TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
Some minor changes are noted at the end of the book.
HISTORICAL RECORDS
OF THE
BRITISH ARMY.
PREPARED FOR PUBLICATION UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE
ADJUTANT-GENERAL.
THE SIXTH,
OR
ROYAL FIRST WARWICKSHIRE REGIMENT
OF FOOT.
LONDON:
Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS,
14, Charing Cross.
GENERAL ORDERS.
_HORSE-GUARDS_,
_1st January, 1836._
His Majesty has been pleased to command, that, with a 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 Honourable
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 honourable 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 every thing 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 civilised 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 musket
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 bandaliers, 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 _Crècy_, 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 monarch, 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 Abercrombie, 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 Crècy, 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 an 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 ensure 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.
1838.
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 1/10 of a pound; and the
harquebus a ball which weighed 1/25 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."
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF
THE SIXTH,
OR
ROYAL FIRST WARWICKSHIRE
REGIMENT OF FOOT.
CONTAINING
AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT
IN THE YEAR 1674,
AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES
TO 1838.
_ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES._
LONDON:
PUBLISHED BY LONGMAN, ORME, AND CO.,
PATERNOSTER ROW;
AND BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS,
14, CHARING CROSS;
AND TO BE HAD OF ALL BOOKSELLERS.
1839.
LONDON:
Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS,
Stamford Street.
THE
SIXTH,
OR
ROYAL FIRST WARWICKSHIRE
REGIMENT OF FOOT,
BEARS ON ITS COLOURS, AS A REGIMENTAL BADGE,
"THE ANTELOPE;"
ON THE THREE CORNERS OF THE SECOND COLOUR,
"THE ROSE AND CROWN;"
ON THE GRENADIER CAPS,
"THE KING'S CREST;"
ON THE DRUMMERS' COATS,
"THE ANTELOPE;"
ALSO THE FOLLOWING INSCRIPTIONS ON THE COLOURS:
"ROLEIA," "VIMIERA," "CORUNNA,"
"VITTORIA," "PYRENEES," "NIVELLE,"
"ORTHES," "PENINSULA," "NIAGARA."
CONTENTS.
Anno Page
1673-4 Formation of the Regiment in Holland 1
1674 Siege of Grave 3
1676 Siege of Maestricht 4
1677 Battle of Mont-Cassel 7
1678 ---- ---- St. Denis 8
1685 The Regiment proceeds to England 11
---- Returns to Holland 14
1688 The Revolution.--The Regiment accompanies the Prince
of Orange to England 15
---- Four companies captured by the Swallow 19
1689 Encamps on Hounslow Heath 20
1690 Proceeds to Ireland 21
---- Siege of Charlemont --
---- Battle of the Boyne 22
---- Detached against Athlone --
1691 Capture of Ballymore and Athlone 23
---- Battle of Aghrim 24
---- Capture of Galway and Castleconnell 25
---- ---- ---- Limerick --
---- Returns to England --
1692 Embarks for the Netherlands --
---- Battle of Steenkirk 26
---- Returns to England 27
1693 Embarks for the Netherlands --
1695 Siege of Namur --
1696 Proceeds to England 30
1697 Embarks for the Netherlands, but returns to England
after the Peace of Ryswick --
1698 Proceeds to Ireland --
1702 Expedition to Cadiz --
---- Storming the Forts at Vigo 32
---- Returns to England --
1703 Proceeds to the West Indies, but returns to England
in the same year 33
1705 Capture of Barcelona --
---- Services in Catalonia and Valencia 38
1706 Defence of Barcelona 39
---- Capture of Requena and Cuenza 41
1707 Battle of Almanza 42
---- Action at Tortosa 46
1708 Capture of Minorca 48
1710 Battle of Almanara 50
---- ---- ---- Saragossa 51
---- Advances to Madrid 53
---- Disaster at Brihuega 54
1713 Proceeds to Ireland 55
1719 Capture of Vigo, Rondondella, and Pont-a-Vedra 57
---- Returns to Ireland --
1739 Embarks for England 58
1740 Proceeds to the West Indies --
1741 Attack on Carthagena --
---- Descent on Cuba 61
1742 Returns to England, and proceeds to Scotland --
