Lieutenant-General Bligh was appointed, in the summer of 1758, to
the command of an expedition designed to make a descent on the
coast of France, with the view of causing a diversion in favour of
the army commanded by Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick in Germany. The
fleet sailed in the beginning of August, and in seven days arrived
in Cherbourg roads. The troops were landed, the town of Cherbourg
was captured, the harbour, pier, and forts were destroyed, and
the brass ordnance brought away as trophies of this success. In
September a landing was effected on the coast of Brittany with the
view of besieging St. Maloes; but this being found impracticable,
the troops, after marching a short distance up the country,
retired and re-embarked at the bay of St. Cas. The enemy advanced
in great numbers under the command of the Duke of Aguillon, and
attacking the rear of the British army, occasioned great loss.
Lieutenant-General Bligh was much censured for his conduct on this
occasion, and soon after the return of the expedition, he retired
from the service.
HON. JOHN WALDEGRAVE,
_Appointed 23d October, 1758_.
The HON. JOHN WALDEGRAVE obtained a commission in the First Foot
Guards in 1737; in July 1743, he was appointed captain-lieutenant
in the Third Foot Guards; in September following he obtained the
command of a company, and in 1748 he was promoted to the commission
of major in the same corps. On the 26th of June 1751, he was
promoted to the colonelcy of the Ninth Foot; he was removed to the
Eighth Dragoons in 1755; and to the SECOND IRISH HORSE in 1758.
Having been promoted to the rank of major-general, he proceeded
to Germany, and commanded the brigade of infantry which so highly
distinguished itself in 1759, at the battle of Minden, where his
gallantry and extraordinary presence of mind at a critical moment
decided the fate of the day. In September of the same year he was
removed to the Second Dragoon Guards, and continuing to serve in
Germany during the remainder of the seven years' war, gave signal
proofs of ability and valour in numerous actions with the enemy,
and was equally conspicuous for kindness of heart and regard for
the soldiers who served under his orders. In 1763, he succeeded to
the title of EARL WALDEGRAVE; he was afterwards advanced to the
rank of general, and in 1773, he obtained the colonelcy of the
Second Foot Guards, which he retained until his decease in October
1784.
HON. JOHN FITZ-WILLIAM,
_Appointed 27th November 1760_.
The HON. JOHN FITZ-WILLIAM obtained a commission of captain and
lieutenant-colonel in the First Foot Guards, in 1745; was promoted
to the colonelcy of the Second or Queen's Royal Regiment of Foot
in 1755; and in June, 1759, he obtained the rank of major-general
in the army. In the following year he was removed to the
colonelcy of the SECOND IRISH HORSE; was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant-general in 1761; to that of general in 1783; and died in
1789.
JOHN DOUGLAS,
_Appointed 27th August, 1789_.
JOHN DOUGLAS was many years an officer in the Second Dragoons
(Scots Greys), with which corps he served at the battle of Fontenoy
in 1745. He was promoted to the rank of captain in 1755; proceeded
with the regiment to Germany in 1758, and was appointed major
in the following spring. He served four campaigns under Prince
Ferdinand of Brunswick in Germany, and was at numerous battles and
skirmishes. In 1770, he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy
of the Scots Greys; he was advanced to the rank of colonel in the
army in 1775, and to that of major-general in February 1779. In
April of the same year he was appointed Colonel of the Twenty-first
Light Dragoons,--then first embodied and formed of the light
troops belonging to certain dragoon regiments. At the termination
of the American war in 1783, his regiment was disbanded; and in
April 1787, he was appointed Colonel of the Fourteenth Foot: he
was also promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the same
year. In 1789, he was appointed to the colonelcy of the FIFTH
DRAGOON GUARDS, which he retained until his decease, on the 10th of
November 1790.
THOMAS BLAND,
_Appointed 18th November, 1790_.
This officer obtained a cornetcy in the Seventh Dragoons on the
30th of March, 1754, and continued in that regiment upwards of
thirty-six years. He served three campaigns in Germany under the
Duke of Brunswick; was appointed major of the regiment in 1765,
and lieutenant-colonel in 1771. In 1782, he was promoted to the
rank of major-general, and in 1790 he was appointed from the
lieutenant-colonelcy of the Seventh Dragoons to the colonelcy of
the FIFTH DRAGOON GUARDS. In 1796, he was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant-general, and to that of general in 1781. He died on the
14th of October, 1816.
