regiment marched up the country to join the allied army; and
taking the field in May, 1813, had the honour of serving in one
of the most brilliant campaigns on record, in which the legions
of Buonaparte were overthrown in a pitched battle, the barrier
of the Pyrenees was forced, and the victorious British soldiers
trod the soil of France in triumph. The SIXTH, with a provisional
battalion (formed of the second battalions of the Twenty-fourth and
Fifty-eighth regiments), and the light infantry of the Brunswick
Oels, composed the brigade of Major-General Edward Barnes, in the
seventh division commanded by Lieut.-General the Earl of Dalhousie.
The Marquis of Wellington appeared at the head of a magnificent
and well-appointed army, and, after passing the frontiers of
Portugal, the tide of war, directed by the comprehensive mind
of so able a commander, flowed onwards with majestic violence:
formidable positions were turned; the rivers Esla, Tormes, Carion,
Pisuerga, Arlanzan, and Ebro, were crossed in succession; and the
obstructions of rocks, mountains, and deep ravines were overcome
with a facility which bespoke the ability of the commander and
the excellent quality of the troops serving under his directions.
As the allied army advanced, the enemy fell back in tumult and
disorder, evacuating strong posts without firing a shot, destroying
defensive works, and calling in detachments with precipitation,
until his forces were concentrated in the valley of _Vittoria_,
where he prepared to make a resolute stand.
On the morning of the memorable 21st of June, 1813, the SIXTH moved
from their camp on the river Bayas, and traversed the mountains
in the direction of _Vittoria_, to engage in the attack of the
enemy's formidable position; but so rugged was the country, and
the tracts along the hills so difficult, that the battle was
raging with great violence when the division, led by the Earl of
Dalhousie, arrived at their appointed station. They were, however,
in time to take part in forcing the passage of the Zadora; and the
seventh division, with one brigade of the third, having passed
the river, formed the left of the British line, and were engaged
with the French right in front of the villages of Margarita and
Hermandad. Finally a complete and most decisive victory was gained.
The conduct of the Earl of Dalhousie and his division was commended
in the public despatch; the commanding officer of the SIXTH,
Lieut.-Colonel Archibald Campbell, was presented with a gold medal,
and the gallantry of the regiment was rewarded with the honour of
bearing the word "VITTORIA" inscribed on its colours.
The SIXTH moved forward in pursuit of the wreck of the French army
in the direction of Pampeluna; but were subsequently detached
against a division of the enemy under General Clausel, who was not
at the battle, and had taken post at Logroño, from whence he made
a precipitate retreat to Saragossa, and effected his escape by the
pass of Jaca.
After returning from this enterprise the regiment penetrated the
_Pyrenean_ mountains; and the light and seventh divisions occupied
the heights of Santa Barbara, the town of Vera, and the Puerto de
Echalar, and communicated with the troops in the valley of Bastan.
The French army, having been re-organised under Marshal Soult,
attacked the British posts on the 25th of July. The SIXTH, with the
remainder of their brigade, moved forward to support two brigades
of the second division which had been forced from their ground at
the head of the valley of Bastan, and the enemy was driven back
with loss. But the brigades in Roncesvalles having been obliged
to retire, the troops in the valley of Bastan also fell back to
a very strong post in the mountains behind Irueta. The regiment
lost several men on this occasion, and had Major Gomm and Ensign
Radcliff wounded. Its conduct, with that of the other corps
engaged, was commended by the Marquis of Wellington, who observed
in his despatch:--"Notwithstanding the enemy's superiority of
numbers, they acquired but little advantage over these brave troops
during the seven hours they were engaged. All the regiments charged
with the bayonet."
From Irueta the SIXTH retired with their division to the Lizasso,
and on the 29th of July took post in the mountains near Marcolain,
to connect the operations of the main body of the army with
Lieut.-General Sir Rowland Hill's corps. Some sharp fighting took
place in the mountains on the following day. The SIXTH were engaged
in carrying the height which separated the enemy's right flank, and
had Lieutenant Sandys and several men wounded.
When Marshal Soult found himself frustrated in his attempt to
relieve Pampeluna, and retired with the main body of his army,
leaving a strong corps in an excellent position in the pass of
Donna Maria, the SIXTH moved forward in pursuit, and, with the
remainder of the seventh division and Sir Rowland Hill's corps,
ascended the two flanks of the mountain on the 31st of July, and
dislodged the enemy in gallant style.