1745 The Rebellion in Scotland --
---- Defence of Ruthven Redoubt 63
---- Battle of Preston-pans 65
1746 Defence of Forts Augustus and William 67
1747 Proceeds to England 68
1751 Description of the Colours --
1753 Embarks for Gibraltar --
1763 Returns to England 69
1765 Proceeds to Scotland --
1769 Returns to England --
1772 Embarks for the West Indies --
---- Serves against the Charibbees of St. Vincent --
1776 Proceeds to New York 71
1777 Embarks for England --
1782 Obtains the title of Sixth, or First Warwickshire
Regiment of Foot --
1783 Embarks for Ireland --
1786 ---- ---- Nova Scotia --
1793 Embarks for the West Indies 71
1794 Capture of Martinico 72
---- ---- ---- St. Lucia --
---- ---- ---- Guadaloupe --
1795 Returns to England 73
1796 Embarks for Ireland 74
1798 Services during the Rebellion in Ireland --
1799 Embarks for Canada 75
1804 A Second Battalion added to the Regiment --
1806 First Battalion returns to England --
1807 ---- ---- ---- embarks for Gibraltar 76
1808 ---- ---- ---- proceeds to Portugal --
---- ---- ---- ---- Battle of Roleia --
---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Vimiera 77
---- ---- ---- ---- advances into Spain 78
1809 ---- ---- ---- Battle of Corunna 79
---- ---- ---- ---- returns to England 80
---- ---- ---- ---- expedition to Walcheren --
1810 ---- ---- ---- proceeds to Ireland --
1812 ---- ---- ---- embarks for the Peninsula --
1813 ---- ---- ---- Battle of Vittoria 81
---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- the Pyrenees 82
---- ---- ---- ---- distinguished conduct at Echalar 84
---- ---- ---- ---- Battle of the Bidassoa 86
---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Nivelle --
---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Nive --
1814 ---- ---- ---- actions at Hastingues and Oyergave 87
---- ---- ---- ---- battle of Orthes --
---- ---- ---- ---- advances to Bordeaux 88
---- ---- ---- ---- embarks for Canada 89
---- ---- ---- ---- siege of Fort Erie --
1815 ---- ---- ---- proceeds from Canada to the
Netherlands 91
1815 The Second Battalion disbanded --
1816 The Regiment forms part of the Army of Occupation
in France --
1818 Returns to England 93
1819 Proceeds to Scotland --
---- Returns to England --
1821 Embarks for the Cape of Good Hope 93
1825 Proceeds to the East Indies 95
1832 Obtains the title of _Royal_ 98
1838 The Conclusion 99
SUCCESSION OF COLONELS.
1673 Sir Walter Vane 101
1674 Luke Lillingston 103
1675 Thomas Ashley --
1678 Sir Henry Bellasis --
1689 William Babington 105
1691 George Prince of Hesse d'Armstadt --
1694 Henry Marquis de Rada 107
1695 Ventris Columbine --
1703 James Rivers --
1706 William Southwell 108
1708 Thomas Harrison --
1716 Robert Dormer --
1720 James Dormer 109
1738 John Guise --
1765 William Rufane --
1773 John Gore 110
1773 Sir William Boothby, Baronet --
1787 Lancelot Baugh 111
1792 Sir Ralph Abercromby --
1795 Prince William Frederick of Gloucester 114
1806 Sir George Nugent, Baronet 115
LIST OF PLATES.
The Regimental Colours to follow the Regimental Title Page.
The present Costume of the Regiment to follow Page 100.
[Illustration: SIXTH (THE ROYAL FIRST WARWICKSHIRE) REGIMENT OF
FOOT.]
HISTORICAL RECORD
OF THE
SIXTH REGIMENT OF FOOT.
The spirit of enterprise, intrepidity, firmness, endurance,
physical strength, and innate love of fame exhibited by the British
troops, have not only contributed to elevate this Kingdom to its
present exalted station among the nations of Europe, but in the
numerous wars which have taken place in Christendom, other States
have evinced strong desires to obtain British aid. In the Dutch war
of independence, from 1572 to 1648, British valour was eminently
displayed in procuring the advantages of civil and religious
liberty for the inhabitants of the United Provinces: British
courage gave important aid to Henry IV. of France in his struggles
for the throne: in the splendid achievements of the great Gustavus
Adolphus of Sweden, the British had an important share: many of the
conquests of Louis XIV., surnamed "The Great," were achieved by the
aid of British troops; and the regiment which forms the subject of
this memoir is one of the English corps raised for the service of a
foreign state under the following circumstances.