PRINCE LEOPOLD OF SAXE-COBURG,
_Appointed 18th October, 1816_.
This illustrious Prince, whose military services have become
connected with the RECORD of the FIFTH DRAGOON GUARDS, by his
appointment to the colonelcy of the regiment, entered the army
of the Emperor Alexander of Russia in 1803, and rose to the
rank of major-general; but in 1810, Bonaparte demanded that His
Royal Highness should quit the Russian service, and the Prince
was induced to acquiesce, in order to conciliate Napoleon, and
to preserve the possessions of the house of Coburg from being
seized on by the French. Prince Leopold was subsequently employed
in negotiating an arrangement respecting the principality of
Coburg, with the crown of Bavaria, in which he displayed superior
diplomatic talents. At the commencement of 1813, he exerted
himself, as far as his situation permitted, at that critical and
momentous period, to prepare the emancipation of Germany, and in
February he proceeded to Poland, to the Emperor of Russia, by whom
he was cordially received, and a command in the Russian army was
given to His Royal Highness. He was at the battle of Lutzen on the
2d of May; was subsequently sent by forced marches towards the
Elbe, to support the Prussian General Kleist; but the Prince's
destination was afterwards changed, and on the 19th of May he
marched to support General Barclay de Tolly: His Royal Highness
was, however, recalled, to take part in the battle of Bautzen, on
the 20th and 21st of the same month; and after supporting the line
at various points, he covered the retreat on the evening of the
second day, with the cavalry under his orders, amidst the hottest
fire.
On the 26th of August His Royal Highness was detached to support
the corps under Prince Eugene of Wirtemberg, posted near the
fortress of Königstein; and Prince Leopold maintained, with his
cavalry, a precarious position for five hours, against the repeated
attacks of a force treble his own numbers, by which he defeated
the designs of the enemy, and preserved Prince Eugene's troops
from destruction. On the following day the corps took post beyond
Pirna, which place the enemy took by storm, and endeavoured to
extend with his cavalry upon the level ground near the Elbe; but
was driven back by the troops under Prince Leopold. The main
army, however, retired towards Bohemia, by which the retreat of
the corps near Pirna was rendered difficult, and the abilities of
His Royal Highness were particularly conspicuous in the masterly
dispositions and skilful movements of the cavalry under his orders,
in facilitating and covering the retrogade movement of the corps. A
sharp action occurred in the village of Peterswalde on the 29th of
August, when His Royal Highness signalized himself; several other
actions occurred on the same day in the mountains, and towards
the evening, the Prince repulsed the attack of a superior force
near the village of Prisen, with signal bravery and astonishing
success; and on the following morning he received from the Emperor
Alexander the Cross of the military order of St. George. The action
was renewed on the 30th of August, and the allied army having been
concentrated, the French were defeated with considerable loss.
Prince Leopold had a distinguished share in the engagement, and
he pursued the retiring enemy to the village of Peterswalde: the
brilliant conduct of His Royal Highness between the 26th and 30th
of August, was rewarded by the Emperor of Austria with the military
order of Maria Theresa.
Prince Leopold had a distinguished post at the battle of Leipzig,
and, with the cavalry under his orders, contributed materially
to the decisive termination of that gigantic contest. His Royal
Highness was actively employed in the beginning of 1814; was at
the battle of Brienne, and in the pursuit of the defeated army
on the 2d of February, and in several minor affairs. On the 25th
of March the Prince was in the action with the French at La Fere
Champenoise, when, attacking the enemy's right flank at Caunentrai,
he carried the position, captured five pieces of cannon, and,
when attacked in turn, he repulsed the enemy, and maintained his
ground with signal intrepidity. The battle of Paris concluded
the campaign, and on the 31st of March, the Prince entered that
city with the cavalry of the reserve, and remained there in
garrison. These important events were succeeded by the abdication
of Napoleon, and, when the Congress assembled at Vienna, Prince
Leopold of Saxe-Coburg conducted the business relating to his own
country.
On the return of Bonaparte to France, in 1815, Prince Leopold
proceeded to the grand army on the Rhine, and soon afterwards
reached Paris. On the termination of the war he visited England;
became a suitor to Her Royal Highness the Princess Charlotte of
Wales, and, having obtained the consent of the Prince Regent, the
nuptials between Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, and the presumptive
heiress to the British throne, were eventually solemnized.
