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Title: Historical Record of the Seventy-Third Regiment

Author: Richard Cannon

Release date: December 23, 2021 [eBook #67001]

Most recently updated: October 18, 2024

Language: English

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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT ***

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

Footnote anchors are denoted by [number], and the footnotes have been placed at the end of each major section.

Some minor changes to the text are noted at the end of the book.

HISTORICAL RECORD

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT:

CONTAINING

AN ACCOUNT OF THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT

FROM THE PERIOD OF ITS BEING RAISED

AS THE SECOND BATTALION

OF THE

FORTY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLANDERS,

IN 1780

AND OF ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES

TO 1851.

COMPILED BY

RICHARD CANNON, ESQ.,

ADJUTANT-GENERAL’S OFFICE, HORSE GUARDS.

ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES.

LONDON:

PARKER, FURNIVALL, & PARKER,

30, CHARING CROSS.

M DCCC LI.

GENERAL ORDERS.

HORSE-GUARDS,

1st January, 1836.

His Majesty has been pleased to command that, with the 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 Honorable

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 honorable 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 everything 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.

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 muskets 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 bandoliers, 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 Crecy, 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 monarchy, 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 Abercromby, 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 Crecy, 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 a 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 insure 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.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] A company of 200 men would appear thus:—

20

20

20

30

20

30

20

20

20

Harquebuses.

Muskets.

Halberds.

Muskets.

Harquebuses.

Archers.

Pikes.

Pikes.

Archers.

The musket carried a ball which weighed 1/10th of a pound; and the harquebus a ball which weighed 1/25th 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.”

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT

BEARS ON THE REGIMENTAL COLOUR AND APPOINTMENTS

THE WORD “MANGALORE,”

IN COMMEMORATION OF THE GALLANT DEFENCE OF THAT FORTRESS IN 1783;

ALSO,

THE WORD “SERINGAPATAM,”

FOR THE SIEGE AND CAPTURE OF THAT PLACE IN 1799;

AND,

THE WORD “WATERLOO,”

IN TESTIMONY OF THE GALLANTRY OF THE SECOND BATTALION

AT THAT BATTLE ON THE 18th OF JUNE, 1815.

THE

SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

CONTENTS

OF THE

HISTORICAL RECORD.

Year

Page

INTRODUCTION

1

1780

Formation of the second battalion of the forty-second, afterwards the  SEVENTY-THIRD regiment

5

1781

Embarked for India

6

1782

Campaign against Hyder Ali, and Tippoo Saib

—

——

Operations before Paniané

7

——

Defeat of Tippoo’s army

8

——

Decease of Hyder Ali, and succession of Tippoo to the throne of Mysore

—

1783

Siege and capture of Onore

9

——

Action at the Hussanghurry Ghaut

—

——

Occupation of Mangalore  by the British

—

——

Mangalore  invested by Tippoo Sultan

—

——

Defence of Mangalore

10

——

The Royal authority granted for bearing the word “Mangalore ” on the regimental colour and appointments

—

——

Armistice between the British and Tippoo

—

——

Renewal of hostilities

—

——

Second siege of Mangalore

10

——

Termination of hostilities

—

——

Embarkation of the battalion for Calcutta

—

——

Employed on service in the Upper Provinces

—

1786

The second battalion of the forty-second numbered the  SEVENTY-THIRD regiment

11

——

Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart. appointed colonel of the regiment

—

——

Alteration of the facings from blue to dark green

—

——

Establishment of the regiment

—

——

Major-General Medows appointed colonel of the regiment

—

1789

Hostilities renewed by Tippoo

—

1790

The  SEVENTY-THIRD regiment removed to the seat of war

12

——

And ordered to compose part of the force under Major-General Abercromby

—

1791

Action with the Sultan, and the siege of Seringapatam  deferred by the British

—

1792

Operations of the troops under Major-General Abercromby

—

——

Preparations for the siege of Seringapatam

13

——

Cessation of hostilities

—

——

Effects of the French revolution on the affairs of India

—

1793

Expedition against the French settlement of Pondicherry

—

1795

Capture of the Dutch settlements in Ceylon

15

1796

The regiment stationed in that island, and employed in completing its conquest

—

——

Major-General Lake appointed colonel of the regiment

—

1797

The regiment embarked for Madras

—

1798

Removed to Poonamallee

—

1798

Alliances formed by Tippoo for renewing hostilities

15

1799

The regiment ordered to take the field

16

——

Action at Mallavelly

—

——

Siege and capture of Seringapatam

17

——

Death of Tippoo, and termination of the campaign

18

——

Casualties of the  SEVENTY-THIRD regiment

19

——

Authorised to bear the word “S ERINGAPATAM” on the regimental colour and appointments

—

——

General Orders issued on the occasion of the above victory

—

——

Partition of the late Sultan’s territory

20

1800

Major-General George Harris appointed colonel of the regiment

—

——

The regiment employed against the Polygars

21

1801

Removed to Gooty

—

1802

Proceeded to Bellary

—

1803

Returned to Gooty

—

——

Proceeded to Pondicherry

—

1804

Removed to Madras

—

1805

Embarked for England

—

1806

Disembarked at Greenwich

—

——

Proceeded to Scotland

—

1807

New colours received by the regiment

22

1808

Formation of the second battalion

23

1809

Discontinuance of the Highland dress by the  SEVENTY-THIRD and five other regiments

—

——

The first battalion embarked for New South Wales

24

1810

Arrival at Sydney

—

1812

Augmentation of establishment

25

1814

The first battalion embarked for Ceylon

—

1814

Complimentary General Order issued on the occasion

25

——

Aspect of affairs in Ceylon

27

1816

Invasion of the kingdom of Candy by the British

28

——

Deposition of the king of Candy, and annexation of his territory to the British Crown

—

1817

Disbandment of the second battalion

30

——

Reduction of the refractory Candian chiefs

—

1818

Casualties sustained on this service

31

——

Medals struck for acts of individual gallantry

32

1821

The regiment embarked for England

—

——

Landed at Gravesend, and proceeded to Weedon

—

——

Reduction of establishment

—

1823

The regiment proceeded to Scotland

33

——

Removed to Ireland

—

1825

Augmentation of establishment

—

——

Riots in Lancashire and Yorkshire

—

1826

Embarked for England

—

——

Tranquillity restored, and return of the regiment to Ireland

34

1827

Formed into service and depôt companies

—

——

Service companies embarked for Gibraltar

—

1829

Casualties from fever at Gibraltar

—

——

Major-General Sir Frederick Adam, K.C.B. appointed colonel of the regiment

35

——

Service companies proceeded to Malta, and complimentary order prior to embarkation from Gibraltar

—

1830

Depôt companies removed from Ireland to Great Britain

36

——

Address from Major-General Maurice O’Connell on his promotion from the regiment

—

1831

Depôt companies proceeded to Jersey

38

1834

Service companies embarked for the Ionian Islands

—

1835

Depôt companies removed to Ireland

38

——

Major-General William George Lord Harris, K.C.H. appointed colonel of the regiment

—

1838

Embarkation of the service companies for Nova Scotia

39

——

Service companies removed to Canada

—

1839

Depôt companies proceeded to Great Britain

—

1841

Return of the service companies to England

—

——

Consolidation of the regiment at Gosport

—

1842

Stationed at Woolwich, subsequently at Bradford, and afterwards at Newport, in Monmouthshire

—

1844

Embarked for Ireland

—

1845

Major-General Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B., appointed colonel of the regiment

—

——

Formed into service and depôt companies

—

——

Embarkation of the former for the Cape of Good Hope

—

——

Detained at Monte Video

—

1846

Major-General Sir John Grey, K.C.B., appointed colonel of the regiment

—

——

The service companies employed in the protection of Monte Video

40

——

Re-embarkation of the service companies for the Cape of Good Hope

—

——

Employed against the Kaffirs

—

1847

Casualties on this service

—

1848

Removed to Cape Town

—

1849

Major-General Richard Goddard Hare Clarges appointed colonel of the regiment

—

1850

Removal of the service companies to the frontier

41

1851

Employed against the Kaffirs

—

CONTENTS

OF THE

HISTORICAL RECORD.

OF

THE SECOND BATTALION

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

Year

Page

INTRODUCTION

43

1808

Formation of the Second Battalion

44

1809

Received volunteers from the Militia

—

1810

Removed from Ashborne to Derby, and subsequently to Ashford

—

1811

Augmentation of establishment

—

1812

Removed to Deal, and afterwards to the Tower

—

1813

Augmentation of establishment

—

——

Embarked for Swedish Pomerania

45

——

Joined the allied forces under Lieut.-General Count Wallmoden

—

——

Action at Gorde

—

——

The second battalion proceeded to the north of Germany

—

——

Proceeded to England, but embarked, without landing, for Holland

46

1814

Bombardment of Antwerp

—

——

Action at Merxem

—

——

March of the British troops to Breda

47

1814

Bombardment of a detachment of the battalion in Fort Frederick by a French gun-ship

47

——

Conclusion of peace

—

1815

Return of Napoleon from Elba to Paris

48

——

Renewal of hostilities

—

——

Rapid advance of Napoleon

—

——

The British proceeded to Charleroi

49

——

Action at Quatre Bras

50

——

Casualties of the battalion

—

——

Battle of W ATERLOO

51

——

Casualties of the battalion

52

——

Honors conferred for the victory

53

——

Authorised to bear the word “W ATERLOO” on the colour and appointments

—

——

Return of Louis XVIII. to Paris

—

——

Surrender of Napoleon, and his conveyance to St. Helena

—

——

Embarkation of the battalion for England

54

1816

Stationed at Nottingham

—

1817

The second battalion disbanded

—

1851

CONCLUSION

55

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

Year

Page

1786

Sir George Osborn, Bart.

57

——

Sir William Medows

58

1796

Gerard, afterward Viscount Lake

59

1800

George Lord Harris, G.C.B.

61

1829

The Right Honorable Sir Frederick Adam, G.C.B.

63

1835

William George Lord Harris, C.B. and K.C.H.

64

1845

Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B. and K.C.H.

66

1846

Sir John Grey, K.C.B.

68

1849

Richard Goddard Hare Clarges, C.B.

—

APPENDIX.

Memoir of Major-General Lachlan Macquarie

69

Memoir of Lieutenant-General Sir Maurice Charles O’Connell, K.C.H.

70

British and Hanoverian army at Waterloo on the 18th of June 1815

73

PLATES.

Colours of the Regiment

to face

1

Storming of Seringapatam, 4th May, 1799

”

18

Costume of the Regiment

”

56

LXXIII REGIMENT

For Cannon’s Military Records

Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t Strand

INTRODUCTION

TO THE

HISTORICAL RECORD

OF THE

SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

During the last century several corps, at successive periods, have been borne on the establishment of the army, and numbered the SEVENTY-THIRD; the following details are therefore prefixed to the historical record of the services of the regiment which now bears that number, in order to prevent its being connected with those corps which have been designated by the same numerical title, but whose services have been totally distinct.

In the spring of 1758, the second battalions of fifteen regiments of infantry, from the 3rd to the 37th, were directed to be formed into distinct regiments, and to be numbered from the 61st to the 75th successively, as follows:—

Second Battalion

Constituted

3rd

Foot

the

61st

regiment.

4th

”

”

62nd

”

8th

”

”

63rd

”

11th

”

”

64th

”

12th

”

”

65th

”

19th

”

”

66th

”

20th

”

”

67th

”

23rd

”

the

68th

regiment.

24th

”

”

69th

”

31st

”

”

70th

”

32nd

”

”

71st

”

33rd

”

”

72nd

”

34th

”

”

73rd

”

36th

”

”

74th

”

37th

”

”

75th

”

The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, and 75th regiments, thus formed, were disbanded in 1763, after the peace of Fontainebleau.

Several other corps were likewise disbanded at this period, which occasioned a change in the numerical titles of the following regiments of Invalids.

The

81st

regiment (Invalids)

was numbered

the

71st

regiment.

”

82nd

”

”

”

72nd

”

”

116th

”

”

”

73rd

”

”

117th

”

”

”

74th

”

”

118th

”

”

”

75th

”

The 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, and 75th regiments, thus numbered, were formed into independent companies of Invalids in the year 1769, which increased the number of Invalid Companies from eight to twenty; they were appropriated to the following garrisons, namely four companies at Guernsey, four at Jersey, three at Hull, two at Chester, two at Tilbury Fort, two at Sheerness, one at Landguard Fort, one at Pendennis, and one in the Scilly Islands.

These numerical titles became thus extinct until October, 1775, when the seventy-first regiment was raised. In December, 1777, further augmentations were made to the army, and the regiments which were directed to be raised, were numbered from the seventy-second to the eighty-third regiment.

The army was subsequently increased to one hundred and five regular regiments of infantry, exclusive of eleven unnumbered regiments, and thirty-six independent companies of Invalids.

The conclusion of the general peace in 1783, occasioned the disbandment of several regiments (commencing with the seventy-first regiment), and thus changed the numerical titles of certain regiments retained on the reduced establishment of the army.

In 1786 the SEVENTY-THIRD was directed to be numbered the seventy-first regiment; the seventy-eighth to be numbered the seventy-second; and the second battalion of the forty-second to be constituted the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment. These corps had been directed to be raised in Scotland in 1777 and 1779, and were denominated Highland regiments.

The details of the services of the present SEVENTY-THIRD regiment are contained in the following pages; the histories of the seventy-first and seventy-second regiments are given in distinct numbers.

1851

HISTORICAL RECORD

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT;

ORIGINALLY RAISED AS

THE SECOND BATTALION OF THE FORTY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLAND REGIMENT.