[Sidenote: 1673]
The only remaining corps[6] of the numerous bands of English
lancers, cuirassiers, carabineers, archers, musketeers,
harquebusiers, pikemen, and battle-axemen, who fought in the Dutch
war of independence from 1572 to 1648, was recalled from Holland on
the breaking out of hostilities between the English and Dutch in
1665: during the negociations for the peace of London in the winter
of 1673-4, the States General pressed King Charles II. to recall
his troops from the service of France[7], and solicited permission
again to employ in their army a British division. The king refused
to recall his regiments from France; but his majesty engaged not to
permit any additional British corps to be levied for the service
of Louis XIV., and to prevent the others being recruited: at the
same time permission was given to the States to raise for their
service a body of troops in England and Scotland, to be commanded
by the colonel of the old HOLLAND REGIMENT, SIR WALTER VANE, who
was promoted to the rank of major-general in the Dutch army, and
appointed colonel of one of the regiments to be raised for this
service, now the SIXTH REGIMENT OF FOOT, his commission bearing
date the 12th of December, 1673.
[Sidenote: 1674]
The interests of the United Provinces and those of the reformed
religion being intimately connected, their cause was popular in
England; and when the king disbanded a great part of his army
on the settlement of the peace in 1674, many officers and men
voluntarily entered the Dutch service, particularly from the old
HOLLAND REGIMENT, which was reduced on that occasion from eighteen
to ten companies. Among the most zealous in this service were
Captains Sir Henry Bellasis, Thomas Monk, John Morgan, Philip
Savage, Roger M'Eligott, Alexander Cannon, and four others, who
arrived at the Briel during the summer of 1674 with a number of
men, who were formed into ten companies. The Prince of Orange had
in the meantime taken the field with the army, and Sir Walter Vane
proceeding to the camp to complete some arrangements with his
Highness, served as a volunteer at the battle of Seneffe on the 1st
of August, 1674 (O. S.), and was killed.
Sir William Ballandyne was next appointed to command the British
division, and the ten companies marched from the Briel to
Bois-le-duc; from whence they were suddenly called to join the
army and take part in the siege of _Grave_. They were commanded,
while on this service, by Captain Hugh Mackay (afterwards
lieutenant-general and commandant of the Scots brigade), who had
transferred his services a few weeks previously from the French
to the Dutch army; and was appointed major-commandant of the ten
companies _pro tempore_. On the second day after their arrival
before Grave, the ten companies were on duty in the trenches; and
such was the fervour and eagerness of some of the officers and
soldiers to signalize themselves, that Captain Savage and a few men
stormed the counterscarp in the night without orders: they evinced
great bravery, and gained some advantage, but were eventually
repulsed, and Captain Savage was put in arrest, and reprimanded for
his over-heated valour.
After the surrender of Grave on the 28th of October, the ten
companies returned to Bois-le-duc, where four British regiments
were formed during the winter;--two English, commanded by
Colonels Lillingston and Disney;--one Scots, commanded by Colonel
Graham;--and one Irish, of which the Viscount of Clare was
colonel. Two old Scots regiments in the Dutch service were purged
of foreigners and added to the above four: the six regiments
formed as fine a body of troops as any in Europe, and they soon
had opportunities of proving that they possessed the same heroic
spirit and contempt of danger as their predecessors in the war of
independence, and as the valiant English and Scots who so highly
distinguished themselves under the great Gustavus Adolphus. Such
was the origin of the SIXTH REGIMENT OF FOOT. Its commanding
officer was Colonel LUKE LILLINGSTON, whose appointment was dated
in August, 1674.
[Sidenote: 1675]
The campaign of 1675 was passed in marching, manœuvring, and
watching the operations of the enemy. During the winter the
regiment was in garrison in Holland, and the colonelcy was
conferred on Lieut.-Colonel THOMAS ASHLEY; the command of the
second English regiment was conferred on Colonel Ralph Widdrington;
and the Irish regiment having previously been given to Colonel
John Fenwick, it lost its designation of Irish, and the three were
accounted English regiments.
[Sidenote: 1676]
In the summer of 1676 the regiment marched to Bois-le-duc, where,
in the early part of July it was suddenly aroused about midnight
by the drums beating to arms; and assembling on its parade ground,
it immediately proceeded towards the province of Limburg. After
several days' march it arrived in the vicinity of _Maestricht_,
and, the Prince of Orange having joined the army, the siege of this
celebrated city was commenced.
The three English regiments were commanded by Brigadier-General
John Fenwick. Being proud of their national character, and jealous
of their fame, they obtained permission to act separately, and
to have a particular point of attack allotted them; "and they
made it appear, by their fierce attacks, that they deserved this
distinction[8]." They signalized themselves by the spirit with
which they beat back the sallies of the garrison; and on the 30th
of July they furnished two hundred men, in equal proportions
from each regiment, to storm the Dauphin Bastion. A lodgment
was effected; but the troops afterwards lost their ground, and
they had one hundred and fifty men killed and wounded out of the
two hundred. Colonel Widdrington was killed, and the command of
his regiment was given to Lieut.-Colonel Dolman. The brigade
was again on duty in the trenches on the 2nd of August, when
Brigadier-General Fenwick was wounded.
