IRLF 
 
£ L .< K E L E Y 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 UNIVERSIIfrtOF . 
 CAMf^NIA J J 
 
 -Y- 
 
 X 
 
HISTORY 
 
 or Tuz 
 
 SCOTTISH REGIMENTS 
 
 BRITISH ARMY. 
 
 BY 
 
 AECri. K. MURHAY, ESQ., 
 
 MAJOR or THE KINETY-8EVEXTII LANARKSUIllE VOLUNTEEK IUARH8. 
 
 pubUs^cb bg ^uqntst of ^is $rotbcr OiSurs. 
 
 GLASGOW: 
 
 T IT O M A S M U K K A V AND SO N. 
 
 1 ^ G 2. 
 
M«7 
 
 t'OXTKNTS. 
 
 Pa»b 
 
 Preface, ... 3 
 
 Introduction, 5 
 
 Secoxt) Royal North Uritisii Dragoons, or "Scots Grey.s," - 13 
 
 "The Guards." Grenadiers — Coldstreams — Scots Fusiuers, - 11 
 
 The First " Royal Scots," 78 
 
 The Twenty-First Foot, or "Royal North British I-'usiuers," 121 
 The Tvventy-Fifth Foot. " Kin<;'s Own Borderers," ob Edinburgh 
 
 Regiment, 145 
 
 The Twenty-Sixth Foot, OR " Camebonlans," 1G9 
 Life Guards. Seventh Hussars — Seventeenth Light Draooons — 
 
 Seventiitih Foot, 187 
 
 The Seventy-Third Foot — "Perthshire," I'Jl 
 
 The Sevknty-Fifth Foot — "Stirungshire," - - 199 
 
 The Ninetieth Foot, or " Perthshire Volunteer*;,' - 1*05 
 
 The Ninety-First Foot — " Argyleshire," .... 212 
 
 The Scots Brig.\de, or the Old Ninety-Fourth Foot, - - 224 
 
 The Ninety-Ninth Foot, or "Lanarkshibb," 236 
 
 The Old Highl-vni) Brigade, . - - 241 
 
 The Forty-Second, ob " Royal Uiohlanders " — •' Black Watch," 250 
 
 The Seventy-First, or "OLAs<iow Highland Light Inkaxtry." • 288 
 
 The Seventy-%Secx)nd, or " Duke of Albany's Highlanders," 313 
 
 The Seventy-Fourth Highlanders, 330 
 
 The SEVENTTf-KiGHTH HiGHiJuvDER-s, or "Ross-shire Buffs," - 3.'»2 
 
 Thi Seventy- Nlvth, or "Cameron Hkhilanders,' 380 
 
 The Ni>'ety-Second, OB " GoBDON Highlanders," 394 
 
 The Ninety -Third, or " Sutherland Highlanders." - 409 
 
 172 
 
INDKX TO TLATMS. 
 
 Koyol Arms, 
 Sojte Dragoon, 
 
 FroutispiL'co 
 Fruuting page 13 
 
 Colours of the " Scota Greys," - ."53 
 
 Bakkkva, ... - '.VJ 
 
 "Scota Greys," 1802, - - U) 
 
 Princo Albert, - - - 41 
 
 Ix)ni Clyde, - - - - 45 
 
 Naiwleon, .... 06 
 
 Duke of Cambridge, - - 74 
 
 The "Guardij'" Monument, - 77 
 
 Gustavus Adoluhus, - - 82 
 
 I'rince do Conde, ... 88 
 
 MaTHlml Turronnc, - - - IHJ 
 
 Duko do Sehombcrg, - - "Jo 
 
 St Sobastiau, - - - - 113 
 ITie Twenty -first Royal North- 
 
 TVitish Fuhilicrs, - - - 121 
 
 W : :.iiu, .... 127 
 
 1\ 'Tankie, ... 147 
 All. i.iit Badge of the Twenty-fifth, 150 
 ( '. )1. .lira of the Twcnty-lifth, 2 plates, IGH 
 
 Martjuu of Dalbousie, - - 184 
 
 S«Tiiiginutaiu, - - - 197 
 
 Delhi, :"■:? 
 
 Loni Lynedoch, - -"•'' 
 
 Ltickoow, - 211 
 
 Ancient Soldiers, - Fronting page 224 
 Oflicor of Tikemen, - - 232 
 
 Old Highland Brigade, &c., - 241 
 The Forty-second Royal Highlanders, 250 
 Sir Ralph Alx-Tciomby, - - 273 
 Sir John Moore, - - - 280 
 Sebaatopol, - - - - 287 
 The Seventy-firBt Glasgow Highland 
 
 Light Infantry, - - - 300 
 Waterloo, - - - - 310 
 The Seventy -second and Seventy - 
 
 fourth Highlanders, - - 329 
 
 Duke of Wdliugton, - - 330 
 
 Wreck of the "Birkcnliead," - 346 
 
 India, 373 
 
 Sir Henry Havelock, - - 377 
 
 Monument to the Seventy-eighth, 379 
 Presentation Plate to the Seventy- 
 eighth, .... 379 
 IxK-hiel, .... .HHi 
 Duke of Richmond, - 394 
 French Revolutionary War, - 407 
 The Nincty-thinl Sutherhind High- 
 landers, - - - - 409 
 Crimea, - - - - 415 
 Presentation of Crimean Medals, 416 
 
I'll El ACE. 
 
 In the present Work, the Author, without pretending to 
 submit anything very startling or original, has endeavoured 
 to gather from the records of the past such facts as may 
 enable him, avoiding the tedium of detail, to present to the 
 reader a brief and, it Ls hoped, at the same time, a compre- 
 hensive narrative of the origin and principal events in which 
 our Scottish Regiments have so largely and honourably been 
 distiniruished. 
 
 It is wholly foreign to the purpose of the Author in any 
 way to overlook the valorous achievements of the English and 
 Irish Regiments in Her i\Iajesty's Service, which have alike 
 contributed to build up the military renown of the British 
 Army; ho only tnists he shall receive that same charitable 
 indulgence, in his present undertaking, which in like circum- 
 stances he, with every right-hearted Scot, should cordially 
 extend to brethren of either a sister land or sister isle. It is 
 in these pages, as a Sc'Otsman, he ventures to give expression 
 to the nation's gratitude and honest pride — awards, in the 
 name of friend and foe, the meed of praLsc justly due to the 
 brave soldier who has fouglit his country's battles in almost 
 every land — ofttimes ^'icto^iously — at all times honoural»ly. 
 
 The Author gratefully acknowletlges the assistance freely 
 
4 PEEFACE. 
 
 rendered him in this compihation by many Officers of the 
 Eegiments described. He feels also considerably indebted to 
 many very valuable works, on the same and kindred subjects, 
 for much of his information. Unfortunately, many of these 
 volumes are now very ancient, others nearly extinct, and 
 nearly all so expensive as to fail in answering the purpose of 
 the present Work, by bringing before the public, in a cheaper 
 and more popular form, the records of those heroic deeds, 
 the narrative of which ought to be as "household words," 
 infusing a thrill of living patriotism and loyalty into the soul. 
 It IS hoped, as the grand result of the Work, that Scots- 
 men, considering the rich legacy of military glory bequeathed 
 them by their heroic forefathers, specially registered in these 
 Scottish Regiments, will be more impressed with the duty 
 devolving on them to maintain and emulate the same. Whilst 
 these records may afford Imowledge, it is also hoped that they 
 may awaken a larger sympathy and deeper interest on the part 
 of the people in those, their brave coimtrymen, who so well 
 represent the nation ; and if circumstances preclude us from 
 accepting the "Eoyal Shilling," and so recruiting the army, 
 let us be ready to accept, for the expression of our thoughts 
 and feelings, that grand channel which, in our time, has been 
 revived as the exponent of the people's patriotism and loyalty 
 — the Volunteer Movement — whether as active or honorary 
 members, giving effect to our sentiments, and demonstrating, 
 "by deeds as well as words," that we are in earnest. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Nature lias been aptly represented as a fickle goddess, scat- 
 tering her bounties here and there with a partial hand. Some 
 spots, like very Edens, are blessed with the lavish profusion of 
 her favours — rich fertility, luxuriant vegetation, warm and 
 delightful climates. Some, on the other hand, which have not 
 so shareil the distribution of her gifts, represent the barren 
 wilderness, the sterile desert, the desolate places of our earth 
 — entombed in a perpetual winter — a ceaseless winding-sheet 
 of snow and ice seems for ever to rest upon tliese cold, chilly, 
 Polar regions: or parched, fainting, dying, dead, where no 
 friendly cloud intervenes, like the kindly hand of love and 
 sympathy, to screen the thirsty earth from the consuming rays 
 of a tropical sun. lUit, as if by "the wayside," we gather from 
 the analogy, that as in the world of man there is a Scripture 
 proclaiming comfort and blessing to the poor and needy — whilst 
 it tells the rich how hardly they shall enter into " life " — so in 
 the worhl of natiu'e there is an over-ruling, all-wise, all-just 
 Providence, "Who moves in a mysterious way," making 
 , ample amends in the result upon the peoples of these chmes, 
 80 as yet shall cause " the wilderness to rejoice." Thus we 
 find that lands enriched by nature ofttimes proiluce a i^cople 
 who, rich iii this world's good things, acquired without much 
 
6 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 effort, allow their minds to become so intoxicated with present 
 delights and indolence, as to fail in cultivating the virtues of 
 the man. Too frequently the fruits are these — ignorance, 
 lust, passion, infidelity, and general debility. Whilst the barren, 
 dreary wilderness, the bleak and desolate mountain-land — 
 like the poor and needy upon whom Nature has frowned — 
 enjoy the smile of Providence "in a better portion;" for there, 
 amid a comparatively poor people, are nurtured all the sterner, 
 the nobler, the truer, the God-like qualities of the man, the 
 soldier, and the hero. There, too, hath been the birth-place 
 and the abiding shrine of freedom — the bulwark and the bas- 
 tion of patriotism and loyalty. Ascending higher, these — the 
 peoples of the rejected and despised places of the earth — have 
 ofttimes begotten and been honoured to wear the crowning- 
 attribute of piety. Turning to the history of Scotland or of 
 Switzerland, for illustration, and taking merely a military 
 retrospect, there it will be found. All centuries, all ages, all 
 circumstances, are witness to the bravery and the fidelity of 
 their mountain-soldiers. 
 
 Scotland, the unendowed by Nature, has been thus largely 
 blessed by Nature's God, in yielding a long line of valiant and 
 illustrious men. Perhaps no nation engrosses so large and 
 prominent a place in the temple of military fame — none can 
 boast so bright a page in the history of the brave. Her stern 
 and rugged mountains, like a vast citadel, where scarce a foe- 
 man ever dared to penetrate, have been defended through cen- 
 turies of war against the advancing and all but overwhelming 
 tide of aggression; besieged, too, by the countless hosts of 
 
INTRODUCTION. 7 
 
 Tyranny, they have still remained impregnable. Her wild and 
 desolate glens, like great arteries down which hath flowed the 
 life-blood of the nation, in the living stream — the native and 
 resistless valour of her clans. Iler bleak and dreary heatlis 
 have written on them one dark history of blood — " the mar- 
 tyred chikken of the Covenant." Faithful unto death ; " of 
 whom the world was not worthy." Her crown oft cru.shed 
 beneath a tyrant's heel — her freedom trampled on — her people 
 betrayed — all lost but honour. Unscathed, unsullied, she has 
 triumphed, and still lives to write upon her banner, the 
 mighty, envied, and thrice-glorious word, " UnconquerecL" 
 
 Armies have a very ancient history. Their origin might be 
 traced to the very gates of Paradise. When the unliridled lust 
 and wrathful passions of man were let loose like Furies, to 
 wander forth upon the earth, then it was that lawless adven- 
 turers, gathering themselves together into armed l)ands for 
 hostile purposes, to live and prey upon their weaker brethren, 
 constituted themselves annies. Passing down the stream of 
 time, through the Feudal Age, we find one among the many 
 greater, mightier, wealthier — a giant towering above his fel- 
 lows — exercised lordship, levied tribute, military and civil, 
 over othei-s as over slaves. These were the days of chivalry, 
 — the Cnisades — when cavalry coustitute<l the grand strength 
 of an army. Here we might begin the history of cavalry as 
 an important constituent in annies, were such our purpose. 
 The comparative iv)verty of our ancient Scottish nobility pre- 
 vented them contributing largely to the chivalrj* of the age. 
 Almost the sole representative we have of our Scottish Cavalry, 
 
8 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 is the Second Eegiment of Eoyal North Britisli Dragoons, or 
 Scots Greys — a most worthy representative. The wars of the 
 Interreo'mim m Scotland— the times of Wallace and Bruce — 
 whcD the feudal lords had nearly all either deserted or betrayed 
 her, introduce us to a new force, more suited to the independent 
 character and patriotism of the Scottish people — the formation 
 of corps of infantry, or armed bands of free burghers. These 
 were the fruit, to a large extent, of the Magna Charter in 
 England, and of the struggle for liberty in Scotland. Hence 
 the wars of Edward the Black Prince with France, distinguished 
 by the victories of Poitiers, Agincourt, and Cressy, may be 
 viewed not merely as the epitome of the triumphs of England 
 over France, but more especially as illustrating the success of 
 this new force — represented in the English yeomen, burghers, 
 citizens, and freemen — over the old force, sustained in the 
 chivalry, the cavalry of France. The result of these suc- 
 cessive defeats, we find, was most disastrous to France. The 
 jealousy and fear of the nobles and feudal lords had denied the 
 people the use and the knowledge of arms ; so that when them- 
 selves were defeated, France was ruined — since they could 
 expect no support, as in Scotland, from an unarmed and 
 unsldlled people. They had done what they could to quench 
 rather than foster the spirit of free patriotism, which in the 
 nation's extremity should have been the nation's refuge — the 
 soul burning to deliver their land from the yoke of the 
 stranger. In not a few cases, the French rather sympathised 
 with, as they sighed for the same blessings of our free-born 
 English yeomen. Here we would mark, respectively in the 
 
INTRODl CTIOX. 
 
 English and Scottish armies, the first formation of that branch 
 of the service for "which the Britisli army ha.s ever been 
 specially distinguished — the Infantry. 
 
 Our reader is no doubt aware of the calamitous results 
 which Howed from the short-sighted policy of these privileged 
 orders — the old feudal lords; whose love of a petty despotism 
 laboural to postpone the day of reckoning " till a more con- 
 venient sctison" — and so refusetl the timely surrender of those 
 privileges and that liberty which the growing wealth and in- 
 telligence of the people claimed. Long, bloody, and unavaiUng 
 civil wars have desolate<l and vexed many countries as the 
 consequence; and in France the contest attained a fearful 
 crisis, and the people wreaked a cruel retribution in the awful 
 horrors of the Revolution. 
 
 The increasing importance of commerce, and the growing 
 desire for wealth in proference to the uncertain and doubtful 
 lustre of the battle-field, induced men to gather themselves 
 together, not as formerly for war, but rather for the prose- 
 cution of trade; thus constituting themselves into trade- 
 unions, communities, burgheratcs, free townships. Disowning 
 the bondage of feudidism, as a system peculiarly adapted 
 for war, and hostile in its spirit to a more peaceful voca- 
 tion, they sought and obtainetl, in their earlier history at 
 least, royal protection. Independently of their engagements 
 and allegiance to the throne, these trading communities, aware 
 of the restlessness, rapacity, and necessities of the old feudal 
 lords around them, formed themselves into trained bands of 
 free yeomen, or sort of militia, for the purpose — first, of defend- 
 
10 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 ing tlieir own industry, property, and lives; and, secondly, for 
 the service of tlieir sovereign and country in times of need. 
 These are amono-st the earliest ideas we have of a reo-iment. At 
 an earlier age, we find many of the monarchs of Europe retain- 
 ing in their service a body of foreign guards, specially entrusted 
 with the defence of the royal person, so often threatened 
 through the ambition of the nobles and the turbulence of the 
 people. In nearly every instance these were composed of 
 Scottish emigrants, driven from their country by the cruel and 
 desolating wars which then disturbed her peace, and had pro- 
 scribed many of the honourable and brave. We know no 
 exception in which these corps of guards have not maintained 
 the Scottish character, nay, been specially distinguished for the 
 valour and fidelity with which they fulfilled their duty. Thus 
 originated the First Royals, or Royal Scots Regiment of the 
 present British army. The free citizens, continuing to prosper 
 and proportion ably growing in power and influence, gradually 
 insinuated themselves into State afi"airs. As they grew in 
 wealth, so unfortunately they increased in pride and arrogance, 
 forgetting altogether their early humility. They essayed to 
 be a political as well as a trading community. Having over- 
 thrown the power of feudalism, they threatened to shake the 
 foundations of the throne. These murmurings speedily 
 awakened the royal jealousy, and broke in upon the peaceful 
 harmony of their hitherto successful alliance. The prosperity 
 and support of these freemen had elevated the might and 
 majesty of the throne, with which they had been early leagued, 
 and these together had compelled the old feudal nobility to 
 
IXTROnrCTION. 1 1 
 
 exercise tlieir rule iu something more of a constitutional way. 
 Gladly, therefore, ilid these last avail themselves of these dis- 
 sensions to restore their long-lost power. Uniting with the 
 crown, whose interests were more peculiarly their own, they 
 called upon their still adherent tenantry to muster around 
 them; and thus commenced the sanguinary civil wars, al- 
 ready in a previous paragraph referred to, between king and 
 people, which have devastated so many lands. These ten- 
 antry, thus raised, idtimately taken into the royal pay, as 
 regiments, have gone far to constitute the armies of their 
 several states. 
 
 In conclusion, we would remark, that the wars of the past 
 have been as it were nuUerial contests — wars of matter rather 
 than of mind — by which we mean that mifjht ha.s been under- 
 stood as right; not as now, when right is acknowledged as 
 might. Formerly it was he who excelled in physical strength 
 and prowess that was crowned victor ; now-a-days the appli- 
 ances of mind, the inventive genius of man, have so improved 
 the art of war, that upon these the result of the contest must 
 largely depend. Skill and science, developed in a thousand 
 ■ways, are the weapons with which our battles are to be 
 fought and won ; and this, too, at a time when man has been 
 dwarfed in his bodily might by the bloody and protracted 
 wars of the past, and enervated by the ease and indolence 
 found in cities, so as to bo no longer able for a contest as 
 of old; and so the providence of God steps in to supply 
 the vacuum occasioned by decay, and from the rapid marcli 
 of civilisation, and the wonderful development of the mind. 
 
1 2 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 represents to us a better state of things — the triumph of the 
 mind of the present over the matter of the past. The \dc- 
 tories of the battle-field are being superseded by the triumphs 
 of the Cabinet. The first Napoleon conquered by the sword — 
 the present Napoleon conquers by superior craft and intrigue, 
 whilst we, as a nation, are sitting by to register with an occa- 
 sional growl his successes. It has been the knowledge of these 
 facts — this new system of warfare — that has aroused the 
 nation to see its danger in time; to feel that " our glory " is 
 but an ideal security; to know that steam and electricity have 
 comparatively bridged the sea, and so done away with our best 
 defence; to learn that the inventions of men comparatively 
 equalise combatants. It has been the knowledge of these 
 thing's, alons; with indications of a comino- struo;o;le castins; 
 its shadow before, that has called the nation, with one 
 enthusiastic voice, to arms — in our present Volunteer force. 
 
&miie 
 
 SCOTCH DRAGOON 168 0. 
 
lIISTOPiY OF TKE SCO ITISII REGDIENTS. 
 
 SEliiNK liiiVAI. NOUTIl lilMTISII hKAiiiiiiNS. 
 SCOTS GREYS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 " Come fill up my cup, come fill up my can, 
 Come 8n<lille my horses, ami call out my men; 
 Unhook the west jwrt juiil let uu giie irve; 
 For it's up wi' the bouneta o' bonoie Dundee." 
 
 EARLY HISTORY — COVENANTERS — BATTLES OF DRUMCLOG AN1> 
 BOTUWELL BRIDGE — ARGYLE's REBELLION — THE RAID OF 
 THE MACDONALDS — FLIGHT OF JAMES 11. — DUNDEE'S 
 REBELLION — BATTLES OF KILLIECRANKIE AND CROMDALE 
 — MASSACRE OF GLENOOE — 1660-1C93. 
 
 The page of hi.story presents to us many dark scenes of 
 oppression, where one man, trampling ujwn the rights of 
 another, and disregartliug the heaven-born principle of charity, 
 has sold his brother in.o bondage. Nay, more, (jw especially 
 illustrated in the case of Spain groaning beneath the thral- 
 dom of the Papacy), some men have even succeeiled in en- 
 
14 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 slaving the mind; stopping up with vile trash the avenues of 
 knowledge, and so defacing and ruining that mirror of 
 the intellect which reflects so much of its Creator, which 
 originally bore the impress of divinity, and was moulded 
 in the likeness of God. But the pride of the human heart, 
 and the unhallowed passion of man, stay not here, but have 
 attempted more — to subdue the soul — but in vain. It is pos- 
 sible to fetter or destroy the hody, nay, it is even possible to 
 enslave, or annihilate in madness, the mind, but it is impossi- 
 hle for man to bind the undying soul. Nevertheless, it has 
 been the infatuation of tyrants, deluded by false creeds, in 
 many countries and in many ages, to seek, but in vain, to 
 usurp the dominion of the sold. The soul, like "the bush 
 burned but not consumed," lives still, lives for ever, defying 
 the fires of persecution, the wasting famine, and the de- 
 vouring sword. It comes forth scatheless, purified, living; 
 having shaken off the corruption of earth, it appears clothed 
 in the garments of immortality. There can be no better testi- 
 mony to the suitableness of the true religion to meet the wants 
 of man than this — that whilst all others have proved them- 
 selves to be so many systems of tyranny, bereaving man of 
 his beloved liberty, the religion of Jesus is free, and is always 
 to be welcomed as the herald of civil and religious liberty; 
 wherever its blessing rests, its benign influence is felt, and its 
 glorious light shines. 
 
 It was in such a time as this in Scotland, when the iron 
 will of Charles II., already oppressing the persons and the 
 minds of his people, aspired to the dominion of their soul 
 
SCOTS GIIEYS. 15 
 
 and conscience, by calling upon them to introduce into 
 their simple forms of woi-ship a host of objectionable 
 mummeries, savouring of Popery, and threatening thereby 
 to corrupt the purity of the Presbyterian faith. In vain 
 they petitioned for liberty of conscience and protested against 
 these intrusions. Persisting in the introduction of these 
 idle rites, and denying redress, the monarch preferred plung- 
 ing the nation into all the horroi-s of civil war, rather than 
 depart from his purpose. To enforce these requirements 
 the king raised in Scotland two troops of Life Guards, after- 
 wards disbanded; a regiment of horse, known as Claverhouse's 
 Troopers — 
 
 "The bonnota o' bonnie Dundee;'' 
 
 a regiment of Foot Guards; a regiment of foot, now the 
 Twenty-first, North British Fusiliei*s; and, in 1C78, two troops 
 of dragoons, which, increaseil by the addition of other troops 
 in 1681, constituted the Royal Re(jiment of Scots Drarjoons, 
 now known familiarly as the Scots Greys. The corps was 
 originally commanded by Sir Thomas Dalziel, who in IGSl 
 was appointetl the first colonel of the regiment. He was 
 always a staunch adherent of the House of Stuart, had been 
 taken prisoner at the battle of Worcester, but escaping from the 
 Tower, served with distinction in the Russian army during the 
 Tartar wars. Returning to Scotland at the Restoration, he was 
 employed by the king in enforcing his will upon the Presby- 
 terians, and he discharged his duty with all the scrupulous 
 exactness of a soldier. To the Covenanters he has left a most 
 unenviable memory — as a monster of cruelty, devoiil of merry. 
 
1 6 • HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 His eccentricities, especially in regard to dress, often excited the 
 merriment of the Court, and created quite a sensation amongst 
 the juveniles of the metropolis. He died in 1685. 
 
 The early history of the Eoyal Scots Dragoons is painfully 
 and intimately associated with the sufferings and trials of the 
 Covenanters — a page in our history which, would the trutli 
 admit, we would gladly omit. The ignominious duty imposed 
 upon this gallant regiment, of hunting down the Presbyterians, 
 and the cruelties which they were called to witness, sometimes 
 to inflict upon their unhappy brethren, must have been ex- 
 tremely harrowing and repulsive to the feelings of brave men. 
 Along with a troop of horse, a troop of the corps was present in 
 1679, under Graham of Claverhouse, at the battle of Drumclos:, 
 where they were defeated, with the loss of twenty men, by the 
 superior numbers and desperate valour of the Covenanters, as 
 also from the unsuitableness of the ground for cavalry to act 
 upon. The result of this overthrow was a general rising of 
 the disaffected and oppressed — a motley and undisciplined 
 army was speedily assembled, better in the use of the tongue 
 than the sword; and as always happens where that "un- 
 ruly member" is in the ascendant, proved the precursor of 
 party division, and in the end brought ruin to the good cause 
 in which they had embarked. Foiled in an attack upon Glas- 
 gow by the retiring royal troops, especially the Eoyal Scots 
 Dragoons and Scots Foot Guards, the Covenanters took up a 
 strong position behind the Clyde at Bothwell Bridge, and 
 there awaited the attack of the royal army, now advancing 
 from Edinburgh under the Duke of IMonmouth. FaiHug 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 1 7 
 
 in efTecting an accommodation, the battle was commenced 
 by the Royal Scots Dragoons, supported by the Scots Foot 
 Guards attacking the bridge, which, defended with great 
 bravery, Wits only rolin(|uished when the ammunition of the 
 defenders was exhausted. The loss of this most important 
 post, as well as the divisions already prevailing amongst the 
 Covenanters, soon produced a panic which lost the battle, 
 mined for the present the cause of liberty of conscience, and 
 served to add nearly ten years more to their sufferings. In 
 the pursuit, the troopci-s of Claverhouse took a cruel revenge 
 for the defeat of Drumclog, upon the broken and Hying 
 remnaht. 
 
 The Royal Scots Dragoons continuing to be employed in the 
 humiliating work of persecution, were often roughly handled 
 by the Presbyterians, especially at Ayr IMoss on the 20th July, 
 1G80, where a desperate rencontre took place. 
 
 The Earl of Arg}'le, a nobleman of great merit, and for some 
 time enjoying the esteem of liis sovereign, being suspected of a 
 leaning to the Nonconformists, or Covenanters, at the instigation 
 of the Duke of York was arraigned for treason, and, accordingly, 
 condemned to death. Escaping to France, Argylc returne<l in 
 1CS5, and landing \\\i\\ a force of 300 men in Arg}'le3hire, 
 summoned his clansmen, and endeavoured, with little success, 
 to raise the Presbyterians, and so, setting up the standard of 
 rebellion, threatened to dethrone James II., who but lately had 
 succeeded his brother in the throne. After much fniitlesa 
 mananivring, he advancctl into the Lowlands, but was met by 
 the royal troops, iucUuling the Royal Scots Dragoons, near 
 
18 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Dumbarton, under the Earl of Dumbarton. Attempting to 
 retreat in the darkness of the night, his guides betrayed him, 
 his army fell into disorder and disbanded, whilst he himself 
 was taken prisoner and afterwards executed at Edinburgh. 
 On the morrow, the Royal Scots Dragoons, assisted by other 
 troops, attacked a considerable body of the rebels under Sir 
 John Cochrane, which still remained together in the neighbour- 
 hood in a strongly fortified position. After hard fighting, in 
 course of which the dragoons dismounted and fought hand to 
 hand on foot, and after the loss of many ofiicers, among whom 
 were Sir Adam Blair, Sir AVilliam Wallace, and Capt. Clelland, 
 also Lord Eoss wounded, the rebels were driven back and 
 ultimately dispersed. 
 
 On the death of Lieut.-General Sir Thomas Dalziel, in 1685, 
 Lord Charles Murray, afterwards the Earl of Duumore, and 
 son of the Marquis of Athole, one of the original officers of the 
 corps, was promoted to the colonelcy. ^ 
 
 In 1688 a part of the regiment was called upon to interfere 
 on behalf of the Government- — unfortunately on the wrong 
 side — in one of those unhappy broils which, as the dregs of 
 feudalism, still so sorely distressed the Highlands. The 
 Macintoshes having despoiled the Macdonald of Keppoch of 
 his estate, during his temporary absence in the Highlands, 
 the Macdonald, on his return, taking the law — as was usual 
 in those days, specially amongst the clans — into his own 
 hand, and taking an ample vengeance, redeemed his own. 
 The Royal Scots Dragoons were sent to the assistance and for 
 the release of the ]\lackintosh, who had been taken prisoner. 
 
SCOTS GREYS. . 1 U 
 
 In retaliation they were inhumanly ordered to destroy all that 
 pertained to the IMaedonald — man, woman, and child. Al- 
 though such instructions were quite in keeping with the 
 character of the Court, happily it was about the last exercise 
 of a power ever rioting in such acts of merciless cruelty. 
 
 The close of the same year brought the Prince of Orange 
 to our shores, to deliver the land from the bondage of the 
 Stuarts who had so grievously oppressed it. To meet this 
 emergency. King James had drawn together to London and 
 its neighbourhood the whole reliable forces of his kingdom. 
 Amongst these were the troops of Scottish Life Guards; 
 Claveriiouse's regiment of horse; Dunmore's regiment of Royal 
 Scots DrcKjoons; the regiment of Scottish Foot Guards; and 
 two regiments of Scottish Foot — in all, 3,765 men from Scot- 
 land. After a seeming show of resistance, and much mantuu- 
 vring in the vicinity of Salisbury, the monarch, dreading the 
 wrath of an outraged people, fled to France. 
 
 " Conscience nnakcH cowards of us all." 
 
