The Project Gutenberg EBook of Historical Record of the Second, or the Queen's Royal Regiment of Foot, by Richard Cannon This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. Title: Historical Record of the Second, or the Queen's Royal Regiment of Foot Author: Richard Cannon Release Date: August 8, 2017 [EBook #55295] Language: English Character set encoding: UTF-8 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SECOND *** Produced by Brian Coe, John Campbell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.) TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE Some minor changes are noted at the end of the book. original cover CONTENTS GENERAL ORDERS. PREFACE. HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SECOND, Page 1 APPENDIX. 73 A. Chronological Table of the Services of the Second, or Queen's Royal Regiment. 74 B. General Orders relative to the Campaign in Egypt in 1801. 78 C. General Orders relative to the Battle of Corunna in January, 1809. 81 D. General Orders relative to the Battle of Talavera in July, 1809. 86 E. Memorandum on the subject of Regimental Colours, 1835. 89 F. Memoir of Major-General Sir Henry Torrens, K.C.B. 93 HI STORI CAL RECORDS OF THE BRITISH ARMY. PREPARED FOR PUBLICATION UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE ADJUTANT-GENERAL. THE SECOND REGIMENT OF FOOT; OR, QUEEN'S ROYAL. 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. P R E F A C E . 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 du 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 civilized 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. HI S TO RI CAL RECO RD OF THE S E C O N D , OR QUEEN'S ROYAL REGIMENT OF FOOT; CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT IN THE YEAR 1661, AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES TO 1837. LONDON: PRINTED BY CLOWES AND SONS, 14, CHARING CROSS. MDCCCXXXVIII. SECOND (THE QUEEN'S ROYAL) REGIMENT OF FOOT. T HE SEC OND, OR QUEEN'S ROYAL REGIMENT OF FOOT, BEARS IN THE CENTRE OF EACH COLOUR T H E Q U E E N ' S C Y P H E R ON A RED GROUND WITHIN THE GARTER, AND CROWN OVER IT; ALSO THE FOLLOWING DISTINCTIONS, Egypt, with the Sphynx—Vimiera—Corunna—Salamanca—Vittoria—Pyrenees—Nivelle—Toulouse—and Peninsula. IN THE DEXTER CANTON OF THE SECOND COLOUR T H E U N I O N : IN THE THREE OTHER CORNERS T H E P A S C H A L L A M B ; WITH THE MOTTOES Pristinæ Virtutis Memor, and Vel Exuviæ Triumphant, AND THE DISTINCTIONS ABOVE SPECIFIED. H I S TO R I C A L R E C O R D OF T HE SEC OND, OR QUEEN'S ROYAL REGIMENT OF FOOT. The Second Regiment of Foot was raised in 1661, for the purpose of providing a garrison for Tangier, a fortress on the northern coast of Africa, which was ceded to England as part of the marriage portion of Donna Catherina, Infanta of Portugal, who, in the following year, was married to King Charles II[1]. The command of this regiment was conferred by King Charles II. on Henry (second) Earl of Peterborough, whose commission as Colonel bears date the 30th of September, 1661. King Charles II. having, soon after his restoration, disbanded the army of the Commonwealth, the ranks of Lord Peterborough's regiment were speedily completed with disciplined soldiers: it is reported to have assembled on Putney heath on the 14th of October, 1661, and to have numbered one thousand men. The destination of Lord Peterborough's regiment to garrison so valuable a portion of Her Majesty's dower was, no doubt, the cause of its early advancement to royal favour: it was designated 'the Queen's,' and the Paschal Lamb, the distinguishing badge of Portugal, was placed on its colours, and has ever since been continued to be borne by the regiment[2]. [Pg 1] 1661 [2] In a few months after its formation, the Earl of Peterborough embarked with his regiment and a troop of horse[3], and arrived at Tangier on the 29th of January, 1662, where he found a British fleet, under the command of the Earl of Sandwich, lying in the roads, and Sir Richard Steyner, with a detachment of officers and seamen, occupying the town: a duty from which the Queen's Regiment, relieved them on the following day[4]. The fortress was already surrounded by walls upwards of a mile and a quarter in extent, but the English began constructing, at immense cost both of money and labour, a series of external fortifications. It was also determined to form a secure harbour by building a pier, or mole, several hundred yards in length. A spirit of enterprise, which has since become so conspicuous in British subjects, was, at this early period, strongly evinced in these improvements, carried on amidst barbarian tribes on the unpromising shores of Africa. Tangier was announced after its occupation 'a place of such concernment that all the world will envy the English the attainment of it;' but this opinion was founded more on an expectation that the new colony would open a mart for trade, and bring to our influence, if not to our power, the adjoining states. It was, however, an acquisition of consequence to a nation aiming at commercial rivalry at a time when