At three o'clock on the morning of the 4th of August, a storming
party of one hundred and eighty-three officers and men, with a
support of sixty men, furnished in equal proportions from each of
the three regiments, paraded at the head of the brigade; a similar
detachment of the blue Dutch foot-guards was also in readiness,
and at five this little band rushed forward in the face of a storm
of fire, and made a second attack on the Dauphin Bastion with
signal gallantry. The English, being emulous of fame, gained the
lead of the Dutch, and throwing forward a shower of hand-grenades,
assaulted the breach sword in hand, and effected a lodgment.
Suddenly the ground under the soldiers' feet was agitated, a
tremendous explosion blew a number of men into the air, and the
bursting of the mine being succeeded by a fierce attack of the
enemy, the storming party was driven back. Instantly rallying, and
being exasperated by this repulse, the English and Dutch returned
to the charge breathing vengeance and slaughter, by a powerful
effort drove back their antagonists, and re-established themselves
on the bastion, but with the loss of more than half their numbers
killed and wounded. English valour shone conspicuously on this
occasion, and the Dutch authorities acknowledged the superior
gallantry of the brigade. In the Hague Gazette it was stated "_the
English gained very great honour_;" and in the Brussels Gazette it
was stated, "the Prince of Orange having resolved to retake the
Dauphin Bastion, appointed two hundred English, and as many of his
guards, to make the attack, which they did with great courage and
resolution, and _with very great honour to the English, who first
entered the breach_." Sir William Temple, Harris, Boyer, Carleton,
Bernardi, and other authors, bore ample testimony to the native
valour of the English soldiers. A Scots regiment, commanded by Sir
Alexander Colyear, also distinguished itself at this siege.
A desperate sally was made from the town, on the morning of the
6th of August, by three hundred Swiss infantry, who, owing to the
neglect of a sentry, surprised and made prisoners the English guard
on the bastion; but a reinforcement coming forward, the Swiss were
overpowered and destroyed, except about twenty men, who escaped
into the town. The Prince of Orange complimented the English on
their bravery: and being desirous of conferring on merit a special
mark of his approbation, and of inciting other corps to emulate the
English brigade, he made each of the three regiments a present of
a fat ox and six sheep, which, however, occasioned some murmuring
among the Dutch.
A strong horn-work was afterwards captured by the Dutch, and
preparations were made for a general storm of the main breach; but
Marshal de Schomberg advancing at the head of a powerful French
army to relieve the town, the siege was raised, and the three
English regiments, having sustained a severe loss, were sent into
quarters in Holland.
[Sidenote: 1677]
The French monarch commenced the campaign of 1677 with great
vigour; and the advantage derived from an army being under the sole
direction of, and conducted by immediate orders from one head,
over a confederate force, which meets with delays and obstructions
from different interests, councils, negligences, and tempers, was
very conspicuous,--the feeble preparations of the Dutch, and the
apathy of the Spaniards, having left the Prince of Orange without
a force capable of contending with the immense army of the enemy.
Colonel ASHLEY'S regiment, after replacing its losses with recruits
from England, quitted Holland, and advanced with the remainder of
the brigade to West Flanders. It formed part of the army, under
the Prince of Orange, employed in the attempt to relieve the town
of St. Omer; and was engaged on the 11th of April at the battle
of _Mont-Cassel_, which was fought under great disadvantages in
numbers and the nature of the ground. Two newly-raised regiments
of Dutch marines, posted between the Prince's foot-guards and
the English brigade, gave way at the first onset, and, confusion
ensuing, the Prince retreated with the loss of his baggage and
artillery.
[Sidenote: 1678]
At the close of the campaign, the ministers of the confederate
states pressed King Charles II. to recall his troops from the
service of France, attributing many of the French monarch's
successes to the bravery of the British regiments; and in 1678 the
king acceded. At the same time the gallant Earl of Ossory, eldest
son of the Duke of Ormond, was appointed to the command of the
British brigade; and SIR HENRY BELLASIS succeeded Colonel Ashley
in the command of the regiment which is now the SIXTH FOOT. Ten
thousand English troops were also embarked for Flanders, to take
part in the war.
During the early part of the campaign of 1678, the British brigade,
under the Earl of Ossory, was employed on detached services in
Brabant and Flanders; and on the morning of Sunday, the 14th of
August, it moved from its camp near the little river Senne, to
attack the French army, commanded by Marshal Luxemburg, before Mons.