 When the Prince of Orange, as William III., ascended the 
 vacant throne, he foimd many of the troops inclined to dis- 
 pute his authority, especially the regiments of Royal Scots 
 Horse and Royal Scots Dragoons; which still remained to- 
 gether under the command of Viscount Dundee, and with 
 the characteristic loyalty of Scotsmen, would still have 
 maintained the cause of an unworthy and exiled prince, 
 the degenerate representative of the Bruce of Banuockburn. 
 The tact of the new monarch succeeded in winning the sub- 
 
20 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 mission of the Eoyal Scots Dragoons; but the Eoyal Scots 
 Horse, deserting, followed Dundee into Scotland, took part 
 with him in his subsequent rebellion, and so, sharing his fate, 
 have been lost to the British army. The Earl of Dunmore, 
 declining to serve under the new king, was superseded in 
 the colonelcy of the Eoyal Scots Dragoons by Sir Thomas 
 Livingstone, afterwards Viscount Teviot — a Scottish soldier 
 of distinction, who came over from the continent with the 
 prince. 
 
 To stem the torrent of rebellion which the return of Dundee 
 to Scotland had excited — especially among the Highland clans, 
 nearly all of whom were devotedly attached to the Stuarts — 
 the Eoyal Scots Dragoons w^ere ordered to return to Scotland. 
 Throughout the succeeding campaigns the regiment behaved 
 with signal fidelity and gallantry, with the exception of some 
 few of its officers who were found guilty of treasonable inter- 
 course with the rebels — having a sympathy with their old 
 comrade in arms. Viscount Dundee. Amongst the arrested 
 were Lieut.-Colonel Livingstone, Captains Murray, Crichton, 
 and Livingstone. The royal forces under the command of 
 Major-General Mackay, included, besides the Eoyal Scots Dra- 
 goons, many regiments since known to fame — Lord Colchester's 
 Horse, or the Third (Prince of Wales') Dragoon Guards ; Berke- 
 ley's, or the Fourth (Queen's Own Hussars) Dragoons; Sir 
 James Leslie's, or the Fifteenth (York, East Eiding) Foot; 
 besides a considerable body of Dutch troops under Colonel 
 Eamsay. Dundee was joined at Inverness by Macdonald of 
 Keppoch and his clan, thirsting for revenge because of the 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 21 
 
 atrocities committed upon them and tlieii*s by the soldiers in 
 the previous year. After nuich time spent in marching and 
 counter-marching in search of, and j)ursuit of, each other, the 
 two armies met at the Pass of Killiecrankie, when the death 
 of Dimdee, in the moment of victory, virtually ruined the 
 Jacobite cause. The Eoyal Scots Dragoons, although not 
 present at that disjtstrous battle, had previously distinguished 
 themselves in a skirmish with a body of about 500 lligh- 
 landei-s, chiefly Macleans, who, defeathig with great loss, they 
 dispersed, and, dismounting, pui-sued among the rocks and 
 crags of the mountains. In the following year, the rebels 
 still continuing in arms, under General Canon — who on the 
 death of Dundee assumed the command — and being recruited 
 by a body of men from Ireland under General Luchan, took 
 up a strong post and awaited the attack of the royal forces at 
 Cromdale. Uere, on the mornmg of the 31st Aprd, they 
 were suddenly attacked by Sir Thomas Livingstone, at the 
 head of the Royal Scots Dragoons and other troops, and, amid 
 the darkness and confusion, totally defeated and dis])ersed 
 with great slaughter. The scene was one of consternation and 
 horror, and had it not been for the merciful intervention <>f a 
 mountain mist, as if to befriend her own children in their day 
 of calamity, wc)uld have proved even more fatal to the flying 
 enemy. In this action the Royal Scots Dragoons took a gal- 
 lant part. This victory was quickly followed by the relief of 
 the castle of Alxjrgeldie, then besieged by the Highhuxlera, 
 where two troo}>s of the Royal Scots Dragoons utterly routed 
 the rebels with great carnage. Unable longer to sustain such 
 
22 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 a hopeless struggle, the clans tendered their submission to King 
 William, which was accepted. 
 
 But the triumph of the Government was stained by a deed 
 of barbarous cruelty and sin, which remains a blot on the page 
 of British history, known as "the Massacre of Glencoe." The 
 Macdonalds of Glencoe having failed to tender their allegiance 
 within the prescribed time, although they had done so a few 
 days afterwards, the whole were treacherously murdered in 
 cold blood, whilst peaceably sleeping, by a party of soldiers 
 from Argyle's regiment, who had been received and hospitably 
 quartered among them as friends. This inhuman action has 
 been vainly attempted to be excused, and all authorities have 
 alike endeavoured to escape the responsibility. AVe gladly 
 record that the Roval Scots Drasjoons were not called to take 
 any part in the matter; and their colonel. Sir Thomas Living- 
 stone, although then Commander-in-Chief in Scotland, has been 
 fully exonerated from blame by Parliament. 
 
CHAPTER TI. 
 
 " Iioudun's bonnie wootls and brnes, 
 I maun lea' them a\ lassie; 
 Wha can thole when Brituiu's faos 
 Would j?i'e Britons law, liuaie?" 
 
 WARS OF THE SPANISH SFCCESSION — REBELLION OF 171.'> — 
 SEVEN years' war — 1G'J3-171»:{. 
 
 Our liist chapter closed the dark record wliicli unhappily 
 clouds the early history of the Royal Scots Dragoons, and it is 
 with pleasure we turn from the record of these unnatural and 
 suicidal wars to narrate the nobler deeds of the regiment on 
 a nobler field. The accession of AVilliam, Prince of Orange, 
 to the throne, is not to be regarded merely as the triumph of 
 the Protestant party, but as involving the dawn of freedom to 
 an oppressed people ; as the guarantee of liberty of conscience ; 
 and as the harbinger of peace, especially to distressed Scotland. 
 In 1694, the Koyal Scots Dragoons, accompanied by Cunning- 
 ham's Scots Dragoons — now the Seventh (Queen's Own) 
 Hussars — and associated with the First (Royal English), the 
 Third (King's Own Hussars), the Fourth (Queen's Own 
 Hussars), and the Fifth (Royal Irish Lancers) Dragoons, were 
 sent over to the Netherlands against the French. Here they 
 represented the nation with credit, especially at the siege of 
 
24 HISTOEY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Namnr, until the conclusion of peace, four years afterwards, 
 permitted their return. 
 
 Unfortunately, the peace was not of long duration, and 
 aiforded but a short respite, during which the regiment was 
 remounted on grey horses, as a corps elite. The question 
 of the Spanish succession rousing the ambition of France, 
 the flames of war were again rekindled. Accordingly, in 
 1 702, the reoiment was called to maintain the honour of their 
 country on the plains of Holland. The earlier campaigns were 
 chiefly made up with a variety of sieges — ^^''enloo, Euremonde, 
 Stevenswaert, Liege, Bonn, Huy, Limburg, &c., in all of 
 which the regiment had a part. Lord Hay, afterwards 
 Marquis of Tweeddale, this year (1704) purchased the colo- 
 nelcy of the regiment. The daring spirit and rising genius 
 of Marlborough, who then commanded the British army, 
 aspiring to something mightier, turning his eye towards 
 Germany, selected a grander field of action — planned a cam- 
 paign, which, taking Europe by surprise, fell like a thunderbolt 
 upon the foe, and produced the most glorious results. The 
 soldierly bearing of the Eoyal Scots Dragoons had already 
 attracted the keen eye of the Commander-in-Chief, and won 
 for them this tribute to their fidelity and worth, inasmuch as 
 they were selected to be his own body-guard. "They were, 
 moreover, destined to lead the van, or, at all events, to assume 
 a first place in the memorable actions of the campaign. Their 
 firmness and valour helped their great commander to a great 
 renown, as they were honoured to share with him the dangers 
 and the glories of the campaign, and so " win laurels that 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 25 
 
 shall never finle." Not less bravo, although not so favoured, 
 were the gallant troops which acconipaniecl the Royal Scots 
 Dragoons in the marvellous march from the Netherlands to 
 Germany, and who alike contributed to the Success of the 
 expedition. These comprised the Firet (King's), the Tliird 
 (Prince of Wales'), the Fifth (Princess Charlotte of Wales'), 
 the Sixth (Carabineei-s), the Seventh (Princess Royal's) Dra- 
 goon (J uards, and the Fifth (Royal Irish Lancers) Dragoons; 
 besides the infantry which followed, including the Foot Guards, 
 the First (Royal Scots), the Third (Eiist Kent Buffs), the 
 Eighth (the King's), the Tenth (North Lincoln), the Fifteenth 
 (York,Ej\st Riding), the Sixteenth (Bedfordshire), the Eighteenth 
 (Royal Irisli), the Twenty-first (Royal North British Fusiliers), 
 the Twenty-third (Royal Welsh Fusiliers), the Twenty-fourth 
 (Warwickshire), the Twenty-Sixth (Cameronians), and the 
 Thirty-seventh (North Hampshire) regiments of Foot, lilarl- 
 borough having successfully accomplished with rapidity and 
 secrecy this masterly mana>uvre, and united his army to 
 the Imperialists — hardly allowing the French and Bavarians 
 time to know, far less to recover from their surprise — imme- 
 diately prcpare<l for action. The assault upon the French 
 lines on the heights of Schellenberg, and the c<nise<pient cap- 
 ture of Donawerth, was the first event calling forth the bravery 
 of the Scots Greys. But this was but the precursor to a more 
 decisive blow. On the 13th of August the French and Bava- 
 rians were encountered in the vicinity of the village of I'lcn- 
 heim. The struggle was a severe one. The Greys and other 
 troops attacking the village, which was strongly occupied by 
 
26 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 the French, for long waged a very doubtful conflict; but at 
 length, by indomitable efforts, they succeeded in driving back 
 the enemy, and cutting ofi" their retreat — twent5'-four bat- 
 talions of infantry and twelve squadrons of cavalry surren- 
 dered. The campaign closed with the siege of Landau. 
 Having delivered Germany from the immediate presence of 
 the enemy, Marlborough withdrew the British army into 
 winter quarters in the Netherlands. The only action of im- 
 portance which falls to be recorded in the succeeding year is 
 the victory of Helixem, where the same redoubtable British 
 cavalry successfully attacked and broke in upon the French 
 lines. 
 
 A mio;htier achievement awaited the amis of our "o-allant 
 Greys" in 1706. At the battle of Eamilies, after much hard 
 fighting, the regiment succeeded in penetrating into the village 
 of Autreglize, inflicting a dreadful carnage, and were hon- 
 oured in receivins: the surrender of the French " Eeoiment du 
 Eoi," with arms and colours. Amid the trophies of the day, 
 the Greys are said to have taken no fewer than seventeen 
 standards. At the close of the battle a very curious circum- 
 stance was brought to light, aflfording an illustrious example 
 of woman's love, fidelity, endurance, and heroism. Amongst 
 the wounded of the Scots Greys, a female (Mrs Davies) was 
 discovered, who, donning the habiliments of man, had enlisted 
 in the regiment, braved the perils of Schellenberg and Blen- 
 heim, that in this disguise she might follow her husband, 
 who was a soldier in the First (Royal Scots) Foot, then with 
 the army. Her case at once excited the interest and sym- 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 2/ 
 
 patby of the whole army; and awakening the generosity of 
 the otlioers, especially of the colonel of licr regiment, she was 
 restored to her true position as a woman, lived to be of con- 
 siderable service as envoy to the army, and at her death in 
 1739 was buried with military honours in Chelsea Hospital. 
 
 In the autumn of this eventfid year, the Greys were called 
 to mourn the death of their colonel, who had been with them 
 throughout the war, and who was cut olf by fever in the midst 
 of a bright imd glorious career. He was succeeded in the 
 colonelcy by the Earl of Stair. About the same time the 
 regiment was authoritatively designated the Royal North 
 British Dragoons, and in 1713 was further registered as the 
 Second Eegiment of Dra*!;oons. 
 
 It is supeHluous to say that, at the battle of Oudenarde, in 
 1708, the sieges of Lisle and Tournay, and sjtecially at the 
 battle of JMalplac«|uet in 1709 — where, thrice charging the 
 French household cavalry, they ultimately broke through that 
 magnificent and hitherto invincible corps — as well as at a 
 variety of minor engagements, the Greys maintained their 
 liigh character. On the peace of Utrecht, in 1713, they re- 
 turned to England loaded with the honuui-s of war. 
 
 In the following yeiir, the E;irl of Portmore, a distinguished 
 one-eyed veteran, was appointed colonel in room of the Earl of 
 Stair — retired. 
 
 The rebellion of 1715, in Scotland, in favour of the Pre- 
 tender, again calletl for the service of the Greys, who, with a 
 firm fidelity, continued to di.'^charge their duty to the king — 
 notwithstantling many pressing temptations to desert. Whilst 
 
28 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 quartered at Stirling, they dispersed gatherings of rebels at 
 Kinross and Dunfermline. With the Third (King's Own 
 Hussars), the Fourth (Queen's Own Hussars), the Sixth (lunis- 
 killings), and the Seventh (Queen's Own Hussars) Dragoons; 
 also the Third (East Kent Buffs), the Eighth (the King's), the 
 Eleventh (North Devon), the Fourteenth (Buckinghamshire), 
 the Seventeenth (Leicestershire), the Twenty-first (Royal North 
 British Fusiliers), the Twenty-fifth (King's Own Borderers), 
 and the Thirty-Sixth (Herefordshire) regiments of foot, in all 
 4000 men, they were present at the drawn battle of Sheriff- 
 muir, where the enemy mustered fully 10,000 men. The 
 royalist army was mainly saved from utter defeat by the 
 dauntless valour of the Greys, who, repeatedly charging the 
 cavalry and right wing of the rebel army, succeeded in driving 
 back and ultimately dispersing them, so as to counterbalance 
 the success of the rebels on the left. Althouoh forced to re- 
 treat for the time, the royalists, recruited by other regiments, 
 were soon able once more to assume the ofi'ensive, and, not- 
 withstanding the presence of the Pretender himself, ultimately 
 dispersed the rebel army. A second attempt, aided by a 
 Spanish force, in 1 71 9, met with the same firmness, and fared 
 no better. The rebel army, encountering the king's army — 
 including the Greys — at Strachell, were completely routed. 
 
 Meanwhile the regiment was permitted to enjoy its laurels 
 in peace. In 1 71 7, General John Campbell had been appointed 
 colonel of the Scots Greys, in room of the Earl of Portmore — 
 resigned. 
 
 In 1742, France, Prussia, and Bavaria having leagued to- 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 29 
 
 gether for the destruction of Austria, George II., espousing the 
 cause of Austria, in person, led an army of 16,000 British 
 through Flandei-s into Germany. Of tiiis force the Grtys 
 formed a part, under the connnand of their own chivalric 
 monarch. The battle of Dettingen, in 1743, was the first 
 event of importance in the war, in whicli the Greys were en- 
 gaged — successively charging and defeating the imposing line 
 of French Cuirassiei"S, and thereafter the magnificent array of 
 the French household cavalry ; capturing from these last a 
 white standard — a trophy which never before had been taken 
 by an enemy. 
 
 The army having been withdra\m into Flanders, and placed 
 under the command of the Duke of Cumberland, achievetl 
 nothing of importance until the disastrous battle of Fontenoy, 
 in 174.'3, in which, although no very prominent jtlace had been 
 assigned the Scots Greys, they nevertheless suffered severely 
 — especially in the loss of their gallant colonel, General Camjv 
 bell. He was succeeded in the colonelcy by the Earl of Stair 
 — reappointed. 
 
 The rebellion of 1745, in Scotland, occasioning the with- 
 drawal of a large portion of the army, the following regiments 
 were left behind to make head against the overwlielming hosts 
 of France: — the Second (Scots Greys), the Sixth (Inniskillings), 
 the Seventh (Queen's Own IIu.«^sars) Dragoons; the Eighth 
 (King's), the Eleventh (North Devon), the Thirteenth (Ist 
 Somersetshire or Prince Albert's), the Nineteenth (Ist York, 
 North Riding), the Twenty-fifth (King's Own Korderers), the 
 Tliirty-second (Cornwall), and the Thirty-third (Duke of Wei- 
 
30 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 lington's) Foot. These were aided by a few regiments of 
 Dutcli and Hessians. Taking advantage of these circum- 
 stances, the enormous masses of the French under ]\Iarshal 
 Saxe were advanced, with the intent to overwhelm this hand- 
 ful of Lrave men. The attack was accordingly made at Eou- 
 coux, but failed ; although the British general was forced to 
 retreat, which was accomjDlished with success, notwithstanding 
 the immediate presence of a foe greatly superior in numbers. 
 It was the intrepidity of the British cavalry which rescued 
 the army from destruction. 
 
 Tlie following year the Earl of Crawford was appointed 
 colonel in room of the then deceased Earl of Stair. He was 
 an officer of very extensive military knowledge, having served 
 in many of the continental armies, as a volunteer, with credit. 
 
 The bloody and glorious battle of Val, fought in 1747, and 
 which may fitly be considered the closing event of the war, 
 exhibits in Ijold relief Avhat may well be esteemed as the 
 crowning achievement of the Scots Greys. Towards the close 
 of this desperate fight, the regiment was ordered to charge. 
 Notwithstanding their resistless bravery and accompanying 
 success, by which the French cavalry were broken and lost 
 four standards, these fortunate results and glorious trof)hies 
 were dearly won, not merely because of the numerous casual- 
 ties which the regiment Avas called to mourn (157 killed and 
 wounded), but on account of the loss of that which to a 
 soldier is dearer than life itself — a standard. It fell into the 
 enemy's hands in the confusion of retreat. 
 
 On the conclusion of the peace of Aix-la-ChapeUe, in 1749, 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 31 
 
 the rcf^mcnt returned to Englautl. In the following year the 
 Earl of Crawford dying, the colonelcy of the regiment was 
 conferred on the Earl of Rothes, hut exchanging into the 
 Third (Scots Fusiliei*s) Foot Guards in 1752, he was suc- 
 ceeded in the command by General Campbell, afterwards Duke 
 of Argylo. 
 
 On the breaking: out of war with France in 17j8, wliilst a 
 newly-raised light troop of the regiment was engaged with 
 other troops iii successive descents on the French coast, viz., 
 St IMaloes, Cherbourg, and Lunar, the remainder of the regi- 
 ment was sent to Germany, to aid in the liberation of Hano- 
 ver from the French yoke. Under the command of the Duke 
 of Brunswick, the Greys were present at the battles of Bergen 
 and ]\Iinden, but it was not until the assault upon Warbourg 
 that they seriously encountered the enemy. Their conduct on 
 the occasion is well described by the Commander-in-Chief 
 when he says they performed " prodigies of valour." At 
 Zierenberg the battle was decided by a brilliant and success- 
 ful charge of the Greys and Innu?killings. A variety of 
 niananivres and skinnishcs continued to agitate the conflict in 
 the following year, in all of which the regiment upheld its 
 reputation. The peace of 17(i3 at length released the regi- 
 ment from the tunnoil of war, and permitted it to return home 
 and rest awliile upon its honours. 
 
 It is interesting to observe that in nearly every instance 
 the Royal Scots Dragoons sliared tlic dangers and glories of 
 the conflict with the Royal Iri.sh or Inniskilling regiments of 
 dragoons. It is still the same. Scotland and Ireland, side by 
 
32 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 side, are to be recognised fighting their country's battles. It 
 is an ancient and happy alliance which, strengthening with 
 years, has been of signal service in the past, is blessed in the 
 present, and promises to be of further use in the future. 
 
 In 1770, on the death of the Duke of Argyle, the Earl of 
 Panmure was advanced to the colonelcy, and on his death, in 
 1782, General Preston was appointed colonel, but he in turn 
 passing away in 1 785, made room for General Johnstone. 
 
 These were times of peace, and afforded no opportunity 
 for these venerable soldiers to distinguish their stewardships. 
 The succeeding chapter introduces us to more stirring times. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 " O Fame, stem proraptor of nirwt fjlnrioits dt'ctLs, 
 Whnt numerou-s votaries uttoml thy call! 
 For thoo tho jioot sinpi, the hero hlci^ls, 
 
 \n<\ \v;ulikf kiiiLrs liiil iiiijiiii'S ris«' or fall." 
 
 TUE REVOLUTIONARY AND CRIMEAN WARS — 1793-1862. 
 
 In 1 793 the restless and aggressive spirit which sorely troubled 
 France, developed in the lie volution, once raore plunged that 
 nation into war with Britain; nay, not only so, but sending 
 forth her revolutionary incendiaries charged with the subver- 
 sion of all constitutional government, and seeking to poison the 
 minds of almost every people, her ruthless and frantic dema- 
 gogues virtually declared war against the whole monarchies of 
 Christendom. Accordingly, a British force, including a por- 
 tion of the Greys, was sent to the Netherlands under the 
 Duke of York. These were chiefly employed in the sieges of 
 Valenciennes, Dunkirk, Landrecies, etc., whicli precetled the 
 double battle of Tournay, fought on the 10th and 2'2d May, 
 1794. The Greys and the other British cavalry easily routed 
 the newly-raised liorsemen of the Revolution, which were sadly 
 degenerated from the splendidly-equipped cavalry of the old 
 monarchy — long the terror of Europe, and most worthy foes. 
 The utter bankruptcy of the French nation prevented them 
 
34 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 from equipping or maintaining a powerful cavalry, and, in 
 consequence, we find the armies of the Revolution at that time 
 very deficient in this branch of the service. Notwithstanding 
 the excellence of his troops, the Duke of York found his posi- 
 tion untenable, with such a handful, against the overwhelming 
 hosts of France, which were being daily augmented by a 
 starving crowd which the Revolution had ruined, and so 
 forced into the army as the only refuge in those unhappy 
 times. The British, retreating into Germany, reached Bremen 
 in 1795, whence the Scots Greys shortly thereafter returned 
 to England. 
 
 Notwithstanding the continuous and bloody wars in which 
 our country was engaged during the next twenty years, the 
 Scots Greys were allowed to pine in quietude on home service, 
 until the campaign of Waterloo called them to take the field. 
 
 In the meantime, we take opportunity to enumerate the 
 series of colonels who successively commanded the regiment 
 during this interval. The Earl of Egliuton, appointed in 
 1795, was succeeded by that brave and distinguished officer. 
 Sir Ralph Abercromby, who fell in the arms of victory on 
 the 28th of March, 1801, at the battle of Alexandria. On his 
 death, the colonelcy was conferred on a no less distinguished 
 officer. Sir David Dundas, who continued to command the 
 regiment until 1813, Avhen, exchanging into the Iving's Dra- 
 goon Guards, he was succeeded by the Marquis of Lothian. 
 This nobleman dying in 1815, made way for an able and 
 accomplished soldier. Sir James Stewart, who, retaining the 
 colonelcy for the lengthened term of twenty-four years, lived to 
 
SCOTS GliEVS. 35 
 
 be the oldest general and the oldest soldier, l)otli in one, in the 
 British anny. In 1831), Sir William Keir Grant was appointed 
 colonel. As if worthily to recognise the heroic daring of the 
 regiment at "Waterloo, it has continued to be connnanded by 
 veterans who have earned their laurels in that proud field 
 of fight. Lord Sandys was appointed in 1858, but only 
 enjoyed the honour for two yeai*s, when death laid him low, 
 and he was in turn succeeded by the present colonel, General 
 Alex. K. Clarke Kennedy, C.B., K.G. The history of all 
 these brave oliicers is re])lete with deeds of heroism, and it 
 would have been truly a pleasant duty, had our space ad- 
 mitted, to have recounted somewhat of their achievements. 
 
 During the years of their home service, a part of the regi- 
 ment was present at the imposing ceremony accompanying 
 the burial of England's Naval Hero, Lord Nelson, in 1805. 
 They were also present at the great review in Ilydc Park in 
 1814, when the allied Sovereigns visited England after the 
 Treaty of Paris. 
 
 The following year witnessed the escape of Napoleon from 
 Elba, his return to France, and the general and disgraceful 
 desertion of the French army to their old chief. This unto- 
 ward event at once arrested the retiring armies of the allies, 
 and recalled them again in h;istc to Paris. The promptitude 
 and hanuony of the mwusurcs adopted by the Cabinets of 
 Britain and Prussia enabled their armies forthwith to take the 
 field, and so stemming the returning tide of French despotism, 
 for ever crush the might of the tyrant whoso restless am- 
 bition, like an evil spirit, had so long troubled Europe. They 
 
36 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 were honoured side by side to fulfil the first and last act in 
 the short but decisive campaign which followed. Six troops 
 of the Greys were ordered to the theatre of war, and, landing 
 in the Netherlands in 1815, were brigaded with the Eoyals 
 and their old comrades the Inniskillings, under Sir William 
 Ponsonby. Anticipating no immediate attack from the French, 
 and the better to obtain supplies, the Duke of AVellington had 
 disposed his army as a chain of posts to watch the movements 
 of the enemy. While separated from the Prussians, under 
 Blucher, both armies narrowly escaped destruction. The 
 immediate and personal presence of so able and enterprising 
 a General as Napoleon, at the head of a powerful and well- 
 appointed army — consisting largely of the veterans who, 
 smarting under the disasters of a previous year, burned for 
 revenge, or of those who, so unfortunately for their chief, had 
 been too long incarcerated as garrisons in the distant fortresses 
 of the Oder and Vistula, but who, released on the conclusion 
 of the late peace, gladly welcomed their old commander, and 
 followed him to the field with high hopes to retrieve the 
 defeats of the past — the immediate presence of such an army 
 rendered the position of the allies one of considerable danger. 
 On the night of the 1 5th of June the Greys were unexpectedly 
 awakened at the village of Denderhautem, to learn that the 
 enemy was rapidly advancing to surprise and destroy the 
 scattered fragments of the army in detail. Accordingly, 
 immediate orders were issued to the various corps to 
 concentrate in the vicinity of Waterloo. A rapid march 
 of fifty miles brought the Scots Greys, on the evening of the 
 
SCOTS GREYS. 37 
 
 1 Gth, to Quatre Bras, where some of the British troops were 
 surprised by a portion of the French army, under INIarshal 
 Ney, and all but cut to pieces. As the eventful morning of 
 the 18th of June dawned, the British army, having completed 
 its concentration, was drawn up in all the magnificence of 
 battle array, and anxiously waited the arrival of their allies. 
 The Prussians, however, had in the interim been attacked 
 by Napoleon himself at Ligny, and nearly overthrown. 
 
 In the battle of Waterloo, the Greys occupied a position in 
 rear of the left centre. It was late in the day when the Earl 
 of Uxbridge brought the orders for that fatal and memorable 
 charge, the result of which had such an eft'ect on the battle. 
 It must have been a splendid sight to have seen these gallant 
 regiments (the* Greys, Royals, and Inniskillings) " hurl them 
 on the foe;" and it must have been nobly done, since it 
 specially attracted the attention of the great Napoleon — (par- 
 ticularly referring to the CJreys) — and drew forth from him 
 those ever-memorable words : "These are splendid horsemen, 
 but in less than half-an-hour I must cut them to j^ieces;" 
 and therewith he did all that human mind could devise, or 
 human might achieve, to fulfil his boast, and annihilate these 
 brave soMiers. Despite a dreadful carnage, and the resolute- 
 ness with which the successive columns of the French sus- 
 tained the dreadful fight, they could not prevail against our 
 Grclic infantr}', nor dismay tlie firmness of the British square, 
 far less withstand the shock of our gallant cavalry — they were 
 broken ; and amidst the terrible confusion which ensued. Ser- 
 geant Ewart, of the Greys, succeeded in capturing the eagle 
 
38 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 and colour of the Forty-fifth French regiment — a trophy 
 which graced the day, and the eagle is a proud emblem on 
 the regimental guidon. The Ninety-second Highlanders, re- 
 duced to 200 men, had long maintained a terrible conflict 
 with a column of 2000 of the enemy. At length the Greys, 
 charjiino: a second time — but with sadly diminished numbers 
 — came to the assistance of their countrymen, and, together, 
 nearly annihilated the French. At the grand charge, where 
 the famous and hitherto invincible Guards of Napoleon were 
 brought forward for a last effort, the remnant of the Greys, 
 kept in reserve, awaited the repulse of that dread column, 
 when, a third time charging, they completed the ruin of their 
 brave foemen. The loss to the regiment was upwards of 200 
 men. After the battle, they continued the pursuit of the 
 enemy to the very gates of Paris; and, with other cavalry, 
 contributed to prevent Napoleon re-forming or re-organising 
 his still formidable legions. On the abdication of that mighty 
 chief, the Greys returned to England in 1816. Thus, in three 
 days, was the fate of an empire, nay, of the world, decided by 
 British valour and Prussian firmness. 
 
 Passing over a long interval of peace — nearly forty years, 
 during which nothing of sufficient importance transpired 
 to call the Greys to take the field — we arrive at the time 
 (1854) of the Crimean war, when Kussian ambition, seeking 
 to overwhelm Turkey in her weakness, was unexpectedly 
 met and arrested in her unrighteous aggression, by France 
 and Britain, on the plains of the Crimea. The Greys, as 
 an after instalment of the British army, were sent out in the 
 
I 
 
 m 
 
SCOTS r.RKYS. 30 
 
 " Himalaya," aud lautleil in September — a few days after the 
 battle of the Alnui. AVith the Fourth (Royal Irish) and the 
 Fifth (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards; and 
 the First (Royals) aud Sixth (Inniskilling) Dragoons, tliey 
 formed the liea\y cavalry brigade, imder Brigadier-General 
 the Hon. James Scarlett, now Adjutant-General to the Forces 
 and K.C.B. At the action of Balaklava, fought on the 25th 
 of October, and which was almost entirely a cavalry one — the 
 Ninety-third Highlanders being the only infantry regiment 
 actively engaged, and bearing the word on their colours — 
 the Scots Greys, with their old comrades, the Inniskillings, 
 fully sustained -the ancient and heroic character of the 
 regiment. Numbering together about 7.30 men, they 
 charged fearlessly upon a body of 3500 of the very choicest 
 Russian cavalry, defended, moreover, by several batteries; 
 and, breaking the first line, had already pierced the column 
 through, when they were aided in the com[)letion of the victory 
 by the Fourth and Fifth Dragoon Guards. Notwithstanding 
 the desperate and unequal contest, the loss on the side of the 
 Greys was very small. In less than five minutes the splendid 
 array of Russian cavalry was l^roken and put to flight by 
 about 1400 of the British cavalry. This splendid achievement 
 may be considered as the only important event in which our 
 cavalry assumed a prominent part. The severity of the 
 weather and the prevalence of di.sease all but destroyed the 
 Greys aud their no less gallant comrades, and left our country 
 to lament that so very few of that heroic brigade were spared 
 to return and receive the thanks of a grateful people. Two 
 
40 IIKSTOUY 01' THK SCOTTISH RKGIMKNTS. 
 
 yoMTM ;i norwards, peace restored tlio rciuiiunl of Llio ivgimeut 
 Id ils iiMliv(> laiiil. 
 
