Read Ebook: Historical record of the Seventh Regiment or the Royal Fusiliers Containing an Account of the Formation of the Regiment in 1685 and of Its Subsequent Services to 1846. by Cannon Richard

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YEAR PAGE

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS.

YEAR PAGE

PLATES.

Colours of the Regiment To face page 1

Costume of the Regiment in 1742 24

HISTORICAL RECORD

THE SEVENTH REGIMENT,

THE ROYAL FUSILIERS.

The regiment consisted of thirteen companies,--twelve of fusiliers and one of miners; each company consisting of three officers, three serjeants, three corporals, two drummers, and one hundred private men. The two first companies were of very old date; having been independent companies in the Tower of London many years; the other ten companies were raised in London and its vicinity by GEORGE LORD DARTMOUTH, Lieutenant-Colonel THOMAS TALMASH or Tollemache, afterwards colonel of the fifth foot and second foot guards; Richard Fowler, Major Beckman, Henry Cornwall, Sir John Morgan, John Boyce, Thomas Whalley, Charles Fitzwilliams, and Henry Vaughan; and the company of miners by Captain James Adams. THOMAS TALMASH was appointed to the lieutenant-colonelcy; and Robert St. Clair, who commanded one of the old independent companies, obtained the commission of major. The uniform was scarlet coats, lined with yellow; grey breeches and grey stockings; and the men wore yellow cloth caps, ornamented with military devices similar to those afterwards adopted for grenadiers; the other regiments of foot wore round hats with broad brims turned up on one side.

The regiment was speedily raised, and on the 4th of July the several companies were directed to proceed to the Tower of London, and perform the duties of that fortress. The rebellion being soon afterwards suppressed, and the Duke of Monmouth beheaded, the regiment was reduced to eleven companies of fusiliers, of three officers, three serjeants, three corporals, two drummers, and fifty private soldiers each; and one company of miners, of two officers, one serjeant, two corporals, one drummer, and forty miners.

After the suppression of the rebellion, King James formed a camp on Hounslow-heath; where the Scots brigade in the service of Holland, and a numerous body of English cavalry and infantry, were assembled, and the ROYAL FUSILIERS proceeded to the camp in charge of the train of artillery. When the camp was broken up, the regiment returned with the guns to the Tower of London, from whence three companies were detached to Sheerness, where they were directed to remain in garrison.

During the summer of 1686 the ROYAL FUSILIERS were again encamped in charge of the train of artillery on Hounslow-heath. The corps assembled on the heath consisted of three troops of life guards, nine regiments of cuirassiers, three of dragoons, and thirteen battalions of foot. In a description of the camp, written at the time, and published in the Antiquarian Repertory, it is stated:--"The horse, foot, and dragoons are encamped in a straight line; the intervals between the foot is seventy paces, the intervals between each regiment of horse about fifty paces, and the interval between the horse on the left and the dragoons is near half mile. The lieutenants' and ensigns' tents are in the rear of the respective companies in a direct line, seventeen paces from the soldiers' huts or tents; the captains' tents twelve paces behind the lieutenants'; the colonels' tents behind the captains', ten paces; the lieutenant-colonel on the right of the colonel, and the major on the left in a direct line. The brigadier-generals have their tents twenty paces behind the colonels'. The King's tent and chappel is in the rear of the left of the horse on the left, and the general officers' tents behind the King's. The FUSILIERS are encamped in the rear of the line, a good distance behind the interval between the Earl of Craven's regiment and the Scots guards; and in several parties about the horse carriages. The guns are planted about a hundred paces before the line, before the interval between the Scots guards and Prince George's regiment, guarded by a party of FUSILIERS; each gun having two gunners and a matrosse to attend it. The suttling booths are about two hundred paces in the rear of the line."

In August the ROYAL FUSILIERS struck their tents, and, returning to the Tower with the guns, were stationed at that fortress during the remainder of the year.

The establishment was again augmented to thirteen companies in the spring of 1687, as appears by the following warrant:--

"JAMES R.