1779

1780

The present SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was authorised, on the 30th of July 1779, to be raised as the Second Battalion of the Forty-second Royal Highlanders, and was embodied at Perth, on the 21st of March 1780. Its establishment consisted of one lieut.-colonel (and captain), one major (and captain), eight captains, twelve lieutenants, eight ensigns, one chaplain, one adjutant, one quarter-master, one surgeon, one mate, thirty serjeants, forty corporals, twenty drummers, two pipers, and seven hundred private men. Soon after its formation, the battalion marched to Fort George to be drilled and disciplined, and in the course of the year was ordered to proceed to England for embarkation for India, where events had occurred which occasioned reinforcements to be sent to that country.

1781

Hyder Ali, a soldier of fortune, had risen to the chief command of the army of the Ruler of Mysore, and when the Rajah died, leaving his eldest son a minor, Hyder Ali assumed the guardianship of the youthful prince, whom he placed under restraint, and seized on the reins of government. Having a considerable territory under his control, he maintained a formidable military establishment, which he endeavoured to bring into a high state of discipline and efficiency. He soon evinced decided hostility to the British interests in India, and formed a league with the French. Hostilities had also commenced between Great Britain and Holland, and the British troops were employed in dispossessing the Dutch of their settlements in Bengal, and on the coast of Coromandel. Thus three powers were opposed to the British interests in India, and the Second Battalion of the Forty-second Royal Highland regiment was ordered to proceed to that country.

About the end of the previous year the battalion had arrived at Gravesend from North Britain, and on the 21st of January 1781, embarked at Portsmouth for India, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Norman Macleod.

One division of the regiment landed at Madras on the 18th of May: but the other divisions, consisting of seven companies and a half, had a voyage of thirteen months and thirteen days; they ultimately landed at Bombay in February 1782.

1782

These divisions, soon after landing, took the field, and the battalion was subsequently united under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Macleod, when it shared in the campaign against Hyder Ali and his son Tippoo Saib.

The situation of Colonel Thomas Frederick Mackenzie Humberston (Lieut.-Colonel Commandant of the seventy-eighth, now seventy-second regiment) who had been despatched with troops to the Malabar coast, having become very perilous, the second battalion of the Forty-second regiment, with other troops, proceeded to his relief at Mungarry Cottah. In the meantime Tippoo Saib, with his usual activity, suddenly collected a body of troops, and proceeded to cut off the force at that station. Notwithstanding the secrecy of the expedition, Colonel Humberston received some vague intelligence of its arrival on the northern banks of the Coleroon, and suspecting at once the design of the enemy, destroyed the fortifications at Mungarry Cottah, and retreated to Ramgaree; where receiving certain information that Tippoo was approaching with the utmost rapidity, he withdrew to Paniané, fighting every step of the march. Upon arriving at the river Paniané, a deep ford, after a search of two hours, was found, and the troops passed over, up to the chin in water, with the loss of only two camp followers. He gained the Fort of Paniané on the 20th of November, much to the surprise of Tippoo, who had expected an easy conquest.

Colonel Macleod, of the second battalion of the Forty-second regiment, having arrived at Paniané from Madras, the command of the forces devolved upon him, and the place was immediately invested by Tippoo Saib and Monsieur Lally, with an army amounting to eight thousand infantry, including some hundreds of French and Europeans; ten thousand cavalry, and above six thousand polygars. The enemy kept up a considerable but ineffectual cannonade for some days; the British commander at length endeavoured to surprise the enemy’s camp, but after forcing an outpost or two, and taking a few prisoners, the colonel found it necessary to relinquish the design.

This sally was returned by Tippoo in a few days, who made a vigorous attack with his combined army on the 28th of November, being led by Monsieur Lally at the head of his Europeans. Tippoo’s forces were everywhere repulsed with the greatest gallantry, and the victors profited by their success as much as their disparity in numbers would admit. About two hundred of the dead of the enemy, whom he was not able to carry off, were buried by the British; and a French officer, who led one of the columns to the attack, was taken prisoner. Colonel Macleod and the troops under his command acquired great praise for their gallantry at Paniané.

Tippoo acknowledged his defeat by repassing the river Paniané, and placing it as a barrier against the British. A state of inaction succeeded on both sides for several days: but in the night between the 11th and 12th of December, Tippoo suddenly broke up his camp, and returned by rapid marches to Palacatcherry, from whence he proceeded directly back to the Carnatic.

In December 1782, occurred the decease of Hyder Ali, and he left a kingdom of his own acquisition to his son Tippoo Saib, who now became one of the most powerful princes in India.

1783

Brigadier-General Mathews having determined to besiege the city of Onore, situated midway between Paniané and Bombay, Colonel Macleod embarked as many troops as the ships were capable of receiving, but the place was taken in January 1783, before their arrival.

The President and Council of Bombay had despatched orders to Brigadier-General Mathews, that he should penetrate through the Ghauts, (as the passes in the mountains on both sides of the Indian Peninsula are termed,) into the Bednore or Canara country, and particularly to gain possession of the capital, which along with a strong fort on a small mountain that joins the city, were the great depositories of the treasures collected by the late Hyder Ali, as well as the grand magazines of his arms and military stores.

After the capture of Onore, Brigadier-General Mathews, in pursuance of his orders, proceeded further down the coast, and took the towm of Cundapore with little loss. He subsequently forced a passage through the Ghauts, and the rich Canara kingdom, with its capital, now lay open to the invaders. The city of Bednore had recently changed its name to Hyder Nagur, or the Royal City of Hyder.

The government and command of the city and country were lodged in the hands of Hyat Saib, who surrendered the place to the British, after an action had taken place at the Hussanghurry Ghaut. This occurred early in February 1783; and on the 9th of March Mangalore fell into the hands of the British.

Tippoo Saib, who had now succeeded to the title of Sultan, determined to use every effort for the recovery of these favorite possessions. Having recovered Bednore, which surrendered on the 28th of April, the Sultan, in defiance of the terms of the capitulation, ordered Brigadier-General Mathews and his officers into close confinement, from which they never returned, being afterwards put to a violent death.

Tippoo next proceeded to invest Mangalore, on the Malabar coast, and it required all the abilities of Lieut.-Colonel John Campbell, major of the Forty-second, seconded by the well-tried valour of the second battalion of that regiment, and other corps, to supply the defects of the fortifications. The place was invested on the 18th of May by the whole of the enemy’s forces, commanded by Tippoo in person. The garrison under Lieut.-Colonel Campbell (Colonel Macleod being employed as a Brigadier-General), made a most gallant and successful defence, subject to hardships and wants which have seldom been exceeded in the annals of sieges.

In consequence of the General Peace which had been entered into with the European Powers, Tippoo became deprived of his French allies, and the Sultan entered into negociations for terminating the war between Mysore and the British, when an armistice took place.

This event terminated the siege of Mangalore about the end of September, at a time when all the works which defended the garrison were nearly shattered to pieces; all the provisions exhausted, and numbers of the brave soldiers were dying daily, victims of want and disease.[6]

The contest was, however, again renewed, and the garrison was a second time invested by Tippoo.

1784

The fortress of Mangalore was defended until the 25th of February 1784, when sickness, and the want of provisions, compelled Lieut.-Colonel Campbell to evacuate the place, after obtaining the most honorable terms from the enemy. Peace was afterwards concluded with the Sultan of Mysore on the 11th of March following.

The battalion embarked in this year for Calcutta, and was employed on active service in the Upper Provinces of Bengal.

1786

The Seventy-third Highland Regiment, having in the year 1786 been directed to be numbered the Seventy-first Regiment, the Second Battalion of the Forty-second Royal Highland Regiment was constituted a distinct corps, and numbered the SEVENTY-THIRD Highland Regiment, the colonelcy being conferred upon Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart., (Lieut.-Colonel of the Third Foot Guards), from the 18th of April 1786. The facings were at the same time altered from blue to dark green.

The establishment of the regiment for the ten companies serving in India, was fixed as follows:—One colonel, with an allowance in lieu of a company; one lieut.-colonel and captain, one major and captain; eight captains, twelve lieutenants, eight ensigns, one chaplain, one adjutant, one quarter-master, one surgeon, one surgeon’s mate, thirty serjeants, forty corporals, twenty drummers, two fifers, and seven hundred private men. The company kept at home for recruiting consisted of one captain, one lieutenant, one ensign, six serjeants, eight corporals, four drummers, and seventy private men: in all nine hundred and nineteen.

On the 11th of August 1786, Major-General William Medows was appointed to be colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD, in succession to Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart., who was removed to the fortieth regiment.

1789

The insatiable ambition of Tippoo Sultan, the powerful ruler of the Mysore, soon involved the British Government in India in another war; he appeared near the confines of Travancore, at the head of a powerful army, made unreasonable demands on the Rajah, a British ally, and commenced hostilities towards the end of December 1789.

1790

This caused the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment to be removed from the Presidency of Bengal, and it joined the troops under Major-General Robert Abercromby, which consisted of His Majesty’s seventy-fifth and seventy-seventh regiments, in addition to other corps belonging to the East India Company.

1791

The Mahratta armies having advanced to Seringapatam in May 1791, later than the appointed period, their delay, and other unforeseen circumstances, compelled General Charles Earl Cornwallis, K.G., to destroy his battering train, after having defeated Tippoo on the 15th of May, in a pitched battle, and obliged his lordship to lead back his army, leaving the siege of the enemy’s capital to be the object of another campaign.

The Bombay army, of which the SEVENTY-THIRD formed part, commanded by Major-General Abercromby, had, with infinite labour, formed roads, and brought a battering train, with a large supply of provisions and stores, over fifty miles of woody mountains called Ghauts, that immense barrier separating the Mysore country from the Malabar coast. This army, after surmounting all its difficulties, had therefore to retrace its steps, worn down by sickness and fatigue, and exposed to the incessant rains which then deluged the western coast of India.

The troops under Major-General Abercromby were again ordered to act from the same quarter as in the former campaign; they marched on the 5th of December towards the Poodicherrim Ghaut, and took possession of the pass on the 15th of that month.

1792

On the 5th of February 1792, General the Earl Cornwallis directed Major-General Abercromby to march from his encampment near Periapatam, and on the 11th of that month he crossed the Cavery, at Eratore, a ford about thirty miles above Seringapatam, and joined the army under Earl Cornwallis on the 16th of February.

Meanwhile the army under General the Earl Cornwallis had attacked the forces of the Sultan on the night of the 6th of February, near Seringapatam, and gained a decisive victory.

The power of the Sultan being greatly reduced, and preparations for the siege of his capital having been commenced, he sued for peace, and a treaty was concluded, by which half of his dominions were ceded to the allies. A large sum of money was also to be paid by the Sultan, all the prisoners in his power were released, and two of his sons were delivered as hostages.

1793

The French Revolution, which had commenced a few years previously, had at this period assumed a character which called forth the efforts of other countries to arrest the progress of its destructive principles, and on the 1st of February 1793, shortly after the decapitation of Louis XVI., war was declared by the National Convention of France against Great Britain and Holland.

News of this event arrived in India in May 1793; in June the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was ordered to prepare to take the field; it marched soon afterwards against the French settlement of Pondicherry, on the coast of Coromandel, and arrived before the fortress in July,—being formed in brigade, with the seventy-second and seventy-fourth regiments, and the third East India Company’s European regiment, under Lieut.-Colonel David Baird of the seventy-first regiment; the troops employed on this service were commanded by Colonel John Brathwaite.

The siege of Pondicherry was commenced in the early part of August, the army encamping in a thick wood where tigers were so numerous, that the natives durst not travel in the night. On the 22nd of August a white flag was displayed by the garrison, with a request for permission to surrender. The French soldiers in the fortress had embraced democratical principles, and were particularly insubordinate; they insisted that the governor should surrender, but after the white flag was displayed, they fired two shells, which killed several men. During the night they were guilty of every species of outrage, breaking into houses and becoming intoxicated. On the following morning, a number of them environed the house of the Governor, General Charmont, and threatened to hang him before the door, when application was made to the British for protection. The English soldiers rushed into the town, overpowered the insurgents, rescued the governor, and preserved the inhabitants from further violence.

1795

In the early part of the year 1795, Holland became united to France, and was styled the Batavian republic. When information of this event arrived in India, an expedition was immediately fitted out against the large and mountainous island of Ceylon, where the Dutch had several settlements, and the SEVENTY-THIRD Highlanders were selected to take part in the enterprise; the troops employed on this service were commanded by Colonel James Stuart, of the seventy-second, who was promoted to the rank of Major-General at this period. The fleet arrived on the coast of Ceylon on the 1st of August, and two days afterwards they landed four miles north of the Fort of Trincomalee; the siege of the place was commenced as soon as the artillery and stores could be landed, and removed sufficiently near to the place. On the 26th of August a practicable breach was effected, and the garrison surrendered. The fort of Batticaloe surrendered on the 18th of September, and the fort and island of Manaar capitulated on the 5th of October.

1796

The regiment continued to be actively employed until the whole of the Dutch settlements in Ceylon were reduced, which was accomplished in February, 1796, when the governor, John Geraud Van Angelbeck, surrendered the fortress of Colombo to the British arms. The people in the interior of the island had not been deprived of their independence by the Dutch, and they were not interfered with by the British so long as they preserved a peaceful demeanour.

Major-General Gerard Lake was removed from the colonelcy of the fifty-third to that of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 2nd of November, 1796, in succession to Lieut.-General Sir William Medows, K.B., who was appointed colonel of the seventh dragoon guards.

1797

In April 1797, the regiment proceeded from Colombo to Point Pedro, in Ceylon, and shortly afterwards embarked for Madras. It was removed from Fort St. George to Wallajahbad in October, but returned to Fort St. George in January, 1798.

1798

The regiment proceeded from Fort St. George to Poonamallee in September, 1798, and continued at that station during the remainder of the year.

