non-commissioned officers of the second battalion of the FIFTH
regiment, without again requesting them to accept his thanks for
their uniform good conduct and brilliant and important services
since they have been under his command."
The first battalion remained stationary in Madrid, while the
Marquis of Wellington marched with part of the army and commenced
the siege of Burgos; and, when the advance of the enemy's immense
force rendered a retreat necessary, the battalion marched on the
24th of October, with the rest of the third division, to join the
army, then retiring from the siege, and, returning with it into
Portugal, was stationed for the winter in the villages of Ferrerina
and Faya.
Lieutenant-General Richard England died on the 7th of November
this year, and on the 27th of the same month Major-General William
Wynyard, from the Royal West India Rangers, was appointed to the
Colonelcy of this regiment.
[Sidenote: 1813]
On the 16th of May, 1813, the first battalion of the FIFTH broke
up from its cantonments, and (brigaded with the Eighty-third,
Eighty-seventh, and Ninety-fourth, under the Honourable Sir Charles
Colville,) advanced with the rest of the army into Spain. At the
memorable and decisive battle of _Vittoria_, it forded the river,
and advancing against the right of the French army at Margarita
and Hermanded, displayed its usual spirit and intrepidity, driving
in a superior force of the enemy in gallant style. The Marquis of
Wellington, in his despatch, notices the conduct of the brigade in
these terms:--"Major-General the Honourable Sir Charles Colville's
brigade of the third division was seriously attacked in its advance
by a very superior force, well formed, which it drove in, supported
by Major-General Inglis's brigade of the seventh division,
commanded by Colonel Grant, of the Eighty-second. These officers,
and the troops under their command, distinguished themselves." In
this battle, the battalion had Captain Adams, Lieutenant Higgins,
Ensign Bolton, Volunteer Rees, and twenty-two rank and file,
killed; with Captain Bateman, Lieutenants Galbraith, Welch, and
Arthur Johnson, six serjeants and one hundred and twenty-seven rank
and file, wounded. Lieutenant-Colonel Pratt obtained a medal, and
by authority, dated October the 25th, 1817, the word "VITTORIA" is
borne upon the colours of the regiment.
After the battle of Vittoria, the FIFTH pursued the enemy in the
direction of Pampeluna; if was subsequently sent against a French
force under General Clausel, which however escaped to France.
The battalion afterwards proceeded to Pampeluna, and was engaged
towards the end of July near the village of Hörte del Reigen in
front of that fortress. Having advanced along the gloomy passes
of the lofty Pyrenean mountains, the regiment was stationed a
short time at Olaque, in the pass of Roncesvalles, from whence
it retired, on the advance of the enemy under Marshal Soult, to
a position in the _Pyrenees_, in front of Pampeluna. Here the
troops were attacked by the enemy, and after much hard fighting had
occurred, the third division advanced across the heights in its
front to turn the enemy's left flank, when the French were driven
from their ground and pursued along the defiles in the mountains.
After passing through the Pyrenees the troops crossed the
frontiers, and the interior of France resounded to the firm tread
of the conquering British soldier. At the battle of _Nivelle_,
on the 10th of November, the third division, under Major-General
Colville (in the absence of Sir Thomas Picton), formed the right
centre of the combined army, and advancing by the left of the
village of Sarré carried the redoubts on the left of the enemy's
centre, driving the French from their ground, and afterwards moving
by the left of the river Nivelle upon St. Pé; in which affairs,
the usual gallant conduct of the battalion earned a medal for
its Lieutenant-Colonel Pratt, and permission by authority, dated
October the 25th, 1817, for the word "NIVELLE" to be borne on the
colours. In this battle, its loss consisted of one serjeant and
fourteen rank and file, killed; Captain Clarke, Lieutenant Bird,
three serjeants, and one hundred and nine rank and file, wounded;
and Captain John Hamilton taken prisoner.
The regiment was afterwards employed in the operations connected
with the passage of the river _Nive_; and was partially engaged in
the action, on the 13th of December; after which it was cantoned in
and about Hasparen, a town in the south of France, 13 miles from
Bayonne.
[Sidenote: 1814]
On the 14th of February, 1814, the battalion broke up from its
cantonments, and on the 24th, it was sharply engaged with the
enemy. Captain Culley, of the FIFTH, with the light companies of
his own battalion, the Eighty-seventh, and Ninety-fourth, was
ordered to force a deep ford of the river _Gave d'Oleron_; he
effected the passage, but, being attacked by superior numbers, was
driven back with considerable loss. Captain Culley, and Lieutenant
R. Pennington, of the FIFTH, were severely wounded on this
occasion, and the battalion lost seven rank and file, killed, and
thirteen taken prisoners.