The army continued to press on the rear of the French, and
the fourth and seventh divisions proceeded by the valley of
the Bidassoa towards the frontiers of France. The SIXTH, with
the remainder of the Earl of Dalhousie's division, marched on
the morning of the 2nd of August a distance of ten miles over
mountains and ridges, along paths frequented only by shepherds and
wild goats, from Sumbilla towards the Puerto de Echalar, where
two French divisions were found in a formidable position on the
height, with nearly the whole of their army posted behind the
Puerto. The division was in advance, and the enemy appeared in
force. But military ardour, with confidence in the prowess of the
officers and men, occasioned the prudential caution of waiting the
arrival of additional troops to be disregarded, and Major-General
Barnes formed his brigade for the attack. The SIXTH composed more
than half the brigade: having received drafts regularly from
the second battalion on home service, they appeared a fine and
gallant body of men, all eager to engage their opponents. The
provisional battalion and Brunswickers forming the remainder of
the brigade, though inferior in numbers, were animated with the
same spirit as the SIXTH, and the gallant Major-General Barnes led
the three battalions up a ridge which it appeared almost madness
to have attacked. The officers and men, ascending the heights
with cheerful alacrity, confronted, with firm and steady ranks,
their numerous opponents, and advanced to the charge with that
determined resolution for which Britons have been celebrated, and
which occasioned a distinguished officer to say, "Barnes set at
the French as if every man had been a bull-dog, and himself the
best bred of all." It was a moment of trial: the innate bravery
of the officers and men was put to the test; but by a powerful
effort, in which the national character was eminently displayed,
they forced the two divisions of the enemy from these formidable
heights, and were pursuing their victorious career, when orders
were received to halt. The Marquis of Wellington witnessed this
brilliant achievement with feelings of exultation, and expressed
his admiration in terms which occasioned the following order to be
issued immediately.
"_Heights above Echalar, half-past three o'clock,_
_2nd August, 1813_.
"DIVISION ORDER.--The Lieutenant-general has just been desired by
Lord Wellington to say to the brigade under Major-General Barnes'
command, that '_Their attack on the enemy is the most gallant,
and the finest thing he ever witnessed_.' These were the words of
the Commander of the forces, and Lord Dalhousie feels the highest
satisfaction in communicating them to Major-General Barnes, the
officers, and men."
In his public despatch, the Marquis of Wellington
observed:--"Major-General Barnes's brigade was formed for the
attack, and advanced before the fourth and light divisions could
co-operate, with a regularity and gallantry which I have seldom
seen equalled, and actually drove the two divisions of the enemy,
notwithstanding the resistance opposed to them, from those
formidable heights. It is impossible that I can extol too highly
the conduct of Major-General Barnes and these brave troops, which
was the admiration of all who were witnesses of it."[36]
On this memorable occasion, of which every officer and soldier of
the SIXTH may be justly proud, the regiment had Captain William
Brownlow, two serjeants, and thirteen rank and file killed; Major
Guy Campbell, Lieutenants Everest, Tarleton, and Addison, four
serjeants, and one hundred and thirty-six rank and file wounded.
Majors Guy Campbell, Hugh Maurice Scott, and Henry Gomm were
promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and the regiment was
rewarded with the honour of bearing the word "PYRENEES" inscribed
on its colours.
The SIXTH were stationed several weeks in the lofty Pyrenean
mountains: the corps at Roncesvalles and Maya stood in a most
commanding situation, and the Marquis of Wellington resolved to
place his left in an equally menacing position, by dispossessing
the enemy of some strong ground on the right of the _Bidassoa_,
the key of which was a steep mountain, called La Rhune. The attack
was commenced on the 7th of October, and completely succeeded.
A detachment of the SIXTH, sent forward through the Puerto de
Echalar, was partially engaged, and had Captain Shawe and one
man killed; Captain Rogers, one serjeant, and five rank and file
wounded.
In the attack of the enemy's position on the _Nivelle_, on the 10th
of November, the SIXTH were in the column under Marshal Sir William
Beresford, which carried the redoubts on the left of the enemy's
centre; advanced on the left of the river upon St. Pé; crossed the
stream at that place, and drove a body of French from the heights
beyond the village: in which service the regiment had one man
killed and six wounded; and its gallant bearing was rewarded with
the privilege of displaying the word "NIVELLE" on its colours.