The reduction of the power and resources of Tippoo Saib, effected by the treaty of Seringapatam in 1792, had weakened, but not extinguished, the evils consequent on his inveterate hatred of the British. The Sultan had entered into a negociation with the Governor of the Isle of France in 1798, and sent an embassy to Zemaun Shah, sovereign of Cabool, for the purpose of exciting him to an attack on the British possessions. Having also derived encouragement from the successes of Napoleon Bonaparte in Egypt, from which country the French Directory intended to act against the British dominions in India, Tippoo commenced augmenting his military force, and his hostile designs became every day more apparent. The Governor-General the Earl of Mornington (afterwards the Marquis Wellesley), seeing a rupture inevitable, resolved to anticipate the attack, and ordered the British army to take the field, and march into the heart of the dominions of the Sultan Tippoo Saib.

1799

In conformity to these orders, Major-General George (afterwards Lord) Harris, who was serving with the local rank of lieut.-general, advanced with the army under his command, on the 11th of February, 1799, and entered the Mysore territory on the 5th of March. The SEVENTY-THIRD formed part of the second brigade under Colonel John Coape Sherbroke, Lieut.-Colonel of the thirty-third regiment.

The army reached Mallavelly on the 27th of March, when on approaching the ground of encampment, the forces of Tippoo Sultan were discovered drawn up on a height at a few miles distance. The advanced piquets were attacked by the enemy, and a general action ensued. The enemy lost one thousand killed and wounded, and immediately retreated upon Seringapatam.

On the following day the army advanced, and arrived before Seringapatam on the 5th of April, when preparations for the siege were commenced.

On the 20th of April an attack was made on an entrenchment of the enemy, about six o’clock in the evening. Colonel Sherbroke, commanding the advanced posts, directed the attack. Three different columns were to advance at the same time from Macdonald’s post; one to the left, under Lieut.-Colonel Michael Monypenny, of the SEVENTY-THIRD, consisting of four companies of that regiment, and four of the Bengal volunteers, was to proceed along the bank of the river Cavery, and to turn the right flank of the enemy’s entrenched post. Another, to the right, consisting of the flank companies of the twelfth regiment, and two companies of Bengal volunteers, under Lieut.-Colonel Gardiner, was to move along Macdonald’s nullah, and to turn the enemy’s left. The centre column, composed of six companies of the SEVENTY-THIRD, and four of the Bengal volunteers, under Brevet Lieut.-Colonel the Honorable George St. John, (Major of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment), was directed to make a feint, which was to be converted into a real attack, should it be deemed expedient.

The three columns at dusk, advanced under a well-directed fire from the guns which commanded the entrenchment. The enemy’s resistance was unavailing, and the several attacks were completely successful. It was afterwards ascertained, that the enemy had two hundred and fifty men in killed and wounded, and it is remarkable, that although about eighteen hundred of Tippoo’s infantry occupied the entrenchment, the British, in this attack, had only one man wounded.[7]

The siege of Seringapatam was prosecuted with vigour. On the 26th of April, the SEVENTY-THIRD had Lieutenant James Todd wounded; and Lieutenant Archibald John Maclean was wounded on the following day. A breach being reported practicable on the 3rd of May, the assault was ordered, and the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was selected to take part in this enterprise, which was ordered to be commenced in the heat of the following day, as the enemy’s troops would then be the least prepared to oppose the attack.

The assault took place about half-past one o’clock in the afternoon of the 4th of May, and the troops for this service, commanded by Major-General David Baird, were divided into two columns of attack. The SEVENTY-THIRD, with the seventy-fourth regiment, four European flank companies, fourteen Sepoy flank companies, with fifty artillerymen, formed the right column, under Colonel Sherbroke. Each column was preceded by one serjeant and twelve men, volunteers, supported by an advanced party of one subaltern and twenty-five men. A brigade of engineers, under Captain Caldwell, accompanied the storming party; Lieutenant James Farquhar, of the seventy-fourth, commanded the European pioneers, and Lieutenant John Lalor, of the SEVENTY-THIRD, both of whom had examined the ford, conducted the columns.

The attack was completely successful, and in a short space of time the British colours waved over the fortress. The body of Tippoo Sultan was found among heaps of slain, and was afterwards interred in the magnificent mausoleum which he had erected over the tomb of his father, the once powerful Hyder Ali; a portion of the victorious troops attended the ceremony.

In this manner terminated the siege of Seringapatam,[8] and the fall of this capital placed the kingdom of Mysore at the disposal of the British government, and extinguished a power in India which had proved itself a formidable enemy.

STORMING OF SERINGAPATAM 4TH MAY 1799.

For Cannon’s Military Records.

Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t Strand

In the assault on the 4th of May, the SEVENTY-THIRD had Lieutenant John Lalor killed; Captain William McLeod, Lieutenant John Thomas, and Ensigns Henry Antill and John Guthrie, wounded.

During the siege the regiment sustained a loss of twenty-one killed, and ninety-nine wounded, including all ranks.

The SEVENTY-THIRD afterwards received the Royal authority to bear on the regimental colour and appointments, the word “SERINGAPATAM,” in commemoration of the distinguished gallantry displayed by the regiment in the storming and capture of that fortress.

In the General Orders issued on the 5th of May by Lieut.-General Harris, the gallantry of Lieut.-Colonel Michael Monypenny, and Brevet Lieut.-Colonel the Honorable George St. John, of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, is particularly recorded.

In the General Orders issued by the Earl of Mornington (afterwards the Marquis Wellesley), dated Fort St. George, 15th May, 1799, it was stated:—

“The Right Honorable the Governor-General in Council having this day received from the Commander-in-Chief of the allied army in the field, the official detail of the glorious and decisive victory obtained at Seringapatam, on the 4th of May, offers his cordial thanks and sincere congratulations to the Commander-in-Chief, and to all the officers and men composing the gallant army which achieved the capture of the capital of Mysore on that memorable day.

“His Lordship views with admiration, the consummate judgment with which the assault was planned, the unequalled rapidity, animation, and skill with which it was executed, and the humanity which distinguished its success.

“Under the favour of Providence and the justice of our cause, the established character of the army had inspired an early confidence, that the war, in which we were engaged, would be brought to a speedy, prosperous, and honorable issue: but the events of the 4th of May, while they even surpassed the sanguine expectations of the Governor-General in Council, have raised the reputation of the British arms in India to a degree of splendour and glory, unrivalled in the military history of this quarter of the globe, and seldom approached in any part of the world.

“The lustre of the victory can be equalled only by the substantial advantages which it promises to establish, in restoring the peace and safety of the British possessions in India on a durable foundation of genuine security.”

Upon the division of the territory subject to the late Sultan Tippoo, Seringapatam, with several extensive districts, was allotted to the East India Company; another portion was given to the Nizam; and a third to the Mahratta power; the remainder continued to form an independent state under a descendant of the ancient Rajahs of Mysore. Thus was the hostile combination against England confounded, the British territory extended, and its power and revenue increased.

The SEVENTY-THIRD regiment remained encamped until November, 1799, when it was selected to garrison Seringapatam.

1800

Major-General George Harris was appointed, from lieut.-colonel of the seventy-sixth, to the colonelcy of the SEVENTY-THIRD, on the 14th of February, 1800, in succession to Lieut.-General Gerard Lake, who was removed to the eightieth regiment.

The regiment remained at Seringapatam until May, 1800. The SEVENTY-THIRD, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Michael Monypenny, afterwards served with distinction against the Polygars, during which campaign great exertions were made, and losses sustained, of which no distinct record has been preserved.

1801

In October, 1801, the regiment was removed from its encampment to Gooty.

1802

The regiment remained at Gooty until December 1802, when it proceeded to Bellary.

1803

In July, 1803, the regiment returned to Gooty, and in September following, it proceeded to Pondicherry, in the capture of which place it had participated in the year 1793.

1804

The SEVENTY-THIRD remained at Pondicherry until September, 1804, when the regiment proceeded to Fort St. George, Madras, where it continued to be stationed during the remainder of the year.

1805

On the 8th of September, 1805, the SEVENTY-THIRD embarked at Fort St. George, Madras, for England, after having transferred five hundred and twelve men to other regiments serving in India.

1806

The regiment arrived in England in the beginning of July, 1806, and disembarked at Greenwich, where it was quartered until the middle of November, when, after discharging the men recommended to be invalided, the remainder proceeded to Scotland, on board of some Leith packets. Shortly after the disembarkation of the SEVENTY-THIRD at Leith, the head-quarters of the regiment proceeded to Stirling Castle, from whence recruiting parties were sent to all the towns in Scotland, and some to England and Ireland, as far as officers were disposable for that service.

1807

In February, 1807, the regiment was ordered from Stirling Castle to Glasgow, as a better recruiting station; but not having proved as successful there as was expected, it was removed in May following to Perth, which, from being the town where the regiment was originally embodied, was expected to prove a better recruiting station.

In 1807 the regiment received new colours and accoutrements from Lieut.-General George Harris, and was newly armed and equipped in that year.

1808

On the passing of the Act, in the year 1808, for permitting a certain number of the militia of the United Kingdom to volunteer their services to regiments of the line, the SEVENTY-THIRD received a very considerable augmentation of force by volunteers, particularly from the Irish militia. The number received from the Scotch regiments of militia, allotted for the SEVENTY-THIRD, was not at all in the same proportion, and the only English corps allotted to it was the Stafford militia, from which thirty-three men volunteered, a circumstance totally unexpected, from the dislike English soldiers were known to entertain to the Highland uniform.

In December, 1808, the regiment, being then about four hundred rank and file, received orders to proceed to England, to embark for New South Wales, and commenced its march from Perth on the 26th of that month.

On the order for the embarkation of the regiment for New South Wales, a second battalion was added to the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, which was directed to be placed on the establishment of the army from the 24th of December, 1808. It was ordered to consist, in the first instance, of four companies. When these companies were completed to a hundred rank and file each, the battalion was to be augmented to six companies, and so on, in succession, until the establishment was increased to one thousand.

1809

On the 13th of January, 1809, the regiment embarked at Leith on board of four packets, and the whole arrived in the course of that, and the beginning of the following month, at Gravesend, where the men were transhipped into two transports, and ordered round to Spithead. In March the regiment was landed at Cowes, in the Isle of Wight, marched to Newport, whence, after a few days, it was ordered to Colwell barracks.

A second volunteering from the militia took place in April, 1809, by which the SEVENTY-THIRD received a considerable increase of numbers, particularly from the Stafford, West Middlesex, and Durham regiments.

In April, 1809, officers and non-commissioned officers were detached to recruit for the second battalion, the head-quarters of which were fixed at Nottingham.[9]

It appearing that the Highland dress was an obstacle to the recruiting of the regiments wearing that costume, orders were issued, directing the SEVENTY-THIRD, and five other regiments, to discontinue that dress, and to adopt the uniform of other English regiments.[10]

While at Colwell barracks, sixty men, who had volunteered from veteran battalions to serve at New South Wales, were transferred to the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, and were ordered to embark with the first battalion for that colony, which, by the addition of these men, and of the volunteers from the militia, was now upwards of eight hundred strong, and its establishment was fixed at ten companies, consisting of fifty-four serjeants, twenty-two drummers, and a thousand rank and file.

The first battalion embarked on the 8th of May, 1809, at Yarmouth, in the Isle of Wight, on board of His Majesty’s ships “Hindoostan” and “Dromedary,” and sailed from St. Helen’s on the 25th of that month. The fleet touched at Madeira, Port Praya, Rio Janeiro, and at the Cape of Good Hope, and anchored at Port Jackson, New South Wales, on the 28th of December.

1810

The battalion landed at Sydney on the 1st of January, 1810, and detachments were sent out in the course of that, and the two following months, to the Derwent and Port Dalrymple, in Van Diemen’s Land; to Norfolk Island, and to Newcastle, whence Sydney, the capital of the colony, was supplied with coals, lime, and cedar wood, for buildings and making furniture.

1812

The first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment having been considerably reinforced by volunteers from the hundred-and-second regiment (late New South Wales corps), which it relieved at New South Wales, and which was ordered home, its establishment was raised, in the year 1812, to twelve hundred rank and file, which included a veteran company formed from the veterans of the hundred-and-second regiment, and attached to the SEVENTY-THIRD, while the battalion continued to serve at New South Wales, and was, on its leaving that colony, transferred to the forty-sixth regiment.

1813

1814

About the end of the year 1813, an order arrived from England to embark the first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment for the island of Ceylon, and the first division, consisting of three companies, sailed from Port Jackson on board the ship “Earl Spencer,” hired for the passage, on the 24th of January, 1814. On the 24th of March two more divisions embarked on board the “General Hewitt” and “Windham,” and sailed from Port Jackson on the 5th of April; but the “Windham” being ordered to the Derwent to take on board the two companies stationed at Van Diemen’s Land, the “General Hewitt,” having the head-quarters and flank companies on board, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Maurice Charles O’Connell, after a very circuitous voyage round New Guinea, New Britain, and through the Molucca islands, arrived at Colombo, in Ceylon, on the 17th of August.

Prior to the embarkation of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment from New South Wales, Major-General Lachlan Macquarie,[11] commanding in New South Wales, stated in General Orders, dated 17th March, 1814, that—

“On the occasion of parting with the first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment His Excellency Major-General Macquarie, the Governor and Commander of the Forces in this territory, cannot fail to express the warm feelings of interest he takes in the corps, which he has commanded for six years; and to assure them, that no additional prosperity or honor, to which they may be entitled, in the part of the world where they are now destined to serve, and where they have already obtained so large a portion of well-earned fame, can exceed his sanguine wishes and expectations.