the voyage to India by the Cape of Good Hope was of rare occurrence. Tangier was situated so as to be a convenient resting-place for the Mediterranean trader, similar to what Gibraltar affords at the present time. These speculations gave the command a great importance, made evident by the warrant from King Charles II. on the appointment of the Earl of Peterborough to his government. It designates him 'Captain General, Chief Governor, and Vice-Admiral of our City of Tangier, and of the ports and coasts adjacent, and any of our dominions and territories, castles and forts, in or near the kingdom of Tangier, Fez, and Morocco, in Africa, which are or shall be in our possession, or reduced to our obedience, &c.' On the arrival of Lord Peterborough at Tangier, he found Gaylan, the sovereign chief of Fez, with a body of 10,000 men, encamped within a league of the fortress. A treaty of peace was concluded between these commanders, and limits were fixed, beyond which the English were not to forage or cultivate. No great reliance was placed by the British on their new ally, and accounts from the new colony state, 'how the Moors will observe these articles we know not; however, we are, and we still shall be, upon our guard.' Three other battalions of infantry also proceeded to Tangier from Dunkirk[5]. The friendly understanding which was established with the natives was for some time interrupted only by trifling skirmishes, in which the Moors satisfied themselves by beating back, with sticks, those of the garrison who passed the stipulated bounds. A jealousy was, however, very soon evinced; and upon opposition being made to the English in prosecuting the works and fortifications already alluded to, war burst out, in which the number and ferocity of the Moors were defeated and overcome by great discipline and courage on the part of the garrison. The use of cannon by the Europeans at length diminished the courage of the barbarians, but not before the garrison suffered severely. They had already lost 250 men, and the Moors about 500, amongst whom was a brother of Gaylan, when a peace was at length concluded in 1663, and Lord Peterborough returned in the same year to England[6]. The Earl of Peterborough was succeeded, both in the government of Tangier and in the Colonelcy of the Queen's Regiment, by Lieutenant-General Andrew Rutherford, Earl of Teviot (late Governor of Dunkirk), whose commission was dated the 9th of April, 1663. This second governor of Tangier consolidated all the infantry in garrison, and added them to the Queen's Tangier Regiment; he also so beautified and strengthened the town, that he obtained the title of its 'Restorer.' Gaylan, hearing of the progress of the works, assembled an army of 4000 horse and 20,000 foot[7]; and at mid-day, on Sunday the 14th of June, 1663, when all the officers were at dinner, the Moors surprised and carried the advance- posts and attacked the great redoubt, where Major Ridgert of the Queen's Regiment, with forty men, made a most gallant defence, until the garrison, led by Colonel Norwood, sallied out, and charging the Moors with signal bravery, retook all the posts which had been captured. The garrison lost fourteen men killed and twenty wounded in this encounter; and the enemy upwards of one hundred. In an account of this action published at the time, it is stated, 'The Moors are men of resolution, and have most excellent fire-arms. When the horse charged us, he that did command them was clothed in crimson velvet, who being killed, they all went off immediately; it is presumed, therefore, that he was one of their chief men.' A second attack was subsequently made with 10,000 men, 'but the most vigilant governor had so warily supplied the defects of the place, by planting great guns to annoy the assailants, that though the assault was very sharp, the enemy was beaten off with the loss of 900 men[8].' In August a peace was concluded for six months, and a free trade was opened with the Moors, 'they daily bringing their camels laden with commodities, and in return they get money and other things.' Further additions were also made to the works, which again gave rise to acts of hostility, and in one encounter the garrison captured a splendid scarlet standard. A correspondence was opened with Gaylan—the Earl of Teviot insisted on making additional works— Gaylan objected, when his Lordship replied, 'he must have peace on those terms, or war without them.' The latter was the result, and led to numerous losses, particularly of the natives, in attempts to assault the fortress. The chief losses sustained by the garrison of Tangier were in the sallies they made into the adjacent country to obtain fresh provisions. The Moors had a custom of driving two or three hundred head of cattle within sight of the walls, and planting a body of men in ambuscade, ready to fall on the detachment, which military ardour, to say nothing of a natural wish for fresh beef, was sure to bring beyond the cover of the fortress. These skirmishes frequently brought on more 1662 [3] [4] 1663 [5] [6] [7] 1664 serious engagements, and in a sally made by the garrison on the 4th of May, 1664, the Earl of Teviot[9] met his death. The Earl of Teviot was succeeded in the command of the Queen's Regiment by Colonel, afterwards Lieutenant- General Henry Norwood, whose commission is dated the 10th of June, 1664. The government of Tangier at this time was bestowed by His Majesty on John Lord Bellasyse, a younger son of the Earl of Fauconberg, who arrived at his government in April 1665, on board the Smyrna fleet, consisting of 'seven lusty, brave ships.' Lord Bellasyse found the judicious arrangements of the late Commander-in-Chief had rendered Tangier impregnable to its enemies, who by this time were much disheartened, and inclined to terminate hostilities. A peace was concluded in the following year, and Lord Bellasyse was himself the bearer of it to England, where he arrived in May, 1666. The London Gazette states his favourable reception by His Majesty, and great expectations of future prosperity to Tangier were raised from his report. General Norwood, who has been mentioned as succeeding, on the death of the Earl of Teviot, to the command of the Queen's Regiment, was now appointed to succeed Lord Bellasyse in his government. His administration was that of a judicious and vigilant officer; he acquired the confidence of the Moors, and conciliated Gaylan the sovereign chief of Fez. General Norwood's proceedings among the natives were considered so honourable, and his character, altogether, stood so high, that the Emperor Muley Xeriff admitted him to traffic at Tetuan free of imposts; a most beneficial offer, which he failed not to accept, as it so much concerned the welfare of Tangier, 'to whose advancement,' says Addison, 'he always declared a singular propensity.' The death of this valuable officer, which occurred in 1668, made room for the appointment of John Earl of Middleton, whose commission, as Governor of Tangier, and as Colonel of the Queen's Regiment, is dated the 15th of May, 1668. It was during the colonelcy of the Earl of Middleton, when war had been resumed with the ferocious Moors, that this regiment had the honour of numbering amongst its volunteers the man who afterwards became the most successful and most celebrated general of his age;—'the man who never fought a battle which he did not gain, or besieged a town which he failed to reduce,—John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough.' Mr. Churchill was at this time about twenty years of age, and held an ensign's commission in the Foot Guards, but made his first essays, in actual service, beneath the walls of Tangier, where he eagerly engaged in the frequent sallies and skirmishes of the garrison, giving, in this desultory warfare, the first indication of his active and daring character. After an administration of nearly seven years, the Earl of Middleton died in the fortress, on the 25th of January, 1675[10]. He was succeeded in the command of Tangier, and also in the colonelcy of the Queen's Regiment, on the 5th of March, 1675, by William O'Brien, Earl of Inchiquin. Tangier had by this time so increased in strength and importance, that its occupation by the English was become an object of jealousy, not only to the natives of the country, but to all European powers. The fortifications had been rendered secure, and the harbour had been improved, and now afforded a safe anchorage. These important points had not been attained without great opposition from the Moors, and much credit was given to the garrison for their conduct and steady perseverance in the arduous duties they had to perform. We find acknowledgment made of them by the journals of the day in the following terms:—'Many and various have been the warlike exploits of the heroic English against the barbarians, during the possession of this famous garrison of Tangier, so much renowned throughout the world, standing as commandress of those seas, and a protection to shipping from the Turkish pirates.' The Oxford Gazette of the same period also contains a letter from Tangier, reporting a threatened attack from a French fleet, and adds, 'the soldiers, far from being surprised at the news, are infinitely rejoiced at it, expecting them with much impatience.' Thus we find the Queen's Regiment was ever at its post, and had for eighteen years, almost single-handed, maintained this important fortress, in defiance of numerous assaults from the equally destructive effects of war and climate. Towards the termination of the Earl of Inchiquin's[11] command Tangier became an object of still greater attention in England. The Emperor of Morocco had joined with the forces of Fez, and a crusade was carrying on against the Christian occupants of this part of Africa; Europeans were found ready to direct the operations of the savages, and the war assumed an importance hitherto not bestowed on it. The following is an account given at the time:— 'The Moors being vexed, knowing it was impossible to make their approaches against Tangier above ground, resolved to effect it by drawing lines and working underneath the earth; which stratagem of war, it is supposed, they learnt from several French and Spanish mercenaries whom they keep in pay: this practice they were before quite ignorant of.'