In the passage of the _Nive_, and the actions of the 9th, 10th,
11th, 12th, and 13th of December, the regiment co-operated, but was
not brought into contact with the enemy; and the army afterwards
went into quarters until the severity of the weather was abated.
[Sidenote: 1814]
Operations were, however, recommenced in February, 1814, and the
regiment formed part of the corps under Sir William Beresford,
who attacked, on the 22nd of that month, the fortified posts at
_Hastingues_ and _Oyergave_, and obliged the enemy to retire within
the _tête de pont_ at Peyrehorade.
The enemy being in position at _Orthes_, the SIXTH, and other
corps under Sir William Beresford, crossed the Gave de Pau on the
morning of the 26th of February, and moved along the high road from
Peyrehorade towards Orthes. On the following day they advanced to
attack the enemy's right, on the heights on the high road to Dax,
and at the village of St. Boes. The village was carried by the
fourth division; and the SIXTH advanced in column to turn the head
of a ravine between themselves and the enemy; but on emerging from
the village they were ordered to form line. Colonel Ross's brigade
of horse artillery came up at full speed and unlimbered in the
rear of the regiment, when sections were thrown back to permit the
fire of the artillery to pass through the line. The ground was,
however, so low that the troops could not deploy to attack the
heights. The SIXTH moved forward, and in the after descent of the
back of the ravine the French fire told heavily on the regiment.
Several officers and many men fell; Lieut.-Colonel Gardiner, of
the SIXTH[37], who commanded the brigade on this occasion, had his
horse killed under him while leading the regiment forward, and
as a serjeant and a private were extricating him from under the
animal, the private was shot through the chest and died instantly,
and the serjeant's hands were both pierced by musket-balls: one of
the colour-staves was also damaged by a ball. At this moment the
Marquis of Wellington came galloping past the regiment, and cried,
"SIXTH, incline to your right;" which was obeyed; but the ground
was so rugged, and the enemy's fire so heavy, that some confusion
took place: the road was, however, boldly gained; and from a ditch
and earthen bank the regiment opened a destructive fire on the
enemy, who were in line on each flank, and, some kneeling and
others lying on the ground, kept up a heavy cross fire. Meanwhile
the left of the height on which the enemy's right stood had been
carried; Sir Rowland Hill had also forced the passage of the Gave
above Orthes; and the troops opposed to the SIXTH eventually gave
way, when the regiment moved forward in pursuit.
The regiment lost, on this occasion, Lieutenants Patullo and Scott,
five serjeants, and nineteen rank and file killed; Captains Rogers,
Thompson, Smith, and Fitzgerald, Lieutenants Jones, Craufurd, and
Gilder, with Ensigns St. Clair and Blood, sixteen serjeants, one
drummer, and a hundred and four rank and file wounded. Colonel
Gardiner, who commanded the brigade, and Lieut.-Colonel Scott,
who commanded the regiment, were presented with gold medals; and
the word "ORTHES" was inscribed on the regimental colours as a
testimony of its gallantry.
On the 8th of March the regiment was detached, with other forces
under Sir William Beresford, towards _Bourdeaux_: the French troops
in garrison withdrew to the right of the Garonne, and on the 12th
of that month, as the British approached the town, they were met
by the civil authorities and population of the place, and were
received into the city with acclamations; the magistrates and
city-guards removing the tri-coloured and displaying the white
cockade.
The SIXTH were subsequently employed against the French troops on
the Garonne and Dordogne; and on the 5th of April two companies
attacked the rear of a column of the enemy and took many prisoners.
The regiment was afterwards employed in investing the fort of
Blaye, which commanded the navigation of the Garonne; in which
service it was engaged when Buonaparte abdicated the throne of
France, and the Bourbon dynasty was restored, which gave peace to
Europe.
