _Captains_ James Grant, William Moreton; _Lieutenants_
R. Travers, W. Baird, Thomas Lanphier, J. Wilson, D. Morrice,
George D’Aguilar, N. Maclaurin, H. Steele; _Surgeon_ P. W. Deane;
_Assistant-Surgeons_ Bellars and Liddle:--51 serjeants, 22 drummers,
511 rank and file.
[6] OFFICERS PRESENT, 1st December, 1805. _Major_ George Cuyler
(commanding a brigade); _Captains_ John Grant, (commanding the
regiment), William Baird; _Lieutenants_ D. Morrice, N. Maclaurin,
H. Steele, Thomas Lanphier, George D’Aguilar, (brigade-major);
_Quarter-Master_ J. Smith; _Surgeon_, P. Deane; _Assistant-Surgeon_
R. Bellars: 48 serjeants, 19 drummers, 354 rank and file.
[7] Major Edwards was killed at the storming of Bhurtpore, under Lord
Cumbermere, while in command of the Fourteenth Foot.
[8] The Regiment erected a handsome Monument where this officer fell,
with the following inscription:--
“Lieut. John Graham Munro fell near this spot on the 8th of July,
1810, while charging the enemy, at the head of His Britannic
Majesty’s 86th Grenadiers. The Officers of the Regiment have
erected this Monument as a mark of their respect for his memory.”
This monument having, some years back, suffered by a hurricane, the
French officers stationed on the island, (to their honour be it
known,) had it put in a thorough state of repair at their own expense.
[9] A division of the regiment on marching through Tipperary,
in 1823, halted at the village of Middleton: in the evening the
commanding officer observed the soldiers assembled round a tomb in
the burial ground, with their caps off; on enquiring the cause, a
soldier of the grenadiers replied, “Your honour, we are come up to
see our old captain.” On joining the group, he observed the tomb
of his old and respected comrade, Lieut.-Colonel Lanphier, and the
following words, which had been scratched by the soldiers beneath
the inscription on the tomb-stone, “A BRAVE SOLDIER!” “Please your
honour,” (the soldier continued) “the Boys of the company would like
to fire three rounds over the grave, and would be glad to pay for the
powder if your honour will let them fire.” On the following morning
the grenadier company, which the deceased had gallantly commanded
for a number of years, paid the last tribute of respect to their
late captain’s remains which was duly appreciated by his surviving
relatives, and also by the villagers. Lieut.-Colonel Lanphier entered
the army as Ensign in the 10th Foot, in 1798, and was promoted to be
Lieutenant in the 86th Regiment in 1800, to be Captain in 1806, to
the rank of Brevet-Major in 1810, and of Brevet Lieut.-Colonel in
1819; he retired from the service by the sale of his Commission on
the 30th of January, 1823, being then the Senior Captain of the 86th
Regiment.
[10] List of officers who served against the Kandians.
Major Marston commanding.
_Grenadier Company_, Captain, Michael Creagh; Lieutenants, William
Home, David Bradford, Andrew Russell.
_Light Company_, Captain, Archibald McLean; Lieutenants, James
Creagh, P. P. Goold, and Edward Caddell; Assistant-Surgeon, R. H.
Bell.
[11] See Preface.
[12] At Clonmel, the regiment lost a fine young officer, Lieutenant
Frederick Close, whose body was found in the river Suir, together
with the body of a young lady named Grubb. The cause of their
melancholy fate was never ascertained.
[13] NAMES OF THE OFFICERS who proceeded to the West Indies, in
1826:--
In the “Princess Royal,”--_Lieut.-Colonel_ J. W. Mallet; _Captains_
Robert Crawford, James Creagh; _Lieutenants_ Francis Kearney,
Lewis Halliday; _Ensign_ Robert Mayne; _Adjutant_ John Dolman; and
_Surgeon_ A. Cunningham.
In the “Waterloo,”--_Captain_ R. B. Usher; _Lieutenants_ P. North,
F. H. Dalgety, Lewis Grant; _Ensigns_ James Galwey, J. B. Selway, E.
Davis, and W. Johnson.
In the “Thetis,”--_Major_ Michael Creagh: _Captains_ Alexander
McLean, R. B. Wolseley; _Lieutenants_ J. Grant, J. McIntyre; and
_Quarter-Master_ J. Jerome.
[14] STATE OF LOSS:--
Trinidad and Tobago 42
Barbadoes 71
Antigua, St. Kitts, Montserrat, and Tortola 72
British Guiana 114
----
299
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
Some hyphens in words have been silently removed, some added,
when a predominant preference was found in the original book.
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.
Pg 16: ‘a langour pervaded’ replaced by ‘a languor pervaded’.
Pg 22: ‘Rao Holkur, one’ replaced by ‘Rao Holkar, one’.
Pg 24: ‘above Bareach’ replaced by ‘above Baroach’.
Pg 38: ‘The moonson having set’ replaced by ‘The monsoon having set’.
Pg 46: ‘Sidenote: 1814’ replaced by ‘Sidenote: 1813’.
Pg 60: ‘SEPARABIT?” the harp’ replaced by ‘SEPARABIT?”. The harp’.
Pg 60: ‘removed to Demarara’ replaced by ‘removed to Demerara’.
Pg 61: ‘Frederic Cavendish’ replaced by ‘Frederick Cavendish’.
Pg 61: ‘his acknowlgements’ replaced by ‘his acknowledgements’.
Pg 64: ‘fort of Ticonderago’ replaced by ‘fort of Ticonderoga’.