—The public journals also speak indignantly of some English who clandestinely imported 1500 barrels of gunpowder to the enemy, and say, ''Tis too often the custom of our nation to give away their swords, and fight with their teeth, and furnish our foes with means to cut our own throats.' Numerous losses sustained by the garrison, together with the increased force of the assailants, rendered it requisite to send reinforcements to the relief of the former. For this purpose a detachment left Ireland in the spring of 1680, consisting of four companies of the Royal Regiment of Foot; twelve other companies of the same regiment followed in the same year; five companies of the Foot Guards also sailed for the same destination under the Earl of Mulgrave. In addition to the above reinforcements, a new regiment was raised in 1680, of which Charles Fitz Charles, Earl of Plymouth, (a natural son of King Charles II.) was appointed Colonel, and embarked on this service. This latter corps was called 'the Second Tangier Regiment,' and is now the 4th, or King's Own Regiment. 1665 1666 [8] 1668 [9] 1675 1678 [10] 1680 [11] It has been stated that the Duke of Marlborough was initiated at Tangier in the first rudiments of war. The same theatre for the display of British valour and enterprise was at this time chosen by several other volunteers, among whom were Charles Lord Mordaunt, the afterwards celebrated Earl of Peterborough, and others of rank and celebrity. In the year 1680 the Earl of Inchiquin vacated his appointment on being made Governor of Jamaica. Colonel Sir Palmes Fairborne[12], of the Queen's Regiment, who succeeded to the command of the fortress on the departure of the Earl of Inchiquin, was, in consequence of his gallant and meritorious services, confirmed in the appointment by his Majesty. The demise of this brave officer, however, occurred before the commission for his appointment was signed; he was wounded in an action with the Moors on the 24th of October, 1680, and died three days after, leaving the charge of the garrison to Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Sackville, of the Coldstream Foot Guards[13]. On the 27th of October the garrison attacked the enemy's lines with determined bravery, and the Queen's Regiment is reported to have 'behaved to admiration[14].' Considerable loss was however sustained by the English; 'not above fifty men were left in one of the battalions of Lord Inchiquin's Regiment (the Queen's): the English and Scotch behaved as brave and gallant men, and the Gentlemen Volunteers have alike proved themselves men of courage.' The Queen's Regiment had Ensign Watson, Ensign Trent, and thirty-four men killed; and Captain Philpot, Lieutenants Guy and Tate, Ensigns Roberts, Thomas, Fitzpatrick, Webster, Norwood, Beckford, and Elliott, with 124 men wounded. In a short period after the above engagement, his Majesty was pleased to appoint Lieutenant-Colonel Sackville to be Lieutenant-Colonel of the Queen's Regiment of Foot Guards, by which he was removed from service at Tangier. The Government of Tangier was next conferred upon Colonel Piercy Kirke[15], who, on the death of the Earl of Plymouth, had been promoted, on the 27th of November 1680, to the Colonelcy of the 2nd Tangier Regiment, with which Regiment he had embarked for Africa as Lieutenant-Colonel in September of that year. He was removed to the Colonelcy of the Queen's Regiment on the 19th of April, 1682, in succession to Colonel Sir Palmes Fairborne, deceased. During Colonel Kirke's services at Tangier, he had been frequently employed upon missions to the Emperor of Morocco. In Ockley's 'Account of South-west Barbary,' there is a letter from the Emperor to him, dated the 27th of October, 1682, which shows that there was a mutual interchange of civilities between them; it is written to acknowledge the receipt of a present of three English horses, which, however thankful he might be, the Emperor seems to think might have been improved upon, for he remarks, 'everybody knows that a carriage requires four horses to travel.' The support of the colony of Tangier appears to have been a matter of serious dispute between the King and the Parliament: repeatedly the King urged upon the House of Commons the importance of the place, and the House as often acknowledged it; but still withheld the supplies necessary for its defence. The advantage derived from the Levant trade, the fact that two millions of money had been expended on the works, and various arguments in favour of maintaining Tangier, were at length fully set forth in a speech from His Majesty on the 17th of November, 1680: a reply was made to it in eighteen articles, but the following remarks will sufficiently explain the whole affair, and account for the final sacrifice of the colony:— 'It was said by the Parliament that the money granted for works had been misapplied;—that the same thing might happen again; and although they were, indeed, afraid of Tangier, they were more afraid of a popish successor.