“This station has not afforded the usual field for military glory; but in as far as the industrious exertions of those non-commissioned officers and privates, who could be spared from military duty, have been exerted, this colony is much indebted for many useful improvements, which but for the soldiers of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, must have remained only in the contemplation of those anxious for its civilization for a length of time, and the Major-General cannot doubt but that the comforts enjoyed by the colonists, in consequence of the zealous and laborious exertions of the soldiers of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, will long be remembered with grateful recollections.

“Major-General Macquarie feels particular satisfaction in rendering his best acknowledgments to Lieut.-Colonel O’Connell for his attention to the discipline of the corps, and the health and comfort of the soldiers under his immediate command, and also for his zealous and assiduous attention to the duties devolving on him as Lieut.-Governor, during the Governor’s necessary and occasional absence from head-quarters.

“To the field-officers, captains, and subalterns, of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, the Major-General desires to offer his best wishes for their health and happiness, and particularly to those with whom he has had a long acquaintance, and whose worth and honorable sentiments he is thereby the more fully enabled to appreciate; and he has no doubt but that the martial appearance, and strength of the corps, so far surpassing what is generally to be met with, will call forth feelings of surprise and gratification, wherever their services are required.

“Under these impressions, Major-General Macquarie now takes leave of the regiment, with that regret which a long acquaintance naturally inspires, but at the same time with the consolatory assurance that the SEVENTY-THIRD will show themselves at all times worthy of the respect and esteem which cannot fail to be paid to military bravery and unshaken loyalty.”

The “Windham” having made nearly the same voyage as the “General Hewitt,” after leaving Van Diemen’s Land, did not arrive at Ceylon until the 6th of November.[12]

In the meantime the reigning sovereign of Candy had evinced so cruel and tyrannical a disposition, that he became odious to his subjects, who experienced a total insecurity of life and property under his rule, individuals being frequently deprived of both at the caprice of the king. The governor of one of his provinces was summoned to appear at the capital; but this chief, expecting that the sacrifice of his life, and the seizure of his property, were intended, did not obey the mandate. The king assembled an army, overpowered the forces of the disobedient chief, and forced him to fly for protection to the British settlements in the island.

In addition to this oppressive tyranny over his own subjects, the King of Candy, elated with his success against the refractory chief, prepared to invade the British territory, against the frontier of which he had long carried on occasional hostilities. He had also inflicted cruelties on some British subjects, who had gone into his dominions on trading speculations.

1815

These circumstances occasioned Lieut.-General Robert Brownrigg, the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Island of Ceylon, to render assistance to the natives to throw off the yoke, and at the same time preserve the English provinces from aggression, by invading the kingdom of Candy. The British troops advanced into the kingdom of Candy in seven divisions, in the beginning of February 1815, and detachments were formed from the SEVENTY-THIRD, and attached to four or five divisions of the invading army.

The soldiers underwent great fatigue in crossing mountains, passing morasses and rivers, and traversing regions inhabited only by the wild beasts of the forest; they succeeded in overcoming all opposition, and arrived at the capital in the middle of February. The king had fled with a small number of his Malabar adherents; but on the 18th of February, he was surrounded, and made prisoner by his own subjects, who showed the utmost detestation of the tyrant.

A solemn conference was held between the British Governor and the Candian chiefs, and the assembly declared the Malabar dynasty deposed, and the provinces of Candy united to the dominions of the British Crown. Thus was an extensive tract of country, bountifully endowed with natural gifts, and producing the necessaries and luxuries of life, including spices, metals, and precious stones, added to the British dominions; a numerous race of human beings, of a peculiarly interesting character, was delivered from the power of despotism, and brought under the advantages of the just government and equitable laws of Great Britain. Every species of torture was immediately abolished; but the ancient religion of the inhabitants, and the former mode of administering justice, were preserved. The conduct of the British troops was highly meritorious, and reflected credit on the several corps employed in this enterprise; the soldiers abstained from plunder and violence, and behaved with such order and regularity as to conciliate the inhabitants, whose condition, improved by a policy founded on liberal ideas, and exhibiting enlarged views, prepared the way for their emancipation from the errors of superstition, and their introduction to the advantages of Christianity, and of European arts, sciences, and commerce.

While the first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD was thus employed, the Second Battalion had acquired the word “WATERLOO” for the regimental colour and appointments, in commemoration of its distinguished services in that memorable battle, which terminated the lengthened war in which the powers of Europe had been engaged.

A portion of the British troops occupied posts in the newly-acquired territory, and the corps not required for this duty returned to their former quarters. The first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was again stationed at Colombo.

1816

During the year 1816 the battalion continued to be stationed at Colombo.

1817

In the month of September 1817, intimation was received at Colombo, that several Candian chiefs, who were hostile to British interests, were making preparations in various parts of the interior provinces of Ceylon, in favour of a new claimant to the throne of Candy, who subsequently arrived in the island from the continent of India, and they actually commenced hostilities on the 25th of October, 1817, by the murder of a native Mahandiram in Ouva, and by that of Mr. Wilson, the collector of that place, who had gone out to remonstrate with the natives assembled in the vicinity of Badulah.

Detachments from all the regiments stationed in Ceylon were in consequence ordered into the interior, and the SEVENTY-THIRD furnished for this service nearly the whole of the officers and men fit to march.

1818

The head-quarters of the battalion were transferred, in December 1817, from Colombo to Trincomalee, and a detachment from the second battalion, which had been disbanded on the 4th of May, of this year, having arrived from England at the latter port, it was immediately ordered into the interior, where the rebellion had become general in the beginning of 1818.

On this service the battalion lost ten officers, and three hundred and sixty-six men, of whom only one officer (Lieutenant John Maclaine) and about twenty men were killed, or died of wounds inflicted by the enemy, the remainder having fallen victims to the unhealthiness of the climate, which even after the rebellion was subdued, continued to prove fatal to the officers and men who remained on service in the interior. The frequent exposure to the sun, and the heavy dews at night (when detachments were constantly on the march, particularly in the mountainous districts, where the enemy could not be surprised by day) together with a scarcity of provisions, brought on the jungle fever to an alarming extent, and had not an auxiliary force been sent from Madras, the interior of the island must of necessity have been evacuated.

In this harassing campaign, the superiority of the British over the native troops acting with them, was very evident; small parties only could be employed with effect, and therefore, more individual courage and exertion were required than with large bodies, where the excitement is much greater. The want of surgical aid was severely felt, and the officers at last, with the assistance of manuscript instructions, administered medicine, dressed wounds, and, on some occasions, performed trifling operations. Besides fever and dysentery, leech-bites were the occasion of many casualties.

The peculiar kind of warfare carried on during this campaign, afforded many opportunities for the officers and men to distinguish themselves. The following, among many instances, is deserving of record. A very small party of the SEVENTY-THIRD, in charge of Lance-Corporal Richard McLoughlin, was furiously attacked on its march to Badulah, by a numerous force; two men were killed, and the rest, instead of leaving their deceased comrades to the Candians, who generally mutilated the remains of British soldiers, divided; part remained in charge of the bodies, and the other portion, at an equal risk, proceeded to Badulah, a few miles distant, and returned with a reinforcement, that enabled them to carry off their deceased comrades, in spite of the exertions of the enemy to the contrary.

For this gallant conduct, medals were struck by the Ceylon Government for the following men, who, however, died of fever before they could be issued, namely, Lance-Corporal Richard McLoughlin, Privates John Wilson, Christopher Sheppard, and William Connor.

Whether the WATERLOO medals worn by the men who formerly belonged to the Second Battalion, caused an extraordinary emulation amongst the other soldiers of the SEVENTY-THIRD is a question; it is, however, matter of fact, that their conduct during the whole of the campaign gave not only their own officers, but those of other corps, the highest satisfaction.

1819

In 1819, the nineteenth regiment was ordered home from Ceylon, when one hundred and seventy-two men volunteered to the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment.

1821

Upon the SEVENTY-THIRD being directed to proceed to England in 1821, all the men fit for service in a tropical climate were permitted to volunteer, in the first instance, to regiments in Ceylon, and ultimately to His Majesty’s regiments stationed in the territories of the East India Company.

A detachment of one subaltern, three serjeants, one drummer, and forty-six rank and file, embarked as Marines on board of His Majesty’s ship “Alligator,” on the 22nd of May, 1821; the remainder of the regiment embarked at Trincomalee on the 25th of June following, and landed at Gravesend on the 10th of November. It was then ordered to proceed to the barracks at Weedon, to which place the depôt of the regiment had been a short time before removed from Chichester, and where most of the men brought home were soon afterwards invalided.

The establishment of the regiment was, on its arrival, reduced to eight companies, forming a total of four field officers, eight captains, sixteen subalterns, five staff, twenty-nine serjeants, twelve drummers, twenty-four corporals, and five hundred and fifty-two privates.

1823

In March, 1823, the regiment was ordered to proceed to Hull, and to furnish detachments at Chester, Carlisle, and Tynemouth: in May it marched to Edinburgh Castle, furnishing detachments at Glasgow, Stirling and Dumbarton Castles, and at Fort William.

In December, 1823, the regiment embarked at Port Patrick for Ireland, and was stationed at Castlebar, furnishing twelve small detachments within the limits of the counties of Mayo and Galway.

1824

1825

The regiment was assembled at Athlone in June, 1824, where it was quartered until July, 1825, when the head-quarters were removed to Naas, and detachments were furnished to Drogheda, Wicklow, Trim, and some villages in the counties of Kildare and Wicklow.

In 1825, the regiment was augmented to ten companies, consisting, while at home, of forty-two serjeants (including six staff serjeants), fourteen drummers, and seven hundred and forty rank and file; when ordered on foreign service to be divided into six service companies, of four serjeants, and eighty-six rank and file each; and four depôt companies for home service, consisting each of three serjeants, one drummer, and fifty-six rank and file.

1826

In November, 1825, the regiment was reunited in the Royal Barracks at Dublin, where it continued until May, 1826, when, in consequence of riots in the manufacturing towns in Lancashire and Yorkshire, it was ordered to proceed to England. The head-quarters were fixed at Halifax, and detachments were sent to Huddersfield, Bradford, and to various other towns.

Tranquillity being restored in the above counties, the regiment was ordered to return to Dublin in July, 1826, and from thence it proceeded in August to occupy its former quarters at Naas, and the outposts.

In December following, the regiment received orders to march to Waterford, furnishing detachments at Kilkenny, Wexford, Carrick-on-Suir, and Duncannon Fort.

1827

In August, 1827, the regiment was ordered to Fermoy, preparatory to embarkation, where in the course of the month, the service and depôt companies were formed.

The service companies embarked at Cove for Gibraltar towards the end of August and beginning of the following month, and arrived at their destination on the 10th, 17th, and 24th of September.

The depôt companies remained in Ireland during this and the two following years.

1828

During the prevalence of the contagious and dreadful fever which visited Gibraltar in the year 1828, the SEVENTY-THIRD were encamped with the twenty-third Royal Welsh Fusiliers on Europa Flats, from the 10th of October to the 17th of January, 1829.

1829

The casualties in the SEVENTY-THIRD were, compared with the other regiments in that garrison, fortunately limited to a small number. Out of nine officers and one hundred and ninety-six privates, who were attacked with the disease, only two officers and thirty-five men proved fatal cases. Lieutenant Hedworth Huddleston Williamson, and Assistant Surgeon John Gordon Fraser were the officers; the latter, though a very young assistant, fell a victim to his zeal for the service.

Whether the comparatively few casualties were attributable to the successful practice of the Surgeon George Martin, or some other accidental cause, can be only matter of conjecture. One thing, however, is certain, that His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, as well as numerous other officers unconnected with the regiment, acknowledged, in the most public manner, the talents and attention of Surgeon Martin, of the SEVENTY-THIRD, on this trying occasion.

Major-General Sir Frederick Adam, K.C.B., was appointed colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 22nd of May, 1829, in succession to General George Lord Harris, G.C.B., deceased.

In December, 1829, the service companies embarked for Malta, where the last division arrived on the 31st of that month.

On the departure of the SEVENTY-THIRD from Gibraltar, His Excellency the Lieut.-Governor, General Sir George Don, G.C.B., issued the following order:—

“Head Quarters,

Gibraltar, 2nd December, 1829.

“His Excellency the Lieut.-Governor is desirous to express to the SEVENTY-THIRD, on their departure from this garrison, the satisfaction afforded him by their regular and orderly conduct during the period of upwards of two years that they have been under his command, and he feels peculiar pleasure in noticing, that in no instance has any individual of this corps been reported to him for any irregularity on duty during the above period.

“To the officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates of this regiment, His Excellency offers his thanks, and more particularly to Colonel O’Connell, whose zeal and constant attention must have so essentially contributed to maintain the discipline and good order of the corps under his command.”

The first two divisions of the regiment embarked on board the “Lord Suffield” and “Stentor” transports on the 2nd of December, and sailed the same day; the last division (head-quarters) embarked on board the “Henry Porcher” on the 8th. The first two ships reached Malta on the 20th of December, and performed the usual quarantine in the Lazaretto; but the “Henry Porcher” experienced such severe weather on the 10th and 11th off Capo de Gato, that she had to put back again to Gibraltar in distress. She, however, sailed again on the 15th, and the men landed in the Lazaretto on the 1st of January, 1830.

1830

In February, 1830, the depôt companies were removed from Ireland to Great Britain.

The service companies remained in St. Elmo barracks during the year 1830, and at the periodical inspection which took place in April, the Commanding Officer (Colonel O’Connell), by desire of Major-General the Honorable Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby, Lieut.-Governor of Malta, issued the following order:—

“Valetta, 5th April, 1830.

“The Commanding Officer has great pleasure in complying with the desire of the Major-General commanding, that he should express in regimental orders the General’s perfect satisfaction with everything he has this day seen of the regiment.”