"Whereas we have thought fit to add one company more to Our ROYAL REGIMENT OF FUSILIERS, and to apply the pay of one of the non-regimented companies mentioned in Our establishment to the entertainment of the said company of Fusiliers, with the addition of one shilling per diem to the youngest lieutenant, and one shilling and sixpence for the pay of one serjeant, and one shilling for one drummer more, Our will and pleasure is, that you include the pay of the said company, and additional allowances, within the certificates or debentures you shall from time to time make out for the pay of Our said ROYAL REGIMENT OF FUSILIERS, to commence from the 1st of January last; and for so doing this shall be your sufficient warrant.

"Given at Our Court at Whitehall this 12th day of March, 1686-7, in the third year of Our reign.

In the summer of 1687 and 1688, the ROYAL FUSILIERS were again encamped on Hounslow-heath. On the 1st of September, 1688, an augmentation of ten men per company was made to the establishment, which consisted, at this period, of eleven companies of fusiliers, one of grenadiers, and one of miners.

From this period the ROYAL FUSILIERS ceased to be considered exclusively as an ORDNANCE REGIMENT, and took their turn of duty with the regular regiments of the line: the regiment was not, however, furnished with a division of pikemen; but every man continued to be armed with a fusil.

Before the following campaign the regiment returned to England, where it was stationed while King William was in Ireland, endeavouring to rescue that country from the power of King James, who had proceeded thither with a body of troops from France.

The ROYAL FUSILIERS were afterwards placed in garrison at Kinsale, where they remained three months.

The loss of the battle of Fleurus on the 21st of June, 1690, by the Dutch troops under Prince Waldeck, gave the French the ascendancy over the confederates in Flanders; and the ROYAL FUSILIERS were selected to augment the forces in that country, where His Majesty resolved to command in person. The regiment embarked from Cork in January 1691, and sailing for Flanders experienced very severe weather at sea, and two vessels, having on board part of the FUSILIERS, were wrecked on the English coast, and many men perished. The remainder of the regiment landed at Ostend and went into quarters in West Flanders, where it was joined by a fine body of recruits and by a number of men who had been left sick at Kinsale.

When the army took the field, the ROYAL FUSILIERS were formed in brigade with the regiments of Bath , Hodges , and Fitzpatrick , commanded by Brigadier-General Churchill, and served the campaign of this year with the main army commanded by King William; but no general engagement occurred. The regiment passed the winter in cantonments among the Belgic peasantry.

The Earl of Marlborough, having fallen under the displeasure of King William, was removed from his commands, and was succeeded in the colonelcy of the ROYAL FUSILIERS by Lord GEORGE HAMILTON by commission dated the 23rd of January, 1692.

Sir Robert Douglas having been killed in the act of rescuing the colours of the first battalion of the Royals from the enemy, was succeeded in the colonelcy of that regiment by Lord George Hamilton; and the command of the ROYAL FUSILIERS was conferred on Colonel EDWARD FITZPATRICK, from a newly-raised regiment, which had been disbanded.

On the 22nd of August the regiment was detached from the main army, with several other corps, under Lieutenant-General Talmash, to Furnes, where the troops encamped until the fortifications were put in a state of defence; the ROYAL FUSILIERS afterwards proceeded to Dixmude, and were employed in repairing the works; and after the completion of this service, they marched into quarters at Ghent, where they passed the winter.