—It was a nursery, not only for popish soldiers, but also for priests and religious persons too, and that there had been sometimes a popish governor of the place, so that to succour it was but to augment their present evils.' In December, 1680, and again, in a Royal Declaration, dated the 8th of April, 1681, its great importance was urged. At length, in 1683, the King, finding the expense of maintaining the garrison and fortifications greater than he was willing, or, unassisted by Parliament, able to bear, came to the resolution of recalling the one, and demolishing the other. About the end of the year 1683, Admiral Lord Dartmouth was sent to Tangier with twenty sail of the line, with orders to demolish the fortress and mole, and to bring away the inhabitants and garrison. Great sufferings had been endured for some time for want of supplies from England, and much joy was evinced by the former on the announcement being made. In six months all the arrangements to abandon this once favourite colony being completed, the final evacuation took place in April, 1684. The Portuguese government had offered a remuneration to have Tangier restored to that nation, but their power of defending it was questionable, and it was not considered prudent to risk so important a fortress falling into the hands of the Moors. There are no means of ascertaining the number of officers and men lost by the Queen's Regiment during the twenty- two years of its service at Tangier; but to judge from the casualties amongst officers of superior rank, it must have been immense. The regiment had steadily persevered in performing the arduous duties required of it, and now retired from its post when a final evacuation of the fortress took place, by the King's command. The Queen's Regiment left Tangier in April, 1684; and on its arrival in England it mustered 560 men, who were portioned into 16 companies. This number was part of 2300 troops, which had comprised the garrison of Tangier, and which, beside the Queen's Regiment, included 4 Troops of horse, which were incorporated in the Royal Dragoons. 5 Companies of Foot Guards. [12] [13] 1681 1682 [14] 1683 1684 [15] 16 Companies of Earl of Dumbarton's (now 1st or Royal Regiment). 16 Companies Trelawny's 2nd Tangier Regiment (now 4th or King's Own). 1 Company of Miners. 4 Independent Companies. The want of confidence alluded to, as existing at this epoch between the Court and Parliament of England, did not terminate with the death of King Charles II., which event occurred on the 6th of February, 1685. His successor King James II. had scarcely ascended his throne, when the army was called upon to protect him from the designs of disaffected subjects, headed by the Duke of Monmouth, who had landed from Holland, and raised the standard of rebellion in the west of England. On this occasion the Queen's Regiment formed part of the forces assembled under the Earl of Feversham, and it is reported, that at the decisive battle of Sedgemoor, where Monmouth and his party were defeated, and his cause irretrievably ruined, 'the two Tangier regiments, Kirke's and Trelawny's, did good service[16].' Colonel Kirke was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General on the 11th of May, 1685, and afterwards appointed to command at Bridgewater. Here we would willingly close the detail of this unfortunate affair; but there have been too frequent allusions to Kirke, and also to his regiment, by various historians, as connected with subsequent proceedings in Monmouth's rebellion to justify such a course. Lord Chief Justice Jeffreys was appointed by King James to conduct a special commission, and to pass judgment on the misguided people who had aided the ill-fated Duke and his adherents: Kirke with his regiment was ordered to escort the judges in their circuit; numerous are the acts of barbarity which history has handed down as perpetrated by Jeffreys and Kirke in what were termed the 'bloody assizes,' and we are told that no less than 261 persons were executed. The remorseless character said to have been evinced by Kirke on the occasion was supposed to be the result of the long and sanguinary wars he had been engaged in with the barbarians in Africa; but Savage, in his history of Taunton, states, that 'on Kirke being afterwards upbraided for his conduct by General Foulks, he excused himself, and said he had an express order from the King and his General, and that his commission went further.' Kirke is represented as 'a loose and bold soldier of fortune;' and there cannot be a doubt but he made himself a willing agent to his ermined and sanguinary coadjutor; but we are inclined to believe his vices have been greatly exaggerated. The most outrageous acts attributed to Kirke were said to have been perpetrated in the neighbourhood of Taunton; and a piece of ground, west of the castle, where he and his force were cantoned, was called 'Tangier,' in