On the 22nd of July, 1830, Colonel Maurice Charles O’Connell was promoted to the rank of Major-General; and on the 25th of the ensuing month the following farewell address was read to the regiment:—

“Major-General O’Connell, being removed from the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment by promotion, avails himself of the kindness of Major Lloyd, now commanding officer of the regiment, to address to it a few farewell words.

“The Major-General cannot contemplate his separation from a corps, endeared to him by all those sacred ties which bind the members of a family together, and which have, in their fullest sense, existed between him and the regiment for a period of nearly twenty-five years, that he has almost uninterruptedly commanded it in so many parts of His Majesty’s dominions, at home and abroad, without experiencing sensations which he would find it impossible to describe here, but which he feels most acutely. He will content himself with requesting the officers of the regiment, generally, to accept his most sincere thanks for the kindness that he experienced from them, and for the uniform, undeviating attention they have paid to his orders, and to his suggestions for the good of the regiment; where every officer merited his approbation, the Major-General cannot particularise individuals, but he feels himself called on by a sense of justice, as well as of duty, and he certainly has great pleasure in obeying that call, to offer to his friend Lieutenant and Adjutant Russell his most particular thanks for the zealous and effectual aid he has ever received from him in the discharge of every duty, and to declare, that to the exertions and abilities of this meritorious officer he is mainly indebted for the high state of discipline which has characterised the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, in every garrison where it has been stationed.

“To the non-commissioned officers and men, he begs to express his thanks for, and his approbation of, their uniform good conduct, which he exhorts them to persevere in, as the surest means of insuring to themselves the approbation of their superiors, exemptions from punishment, and of preparing them for acquiring honor and glory, when called to meet the enemies of their country in the field.

“The Major-General will conclude by assuring both officers and men, that their happiness and glory will be for ever dear to him, and that to the latest day of his life he will consider the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment as part of his family, whose interests are inseparably interwoven with his own. Should any fortunate event ever enable him to promote the general welfare of the regiment, or the individual interest of any of its members, whether officers, non-commissioned officers, or privates, he hopes it is needless for him to declare with what pleasure he shall avail himself of the opportunity.

“He now, with sincerest good wishes for the health, happiness, and glory of the whole, bids them adieu.”[13]

1831

In October, 1831, the depôt companies proceeded to Jersey.

1834

On the 12th of April, 1834, the service companies embarked at Malta for the Ionian islands.

1835

In September, 1835, the depôt companies embarked at Portsmouth for Cork.

Major-General William George Lord Harris, K.C.H., was removed from the colonelcy of the eighty-sixth to that of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 4th of December, 1835, in succession to Lieut.-General the Right Honorable Sir Frederick Adam, K.C.B., who was appointed colonel of the fifty-seventh regiment.

1838

The service companies embarked at Zante for Gibraltar on the 21st of January, 1838, and arrived at that fortress in the following month. In April and May of that year they proceeded to Nova Scotia, and in July, 1838, were removed to Canada.

1839

In June, 1839, the depôt companies were removed from Ireland to Great Britain.

1841

The service companies embarked at Quebec for England on the 5th June, 1841, and arrived at Gosport in July, at which place they were stationed during the remainder of the year.

1842

In April, 1842, the regiment proceeded to Woolwich, and in August to Bradford, from whence it was removed in September to Newport, in Monmouthshire.

1843

During the year 1843 the regiment remained at Newport.

1844

The regiment embarked by divisions at Newport, on the 8th and 16th of August, 1844, and disembarked at Kingstown, Dublin, on the 11th and 19th of that month. In December, the regiment moved from Richmond to the Royal Barracks at Dublin.

1845

Major-General Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B., was appointed colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 10th of June, 1845, in succession to Lieut.-General William George Lord Harris, K.C.H., deceased.

The service companies, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Charles Jowett Vander Meulen, embarked at Cork in H.M. troop-ship “Apollo” on the 29th of September, 1845, for the Cape of Good Hope. In consequence, however, of political events in South America, they were required (together with the reserve battalion of the forty-fifth regiment) by the British minister at Rio Janeiro to proceed to the river Plate, and they were disembarked at Monte Video in January, 1846.

1846

On the 3rd of April, 1846, Major-General Sir John Grey, K.C.B., was appointed colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, in succession to Major-General Sir Robert Henry Dick, K.C.B. and K.C.H., who was killed on the 10th of February, 1846, at the battle of Sobraon.

While the service companies were stationed at Monte Video, from January to July, 1846, they were employed in the protection of the town, and of the British merchants and inhabitants, against an Argentine force under General Oribe, who was investing the place.

1847

In July, the service companies were re-embarked for the Cape of Good Hope, and arrived at Cape Town in August. After landing their sick, they were ordered to proceed to Waterloo Bay, near to the Great Fish River, there to disembark, and join the troops employed in the field against the Kaffirs, on which arduous duty the regiment was subsequently employed.

From the 1st of January to the 3rd of February, 1847, and from the 10th of September to the end of the year, the service companies were engaged in active field operations against the Kaffirs. On this service the SEVENTY-THIRD had the following officers killed, namely, Captain William Baker, Lieutenants Clarevaulx Faunt, and the Honorable William John Granville Chetwynd, Ensign William Burnop, and Surgeon Neil Stewart Campbell.

1848

In January, 1848, the service companies proceeded to Fort Grey, where the head-quarters were stationed until July following, and in October they were removed from Fort D’Urban to Cape Town.

1849

Major-General Richard Goddard Hare Clarges, C.B., was appointed colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 18th of May, 1849, in succession to Major-General Sir John Grey, K.C.B., who was removed to the fifth Fusiliers.

During the year 1849 the service companies were stationed at Cape Town. The depôt companies also remained in Ireland.

1850

In December, 1850, the head-quarters and four companies, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel William Eyre, were removed from Cape Town to the Buffalo mouth for the frontier, in consequence of an outbreak of the Kaffirs.

1851

At the date of the conclusion of the present record, namely, 1st of May 1851, the service companies were in camp at King William’s Town, under Lieut.-Colonel Eyre. The depôt companies, under Major George Hankey Smith, continued to be stationed in Ireland.

1851.

FOOTNOTES:

[6] Upon the representation of Major-General Gerard Lake, who was appointed Colonel of the Seventy-third Regiment, in November 1796, the Royal Authority was granted for the word “MANGALORE” being borne on the Regimental Colour and Appointments, in consideration of the gallant conduct displayed in the defence of that place.

[7] “A View of the Origin and Conduct of the War with Tippoo Sultan, by Lieut.-Colonel Alexander Beatson, late Aide-de-camp to the Marquis Wellesley, Governor-General of India.”

[8] Seringapatam derived its name from the god Serung, to whom one of the pagodas was dedicated.

[9] The history of the second battalion is resumed at page 43.

[10] MEMORANDUM.

Horse Guards, 7th April, 1809.

As the population of the Highlands of Scotland is found to be insufficient to supply recruits for the whole of the Highland corps on the establishment of His Majesty’s army, and as some of these corps laying aside their distinguishing dress, which is objectionable to the natives of South Britain, would, in a great measure, tend to facilitate the completing of their establishment, as it would be an inducement to the men of the English militia to extend their services in greater numbers to these regiments:—it is in consequence most humbly submitted, for the approbation of His Majesty that His Majesty’s 72nd, 73rd, 74th, 75th, 91st, and 94th regiments should discontinue, in future, to wear the dress by which His Majesty’s regiments of Highlanders are distinguished, and that the above corps should no longer be considered as on that establishment.

(Signed)       H      ARRY CALVERT,

Adjutant-General.

[11] Major-General Macquarie formerly commanded the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment.—Vide Memoir in Appendix, page 69.

[12] A fourth division of the SEVENTY-THIRD sailed from Port Jackson on the 26th of January 1815, and arrived at Ceylon in the ship “General Brown,” on the 2nd of March. There still remained some men of the battalion for whom room could not be provided in the four ships already named, and those were embarked in the colonial brig “Kangaroo,” which arrived at Colombo on the 19th of August 1815.

[13] A memoir of the services of Lieut.-General Sir Maurice O’Connell, K.C.H., is contained in the Appendix, page 70.

HISTORICAL RECORD

OF

THE SECOND BATTALION

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

1802

Europe enjoyed but a short interval of tranquillity by the treaty of Amiens, which was signed on the 27th of March, 1802. In May of the following year, the war was renewed, and Napoleon Bonaparte, the First Consul of the French Republic, threatened the invasion of Great Britain. On the 18th of May, 1804, Napoleon was invested with the dignity of Emperor of the French, and on the 26th of May of the succeeding year, he was crowned at Milan as King of Italy.

1804

In December, 1804, Spain issued a declaration of war against England, and agreed to furnish a powerful aid to the French Emperor.

1805

While the French pursued a victorious career in Germany, they experienced dreadful reverses from the British navy, particularly on the 21st of October, 1805, when the combined fleets of France and Spain were completely defeated off Cape Trafalgar. The victory was, however, clouded by the death of Admiral Viscount Nelson, to whose memory a grateful and admiring nation paid the highest honors.

1806

1808

In the year 1806, the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment arrived in England from the East Indies, and two years afterwards was ordered to embark for New South Wales. On the promulgation of the orders for this embarkation, it was directed that a second battalion should be added to the regiment, which was to be placed on the establishment of the army from the 24th of December, 1808.

The second battalion was, in the first instance, to consist of four companies, at a hundred rank and file each; upon the effectives exceeding four hundred, it was to be augmented to six hundred, which number being completed, it was to be augmented to a thousand rank and file.

1809

The battalion was embodied at Nottingham, and was considerably strengthened, within the year 1809, by volunteers from the English, Irish, and Scotch Militia.

1810

In March, 1810, the battalion proceeded to Ashborne, and subsequently to Derby and Ashford.

1811

On the 25th of October, 1811, the establishment of the battalion was augmented to six companies, consisting of thirty-four serjeants, twelve drummers, and six hundred rank and file.

1812

In July, 1812, the battalion was removed from Ashford to Deal, and afterwards proceeded to the Tower of London.

1813

While quartered in the Tower of London, in 1813, the battalion was augmented to ten companies, consisting of forty-five serjeants, twenty-two drummers, and eight hundred rank and file. The battalion proceeded to Colchester in April.

The dreadful disasters experienced by the French in their retreat from Russia, combined with the successes obtained over the forces of Napoleon in the Peninsula by the allies under the Marquis of Wellington, caused the separation of Prussia and other states from the interest of France, and a treaty of alliance and subsidy was concluded between Great Britain and Sweden, in which it was stipulated that a Swedish army, commanded by the Crown Prince,[14] should join the Allies.

On the 25th of May, 1813, the battalion, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel William George (afterwards Lord) Harris, embarked on a particular service at Harwich, but subsequently joined the expedition to Stralsund, in Swedish Pomerania, under the command of Major-General Samuel Gibbs, and landed at that town on the 7th of August.

From Stralsund the SEVENTY-THIRD proceeded to join the allied forces under the command of Lieut.-General Count Wallmoden, who engaged, and completely defeated, the enemy on the plains of Gorde, on the 16th of September, 1813. The SEVENTY-THIRD was the only British battalion in the action.[15]

The battalion was afterwards ordered to join the British forces, then in the north of Germany, under the command of Major-General Samuel Gibbs, at Rostock, and subsequently embarked for England at Warnemunde on the 2nd of November, but on arriving at Yarmouth the battalion was ordered, without landing, to join the army in Holland under General Sir Thomas Graham, afterwards Lord Lynedoch: the battalion arrived at Williamstadt on the 18th of December.

1814

The Prussian General, Bulow, having requested that the British would make a forward movement upon Antwerp, to favour his operations, the battalion accordingly marched to the attack of that place, which was bombarded by the British forces on the 13th of January, 1814; and again from the 2nd until the 6th of February, for the purpose of destroying the French fleet lying there.

In the attack on the village of Merxem on the 2nd of February, 1814, where the enemy was strongly posted, Lieutenant John McConnell, and Lieutenant and Adjutant Thomas Frederick James were wounded, the former severely. A volunteer, named J. Simpson, was also dangerously wounded. This youth was about sixteen years of age, and was attached to the light company. Soon after the action commenced, and in the course of a few minutes, he was shot through both his legs, before which a bullet had lodged in the butt of his firelock. His military career was short, as he died of his wounds in a few days.

On this occasion, the light company, under Captain Richard Drewe, supported the ninety-fifth (rifle brigade) in driving the enemy from the abatis formed at the entrance to the village. The troops suffered very severely during the foregoing operations from the intense cold, the winter being unusually severe, and though sleeping on the line of march was generally fatal, it was no easy matter to prevent it.

General Sir Thomas Graham stated in his despatch, “All the troops engaged behaved with the usual spirit and intrepidity of British soldiers,” and the conduct of Major Dawson Kelly, of the SEVENTY-THIRD, was particularly noticed.

After this success the British troops were employed in constructing a breastwork and battery; on the 3rd of February several pieces of heavy ordnance opened upon the city of Antwerp, and on the French shipping in the Scheldt; the cannonade was continued until the 6th, when General Bulow, having received orders to march southward, to act with the grand army of the Allies, it became necessary to relinquish the attack on Antwerp, when the British retired towards Breda.

On the 16th of March, 1814, a detachment of the SEVENTY-THIRD, consisting of two hundred men, under the command of Major Dawson Kelly, was bombarded by a French seventy-four gun-ship and eight gun brigs, in Fort Frederick on the river Scheldt.

Peace was shortly afterwards concluded. On the 4th of April, Napoleon Bonaparte signed his abdication in favour of his son; but this proposal being rejected, he signed in a few days a second abdication, renouncing the thrones of France and Italy entirely for himself and heirs. He afterwards selected Elba for his residence, which island was ceded to him in full sovereignty for life, and a pension payable from the revenues of France, and by the treaty which was signed at Paris on the 11th of April between the Allies and Napoleon, it was agreed that he should enjoy the imperial title for life. Ample pensions were also assigned to his relatives.