 Ill closiii"' our luicf rcconl of (lu» Second Regiment of 
 Jioyal Noiili I'litisli |)rai;(»t)iiM, wc? caiuiot licl]) ivmarkinn; on 
 iho almost unhrolscu f^iu-coss and .s[)KMidid lro])lu(>s whicli liavo 
 crowned (lu'ir anus. Scarcely in a siui^li* instance was tlio 
 rci:;inuMi( liroKeii ov necessitated to rel reat for its own sake; 
 (Milv once (lid a. slaiidard lall into llie hands of (lie tMieniy, 
 altliou<j;li in ils several ean»]iaigns tlie regiment lias been 
 always aelively i^ngagcil. The reader nuist feel tliat we liavo 
 i;n>al. reason (o lu^ ju'oud of our countryiuen — and tliat it is 
 an litMu^st pride we indulge in— wIumi sustained by sucli an 
 uiipri'iiMleiili'd scries of triuniiths as it has been our pleasure 
 io reeerd. Tlieri' is no! a heart in Seotland wliieli doi>s not 
 beat with airecliouate syiupathy and respect lor the "Scots 
 Greys;'" and lu> tlu>y Mnglishnieii ov Irishmen who join tlie 
 reginuMit. wt> fei^l sure tluy ilo so with a. generous sjiirit of 
 ennilation. and ungrudgingly unite with u^ in iloing honour to 
 our ('(Mintrx men. wlio early won a gootl name for the regiment 
 bv bra\i> ^\o^\U no idle tale, but recorded in the nu>st promi- 
 nent pagc> o( the wi>rld's history. 
 
"^ ^ 
 
 -^ 
 
V V- 
 
H.R.H. THE lATF PRINHF PMRmi miOWFi nc rue rnrMAn.LD n^.Aono 
 
"THE GUARDS." 
 
 111'. (;ilF,N.\l>li:i!S-COI,|)STI!F,AMS-SCOTS t'l'SilJKUS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 '• Star of the brave! whueo Ix-ain hath shol 
 Such glory o'or tlie quick and dead ; 
 Thou radiant and mltjnil deceit! 
 Which milHotus rushed in ariiis to greet; 
 Wild nieteor of innnortal hirth! 
 Why riae in Heaven to set on Earth?" 
 
 INTRODUCTION — EARLY HISTORY — THE RESTORATION — TIMES 
 OF THE STUARTS — THE REVOLUTION — 10G<)-1G88. 
 
 The very name of "Guards" inspires the icle«i of all that is 
 militarily splendid and excellent, great and glorious, noble and 
 l)ravc, faithfid and loyal; and awakens in our minds a host 
 of most interesting and exciting rei'ollections. (Juards aro 
 peculiarly a monarcliical and despotic institution, having no 
 real existence in a Republic or similar form of government. 
 We would esteem this force as a chosen band of faithful, stal- 
 wart, and splcndidly-ecpiipix'd soldiers, specially charged with 
 the defence of the throne, and calculated, by their impasing 
 
42 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 array, to add lustre and dignity to the Crown. Apart from 
 this holiday display, the history of Guards is pre-eminently 
 distinguished by the most splendid achievements of heroism 
 and devotion. Their firmness and fidelity have alike rebuked 
 the arrogance of the nobles who insulted, and stilled the 
 turbulence of the people who challenged, the prerogative of 
 the Crown. Nay, more, when the avalanche of revolution, 
 descending, overthrew the tottering throne, having enjoyed 
 the smile, unshaken, the Guards encountered the frowning of 
 fortune; whilst fond memory bids us trace the footprints of 
 their greatness. 
 
 But the great Napoleon had a truer concept?on of what 
 such a corps ought to be, in the constitution of his Imperial 
 Guard, which at one time amounted to upwards of 100,000 
 of the best troops in the world. Selected not merely for 
 fidelity or display, each one was a veteran, who, passing 
 through the fires of battle and inured to war, had won by his 
 valour the right to a place in the ranks of "the Brave." No 
 wonder that Europe trembled when the bearskin of the Guard 
 was recoirnised amongst the number of her foes; no marvel 
 that the charm of invincibility should so long be enjoyed by 
 this phalanx of warriors, and the halo of victory rest upon 
 their brows, 
 
 Romance presents no scene more deeply touching than is 
 recorded in the page of history, when, amid the crumbling ruins 
 of his colossal empire — under the eye and directed by the 
 transcendent genius of their beloved chief, which never on 
 any occasion shone forth more conspicuously — the shattered 
 
THE GUARDS. 43 
 
 remnant of the Freuch Guards, faitlifiil amid the faithless, 
 with unmurmuring constancy and heroic devotion, withstood, 
 all but alouo, the attack of allied Europe; dealing out the 
 same terrible blows as of old, which, were it possible, must 
 have rescued their country from the coimtless hosts which 
 iilready desecrated her plains. But the closing scene was 
 postponed for an after year, when France once more mar- 
 shalled around the Guard, and Napoleon cast the fatal die for 
 empire or ruin. What Austria, Russia, Prussia, nay, banded 
 Europe, had failed to do, our British soldiers achieved. The 
 sj)ell was broken, as the Guard was overthrown. Noble and 
 brave, ever commanding our respect in their life, they were 
 doubly so in theii* death. We cannot help according this 
 tribute to so brave a foe. Nay, we feel honouretl as, regarding 
 their grave on the plaiiLs of Waterloo, we shed a tear for the 
 worthy representative of the Guard; and, lingering beside 
 the relics of "the mighty dead," we catch the meaning of their 
 watchword — 
 
 " The Glaiu> dies, hct xevkii sfiiREXnHRs." 
 
 Guards claim to be of a very ancient origin. Perliaps the 
 earliest record of such a force is to be found in the Bible, 
 where — in times of the tyranny of Saul, first king of Israel, 
 1093 ac. — we read "the goodliest of the young men" (1 Sam. 
 viii. 11-lG; xiv. 52) "were chosen" for himself, and "their 
 hearts touched" (1 Sam. x. 2G), so that "they followed him" 
 as a guard. Notwithstanding this ill-omened inauguration, 
 Guartls have been perpetuate*!, and embraced in the military 
 
44 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 institutions of the several States which successively attained 
 the dominion of the known world, especially where victorious 
 ambition induced them to reject the simplicity of the Ke- 
 public and adopt the glitter and the pomp of Imperialism. 
 In despotic monarchies, princes have generally selected their 
 Guards from foreigners, as less likely to be affected by the 
 political struggles which from time to time agitated the nation 
 and threatened the security of the throne. The Guard thus 
 selected frequently included exiles of rank — of noble, nay, 
 royal blood. To the Protestant refugees, which the persecu- 
 tions of the Church of Eome had expatriated, the Guard pre- 
 sented a very general, an honourable, and a secure retreat. 
 These, as well as the chivalrous and adventurous spirit of 
 Scotsmen, are foremost amongst the many causes which have 
 led our countrymen to enlist as the Guard in nearly every 
 State in Europe. 
 
 Coming nearer home, and more immediately to our text, 
 we find, in England, that Henry VII., in 1485, raised a body- 
 guard of 50 men, afterwards increased to 200, and styled it 
 the "Yeomen of the Guard." In 1550, Edward VI. added a 
 corps of Horse Guards; whilst, in Scotland, at a very early 
 period, "the Archers of the Guard" surrounded and upheld 
 the Sovereign. 
 
 The Guards of the present British army, comprised in three 
 regiments — the first of which containing three, and the others 
 two battalions each — were raised about the year of the Eesto- 
 ration, 1660. The union, and consequent intermixture of the 
 peoples of the two, nay, of the three nations, has so assimi- 
 
insn p.ivnr poinwn nc tup nninQTcrAM n.iuRnQ 
 
THE GUARDS. 45 
 
 latetl the composition of our regiments, that, whatever may 
 have been their origin, it is exceedingly difficult now to dis- 
 cover aught of the ancient landmarks — national or county — 
 which once characterised them. Still, it is our business, in the 
 present undertaking, to trace these originals, and do justice to 
 the land, whichever it be, that, in earlier yeai-s, contributed its 
 mite to lay the foimdation of the present renown of our army. 
 
 From the intimate way in which our Guards have always 
 been associatetl in duty and a brilliant career of honour, we 
 have preferred briefly to sketch their history together, rather 
 than separately and severally. In such a narrative as we have 
 entered upon, it is sciircely possible to avoid repetition, many 
 of the regiments having seen the same service. It must 
 therefore be admitted as a necessary evil ; we only trust the 
 good old story of our nation's glory will not suffer by being 
 twice told. 
 
 The Coldstream, or Second Kcgiment of Guards — which, 
 although second in the Army List, is nevertheless the senior — 
 was raised by General Monk (afterwiU'ds Duke of Albemarle) 
 alx)ut the year 1G50. They were principally formetl from 
 Fcnwick's imd Llesellrigg's Regiments, and took their name 
 from their having pnjceeileil from Coldstream on their famous 
 march to restore the "Merry Monarch!" Born during a time 
 of war, they were early initiateil into its bloody toils. They 
 formed part of the army of General Monk, which, in name 
 of Oliver Cromwell, subducil and occupied Scotland. With 
 the Scottish army, they marched into England in IGGO, were 
 quartered in London, and there effectually helped to maintain 
 
46 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 peace between the factions of the Parliament and army, which 
 then struggled for the dominion of the State — vacant by the 
 death of the Protectorate. Ultimately, the intrigue of General 
 Monk effected the present deliverance of the country from 
 the disorders which distracted Government, by the restoration 
 of the monarchy in the person of Charles II. On the dis- 
 bandment of the army, Charles, grateful for the good offices 
 of Monk, retained his — the Coldstream — regiment in his own 
 service. The alarm attending the insurrection of Venuer, in 
 1660 — a fanatic preacher, who was ultimately overpowered, 
 and his followers, about thirty in number, nearly all slain — 
 presented a favourable opportunity, which the King was not 
 slow to improve, for insisting upon Parhament granting him 
 leave to raise money to maintain an additional military force 
 for his own and the nation's safeo-uard. The result was the 
 formation of a chosen body of troops, chiefly composed of 
 Jacobite gentlemen who had shared with him the vicissitudes 
 of exile, and so constituted the First, or Grenadier Guards, 
 under Colonel Eussell. Two years later, 1662, the resistance 
 which the unreasonable demands of the King upon the Scot- 
 tish Presbyterians stirred up, induced the formation in Scot- 
 land, amongst other troops, of a regiment of Scots Foot Guards 
 ■ — the Scots Fusilier, or Third Eegiment of Guards — the com- 
 mand being conferred on the Earl of Linlithgow. 
 
 Whilst a small body of the Guards were hotly engaged on 
 the shores of Africa, heroically defending against the Moors 
 the fortress of Tangier — the profitless dowry of the Queen of 
 Charles II. — the main body of the Grenadiers and Coldstreams, 
 
THE OUARDS. 47 
 
 or, as they were then called, the Fii-st and Second Regiments 
 of Guards, were employed at home sustaining the totterin<T 
 throne of the monarch. Failing to profit by the lassons wliich 
 a recent advei*sity were so well fitted to teach, Charles, like 
 the rest of his unhappy race, devoted to his own indulgence, 
 plunged heedlessly into all the excesses of folly and passion. 
 Casting aside or neglecting the cares of his kingdom, so far at 
 least as they interfered with his own gratification, he consio-ued 
 to creatures of his pleasure, to the bigotiy of fawning Jesuits, 
 or the blind fanaticism of a cniel brother (the Duke of York) 
 the interests, the business, and the duties of royalty. Amid 
 such dissoluteness and misrule, the Guards, whilst fulfilling 
 their duty, must ofttimes have been forced to witness the 
 dark intrigues of a licentious court; nay, more, they were 
 frequently called to obey officers who had o])tained com- 
 missions from their having ministered discredital)ly to the 
 passionate appetites of superiors, or as being the fruit of 
 some unhallowed intercourse. Their duty, too, required they 
 should guard not merely the Sovereign of a great nation, but 
 his seraglio — the abandoned crowd who, dishonouring them- 
 selves, dishonouretl their sex, preyed upon the honour of the 
 nation, with undisguised effrontery daily glittered in finery, 
 and disgraceil the palaces of royalty by their presence. Ciladly 
 might the brave and honourable soldier welcome a respite from 
 such irksome duties and the influences of such evil examples on 
 the field of battle; but these were times of comparative peace. 
 It was not until Charles had sunk into the grave, the victim 
 of his own indulgence, and his brother, the Duke of York, 
 
48 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 had ascended the throne as James II., that the peace was 
 disturbed — and then but for a moment — by the pretensions 
 and rebellion of Monmouth, speedily terminated by the battle 
 of Sedgemoor, in 1685. During the reign of James II., who 
 departed not from the evil ways of his brother, but added in- 
 justice and cruelty to the lengthy catalogue of royal iniquities, 
 only one incident would we notice as belonging to the history 
 of the Coldstreams, and as emphatically declaring how far 
 even these stood apart from the sins of the age. James had 
 committed to the Tower the Archbishop of Canterbury and 
 other six bishops, who dared respectfully to remonstrate with 
 the King on behalf of their Protestant brethren, injured by 
 the pretensions of the Eoman Catholics. Faithful to their 
 duty, the Coldstreams nevertheless received these martyrs to 
 their ancient faith with every token of respect and reverence. 
 From the heart of many a soldier ascended the prayer, and 
 from his eye dropped the dewy tear, as he guarded the gloomy 
 dungeons of their prison. 
 
 At length, when the cup of royal iniquity was full to over- 
 flowino;, when the follies and cruelties of the race of Stuart 
 had alienated the affections of an otherwise loyal people, then 
 the oppressed, called to arms, with one voice drove the last 
 and worst representative of that unfortunate family from the 
 throne. Then, even then, when all else failed him, even his 
 own children — the Duke of Grafton, Colonel of the Grenadier 
 Guards, deserting — the Guards, the Coldstreams, remained 
 faithful, and with their Colonel, Lord Craven (appointed on 
 the death of Monk, in 1670), at their head, refused to give 
 
THE crAPwDS. 49 
 
 place to the stranger. Nor did they foi-sakc the unhappy 
 prince, or for a moment belie theii* allegiance to him, until 
 liis pusillanimous fliL:;ht had rendered their services no longer of 
 advantage to him. Then only did they make their peace with 
 the new Sovereign — William, Prince of Orange. Respecting 
 their constancy to the fallen monarch, and recognising the 
 Guartls to be men of worth, the Prince — now the King — 
 retained their services, nor hesitated to confide his own pei-son 
 to theii- keeping, as the faithful body-guard of a constitutional 
 throne. 
 
 Aware that an officer, well versed in military histories, and 
 to whose kindness we are largely indebted for much valuable 
 information embraced in this compilation, is now preparing 
 the annals of the Guards, in separate volumes, we forbear 
 saying more of the Grenadiei*s and Coldstreams, esteeming 
 the history of the Scots Fusilier Guards sufficient for the 
 purposes of our present undertaking, as being the one regiment 
 of tlio three undoubtedly Scottish. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 " Caledonians, brave and bold! 
 Heroes, never bought or sold! 
 Sous of sires, who died of old 
 To gild a maitial story!" 
 
 SCOTS FUSILIER GUARDS — SCOTTISH CIVIL WARS — REVOLUTION. 
 
 Whilst the Grenadiers and Coldstreams were unwilling wit- 
 nesses to the 'profligacy and leivdness of the Court, the Scots 
 Foot Guards, since their establishment in 1661, were more 
 especially the witnesses of its cruelties. The inquisition estab- 
 lished by Royal Commission, and presided over by the then 
 Duke of York, rioted in the shedding of the blood of "the 
 faithful," and with merciless cruelty persecuted and tortured 
 our Covenanting forefathers. In 1679, the Scots Foot Guards 
 were called to make their first essay in arms in the defence 
 of Glasgow. Their firm front, as they withstood the army of 
 the Covenanters, may be said to have stemmed the torrent of 
 rebellion, and saved the Government and the royal cause from 
 the ruin which threatened it. At the battle of Bothwell 
 Bridge they were charged with the attack upon the bridge, 
 which, although desperately defended, they ultimately carried. 
 This single achievement was victory; the terror, the panic 
 
THE GUARDS. 51 
 
 it inspireil in the still formidable army of the Covenaiitere, 
 led to a disorderly flight, even before the royal troops 
 could be brouirht across the river and formed in line of 
 attack. 
 
 The Scots Foot Guards continued to be deeply involved in 
 the strifes of these unhappy times. Towards the close of 
 their sojourn in Scotland, 200 of the regiment, under Captiiiu 
 Streighton, associated with a portion of the Scots Greys, were 
 employed in taking summary and merciless vengeance upon 
 I^Iacdonald of Keppoch and his unfortunate clan, because of 
 their recent raid upon the ^lacintosh. Immediately there- 
 after, the imminent danger to the Crown, caused by the 
 threatened irruption of the Prince of Orange, which was so 
 soon to overthrow the existing dynasty, induced James to 
 draw together to London the whole reliable forces of the 
 kingdom. Accordingly the Scots Foot Guards, under their 
 colonel, Lieutenant-General Douglas, marched with the Scot- 
 tish army southward. Arriving in London towards the close 
 of October, the regiment, 1251 strong, was quartered in the 
 vicinity of Holbom. Advanced with the royal army, the Scots 
 Foot Guards were stationed at Reading. Here, becoming 
 tainted with the general disaffection then prevalent, a bat- 
 talion de.sortcil to the Prince of Orange. The events in the 
 sequel, bringing about the dissolution of the authority of the 
 Ejng, and the establishment of the House of Orange under 
 William and Mary, speedily reunited the battalions of the 
 regiment under the new authority, and it is hereafter to be 
 regarded as the Scots Fusilier, or Third Regiment of Guards. 
 
52 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 The title of Scots Fusilier Guards was conferred on them as 
 late as the 22d April, 1831. 
 
 The ambitious views of Louis XIV. — "Ze Grand Mo- 
 narque'' — of France were for the moment paralysed, as he 
 found himself outdone in his calculations by the unexpected 
 turn of events in England — the overthrow of the Stuarts and 
 the splendid triumphs of the House of Orange. Nettled by 
 these disappointments, he readily entertained the schemes of 
 James, not so much that he desired the restoration of that 
 imbecile monarch — even although, as hitherto, enjoying the 
 shadow of independent power, he should continue the tool of 
 the Jesuits of France — but rather that he mio-ht find a favour- 
 able pretext to trouble the House of Orange, whom he had 
 been long accustomed to regard as his natural and mortal foe. 
 He aspired, moreover, to unite the Netherlands — the hereditary 
 dominion of the Stadtholder — to France, perchance to reduce 
 these sea-girt isles of ours to acknowledge his authority and 
 become an appanage of his Crown. Whilst James — encouraged 
 by the fair promises of Louis — laboured to fan into flame the 
 discontents of the English Jacobites, the Scottish Clans, and 
 the Irish Papists, Louis prepared formidable armaments by 
 sea and land, with which he speedily assailed the Netherlands. 
 Meanwhile, aided by the natural reaction which generally 
 follows the outburst of strong feelings, James succeeded but 
 too well in his malignant purpose; in Scotland, by the re- 
 bellion of the Highland Clans, under Viscount Dundee, and in 
 Ireland, by the rebellion of Irish Papists, under Tyrconnell^ 
 It required all the firmness and ability of William to meet 
 
THE GUARDS. 53 
 
 this formidable coalition, which threateued his domiuions at 
 home aud abroad; but the King, who could point to times in 
 his eventful history when, with far less promise of a successful 
 issue, he had overthrown more powerful foes — sustained now, 
 too, by the veteran experience of Schomberg and the rising 
 genius of JMarlborough — promptly prepared to uphold his 
 new-gotten and extensive authority as the Champion of the 
 Protestant cause, a title which he had long enjoyed, and a 
 faith which, despite the wrathful persecution of kings, he liad 
 owned and protected. 
 
 For a time, in Scotland, victory seemed indecisive, but 
 after the death of Dundee at Killiecrankie, the cause of James, 
 languishing for a while, was at length abandoned as hopeless 
 by the Clims, and in IGDl the rebellion terminated by their 
 submission. In Ireland, the success of James was complete, 
 with the exception of Londonderry and Enniskillen, which, 
 being resolutely and gloriously defended as the last bulwarks 
 of Irish Protestantism, still held out. Even the arrival of 
 Schomberg, in 1G89, at the head of a considerable numljer of 
 newly-i-aised regiments of English and French Huguenots, 
 aided by a Dutch force, failed to do more than awe the 
 rebels. In the following year William himself joined the 
 army, with large .supplies, and l)y his presence revived the 
 spirit of his troops — now incre;Lsed to 3G,000. A battalion 
 of the Scots Foot Guards at the Siime time recruiting the 
 royal army, led by their colonel. General Doughus, were 
 present at the battle of the Boyne, where they materially con- 
 tributed to the overthrow of the Irish relnils. They were 
 
54 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 also present with the army, imcler Ginkel, which ultimately 
 dispersed the troops of the malcontents, driving James from 
 the throne of Ireland, and so united the island once more 
 to the British Empire. 
 
 AYhile these events were taking place at home, Marl- 
 borough had been sent in command of a British contingent, 
 which comprised, with other troops, a battahon of the Scots 
 Foot Guards and one of the Coldstream Guards, to act 
 with the Dutch and German allies, under Prince Waldeck, 
 against the French in the Netherlands. It is interestino; 
 to note this, as beino- the first efi'ort in arms of the Scots 
 Foot Guards upon a foreign shore and against a foreign foe. 
 In the first action of the campaign, fought at Walcourt, our 
 Guards were present, but occupied no very important post, 
 the brunt of the battle having been sustained by the Cold- 
 streams, under Colonel Talmash, the Sixteenth Eegiment of 
 Foot and the First Eegiment of Royal Scots, under Colonel 
 Hodges. Although forming a part of the Scottish brigade, the 
 regiment, indeed the army, achieved nothing of importance 
 until 1692, when King William, having effectually secured 
 peace at home, placed himself at the head of his forces, infusing 
 by his presence new energy and life into the war. Notwith- 
 standing the enthusiasm which pervaded the troops when 
 William assumed the command, they could make no impres- 
 sion upon the French army, directed by the abilities of the 
 Due de Luxembourg. On the contrary, the allies were 
 doomed to suffer severe defeats at Steenkirk in 1692, and 
 Landen in 1693. In the latter, Corporal Trim, in Sterne's 
 
Tin; GUARDS. r>5 
 
 reno^^'ned "Tristram Shandy," is represcnte<l to liave been 
 wouucleil whilst serving with his master, the kindly-hearted 
 Uncle Toby, in Leven's regiment, now the Twenty-fifth King's 
 Onvti Borderers. The after campaigns are unmarked by any 
 decisive event. The death of Luxembourg, and the incapacity 
 of his successor — Villeroy — enabled the confederates some- 
 wliat to retrieve the disasters of tlie past. Soon the almost 
 impregnable fortress of Namur — bravely defended by ^farshal 
 Bouflleurs, and ivs bravely assailed by our troops — was, after 
 a fearful carnage, lost to France. In 1697, weary of a war 
 which had been fraught with no decided success on either 
 side, the peace of Ryswick put an end for the present to a 
 further waste of blood and treasure. 
 
 The Guards, returning to England, enjoyed but for a 
 short space a respite from active service. France having for 
 a moment tasted the sweets of victory, having largely re- 
 cruited her armies, thirsted for more blood, longed for new 
 worlds to con<]uer; whilst her ambitious lord, grasping, 
 through minions of his hoiLse, the vacant throne of Spain, 
 once more rouse<l the allied wrath of Europe. During the 
 previous reign our country had groaned inider a shameful 
 vassalage to France. The gold of the cnifty Louis had 
 outweighed the feeble sense of lionour which yet lived and 
 lurked amid the cornipt Court of James. But the accession 
 of William to the throne put an end to these traitorous 
 traffickings for the independency of the land. The new nde 
 and healthier administration of the ilousc of Orange dispelled 
 the night of slavery, revived the cbxwping spirit of liberty, 
 
56 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 and restored the nation to its true manhood. Even now did 
 she begin to assume that position of first importance among 
 the continental powers which she has never ceased honourably 
 to retain. Her alliance was anxiously courted, and her enmity 
 dreaded by all. With becoming majesty her ministers may 
 be said to have presided in the councils of the nations. With 
 terrible might she threw the weight of her sword into the 
 scale as an arbiter — the defender of the right. 
 
 In 1701 and 1702 the British army was being assembled 
 in the Netherlands, and posted in the vicinity of Breda — 
 the Guards forming an important part of the force. Mean- 
 while the Dutch and German auxiliaries were drawino; 
 together their several contingents. Difiiculties arose amongst 
 the confederates as to the officer who should assume the 
 chief command. Happily, however, these were at length 
 overcome. The Earl of Athlone, as the senior, waving his 
 claim, the command of the allied army was conferred on 
 Marlborough, who, in the campaigns which were about to 
 open, should win laurels of a mighty fame. From the great 
 number of strong fortresses which studded the plains of the 
 Netherlands and guarded the frontier, the campaigns were, 
 in consequence, largely made up of perplexing manoevures 
 and sieges. It is, however, worthy of notice that in eacli 
 year the might and energy of the combatants were concen- 
 trated into one great fight, rather than a succession of minor 
 engagements. The character of the country, no doubt, helped 
 to this mode of warfare. Thus we record, in succession, tlie 
 great battles of Blenheim, in 1704: Eamilies, in 1706; Oude- 
 
THE C.UARDS. 57 
 
 narcle, in 1708; ^Ialpla<iuct, iu 1709. It is unnecessary to 
 detail the marchin;]^^ and counter-marchiu«xs of the Guards as 
 they waited upon the several sieges; sufticient be it to say, 
 they did "tlie State some service." At Ninieguen, Avitli 
 the First Royals, they rendered essential service in repelling 
 an unexpected attack of an immensely superior French force, 
 who had hoped to surjirise and proudly capture the allied 
 chiefs in the midst of their deliberations. In 1 703 the strong- 
 holds of Huy and Limburg capitulated to the allies. During 
 this campaign the Guards were brigaded with the Fifteenth, 
 Twenty-thinl, and Twenty-fourth Regiments under General 
 Withers. But the succeeding year was destined to witness 
 a far more magnificent achievement — the sudden and rapid 
 transference of the British army from the plains of the 
 Netherlands to the vaUey of the Danube ; a movement which, 
 affording timely succour, and graced by the triumphs of 
 Schellenberg and Blenheim, restored the sinking fortunes of 
 the Imperial arms, and proved the deliverance of Germany. 
 Ass«x;iated with the First Royals, the Twenty-third Regiment, 
 with detachments from other corps, the Guards sustained a 
 terrible firrht and suffered a severe loss in storming the heiiihts 
 of Schellenlx?rg. Tlieir valour on this occasion was most 
 conspicuous. The furious and rcpcate<l assaults of tlieir gal- 
 lant foe entailetl frequent repulses; still their finnnc^s was 
 imconquerable; again and again they rcturnetl to the attack, 
 until their perseverance was at length crowned with complete 
 success in the utter rout of the enemy. But this defeat on 
 the part of the French and Bavarians was only the prelude to 
 
58 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 a more terrible disaster. The allied army of Germans, Dutch, 
 Prussians, and British, driving the enemy before them, at 
 length halted in the neighbourhood of Blenheim, where the 
 French and Bavarians, largely recruited and strongly posted, 
 under Marshals Tallard and Marsin, had resolved to try the 
 issue of battle. In the action which followed, the Guards had 
 six officers killed and wounded. After the siec:e and surrender 
 of Landau, which immediately followed this victory, the 
 Guards returned with the army to the Netherlands, where, 
 in the succeeding campaigns, they were hotly engaged, forcing 
 the enemy's lines at Helixem, and more especially at the great 
 pitched contests of Eamilies, Oudenarde, and ]\Ial23laquet. In 
 1712 the peace of Utrecht once more restored them to their 
 native land. 
 