allusion to the services of his regiment. Had the conduct of Colonel Kirke approached the violence attributed to him, it is not very probable that in the short space of four years it would have been so lost sight of as to admit a demonstration of joy similar to the following, noticed by the historian of Taunton already quoted: 'The people of Taunton, in commemoration of his (Kirke's) relieving Derry, when besieged by James II. in 1689, devoted an evening to the drinking of his health in public, the expenses of which may be now seen in an old church book.' Zeal for party, or misstatement, are at all times liable to disfigure the pages of history; and if the case of Kirke is not admitted as exemplifying this fact, a very short statement will show that the character of his regiment has been unjustly implicated in these outrages. Dr. Toulmin and other writers remark, that the name of 'lambs' was given by Colonel Kirke to his soldiers, who were most ready to execute his cruel orders; but the truth is, that the regiment, as already shown, had the device of a Lamb on its colours and appointments from its first formation, and continues to bear it to this day. From this circumstance they were called 'The Lambs' long before the period alluded to, and without any connexion with its services in the West of England at this unhappy period. After the decease of King Charles II. this regiment was styled 'The Queen Dowager's Regiment of Foot.' During the two years which followed Monmouth's rebellion, the Queen Dowager's Regiment formed part of a body of 12,000 troops assembled in camps for exercise on Hounslow Heath. King James made great efforts to ingratiate himself with this army: his success, as well as his object, on the occasion, will be inferred from the following remark given by Bishop Burnet—'That which abated the King's joy in seeing so brave an army about him, was, that it was visible, and on so many occasions, that his soldiers had as great an aversion to his religion as his other subjects had expressed.' An anecdote related of Colonel Kirke is further illustrative of the times:—when asked respecting a change of religion, he is stated briefly to have replied, 'he was pre-engaged; for he had promised the Emperor of Morocco, if ever he changed his religion, he would turn Mahomedan.' FIRST TANGIER REGIMENT OF FOOT, MDCLXXXVII.; NOW SECOND (THE QUEEN'S ROYAL) REGIMENT OF FOOT. [To face page 18. An attempt to displace Protestants from various situations, civil and military, and to substitute Catholics, as well as to force popish recruits into the army, and other causes, at length brought on the Revolution; and at this important crisis we find the Queen Dowager's Regiment faithful to the best interests of its country. The Prince of Orange (afterwards William III.) made good his landing at Torbay early in November, 1688, and marched to Exeter. The advanced position of King James's army was at Warminster, and comprised two battalions of Dumbarton's Regiment (the Royals) and Kirke's (the Queen's), a troop of Life Guards, and the Queen Consort's Regiment of Horse, now the First Dragoon Guards. The whole was commanded by Brigadier-General Kirke, who, on some frivolous pretence, refused to march to Devizes, for which he was placed in arrest, and ordered to London. The King, deserted by many of his followers, and even by a portion of his own family, adopted the resolution of retreating towards London, and caused his forces to [16] 1685 [17] [18] 1686 1688 [19] retire behind the Thames to Staines and its neighbourhood; and ultimately, his Majesty vacating his throne, without any government being nominated, left the troops at liberty to use their own discretion. Little opposition was made to the advance of the Prince of Orange, who was soon joined by Kirke, and the latter was received by his new monarch with particular distinction. King James II., with a view of maintaining his authority in Ireland, and assisted by Louis XIV., embarked from France, and landed at Dublin in March, 1689. The Protestants in that country were determined to resist his dominion, particularly at Londonderry, where, under the gallant direction of the Rev. George Walker, rector of Donoghmore, they nobly defended that city for several months, notwithstanding the Governor, Colonel Lundy, Colonel Thomas Cunningham, 9th Foot, and Colonel Solomon Richards, 17th Foot, had resolved, in a council of war, that the place was not tenable, and that it would be imprudent to land those two regiments which had been sent to their assistance: these officers were in consequence cashiered, and the most active measures were taken for sending a further number of troops from England to the assistance of the Protestants, and to the relief of Londonderry. Major-General Kirke was appointed to the command of the troops embarked on this service, on which the Queen Dowager's Regiment was employed, and, with Sir John Hanmer's (the 11th) Regiment, sailed from Liverpool on the 21st of May. Great difficulties were encountered in gaining access to Londonderry on