On the 3rd of May, 1814, Louis XVIII. entered Paris, and ascended the throne of his ancestors, and on the 30th of that month the general peace between France and the allied powers of Austria, Russia, Great Britain, and Prussia, was signed at Paris.

In the beginning of May, the battalion was ordered into quarters at Antwerp, and in September following it marched to Tournay, where it arrived in October.

1815

The commencement of the year 1815 saw Louis XVIII. apparently firmly seated on the throne of France; but various causes of discontent existed in that country. The army, long accustomed to war, still retained a chivalrous veneration for Napoleon Bonaparte, who was kept acquainted with the state of the public mind, and this feeling of his former troops. In the evening of the 26th of February he embarked at Porto Ferrajo, in the island of Elba, with about a thousand troops, of whom a few were French, and the remainder Poles, Corsicans, Neapolitans, and Elbese. With this motley band he landed at Cannes, in Provence, on the 1st of March, 1815, and the result proved that his calculations were correct. After being joined by the garrison of Grenoble, he proceeded to Lyons, and entered that city amidst the acclamations of “Vive l’Empereur!” from the soldiers and the people. The possession of the second city in France being thus obtained, Napoleon assumed his former dignity of Emperor, and continued his advance to Paris, which he reached on the 20th of March, his progress having been a continued triumph.

In the meantime, Louis XVIII. had withdrawn from Paris to Ghent, and Napoleon took possession of the throne of France as Emperor, but the allied powers refused to acknowledge his sovereignty, and determined to effect his dethronement.

The battalion had remained stationed between Tournay and Courtray until March, 1815, when, in consequence of the foregoing events, it was ordered to join the division of the army under the command of Lieut.-General Baron Alten, and formed part of the brigade of Major-General Sir Colin Halkett, K.C.B.

On the 11th of April, 1815, it was announced to the army in Flanders that His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the name and behalf of His Majesty, had appointed Field Marshal the Duke of Wellington, K.G., to be commander of His Majesty’s forces on the continent of Europe, and it was directed that the Fifth British brigade of infantry should be composed of the second battalion of the thirtieth, the thirty-third, and the second battalions of the sixty-ninth and seventy-third regiments.[16]

Napoleon left Paris on the 12th of June, and endeavoured, by one of those rapid and decisive movements for which he had been celebrated, to interpose his forces between the British and Prussian armies, and then attack them in detail. Information of this movement arrived at Brussels during the evening of the 15th of June, and the troops were immediately ordered to prepare to march.

On the 16th of June, the division of which the second battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD formed part, pursued its course, with the other portions of the army, through the forest of Soignies, Genappe, and along the road towards Charleroi. After a march of twenty-two miles the troops arrived at the post of Les Quatre Bras, where the second French corps, under Marshal Ney, was developing a serious attack against that position, with very superior numbers.

As the British regiments arrived at the scene of conflict, they were instantly formed for action. The repeated charges of the French were repulsed, but a considerable loss was incurred, including his Serene Highness the Duke of Brunswick, who fell at the head of his troops.

The SEVENTY-THIRD had the following officers wounded:—Lieutenants John Acres and John Lloyd, and Ensigns Robert Greville Heselrige and Thomas Deacon. Lieutenant Acres died of his wounds. One drummer, and three rank and file were killed, and one serjeant and forty-three rank and file wounded.

Marshal Blucher had been attacked on the 16th of June by Napoleon at Ligny, and the Prussians, after a desperate conflict, were compelled to retreat to Wavre. This caused the Duke of Wellington to make a corresponding movement, to keep up his communication with them.

In the course of the morning of the 17th of June, the troops were withdrawn from Quatre Bras, and proceeded towards Waterloo. On this day, the SEVENTY-THIRD had Lieutenant Joseph William Henry Streaphan and three rank and file killed.

The position which the Duke of Wellington occupied in front of Waterloo, crossed the high roads leading from Charleroi and Nivelle to Brussels, and which roads united at the village of Mont St. Jean, in the rear of the British. The right wing extended to a ravine near Merke Braine, which was occupied. The left extended to a height above the hamlet of Ter la Haye, which was likewise occupied. In front of the right centre, and near the Nivelle road, the house and garden of Hougomont were taken possession of, and in front of the left centre, the farm of La Haye Sainte was occupied. By the left the British communicated with Marshal Prince Blucher at Wavre, through Ohaim.

Napoleon collected his army on a range of heights in front of the British, with the exception of his third corps, which he had sent to observe the Prussians. About ten o’clock the French commenced a furious attack upon the post at Hougomont. Then ensued a conflict which will ever be memorable in the history of Europe. The attacks of the French troops were frequently calculated to spread confusion through any army. They were supported by the thunder of a numerous artillery, and followed up by such a succession of column after column, rolling onwards like the waves of the sea, that it required a degree of unexampled fortitude and courage to oppose effectual resistance to so fierce and continued a storm of war.

That degree of courage was not wanting in the British ranks, and paralysed by the fierce determination of his opponents, the attacks of Napoleon’s legions relaxed; the Prussians arrived on the left to co-operate; the Anglo-Belgian army formed line, and with one impetuous charge decided the fortune of the day. The French were driven from the field with the loss of their cannon and equipage, and the hopes of Bonaparte were annihilated.

During the greater part of the battle, the SEVENTY-THIRD, with the second battalion of the thirtieth, were very much exposed to the enemy’s artillery, and constantly engaged in repelling numerous charges of cavalry that appeared determined to break their square, which ultimately was reduced to a very small size, from the casualties occasioned by round and grape shot. Lieutenant Robert Stewart, one of the junior officers of the SEVENTY-THIRD, commanded the battalion at the termination of the battle, and in consequence was some years afterwards promoted to a company without purchase.[17]

The casualties amongst the officers were unusually great. Of twenty-three who marched into action on the 16th of June at Quatre Bras, twenty-two were killed and wounded on that and the two following days.

In the battle on the 18th of June the SEVENTY-THIRD had Captains Alexander Robertson and John Kennedy; Lieutenant Matthew Hollis; and Ensigns William Law Lowe and Charles Page killed.

The officers wounded were Lieut.-Colonel William George Harris (Colonel) commanding the battalion, severely; Major Archibald John Maclean, who died of his wounds; Captains Henry Coane, William Wharton, and John Garland, all severely. Lieutenants John McConnell, Thomas Reynolds, and Donald Browne all severely; Lieutenant Browne afterwards died of his wounds. Ensigns William McBean, Charles Bedford Eastwood, and George Dondridge Bridge (severely), and Ensign and Adjutant Patrick Hay severely.

Three serjeants, one drummer, and forty-three rank and file were killed, and thirteen serjeants, two drummers, and one hundred and sixty rank and file were wounded; twenty-four of the above number died of their wounds; forty-one rank and file were missing.

In acknowledgment of the services which the army performed in the battle of Waterloo, and the actions immediately preceding it, each subaltern officer and soldier present were permitted to count two years additional service, and silver medals were conferred on all ranks, bearing on the one side an impression of His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, and on the reverse the figure of Victory, holding the palm in the right hand, and the olive branch in the left, with the word “Wellington” over its head, and “WATERLOO,” 18th June, 1815, at its feet.

The thanks of both Houses of Parliament were voted to the army with the greatest enthusiasm, “for its distinguished valour at Waterloo;” and the SEVENTY-THIRD and other regiments engaged, were permitted to bear the word “WATERLOO” on their colours and appointments, in commemoration of their distinguished services on the 18th of June, 1815.

After the battle of Waterloo, the battalion, which was reduced to a complete skeleton, advanced with the army to Paris, where it arrived in the first week in July, and encamped in the Bois de Boulogne until November, when it was placed in cantonments in the vicinity of that metropolis.

Meanwhile Louis XVIII. had entered Paris, and was again reinstated on the throne of his ancestors. Napoleon Bonaparte had surrendered himself to Captain Maitland, commanding the “Bellerophon” British ship of war, and the island of St. Helena having been fixed for his residence, he was conveyed thither, with a few of his zealous adherents.

When the allied forces retired from Paris in December, 1815, with the exception of the “Army of Occupation” left in France, the second battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment was ordered to return to England; it embarked at Calais on the 23rd of December, and landed on the same day at Ramsgate; from Ramsgate it marched to Colchester to join the depôt, which continued in that town during the absence of the battalion on foreign service.

1816

The battalion afterwards marched to Nottingham, where it arrived on the 12th of February, 1816.

1817

The battalion was stationed between Nottingham, Weedon, and Colchester, until May, 1817, when it was ordered to proceed to Chelmsford to be disbanded, which measure took place on the 4th of May, 1817, the most effective men, consisting of three hundred and ten non-commissioned officers and privates being embarked to join the first battalion of the regiment at Ceylon.

1817.

CONCLUSION.

The earlier services of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, originally formed as a second battalion to the forty-second Highlanders, are connected with the wars against Hyder Ali and his son, Tippoo Saib, the powerful sultans of the Mysore territory: the word “Mangalore,” granted by royal authority for the gallant defence of that fortress in 1783, and the word “Seringapatam” for the share taken by the regiment in the capture of the capital of Tippoo’s country in 1799, when that sovereign terminated his career by a soldier’s death, are borne on the regimental colour and appointments, in commemoration of these arduous campaigns in India.

Other services were, however, performed by the regiment in the East, among which may be named the capture of the French settlement of Pondicherry in 1793, and that of the Dutch island of Ceylon in 1796, when the French Directory had caused Holland to become involved in hostilities with Great Britain.

After a service of twenty-four years in India, the regiment returned to England, and arrived at Greenwich in July, 1806.

In 1809 the regiment proceeded to New South Wales, when a second battalion was added to its establishment.

Brief as was the career of the second battalion, namely from 1809 to 1817, it added the imperishable word “WATERLOO” to the regimental colour and appointments, that distinction being conferred by the Sovereign to commemorate its services in that battle, which gave a lengthened peace to the powers of Europe.

In 1814 the first battalion embarked from New South Wales for Ceylon, in the capture of which island the regiment had formerly participated.

The regiment returned to England in 1821, and continued on home service until 1827, when it embarked for Gibraltar, from which fortress it proceeded to Malta in 1829, and in 1834 to the Ionian Islands, whence it returned to Gibraltar in 1838, and embarked for North America.

In 1841 the regiment returned to England, and, in 1845, proceeded to the Cape of Good Hope, where it is now employed in active operations against the Kaffirs.

The orderly behaviour of the regiment in quarters, whether employed at home, or on foreign stations, combined with its soldier-like conduct in the field, have secured the confidence of the nation, and the approbation of the Sovereign.

1851.

SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

For Cannon’s Military Records.

Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t Strand

FOOTNOTES:

[14] On the 21st of August, 1810, the French Marshal Bernadotte, one of Napoleon’s generals, was elected Crown Prince of Sweden. The appointment of a successor to the throne of that country was considered necessary in consequence of the Duke of Sudermania, who had been elected king in the room of the deposed Gustavus IV., being advanced in years, and without children.

[15] The following statement of the above operations is contained in the Annual Register, vol. 87, page 280:—

“After landing at Stralsund, and assisting in completing the works of that town, Lieut.-Colonel Harris, with the SEVENTY-THIRD, was detached into the interior of the country, to feel for the enemy, and also to get into communication with Lieut.-General Count Wallmoden, which dangerous service he successfully effected, though he had, with great care and caution, to creep with his small force between the large corps d’armée of Davoust and other French generals at that time stationed in Pomerania, Mecklenburg, and Hanover. Having joined Count Wallmoden, the SEVENTY-THIRD contributed greatly to the victory that General gained over the French on the plains of Gorde, in Hanover, where Lieut.-Colonel Harris, at the head of his battalion, declining any aid, and at the moment when the German hussars had been routed, charged up a steep hill, took a battery of French artillery, and unfurling the British colours, at once spread terror amongst that gallant enemy which feared no others; a panic struck them, and they fled.”

[16] A list of the British and Hanoverian army at Waterloo is inserted in the Appendix, page 73.

[17] “Once, and once only, during the dreadful carnage at Waterloo, did the stern SEVENTY-THIRD hesitate to fill up a gap which the relentless iron had torn in their square; their Lieut.-Colonel (Brevet Colonel Harris) at once pushing his horse lengthwise across the space, said with a smile, ‘Well, my lads, if you wont, I must’; it is almost needless to add that immediately he was led back to his proper place, and the ranks closed up by men still more devoted than before.”—(Annual Register, vol. 87, page 280.)

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

OF

THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

SIR GEORGE OSBORN, BART.

Appointed 18th April, 1786.

The early services of this officer were associated with the sixteenth light dragoons, in which, upon that regiment being raised in 1759, Sir George Osborn, Bart., obtained a troop on the 20th of December of that year, and on the 13th of February, 1762, he was promoted to the rank of major in the eighteenth, Royal Irish, regiment of foot. On the 31st of March, 1763, Major Sir George Osborn was appointed deputy quarter-master-general to the Forces in Ireland, and on the 19th of November, 1765, he was promoted to the third regiment of foot guards as captain and lieut.-colonel, in which regiment he was appointed second major, with the brevet rank of colonel in the army, on the 7th of August, 1777. On the 19th of February, 1779, he was advanced to the rank of major-general, and was appointed lieut.-colonel in the third regiment of foot guards on the 25th of March, 1782. Upon the second battalion of the forty-second, Royal Highlanders, being numbered the SEVENTY-THIRD Highland regiment in 1786, His Majesty King George III. appointed Major-General Sir George Osborn, Bart., to the colonelcy of the SEVENTY-THIRD on the 18th of April of that year, and on the 11th of August following he was removed to the fortieth regiment, which he retained until his decease. On the 28th of September 1787, Sir George Osborn was advanced to the rank of lieut.-general, and to that of general on the 26th of January, 1797. General Sir George Osborn died at Chicksands Priory on the 29th of June, 1818, in the seventy-seventh year of his age.