 Meanwhile the Spanish Peninsula was the scene of a con- . 
 flict, although conducted on a less gigantic scale, embittered 
 by the personal presence of the rival sovereigns — Philip of 
 Bourbon and Charles of Austria. France having espoused the 
 cause of Philip — which was really the cause of the people — 
 had so vigorously pressed the allies, that notwithstanding 
 the presence of a British force, they could hardly maintain a 
 footinoj in the Peninsula for themselves, or for Charles as 
 claimant to the throne. The war is remarkable as developing 
 the military abilities of two most illustrious soldiers who 
 successively directed the French armies — the Duke of Berwick 
 and the Due de Vendome. In 1704 Gibraltar had been 
 captured by a party of British sailors. A portion of the 
 Guards garrisoned the fortress, and heroically withstood all 
 
THE GUARDS. .19 
 
 the eftbrts of the Spaniards to recover it. In the following 
 year the British fleet arrived, and forced Marshal Tesse to 
 raise the siege, in consequence of which the Guards were 
 withdrawn to form a part of the expedition under the Earl 
 of i'eterborough, which landed in Catidonia and captured 
 Barcelona. Soon, however, this transient success was dissi- 
 pated by the return of the French and Spanish armies, who 
 in turn besieged the British. After enduring many privations, 
 and making a gallant defence, the besieged were relieved in 
 the eleventh hour by the presence of a British scjuadron with 
 reinforcements. But this tem2)orary aid only served, by 
 elevating the hopes of the garrison, to induce a more serious 
 disaster, in the utter rout of the allies at the battle of 
 Almanaza which shortly followed, and virtually gave the 
 kingdom to the House of Bourbon. Urged by jNIarlborough, 
 the British Government were roused to prosecute the war 
 with greater vigour in Spain than hitherto, as being a diver- 
 sion of the utmost importance to tlie allied operations in the 
 Netherlands, Germany, and Italy. Accordingly, in 1709 two 
 formidable annies were sent out, one to act in Portugal, under 
 Lord Galway, and the other in Spain, imder Generals Starem- 
 bcrg and Stanhope. The latter of these included a battalion 
 of the Scots I'usilior Guards. Advancing upon j\Iadrid, eveiy- 
 thing .seemed to promise success to tlieir enterprise — the 
 8|xxxly downfall of the Bourbon dynasty, and the establish- 
 ment of the House of Austria upon the throne. Their advance 
 was distinguisheil by the victory of Saragossa, in which the 
 British captured thirty standards and colours. The French 
 
60 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 General retiring, waited his opportunity, when, with recruited 
 ranks, and the popular opinion on his side, he returned and 
 forced the British, under Staremberg and Stanhope, to make a 
 precipitate retreat, in course of which General Stanhope, at 
 the head of 6000 troops, including the Scots Fusilier Guards, 
 was overtaken at Birhuega by a superior force of the enemy. 
 The British for two days heroically defended themselves, but 
 were ultimately forced to surrender. General Staremberg, 
 however, somewhat repaired the disaster by defeating the 
 enemy in the battle of Villa Viciosa with great slaughter, 
 and thus secured for his wearied yet gallant troops a safe 
 retreat. 
 
 In 1715 the Scots Fusilier Guards were placed in garrison 
 in Portsmouth and Plymouth. Notwithstanding the rebellions 
 in Scotland of 1715 and 1719 the regiment continued to be 
 peacefully employed in the south. In 1 722 the colonelcy was 
 conferred on General St Clair. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ■ lit n is! — for instant Baerifice pri'piirt'tl ; 
 Yet filled with iinluur and un triumph tx'nt 
 'Mill tlirest shcnks of mortal accident — 
 To yuu who fell, and you whom slaughter 8|Minil 
 To guanl the fallen, and consummate the event, 
 Your country rears this Kicreil monument." 
 
 WAR OF THE AUSTRIAN SUCCESSION — SEVEN YEARS' WAR — 
 AMERICAN INnKI'ENDENCE — FRENCH REVOLUTION — CRIMEA 
 
 ANTICIPATED lUl'TniE WITH THE UNITED STATES 
 
 174-'-! «G2. 
 
 The family foutls which at this time divided the House of 
 Austria once more kindled the llames of continental war. 
 In support of the Austriaus, George II. sent a British army 
 into the Netherliinds. Assuming himself the command of 
 the allies, he prepared to combat, on this ancient battle- 
 field, the confedcnicy of France, Prussia, and Bavaria. With 
 the army, the present Scots Fu.-^ilier Guards landed in Ilolhmd 
 in 1742, under the Earl of Dunmorc. They were j)resent at 
 the battle of Dettingen in 174:}, where the French were 
 signally defcatc<l. In the following year J^Iarshal AVade 
 assumed the command of the allies. Nothing of imjx)rtance 
 was undertaken until 1745, when the Duke of Cujuberland 
 was appointee! to the command; — the Guards were at this 
 
62 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 period brigaded with the Forty-second Koyal HigUanders, 
 (then making their first campaign as the Forty-third Kegi- 
 ment, or "Black Watch," which latter title has recently 
 been confirmed to them.) At the battle of Fonteuoy, fought 
 for the relief of Tournay, this brigade was charged with the 
 attack upon the village of Veson. Here the French, strongly 
 entrenched, made a gallant defence, but were forced to yield 
 to the fierce onset of such a chosen body of troops. The ill 
 success of the Dutch auxiliaries in other parts of the field, and 
 the last and desperate charge of Marshal Saxe at the head of 
 the French Guards, w^ith the Irish and Scottish brigades in 
 the French service, led on by the young Chevalier, speedily 
 changed the fortunes of the day, compelled the allies to 
 retreat, and our brave Guards reluctantly to relinquish the 
 important post their valour had won. 
 
 Meantime, Prince Charles Edward having landed in Scot- 
 land, set up the standard of rebellion, and summoned the 
 tumultuous and fierce array of the clans to do battle for his 
 pretensions to the throne. The war on the Contineut having 
 occasioned the withdrawal of a large body of the regular 
 army, the rebels succeeded in driving before them the few 
 troops which had been left at home. Their progress south- 
 ward into England promised the speedy downfall of the House 
 of Brunswick, and the restoration of that of Stuart. The 
 timely return of the major part of the army, including the 
 Scots Fusilier Guards, from Holland, at this juncture, arrested 
 the advance of the rebels upon London, and occasioned their 
 precipitate retreat into Scotland. A strong force of the king's 
 
THE GUARDS. 03 
 
 troops, including a portion of the Guards, advanctxl in pursuit 
 of the piince, whilst the rcmauider, grouped in positions in 
 and around London, prepared to defend the country from 
 the threatened descent of the French. The hloody defeat of 
 Cidloden, as it utterly ruined the rebel army, so it terminated 
 the war, by the dispersion or submission of the clans and the 
 flight of the prince. 
 
 Culloden'a raoor! a darker scene 
 Of civil strife thy sons luive seen, 
 ^^'hen for an exiled I'rince ye bletl, 
 Now inuurn alas! your "mighty deatl," 
 
 The brave o' bonnie Scotland. 
 
 Peace having been restored at home, the Scots Fusilier 
 Guards, with other regiments, returned to IloUand in 1747, 
 where the French, in their absence, had made considerable 
 progress. The only event of importance which occurred in 
 the campaign was the battle of Val, in which the immense 
 superiority of the French compelled the retreat of the Piritish, 
 under the Duke of Cumberland. In 1748 peace was con- 
 clude<l at Aix-la-Chapelle. 
 
 Disputes arising as to the l)Oundary line of the BritLsh and 
 French colonies, and neither party accepting a peaceful solu- 
 tion, war was dei-lared in 17jG. Wliilst tlie reputation of the 
 British arms was being gloriously sustainetl on the distant 
 continent of America and in Lower Germany, the Guards 
 were engaged in fre<iucut descents upon the French coast. At 
 St Cas they specially distinguished themselves. The peace of 
 1763 secureil to our colonists the quiet ix)88e88ion of the fniite 
 
64 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of tlieir own industry against the cupidity of the French. 
 Scarcely had this result been attained when difficulties arose 
 with the colonists themselves, by their refusal to be taxed by 
 the home government without an equivalent representation. 
 Our armies were accordingly recalled in 1775 to the American 
 continent, whilst the colonists, preparing for a vigorous de- 
 fence, alhed themselves with their late enemies, the French. 
 The Scots Fusilier Guards formed a part of the British expedi- 
 tion, and under Clinton, Howe, and Cornwallis, upheld their 
 ancient reputation for discipline and valour in the fresh and 
 difficult warfare to which, in the desolate wilds of the New 
 World, they were called. This unfortunate war, fraught with . 
 disastrous results, and waged with great fury and bitter hate 
 on both sides, was concluded in 1783, and secured the 
 independence of the colonists, who formed themselves into a 
 RepubHc, under the designation of the United States. 
 
 In 1782 the Duke of Argyll had been promoted to the 
 colonelcy of the Scots Fusilier Guards. 
 
 France, too long enslaved but now suddenly emanci- 
 pated from the galling tyranny of "the privileged orders," 
 writhing under all the miseries of Revolution, had ruined 
 every vestige of righteous government, and consigned the 
 nation to the more cruel bondage of a despot mob. At 
 length these evil influences were incarnated in the demon 
 rule of the "Reign of Terror." Banlcrupt in every sense, 
 to feed the starving crowd who daily clamoured for bread, 
 proved a task too hard for the wretched creatures who 
 had been elevated to power through the blood of their 
 
TOE G UAH US. <>5 
 
 l)r(Hlccc3sors, ami wlio called themselves the Government, 
 whilst the whim of the people coutinued them in favour. 
 As they were but the Government of a day, so they cared 
 little for the consequences beyond their own time. To main- 
 tain their popularity, and if possible avert the fate whicli 
 ever threatened them from the blind fury and unbridled 
 passion of the mob, they gladly entered upon a universal 
 crusade against the governments and liberti&s of neighbouring 
 nations, hoping thereby to direct the merciless wrath of the 
 people into this new channel, and so save themselves. Soon 
 the ranks of the armies were recruited by a fierce and 
 undisciplined multitude. But the very magnitude of these 
 armaments proved their ruin, and but for the spasmodic 
 efforts of the Revolutionary tyrants in the national defence, 
 which achieved marvels, the Revolution must have been 
 crushed at this early stage. A small British force, including 
 the Coldstream and Scots Fusilier Guards, was sent over to 
 the Netherlands, under the Duke of York, who vainly en- 
 deavoured to stem the torrent of aj'iiression in that diixH.'tion. 
 Efpially fruitless were the attempts of the Britisli Cabinet to 
 patch up an alliance amongst the nations, so as effectually to 
 unite them in defending the liberties of Europe. Although the 
 \'ictory of Lincclles graced our arms, still, alone, our troops 
 could not hope for success against the immense armaments 
 that continued to emerge from Frande. Tlie British were 
 therefore compelleil to recede before the advancing ti«le, and 
 postpone "the day of reckoning." 
 
 Amongst the many ruthless and reckless, yet bold and able 
 
GQ HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 men which the Kcvolution procliiced, none claims such a space 
 in history, none so suited his times, none was so equal to the 
 crisis, as Napoleon Bonaparte. His brilliant achievements in 
 Italy under the Consulate had already taken the public mind 
 by storm, when in 1801 he invaded Egypt, crossed the sterile 
 desert, overthrew the feeble cohorts of the Sultan, and 
 threatened to add Syria to the empire of the French. At 
 Acre his legions were for the first time arrested by the firm- 
 ness of British valour. In 1801 a British army, including 
 the present Coldstream and Scots Fusilier Guards, was sent to 
 Egypt, under Sir Ealph Abercromby, to expel the invader. 
 Thirstiuo" for some new field of conquest to feed his ambition. 
 Napoleon had returned to France, leaving General Menou to 
 make good the defence. The defeats of Mandora and Alex- 
 andria effectually broke the already sinking spirit of the 
 French, and resulted in their abandonment of Egypt. In 
 consideration of their efforts in this service, the Coldstream 
 and Scots Fusilier Guards have been allowed the distinction 
 of "the Sphinx," with the word "Egypt." 
 
 The cloud which for a moment dimmed the lustre of his 
 arms, as this province was wrested from his sway, was soon 
 dispelled in the glories that elsewhere crowned his efforts, 
 especially in Spain, which, by the foulest perfidy, he had 
 virtually made a portion of his vast empire. Frequent 
 expeditions had been contemplated — some had sailed, two at 
 least had landed on the shores of the Peninsula — still nothing 
 decisive had been accomplished towards aiding the Spanish 
 and Portuguese in the expulsion of the French, In 180.9, 
 

 
 ^5p^ — / ^F\^ ^^ 
 
THK GL'AEDS. (\7 
 
 however, a powerful British force under Sir Arthur Wellcsley, 
 ivfterwards "the Great Duke," wiis sent out, inchuling the 
 Coklstream and Scots Fusiher Guards. It is unnecessary at 
 present to follow tlieni throughcnit the glories of the war, as 
 we shall have occiision to do so in iifter chapters ; enough fur 
 oiir purpose to mention the battles of Talavera (1809) and 
 Barrosa (1811), in which they speci;Uly distinguished them- 
 selves. 
 
 Having delivered Spain, Sir Arthur Welleslcy, now Lord 
 AN'ellington, advanced into France, and sorely pressed the 
 retiring foe. It needed all the ability of Marshal Soult to 
 hold together the shattered remnant of his broken and dis- 
 spirited army. With masterly tact and skill he preserved a 
 seeming order in his retreat, so as to save the army from the 
 ignominy of a flight. ]\Ieanwhilc, France having exliausteil her 
 resources, her people became tired of the yoke of the Emperor, 
 who, whilst fortune smiled upon his arms, had been to them a 
 very god, but now that the spell of victory was broken, was 
 revealeil in truer colours as the ambitious yet mighty despot. 
 Martial glory, as the riding passion of the nation, had bo- 
 witched the jHiOple, and received in ready sacrifice the Ixst 
 blootl of the land. Long, too long, had the i)Ower of Na})oleon, 
 like a dark shadow, rested u|)on one-half of the known world, 
 whilst the enipty vanity of unhappy France wjis iharme<l ])y 
 delusive visions of victor}'. The times were sadly changed. 
 With a melancholy joy Europe had witnessetl the utter niin 
 of the splendid and countless host which the fiat of the mighty 
 chief had prcssc<l into his service. liurietl beneath the snows 
 
68 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of a Eussian winter — hurled in confusion back upon his own 
 hmd — 
 
 "The might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword, 
 Ilath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord." 
 
 This appalling catastrophe, combined with British suc- 
 cesses in the Peninsula, had revived the spirit of the 
 nations, allied them in a holy crusade, and marshalled the 
 might of Europe in array to crush the tyrant. One by one, 
 they wrested from his sway the kingdoms he had engulfed, 
 and which groaned beneath a cruel bondage. Step by step, 
 their hosts converged, as the tide of war rolled, towards 
 France. All but alone, with his brave and devoted Guard 
 driven to bay, he made a desperate but unavailing stand on 
 the plains of France. In vain he addres'sed the patriotism of 
 the people; already the fountain had been dried up by his 
 incessant Avars and the unremitting demands he had made 
 upon the blood and treasure of the land. Surrendering, at 
 length, the hopeless contest, abdicating the throne, he passed 
 into honourable exile in Elba. 
 
 Ambition, still the tempter, assailing, soon prevailed. 
 Eluding the vigilance of the British fleet, he succeeded in 
 escaping into France, accompanied by a few of his old Guard, 
 who had shared his exile. The mind of the people, which for 
 more than twenty years had lived amid a wild delirium of 
 excitement, still lingering upon the threshold of the mighty 
 past, had not yet learned to submit to the more benignant rule 
 of peace. The army, unwisely disbanded, or despoiled of those 
 symbols of glory which their valour had so nobly won — tro- 
 
THE GUARDS. Gi) 
 
 pliics which, to u soldier, must ever be dear as life itself — 
 were being consumed by the ennui of idleness, longed for new 
 employment. Hence the return of Napoleon paralysed resist- 
 ance as recalling the military glory of the Empire; awakening 
 new hopes, promising revenge for the past, employment for 
 the present, and glory for the future, it stirred within the 
 bosom of the soldier and the lower classes of the people a 
 reverence and adoration, almost amounting to idolatry. 
 Rapidly advancing from stage to stage, as on a triumj>hal 
 nuirch. Napoleon found himself once more at Paris — hailed 
 Emperor — it is true, doubted by the better classes of the 
 people, but worshipped by the army. His de^sperate efforts 
 soon enabled him to take the field, at the head of a powerful 
 and well-appointed army, with which he proposed to meet in 
 detail, and so destroy, his numerous and returning enemies. 
 Unfortunately for him, he chose the Netherlands to be the 
 scene, and Britain and Prussia the objects, of his first, and, as 
 the result proved, his last attack. For a moment a gleam of 
 sunshine shone upon his path, as he attained the victory of 
 Ligny, over the Pnissians under Marshal Blucher. Luring 
 him to destruction, this fhish of success was only the precureor 
 to the dread thunder of Waterloo. Alarme<l by the dis;vs- 
 trous intelligence of the Prus-sian defeat and the rapid advance 
 of the French, Wellington, who commanded the Ikitish and 
 other auxiliaries, (piickly concentrated his army near the vil- 
 lage of Waterloo. But ere he could accomplish this, ^larshal 
 Ney, at the Jiead of the second French division, had suFiiri.sctl 
 and fallen upon, with great fury, the P»rilish, as they advaucctl 
 
70 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 upon Qiiatre Bras, on the same day that Liguy was won. 
 The action w^as honourably sustained by a few British 
 Regiments, especially the Twenty-eighth, and the Forty-second, 
 Seventy-ninth and Ninety-second Highland Eegiments. The 
 heroic stand made by these gave time for the arrival of other 
 corps, including the Guards — the Scots Fusilier Guards — who 
 succeeded, after a desperate struggle, in effectually checking 
 the progress of the French Marshal, and thus depriving him 
 of a most favourable opportunity of cutting to pieces in detail 
 our army. Two days later, on the 18th of June, the Duke 
 had successfully accomplished the concentration of his forces, 
 which, drawn up in battle array at Waterloo, w^aited the arrival 
 of the Prussians, to begin the fight. But Napoleon, perceiving 
 his advantage in the absence of such an important succour, 
 rushed eagerly to battle, put forth every effort to achieve 
 victory, ere Blucher, impeded by the disorders of recent 
 defeat, could afford any assistance. The Scots Fusilier Guards, 
 with the Grenadiers and Coldstreams, were stationed in the 
 chateau and grounds of Hougomont, where they were soon 
 fiercely assailed by the French, who repeatedly forcing the 
 gateway, drove the British into the house. Again and again 
 the enemy were repulsed, but still anew they returned to the 
 assault. The combat was resolutely maintained, and it was 
 not until the close of this eventful day, w^hcn the French, 
 repulsed at every point, and gradually relaxing their eftbrts, 
 were ultimately driven from the field, that our Guards found 
 a release from the incessant toils of the fight. The victory 
 achieved by the British was now completed by the Prussians, 
 
THE fiUARDS. 71 
 
 who continueil the pursuit — a pursuit which may l>c sai<l only 
 to liavc ccasal at the gates of Paris, wlien, Najwlcon abdicat- 
 ing, the war was terminated by the restoration of the old 
 -Monarchy. 
 
 From Mr Carter's interesting work on " The ^Fechils of 
 the British Army," we, by permission, quote the following 
 refutation in regard to an allegal sum of £500 having 
 been accorded to a Waterloo veteran : — " A statement has 
 fretpiently appeareil in the newspapers, which was re]ieated 
 after the decease of General Sir James Macdonell, G.C.B., 
 on the 15th of ^lay, 1857, that five hundred pounds liad 
 been bequcathe<l to the bravest man in the British army, 
 and that the two executors called upon the late Duke of 
 Wellington, to give him a cheque for the money. As the 
 -lory went, the Duke proposed that it should be given to Sir 
 lames for the defence of Houg<miont, and that upon the 
 money being tendered to him, he at first declined to receive 
 it, but that ultimately he shareil it with Sergeant-Major 
 Fraser of the 3d Foot Guards, now the Scots Fusilier Guards. 
 
 *• Having recently seen this statement again in print while 
 these pages were in preparation, and Sir James Macdonell 
 having about ten years ago mentioned to me that he had 
 never received the money, I made further inquiries, from 
 which I ascertained that Sergeant-Major Kalph Fraser is now 
 I bedesman in Westminster Abbey. Considering that the 
 ibove legacy might possibly have been since received, I called 
 upon the sergeant-major, who lives at 18 West Street, Pimlico, 
 an«l is now in his 79tli year, in «»rder to ascertain the fact, and 
 
72 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 found that it had not. This gallant and intelligent veteran is 
 in the full possession of his faculties, and, in addition to his 
 having aided in closing the gate at Hougomont, can look with 
 becoming pride on his having shared in the following services : 
 — He was enlisted in the 3d Foot Guards in 1799, and was 
 embarked for Egypt in 1801. In the landing at Aboukir 
 Bay, on the 8th of March of that year, the boat in which 
 Corporal Fraser was contained sixty persons, officers included ; 
 all except fifteen were destroyed by the resistance of the 
 enemy. He was present at the battles of the 13th and 21st 
 March; and in the expedition to Hanover, 1805; bombard- 
 ment of Copenhagen, 1807; and from 1809 to 1814 in the 
 Peninsula, being present at the capture of Oporto, battles of 
 Talavera, Busaco, Fuentes d'Onor (wounded in the leg and 
 thigh), sieges of Ciudad Eodrigo, Burgos (again wounded in 
 the leg), Badajoz, and St Sebastian; battles of Salamanca, 
 Vittoria, passage of the Nivelle and Nive. He received, in 
 addition to the Waterloo medal, that for the Peninsular war, 
 with bars for Egypt, Talavera, Busaco, Fuentes d'Onor, Ciudad 
 Eodrigo, Salamanca, Vittoria, Nivelle, and Nive. Sergeant- 
 Major Fraser was discharged in December, 1818." 
 
 This account, doubtless, may be traced to the following 
 circumstance mentioned by Colonel Siborne in his valuable 
 History of the Waterloo Campaign : — " Early in August of 
 that year, and while the Anglo-allied army was at Paris, the 
 Duke of Wellin2;ton received a letter from the Rev. Mr 
 Norcross, rector of Framlingham, in Suffolk, expressing his 
 wish to confer a pension of ten pounds a year, for life, on 
 
THE GUARDS. 7:^ 
 
 some Waterloo soldier, to be named l)y his Grace. The Duke 
 requested Sir John Byng (the late Lord Stafford) to choose 
 a man from the second brigade of Guards, which had so 
 highly distingiiislied itself in the defence of Hougomont. 
 Out of numerous instances of good conduct evinced by several 
 individuals of each battalion, Sergeant James Graham, of the 
 light company of the Coldstreams, was selected to receive the 
 proffered annuity, as notified in brigade orders of the 9th 
 of August, 1815. This was paid to him <luring two years, 
 at the expiration of whicli period it ceased, in consequence 
 of the bankruptcy of tlic benevolent donor." 
 
 From the heroic character of the battle, our |X)ople have 
 been prevailed on to credit many incidents, which, savouring 
 of the romantic, suited their tastes, have been accepted as 
 tniisms, but which facts fail to corroborate. " One very 
 prevailing idea that Wellington gave out the words, ' Up, 
 Guards, and at them!' is not borne out by fiict, for it was 
 afterwards ascertained from the Duke himself that he did not; 
 and another, the meeting of his Grace and Mai-shal Blucher al 
 Li Belle Alliance, after the battle, is equally apocryplial. 
 This, however, is to be one of the designs of the House of 
 Lords, and will therefore be hande<l down to posterity as 
 a fact." For nearly fi^rty years the Scots Fusilier Gnanls IkvI 
 been retained at home, in or arouml London. 
 
 In 1853, the storm which had been long gathering in the 
 north — presaging wrath to Liberty and to Man — at length 
 burst forth, and descending with rapacious might upon the 
 dominions of the Turkish Sultan, thi-eatene<l to overwhehu in 
 
 K 
 
74 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 utter ruin the crumbling remnant of the empire of Constan- 
 tine. The impatient covetousness of the Czar of Russia had 
 put forth the hand of the spoiler, intending to appropriate the 
 realms of the Sultan, and make Constantinople the southern 
 gate of his colossal empire. Justly alarmed at the already- 
 gigantic power of Russia, which promised further to enlarge 
 itself at the expense of the feebler Powers around, France and 
 Britain took up arms, and threw the weight of their potent 
 influence into the contest on behalf of the oppressed Turks, 
 whose single arm had hitherto proved equal to the struggle. 
 Accordingly, France, Turkey, and Britain, ultimately aided by 
 Sardinia, entered the lists of war, to sustain the liberty of 
 Europe against the despotism of the North, adopting as their 
 watchword the memorable words of Lord John Russell, " May 
 God defend the right." 
 
 The first battalion of the Scots Fusilier Guards, brigaded 
 with a battalion of the Grenadiers, and another of the 
 Coldstreams, were embarked for the scene of action, which 
 ultimately proved to be the Crimea. They sailed from 
 Portsmouth, in H.M.S. the " Simoom ;" and passing succes- 
 sively from Malta, Gallipoli, and Varna, arrived at length in 
 the Crimea. The brigade of Guards, and that of the High- 
 landers, consisting of the Forty-second, Seventy-ninth, and 
 Ninety-third, under their favourite chieftain. Sir Colin Camp- 
 bell, were closely allied in all the dangers and glories of the 
 war in the First Infantry division, commanded by his Royal 
 Highness the Duke of Cambridge. The long peace which 
 had preceded the outbreak of hostilities, and the cry for 
 
THE GUARDS. 75 
 
 "greater public economy," which it had iuduced from a people 
 long accustomed to look only at I lie arithmetic of ix)und.s, 
 shillings, and j)ence, in such vital questions, had in conse- 
 quence brought lUl that magnificent machinery of war, 
 possessetl by our country, to a standstill. It followed, as 
 a necessary result, when our Cabinet failed to achieve a 
 peaceful solution of the matters at issue, as had been fondly 
 anticipated, and we were imexpectetUy called to a declaration 
 of war, it Wiw found impossible at once to set in motion the 
 vast machinery of war, which had so long been " laid up in 
 ordinary." Hence our gallant troops were doomed to pay the 
 penalty of our ill-judged economy, and endure many luul sore 
 privations — privations which were the more keenly felt, inas- 
 much as they were to be endured, amid the snows of a 
 Crimean winter, by men, too, whose previous life had been 
 comparatively one of comfort, in no way calculated to fit 
 the soldier to encounter the pitiless horrors and fatigues of 
 war. Disease and want, like armed men, entered the camp, 
 closely followed by their master, the grim King of Terrors — 
 Death ; and thus we have been called to hunent, with a truly 
 bitter sorrow, the loss of our brave countiymen, who, alike in 
 the hospital as in the battle-field, displaye<l all the grand and 
 noble qualities of the soldier and the virtues of the tme man. 
 The conduct of the Guards in their fii-st cnjraj:ement at the 
 battle of the Alma is described by Marshal St A maud as alto- 
 gether " superb." Lieutenants Lindsay and Thistlethwaytc, 
 were es|XK;ially tbstinguisheil for their heroic defence of 
 the colours of the Scots Fusilier Guards. At the battle of 
 
76 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 Inkermann, tlie Guards, having driven the Russians out of a 
 battery, named the Sandbag Battery, of which they had early 
 possessed themselves, sustained with desperate gallantry the 
 impetuous assaults of the enemy, and, although forced for 
 a moment to give way, were soon again enabled to retrieve 
 themselves, and maintain possession of the battery, around 
 which and for which they so bravely contended. Although 
 stunned by these repeated disasters in the field, yet with that 
 " dogged obstinacy," which has characterised the Russians, 
 conceiving themselves secure behind the battlements of 
 Sebastopol, they still held out. Strengthened in the idea of 
 impregnability, from the fact that this vast citadel of Southern 
 Russia had already withstood six successive bombardments, 
 defied the combined efforts of the Allies by sea and land, and 
 yet no sensible impression had been made, or aught of decided 
 success attained by the besiegers, they hoped that what their 
 valour could not achieve in the battle-field, the snows of 
 winter or the stroke of the pestilence would effect — the 
 destruction of our armies, and their consecjuent deliverance. 
 The successive fall of the Mamelon, the MalakoflF, and the 
 Redan, dispelled this illusion, and prudence, rightly esteemed 
 the better part of valour, induced a timely evacuation ere our 
 Highland Brigade returned to the assault. Sebastopol no 
 longer defensible, the enemy sued for peace, which was 
 granted, and this stronghold of tyranny, dismantled and 
 abandoned, was assumed to be converted into a haven for 
 fishermen and traders, rather than the mighty arsenal, whence 
 had so long issued the formidable fleets which had inspired 
 
THE GUARDS. 77 
 
 terror among weaker and neighbouring states — at least so the 
 treaty requii-ed. ]\Ioan while our gallant Guards, returning to 
 England, were welcomed by a grateful country. 
 
 It is only now, when the audacious impudence of 
 " Brother Jonathan " had dared to insult our time-honoured 
 Hag- 
 
 " Wluch bruvoil a tlioiusaiul years tlie battle ami the breeze," 
 
 and thought to biUly us out of the glorious charter which has 
 conferred upon us the " dominion of the seas," that our Scots 
 Fusilier Guards were once more called to prepare for action : 
 and, having gone across the Atlantic as the van of our army, 
 anxiously waited the signal to avenge, if need be, such unpro- 
 voked insult and aggression. 1 lajipily our firm demeanour 
 has effectually quelled the storm, and impressed wiser and 
 more wholesome measures, whereby peace has hitherto been 
 continued. 
 
 One sentence only shall express our feelings, as we look 
 back upon the history of our Scots Fusilier Guards, which we 
 have here attempted to sketch — Every man has nobly done 
 his duty. 
 
THE FIEST ROYAL REGIMENT OF FOOT; 
 
 OR, 
 
 ROYAL SCOTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Heroes, in yoiir ancestral line. 
 Hallow the shades of "Auld Langsyne;" 
 Men who in their country's story 
 Shine brightly on the page of glory, 
 
 Noo sleep in bonnie Scotland. 
 
 ANCIENT HISTORY — 882-1 G60. 
 
 As we approach the histoiy of this venerable regiment we 
 cannot help feeling all those sentiments of reverence and 
 respect which are the becoming tribute to an honoured old 
 age — a history which well nigh embraces, as it awakens, 
 
 " The stirring memories of a thousand years." 
 