The French commander imagined himself safe in inaccessible
entrenchments; but he was surprised by a party of Dutch dragoons
while at dinner in the Abbey of _St. Denis_, near the village of
that name, and his army was unexpectedly attacked, with great
fury, about three o'clock in the afternoon. The Dutch, under
Count Waldeck, assaulted and carried the abbey; the Spaniards,
commanded by the Duke of Villa Hermosa, advanced by the village
of Castehau; and the Dutch foot-guards, with the Earl of Ossory's
brigade, prolonged the attack on the heights of Castehau, where
the action was maintained with particular obstinacy. The Earl of
Ossory drew his sword, and, pointing to the dark masses of the
enemy, whose polished arms gleamed on the distant heights, led his
British bands to the attack with signal intrepidity: his gallant
mien and lofty bearing infused a noble ardour into the breasts
of his officers and men, who urged, with resolute tread, their
way through every difficulty to encounter their adversaries. The
grenadiers of BELLASIS'S regiment (now SIXTH FOOT) headed by Major
William Babington, led the attack on a body of French troops,
posted in a hop-garden, with a spirit and resolution which were
imitated by the musketeers and pikemen, and a vehement struggle
ensued among the trees and umbrageous foliage which adorned the
scene of conflict. Sir Henry Bellasis and Lieutenant-Colonel Monk
were wounded, Major Babington was also wounded and taken prisoner,
and the contest was fierce and sanguinary; but British valour
prevailed, and the French were driven from among the hop-poles
with great slaughter. Another stand was made by the enemy beyond
the enclosure, and the storm of battle was renewed with additional
fury. The Scots, under Major-General Kirkpatrick, Sir Alexander
Colyear, and Colonel Mackay, vied with the English in their gallant
efforts, and the Prince of Orange and Duke of Monmouth arriving
at that part of the field, witnessed their heroic behaviour.
Attack succeeded attack, and as the shades of evening gathered
over the scene of conflict, the blaze of musketry and showers of
hand-grenades indicated the fury of the opposing ranks of war. At
length darkness put an end to the fight; and the French forsook
their entrenchments and retreated. The excellent conduct of the
British troops was appreciated by the Prince of Orange and the
States-General; and in the narratives of the battle, published at
the time, they received their meed of praise: in one account it was
stated,--"_the Earl of Ossory and his troops performed wonders_;"
in another,--"_the English and Scots regiments did things to the
admiration of those that beheld them_;" and in a third,--"_they
behaved themselves with that courage and bravery which are so
natural to them_." The regiment which forms the subject of this
memoir lost many non-commissioned officers and private soldiers,
and had the following officers killed and wounded:--Captains
Richardson and Vanderstraet, Lieutenants Price, Paul, and
Lepingault, and Ensign Drury, killed: Colonel Sir Henry Bellasis,
Lieutenant-Colonel Monk, Captain Penford, Lieutenant Lunnemon,
and Ensign Nelson, wounded. Major Babington was wounded and taken
prisoner: he was, in the first instance, included in the list of
the slain[9].
Preliminary articles for a treaty of peace had, in the mean time,
been agreed upon at Nimeguen; and the aspect of affairs was
suddenly changed, the spot of ground where fury and bloodshed raged
a few hours before was transformed, by the news of peace, to a
scene of hilarity and jocund mirth, which was only alloyed by the
remembrance of the loss of so many companions in arms, whose blood
had stained the grassy fields.
[Sidenote: 1679]
When the States-General reduced the strength of their army to a
peace establishment, the estimation in which the British troops
were held occasioned their being retained in the service of the
United Provinces; and in a treaty on this subject, the States
agreed to send the six regiments to England, when the King should
require their services.
[Sidenote: 1680]
During the five years succeeding the treaty of Nimeguen, SIR HENRY
BELLASIS'S regiment was employed in garrison duty. In 1680, its
Lieutenant-Colonel, Thomas Monk, was promoted to the colonelcy
of the regiment, which is now the fifth foot, in succession to
Colonel Wisely, who was drowned on his passage to England; and
Major William Babington was appointed to the lieutenant-colonelcy.
[Sidenote: 1684]
In 1684, when the French aggressions in the duchy of Luxemburg
occasioned some alarm in the Netherlands, the regiment marched to
the vicinity of Brussels, where a body of troops was encamped a
short time, and subsequently near Malines: no war taking place, the
camp was broken up in November, and the regiment was again employed
in garrison duty.
[Sidenote: 1685]