account of the batteries which had been erected on each side of the river by the besieging army. At length the ship Mountjoy, under convoy of the Dartmouth frigate, forced a boom or barrier which had been placed across the river to obstruct the entrance, and General Kirke succeeded in landing men and provisions. The troops of King James were so dispirited by the success of this enterprize, that they abandoned the siege in the night, and retired with precipitation, after having lost some thousands of men before the place. The Queen Dowager's Regiment continued in Ireland, and served with distinction in the army of King William at the battle of the Boyne on the 1st of July, 1690. It was also employed in the siege of Limerick; in the relief of Birr; and in December drove a division of the enemy out of Lanesborough. In 1691 four men per company were mounted, and performed dragoon's duty[17]: the grenadier company was also mounted. In February the mounted part of the regiment distinguished itself in an action at the Moat of Grenogue; and the remainder of the regiment took Cairn Castle and Conway Castle. In May the regiment defeated a body of Rapparees near Wyands-Town. It was afterwards employed at the siege of Athlone, which was carried by storm on the 30th of June, 1691. It is recorded that 'never was a more desperate service, nor was ever exploit performed with more valour and intrepidity.' Lieut.-General De Ginkell, to whom King William had entrusted the command of his army, was created Earl of Athlone for his conduct and success on this occasion. On the 4th of July ten mounted grenadiers of the Queen's Regiment and twenty horse, engaged 400 of the enemy's cavalry in the woods of Clanoult, and displayed astonishing bravery. Our men defended a bridge until half their numbers were killed, and then retired. The Queen Dowager's Regiment was engaged at the decisive battle of Aghrim, in the county of Galway, on the 12th of July, 1691, when the French General St. Ruth was killed, and about 4000 of his troops. It was also engaged in the second siege of Limerick; and on the 22nd of September distinguished itself in an attack upon the works which covered Thoumond Bridge. So great was the loss of the enemy, that the place surrendered a few days afterwards. The ambition and power of Louis XIV. caused England to unite with other nations to check the designs of France, and in 1689 the Earl of Marlborough proceeded to Flanders with several English regiments to join the army of the confederacy. In 1691 King William assumed the command of the allied forces in Flanders. The war in Ireland having ended with the capitulation of Limerick, King William was thereby enabled to withdraw some regiments from that country, and to re-inforce his army in Flanders: the Queen Dowager's Regiment was one of those selected for foreign service, on which it immediately proceeded. Lieutenant-General Kirke, who was promoted to that rank on the 24th of December, 1690, joined the army in Flanders, and died at Breda on the 31st of October, 1691. The Colonelcy of the Queen Dowager's Regiment was conferred on Colonel William Selwyn, from the Coldstream Foot Guards, on the 18th of December, 1691. In the spring of 1692, the preparations making by Louis XIV. of France, and the late King James II., for the invasion of England, caused King William to send back some of the regiments, which had been sent from Ireland to join the army in the Low Countries; amongst others the Queen Dowager's returned, and was encamped at Portsmouth. The glorious victory off La Hogue, obtained at this critical period by the gallant exertions of the fleet under Admiral Russell, dispelled all fear of invasion, and distracted the councils of the enemy. Seven thousand of the force assembled at Portsmouth, including the Queen Dowager's Regiment, were embarked under the Duke of Leinster with the intention of returning the compliment by making a descent on the coast of France; but this expedition being postponed, and ultimately abandoned, in consequence of the lateness of the season, the troops were ordered to proceed to Flanders. They landed at Ostend on the 22nd of August, and took and fortified the neighbouring towns of Furnes and Dixmude. The Queen Dowager's Regiment continued to form part of the army on the continent, serving with distinction in various operations there, and more particularly at the battle of Landen on the 29th of July, 1693, where it was posted in the left wing of the allied army, and in conjunction with the regiment of Hamilton (the Royals) defeated a superior force of the enemy, and retarded, for a time, the disasters of the day. Nothing could surpass the courage and perseverance of King William, whose presence with this portion of his troops urged them on to deeds of the greatest heroism. At length, weakened by repeated attacks from a far more numerous army, and having their ammunition expended, they retired, leaving their enemy little more than the name of a victory, for the Duke of Luxembourg gained 1689 [20] 1690 1691 [21] [22] 1692 1693 [23] no