 Consistent with the bold and adventurous spirit of the 
 Scotsman, we find him pushing his fortune in almost every 
 land under the sun; with a brave and manly heart going 
 down to the battle of Hfe; blessing, by his industry and enter- 
 prise, many a clime wherein he has settled, and so climbing 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 79 
 
 the loftiest pinnacles of greatness; or, by "diligence in busi- 
 ness," earning the kingdom of a merchant prince. Of all the 
 many and varieil departments of life in which the Scotsman 
 has been distinguished, he is most pre-eminent in the honour- 
 able profession of a soldier. Driven from his beloved country 
 by the cruel tyrannies which from time to time oppressed her, 
 or exiletl by the hard necessities of a pinching poverty — 
 wandering in many lands, the Scotsman nevertheless grate- 
 fully retains the recollection of his fatherland, and, in spirit, 
 returns with fondness to the endeared associations of home — 
 
 ^' Tlie bonnic blithe blink o' his ain fireside." 
 
 Such is the nding passion which lives in his soul. " Home, 
 sweet home," exerting a hallowed, chastening influence upon 
 his daily life, has nerved the soldier's arm, and, by its magic 
 charm, awakened the energies of the man. As a " guiding 
 star," it has pointed out the path of honour — like a " minister- 
 ing angel," its soothing influence has at other times calmed 
 the troubled sea of life, and, though it be but for a moment, 
 has given something of peace to the weary, as it is iuteude<l 
 to bo a foretaste of the blessedness — 
 
 " A something here of heaven above." 
 
 Already volumes have been written on the martial achieve- 
 ments of the Scottish nation, and we are fully impressed with 
 the magnitude of our undertaking when, in these brief pages, 
 we propose to illustrato the heroic tale of our ancient glor}'. 
 Nowhere is there a more perfect representative of our exiles 
 
80 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 who have been soldiers, amongst " the bravest of the brave," 
 in many lands, than is afforded us in our present sketch of the 
 First or Royal Scots Regiment of Foot. Many and conflict- 
 ing have been the accounts given of their early history. Some 
 have imagined the ^^resent regiment to be the representative 
 of the Archers of the Scottish Guard, which, in the days of 
 Bruce, had been associated with Royalty and the defence of 
 the Scottish throne; others have given their origin to the 
 Scottish Guard, which had for many years been the Body 
 Guard of the French kings ; but the most complete and 
 authentic account, derived from many sources, is that given 
 by Richard Cannon, Esq. of the Adjutant General's Office, 
 in the admirable Historical Records of the Royals, wherein 
 the origin of the regiment is traced to the ingathering 
 of our exiles, who had hitherto served with great credit as 
 soldiers, nay as Royal Guards, in the armies of France, Den- 
 mark, Sweden, and the States of Holland, to be formed into 
 one, the present regiment of First Royal Scots Foot. As early 
 as the year 882 a.d. Charles HI., king of France, had selected 
 from among the exiles a body of Scottish gentlemen, conspi- 
 cuous for their fidelity and valour, who enjoyed his special 
 favour, and were incorporated as a Royal Guard. During the 
 Crusades these followed Louis IX, into Egypt. They were of 
 infinite value to France, at a time when the disastrous battle of 
 Agincourt, fought in 1415, had prostrated her power, and all 
 but reduced her proud and haughty people to be the vassals 
 and subjects of triumphant England. The Scots Guards were 
 retained in the service of Charles VII., and a few years later 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 81 
 
 were joined by a body of 7000 of tlieir countrymen under tlie 
 Earl of Buchan, whose abilities as an oflicer and valour as a 
 soMier won for him the thanks of a grateful country, who at 
 the same time conferred the highest compliment and most 
 splendid military distinction it was in their power to award, 
 in creating him Constable of France. The Scottish army 
 in France was subsequently largely increased by farther 
 instalments of adventurous exiles from " the fatherland." 
 These helped to break the yoke of England upon the Con- 
 tinent, and specially distinguished themselves at the battles 
 of Baug6, 1421, Crevan, 142;3, and Verneuille, 1424: so much 
 so, that Charles, appreciating their worth, selected from their 
 ranks, first in 1422, a corps of Scots Gendarmes, and there- 
 after, in 1440, a corps of Scots Guards. On the fair plains 
 of Italy, so cnielly desolated by the rude hand of war, and so 
 long the favourite battle-field of princes, whom the poet fitly 
 styles 
 
 *' .-Vmbitiou'a honoured fools" — 
 
 was afforded the scene where, during the wars of Francis I., our 
 Scottish Guanls, by brilliant exploits, earned a great renown. 
 Tlie story of their fidelity and devotion is written in their 
 blood, and illustrated in the fatal defeat of Pavia, 1524, where, 
 in defence of their master, the chivalric Sovereign of France, 
 whose exclamation of, " We have lost all, .save lionour," lias 
 become a household word, — they nearly all perishe<l, and 
 honourably rest in "a soldier's grave." The relics of this 
 old Scots Guard returning to France, remained the nucleus, 
 
82 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 the root, upon which was formed and ingrafted a new corps 
 of Scots Guardsmen, whose character and history have been 
 aptly described by Sir Walter Scott in " Queutin Durward ;" 
 whilst in his " Legend of Montrose" we trace the yearnings 
 of the mighty soul of the patriot, conjuring into life, by 
 the magic of his pen and his rare gifts, the story of our 
 exiled brave, represented in the gallant veteran of Gustavus 
 Adolphus, "Dugald Dalgetty." The martial qualities and 
 gallant bearing of our countrymen had attracted the notice 
 of Gustavus Adolphus, the warlike King of Sweden, and in- 
 duced him to invite to his standard our adventurous soldiers, 
 who, under so renowned a leader, were destined to add new 
 lustre to our military annals. On no occasion did the Scots 
 respond more heartily, or muster so strongly in the foreign 
 service of any country, as in the present instance. The army 
 of this "Lion of the North" at one time comprised eighteen 
 British regiments, of whom thirteen were Scottish; moreover, 
 his principal officers were Scotsmen. 
 
 In the marvellous feats of arms which distino-uish the 
 masterly campaigns of Gustavus, our countrymen had ever a 
 prominent place. Having humbled the pride of Poland, 
 and crippled the power of Kussia by successive defeats, on the 
 restoration of peace, Gustavus, declariug himself the champion 
 of the Protestants, turned his arms against the formidable 
 coalition of the Roman Catholic princes of Germany, headed 
 by the Emperor. The campaign of 1620 proved unfortunate, 
 by the total defeat of the Protestant army at Prague, their 
 consequent retreat, and ultimate disbandment in Holland — 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 83 
 
 *' O sacruil Truth! tljy triumph ceased u while, 
 Aud Ilupe, Uiy lUiitcr, ceaiscd with thee to siiiile." 
 
 UiuliUinted by these disasters, Gustavus refused to (juit the 
 tiuKl, iilthough, for the present, he changed the theatre of war 
 into Pomeruuia, From the wreck of the Protestant army, he 
 carefully selected a chosen hody of his favourite Scotsmen, 
 which, in l(i25, he constituted a regiment, conferring the com- 
 mand on Sir John Hepburn. In the war with Poland which 
 ensueil, the Scots enjoyed, as their gallant demeanour in every 
 instance well merited, the unbounded confidence of the Kinjr. 
 Subse«|uently, the King of Denmark sent two Scots regimen ts» 
 which had been in his service, to aid the Swedish monarch; 
 and, in 1G28, he further received the very welcome reinforce- 
 ment of 9000 Scots aud English. The following incident, 
 occurring about this time, serves to illustrate the cordial rela- 
 tionship subsisting between this renowned prince and our 
 adventurous countrymen : — "In a partial action between the 
 advance-guards, a few miles from Thorn, Gustavus's hat was 
 knocked otf in a jxjrsonal encounter with one of the enemy's 
 officers named Sirot, who afterwards wore the hat witliout 
 knowing to whom it belonge<l. On the succeeding day, two 
 prisoners (one a Scots otlicer named Hume) seeing Sirot 
 wearing the King, their master's, hat, wept exceedingly, and 
 with exclamations of sorrow, desired to be informal if the 
 King was deiid. Sirot, being thus made acquaintetl with the 
 quality of hLs iuitagonist in the precetling day's skirmish, 
 related the manner in which he became possessetl of the hat, 
 upon which they recovere<l a little from their anxiety and 
 
84 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 surprise." The success of the Swedish arms at length achieved 
 a favourable peace, which enabled the King, espousing the 
 cause of the persecuted Reformers of Germany, once more to 
 try the issues of war with the Imperialists, and so, if possible, 
 redeem the disasters of a former campaign. At this period 
 no fewer than 10,000 Scots and English exiles were in the 
 Swedish army, and the King had just concluded a treaty 
 with the Marquis of Hamilton, who had undertaken to enlist 
 an additional force of 8000 in these Isles. 
 
 Next in seniority to the old Scots regiment of Hepburn is 
 that of Monro, who has written an interesting account of the 
 achievements of our countrymen in these wars. This last 
 narrowly escaped an untimely end — a watery grave — having 
 been shipwrecked near the enemy's fortress of Eugenwald, on 
 their passage to Pomerania. Lurking in concealment among 
 the brushwood on the shore during the day, Monro's soldiers at 
 nightfall boldly assaulted the defences of the enemy, and, by 
 this unexpected attack, succeeded in capturing the fortress, 
 where, by great efiforts, they maintained themselves against a 
 vastly superior foe until the arrival of Hepburn's Scots Regi- 
 ment relieved them. These two regiments, along with other 
 two Scots regiments — those of Stargate and Lumsdell — were at 
 this time brigaded together, and styled the Green Brigade, so 
 celebrated in the military history of the period. In 1631, at 
 the siege of Frankfort, this bold brigade accomplished one of 
 the most daring feats of arms upon record; where — charged 
 with the assault upon this all but impregnable fortress, de- 
 fended by the best troojis of the empire — they undauntedly 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 85 
 
 entered the breach, and — despite the repeated attacks of 
 the foe, especially of an Irish regiment, who, amongst the 
 bravest defenders of the place, twice repulseil the assailants, 
 and fought with the greatest heroism until nearly all were 
 either killed or wounded — they, by their valour, effected a 
 lodgment within the walls. Furiously charged by the splen- 
 did cavalry of the Imperial cuirassiei*s, our Clreeu Brigade 
 resolutely maintained the ground they had won. The trophies 
 of this conquest were immense. The Green Brigade, after 
 ha^'ing aided in the reduction of the many strongholds of 
 Germany, had penetrated with the army into the very heart 
 of the empire, where they were destined to play a very con- 
 spicuous part in the memorable and momentous battle of 
 Leipsic. On this occasion, kept in reserve, the Green Brigade 
 was only brought into action at the eleventh hour, when the 
 ignoble and cowardly flight of the Saxons, who had been im- 
 pressed into the Swedish army, rendered the position of 
 the army perilously critical. Then our brave Scots sus- 
 tained on either tlank by Swedish horse, advanced, speedily 
 checked the progress of the enemy, retrieved what the Saxons 
 had lost, and tlirowing the enemy into confusion, changed the 
 fortunes of the day. The ImperialLsts, no longer able to with- 
 stand the rejK'ated and impetuous attacks of our Scottish 
 brigade, and charge<l by the Swedish horse, who complete<l 
 their ruin, broke and fled. Thus their mighty army, lately 
 80 confident of victory, which a momentary success had 
 promisc<l, was utterly cut to pieces or dispersed. A variety 
 of sieges and minor engagements followed this great battle, in 
 
86 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 nearly all of which the Swedes and Scots proved triumphant. 
 Yet, notwithstanding these series of successes, and the several 
 and sore defeats of the enemy, the position of Gustavus was 
 becoming daily, by every new advance, more critical; away 
 from his arsenals, whilst the enemy, within his ovm territory, 
 had ample resources at hand with which to repair defeat, and 
 thus was becoming hourly more formidable. At Oxenford, 
 the heroic monarch had only an army of 10,000 men around 
 him, whilst the Duke of Lorraine was at hand with a well- 
 equipped force of full 50,000. Still, such was the terror 
 inspired by the marvellous deeds and the knoAvn resolution of 
 this little band of veterans, that, although the enemy was 
 in the midst of many advantages, he durst not venture 
 an attack, and feared to arrest the King in his career of 
 conquest. 
 
 Bavaria had now become the scene of the contest. Soon 
 that important kingdom was over-rim, and — with ]\Iunich, 
 its gorgeous capital — surrendered to the northern army. The 
 death of Gustavus Adolphus, at the fatal battle of Lutzen, 
 ruined the hopes of his gallant little army, now sadly reduced 
 in numbers. The Green Brigade was not present on this 
 disastrous day. By a process of transfer, not at all uncommon 
 in those times, the remnant of Swedes and Scots were taken 
 into the pay of France, and, under the Duke of Saxe- Weimar, 
 laboured to maintain the cause of the Protestant princes, 
 which had, for ends of her own, been adopted as the cause of 
 France. Colonel Hepburn, some time previously, had, by per- 
 mission of the King of Sweden, returned to Scotland with the 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 87 
 
 Marquis of Ilaniiltou. His parting with his countrymen in 
 his own regiment is thus quaintly described by Monro: — " The 
 separation was like the separation which death makes betwixt 
 friends and the soul of man, being sorry that those who had 
 lived so long together in amity and friendship, also in nnitual 
 dangers, in wciil and in woe, the splendour of our former 
 mirth was overshadowed with a cloud of irricf and sorrows 
 which dissolved in mutual tears." 
 
 Iveturning to France in 1633, Hepburn was appointed colo- 
 nel to a new regiment of Scotsmen. By a combination of events, 
 he at length met with his old regiment in the same army, and 
 the relics of the Old Scots Brigade. These were subsequently 
 merged into one large regiment, whose history is hereafter one 
 with that of France, and whose representative is now the First 
 Royal Scots Regiment of Foot. By this imion, which occurred 
 in 1635, the regiment so constituted attained the extraordinary 
 strength of 8316 officers and men. In the following year they 
 liad to lament the loss of their gallant Colonel, who was killed 
 at the siege of Saverne ; he "died extremely regretted in the 
 army and by the Court of France." He wjis succecdeil in 
 the conmiand by Lieut.-Colonel Sir James Hepburn, who sur- 
 vivetl his illustrious relative only one year. Lord James 
 Douglas, son of William, I\rarquis of Douglas, was promotctl 
 to the vacant Colonelcy, and tliereafter the regiment is known 
 aa"Doughis's Regiment." In the service of Louis XIII. of 
 France, the regiment had entered upon a new theatre of action 
 III the Netherlands, destined to comlmt the Spaniards, who 
 then were estecmetl to form as soldiers the finest infantry iji 
 
88 HISTOKY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 the world. Against this redoubtable foe our Scotsmen con- 
 ducted themselves with credit, being present at the siege of St 
 Omer, the captures of Eenty, Catelet, and at Hesden, under 
 the eye of the monarch himself. During the minority and 
 reign of Louis XIV., known as " Louis le Grand," the regiment 
 was destined to share the glories of a splendid series of 
 triumphs, successively won by the illustrious chiefs that then 
 commanded the armies of France. In 1643, led by Louis le 
 Bourbon, afterwards Prince of Conde, a leader possessed of all 
 the heroic qualities of the good soldier, and at the same time 
 graced by all the rarer virtues of the true man — under him 
 the regiment served with great distinction in the Netherlands 
 and Italy. Nine years later, when the factions of " the Court " 
 and " the Parliament" had stirred up among the people a civil 
 war, we find the Douglas Eegiment, with characteristic 
 loyalty, on the side of " the Court," serving their royal master 
 under that great adept in the art of war. Marshal Turenne, 
 whose abilities sustained the sinking State; and although 
 opposed to that justly celebrated soldier, the Prince of Conde, 
 at length, out-manoeuvring the foe, accomplished the salvation 
 of "the Court," and, by an honourable peace, secured their 
 restoration to power. Meanwhile a somewhat analogous civil 
 strife in England had wholly overturned the old monarchy of 
 the Stuarts, and inaugurated a new order of things in the 
 Commonwealth, under Oliver Cromwell, the Protector. Charles 
 II., and his royal brother, the Duke of York, afterwards James 
 II., as the surviving heads of their ancient, unfortunate, and 
 infatuated house, had sought and found an asylum at the 
 
PRINCE OE CONOE. 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 89 
 
 French Court. In those times of war, employmeut wa.s readily 
 found in the French armies for their many adherents, who 
 had been driven into exile with them, 'i'hey were formed 
 into several regiments, who bore an honourable i)art in the 
 contest then rairim: between France and the allied miirht of 
 Spain and Austria. In 1Gj6, the fickle Louis, deserting his 
 old frienils, the royalists of England, concluded an alliance 
 with the more powerful Cromwell — the exiles, in consequence, 
 changing sides, threw the weight of their arms and influence, 
 or such as they might still be said to retain, into the scale 
 with Spain. Many of the British royalist regiments, hitherto 
 in the service of France, on the command of Charles, ex- 
 changed with their prince, into the service of their late foe, 
 now their friend. Louis, who couM ill alTord such a serious 
 desertion of troops, which had hitherto proved themselves to 
 be the flower of his army, had taken the precaution to remove, 
 into the interior, the older Scots regiments, and amongst 
 others, that of Douglas, which he had justly learned to value 
 very highly, lest they might be induced to follow their 
 royalist brethren. 
 
 In Ififil, immediately after the Restoration, Charles II.. 
 with a view to strengthen his unstable position on the British 
 Tlirone, strove to establish an army, and Louis being then 
 at peace, and, moreover, on goml terms with our King, the 
 regiment of Douglas was called home to these isles, where it 
 has since been generally known as the First or tlo- Roifil 
 Regiment of Foot, although fur a time it wivs popidarly styled 
 the '' Royal Scots." 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 . . . . " He lifts ou high 
 The dauntless brow and spirit-speaking eye, 
 Hails in his heart the triumphs yet to come, 
 And hears thy stormy music in tlie drum 1 " 
 
 FRENCH CAMPAIGNS — TANGIER — CIVIL WARS — CONTINENTAL 
 WARS — 1660-1757. 
 
 The regiment, now commanded by Lord George Douglas, 
 afterwards the Eaii of Dumbarton, returned to France in 
 16G2, where it was largely recruited by the incorporation of 
 General Rutherford's (Earl of Teviot) regiment of Scots 
 Guards, and another old Scots regiment, also known as a 
 "Douglas Eegiment," from its colonel. Lord James Douglas. 
 The muster-roll thus j)resented a force of more than 2500 men 
 and officers, embraced in twenty- three companies. In 1666, 
 it was recalled to suppress a threatened rebellion in Ireland; 
 but soon returning, with other British troops, was engaged in 
 the wars with Holland and the German Empire. Under the 
 great Turenne they acquired new glory. After his death, in 
 1675, the foe advanced upon Treves, where the French troops 
 — dispirited by the loss of their favourite chief, and dis- 
 couraged by the retreat which had since been forced upon 
 them, when his great name was no longer present to infuse 
 courage in the evil hour and inspire a wholesome terror in the 
 
yArtSHAL TuRtNN 
 

ROYAL SCOTS. 01 
 
 ranks of the enemy — inutiuying, insisted that their coni- 
 niauiler, Marshal de Crefjui, shoukl deliver up the fortress to 
 the enemy. But the regiment of Douglas, with cliar;ict<jristic 
 fidelity, sustained the gallant Marshal in his resolution to 
 exhaust every means of defence before submitting to the dire 
 necessity of surrender. Although the issues of the siege were 
 disastrous, despite the desperate valour which defended the 
 city — which at length capitulated — still our countrymen, 
 although prisoners liberated on condition that they should 
 not again serve in the war for three months, preserved 
 that priceless jewel, their honour, which, out of the fiery trial, 
 shone forth only the more conspicuously, both to friend and 
 foe. Their conduct on this occasion received the thanks of the 
 King. For a little while, about this period, the regiment was 
 privileged to ser\'e under another of France's great captains — 
 the Marshal Lu.xembourg. In 1678 the regiment wa.s finally 
 recalled from the French service, and shortly thereafter sent 
 out to reinforce the garrison of Tangier, in Africa, the profit- 
 less marriage dowry of the Princess Cathcrina of Portugal, 
 who had become the Queen of Charles II. This earliest of our 
 foreign possessions had involved the nation in an expensive 
 and cniel war, which it was very difficult adequately to sus- 
 tain in those days, when the transport-service was one of 
 imminent cost and danger; and moreover, news travelling 
 slowly, we could not, as in the present instance, leiirn the 
 straitened circumstances of our annies abroad, so as to afford 
 that prompt assistance which they urgently necdeiL Assailed 
 fiercely by the Moors, who evinced great bravery and rcsolu- 
 
92 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 tion, the contest proved one of uncommon severity, requiring 
 every effort of our garrison to maintain even their o^^^l. "We 
 extract the following announcement of the arrival of the 
 Dou(>-las, or, as it was then called, Dumbarton's Eegiment, on 
 this new and distant scene of conflict, from Eoss' "Tangier's 
 Eescue:" — "After this landed the valorous Major Hackett 
 with the renowned regiment of the Earl of Dumbarton ; all of 
 them men of approved valour, fame having echoed the sound 
 of their glorious actions and achievements in France and other 
 nations; having left behind them a report of their glorious 
 victories wherever they came; every place witnessing and 
 giving large testimony of their renown : so that the arrival of 
 this illustrious regiment more and more increased the resolu- 
 tions and united the courage of the inhabitants, and added 
 confidence to their valour." Also, as further interesting, we 
 record, from the same author, the stirring address which the 
 Lieut.-Governor, Sir Palmes Fairborne, is reported to have 
 made to Dumbarton's Scots on the eve of battle : — " Country- 
 men and fellow-soldiers, let not your approved valour and 
 fame in foreign nations be derogated at this time, neither 
 degenerate from your ancient and former glory abroad ; and 
 as you are looked upon here to be brave and experienced 
 soldiers (constant and successive victories having attended 
 your conquering swords hitherto), do not come short of the 
 great hopes we have in you, and the propitious procedures we 
 expect from you at this time. For the glory of your nation, 
 if you cannot surpass, you may imitate the bravest, and be 
 emulous of their praises and renown." 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 93 
 
 The excessive cost of niamtaining this diBtant and protit- 
 less possession at lengtli induced King Charles to abandon it ; 
 accordingly the troops were witlidrawu and the fortress 
 destroyed. The "Royal Scots" lauded at Gravesend in 1G83. 
 Nothing of importance falls to be narrated during the interval 
 of peace which followed — the first, and until our day almost 
 the only, rest which this veteran regiment has been permitted 
 to enjoy at home. The accession of the Duke of York, as 
 James II., to the throne, on the death of his brother Charles, 
 awakened the well-groundeil alarm of the Protestants, stirred 
 up discontents, which were quickened into rebellion by the 
 landing of the Marcjuis of Argyll in the West Highlands, and 
 of a powerful rival — the Duke of Monmouth — in the South 
 of England. Favoured by a considerable rising of the people, 
 and encourageil by the fair promises of many of the old Puritan 
 nobility and gentry — who undertook to join his standard with 
 their followers, enamoured more of the cause speciously set 
 forth upon his banner — ''Fear noiie hut God" — than of the 
 man, I^Ionmouth had advanced at the head of a considerable 
 force to Bridgewater. His vacillating policy ruined his cause, 
 as it gave time for the assembling of the King's fon-es, under 
 the Earl of Feversham and Lord Churchill, afterwanls so 
 celebrate<l iis the Duke of Marlborough, Amongst these forces 
 were five companies of the " lioyal S<^ots." At the battle of 
 Se<lgemoor which ensued, the rebels, deeming to surprise the 
 royal camp in the niglit, suddenly descended in great 
 force, but, arrestctl by a ditch immaliately in front of the 
 poeition occupied by the companies of our " Royal Scots," 
 
94 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 wliicli attempting to cross, they were so hotly received, 
 although they fought with great fury, that they were driven 
 back in confusion, and ultimately dispersed or destroyed by 
 the royal cavalry in the morning. Thus the glory of the fight 
 belongs chiefly to our countrymen, whose firmness proved the 
 salvation of the royal army, and, in the end, the destruction 
 of the rebels and the overthrow of their cause — completed in 
 the after execution of their leaders, the Duke of Monmouth in 
 England, and his fellow-conspirator, the Marquis of Argyll, in 
 Scotland. So highly did James esteem the services of the 
 "Royal Scots" on this perilous occasion, that, by special war- 
 rant, he ordered that the sum of £3.97 should be distributed 
 among the wounded of the regiment. Sergeant Weems was 
 particularly distinguished in the action, and received accor- 
 dingly a gratuity of "Forty pounds for good service in the 
 action of Sedgemoor, in firing the great guns against the 
 rebels." 
 
 When the Revolution of 1688 promised the downfall of 
 the house of Stuart, whose power had been so long built upon 
 the suppressed liberty of the people, the exclusion of James 
 II. — the degenerate representative of an ancient and once 
 beloved race — from the throne, as the minion of the Papacy and 
 the dawn of a better state of things, under the more healthy 
 rule of the Prince of Orange, the champion of Protestantism, 
 as monarch of these realms, it might have been deemed ex- 
 cusable had our "Royal Scots," from their antecedents on 
 behalf of the Protestant cause, sided with the Prince. The 
 result, however, was far otherwise, and affords us another 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 95 
 
 spleiulid illustrivtion of the firm fidelity of the soldier iii the 
 sterling devotion of this regiment. The "Royal Scots" had 
 been Jaiues's favourite regiment, and well they merited that" 
 monarch's trust. Whilst other troops exhibited a shameful 
 defection, the "Royal Scots," with unshaken constancy, adhered 
 to the desperate fortunes of their inft\tuated King. Nor when 
 all else had submitted, save Claverhouse's Dragoons, and 
 resistance had been rendered fruitless by the pusillanimous 
 flight of James, did they see it their duty to exchange into 
 the service of the new Sovereign. The term "mutiny" is 
 wrongly applied when given to exjjress their conduct on this 
 tr}'ing occasion. By lenient measures the 500 men and 
 othcers who had refused to tender their suljmission were at 
 length induced to make their peace with the new king, who, 
 appreciating their ancient name for valour, could admire their 
 unshaken fidelity to one who was even forsaken by his own 
 children; and therefore gladly retained the regiment to grace 
 our military annals. Their conduct was at the same time most 
 exemplary in those days of military license and excess: faith- 
 fully they remained at the post of duty, when other regiment«», 
 breaking from their ranks, shamefully di.'^graced themselves by 
 the riot and disonler they everywhere committed. The Earl 
 of Dumbarton, followin;^ King James into France, the vacant 
 colonelcy was conferred on one of the oldest, ablest, and most 
 distinguisheil ofiicers of the age — <h«' vc f.ian "^f;l^^ll;ll Fr.d^^ 
 rick de Schomberg. 
 
 The arrival of the dethroned James at the Court of France, 
 whilst it awakeneil mingletl feelings of commiseration and 
 
96 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 contempt in the mind of the crafty Louis, the bitterness of 
 disappointed ambition roused a spirit of revenge, and was to 
 be regarded as the signal for war. Accordingly, a power- 
 ful army was advanced towards the frontier, ostensibly to 
 co-operate in the cause of the exiled monarch, but really to 
 take advantage of the absence of the Stadtholder, for the 
 annexation, by way of compensation for his increased power 
 elsewhere, of his continental dominions in Holland. To divide 
 attention, and direct the efforts of William away from his own 
 more immediate designs, the French King, by paltry succours, 
 helped to bolster up James in his ricketty Irish kingdom. To 
 meet this combined assault, William, whilst himself was present 
 with his army in the reduction of Ireland, sent the Earl of 
 Marlborough with a British army, including the "Eoyals," to 
 co-operate with the Dutch in the defence of their fatherland. 
 In 1692 he joined the allied army, and himself assumed the 
 command. In an attempt to surprise the powerful fortress of 
 Mons, Sir Eoberfc Douglas, who, on the death of the Duke de 
 Schomberg at the battle of the Boyne, had been promoted to 
 the colonelcy of the "Eoyals," was taken prisoner by the French 
 cavalry. Eeleased, on payment of the regulated ransom, he 
 was reserved for a sadder but more glorious fate at the battle 
 of Steenkirk, where he fell at the head of his regiment, gallantly 
 fighting for and defending the colours he had rescued from the 
 foe. General Cannon writes: — "Sir Eobert Douglas, seeing the 
 colour on the other side of the hedge, leaped through a gap, 
 slew the French officer who bore the colour, and cast it over 
 the hedge to his own men ; but this act of gallantry cost him 
 
KOYAL SCOTS. 97 
 
 his life, a French marksman having shot him dead on the spot 
 while in the act of repassing the hedge." The able dispositions 
 of the French commander, the Marshal de Luxembourg, sus- 
 tained by the valour of his troops, compelled the retreat of the 
 Allied army. Still pressed by the French at Ncer-Landen, 
 notwithstanding the most desperate resistance of our Infantry, 
 especially the Euyals, and Second, or Queen's Royals, our 
 army continued to retire. These disasters were somewhat 
 redeemed by the successes of subsequent campaigns, crowned 
 in the siege and fall of Namur, a powerful fortress, long 
 and bravely defended by Marshal BoufHers. The peace of 
 Ryswick, subscribed in 1697, put an end to the war, and our 
 army in consequence returned home. 
 
 During the war of the Spanish Succession, which com- 
 menced in 1701, the Royals were destined to play an im- 
 portant part. They were present under the great Marl- 
 borough at the several victories of Schellenberg, Blenheim, 
 Ramilies, Oudenarde, Wynendale, and ^lalplaquet, which, 
 distinguishing the war, we have elsewhere already alluded 
 to. In many of these battles their gallant colonel, Lord 
 George Hamilton, Earl of Orkney, who had succeetled Sir 
 Robert Douglas, was present, and led the regiment to the fight. 
 Their conduct at Wynendale was specially remarkable, where, 
 in defence of a large and important train of stores, etc., a 
 British front of 8000 men resisted the combineil and rejxjatcd 
 efforts of 22,000 French to capture the stores and treasure. 
 The war was tenninated by the i)cace of Utrecht, in 1713. 
 