The ROYAL FUSILIERS were posted near the right of the confederate army, where a slight entrenchment had been made during the preceding night. As the first rays of morning light appeared in the horizon, waving masses of glittering arms, traversing the undulating grounds in front, gave indication of an approaching enemy, when the artillery opened a heavy fire, and the battle began. For some time the FUSILIERS were spectators of the action, while much fighting took place at the villages of La?r, Neer-Winden, Neer-Landen, and the fortune of the day was everywhere in favour of the confederates; but eventually the position was forced at the village of Neer-Winden, and the Hanoverian Cavalry were broken. Heavy columns of pikemen and musketeers, consisting of the French brigades of Vermandois, Nice, Roussillon, and Sare, flanked by dragoons, and preceded by a cloud of grenadiers, approached the ground where the ROYAL FUSILIERS were posted. Colonel Fitzpatrick was at the head of the regiment, and directed the men to reserve their fire until the near approach of their opponents. As the French soldiers sprang forward with their characteristic energy, and threw a shower of hand-grenades over the breast-work, a well-directed volley from the FUSILIERS rent chasms in the French ranks; but the survivors, being supported by an immense superiority of numbers, and urged forward by Marshal Villeroy, renewed the attack; while the marshal led a chosen body of men to the charge, and forced the right of the entrenchment. The ROYAL FUSILIERS, and other corps at this part of the field, were attacked in front and flank, and a sanguinary conflict ensued. Colonel Fitzpatrick was carried from the field wounded, yet the FUSILIERS stood their ground; ranks of opponents ascended the breast-work, and were speedily cut down or forced back. At length the British battalions were overpowered and driven from their ground. Stung with resentment at this disaster, they speedily rallied, and, rushing sword in hand upon their opponents, they once more regained the lost ground. A momentary pause ensued; but soon a fresh body of opponents renewed the fight, and the British regiments were again overpowered by superior numbers. The FUSILIERS evinced the stern valour of British soldiers; their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Whalley, fell mortally wounded; Major Wilson was removed bleeding to the rear; yet they disputed the ground with sanguinary tenacity until all chance of ultimate success had passed away, when they withdrew from the field, and joining a large body of infantry under Lieutenant-General Talmash, retired by the brook Beck upon Dormal, and thence to Lewe. The enemy attempted to interrupt the retreat; but the British battalions facing about to confront their pursuers, the French halted, and the retrograde movement of this body of men was performed with trifling loss; the remainder of the army had, however, to pass the river Gheet by a narrow bridge, and the defiles becoming choked with gun-carriages, the rear was severely handled by the French, and the King narrowly escaped being taken prisoner.

The loss of the regiment on this occasion was very severe: among the killed were Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Whalley, an officer of distinguished merit, who raised one of the companies of the regiment at its formation in 1685, and Lieutenants Fairbrother, Cooper, and Blackmore; Captain Ruthwin died of his wounds: among the wounded were Colonel Edward Fitzpatrick, Major Wilson, Captains Harte, Betsworth, and Withers, and Lieutenant Fletcher; the loss in non-commissioned officers and private soldiers was very great; but the exact number has not been ascertained.

The regiment was employed in the movements of the main army until the end of the campaign, when it returned to Ghent, where it was stationed during the winter, together with three battalions of foot-guards, and the Queen Dowager's regiment of foot.

In the spring of 1694 a numerous body of recruits from England replaced the losses of the preceding campaign, and when the regiment took the field, it was reviewed by King William, and complimented on its martial appearance, and the steadiness with which it performed the simple manoeuvres practised at that period. It served in the brigade under the orders of Brigadier-General Erle, and performed many long and toilsome marches in Flanders and Brabant; but no general engagement occurred, and it passed another winter in barracks at Ghent.

This success stimulated the soldiers to fresh exertions, and on the 17th of July, when the ROYAL FUSILIERS were directed to take part in the storming of the counterscarp, they engaged in this service with a cheerful alacrity, which proved the ardour which glowed in every breast. The grenadiers led the assault, and, rushing to the glacis, cast their grenades over the palisades into the covered way. Following up this attack with spirit, the French were overpowered, the counterscarp was carried in gallant style, and the ROYAL FUSILIERS were thanked by King William for their distinguished bravery. They had Lieutenant Dancy killed and Captain Negus wounded; also a number of private men killed and wounded. The siege was prosecuted with vigour, and with such success that before the end of July the town was delivered up, Marshal Boufflers retiring with the garrison into the castle.

During the following winter a conspiracy was formed in England for the assassination of King William: at the same time an insurrection was organised, and a French army was assembled near the coast to aid in the replacing of King James on the throne. A body of troops was immediately ordered to return from Flanders; and the ROYAL FUSILIERS embarked at Sas van Ghent, sailed from thence to Flushing, where the transports were placed under the convoy of Dutch men-of-war, and, afterwards resuming the voyage, arrived at Gravesend in March, 1696. The plot had, however, been discovered, the conspirators arrested, and the British fleet was manned and sent to sea; the French monarch's designs were thus frustrated, and the FUSILIERS returned to Flanders without landing in England.

During the campaign of 1696 the regiment served with the Brabant army commanded by King William; but no fighting took place. In the beginning of September it joined the army of Flanders under the Prince of Vaudemont, and, encamping near the village of St. Michael, was employed in constructing works for the protection of Bruges. In October it marched to Ghent.