The battalion took part in the battle of _Orthes_, on the 27th
of February; also in frequent and successful skirmishes with the
French rear guard during its retreat through the vineyards between
Pau, Vicq, and Tarbes, and finally, in the battle of _Toulouse_,
the closing struggle and crowning victory of the Peninsular war, on
which occasion the first battalion of the FIFTH behaved with its
usual gallantry; its commanding officer, Colonel Pratt, received
medals for the battles of Orthes and Toulouse, and by authority,
dated July the 4th, 1818, the names of these battles are inscribed
upon the colours. The loss of the battalion in the battle of Orthes
was one Lieutenant, Hopkins, and eleven rank and file, killed; and
thirty-three wounded: in subsequent actions it had one rank and
file, killed, and twelve wounded.
The gallant exploits of the British troops having caused the
overthrow of the tyrannical power of Buonaparte, hostilities ceased
on the continent: the regiments went into quarters of refreshment,
and the veterans of the FIFTH could now look back with exultation
at the scenes of victory and triumph which had attended their
career in this war. They could reflect with delight on the fame
they had acquired, but especially at the glorious result, that
their valour had preserved their native land from the presence of
war, and their efforts had acquired peace for Europe.
On the extension of the most honourable military order of the
Bath in 1815, Colonel Charles Pratt, of the FIFTH, was nominated
a Knight-Commander, and Colonels the Honourable Henry King, and
Edward Copson, Companions of the Order. The regiment also, in
reward and commemoration of its services throughout the Peninsular
war, received permission by authority, dated April the 22nd, 1815,
to inscribe, in addition to its other distinctions, the word
"PENINSULA" upon its colours.
Although peace had been restored to Europe, war was continued in
America, and the first battalion of the FIFTH was allowed but a
few days repose, before it was ordered to the scene of conflict.
It marched out of quarters on the 11th of May, and arrived on
the 20th at Bourdeaux, from whence, after a halt of eleven days,
it embarked, and sailed for Canada, disembarking on the 7th of
August at Sorel, on the river St. Lawrence, about one hundred
miles above Quebec. From Sorel it marched to Chambly to join the
troops encamped there under Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost,
and formed, with the Third, Twenty-seventh, and Twenty-eighth
regiments, the brigade of Major-General Sir Manley Power. It was
present at the unsuccessful attack made by Sir George Prevost on
the Americans near _Plattsburg_, in the early part of September,
and afterwards went into barracks at La Prairie; in November it
marched to Montreal, detaching five companies to Coteau du Lac.
[Sidenote: 1815]
Early in February, 1815, the first battalion moved from Montreal to
Upper Canada, where three companies were stationed at Johnstown,
and the remaining seven quartered at the farmers' houses along the
St. Lawrence, and scattered over a space of nearly twenty-eight
miles. But in May, these seven companies and head-quarters were
re-assembled in Fort Wellington. Peace having been concluded with
the Americans, early in June the battalion marched to Montreal,
and sailing down the St. Lawrence in steam vessels to Quebec, it
embarked on the 8th in four transports for Europe.
In the mean time the return of Buonaparte to France, in violation
of the treaty of 1814, had rekindled the war on the continent, and
the first battalion of the FIFTH was immediately ordered to France.
After touching at Portsmouth, it disembarked on the 11th of July at
Ostend; proceeded by the canal to Ghent, and marching from thence
to Paris, joined the British troops encamped at St. Denis on the
24th of August, thus missing being present at the glorious and
decisive victory of Waterloo, which, to a regiment, that had so
conspicuously shared in all the peninsular campaigns, was at once a
disappointment and a misfortune.
[Sidenote: 1816]
[Sidenote: 1817]
[Sidenote: 1818]
Peace having again been concluded, an army of occupation was
directed to remain in France for a few years; and in January, 1816,
the first battalion of the FIFTH formed part of the garrison of
the fortified city of Valenciennes; in July, August, and September
it was encamped in the vicinity of that town, but returned to
Valenciennes in October, and remained there till the month of
April, 1817, when it went to Bapaume and the adjacent villages,
and thence in July into camp at Cambray. In October it returned
to Bapaume, and in June 1818, again joined the camp near Cambray,
where the army was reviewed by the allied sovereigns. In October
the first battalion of the FIFTH marched to Calais, and having
embarked on the 31st for England, landed at Dover on the 1st of
November, and marched for Winchester, where it arrived on the 10th
of the same month.