 During the thirty succeeding years the regiment was 
 
711 I 
 
 98 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 employed garrisoning various towns, etc., at home, except in 
 1 742, when tlie second battalion was sent to do duty in the 
 West Indies. In the following year, disputes arising as to the 
 Austrian Succession, and our country inclining to the side of 
 Maria Theresa, Queen of Hungary, whilst France, on the other 
 hand, had, for political reasons, espoused the cause of its old 
 ally, the Elector of Bavaria, an appeal was made to arms. 
 A British force, under our own chivalri c King, George II., 
 had already appeared in Germany, and achieved the signal 
 victory of Dettingen, w^hen the Koyals joined the army in 
 time to share the disasters of Fontenoy. The rebellion of 
 Prince Charles Edward subsequently occasioned their recall. 
 Whilst the first battalion remained in camp under Marshal 
 Wade, in the south of England, prepared to defend our shores 
 from the threatened invasion and co-operation of France, the 
 second battalion, stationed at York, proceeded in pursuit of 
 the rebels, who, after having penetrated to Derby, finding that 
 the expected aid from England was not realised, returned to 
 Scotland, wdiere, joined by a body of recruits, they undertook 
 the siege of Stirling Castle. In this they w^ere interrupted by 
 the advance of the King's army, towards Falkirk, under Lieut.- 
 General Hawley. Encountering the enemy in the vicinity, a 
 sanguinary battle ensued, but devoid of any decisive result, 
 both parties claiming the victory. Whilst some of the King's 
 troops were broken by the combined assaults of the elements 
 and the enemy, the Koyals stood fast. The dissensions 
 which had but lately prevailed to distract the coimsels of the 
 rebels had been hushed by the preponderating eminence of a 
 
UOYAL SCOTS. <)[) 
 
 comiiig struggle, aud the promise of pliuulcr as the reward ul" 
 victory. Now that the excitement of battle had ccivsed, the 
 Royal army retired, aud the hopes of booty disappointed, these 
 evil feelings, more fatal than the sword, bui-st forth with 
 renewed virulence, to ruin the interests of the Jacobites, 
 occasioning the retreat of their broken-hearted Prince, with a 
 diminished, and disspirited, yet brave and faithful army. 
 Meanwhile the King's forces, greatly strengthened by the 
 arrival of fre-sh troops, a second time advanced ujiou the 
 enemy. Led by the Duke of Cumberland, the advance soon 
 assumed the character of a purauit. At length the rebels, 
 overtaken and driven to bay, made a stand in the neighljour- 
 hood of Inverness, on CuUoden Moor, w here, notwithstanding 
 the fiery valour of the clans, they sustained a total defeat, 
 aud were never afterwards able to rally. 
 
 " For a fielJ of the dead ruiihus red on my siglit; 
 And the clans of Cullotleu aru acattcrol in figlit. 
 They nUIy, they bleixl, for their kingdom and crown : 
 Woe, woe, to the riders that trample them down! 
 
 Tis tiniiih'd. Their thuuden] are hiL*«hiil -.n ili. iii<xjr»I 
 Culludcn ifl lost, and my country deplores 
 
 Cullodcu that redu wiUi the blood of the bravi 
 
 Their Prince — 
 
 " Like a limb from his country cast bleeding and torn," 
 
 for long lurked a wandering fugitive amongst our Western 
 Islands, until, through many dangers, he effected his escape to 
 
100 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 France. The Duke of Cumberland, visiting with a cruel re- 
 venge the rebellious clans, nay, in some cases, with barbarous 
 heedlessness, mingling the innocent with the guilty in a com- 
 mon ruin, 'tarnished the lustre of his success, and left behind 
 a most unenviable memory in these northern provinces. 
 
 The Eebellion being thus at an end, several of the regiments 
 which had been withdrawn from the Continent for its sup- 
 pression now returned, whilst the first battalion of the 
 Royals was employed in several descents upon the French 
 coast with various success. At L'Orient the attempt proved 
 fruitless; but at Quiberon, sustained by the Forty-second 
 Eoyal Highlanders, the destruction of the enemy's arsenal, 
 stores, and shipping, was attained. Subsequently the battalion 
 joined the British army in the Netherlands, and, in 1747, 
 was greatly distinguished in the heroic defence of Fort Sand- 
 berg. The attack on the part of the French, was made late 
 in the evening, with more than their wonted impetuosity. 
 The Dutch garrison, unable to withstand the shock, was sig- 
 nally routed, and the conquest seemed complete, when the pro- 
 gress of the enemy was unexpectedly arrested by the Eoyals, 
 who, with unflinching obstinacy, maintained the conflict, which 
 proved of the most sanguinary and desperate character. The 
 horrors of the fight were deepened by the sable pall of night. 
 "The morning light had already dawned upon this scene 
 of conflict and carnage, — between three and four hundred 
 officers and men of the Eoyals were liors de combat; yet the 
 survivors, — though standing amidst the d5dng and the dead, 
 and being unable to take one step without treading on a killed 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 101 
 
 or wounded man, — maintained their «j;round with resolution, 
 and continued to pour their fatal volleys upon their opponents, 
 who had sustained an ccjual or greater loss, until five o'clock, 
 when the Royals were relieved by the Highlanders; and the 
 French, dismayed by the sanguinary tenacity of the defence, 
 retreated." Ultimately the fort, rendered untenable, wa.s 
 abandoned. In 1741), the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle put an 
 end to the war, when the battalion returning home, was 
 stationed in Ireland. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 " For pleas of right let statesmen vex their head, 
 Battle's my business, and my guerdon bread ; 
 And with the sworded Switzer I can say, 
 ' The best of causes is the best of pay.' " 
 
 AMERICAN WARS — WEST INDIES — FRENCH REVOLUTION — 
 
 1755-1804. 
 
 The ancient rivalries subsisting between Britain and France, 
 and which had begotten so many fierce and sanguinary wars 
 upon the European continent, were now about to be displayed 
 with even a more exceeding bitterness among the colonists of 
 the two nations in the New World of America. Disputes arising 
 as to the boundary line of what they severally claimed as their 
 territory, the might of France assumed to decide the right. 
 To maintain and defend British interests, an army, comprising 
 the second battalion of the Eoyals, and the two newly-raised 
 regiments of Fraser's and Montgomery's Highlanders, was 
 sent across the Atlantic in 1757. The first attack of this 
 expedition was made upon the French island of Cape Breton, 
 which, with its capital, Louisburg, was speedily reduced. In 
 the following year the Royals were engaged upon the American 
 continent in a series of actions around the shores of Lake 
 Champlain, which resulted in the capture of the strong forts 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 103 
 
 of Ticonilenigo, Crown Point, ami ultimately the Isle aux 
 Noix. Several of the Indian tribes taking advantage of our 
 apparent embarrassments at this period, instigated by, and in 
 some cases allied with, the French, threw off the British yoke, 
 strove to recover their fatherland, or were encouraged, by hope 
 of plunder, to assail our colonial settlements. Against the 
 most powerful of these foes — the Cherokees — a few companies 
 of the Royals, with ^lontgomery's Highlanders and other 
 corps, were detached from the army, and proceeded to 
 South Carolina. After repeated incursions into the country 
 of the Cherokees, in which the foe was rarely seen, or 
 when the Indian army of sable warriors did appear, our 
 troops achieved an easy and ofttimcs a bloodless victory. Still 
 was our advance characterised by cruel and uncalled-for 
 severities, and marked by the melancholy spectacle of burning 
 villages, in which lay "the little all" of these poor creatures. 
 L'nable to withstand our onset, with ruined homesteads, and 
 threatene*! with all the miseries of want, their necessities im- 
 pelled the Cherokees to sue for peace, which was readily 
 grantetl. 
 
 Tlie conquest of French Canada having been completed in 
 the surrender of Montreal, several detachments of the Koyals 
 were employed in various expeilitions against the French West 
 Indian Islands, especially Dominica and Martinique, in which 
 our efl'orts were successful. But the crowning achievement of 
 these expeditions was the capture of the Ilavannah from the 
 Spaniards, with immense spoil, on the 30th July, 1 762. Mean- 
 while two com|ianies of the Royals, which had remained on the 
 
104 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 American continent, contributed by their gallantry to repulse 
 a new attempt of the French to recover their lost footing in 
 these provinces. 
 
 In 1763 the second battalion returnino; home, the reo;i- 
 ment was afterwards employed garrisoning our Mediterranean 
 possessions, ]\Iinorca and Gibraltar. During the American 
 Rebellion a secret treaty having been discovered between the 
 rebels and Holland, France and Spain, promising aid to, and 
 otherwise abetting the colonists in their rebellion, the Royals, 
 with other troops, in 1781, were sent out to assail the West 
 Indian possessions of these several States. Having possessed 
 themselves of the island of St Christopher, they were here 
 attacked by a powerful French expeditionary force which had 
 landed from the fleet for the recovery of the island. Stationed 
 on Brimstone Hill with scarce 500 men, without the adequate 
 materiel to make good the defence, these brave men neverthe- 
 less resisted for nearly a month the repeated assaults of 8000 
 French, aided by a powerful artillery, which played continually 
 and effectually upon the crumbliDg defences and the worn-out 
 defenders. It was not until every means of resistance had 
 been destroyed, and every hope of relief exhausted, that our 
 gallant Royals were compelled to surrender. 
 
 In 1782, both battalions were at home, and the Duke of 
 Argyll having been removed to the Colonelcy of the Third, 
 or Scots Foot Guards, the Colonelcy of the First Royal Regi- 
 ment, or Royal Scots, was conferred upon Lord Adam Gordon. 
 
 Britain, ever recognised as the guardian of true liberty, 
 had viewed, with mingled feelings of horror, pity, and alarm. 
 
lUiVAL SCOTS. 105 
 
 the crimed whicli alike stained and inaugurated tiic French 
 Revolution. Our Government, unhappily, mistaking the real 
 nature and critical importance of the contest, granted a 
 feeble and tanly aid to the few remaining friends of order, 
 chiefly represented in the Royalists, who still struggled for 
 existence in France. Had these succours been commensurate 
 with the ability of the nation, and afforded promptly and 
 liberally, France might have been saved from many of those 
 dire calamities which, like the judgments of Heaven, gathering 
 in her political horizon, were so soon to visit her in the fury of 
 the tempest, to cast a blight upon her people and a cui'se upon 
 her fair i)lains. Europe, moreover, might have cscape«l the 
 military tyranny of Napoleon, with all its accompanying evils. 
 Toulon, the principal station for the French Navy on the shores 
 of the Mediterranean, possessed of large arsenals and extensive 
 dockyards, and strongly fortified — its citizens had hitherto re- 
 garded with aversion the excesses of blood and rapine in which 
 the Revolutionists had indulged, and fully sensible of the evils 
 which must arise from the rule of the democracy, resolved to 
 declare for the restoration of the old monarchy. In the im- 
 pending coutest in which they were soon involved by their 
 resistance to the iron will of the Committee of Public Sal- 
 vation, who then assumed to rule France, they invoked, 
 and not altocether in vain, the aid of the constitutional 
 Governments around. Accordingly, a mixed force of British, 
 Spaniards, and Italians, was thrown into the city for its 
 defence. The second battalion of the Royals fonned part 
 of the British contingent on this occasion. Lieutenant- 
 
106 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 General O'Hara commandiDg, Avitli 12,000 men, for awhile 
 succeeded in making good the defence, and had well nigh 
 baffled the utmost efforts of the besiegers, who, under General 
 Dugommier, had assembled an army of nearly 40,000 Revolu- 
 tionists. But the appearance of a young officer in the ranks 
 of the enemy speedily changed the aspect of affairs. As chief 
 of the artillery, by a series of bold and judicious movements, 
 effecting the reduction of the city, he early displayed that 
 aptness for military combination which revealed the genius of 
 Napoleon Bonaparte. Dugommier, writing to the Convention, 
 said — "Reward and promote that J'^oung man, for, if you 
 are ungrateful towards him, he will raise himself alone." 
 The following incident, narrated by Sir Archibald Alison, 
 Bart., in his interesting account of the siege, introduces us 
 to another of those great military chiefs who were so soon 
 to glitter in the firmament of the Empire: "Napoleon asked 
 him what he could do for him. 'Everything,' replied the 
 young private, blushing with emotion, and touching his left 
 shoulder with his hand — 'you can turn this worsted into 
 an epaulet.' A few days after. Napoleon sent for the same 
 soldier to order him to reconnoitre in the enemy's trenches, 
 and recommended that he should disguise himself, for fear of 
 his being discovered. ' Never,' replied he. ' Do you take me 
 for a spyl I will go in my uniform, though I should never 
 return.' And, in effect, he set out instantly, dressed as he 
 w^as, and had the good fortune to come back unhurt. 
 Napoleon immediately recommended him for promotion, and 
 never lost sight of his courageous secretary. He was Junot, 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 1(>7 
 
 afterwards Marshal of rrauce, and Duke of Abrautes." Not- 
 withstaiuling the utmost bravery on the part of the defen- 
 ders, and of the Royals in particular, the fortress had become 
 no longer tenable from the alarming successes of the enemy. 
 Accordingly, on the night of the 19th December, 1794, the 
 army, with as many of the citizens as could be crowded into 
 the fleet, were embarked, all that might be useful to the foe 
 was destroyed or committed to the thimes, and the city aban- 
 doned. The scene which ensued is one of the most touchingly 
 interesting and afllicting in the dark story of the Revolution, 
 especially when considered in the light of the cruel fato which 
 awaited the unfortunates who could not find room in the fleet, 
 and who, left l)ehind, must meet the merciless wrath of the 
 Parisian demagogues. Alison thus pictures the sad episode : — 
 " No words can do justice to the horrors of the scene which 
 ensued, when the last columns of the allied troops commenced 
 their embarkation. Cries, screams, and lamentations arose in 
 every quarter; the frantic clamour, heard even across the 
 harbour, announced to the soldiers in the Republican camp 
 that the last hope of the Royalists was giving way. The sad 
 remnant of those who had favoured the royal cause, ami who 
 liad neglected to go oflf in the first embarkation, ciune Hying 
 to the beach, and invokeil, with tears and prayers, the aid of 
 their JJritish friends. Mothers, cliy^ping their babes to their 
 bosoms, helpless children, and decrepid ol<l men, might be seen 
 stretching their hands towards the harlx)ur, shuddering at 
 every sound behind them, and even rushing into the waves to 
 escai)e the less merciful death which awaited them from their 
 
108 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 couutrymeu. Some had the generosity to throw themselves 
 into the sea, to save, by their self-sacrifice, the lives of their 
 parents, in danger of being swamped in the boats. Vast 
 numbers perished from falling into the sea, or by the swamp- 
 ing of boats, into which multitudes crowded, loaded with their 
 most valuable effects, or bearing their parents or children 
 on their shoulders. Such as could seize upon boats, rushed 
 into them with frantic vehemence, pushed from the beach 
 without oars, and directed their unsteady and dangerous 
 course towards their former protectors. The scene resembled 
 those mournful catastrophes recorded by the historians of 
 antiquity, when the inhabitants of whole cities in Asia Minor 
 or Greece fled to the sea at the approach of their enemies, and 
 steered away by the light of their burning habitations. Sir 
 Sidney Smith, with a degree of humanity worthy of his high 
 character, suspended his retreat till not a single individual 
 who claimed his assistance remained on the strand, thous^h the 
 total number borne away amounted to fourteen thousand eight 
 hundred and seventy-seven." 
 
 The Eoyals were shortly after engaged in a successful 
 descent upon the island of Corsica. Associated with the Fifty- 
 nrst Foot, under the command of our gallant countryman, the 
 future liero of Corunna, Lieutenant-Colonel Moore, they were 
 largely instrumental in the reduction of the island, which soon 
 after acknowledged the British sway. The fortified town of 
 Calvi, refusing to submit, was besieged, captured, and garri- 
 soned by the Royals, Avhere they remained until removed to 
 the island of Elba, in 1796— Corsica being abandoned. In 
 
IIOYAL SCOTS. 109 
 
 1797 the corps was stationeil at Cascaes, in Portugal, aiul in 
 the following year returned to England. 
 
 Meanwhile the disorders which prevailed in France li;i<l 
 induced a spirit of rebellion amongst the coloured population 
 of her most valuable colony — the island of St Domingo — 
 which, bursting forth in 1793, resulted in the establishment 
 of the Black Empire of Ilayti. The French colonists having 
 no faith in, or doubting the ability to help of their home 
 Government, had solicited the protection of Britain. Accord- 
 ingly a British force, including the first battalion of the 
 Eoyals from Jamaica (where for the past three yeai-s it had 
 been stationed), was sent to their assistance. The expedition 
 proved one of extreme dillieulty and exceeding diinger, and is 
 replete with interesting incidents. On every occasion the 
 good conduct of the Koyals was most conspicuous, especially 
 so in the defence of Fort Bizzeton, where Lieutenant Clunes, 
 with 120 men, repulsed 2000 of the enemy. Major-General 
 Sir Adam Williamson, in his despatch, stated — "Captain Grant 
 and his two Lieutenants, Clunes, of the Koyals, and Hamilton, 
 of the Twenty-second Regiment, merit every attention that 
 can be shown them. They were all three severely wounded 
 early in the attack, but tie<l up their wounds, and continued 
 to defend their posts. It has been a very gallant defence, and 
 does them great honour." lUit the swonl was not the only or 
 the worst enemy our brave countrymen had to encounter in 
 this sultry and unhealthy clime. A malignant fever, inva<ling 
 the quarters of our men, slew in two months about 640. 
 The remains of the battalion returne<l home in 1797. 
 
110 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Scarcely had our gallant Royals recruited their ranks, 
 when the sound of war called them to win new glories on the 
 field. In 1799 the second battalion, brigaded with the 
 Ninety-second Gordon Highlanders, formed part of the British 
 army, which, under that famous chieftain. Sir Ralph Aber- 
 cromby, landed in the Netherlands, and strove to expel the 
 French. The triumph of " Egmont-op-Zee " illustrated " the 
 gallantry of these brave troops," which "cannot have been 
 surpassed by any former instance of British valour." The 
 Dutch, for whom these efforts had been made, unheeding to 
 he free, were at length abandoned to their own infatuation, 
 in w^hich they soon experienced those bitter fruits which 
 sprang from the military despotism of Napoleon to curse the 
 land. On the withdrawal of the army, the second battalion 
 was successfully employed in several descents upon the coast 
 of Portugal. In brigade with their old comrades of the 
 Ninety-second, and two battalions of the Fifty-fourth Foot, 
 they were included in the British army which, landing at 
 Aboukir, from one victory to another, vanquished the boasted 
 " Invincibles" of Napoleon's grand "Army of the East," and 
 were at length hailed as the deliverers of Egypt — having 
 driven out the French. Whilst these desirable ends were being 
 accomplished upon the African continent, the first battalion 
 of the Royals, having embarked for the West Indies, was 
 reaping a harvest of glory in the reduction of the enemy's 
 possessions in that quarter of the world. The most illustrious 
 of these conquests was that of " St Lucia," which, inscribed 
 upon the colours of the regiment, remains to perpetuate the 
 record of these brave deeds. 
 
CJl AFTER XI. 
 
 '^ His signal ileols ami prowesR high 
 Demand no ]x)m]K>ii8 eulogy, — 
 
 Yo saw his <K'»^'«i8l 
 Why sliouM tiu'ir jiraise in verse be sung? 
 llie name, that dwells on every tongue. 
 
 No minstrel needs." 
 
 FRENCH REVOLUTION — CANADA — THE CRIMEA — INDIA — 
 CHINA — 1804-18G2. 
 
 The gigantic proportions which the war in 1804 had 
 assumed, the imminence of the danger whicli threatened our- 
 selves from the overgrown power of Napoleon, and his still 
 unsatisfied ambition, had thoroughly rousctl our Govern- 
 ment more completely to arm our people, and occasioned 
 the raising of many new corps. Aware of the favour in 
 which our Royal Regiment was held by the people, from the 
 ancient renown it had acquired, the (iovernment, taking 
 advantage of this good name, speedily raise<l and attached 
 thereto a third and fourth battalion. Returning from the 
 West Indies, where, for a short time, it had been engaged 
 in capturing the French and Dutch possessions, the second 
 battalion embarked for the East Indies, where, for upwards of 
 five-and-twenty years — returning home in 1831 — it remained 
 actively on duty. ^leanwhile, the third battalion, sharing 
 the glories, was doomed to endure the disasters of the Spanish 
 
112 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 campaigns of 1808-9, under that gallant leader. Sir John 
 Moore — glories which had their consummation in the victory 
 of Corunna. On this occasion the Koyals were brigaded with 
 our countrymen of the Twenty-sixth Cameronians. The 
 army, returning to England, was shortly thereafter employed 
 in a new attempt to expel the French from the Nether- 
 lands. In this unfortunate effort, known as the Walcheren 
 Expedition, our third battalion had a part. But the day of 
 better things was now about to dawn, when these repeated 
 disasters should be redeemed, and the eclipse of the world's 
 liberty be dissipated, through the triumphs which, rewarding 
 the heroic endurance and persevering valour of our soldiers, 
 should crown our arms. Trained by adversity, our troops 
 had learned how to conquer. Under Sir Arthur Wellesley, 
 the third battalion was, with the British army, which, from 
 "Busaco" to the "Nive," trod the path of uninterrupted 
 victory, baffling successively the splendid efforts with which 
 the genius of Massena, Marmont, Jourdan, and Soult, strove 
 to preserve for their master the provinces of the Peninsula. 
 Every attempt to arrest the onward march of British valour 
 signally failed, entailing upon the foe a series of fatal defeats, 
 until at length the Peninsula, delivered from the yoke of the 
 tyrant, our army, in triumph, entered the French territory. 
 At the siege of St Sebastian our Eoyals very specially dis- 
 tino-iiished themselves, and althousfh sufferina; a loss of more 
 than 500 men in the several assaults, nothing could quench 
 the dauntless spirit which twice stirred them to enter the 
 deadly breach; but the second time with most splendid 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. I 1 :> 
 
 success, wlien, overcoming every obstacle, this famous ami 
 gallantly defended fortress was captured. 
 
 "At a Scots corporation dinner, held in London on the 
 4th of :May, 1811, on the health of the Duke of Kent, 
 the fiither of our belovetl Queen, then Colonel of the Royal 
 Regiment, being drunk, his Royal Highness rose to return 
 thanks, and, in the course of his speech, said: — * My 
 royal brother has been pleased to prai.se the regiment in 
 "which I have been employed, and have had the honour to 
 command, and 1 too can bear testimony to the spirit and 
 gallantry of the Scottish soldiers. From the earliest days, 
 when I commenced my military life, it was always my 
 utmost aim to arrive at the command of a Scots regiment, 
 and to briiiir that reijiment into action would have been the 
 greatest glory I could have attained, as I am well convinced 
 the officers and men would have justified my most sanguine 
 expectations ; their courage, perseverance, and activity, being 
 undoubtedly such as may always be relied on ; and they are 
 always able and willing to do their duty, if not more than 
 their duty.' His Royal Highness took great interest in the 
 welfare of the regiment ; and he this year presented, by the 
 hands of Lieutenant-Colonel M'Leotl, a gold meilal to Serjeant 
 Manns of the regiment for the very meritorious manner in 
 which he had educated upwards of 800 soldiers and soldiers' 
 children." His Royal Highness was the fii-st to establish 
 regimental schools, — a rich blessing, which will be ever asso- 
 ciated with his memory, conferring as they have done such 
 priceless benefits upon the army. 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 1 13 
 
 success, when, overcoiuiug every obstacle, this famous ami 
 gallantly defended fortress was captured. 
 
 "At a Scots corporation dinner, held in London on the 
 4th of May, 1811, on the health of the Duke of Kent, 
 the father of our beloved Queen, then Colonel of the Royal 
 Regiment, being drunk, his Royal Highness rose to return 
 thanks, and, in the course of liis speech, said: — * ^fy 
 royal brother has been pleased to praise the regiment in 
 which I have been em2)loyed, and have had the honour to 
 command, and I too can bear testimony to the spirit and 
 gallantry of the Scottish soldiers. From the earliest days, 
 when I commenced my military life, it was always my 
 utmost aim to arrive at the command of a Scots regiment, 
 and to brinjz that reiiiment into action would have been the 
 greatest glory I could have attained, as I am well convinced 
 the officers and men would have justified my most sanguine 
 expectations ; their courage, perseverance, and activity, being 
 undoubtedly such as may always be relied on ; and they are 
 always able and willing to do their duty, if not more than 
 their duty.' His Royal Highness took great interest in the 
 welfare of the regiment ; anil he this year presented, by the 
 hands of Lieutenant-Colonel M'Leod, a gold meilal to Serjeant 
 Manns of the regiment for the very meritorious manner in 
 which he had educated upwards of 800 soldiers and soldiers* 
 children." His Royal Higlmess was the first to establish 
 recnmcntal schools, — a rich blessing, which will l>e ever asso- 
 ciatevl with his memory, conferring as they have done such 
 priceless benefits upon the army. 
 
114 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 When all Europe had combined in a sacred crusade against 
 the despotic rule of Napoleon, the fourth battalion of the 
 Eoyals was selected to form part of a British force which should 
 act with the Swedo-German army advancing from Pomerania, 
 under Bernadotte, upon France. Thus, at the interval of 
 nearly 300 years, did our Royal Scots revisit the scenes of 
 their early glory; and, under the same Swedish banner, led 
 on by the successor of Gustavus Adolphus, once more do 
 battle for the cause of truth. No doubt, their souls roused 
 within them, their arms must have been nerved, by the 
 "stirring memories" of "auld langs3me." The march of 
 this battalion through Germany, when called to join the 
 army of Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Graham, afterwards 
 Lord Lynedoch, in the Netherlands, about to attempt the 
 reduction of the strong fortress of Bergen -op -Zoom, is 
 marked by the extreme severity of the weather, which 
 entailed sufferings of the most fatal kind upon our brave 
 soldiers — upwards of 120 men being lost in the snow. To 
 the survivors a darker and a sadder fate was near, whilst 
 these trials served to school them to meet it with the heroic 
 fortitude of the soldier. In the subsequent attack upon 
 Bergen-op-Zoom the several companies of the battalion had 
 struggled with determined yet unavailing valour to dislodge 
 the French. Our troops could not prevail, as they could not 
 destroy the strong natural defences of the place. They 
 suffered a most serious loss from an imseen foe, who visited 
 their temerity with a fatal fire from their powerful and 
 numerous batteries. At length, overwhelmed and encompassed 
 
ROYAL SCUTS. 115 
 
 by fooinen, aud eutauglctl amougst dcstructivu batteries which 
 vouiitod forth death upon our devotetl Koyals, they were 
 compelled to surrender, having previously sunk the colours 
 of the regiment in the river Zoom. Peace being accomplished 
 by the abdication of Kapoleon, the sword of w ar was for a 
 moment sheathed. Alas! that it should have been but for 
 a moment. Soon the dream of a fancied security was 
 disturbed, as the captive of Elba once more ai)pearing, 
 the Emperor, idolised by the great army, forged thunder- 
 bolts of venceauce with which he threatened to annihilate 
 his many foes. Happily, his ambitious career was speedily 
 terminated, and Europe thereby saved the repetition of the 
 l)loody tragedy of protractetl war, so lately and so fondly 
 believed to be closed. The sudden irruption of the French 
 army into the Netherlands was met by the bravery of the 
 British and Prussians, and its progress for ever arrested 
 by the total defeat of Waterloo. in this campaign the 
 third battalion of the Royals w;is honoured to hold a 
 conspicuous part ; especially at Quatre i>ra.s where it was 
 the fii-st to check the advance of Mai-shal Ney, antl sustain 
 with great credit the brunt of his impetuous and repeated 
 attack.s. The following splendid testimony has been reconled 
 to its valour: — "The third battiilion of the Royal Scot« 
 tlistingiiished itself in a particular manner. Being removed 
 from the centre of the Fifth Division, it charged and routed 
 a cohuun of the enemy. It was then ft>rmed in a .square to 
 receive the cavalry, anil though repeated attacks were made, 
 not the slightest impression was produced. Wherever the 
 
116 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 lancers and cuirassiers presented themselves, they found a 
 stern and undismayed front, which they vainly endeavoured 
 to penetrate." 
 