advantages, and his army had a greater number of officers and men killed and wounded than the allies. The Queen Dowager's Regiment lost in this battle Captain Collins, Captain Sandys, Lieutenant Campbell, Ensign Burt, and about 100 men. The Queen Dowager's had also the glory of being in the line of circumvallation at the siege of Namur, and at the reduction of that fortress in August, 1695, which event was looked upon as one of the greatest in King William's military life. Namur was so well furnished and prepared for this attack, and so well situated, that the attempt to reduce it was considered one of the utmost temerity. It was defended by 15,000 chosen men, and commanded by a Marshal of France (Boufflers) who 'made the point one of the King's glory.' He was, however, forced to capitulate, after losing nearly two-thirds of his garrison, and the place was occupied by King William within two months from his investing it. On this occasion Colonel Selwyn, commanding the Queen's, was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General. In the winter of 1695-6, the king of France assembled an army near Calais, for a descent upon England in favour of King James, who had privately concerted measures for a rebellion in this country, and had sent the Duke of Berwick with a number of officers in disguise, through whose persuasions 2000 men were prepared to rise, at a moment's notice, under the directions of Sir John Fenwick[18]; at the same time a conspiracy was formed in London for the assassination of King William, and fifty men were engaged and prepared with arms to commit the diabolical act. The Queen Dowager's and several other regiments were immediately ordered to England to resist the threatened invasion. The plot was, however, discovered; many of the conspirators were apprehended and executed; and the designs of the enemy frustrated. The regiment remained in England until the summer of 1697, when it again proceeded to the Netherlands, joined the army encamped before Brussels on the 14th of July, and on the 16th was reviewed by his Majesty. This war was terminated in September by the Peace of Ryswick; and the regiment returned to England the same year. The establishment of the regiment after the peace was 44 officers, and 884 non-commissioned officers and men. On the 28th of June, 1701, General Selwyn exchanged from the Queen's to the 22nd Regiment of Foot, with Sir Henry Bellasis, Kt. The throne of Spain having become vacant by the death of King Charles II., which took place in 1701, the Duke of Anjou was crowned king, under the title of Philip V., and was supported by his grandfather Louis XIV. of France. The conduct of France alarmed the other Powers of Europe, and the death of the late King of England, James II., having taken place at St. Germains on the 16th of September, 1701, the resentment of England against France was further called forth by Louis XIV. having proclaimed his son, (the pretended Prince of Wales) King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and having also influenced Spain to concur in the same affront and indignity. War was determined, and whilst active preparations were making for prosecuting it, King William III. received a fall from his horse, and his death took place on the 8th of March, 1702. His policy was adopted by his successor, Queen Anne, who entered into treaties of alliance with the Emperor of Germany, the States General of the United Provinces, and other princes and potentates, for preserving the liberty and balance of Europe, and for reducing the exorbitant power of France. Declaration of war was accordingly proclaimed against France and Spain on the 4th of May, 1702. The importance of rescuing Spain from foreign oppression, and of checking the ambitious views of France, was also acknowledged by the English Parliament, and liberal provision was made for increasing the means of prosecuting the war with activity and vigour, both by sea and land. The Earl of Marlborough was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the English troops in Holland, whither he had proceeded as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, immediately after her Majesty's accession to the throne. In the beginning of June, 1702, it was arranged that a naval force, consisting of fifty sail of the line, besides frigates, under Admiral Sir George Rooke, and a land force, consisting of nearly fourteen thousand men, under the command of the Duke of Ormond, should proceed to the coast of Spain. The following corps were employed on this service; namely,— Corps. Present title. Officers and men. Lloyd's Dragoons 3rd Light Dragoons (Detachment) 275 *Foot Guards 1st and Coldstream 755 *Sir H. Bellasis' 2nd Foot 834 *Churchill's 3rd " 834 *Seymour's 4th " 834 *Columbine's 6th " 724 *Royal Fusileers 7th " (3 Companies) 313 Erle's 19th " 724 Gustavus Hamilton's 20th " 724 Villiers's (Marines) 31st Foot (5 Companies) 520 *Fox's (Marines) 32nd " 834 Donegal's 35th " 724 Charlemont's 36th " 724 *Shannon's (Marines) 834 1695 1696 [24] 1697 1701 [25] 1702 [26]