On the 2d of May, 1816, Prince Leopold obtained the rank of general
in the British service, and on the 24th of the same month he was
promoted to the rank of field-marshal. The colonelcy of the FIFTH,
OR PRINCESS CHARLOTTE OF WALES' REGIMENT OF DRAGOON GUARDS was
conferred upon Prince Leopold in October of the same year, and he
presented to the officers' mess a handsome service of plate. His
Royal Highness was also honoured with the Order of the Garter,
and the Order of the Bath; but in the midst of these accumulated
distinctions he sustained the loss of his amiable consort, whose
decease on the 6th November, 1817, occasioned the most sincere
grief throughout the kingdom, and Prince Leopold was for some time
inconsolable.
The events which transpired in the Netherlands in 1830, having led
to the separation of several provinces from Holland, and to the
formation of an independent state, called Belgium, Prince Leopold
was invited to accept of the sovereignty of that kingdom in 1831,
and His Royal Highness acquiesced. Thus the FIFTH DRAGOON GUARDS
had the gratification of witnessing the elevation of their colonel
to a throne.
On resigning the colonelcy His Royal Highness was pleased to cause
the following farewell address to be sent to the regiment:--
"_Claremont, 14th July, 1831._
"The Prince Leopold is desirous on quitting England, to
communicate to his regiment, that the circumstances which
call him to another country have made it necessary for him to
relinquish the command of the corps; and he has reserved it, as
one of his last and most painful duties, to bid them farewell. It
would have been His Royal Highness's wish on this occasion, to
have expressed personally to the regiment his regret in leaving
them, and the sincere wishes he shall always entertain for their
happiness and welfare; but their distant quarter, and the hurry
which unavoidably attends his departure, render such a desire
impracticable.
"In taking leave of the regiment, which it has been his
happiness for so many years to command, many subjects press
on His Royal Highness's attention that he would be anxious
publicly to advert to; some of these bear paramount claim to
his thankfulness and recollection; and it is such that he is
chiefly solicitous to notice and record, on this last occasion
of his addressing them:--he alludes particularly to the uniform
maintenance of discipline, efficiency, and high character, which
have marked the corps as one of the most distinguished in the
service, throughout the long period he has known them;--this
has been conspicuous, whether considered with respect to their
efficiency in equipment,--their discipline and conduct in
quarters,--or their movements and perfection in the field,--in
every point, these have been eminently and invariably supported,
and have established a name to the regiment, that, as it should
be the first ambition, so it is among the highest rewards, a
soldier can know. To Lieutenant-Colonel Wallace, whose zeal and
knowledge of the service have guided and perfected this state
of discipline;--to the officers, who have ably and successfully
devoted their efforts to uphold it;--to the non-commissioned
officers and privates, who have maintained the discipline marked
out to them, and, sharing the feelings of their officers in the
character of the regiment, have by their conduct assisted to
uphold it;--to one and all,--individually and collectively,--His
Royal Highness returns his most hearty thanks, with his
unqualified approbation of their conduct, under every view of
discipline or exigency of service:--to such officers and to such
men, it is unnecessary to say anything that can urge or stimulate
their future zeal; His Royal Highness feels assured, that their
Sovereign's approbation will ever remain their first aim, while
_the name of the regiment_, deeply honoured by them and cherished
in their hearts, will never cease to influence them in attaining
that high distinction. His Royal Highness has always felt pride
in being one of their number, and he can never cease to feel the
truest interest in whatever can affect their name as a corps,
or their welfare and happiness as individuals; and with his
heartfelt wishes for the uninterrupted prosperity and perfection
of both, he reluctantly bids them, Farewell.
(Signed) "ROBERT GARDINER.
"_To Lieutenant-Colonel Wallace, "Commanding Fifth Dragoon
Guards._"
SIR JOHN SLADE, BART., G. C. H.
_Appointed 20th July, 1831_.
THE END.
LONDON:
Printed by W. CLOWES and SONS,
Duke-street, Stamford-street.
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
The ornamental symbol for the 'Second Irish Horse' is displayed as
'II/H' in the etext. The original text shows a small 'II' over a
small 'H' with no slash or bar.
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. For example,
head quarters, head-quarters; cap à pié, cap-à-pié; negociations.
Pg vi, 'Sir John Slade ... 98' replaced by 'Sir John Slade ... 99'.
Pg 67, 'was discocovered in' replaced by 'was discovered in'.