 It was not alone upon the continent of Europe that the 
 dire effects of Napoleon's sway were felt and regretted, but 
 wherever the foot of civilisation had left its impress. Nor 
 was it only the pulse of true liberty that beat quickly and 
 faintly beneath the evil rule of his tyrant spirit, but com- 
 merce, by iniquitous decrees, lay groaning in chains, or eked 
 out but a sorry existence. The intention of these ill-advised 
 decrees was the destruction of the maritime and commercial 
 might of Britain. Our Government sought to retaliate upon 
 France the evils their imperial monarch had striven to in- 
 flict upon us, by barbarous enactments of a kindred char- 
 acter. Thus, between the two, the avenues of trade were 
 all but hedged up — the channels of commercial intercourse 
 dried up. America had hitherto grown rich upon the pover- 
 ties which war had entailed upon the continental nations; 
 and hence, when her merchants found their trade at an end, 
 or, at all events, amounting to a thing of peril, her Govern- 
 ment resented such decrees as a personal attack. Retaining 
 an old grudge arising out of the nature of recent events, and, 
 moreover, regarding Britain as the chief offender, having 
 within herself alone the power to set at defiance the attempts 
 of Napoleon, without adding a new evil to cure the old 
 iniquity, America declared war against us, and her armies 
 forthwith proceeded to take possession of Canada. To arrest 
 the progress of the enemy in this quarter, the first bat- 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 1 I 7 
 
 talioii of the Koyals was ordered from the West indies to 
 Canada. Altliough the forces engaged on cither side were 
 trifling in numbers when compared with the vast armaments 
 which were then contending in Europe, still the contest was 
 no less sanguinary and bitter, and ecpially developed the 
 sterling (pialities of our Eoyal Scots. Arrived iu Canada in 
 1813, the. battalion was present with credit at the successful 
 attacks upon Sackett's Harbour, Sodius, Niagara, Black Kock, 
 and Buffalo; but it was not until 1814, that the preponder- 
 ance of numbers on the side of the Americans renderin2 the 
 contest more unequal, and when victory did not always smile 
 on our arms — it was then we gather more strikin<:r evidence of 
 the gallant demeanour of the Royals. At Long wood a 
 superior force of Americans prevailed, and the battalion was 
 reluctantly withdrawn, having suffered severely, principally in 
 officers. At Chippewa GOOO Americans assailed a force of 
 1 jOO British, including 500 of the Koyals. Although repulsed 
 in the action which ensued, the General Order reports: "It 
 Wivs impossible for men to have done more, or to have 
 sustaineil with greater courage the heavy and destructive iire 
 with which the enemy, from his great superiority in numbers, 
 was enabled to oppose them." The Royals only yieldeti when 
 upwards of 300 of their number had been disabled — sutHcient 
 proof of the fierceness of the conflict, and the desperate vak»ur 
 which sustained it. But a more dciidly encounter — though 
 happily a more successful one — took place at Lundy's Lane, 
 where 5000 Americans were opi)osed to 2800 British, including 
 at first only three, latterly ten, companies of the lioyals. We 
 
118 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 cannot do better tlian quote the description of the battle from 
 Mr Cannon's invaluable Kecords : "About nine in the evening 
 there was an intermission of firing; but the Americans renewed 
 the attack soon afterwards with fresh troops, and a fierce 
 conflict of musketry and artillery followed in the dark. The 
 Americans charged up the hill; the British gunners were 
 bayoneted while in the act of loading, and the guns were in 
 the possession of the enemy for a few moments; but the 
 troops in the centre, where the three companies of the Eoyal 
 Scots were fighting, soon drove back the Americans, and 
 retook the guns. The storm of battle still raged along the 
 heights; the muzzles of the British and American artillery 
 were within a few yards of each other, and the fight was kept 
 up with a sanguinary obstinacy seldom witnessed. In limber- 
 ing up the guns, at one period an American six-pounder was 
 put by mistake on a British limber, and a British six-pounder 
 on an American limber. At one moment the Americans had 
 the advantage ; at the next the shout of victory rose from the 
 British ranks; and about midnight the enemy retreated." The 
 troops were thanked for their distinguished bravery in general 
 orders on the following day; and "the admirable steadiness of 
 the Royal Scots, under Lieut.-Colonel Gordon, at several very 
 critical points and movements," claimed Lieut. -General Drum- 
 mond's particular notice. On this occasion the Royal Scots 
 had to mourn the loss of many brave ofiicers and gallant men, 
 nearly IGO being killed, wounded, or prisoners. The siege 
 and capture of Fort Erie is distinguished not merely for the 
 gallantry of our Royals, but possesses, moreover, a melancholy 
 
ROYAL SCOTS. 1 1 J) 
 
 interest, from tlie Janientable catastrophe — the explosion of a 
 mine — which destroyed many of our brave soMiei-s, who, 
 8tru;]f<ilin«j: on, had eft'ected a footing in the breach. 
 
 It is iuterestinn; to note, about this period, the several 
 battalions of this ancient refjiment, fighting our battles in bo 
 many different cornei-s of the world at the same time, and 
 each contributing to the national glory and their own marvel- 
 lous fame. In 1814 the positions of the battalions were as 
 follows : — 
 
 First Rnttalion, ... ... Canada. 
 
 Secoml Battalion, ... ... India. 
 
 Thirvl liattaJion, ... ... Sjwin and France. 
 
 Fourth Battalion, ... ... Gemiauy and IlulUind. 
 
 The war was brought to a termination in 1815, after the 
 memorable battle of Waterloo, wherein the third battalion of 
 the Royal Scots immortalised itself, when, peace being con- 
 cludetl, the Royals returned home, and the third and fourth 
 battalions were disbanded. 
 
 Pa.ssing over a long interval of comparative peace which 
 succeeded, like the calm, the storm that but lately nigetl, we 
 have only time in our present sketch to note that tlie Royals 
 formed part of the British army in the Crimea. The Crimean 
 cam|>aign gained for them the several distinctions of the 
 "Alma," "Inkermann," and "Sevastopol." 
 
 On tlie alarm occasioned ])y the recent Indian Mutiny, in 
 1S57, the first battalion of the Royals was sent out to re- 
 inforce our army, destinetl to suppress the Sepoy Revolt. 
 Afterwards the second battalion formed part of the Chinese 
 
120 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Expedition, Avliicli, chastising the perfidy of the boasted 
 " Celestials," reduced the " Taku forts," and occupied Pekin. 
 
 We close our narrative of the First Royal Regiment, or 
 Royal Scots, ^Yith these lines from an old militar}' ditty, the 
 favourite apostrophe of that distinguished veteran and re- 
 presentative of our old Scots brigade in the Swedish service — 
 Sir Dugald Dalgetty, the illustrious hero represented by Sir 
 "Walter Scott in his " Legend of Montrose." Thus he sang 
 wben waiting in the guard-room of Inverary Castle : — 
 
 " AVhen the cannons are roaring, lads, and the colours are flying, 
 The lads that seek honour must never fear dying: 
 Then stout cavaliers let us toil our brave trade in, 
 And fight for the Gospel and the bold King of Sweden." 
 
1862. TWENTY-FIRST, OR ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 16 7 8. 
 
tin: twknty-fiiist foot 
 
 oil, 
 
 ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS, 
 
 CHAPTER XIT. 
 
 " The warrior boy to the field hath gone, 
 Ami left his home Ix-liiml him; 
 His father's swonl he hatli ginletl on — 
 In the ranks of death you'll find him." 
 
 ORIGIN — EARLY SERVICES— CIVIL WARS — WARS OF THE SPANISH 
 SUCCESSION — WARS OF THE ALSTRIAN SUCCESSION — 1678-1748. 
 
 Success is too commonly esteemed, by a short-sighted puhUo, 
 to be the criterion of excellcTice. It rcmaius, however, to 
 each of us, an exercise of fjiitii and duty to confute this 
 popuhar faUacy, inasmuch as it has wronged, foully wrongeil, 
 many a l)rave heart who, battling with several and powerful 
 foes, struggling manfully, yet desperately, for the very life, 
 has as yet failed to rise beyond the surface; and hence the 
 man bowed down by adversity, as yet unrewardeil by a better 
 success — regarde<l as nothing beyond the common — this deceit- 
 ful, false world cannot recognise the heroic soul in the martyr 
 
122 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 to circumstances. Thus it is that the gallant regiment, whose 
 history we are now about to narrate, is in danger of being 
 done injustice to, since its history is not always garnished 
 with splendid success, nor its path to honour strewn with 
 the glittering distinctions of victory, nor its heroism illustrated 
 by a long series of triumphs, which gild many a page of our 
 national history. 
 
 This regiment claims an orioin co-eval with that of the 
 Scots Greys and Scots Foot Guards. It was regimented and 
 commanded by Charles, Earl of Mar, at a time when the 
 rampant bigotry of the King — oppressing the consciences of 
 the people, had exiled many of the bravest and best, or driven 
 them to desperate measures — induced them to draw together 
 for defence of their liberty and lives. Such was the state of 
 thino-s in Scotland in 1678 when our Fusiliers were raised to 
 hunt down our covenanting forefathers, who, for conscience 
 sake, branded as heretics, endured the cruel ban of the Church 
 of Eome ; who, " not ashamed to own their Lord," freely re- 
 signed life and property for His sake. The history of the 
 regiment is one with that of the Scots Greys and Scots Foot 
 Guards, already in our previous chapters alluded to, where it 
 may almost be traced page by page ; it is therefore needless 
 for us to repeat the incidents which marked their early 
 history. They were present at the battle of Bothwell Bridge, 
 where the Covenanters were signally defeated, and were after- 
 wards engaged in repressing the Eebellion of Argyll in 1685. 
 At length the day of retribution arrived, when the voice of 
 the people declared the sovereignty of the House of Stuart to 
 
ROYAL NOllTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 1 23 
 
 be an iiitoleniut biirdeu no longer to be submitted to, — by a 
 general rising decreed its overthrow, and by an almost uni- 
 versal welcome hailed the advent of a better state of things 
 under the healthier government of the House of Orange. 
 Amid these changes our Fusiliers remained faithful to James 
 11. Ifaviuij: nuxrched into England with a streno-th of 744 
 men, under Colonel liuchan, they were stationed in the Tower 
 Hamlets. The flight of the King rendering all resistance to 
 the advancing forces of William futile and nealless, the 
 regiment submitted to the victorious party of William and 
 Mary. Removed to Oxfordshire, the command was conferred on 
 Colonel O'Farrell. Colonel Buchau, adhering to the fallen for- 
 tunes of James, followed him into exile. His name has ac(|uired 
 a melancholy interest as the chief who, a few years later, after 
 the death of Dundee at Killiecrankie, headed the rebel forces 
 in a vain attempt to restore the dominion of the Stuarts. 
 Subse<|uently, in 168i>, the regiment embarked at Graveseud 
 for Flanders, where, under Marlborough, it formed part of 
 the British division which, with the Dutch, strove to check 
 the aggressions of the French. In the early part of the 
 campaign they were associated with their countrymen of the 
 Third, or Scots Foot Guards, and the First, or Itoyal Scots 
 Regiment, In^ides other British troops. These share<l the 
 glory of the victory of Walcourt, where an attack of the 
 French under D'Humieres was repulsed. In KJDO the ill 
 success of the allieil general. Prince Waldeck, yielde<.l to tlie 
 enemy many and imj)ortant advantages, e8|)ecially in the 
 disastrous battle of Fleunis. In the following year the Scotfi 
 
124 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 brigade was further augmented by the addition of the regi- 
 ments of Mackay and Eamsay, known to fame as the Old 
 Scots Brigade in the Dutch service, or as the Ninety-Fourth 
 in later times in the British service. To these were added 
 the Earl of Angus's reoiment of Cameronians, now the 
 Twenty-sixth, and subsequently the Earl of Leven's regiment of 
 King's Own Borderers, the present Twenty-fifth. The arrival 
 of King William, who in person assumed the command, as it 
 set at rest the national jealousies which hitherto prevailed 
 among the troops, and hushed the petty contests for pre- 
 cedence on the part of their leaders, infused at the same 
 time new life and ^^o-our into the movements of the Allies. 
 In a vain attempt to surprise the fortress of Mons, Colonel Sir 
 Eobert Douglas of the Eoyab, and Colonel O'Farrell of our 
 Fusiliers, were taken prisoners by the French, but released on 
 payment of the customary ransom. Both were destined for 
 very different fates. The former, as narrated in a previous 
 chapter, fell, gallantly fighting at the head of his regiment, at 
 the battle of Steenkirk ; the latter, sur\iving that bloody day, 
 was reserved to be the unlucky commander who surrendered 
 the fortress of Deinse, garrisoned l)y his regiment, to the 
 enemy without striking a blow in its defence. This denial of 
 the courage of our Fusiliers under his command, who, with 
 able hands and ready hearts, might have successfully chal- 
 lenged the attempts of a numerous foe — whilst they were 
 delivered over to be prisoners of war — ^justly received the 
 severe censure of the King; and, tried by court martial, 
 Brio-adier-Geueral O'Farrell was cashiered, and his command 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 1 1^5 
 
 conferred on Colonel Robert Mackay. Meanwhile, three 
 years previously, the battle of Steenkirk had been fought, 
 aiitl the superior numbers of the French, directed by the 
 ability of the Duke de Luxembourg, had triumphed, not- 
 withstanding the desperate valour of the liritish. Our 
 Fusiliei-s, with the Koyals, formed part of the advanced 
 guard of our army, and fiercely assailed the French, who, 
 strongly p(.»sted behind a series of thick hedges, poured 
 in u deadly fire into our ranks. Successively they were 
 driven from their strong position, but only to take a new 
 position, equally defensible, behind a second hedge. A third 
 and a fourth position was assumed and bravely defended, yet 
 nothing coidd withstand the onset of our troops. Every 
 obstacle was overcome, and victory was within our grasp, 
 when disastei-s in other parts of the field compelled the aban- 
 donment of all these hard-earned advantages. D'Auvergne 
 says: "Our vanguard behaved in this engagement to such 
 wonder and admiration, that though they received the charge 
 of several battalions of the enemy, one after the other, yet 
 they made them retreat almost to their very camp ; " and the 
 London Gazette records : " The bravery of our men was 
 extraordinary, and admired by all; ten battalions of ours 
 having engaged above thirty of the French at one time.'' At 
 the battle of Landen in IGD.'i, brigaded witli tlie Twenty-fifth, 
 the Twenty-sixth, aud the regimeuts of the Old Scots Brigade, 
 separated from the army by the prevailing etl'orts of the 
 French, they most heroically maintained themselves, until 
 overwhelming numbers compelletl them to retire. N\ itii 
 
126 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 difficulty they effected their retreat, without disorder, by 
 fording the river Gheet, and so succeeded in rejoining the 
 main army. The ignominious surrender of Deinse, and the 
 consequent dismissal of Colonel O'Farrell, occurring in 1695, 
 have been abeady alluded to. Nothing of importance falls to 
 be recorded in the history of our Fusiliers during the 
 remainder of the war, which was terminated in 1697 by the 
 peace of Eyswick. Returning to Scotland, the rest they 
 enjoyed was but of short duration. Once again the rude 
 blast of war lashed into fury the ambition of princes. Would 
 that princes acted out the words of the ballad writer — 
 
 " Oh, were I Queen of France, or still better. Pope of Rome, 
 I -would have no fighting men abroad, or weeping maids at home. 
 All the Avorld should be at peace, or if kings would show their might, 
 I'd have those that make the quarrels be the only ones to fight." 
 
 Unhappily, it is not so, and perhaps, however beautiful the 
 idea, it is better it should be otherwise. In 1702 the war of 
 the Spanish Succession broke out, which was destined to 
 witness the splendid successes of a renowned soldier — the 
 Duke of Marlborough. Brigaded with the second battalion 
 of the Royals, the Tenth, the Sixteenth, and the Twenty-sixth 
 regiments, our Fusiliers were present at the siege of Huy, and, 
 detached from the army, took part in the enterprise which 
 resulted in the capture of Limburg. But these events, how- 
 ever glorious, sink into insignificance when compared with 
 the marvellous achievements which shed a flood of glory upon 
 our national history, as recorded in the memorable year of 
 1704. Then the plains of Germany for the first time owned 
 
^ S . . .. » . ] ,_ h|^£ 
 
 ■t$f 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. \'27 
 
 the tread not of a mere bantl of isluiul adveiiturei-s, as in the 
 ancient days of our veteran KoyaLs, but now these plains 
 resounded with tlie martial tramp of a British army. In the 
 attack upon the heights of Schelleuberg our Fusiliers bore an 
 honourable part, but that was but the prelude to the grander 
 victory of Blenheim, wherein the confederate might of France 
 and Bavaria succumbeil before the allied arms of Britain and 
 (Germany. But this signal triumph was not accomj)li.shed 
 Siwe by the most desperate bravery. " Brigadier -General 
 Row, (Colonel of the Royal North iiritish Fusiliei-s,) who 
 eharired on foot at the head of his own reiriment with 
 unparalleled intrepidity, assaulted the village of Blenheim, 
 advancing to the very muzzles of the enemy's muskets, and 
 some of the otHcers excliano;ed thrusts of swords throufrh the 
 palisades : but the avenues of the village were found strongly 
 fortified, and defended by a force of superior numbers. 
 Brigadier-General Row led the North British Fusiliers up to 
 the palisades before he gave the word 'Fire,' and the next 
 moment he fell mortally wounded ; Lieutenant-Colonel Dalyel 
 and Major Campbell, being on the spot, stepped forward to 
 raise their colonel, and were both instantly pierced by nuisket- 
 balls; the soldiers, exasperated at seeing the three field-officers 
 of the regiment fall, made a gallant effort to force their way 
 into the village, but this was found impossible, and the regiment 
 was ordered to retire. The moment the .soldiers facetl about, 
 thirteen squadrons of French cavalry galloped forward to charge 
 them, and one of the colours of the regiment w;us captured by 
 the enemy ; but the Freucli horsemen were repulsed by the 
 
128 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 fire of a brigade of Hessians, and the colour was recovered." 
 A second assault failed likewise, so resolute was the defence 
 of the enemy, but a third attempt, with additional forces, was 
 crowned with success; the French being driven out of the 
 village with great loss. There is no more treasured illustra- 
 tion of the worth of our British soldiers than is recorded in 
 this famous battle, and no more distingiiished honour than 
 belongs to the regiments who have won a title, by their 
 presence and brave deeds on the occasion, to share its glory 
 or bear upon their colours the proud and envied word 
 "Blenheim." But this mode of commemorating battles was 
 not adopted until a later period, — Minden, borne by the 
 Twenty -fifth King's Own Borderers, and other corps, — 
 being the earliest instance of a battle thus emWazoned.'"' 
 Throughout the remaining years of the war, graced by 
 the victories of Bamilies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet, and 
 the capture of many of the strong fortresses of the Nether- 
 lands, our Fusiliers maintained their character for bravery 
 and steadiness, proving themselves in every way worthy 
 the honours their valour had hitherto won. During this 
 period they were successively commanded by Viscount ]\Ior- 
 daunt, Brigadier-General De Lalo — a distinguished French 
 Protestant officer, who fell whilst gallantly leading his regi- 
 ment at the battle of Malplaquet — Major-General JMeredith, 
 and the Earl of Orrery. Peace at length terminated the 
 struggle, and our heroes returned home in 1714. Shortly 
 afterwards a rebellion broke out in Scotland, under the 
 
 * Vide " Curiosities of War," page 226. 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FL'SILIERS. 129 
 
 Earl of ^lar, sou of the Earl of i\Iar who first commandeil 
 our Fusiliei-s. Supported hirgely by the clans, presenting a 
 formulable array, he advanced into the Lowhinds, pro- 
 claiming the Pretender — the son of James II. — to be tlie 
 rightful sovereign. His vacillating policy — notwithstanding 
 the uncertain issues of the battle of Sherilfmuir, where the 
 royal troops, including our Fusiliers, led by the Duke of 
 Argyle, encountered the rebels — mined the cause he had 
 assumed to maintain ; so that when the Pretender joined 
 his partizans, he found them reduced to such desperate straits, 
 that whilst prudence counselled, cowardice sought the earliest 
 opportunity to effect an escape, leaving his friends to suffer 
 alone the vengeance of the Government. The clans dispersing 
 or submittinc;, the rebellion died out in 171G. 
 
 In 1743 the war of the Austrian Succession once more 
 stirred up the wrathful passions of man, and plunged the 
 European continent into all the horrors of war. The comba- 
 tants were much the same as on previous occasions — France 
 and Bavaria pitted against Austria and liritain. The Scots 
 Greys, the Third or Scots Foot Guards, (first battalion,) the 
 First or Royal Scots, (first battalion,) the Twenty-fii*st or 
 Royal North British Fusiliers, the Twenty-fifth or King's Own 
 Borderers, and the Forty-second or Royal Higiilandei*s, formed 
 the Scottish regiments embraced in the British army. Under 
 the eye of their chivalric monarch, George II., who in person 
 commanded, our Fusiliers were gi'catly distinguished by their 
 good conduct, especially at the victor}' of Dettingen. Sub- 
 sequently, imder Marshal Wade, the regiment was with the 
 
130 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 army wliicli penetrated into France in 1 744. In the following 
 year, under the Duke of Cumberland, present at the disastrous 
 battle of Fontenoy, the regiment lost 285 officers and men. 
 The valour of our troops, and the successes they had achieved, 
 were negatived, and the battle lost, by the failure of the Dutch 
 in other parts of the field. So severe had been the losses of 
 our Fusiliers on this occasion, that, for the sake of being 
 recruited, the regiment was removed from the army to garrison 
 Ostend, where, assailed by a very superior French force, it 
 was compelled to surrender. At this crisis in our country's 
 history, the King of France, aiding and abetting the Jaco- 
 bites, succeeded but too well in inciting the clans to rebellion 
 under Prince Charles Edward. These troubles at home 
 occasioned the recall of the major part of the British army, 
 and amongst others, our Fusiliers, who, advancing from 
 Edinburgh, were engaged in the pursuit and ultimate over- 
 throw of the rebels at Culloden. Thereafter returning to the 
 continent, the rec-iment was enG;a2;ed at the unavailino; battle 
 of Val in 1747, which led to the peace of Aix-la-ChapeUe. 
 
CIlAi'TEli XIII. 
 
 " Ye Bons of the strong, when that dawning shall break, 
 Neetl the liarj) of tlie age«l reuiin«l you to wake? 
 That dawn never beani'd on your foivfatheitj' eye, 
 But it routed each high ehieftain to van<iuiiil» or die." 
 
 AMERICA — FRENCH REVOLUTION — WEST INDIES — NEW ORLEANS 
 — CRLMEA — 1718-1SG2. 
 
 Restless like the ocean, anew the spirit of ambition, the thiret 
 for conquest, awakened the tlames of war between these ancient 
 rivals — France and J^ritain. In those days, when standing 
 armies were dreaded by a people ever jealous of the prerogative 
 of the C^o^^•n, with whom, moreover, there still lingered the 
 bitter experience of the past, or the lively, yet painful, recol- 
 lection of the tyranny of the Stuarts — in those days our army 
 was limited. Hence, when war broke out, we find the whole 
 force of the kingdom callal into action, or embarked on foreign 
 service, leaving to militia and volunteers the defence of " our 
 hearths and homes" — ^just aa it should ever be. In such 
 circumstances, in 1761 our Fusiliers were engaged in a 
 desperate descent ujKjn the French island of Delleisle, situated 
 in the Bay of Biscay. The natural and artificial defences of 
 the island had almost defeated the object of the expedition; 
 aod when, after much searching and toil, a lauding had been 
 
132 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 effected, the dangers to be encountered required the utmost 
 steadiness and perseverance to be overcome. The French 
 made a resohite defence, and only surrendered when their 
 position had become no longer tenable, and no promise of 
 relief seemed at hand. Afterwards stationed in England, the 
 regiment in 1765 was sent out for the occupation of West 
 Florida in America, whence, in 1770, it was removed to 
 Quebec. It had been commanded by the Earl of Panmure, 
 who, in 1738 succeeded the Duke of Argyle in the colonelcy, 
 and in 1770 he was in turn succeeded by Major-General 
 the Hon. Alexander Mackay. In 1772 our Fusiliers returned 
 to England; soon, however, to be recalled to the American 
 States, to take an active part in the unnatural war which 
 had arisen out of vexing disputes on the all-important ques- 
 tion of taxation between the Home and Colonial Govern- 
 ments. Accordingly, in 1776 the regiment was sent out for 
 the relief of Quebec, then besieged by the Americans. The 
 timely arrival of such welcome reinforcements, strengthening 
 and encouraging the garrison, produced an opposite feeling of 
 weakness and dejection in the ranks of the besiegers, so as to 
 induce the American General to raise the siege and retire. In 
 his retreat he was pursued and harassed by the British troops. 
 In the following year, the Twenty-first, as we shall hence- 
 forth call them, was employed reducing the American forts, 
 especially Ticonderago, which studded the shores of Lake 
 Champlain. Ultimately the regiment formed part of an 
 unfortunate expedition under Lieut. -General Burgoyne, who, 
 encouraged by previous successes, was tempted to advance 
 
KOYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. l.}.'} 
 
 into the enemy's territory, away from his own resources, where 
 — uotwithstanding the repeated defeats, especially at Still- 
 water, with which our troops visited the temerity of the foe, 
 and the heroism with which they conquered all obstacles and 
 endured many sufleriugs from the pinchings of want, reduced 
 to about 3500 fighting men, and surrounded by an American 
 army of fully 1G,000 — the Twcnty-fu-st, with the relics of the 
 other regiments included in the expedition, were under the 
 painful necessity of laying down their arms, and surrendering 
 themselves prisoners of war. This untoward event terminated 
 for the present the active service of the Twenty-firet. The 
 battalion, on being released, returned to Britain, where it 
 remained on home duty until 1781), when, embarking for 
 America, it was employed for nearly four years in that 
 country. 
 
 The French Revolution having, by a flood of evil influences, 
 submerged well nigh every vestige of living righteousness, 
 war, with all its horroi-s, had been accepted as the dire alter- 
 native which, with its fiery deluge, should purge the political 
 world of the cankering iniquities which hitherto fattened 
 upon the miseries a tyrant democracy had inflicted upon 
 civilisation. Unable to cope with the vast armaments which 
 the revolutionary energy' of France had brought into being 
 and sent forth to convert Christendom to its own domnas of 
 "Equality, Fraternity, and Liberty," and whilst these overran 
 the Netherlands and other adjacent countries, our Government 
 directed the eftorts of its arms against the French West 
 Indian Islands, the natives and lower classes of which, 
 
134 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 becomiug infected by the republican fever, bad assumed to 
 be free, and in token thereof adopted the tri-colour cockade, 
 whilst the Eoyalists, who, as proprietors and capitalists, 
 had everything to lose, invoked the friendly aid of Britain. 
 Accordingly, the Twenty-first, proceeding from Canada to the 
 AVest Indies with the army under Major-General Bruce, took 
 part in the first attempt upon the island of Martinique in 
 1793, which failed. A second attempt in 1794, under General 
 Sir Charles Grey, was more successful, the Eepublicans being 
 overthrown. This desirable result was speedily followed by 
 the reduction of the islands of St Lucia and Guadaloupe, in 
 the capture of both of which the Twenty-first was honourably 
 distinguished. Our possession of Guadaloupe was not long to 
 be enjoyed. A powerful French fleet from Europe, with a 
 considerable body of troops on board, arrived and succeeded 
 but too w^ell in resuscitating the republican interests, and at 
 length prevailing, the few British defenders, numbering only 
 125, were forced to surrender to overwhelming odds. In the 
 fall of Fort Matilda, which terminated our dominion in the 
 island, the Twenty-first met with another heavy disaster, 
 which, with the ravages of the yellow fever, had so reduced 
 the effective strength of the regiment, that in 1796 it was 
 sent home to recruit, where it soon attained a strength of 800 
 men, by volunteers from the Scots Fencible Regiments. 
 
 AVhilst stationed at Enniskillen, the good conduct of the 
 regiment won for our Fusiliers the esteem of the inhabitants, 
 whose good-will could not fail to be appreciated as a record 
 of no smaU importance, considering the excellent regiments, 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 135 
 
 which, bearing the name of "Inniskilling, " have ever done 
 honour l)y their galhuitiy to British valour. These good 
 impressions were deepened, and the deserved esteem of our 
 Fusiliers greatly increased, by the firm attitude maintained 
 by the regiment during the Dublin riots of 23d July, 1803. 
 On this tiying occasion, stationed in the Irish metropolis, the 
 determined front of the Twenty-fii-st, under ^Fajor Robert- 
 son, (Lieut.-Colonel Brown having been murdered by the 
 rioters whilst proceeding to join his regiment,) succeeded 
 in overawing and reducing to obedience the refractory mob 
 whose discontents had assumed the dangerous character of 
 a fierce insurrection, and wliose malignity towards Govern- 
 ment had avenged itself in the barbarous murder of the Lord 
 Chief Justice, N'iscount Kilwarden. The good conduct of the 
 regiment was rewarded with the public thanks, whilst Lieu- 
 tenant Douglas and the Adjutant (Brady), as specially dis- 
 tinguished for activity and judgment, were each presented 
 with a valuable gift of plate. 
 
 The vastly increasing power and menacing attitude 
 asvsumed by Napoleon had roused the latent energies of the 
 nation, and in the exigencies of the times, induced one of 
 those most splendid efforts of true patriotism of which only 
 a free nation like our own is capable of producing. The 
 people as one man rase to arms, and practically illustrat<Kl 
 the fervid eloquence of the immortal Pitt, wlien, with a 
 soul pregnant with devotion to his country, he exclaimed 
 — ** Were an enemy on our shores, I never would lay 
 down my arms. Never! never! never!" whilst the muse 
 
136 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of Campbell summoned the charms of language to aid the 
 sacred cause : — 
 
 "Rise, fcllow-mon! Our country yet remains! 
 By that dread name we wave the sword on high, 
 And swear for her to live, with her to die ! " 
 
 Amongst the many means adopted to secure an effectual 
 national defence, the increase of our army was deservedly the 
 chief. From the youth of the counties of Eenfrew and Ayr a 
 second battalion was raised for our Fusiliers in December 
 1804; but it was not until 1806 called to an active part in 
 the terrible contest which then shook Europe to its base. The 
 defence of Sicily for the legitimate sovereignty of Naples, to 
 which the Twenty-first was called, although a duty but of 
 minor importance when compared with the mighty events 
 which were being enacted on the vaster theatre of Europe, 
 still the result, redundant with glory, served to give hope to 
 liberty when the threatened night of tyranny had elsewhere 
 descended to cloud the nationalities of Christendom; whilst 
 our British soldiers, if aught dare aspire to the title, proved 
 themselves to be the real " ijivmcihles " — when all else had 
 been borne down by the legions of France, they alone remained 
 unconquered. Under Major-General Alexander Mackenzie 
 Eraser, the first battalion was engaged in the expedition to 
 Egypt against the Turks; who, in an evil hour, when French 
 power seemed omnipotent, and French influences in conse- 
 quence triumphed, had been pressed into the service of the 
 Emperor, against their better judgment and truer interests. 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 137 
 
 A single campaign successfully terminated the war, when our 
 first battalion returned to Sicily. 
 