In the mean time the second battalion, after recruiting to nearly
its full numbers, in Exeter barracks, marched in November, 1813, to
Chelmsford, and thence in the following month to Windsor, where it
remained till October, 1815, when it was ordered to Gosport, and
was there finally disbanded on the 24th of June, 1816.
[Sidenote: 1819]
On the 4th of February, 1819, the regiment, now reduced to one
battalion, embarked at Portsmouth for the West Indies; arrived on
the 3rd of April in Carlisle bay, Barbadoes, and sailed again on
the 5th (after being reviewed on the 4th by Lieutenant-General Lord
Combermere) for the following destinations, _viz._, five companies
and head-quarters to Antigua, four to St. Christopher's, and one
company to Montserrat.
On the 10th of July, 1819, Lieutenant-General Wynyard died, and on
the 12th General Sir Henry Johnson, Bart., G.C.B., was appointed
Colonel of the FIFTH.
[Sidenote: 1820]
[Sidenote: 1821]
The regiment occupied the stations before mentioned, until March,
1821, when five companies with head-quarters were ordered to St.
Vincent's, three to Dominica, and two to St. Lucia. On the 25th of
October this year, the establishment of the regiment was reduced
from ten to eight companies.
[Sidenote: 1822]
[Sidenote: 1823]
[Sidenote: 1824]
After remaining on the above station until January, 1824, two more
companies with head-quarters were ordered to Dominica, and the
remainder to St. Lucia.
The privilege which the corps for a long series of years enjoyed,
of wearing a distinguishing feather, was this year confirmed to it
by a letter from the Adjutant-General of the army, of which the
following is a copy.
"_Horse-Guards, 2nd July, 1824._
"Sir,
"I have had the honour to receive and submit to the
Commander-in-Chief, your letter of 28th ultimo, and enclosure,
and in reply am directed to signify to you, that under the
circumstances therein stated, His Royal Highness has been pleased
to approve of the _White Feather_, which for a long series
of years has been worn as a mark of distinction by the FIFTH
Regiment of Foot, being continued to be used by that corps.
"I have, &c.
(Signed) "H. TORRENS, Adj.-Gen.
"Colonel Sir C. PRATT, K.C.B.,
"5th Foot."
[Sidenote: 1825]
On the 25th March, 1825, the regiment was augmented from eight to
ten companies.
In May, 1825, Colonels the Honourable Henry King, C.B., and Sir
Charles Pratt, K.C.B., who during the Peninsular war had led the
corps in so many days of glory and of victory, were promoted to
the rank of Major-Generals in the army: Sir Charles Pratt had been
at the head of one or other of the battalions since 1808, and was
succeeded in the command of the regiment by Lieutenant-Colonel
William Sutherland, from the second West-India Regiment.
[Sidenote: 1826]
On the 16th of March, 1826, the head-quarters embarked at Dominica
for England. The regiment landed at Portsmouth on the 12th and 22nd
of April and 3rd of June, according as the transports arrived:
marched in three divisions on the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th of June,
from Cumberland Fort, and arrived on the 29th, 30th, and 31st, at
Weedon, in Northamptonshire, where it was joined on the 24th of
July by the depôt, consisting of four captains, four subalterns,
one surgeon, one serjeant, and sixty-nine rank and file, from
Tynemouth Castle. The corps remained at Weedon during the remainder
of the year, and was joined during its stay in Northamptonshire, by
one hundred and fifty-six recruits from its different recruiting
parties.
[Sidenote: 1827]
The FIFTH regiment marched from Weedon barracks in three divisions,
on the 1st, 3rd, and 4th of January 1827, by route, to Hull, in
Yorkshire, where it arrived on the 10th, 12th, and 13th of the same
month, detaching one company to Bradford, one to Halifax, and on
the 27th, one company to Brigg. At Hull one hundred and twenty-four
men joined as recruits.