SIR WILLIAM MEDOWS, K.B.

Appointed 11th August, 1786.

The early services of this distinguished officer are connected with the fourth horse, now seventh dragoon guards, in which corps he was appointed captain in March, 1764, and was promoted to the rank of major on the 1st of October, 1766. He was further advanced to the rank of lieut.-colonel of the fifth Fusiliers in 1769; was removed to the twelfth light dragoons in 1773, and to the fifty-fifth regiment in 1775. While serving with his regiment in North America, he evinced that valour, magnanimity, and military skill, which were afterwards more fully developed in the West, and also the East Indies. He was again removed to the lieut.-colonelcy of the fifth Fusiliers in 1777, in succession to Lieut.-Colonel Walcott, who died of wounds received at the battle of Germantown, in Pennsylvania, which was fought on the 4th of October, 1777. He commanded the fifth during the long and hazardous retreat from Philadelphia to New York; and having been appointed to act as brigadier-general, he proceeded with the expedition under Major-General James Grant to the West Indies. Brigadier-General Medows commanded the reserve, consisting of the fifth foot, grenadiers, and light infantry, at the attack of St. Lucia in December 1778; and having seized on the post of La Vigie, he evinced signal intrepidity in defending it against the attacks of a French force of very superior numbers: though severely wounded early in the day, he refused to quit his post, and finding his ammunition nearly expended, he drew up his men in front of their colours, and waving his sword, exclaimed, “Soldiers, as long as you have a bayonet to point against an enemy’s breast, defend these colours.” They did so, and secured the conquest of St. Lucia.

His distinguished bravery was rewarded in 1780, with the colonelcy of the (late) eighty-ninth regiment: and in 1781 he was promoted to the local rank of major-general in the East Indies, where he acquired numerous laurels under General the Earl Cornwallis. He was promoted to the rank of major-general in 1782, and was appointed to the colonelcy of the SEVENTY-THIRD Highland regiment on the 11th of August, 1786; and his meritorious services procured him the honor of wearing the insignia of a Knight Companion of the Bath. Sir William Medows was afterwards appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Madras. In 1792 Sir William Medows was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general; in 1796 he was appointed colonel of the seventh dragoon guards; and in 1798 was advanced to the rank of general. He was also Governor of Hull, and a member of the Privy Council in Ireland. The decease of General Sir William Medows, K.B., occurred on the 20th of November, 1813.

GERARD LAKE,

(Afterwards Viscount Lake.)

Appointed 2nd November, 1796.

Gerard Lake, third son of Lancelot Charles Lake, Esq., choosing the profession of arms, was nominated to the commission of ensign and lieutenant in the first foot guards, on the 9th of May, 1758; in 1762 he was promoted to lieutenant and captain, and in 1776 to captain and lieut.-colonel. He served in North America during the War of Independence; was engaged in operations in the southern states, under General the Earl Cornwallis, and had opportunities of distinguishing himself. When Earl Cornwallis’s force was besieged in York Town, by the united French and American armies, Lieut.-Colonel Lake commanded a detachment of foot guards and grenadiers of the eightieth regiment, which made a sortie on the 16th of October, 1781, forced the entrenchments, spiked eleven heavy guns, and killed and wounded about a hundred French soldiers. On the surrender of York Town he became a prisoner of war; but hostilities were terminated soon afterwards, and he returned to England, having been promoted to the rank of colonel in February, 1782. In 1784 he was nominated major, and in 1792 lieut.-colonel in the first foot guards. In 1790 he was advanced to the rank of major-general. On the breaking out of the French revolutionary war, he was nominated to the command of the brigade of foot guards which proceeded to Flanders, and served under His Royal Highness the Duke of York. He commanded this brigade at the battle of Famars, and at the siege of Valenciennes, and highly distinguished himself at Lincelles, on the 18th of August, 1793, for which he was thanked in general orders. He also served before Dunkirk, and in other operations: and in 1794 he was rewarded with the colonelcy of the fifty-third regiment, and the government of Limerick; he was afterwards nominated Governor of Dumbarton. In 1796 he was removed to the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment: in 1797 he was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general, and placed on the staff of Ireland, where he evinced talent and energy in suppressing the rebellion which broke out in 1798, and gained several important victories over the insurgents. When the French landed in Ireland, he was obliged to retire a short distance; but additional troops advancing to his aid, he intercepted the French soldiers and forced them to surrender prisoners of war. In 1800 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief in India, and colonel of the eightieth regiment; and in 1802 he was promoted to the rank of general. He arrived in India at the period when the Governor-General, the Marquis Wellesley, was displaying the energies of his mind in counteracting the intrigues of France among the native powers of Hindoostan; and the ambitious designs of the Mahratta chiefs soon called General Lake into the field, when his talents were conspicuously displayed. His spirited and judicious operations at Coel, on the 29th of August, 1803; the assault of Aly Ghur, on the 9th of September; and the overthrow of the Mahratta army near Delhi, on the 11th of September, on which occasion his charger was killed under him, produced decisive results. The country between the Ganges and Jumna rivers, called the Doab (a general name in India for the space between two rivers), became subject to British authority; and six days afterwards General Lake visited the Emperor, Shah Alum, whom he had rescued from oppression, and who conferred upon him titles which signified,—The Saver of the State,—Hero of the Land,—Lord of the Age,—and the Victorious in War.

Afterwards proceeding to Agra, General Lake speedily captured that place, and on the 1st of November, 1803, he gained an important victory at Leswaree, when the French-officered battalions of Dowlat Rao Scindia were annihilated, the Mahratta army overpowered, and its colours, artillery, and baggage captured. His services on this occasion were of a distinguished character; he led the charge of the cavalry in the morning;—conducted in person the attacks of the infantry, and in the midst of the storm of battle he displayed valour, professional ability, promptitude and decision; his magnanimous example inspired confidence and emulation in the troops, and they triumphed over very superior numbers. Two horses were killed under him on this occasion.

His important services were rewarded, in 1804, with the title of LORD LAKE OF DELHI AND LESWAREE.

Pursuing, the war with vigour, Lord Lake routed the power of Holkar at Furruckbad; but the war was protracted by the defection of the Rajah of Bhurtpore; and when his Lordship besieged the city of Bhurtpore, he failed in capturing the place from the want of a battering train. The Rajah of Bhurtpore was, however, brought to terms; and Lord Lake pursued the hostile Rajah of Berar from place to place until this chief was brought to submission. The British military power in the East was strengthened by these successes; and the extent and stability of the dominions in India augmented.

His Lordship returned to England, and in 1807 he was advanced to the dignity of VISCOUNT LAKE.

He caught cold while sitting on the general court-martial which tried Major-General Whitelocke; and died on the 30th of February, 1808.

GEORGE LORD HARRIS, G.C.B.

Appointed 14th February, 1800.

This distinguished officer entered the service in 1759 as a cadet in the Royal Artillery, and was appointed ensign in the fifth fusiliers on the 30th of July, 1762; he was promoted to be lieutenant on the 2nd of July, 1765, was appointed adjutant in 1767, and promoted to the rank of captain on the 25th of July, 1771. In May, 1774, Captain Harris embarked for America, and was present in the first action of the American war, namely, at Lexington, on the 19th of April, 1775. At the battle of Bunker’s Hill on the 17th of June following, he was severely wounded in the head, and obliged to be trepanned, which caused him to be sent to England; but he returned in time to take the field previously to the landing of the British army on Long Island in August, 1776. Captain Harris was present at the affair of Flat Bush; in the skirmishes on York Island; in the engagement at White Plains; at Iron Hill (where he was shot through the leg), and in every action up to the 3rd of November, 1778, except that of Germantown. In 1778 he was promoted to the rank of major in the fifth fusiliers, and embarked with the regiment for the West Indies with the force under Major-General James Grant, by whom he was appointed to command the battalion of grenadiers, and landed with the reserve of the army under Brigadier-General Medows, at St. Lucia on the 25th of December. After the taking of Morne Fortunée, Major Harris was second in command under Brigadier-General Medows at the post of La Vigie, where the French were repulsed in their repeated attacks, and in consequence they retreated from the Island. Immediately after the departure of the French armament, the Governor surrendered the Island of St. Lucia to the British troops, the capitulation being signed on the 30th of December, 1778. In 1779, Major Harris embarked with the fifth fusiliers, which were ordered to serve as marines, and was present in the engagement off Grenada, under Admiral Byron, on the 6th of July, 1779. In 1780, Major Harris returned to England, and in December of that year succeeded to a lieut.-colonelcy in the fifth fusiliers, from which he exchanged into the seventy-sixth regiment, and accompanied to the East Indies, as secretary, Sir William Medows, who was appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Madras. Lieut.-Colonel Harris served in the campaigns of 1790 and 1791 against Tippoo Sultan; in the action of the 15th of May, 1791, he was appointed by General the Earl Cornwallis to command the second line; he was also personally engaged in the attack of the Sultan’s camp and of the Island of Seringapatam, on the night of the 6th of February, 1792, the success of which terminated that war. Peace being re-established, Lieut.-Colonel Harris returned with Lieut.-General Sir William Medows to England. On the 18th of November, 1792, he was promoted colonel by brevet, and on the 3rd of October, 1794, he was advanced to the rank of major-general, when he re-embarked for India, and was placed on the Bengal Staff. On the 3rd of May, 1796, Major-General Harris received the local rank of lieut.-general, and was appointed Commander-in-Chief in the Presidency of Fort St. George; in February, 1798, he succeeded to the military and civil government of the troops and territories of Madras.

In December, 1798, Lieut.-General Harris was selected, by the Marquis Wellesley to command the army assembled to repel the threatened hostility of Tippoo Sultan, to besiege his capital, and to reduce his power. The army under the command of Lieut.-General Harris exceeded fifty thousand men, and the object of the expedition was accomplished by the capture of Seringapatam, the death of Tippoo, and annexation of his dominions to the British Crown, as detailed in the Historical Record of the SEVENTY-THIRD, of which regiment he was appointed colonel on the 14th of February, 1800, as a reward for his important services:—on the 1st of January, 1801, he was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general. On the 1st of January, 1812, Lieut.-General Harris was advanced to the rank of general. In August, 1815, General Harris was raised to the peerage by the title of Baron Harris of Seringapatam and Mysore in the East Indies, and of Belmont in Kent, and was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on the 27th of May, 1820. His Lordship succeeded General Francis Dundas as Governor of Dumbarton Castle in January, 1824. During the latter years of his life his Lordship lived in retirement at his seat at Belmont, Feversham, in Kent, where his decease occurred on the 19th of May, 1829, at the advanced age of eighty-two years.

THE RIGHT HONORABLE SIR FREDERICK ADAM, G.C.B., & G.C.M.G.

Appointed 22nd May, 1829.

Removed to the fifty-seventh regiment on the 4th of December, 1835, and to the twenty-first, Royal North British Fusiliers, on the 31st of May, 1843.

WILLIAM GEORGE LORD HARRIS, C.B., & K.C.H.

Appointed 4th December, 1835.

This distinguished officer was the son of General the first Lord Harris, and entered the army as an ensign in the seventy-sixth regiment of infantry, on the 24th of May, 1795; was promoted lieutenant in the thirty-sixth regiment on the 3rd of January, 1796, from which he was removed to the seventy-fourth Highlanders on the 4th of September following, and joined in India in 1797. Lieutenant Harris served at the battle of Mallavelly on the 27th of March, 1799, and during the campaign under his father, Lord Harris, which led to the capture of Seringapatam, and was in nearly all the affairs, out-posts, and in the storming party on the 4th of May, 1799, which carried that fortress, where Lieutenant Harris was one of the first to enter the breach, for which he was commended on the spot by Major-General (afterwards Sir David) Baird. Being sent home with the captured standards, Lieutenant Harris had the honor of presenting them to His Majesty King George III., and was promoted to a company in the forty-ninth regiment, on the 16th of October, 1800, which he joined at Jersey, and embarking with it towards the end of the year for England, was wrecked on the passage off Guernsey. Captain Harris afterwards accompanied his regiment in the expedition to the Baltic under the command of Admiral Parker and Vice-Admiral Nelson, and was present in the “Glatton” frigate in the desperate action off Copenhagen on the 2nd of April, 1801. In 1802, Captain Harris embarked with the forty-ninth regiment for Canada, and served in the upper province for two years; being then appointed to a majority in the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, he proceeded to join that corps in India, and on his way out was employed at the capture of the Cape of Good Hope in January, 1806, and was present at the action of Blue Berg. The SEVENTY-THIRD having quitted India previously to his arrival, he returned to England the same year, and found he had succeeded to the lieut.-colonelcy of that regiment. Upon the formation of the second battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD, which was placed on the establishment of the army from the 24th of December, 1808, Lieut.-Colonel Harris was appointed to the command of it, and zealously applied himself to perfecting its discipline, and rendering it efficient in every respect. In 1813, Lieut.-Colonel Harris embarked on a particular service with the second battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, but afterwards joined the expedition to Stralsund, in Swedish Pomerania, under Major-General Samuel Gibbs. On arrival Lieut.-Colonel Harris was selected to take the field with his battalion, and place himself under the orders of Lieut.-General Count Wallmoden, and was present in the action of the Gorde (in which he highly distinguished himself), under that commander, on the 16th of September, 1813. In November, 1813, the second battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD re-embarked in the Gulf of Lubec for England; but on arriving at Yarmouth, it was ordered, without landing, to join the army of General Sir Thomas Graham (afterwards Lord Lynedoch) in Holland. During the winter campaign before Antwerp, rendered more difficult in consequence of the severity of the weather, Lieut.-Colonel Harris had the honor of carrying the village of Merxem by storm, under the eye of His late Majesty King William IV., then Duke of Clarence, and, during the remainder of the operations, was employed as brigadier-general. After the peace of 1814, when Antwerp was delivered up, Colonel Harris, to which rank he had been promoted on the 4th of June, 1814, was quartered in that town, and remained in the Low Countries with his battalion during the remainder of the year 1814, and the early part of 1815. On the return of Napoleon from Elba, Colonel Harris joined the army of the Duke of Wellington, and his battalion was appointed to the brigade commanded by Major-General Sir Colin Halkett, and took part in the stubborn contest of the 16th of June, 1815, at Quatre Bras,—assisted in covering the retreat on the 17th; and on the 18th of June, at Waterloo, bore a gallant part in the complete defeat of Napoleon in that memorable battle. Colonel Harris, late in the afternoon, received a shot through the right shoulder, from which severe wound he continued to suffer at times for the remainder of his life. On retiring on half-pay, a testimony of admiration and regard was presented to him by the officers of his battalion in the shape of a splendid sword. On the 19th of July, 1821, Colonel Harris was advanced to the rank of Major-General. Major-General the Honorable William George Harris was employed on the staff of the army in Ireland from the 17th of May, 1823, until the 24th of June, 1825, when he was appointed to the command of the northern district of Great Britain, which he retained until the 24th of July, 1828, and contributed materially in quelling the disturbances in the manufacturing districts. On the decease of his father, Lord Harris, in 1829, he succeeded to the title, and from that period lived in retirement at Belmont, the family seat, near Feversham in Kent. On the 3rd of December, 1832, Major-General Lord Harris was appointed colonel of the eighty-sixth regiment, and was removed to the SEVENTY-THIRD on the 4th of December, 1835. In January, 1837, Lord Harris was promoted to the rank of Lieut.-General. His decease occurred at Belmont, after a short illness, on the 30th of May, 1845. Lord Harris was a Knight Commander of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order, a Companion of the Bath, and a Knight of the Order of William of Holland.