The distinguished part which the SIXTH had taken in the splendid
achievements by which the kingdoms of Portugal, Spain, and France
had been delivered from the despotic rule of Buonaparte was
rewarded with the honour of bearing the word "PENINSULA" on their
colours. Soon after the termination of the contest in Europe they
were destined to transfer their services across the Atlantic, to
take part in the war between Britain and the United States of
America, which commenced in 1812, in consequence of the resistance
of the Americans to the British orders in council respecting the
trade of neutral nations, and to the impressing of British seamen
on board of American ships. The regiment embarked from Bourdeaux
on the 5th of May, arrived in Canada in the beginning of July, and
proceeded to Montreal, from whence it was removed to the Niagara
frontier to reinforce the division commanded by Lieut.-General
Gordon Drummond, who was engaged in the siege of _Fort Erie_.
Having joined this division of the army, the SIXTH formed part
of the reserve brigade; and on the 6th of September the eighth
company, commanded by Captain Pattison, cut off a strong piquet
of Americans close under the walls of the fort, in a manner very
creditable to the discipline, spirit, and enterprise of the
officers and men. On the 17th of the same month the regiment was
engaged in repelling a very bold sortie made by a numerous body of
Americans, with the view of carrying by assault, and afterwards
destroying, the British works and batteries; on which occasion the
following order was issued:--
"_Camp before Fort Erie,
18th September, 1814._
"DISTRICT GENERAL ORDER.--Lieut.-General Drummond, having
received the report of the general officer in the immediate
direction of the troops engaged yesterday, begs to offer his best
acknowledgments for their very gallant conduct in repulsing the
attack made by the enemy on our batteries with his whole force,
represented as consisting of not less than five thousand men,
including the militia.
"The brilliant style in which the battery No. 2 was recovered,
and the enemy driven beyond our entrenchments by seven companies
of the Eighty-second, under the command of Major Proctor, and
three companies of the SIXTH regiment, detached under Major
Taylor, excited Lieut.-General Drummond's admiration, and entitle
those troops to his particular thanks."
Thus the SIXTH were triumphant in the interior of France and on
the frontiers of Canada in the same year, and their gallantry on
the last occasion procured for them the royal permission to bear
the word "NIAGARA" inscribed on their colours. This honour was,
however, purchased with the loss of many lives: Captain Pattison
was numbered among the slain; Captain Smith and Lieutenant Andrews
were wounded, and the last-mentioned officer died of his wounds.
A treaty of peace having been concluded with the Americans,
hostilities ceased, and the SIXTH reposed a short period in
quarters.
[Sidenote: 1815]
In the summer of 1815, the return of Buonaparte to France having
rekindled the flame of war in Europe, the SIXTH were directed
to embark from America, in order to engage once more in actual
warfare. They left Canada in the beginning of July, landed at
Ostend on the 10th of August, and proceeded to Ghent, from whence
they continued their march to Paris, and joined the army commanded
by Field-Marshal His Grace the Duke of Wellington, encamped near
that city. The SIXTH, sixteenth, fifty-eighth, and eighty-second
regiments formed the fifteenth brigade, and were posted in the
seventh division, commanded by Major-General Thomas Brisbane.
When the definitive treaties between France and the allied powers
were settled, the SIXTH were selected to form part of the army
of occupation in France, and constituted, with the twenty-ninth
and seventy-first regiments, the sixth brigade of infantry,
under Major-General Sir Thomas Bradford, in the second division,
commanded by Lieut.-General Sir Henry Clinton. The SIXTH were
quartered at Versailles, from whence they marched, in December, to
Ecouen, a village on the road from Paris to Luzarches.
On the 24th of December, 1815, the second battalion was disbanded
at Winchester.
[Sidenote: 1816]
The SIXTH remained in the neighbourhood of Ecouen until the 23rd
of January, 1816, when they marched for St. Pol in the _Pas de
Calais_, and in February three companies occupied Lillers, and
seven the adjacent villages.
In August, 1816, the regiment proceeded to the vicinity of St.
Omer, and encamped, with the remainder of the second division of
the British contingent of the army of occupation, on Helfant Heath.
In October it proceeded to the plains of Denain, near Valenciennes,
where the British contingent was reviewed by Field-Marshal His
Grace the Duke of Wellington on the 22nd of that month. After the
review the regiment returned to its former cantonments at Lillers
and the neighbouring villages.
[Sidenote: 1817]
[Sidenote: 1818]
The SIXTH were again encamped on Helfant Heath in July, 1817; in
September they pitched their tents on the glacis of Valenciennes,
near the Quesnoy gate; and on the 6th of that month were reviewed,
with the remainder of the British infantry, by the King of Prussia.