On the 28th and 29th of March, and 4th of April the regiment
marched from Hull and the detached stations, and arrived on the 5th
of April at Bolton, in Lancashire, having one field-officer and
three companies detached at Blackburn, one company at Haslington,
and one company at Accrington. During its stay at Bolton, the
regiment received seventy-seven recruits from its parties, &c., and
arrived at its full establishment, having recruited nearly five
hundred men during the eleven months which had elapsed since its
return from the West Indies.
[Sidenote: 1828]
On the 10th and 17th of September, the regiment marched from
Bolton, on route to Liverpool, and on the 19th and 20th the
detached companies marched into Liverpool, in which town the
regiment remained in billets until the morning of the 25th, when
it embarked on board the "Britannia" and the "Birmingham" steam
vessels for Ireland, and landed on the 26th at Dublin, where it was
quartered in Richmond barracks. On the 15th of October it moved
from the Richmond to the Royal barracks, and there remained until
it was ordered to Athlone, for which station it marched on the
5th, 7th, and 17th of May, 1828, detaching one company to Shannon
Bridge, from which a subaltern and twenty-five men were sent to
Tullamore, one company to Ballymahon, (sending small parties to
Ballinacarrig and Abbeyshrule,) and one company to Roscommon,
having a subaltern and thirty rank and file at Strokestown. The
detachment at Tullamore was ordered to head-quarters on the 6th of
July.
[Sidenote: 1829]
A party of one hundred men under Major Tovey, marched from Athlone
on the 6th of October to Shannon Bridge, and remained there during
the fair at Ballinasloe. The detachment at Strokestown joined
head-quarters on the 18th of October, and was again sent out on the
26th of January, 1829. On the 22nd of the same month, the company
at Ballymahon was withdrawn, and joined the head-quarters at
Athlone.
The colours of the regiment having been worn out in the course of
its long and honourable service, a new set, after being solemnly
consecrated in St. Peter's Church at Athlone, was presented
on parade with the usual ceremonies, and a suitable address
by Major-General Sir Thomas Arbuthnot, K.C.B., commanding the
Connaught district. The General was pleased on this occasion to
speak in the most flattering terms of the distinguished gallantry
of the regiment in the field, and its good and orderly conduct in
quarters.
The regiment marched to Castlebar, in the county of Mayo, on the
30th and 31st of March, 2nd, 3rd, 7th, and 9th of April, detaching
two companies to Westport, under a field-officer; one company
to Foxford, sending a subaltern and eighteen rank and file to
Ballaghadareen, and one company to Dunmore. On the 2nd of May, two
companies proceeded, per route, to Ballinrobe.
The distinction of wearing a white or grenadier feather, which
the FIFTH regiment had proudly won for itself, having become
extinct by the regulations of the 10th of February of this year
(1829), which directed a white feather to be worn by the whole
of the infantry of the army, rifle regiments and light infantry
excepted, the commanding officer (Lieutenant-Colonel Sutherland)
lost no time in applying, through General Sir Henry Johnson, Bart.,
G.C.B., the Colonel of the regiment, for an equivalent; this was
graciously conceded by his Majesty, George the Fourth, and the
distinction of wearing a feather different from the rest of the
army, was continued to the corps in the following handsome terms
in a letter from Lieutenant-General Sir Herbert Taylor, G.C.H.,
Adjutant-General of the Forces.
"_Horse Guards, July 11, 1829._
"Sir,
"I have had the honour to receive and lay before the General
Commanding-in-Chief your letter of the 6th of May last, with
its enclosures, representing the anxiety felt by the officers
and men of the FIFTH regiment, of which you are Colonel, to be
allowed some distinction, as an equivalent for that which the
regiment has lost in consequence of the regulations of the 10th
of February last, prescribing a white feather to be worn by the
whole of the infantry of the army, rifle regiments and light
infantry excepted.
"On this occasion, Lord Hill commands me to say, that his
Lordship enters fully into the feelings of the FIFTH regiment,
and adverting to the gallantry of the exploits which obtained
for that corps its original distinction, his Lordship has been
pleased to submit to His Majesty, that the FIFTH regiment shall,
in future, wear a feather half red and half white, the red
uppermost, instead of the plain white feather worn by the rest
of the army, as a peculiar mark of honour, whereby its former
services will still be commemorated, and a perpetual incitement
be afforded to a continuance of its good conduct.
"I have, &c.
(Signed) "H. TAYLOR, Adj.-Gen.
"General Sir H. Johnson, Bart., G.C.B.
"&c. &c."