SIR ROBERT HENRY DICK, K.C.B., & K.C.H.

Appointed 10th June, 1845.

This officer commenced his military career as ensign in the seventy-fifth regiment, his commission being dated 22nd of November, 1800, from which he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in the sixty-second foot, on the 27th of June, 1802; was appointed to the ninth battalion of reserve on the 20th of December, 1803, and removed to the forty-second Royal Highland regiment on the 5th of January of the following year. Lieutenant Dick was promoted to the rank of Captain in the seventy-eighth regiment on the 17th of April, 1804, and embarked with the second battalion of that corps for Sicily in 1806; in the battle of Maida, which was fought on the 4th of July, 1806, Captain Dick was wounded; was also present at the taking of the fortress of Catrone in Calabria. Admiral Sir John Duckworth having failed in his mission to detach Turkey from the interests of France, Great Britain determined to seize upon Egypt, as a check to any fresh demonstration by the French against the British possessions in the East Indies, and an armament sailed from Sicily in February, 1807, and landed at Aboukir on the 18th of the following month. This expedition was under the command of Major-General Alexander Mackenzie Fraser, the colonel of the seventy-eighth Highlanders, and Captain Dick was embarked with the second battalion of that regiment. On the 21st of March, 1807, Alexandria was occupied by the British troops; this was the anniversary of the celebrated battle fought there in 1801, when the gallant General Sir Ralph Abercromby received the wound which terminated his career. A force of fifteen hundred men was afterwards detached against Rosetta, before which place Captain Dick was severely wounded. Egypt was evacuated by the British in September, 1807, and the troops returned to Sicily. Captain Dick was promoted to the rank of Major on the 24th of April, 1808, and was appointed to the forty-second Royal Highlanders on the 14th of July following. Major Dick embarked with the second battalion of the forty-second regiment for the Peninsula in June, 1809, and commanded a light battalion at the battle of Busaco on the 27th of September, 1810, and during the retreat to the lines of Torres Vedras; also in the action at Foz D’Aronce on the 15th of March, 1811, where he was wounded; and at the battle of Fuentes d’Onor on the 3rd and 5th of May following. During the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo, which was captured on the 19th of January, 1812, Major Dick served with the second battalion of the forty-second regiment, and also at the third siege of Badajoz, which was taken on the 6th of April following. On the first battalion of the forty-second joining the army in the Peninsula towards the end of April, 1812, the soldiers of the second battalion fit for duty were transferred to the former, and the officers and staff of the latter returned to England to recruit. He commanded a light battalion at the battle of Salamanca on the 22nd of July, 1812. At the storming of Fort St. Michael, near Burgos, on the 19th of September, Major Dick commanded the first battalion of the forty-second, and his conduct was commended in the Marquis of Wellington’s public despatch. The siege of the Castle of Burgos was afterwards commenced, but the concentration of the enemy’s forces obliged the British commander to raise the siege and retire to Salamanca, and subsequently to Ciudad Rodrigo. On the 8th of October, 1812, Major Dick was promoted to the brevet rank of Lieut.-Colonel. In January 1813, Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Dick returned to England on two months’ leave of absence, and joined the second battalion, which, after its return from the Peninsula in 1812, had remained in North Britain, until it was disbanded after the termination of the war in 1814.

During the campaign of 1815, Lieut.-Colonel Dick served with the forty-second regiment, and after the death of Lieut.-Colonel Sir Robert Macara, K.C.B., at Quatre Bras on the 16th of June of that year, the command of the regiment devolved on Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Dick, who was slightly wounded in the hip and severely in the left shoulder. He was promoted to be lieut.-colonel of the forty-second regiment on the 18th of June, 1815, the date of the battle of Waterloo, for which he received a medal, in addition to the medal and two clasps conferred on him for the battles of Busaco, Fuentes d’Onor, and Salamanca, and was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath.

Lieut.-Colonel Dick was promoted to the rank of colonel on the 27th of May, 1825, on being appointed aide-de-camp to King George IV., and in November, 1828, exchanged from the forty-second regiment to the half-pay unattached. On the 10th of January, 1837, Colonel Dick was promoted to the rank of major-general, and on the 19th of July, 1838, was nominated a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. From December 1838 to July 1842, Major-General Sir Robert Dick served upon the staff of the army at Madras, and was afterwards removed to the Presidency of Bengal. Major-General Sir Robert Dick was appointed by Her Majesty to be colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment on the 10th of June, 1845.

Upon the invasion of the British territories in India by the Sikhs in the beginning of December 1845, Major-General Sir Robert Dick was appointed to the command of the third infantry division of the “Army of the Sutlej,” and after sharing in the battle of Moodkee on the 18th of December, and that of Ferozeshah on the 21st and 22nd of the same month, was wounded by a grape-shot at Sobraon on the 10th of February, 1846, while personally animating the troops under his command, from the effects of which he died in the evening of that day. This victory brought the operations in the field to a close, and the Sikh city of Lahore was occupied by the British troops, where a treaty was concluded which was considered calculated to prevent the repetition of a similar outrage.

SIR JOHN GREY, K.C.B.

Appointed 3rd April, 1846.

Removed to the fifth Fusiliers on the 18th May, 1849.

RICHARD GODDARD HARE CLARGES, C.B.

Appointed 18th May, 1849.

APPENDIX.

Memoir of the Services of Major-General Lachlan Macquarie, formerly Lieut.-Colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment.

Major-General Lachlan Macquarie entered the army on the 9th of April, 1777, as ensign in the late eighty-fourth regiment, (which was disbanded in 1784), and performed garrison duty at Halifax, and other parts of Nova Scotia, for four years, namely, from the year 1777 to 1781. On the 18th of January, 1781, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in the late seventy-first regiment, and did garrison duty at New York and Charleston, in North America, and in the island of Jamaica for three years. He was placed on half-pay on the 4th of June, 1784, and was appointed lieutenant in the seventy-seventh regiment on the 25th of December, 1787, and promoted to the rank of captain on the 9th of November, 1788. Captain Macquarie served in various parts of India, from the 3rd of August, 1788, to the 1st of January, 1803; was present at the sieges of Cannanore, in 1790, at Seringapatam in 1791, at Cochin in 1795, and at Colombo, in Ceylon, in 1796. As a reward for his services he had received the brevet rank of major on the 3rd of May, 1796, and continued to serve in various parts of India, during the above-mentioned periods. Brevet Major Macquarie was present at the battle of Seedaseer on the 6th of March, 1799, and at the siege of Seringapatam in April and May following. Brevet Major Macquarie was afterwards employed on service in Malabar, and on the 12th of March, 1801, was promoted from the seventy-seventh to the eighty-sixth regiment. Major Macquarie proceeded with the eighty-sixth and other regiments ordered to embark from India, under Major-General David Baird, to join the army in Egypt, and was present at the siege of Alexandria in August, 1801. In November following he was promoted to the brevet rank of lieut.-colonel. He served at home as Assistant Adjutant-General on the London District Staff, from July, 1803, until March, 1805; and afterwards in India, with the eighty-sixth regiment in the field in 1805 and 1806. On the 30th of May, 1805, he was appointed lieut.-colonel in the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, which corps he returned home to join in 1807, and in May, 1809, embarked with his regiment for New South Wales, of which colony, and its dependencies, he was appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief. On the 25th July, 1810, he was advanced to the brevet rank of colonel, was appointed brigadier-general on the 21st of February, 1811, and promoted major-general on the 4th of June, 1813. His decease occurred in July, 1824.

Memoir of the Services of Lieut.-General Sir Maurice Charles O’Connell, K.C.H., formerly Lieut.-Colonel of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment.

This officer, after serving with the rank of captain in the emigrant army under the Duke of Brunswick in the campaign of 1792, entered the British army sent to the Continent on the breaking out of the war in 1793. He was appointed captain in the fourth regiment of the late Irish brigade on the 1st of October, 1794, and was placed on half-pay on the 1st of March, 1798, on the reduction of that regiment; he was appointed captain in the first West India regiment on the 21st of May, 1800, and joined shortly afterwards at St. Lucia; Captain O’Connell was appointed major of brigade to the forces at Surinam in February, 1802, and served in that colony until its restoration to the Dutch in December of that year, when he joined his regiment at St. Vincent. In May, 1803, he proceeded in command of five companies to Grenada, whence he was ordered with the whole of the regiment to Dominica in 1804. On the 1st of January, 1805, he received the brevet rank of major. He commanded the light company at Roseau, in Dominica, when an attack was made on that capital on the 22nd of February, 1805, by a French force commanded by General La Grange, and successfully resisted, during the whole day, repeated attacks made by very superior numbers of the enemy on the posts occupied by Brevet Major O’Connell, with the forty-sixth regiment, his own company of the first West India regiment, and some colonial militia. He had been appointed major of brigade to the forces at Dominica in February, 1805, and on the 23rd of May following, was appointed major of the fifth West India regiment. In September he returned to England. For his services in the defence of Dominica, Major O’Connell received the thanks of the House of Assembly in that island, and was presented by that body with a sword, value one hundred guineas; he also received a sword, value fifty pounds, and a piece of plate, value one hundred pounds, from the committee of the Patriotic Fund at Lloyd’s. On the 15th of October, 1806, Major O’Connell was appointed to the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment, in which he was promoted to the rank of Lieut.-Colonel on the 4th of May, 1809, and was appointed Lieut.-Governor of New South Wales, where he continued until April, 1814, in which month he embarked in command of the first battalion of the SEVENTY-THIRD regiment for Ceylon. In January, 1815, Lieut.-Colonel O’Connell marched in command of a division of the army under Lieut.-General Robert Brownrigg into the territories of the King of Candy, the conquest of which was achieved in forty days, and crowned by the capture of the reigning monarch, who was deposed by his own subjects, and brought a prisoner to Colombo. On the 12th of August, 1819, Lieut.-Colonel O’Connell was promoted to the rank of colonel, and to that of major-general on the 22nd of July, 1830. In 1838, Major-General O’Connell was appointed to the command of the troops in New South Wales, which appointment he held from December of that year until December, 1847. On the 23rd of November, 1841, Sir Maurice O’Connell was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general, and was appointed colonel of the eighty-first regiment on the 6th of December, 1842, from which he was removed to the eightieth regiment on the 15th of January, 1844. The decease of Lieut.-General Sir Maurice Charles O’Connell, K.C.H., occurred at Sydney, in New South Wales, on the 25th of May, 1848.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the text and consultation of external sources.

Some hyphens in words have been silently removed, some added, when a predominant preference was found in the original book.

Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text, and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.

Pg x: ‘the military foree’ replaced by ‘the military force’.

Pg xxxii (APPENDIX): The third entry ‘British and Hanoverian ... 73’ does not exist. The last page of the book is numbered ‘71’.

Pg 12: ‘above eSringapatam’ replaced by ‘above Seringapatam’.

Pg 39: Missing Sidenote for ‘1843’ inserted at the start of the paragraph ‘During the year 1843 ...’.

Pg 40: Sidenotes for ‘1848’ and ‘1849’ moved down to the next paragraph.

Pg 59: ‘appointed Govenor’ replaced by ‘appointed Governor’.

*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT ***

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Table of Contents

HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SEVENTY-THIRD REGIMENT:

GENERAL ORDERS.

PREFACE.

INTRODUCTION TO THE INFANTRY.

FOOTNOTES:

CONTENTS OF THE HISTORICAL RECORD.

CONTENTS OF THE HISTORICAL RECORD. OF THE SECOND BATTALION

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

APPENDIX.

PLATES.

INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORICAL RECORD

HISTORICAL RECORD

FOOTNOTES:

HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE SECOND BATTALION

FOOTNOTES:

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

APPENDIX.

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