They removed in October to the plains of Denain, where the British
contingent was reviewed by the Duke of Wellington on the 15th of
October; on the 20th the SIXTH returned to their former quarters
at Lillers, &c. In these quarters they remained until June, 1818,
when they once more pitched their tents on Helfant Heath, where
they were reviewed by Lieut.-General Lord Hill on the 24th of
June, and by the Duke of Wellington on the 31st of July. In August
they again pitched their tents on the glacis at Valenciennes. On
the 10th of September the British, Saxon, Danish, and Hanoverian
armies, commanded by the Duke of Wellington, were reviewed by His
Royal Highness the Duke of Kent; and on the 23rd of October, the
same troops, and also the Russian contingent, were reviewed by the
Emperor of Russia, King of Prussia, &c. After the review, the army
of occupation was withdrawn from France. The SIXTH embarked at
Calais on the 29th of October, landed on the morning of the 30th
at Dover, and marched to Romford in Essex, where the establishment
was reduced to ten companies, of thirty-nine officers, thirty-five
serjeants, thirty corporals, twenty-two drummers, and six hundred
and twenty private men.
[Sidenote: 1819]
[Sidenote: 1820]
From Romford the SIXTH marched in November to Sunderland and
Carlisle, and in June, 1819, to Edinburgh Castle, with one company
detached to Stirling, another to Aberdeen, and in the autumn a
company was detached to Berwick. In consequence of the disturbed
state of the northern counties of England, seven companies were
ordered into Yorkshire--four companies proceeding to Leeds, and
three to Halifax: the company left at Berwick arrived at Halifax,
and the two companies left at Edinburgh at Leeds, in January, 1820.
At an inspection on the 27th of April following, Lieut.-General Sir
John Byng expressed his approbation of the appearance, discipline,
and interior economy of the regiment; and also at the inspection on
the 22nd of May, 1821.
[Sidenote: 1821]
The SIXTH remained at Leeds and Halifax until June, 1821, when
they proceeded to Hull, and embarked for the island of St. Helena.
Two companies had sailed for their destination when information
arrived of the death of Napoleon Buonaparte in exile at St. Helena.
The remainder of the regiment then proceeded to the Downs, where
its destination was changed to the Cape of Good Hope, and after
a tedious voyage arrived on the 3rd of November at Table Bay,
where it was joined by the two companies from St. Helena. Having
landed, the regiment was inspected by Lieut.-General Sir Rufane
Donkin, K.C.B., at Cape Town, and was commended for its appearance,
conduct, and efficient state--its effectives being only one
man less than on its embarkation from England. After remaining
a few days on shore, five companies, under Brevet-Major Rogers,
re-embarked and sailed to Algoa Bay, from whence they proceeded to
Graham's Town, and marched from thence to several posts and forts
along the frontier line. The establishment had, in the mean time,
been reduced to eight companies of thirty-three officers and six
hundred and eighteen non-commissioned officers and private soldiers.
[Sidenote: 1822]
In January, 1822, the head-quarters, under Brevet Lieut.-Colonel
Scott, embarked from Cape Town, and arrived at Graham's Town
towards the end of the same month; at the same time Lieut.-Colonel
Scott took the command of the troops on the frontier line of
Caffreland. The regiment was stationed along the frontiers, and
was much employed in patrolling and other duties to prevent the
aggressions of the natives. When not thus occupied, the men were
engaged as labourers and artificers at the government works.
[Sidenote: 1823]
In October, 1823, the flank companies proceeded to Cape Town,
and were followed by the head-quarters in November. Colonel
Mark Napier, having arrived at the Cape, assumed the command of
the regiment; Lieut.-Colonel Scott was nominated commandant at
Simonstown, and the command of the six companies left on the
frontiers of Caffreland devolved on Captain Cox.
[Sidenote: 1824]
[Sidenote: 1825]
In August and September, 1824, four companies were withdrawn from
the frontiers and joined the head-quarters: in January, 1825, the
regiment was inspected at Cape Town by Lieut.-General Lord Charles
Henry Somerset, who was pleased to express himself much gratified
at witnessing its good appearance after being so long detached, and
the men employed in working parties.