[Sidenote: 1830]
From Castlebar, Westport, and Foxford, the regiment marched on
the 10th and 11th of September, agreeably to routes received, for
Galway. Two companies, under a field-officer, were stationed at
Oughterard; one company at Tuam, one at Ballinasloe, detaching
one subaltern, one serjeant, and twenty rank and file to Mount
Shannon, and a similar party to Kinavara. The company at Dunmore
did not move on this change of the quarters of the regiment. On the
17th of November, the detachment at Kinavara joined the company
at Ballinasloe, and on the 5th of April, 1830, one company from
Oughterard proceeded to Banagher.
In August, 1830, whilst the regiment was stationed in Galway,
a general election took place, and the representation of both
the town and county was keenly contested; during the fortnight
the elections lasted, the corps was constantly under arms and
patrolling, and performed the harassing duty of that period with
so much temper, conduct, and forbearance, that a public meeting
was held, composed of the most respectable inhabitants of the
town and its vicinity, including the several candidates and their
supporters, and the following resolution, declaratory of their
grateful sense of the good conduct of the regiment unanimously
passed:--
"RESOLVED,
"That having witnessed the prompt, active, and efficient
exertions of Lieutenant-Colonel Sutherland, the officers,
non-commissioned officers, and privates of the FIFTH REGIMENT,
in preserving peace and good order during the late contested
election for the representation of this town, we deem it an act
of justice thus to put upon public record the high value we
entertain of their services; and that our worthy chairman is
requested to convey to the gallant Commander of our garrison this
expression of our warmest gratitude and thanks, and we request he
will convey these sentiments to the officers, non-commissioned
officers, and privates of the corps."
It may not be irrelevant to mention, that the FIFTH REGIMENT has
always been remarkable for the good feeling that has subisted
between it and the inhabitants of the different stations at which
it has been quartered.
The regiment being ordered to Cork, the head-quarters and
detachments marched from their respective stations on the 19th,
20th, 21st, 22nd and 23rd of October, and on the 26th it was
countermanded to Buttevant barracks, where the several divisions
arrived on the 27th, 28th, and 29th of the same month.
[Sidenote: 1831]
A detachment was furnished by the corps to Mitchelstown on the 14th
of February, 1831, and being removed on the 2nd of May to Galbally,
it rejoined at Buttevant on the 15th of June.
On the 14th of March, the head-quarters, with four companies,--and
on the 16th, four more companies, marched per route to Clare
Castle, where they arrived to preserve order during the Clare
election on the 17th and 19th, detaching one company to Kilrush,
one to Corrofin, and subalterns' parties to Kildysart, Quinn,
Kilkeshan, and Six Mile Bridge. The head-quarters marched to Ennis
on the 30th of March; and the detachments at Quinn, Kilkeshan, and
Six Mile Bridge, to the same place on the 6th of April. On the
5th of May the head-quarters returned to Buttevant, leaving eight
companies detached in various directions (some being afterwards
encamped) in the county of Clare, which was then, and had for some
months been, in a very disturbed state--in fact, bordering on open
rebellion. A small party of fifteen, half military (of the FIFTH)
and half police, who were almost unarmed, having only a pistol and
five rounds of ammunition each (being employed on a particular
service), were attacked on the morning of the 8th of May, by some
hundreds of the turbulent peasantry of the parish of Clondegad,
in the county of Clare, and, in the course of a running fight,
which was bravely sustained by these few men for several miles,
Colour-Serjeant James Robinson of the grenadier company, was basely
and barbarously murdered. His remains were buried at Ennis, and a
handsome tomb with an appropriate inscription, placed over them by
the regiment.
While the counties of Clare and Galway were in this disturbed state
many of the magistrates declined to act. Under these circumstances,
Lieutenant-Colonel Tovey and Captains McDonald and Spence, of the
FIFTH regiment, were selected as gentlemen in whose firmness,
prudence, and discretion, the Government could confide, and they
received Commissions of the Peace for the above counties. The
judicious conduct of those gentlemen as magistrates reflected
credit on the regiment; their exertions were followed by happy
results;--the two counties became tranquil, and the inhabitants
returned to their peaceful and industrious habits[44].
On the 20th of September these companies were all concentrated
at Buttevant; and a letter conveying the high sense entertained
by Major-General Sir Thomas Arbuthnot of the good conduct of the
regiment, of which the following is a copy, was received with the
notification of their march from Clare:--
"_Ennis, September 6th, 1831._
"Sir,