In November, 1696, Brigadier-General Sir Charles O'Hara was appointed colonel of the ROYAL REGIMENT OF FUSILIERS, in succession to Brigadier-General Fitzpatrick, drowned.

Leaving Ghent on the 13th of March, 1697, the regiment proceeded into village quarters between Brussels and Malines. Two companies were detached to form part of the garrison of Oudenarde, and the remainder subsequently encamped behind the forest of Soignies, where the men suffered much from wet weather and from the want of their clothing, which was due, but had not arrived from England.

The ROYAL FUSILIERS took part in the operations of this campaign. In September a treaty of peace was signed at Ryswick, and during the winter the regiment returned to England; at the same time its numbers were reduced to a peace establishment.

In August, 1698, the regiment proceeded to Jersey and Guernsey, to relieve a corps of marines which was ordered to be disbanded.

The war being continued, the ROYAL FUSILIERS were employed during the summer of 1703 as marines on board the fleet: they afterwards landed, and were placed in garrison at Portsmouth, from whence a detachment was sent to the Isle of Wight in August, 1704. In 1705 the regiment was stationed at Plymouth.

From Barcelona the ROYAL FUSILIERS marched a distance of forty-seven miles, to Gironne, a fortified town of Catalonia, situated at the base of a steep mountain, with the river Tar running through the town. Here the regiment passed in comfortable quarters among the Spaniards the remainder of the year 1706 and the early part of 1707. Provisions and wine were abundant, and the regiment was preserved in a state of efficiency.

The garrison of Lerida consisted of the ROYAL FUSILIERS, Wills's marines , with one Portuguese and two Dutch battalions, commanded by Prince Henry of Hesse d'Armstadt and Major-General Wills. A powerful French and Spanish army under His Royal Highness the Duke of Orleans and the Duke of Berwick invested the town on the 10th of September, and, having effected a breach, gave a general assault on the 12th of October. The garrison defended its post with admirable courage and resolution, and the firmness and steady valour of the ROYAL FUSILIERS were conspicuous. The enemy having made a lodgment, the garrison vacated the town, and retired to the castle at the top of the hill, where a vigorous defence was continued until the water and provisions were expended, when the fortress was surrendered on honourable terms. The garrison marched, out on the 12th of November with colours flying, taking with them all their baggage and two pieces of cannon, and proceeded to join the army under the Earl of Galway.

The ROYAL FUSILIERS, having sustained considerable loss in the defence of Lerida, returned to England in the spring of 1708 to recruit, and their colonel, Major-General Sir Charles O'Hara, was advanced to the peerage by the title of BARON TYRAWLEY.

During the winter of 1708 and spring of 1709 the regiment occupied extensive cantonments in Devonshire and Somersetshire, and its ranks were rapidly recruited.

This year Lieut.-General Stanhope formed the design of surprising Cadiz, and concerted measures with Admiral Sir George Byng, on board of whose squadron he embarked from Port Mahon with two regiments of foot, and sailed to Gibraltar to await the arrival of a body of troops from England. The ROYAL FUSILIERS were selected to take part in this enterprise, and they embarked at Portsmouth on board of the squadron commanded by Rear-Admiral Baker; but the fleet was detained so long by contrary winds, that it did not reach Portugal until October, when the season was too far advanced for prosecuting this adventure, and the regiment sailed to Barcelona.

On the 29th of January, 1713, the colonelcy was conferred on the Honourable James O'Hara, in succession to his father, James Lord Tyrawley.

The ROYAL FUSILIERS remained at Minorca until the spring of 1719, when they were relieved, and arrived at Plymouth in May of that year; in July they proceeded to Ireland, where they continued until 1727.

In 1727, when the Spaniards besieged Gibraltar, the regiment was ordered to return to England, and it was subsequently held in readiness to join the Dutch in their war with Austria; but no embarkation took place.

The regiment remained in Great Britain until 1734, when it proceeded to Gibraltar.

Lord Tyrawley having been removed to the fifth horse in August, 1739, his lordship was succeeded in the colonelcy by Major-General William Hargrave, from the ninth foot.

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