 In 1S0I>, with tho expedition under Sir John Stuart, the 
 Twenty-fii-st attacked and captured from Murat, vice«Terent 
 of Napoleon, styled King of Naples, the islands Ischia and 
 Procida, containing immense material of war. An attack 
 upon the castle of Scylla in Calal)ria failed, and an attempt to 
 defen<l the town of Valmi resulted in serious loss to our 
 gallant Fusiliei*s — no fewer than 80 officers and men falling 
 into the hands of the enemy. Imbued, like his great master, 
 with an insatiate appetite for conf|uest, and a restless ambition, 
 Murat vehemently longed for an opportunity to expel the 
 British from Sicily, and so unite that valual)le i.sland to his 
 new kingdom. Having concentrated a powerful army, and 
 prepared an immense flotilla of gunboats and transports on 
 the shores of Calabria, he, on a dark night in September, 1810, 
 attempted a descent. As the morning dawned it revealed the 
 enemy to the British, and so interrupted their further trans- 
 port and landing. Those who had come over in the night 
 were so fiercely as.sailed by the Twenty- fii-st and other 
 regiments, that, with the sea behind and a powerful enemy 
 around, without the prosjxjct of relief or any chance of cscaix*, 
 the French surrendered. The ill success of this well-concerted 
 expedition, induced Murat to abandon for the present the 
 idea of extending his territory beyond the mainland. But 
 our troops were not always thus successful. In 1812 the 
 grenadiers of tho Twenty-first sustaincil a severe disaster as 
 part of the British exjx'dition which failed in an attempted 
 
138 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 descent upon the Spanish coast at Alicante. In the expiring 
 agonies of " the empire of Napoleon," our Fusiliers, although 
 not seriously exposed to the stern shock of battle, yet helped 
 materially, by their presence in Italy, and their advance from 
 Leghorn to Genoa, to drive out the relics of the French "army 
 of Italy," and so restore freedom to the oppressed who peopled 
 those lovely plains. At Genoa the regiment encountered the 
 enemy and prevailed. 
 
 Meanwhile our Government, concentrating the whole 
 energies of the nation, and labouring to hold together the 
 discordant materials which composed the Grand Alliance, 
 strove, by one gigantic, persevering effort, to crush out the 
 usurped dominion of France — the empire — to dethrone the 
 tyrant, and liberate Europe. Accordingly, a British force 
 had been sent to the Netherlands, including the second 
 battalion of the Twenty-first. It took part in the unfortu- 
 nate attack upon Bergen-op-Zoom, where, miscalculating the 
 strength and resolution of the enemy, who was strongly posted 
 in a vast citadel of powerful works, the battalion suffered 
 severely; encompassed by a numerous foe, many were taken 
 prisoners. The abdication of Napoleon having conferred 
 peace upon Europe, the second battalion returned Avith the 
 army to Britain, whilst the first battalion was embarked for 
 service in the West Indies. 
 
 The innate pride of the Yankee being hurt by our sove- 
 reignty of the seas, determined to dispute our generally acknow- 
 ledged title thereto. America in consequence became involved 
 in war with us. To chasten them for repeated insults which 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 131) 
 
 they souglit to heap upon our flag, a British expedition, 
 iiickuling the fii-st battalion of the Twenty-fu-st, with the 
 Twenty-ninth and Sixty-second regiments, hmded in the Bay 
 of Chesiipeake. Advancing up the river Patuxent to Upper 
 Marlborough, our army destroyed a numerous fleet of gun- 
 boats which had molested our commercial interests in these 
 watei-s. Within sixteen miles of Washington, the troops, 
 encouraged by the promise of so rich a prize, ventured still 
 further to advance. Encountering and defeating the American 
 army at Bladensburg, they entered Washington in triumph. 
 The Twenty-first, as the van of the British, was the first 
 to set foot ill this haughty metropolis of the New World. 
 By the hard decrees of war, not only the arsenals, but much of 
 that which claimed, as public edifices, etc., to beautify and 
 ornament this splendid city, were given over to destruction; 
 and having thus avenged the indignities of the past, our army 
 retired to the fleet at St Benedict. An expetlition was after- 
 wards undertaken against Baltimore; but, although success 
 crowned our arms whenever or wherever the enemy encoun- 
 tered our s(jldiei*s on any thing like equal terms, especially in 
 the action which ensued at CJo<lly Woml, still was it impossible 
 for such a handful of brave men, amidst increasing ditficulties 
 and numerous enemies, to do more; and hence, when our 
 troops had drawn near to Baltimore, they found that opulent 
 and populous city so strongly defended by an American army of 
 15,000, and deprived, moreover, by circumstances of the assist- 
 ance of the fleet, it was consitlcred impossible to prosecute 
 the attack with any prosixjct of success. I^tiring, therefore, 
 
140 HISTOEY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 our army embarked, well satisfied with the results their valour 
 had already achieved. This battalion of the Fusiliers was 
 stationed at Jamaica for a time, until a new expedition was 
 set on foot. The prize in view was the reduction of the great 
 maritime city of New Orleans, situated below the level of the 
 Mississippi which flows by to the sea. The Americans, learn- 
 ing wisdom from the past, and appreciating the value and 
 importance of this city, had laboured to strengthen its means 
 of defence, by the construction of vast and formidable 
 entrenchments which shielded it effectually from assault on 
 the land side. To make good these defences, a powerful army 
 of 12,000 men Avas thrown into the city, commanded by an 
 able officer — General Jackson. The Britishers who dared to 
 assail such a powerfully defended city did not exceed 6000 
 men, comprising the Fourth, the Seventh, the first battalion 
 of the Twenty-first, the Forty-third, the Forty-fourth, the 
 Eighty-fifth, the Ninety-third Highlanders, and the Ninety- 
 fifth or Rifle Brigade, with a body of seamen from the fleet. 
 Notwithstanding the disparity in numbers, all might have gone 
 well in the assault, but for the culpable negligence of those in 
 charge, who had forgotten to bring up the scaling-ladders, and 
 ere they could be brought up, our men, unprotected from the 
 deadly discharge of the enemy's numerous artillery, helpless 
 to defend themselves, were mowed down like grass; and yet 
 their front, though sadly contracted by the loss of upwards of 
 2000 meu, remained firm as ever. Sir Edward Pakenham, 
 the British commander, and his generals of division, Gibbs 
 and Keane, had fallen. Major-General Gibbs died of his 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 1 4 1 
 
 wouuJs, but Major-Geiicral Kcune became atterwards Lord 
 Keane. These sore disastei-s negatived Colonel Thorutou's suc- 
 cess against the battery on the right, and rendered retreat an 
 absolute necessity, which wi\3 ably conducted by ^lajor- 
 General Sir John Lambert, although in presence of a vastly 
 superior and victorious enemy. The relics of this gallant 
 little army, who had dared to assail such strength and numbers, 
 were embarked in the fleet on the 27th January, 1815. The 
 total loss of the Twenty -first on this occasion was 451 oflicers 
 and men, which serves to show how dreadful was the carnage 
 throughout, anil how desperate the valour that sustained it 
 without once flinching from duty. Ere peace was concluded, 
 which happened shortly thereafter, the expedition succeeded 
 in the capture of Fort Bowyer, near Mobile. 
 
 After such severe service, having returned home and 
 been somewhat recruited by drafts from the second battalion, 
 although too late to share the glories of the Waterloo cam- 
 paign, the battalion was sent to the Netherlands, and thence, 
 advancing into France, formed part of the " army of occupa- 
 tion " which remained in that kingdom until peace had not 
 merely been restored but secured. In 181 G the second l>attaliou 
 was disbanded at Stirling; and a year later, the first battalion, 
 returning home, was variously stationed in England. In 1819 
 the regiment was sent on foreign service to the West Indies, 
 where it was successively stationed in Barbadocs, Tobago, 
 Demerara, St Vincent, and Clrenada. Whilst in Demerara a 
 relxjllion of the negroes occurred. The good conduct of the 
 Foment in suppressing the revolt elicited the commendation 
 
1 42 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of the King; the Duke of York, commander-in-chief; Sir Henry 
 Ward, K.C.B., commanding in these islands; and the Court of 
 Policy of the colony. These were accompanied by more 
 substantial rewards. " The Court of Policy voted, as a special 
 and permanent mark of the high estimation in which the 
 inhabitants of the colony held the services of Lieut.-Colonel 
 Leahy, the officers, and soldiers, ' Five Hundred Guineas to be 
 laid out in the purchase of Plate for the regimental mess,' and 
 Two Hundred Guineas for the purchase of a sword for Lieut.- 
 Colonel Leahy; also Fifty Guineas for the purchase of a sword 
 for Lieutenant Brady, who commanded a detachment at 
 Mahaica, and whose cool, steady, and intrepid conduct, aided 
 by the courage and discipline of his men, gave an early and 
 effectual check to the progress of revolt in that quarter." 
 Returning home in 1828, the regiment was honoured in doing- 
 duty at Windsor Castle, the residence of royalty. In these 
 times of comparative peace little of interest falls to be narrated. 
 We find the regiment employed in various garrisons through- 
 out the kingdom, until, in 1832 and 1833, it was sent out in 
 charge of convicts to New South Wales, and stationed in the 
 colonies of Australia and Van Diemen's Land. In 1839 it 
 was removed to the East Indies, and was stationed succes- 
 sively at Chuiswiah, Calcutta, Diuapore, Kamptee, Agra, Cawn- 
 pore, and Calcutta, returning to England in 1848. 
 
 In 1854 Russian a2;2;ressions had so stirred the nations in 
 defence of the right, that Turkey in her weakness found ready 
 sympathisers. Foremost of these, France and England, side 
 by side, had sent forth powerful armaments, which, landing 
 
ROYAL NORTH BRITISH FUSILIERS. 14:i 
 
 upon the Crimean peninsula, created a helpful, and, as the 
 long-expected result proved, a successful divei'si(jn m favour 
 of the oppressed empire of the Sultan. Amongst the brave, 
 composing the 26,800 British, that landed at Old Fort, were 
 our gallant Fusiliei-s, the Twenty- fu-st. In the Fourth 
 Division, brigaded with the Twentieth, Fifty-seventh, and 
 Sixty-eighth, they were present in reserve at the Alma, and 
 in action at Inkermann. It is needless to repeat the details 
 of the war, seeing especially we must take occasion so fre- 
 quently to recur to incidents connected with it ; besides, the 
 general events must be still so fresh in the memories of most 
 of our readers as to need no repetition here. Enough bo it 
 to say of the conduct of the Twenty-fii-st Royal North British 
 Fusiliers, that it displayed the same excellence as of old. 
 Since the return of the regiment to the beloved shores of Old 
 England, it has enjoyed the peace which its own gallantry had 
 well contributed to achieve. 
 
 As the glory of the sun shining through a humid atmo- 
 sphere is even more resplendent and more to be admired in the 
 heaven-bespangled, many-coloured robe of the rainbow than 
 when he appeare in the full strength of noon-day, so valour — 
 true, genuine valour, the valour of our galhiut Twenty-first — 
 is the more illustrious and meritorious that it is to be found 
 emerging from amid many vicissitudes and adversities. It is 
 usually the bravest of the brave that fall. Alas! that so many 
 who gave fair promise to ornament and illustrate the British 
 soldier ixs the hero, should have fallen — buds nippe<l by the 
 frost of death. Let it be borne very encouragingly in mind, 
 
144 
 
 HISTORY OF THE wSCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 that adversity is the furnace wherein the gold of true valour 
 is purified — is the schoolmaster which teaches how to win 
 prosperity. The greatest glory which rests upon the departed 
 genius of Sir John Moore, is that which pictures him in 
 adversity in retreat — his lion spirit unsubdued, his towering 
 abilities shining forth. And so, in closing our record, we 
 would do justice, not merely to valour gilded by brilliant 
 ATLctories, but especially testify to true valour incarnated in 
 the man — the hero ever struggling, not always winning, yet 
 always worthy, the reward. 
 
TIIK TWKXTY-Fll-TIl iniiT. 
 KING'S OAVX 1$0RDERERS, 
 
 OB, 
 
 EDIMUKGII REGIMENT. 
 
 CnAPTER XIT. 
 
 " Many a banner spread, flutters above your heatl, 
 Many a crt-st that is famous in story; 
 Mount ami make ready, tla-n, sons of the mountain glen, 
 Fight for your kin^' ami tlio old Scottish ylorj'. 
 March, march, forward in onlcr, 
 A' the blue bonneta are over the border." 
 
 ORIGIN — KILLIECRANKIE — IRELAND — NETHERLANDS — 
 SUERIFFMUIR — NETHERLANDS — CLLLODEN — 168H-1765. 
 
 It is recorded of Sir Walter Scott that he claimed descent 
 from one of the most distinguished families of " the land- 
 louping gentry" of the Scottish border. The title, "King's 
 Own Horderers," borne by the Twenty-fifth, would induce the 
 belief that the regiment had sprung fr<»m the same source; 
 and however much we may excuse the military license of the 
 times, or the marauding propensities of our Ixirder country- 
 men, and extol their martial achievements, so prolific with 
 
146 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 romantic incident and chivalric feats of daring, we cannot 
 but question the respectability of such a parentage. 
 
 " She's o'er the border, and awa' wi' Jock o' Ilazeldean." 
 
 Happily tlie Twenty-fifth owns a much more recent connec- 
 tion with the Scottish border, when the feuds which had 
 disgraced earlier years, by the wrongs and cruelties they 
 occasioned, were healed, and the failings of the past are for- 
 gotten amid the excellencies and the glories of the present. 
 The regiment was raised in the City of Edinburgh by the 
 Earl of Leven, in 1688, from among the noblemen and gentle- 
 men who had come over from the Continent as the adherents 
 of William, Prince of Orange. The advent of the House of 
 Orange, apart from the religious and political liberty it con- 
 ferred and assumed to guarantee, had been further hailed by 
 an emancipated people as restoring to the bosom of their dear 
 native land, and to the home of their fathers, those " lost and 
 brave," who, for conscience' sake, had endured a long and 
 painful exile. Consistent with that fidelity which has ever 
 been a conspicuous jewel in Scottish character, once that the 
 Reformed faith found an entrance and an abiding-place in the 
 heart of the Scotsman, nor priest, nor king, nor pope could 
 drive it out, quench the light of truth, or shake the steadfast- 
 ness of the Covenanter. Hence the number of Scottish exiles 
 was very many, and, in consequence, the return of the refu- 
 gees was an event of no common interest in the Scottish 
 metropolis, diffusing a very general joy throughout the land. 
 Their first duty fulfilled of thanks and gratitude to God for 
 
■■*:' 
 0. 
 
 "zm 
 
 ^. 
 
king's OWN BORDERERS. 147 
 
 their deliverance, their next duty to their country inipclled 
 them to tender the service of their swords to the king. 
 Accordingly, their offer being accepted, the embodiment of the 
 Twenty-fifth King's Own Borderers was the result, which in 
 four hours attained a strength of near a thousand men. Whilst 
 the Scottish estates hesitated to acknowledge the sovereignty 
 of William and ^lary, and the Duke of Gordon held posses- 
 sion of the Castle of Edinburgh for King James, the Twenty- 
 fifth was quartered in the Parliament House. But it was not 
 until Viscount Dundee, descending into the Lowlands at the 
 head of the disaffected clans, seriously disturbing the peace of 
 the land, that the regiment was called into .action. Advanc- 
 ing with the royal army to Killiecrankie, the Borderers bore a 
 conspicuous and honourable part in the contost which ensued. 
 Major-General Mackay, in his despatch to the Duke of Hamil- 
 ton, stated, "There was no regiment or troop with me but 
 behaved like the vilest cowards in nature, except Hastings' 
 and Lord Leven's, whom 1 must praise at such a degree, as I 
 cannot but blame others." The regiments thus commended 
 were the present Thirteenth and Twenty-fifth Foot. Although 
 borne back by the imiMJtuosity of the Highlanders, and 
 although the day was lost to the king, still the result — 
 esj>ecially the death of Dundee — proved the ruin of the .laco- 
 bitcs — the beginning of the en<l, each successive struggle 
 which convulsed the nation more efTectually serving to destroy 
 the hopes of the House of Stuart. 
 
 In 1691 the regiment embarke<l for Ireland, and was pre- 
 sent, with much credit, at the sieges of Ballymore, Athlone, 
 
148 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Galway, and Limerick, and at the battle of Aughrim. These 
 several successes having accomplished the deliverance of that 
 island from the yoke of James, the regiment with other troops 
 was sent to England, whence it embarked with the British 
 army for the Netherlands, to check the progress of the French. 
 Under the command of King William, the allies made a deter- 
 mined stand at Steenkirk and again at Landen, but on both 
 occasions failed to make any decided impression upon the 
 masses of the enemy commanded by Marshal de Luxembourg, 
 who continued to advance in spite of the most gallant opposi- 
 tion. At the siege of Namur, by the explosion of a mine, the 
 regiment lost twenty officers and 500 men. The gallant 
 conduct of the allies at this celebrated siege is thus eulogised: 
 
 The British were esteemed most bold ; 
 
 The Bavariaus most firm ; and 
 
 The Brandenbiirghers most successful ; 
 
 whilst the French, out of a garrison originally 15,000 strong, 
 had lost in the defence about two-thirds of their number. 
 The engineering skill of these great masters of the art — 
 Coehorn and Vauban, exerted to the utmost on their respec- 
 tive sides — has preserved no more magnificent testimony to 
 their several abilities than is found recorded in the assault 
 and defence. The resolution and ability of Marshal Boufflers, 
 the French Governor, in so gloriously maintaining the defence, 
 is not to be overlooked, but merited a better success. Sterne's 
 facetious story of "Tristram Shandy" — how questionable so- 
 ever its discretion in our times, yet replete with much that 
 
king's own borderers. 1 4 1» 
 
 is beautiful, (luaint, and true — has Ijorrowcd from the rauks 
 of our Borderers its most noted and pojndar characters, "Uncle 
 Toby," who was wounded in the groin at this siege of Namur, 
 and his faithful body-servant, "Corporal Trim," who, two 
 years previously, had been wounded at the battle of Landen ; 
 both, by the pen of the author, being life pictures of the 
 veterans of Chelsea. It was during this war that the bayonet, 
 which had been invented by the French, instead of being fixed 
 inside the muzzle of the nuisket, was first used by the French 
 fixed round the outside of the muzzle, thus enaljling the 
 soldier to charge and deliver fire promptly. Grose, in his 
 "Militaiy Antiquities," thus records the introduction of this 
 improvement : — 
 
 " In an engagement, during one of the campaigns of King 
 William III. in Flanders, there were three French regiments 
 whose bayonets were made to fix after the present fashion 
 (1690), a contrivance then unknown in the British army; one 
 of them advanced with fixed bayonets against Leven's (now 
 the Twenty-fifth) regiment, when Lieutenant-Colonel Maxwell, 
 who commandeil it, ordered his men to 'screw bayonets' into 
 their muzzles, thinking the enemy meant to decide the afi'air 
 point to point; but to his great surprise, when they came with- 
 in a proper tlistancc, the French threw in a heavy fire, which 
 for a moment stac^ered his men, who nevertheless recovered 
 themselves, chargeil, and drove the enemy out of the line." 
 
 On the peace of Ryswick l)cing concluded in 1(»97, 
 our Borderers, returning home, were quarterc<l in the disturbed 
 districts of the North of Scotland. Nothing of importance 
 
150 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 falls to be narrated of the regiment until the Rebellion of 
 the Earl of Mar, in 1715, called it to take the field. It 
 was present at the unfortunate battle of SherifFmuir. The 
 desertion of the Hon. Captain Arthur Elphinstone to the 
 rebel army, however it might have been regretted as casting a 
 shadow over the loyalty of the Twenty-fifth, that doubt has 
 been dispelled, and the lie contradicted, by the exemplary 
 fidelity of the regiment on all occasions. Captain Elphin- 
 stone, as Lord Balmarino, in 1746, paid the penalty of his 
 error by his execution on Tower Hill. 
 
 During the Spanish War of 1719, the regiment was en- 
 gaged in a successful expedition against various towns on the 
 north-western sea-board of the Peninsula. For several years 
 thereafter it was variously stationed in Ireland, and, in 1727, 
 removed to Gibraltar, where, with other corps, it successfully 
 defended that important fortress against every attempt of the 
 Spaniards to reduce and regain it. The war of the Austrian 
 Succession, which began in 1742, occasioning the assembling of 
 a British and allied army in the Netherlands, our Borderers 
 were sent thither to reinforce the troops which had already 
 won the bloody victory of Dettingen. The regiment shared 
 the glories and sustained the dangers of Fontenoy, which 
 elicited from Marshal Saxe, the conquermg general, the fol- 
 lowing graphic and generous testimony to the worth of the 
 foe he had overthrown : — 
 
 " I question much whether there are many of our generals 
 who dare undertake to pass a plain with a body of infantry 
 before a numerous cavalry, and flatter himself that he could hold 
 
KINO S OWN BORDERERS. 1 I 
 
 liirf gnnuiil for several hoiii*3, with fifteen or twenty Ijattalions in 
 the niiildle of an army, as did the English at Fontenoy, with- 
 out any change being made to shake them, or make them 
 throw away their fire. This is what we have all seen, but 
 self-love makes us unwilling to speak of it, because wc are well 
 aware of its being beyond our imitation." 
 
 Takiuir advantafje of the disasters which had crowded 
 upon the allied arms in the Netherlands, Prince Charles 
 Edward had stirred up a formidable Rebellion in Scotland, 
 chiefly among the Highland clans, in favour of his pretensions, 
 as the representative of the House of Stuart, to the British 
 throne. This untoward event occasioned the recall of many 
 regiments from the Continent, and required those left behind 
 to confine themselves to the defence of strongly-fortified lines. 
 The Twenty-iifth w;is one of those that returned. AVith the 
 Twenty-fii-st Royal North British Fusiliers, it formed the rear 
 guard of the Royal army, advancing in pursuit of the rebels 
 into Scotland. Too lato to take any part in the battle of 
 Falkirk, the regiment was stationed in Edinburgh, until the 
 Duke of Cuml)erland arriving, gave the signal for an imme- 
 diate advance upon the enemy, then prosecuting the siege of 
 Stirling. Interniptctl in their enterprise by the near approach 
 of the Royal army, the rebels retreated precipitately, until, 
 hcmme<l in, they made a last and fatal stand on Culhxlen 
 Moor, where they were utterly routed with great slaughter. 
 The most disting\iishe<l service ix)rformed by a detachment of 
 300 men of the Twenty-fifth is thus graphically described in 
 the biography of General Melville: — 
 
152 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 "The second detachment, consisting of 300 men, com- 
 manded by Sir Andrew Agnew, Lieutenant-Colonel of the 
 Royal North British Fusiliers, was sent by the route of Dun- 
 keld, through the Pass of Killiecrankie, to take post in Blair 
 Castle, the seat of James, Duke of Athole — a very faithful 
 subject of his Majesty. The garrison was frittered away in 
 small detachments, for the purpose of intercepting traitorous 
 correspondence. Early on the morning of the 17th March, 
 the rebels, in a considerable body, surprised and made pri- 
 soners of several of the outposts, and by break of day closely 
 invested the castle on all sides, firing upon the out-picquet, 
 which retired with some difficulty, bringing with it some 
 horses belonging to the officers, and a small quantity of pro- 
 visions. Blair Castle was a very high, irregular building, the 
 walls of great thickness — having what was called Cununing's 
 Tower projecting from the west end of the front of the house, 
 which faces the north. Adjoining the east gable of the old 
 castle, a square new building had been begun, but only carried 
 up a few feet above the beams fixed for the first floor. The 
 great door in the staircase having been barricaded, and a small 
 guard placed at it, the garrison was mustered and found to 
 consist of about 270 rank and file, having only nineteen 
 rounds of ammunition per man. The men were immediately 
 posted throughout the castle in the manner best adapted for 
 its defence, with instructions not to fire unless actually 
 attacked. For the protection of the new, unfinished building 
 before mentioned, to which the only communication from the 
 castle was by ten or twelve steps of a ladder, from a door in 
 
KIxNu's OWN UOUDKRERS. IJS 
 
 the east end; a platform of loose boards was hastily laid on 
 the joists, and Ensign Rol)ert ^lelville (afterwards General 
 Melville) of the Twenty-fifth regiment, with 25 men, Wiis 
 posted on it, who was not relieved during the whole of the 
 blockade, which ended 1st April. On the 17th March, a 
 little after noon, Lord George Murray, a general to the Pre- 
 tender, wrote a summons of surrender to Sir Andrew Agnew, 
 which he could not find a Highlander to deliver, on account of 
 the well-known outrageousness of Sir Andrew's temper, but a 
 pretty girl, who was acquainted with the garrison, undertook 
 the task, but could hardly find an officer to receive it. for the 
 reason before mentioned; however, after much entreaty, one 
 was bold enough to convey the summons, when Sir Andrew, 
 in so loud a voice, that he was heard distinctly by the girl 
 outside the castle, desired him to be gone, and tell Lord 
 George that the ground would, before long, be too hot for him 
 to stand upon, and any future messenger would be hanged or 
 shot if sent upon such an errand. Lord George took the hint, 
 sent no other messenger, but endeavoured to reduce the castle 
 by famine, knowing it was short of provisions. The rebels 
 had two field-pieces, from which they fired hot shot upon the 
 castle, with so little eilect that, though some stuck in the roof, 
 they fell out before the house took fire, and were lifted oflf 
 the floors by an iron ladle, which was found in the Duke's 
 kitchen, and deposited in the cellars in tul)3 of wine, as water 
 could not be spared. The King's troops, in dread of lx>ing 
 starved, endeavoured to apprise the Earl of Craufurd at Dun- 
 keld of the state in which they wen^ placod. Init tlioy were so 
 
154 HISTOEY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 closely hemmed in, that, with great difficulty, the Duke's gar- 
 dener, a loyal man, stole out during the ninth night of the 
 blockade and rode off through the enemy, fired at from several 
 places by the Highlanders, from whom he escaped, having 
 fallen from his horse, and gone on foot to Dunkeld and 
 apprised the Earl, which was not known for some time; in 
 the meantime, the garrison had great faith in the good luck 
 of Sir Andrew, concerning whom many strange stories were 
 told — such as, that he never was wounded nor sick, nor in any 
 battle wherein the English were not victorious; therefore, they 
 were the less surprised when, at break of day on the 1st of 
 April, not a single Highlander could be seen — Lord George 
 having taken the alarm and decamped, to avoid encountering 
 the Earl of Craufurd from Dunkeld. On the mornino; of the 
 2d, an officer arrived and announced that the Earl was within 
 an hour's march of the castle with a force of cavalry, when Sir 
 Andrew drew up his men to receive his Lordship, and after 
 the usual compliments, thus addressed him — ' My Lord, I am 
 glad to see you ; but, by all that is good, you have been very 
 dilatory, and we can give you nothing to eat.' To which his 
 Lordship jocosely replied, with his usual good humour, *I 
 assure you. Sir Andrew, I made all the haste I could, and I 
 hope you and your officers will dine with me to-day;' which 
 they accordingly did, in the summer-house of the Duke's gar- 
 den, where they had a plentiful meal and good wines. The 
 Earl made so favourable a report of the conduct of Sir Andrew 
 and the garrison of Blair Castle, that tlie Duke of Cumberland 
 thanked them, in public orders, for their steady and gallant 
 
king's own borderkrs. 1;"35 
 
 defencCy aiul tlie gallant commandant wiis promoted to the 
 command of a regiment of marines (late JeftVies'). A lligli- 
 laud pony, belonging to Captain Wentworth of the Foiutli 
 foot, which had been seventeen days (without food) in a 
 dungeon of the castle, being still alive, was recovereil by care 
 and proper treatment, and became in excellent condition." 
 
 Having thus eilectually su])pressed the Rebellion, the 
 Twenty-fifth, and most of the other regiments, returned to 
 the Netherlands. Defeated at the battle of Roucoux, the 
 allies were on the point of falling into confusion, when 
 Houghton's British brigade, composed of the Eighth, Thir- 
 teenth, and Twenty-fifth, arriving from Maestricht, inmie- 
 diately formed as the rear guard, their steady valour effectually 
 withstimding every attempt of the enemy to break in upon our 
 line of retreat. In the sanguinary battle of Val, our Borderei*8 
 bore a more prominent part with equal credit. This disa-strous 
 war terminated in 1747, with the unsuccessful defence of 
 Bcrgen-op-Zoom, which was ultimately taken by the French. 
 The regiment encountered a variety of misadventures on its 
 passage home. One transport, containing six and a-half 
 companies, being shipwrecked on the French coiist, yet all 
 escaping to laud, were kindly trcateil by their recent foes. 
 The remment, at leufjth reaching Kngland, was reuioveil to and 
 variously quartered throughout Ireland. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 " He's brave as brave can be; 
 He •wad rather fa' than flee ; 
 But his life is dear to me, 
 
 Send him hame, send him hame. 
 
 " Your love ne'er learnt to flee, 
 But he fell in Germanie, 
 Fighting brave for loyalty, 
 
 Mournfu' dame, mourufu' dame." 
 
 GERMANY — MARINE SERVICE — WEST INDIES — EGYPT — WEST 
 INDIES — GIBRALTAR 17oo-18G2. 
 
 In 1755 the encroacliments of France awakened a new 
 war, in wliich our Borderers were employed in several 
 generally successful expeditions against the fortified towns 
 and arsenals on the coast of France, especially the Isle of 
 Oleron, St Maloes, and Cherbourg. A few years later, with 
 the Twelfth, the Twentieth, the Twenty-third, the Thirty- 
 seventh, and Fifty-first Foot, the Horse Guards, the First and 
 Third Dragoon Guards, the Second, Sixth, and Tenth Dra- 
 goons, they formed the British army, Avhich, advancing from the 
 north of Germany, allied T^dth the Germans and other auxili- 
 aries, latterly served under the command of Prince Ferdinand 
 of Brunswick. Encountering at first severe reverses, they were 
 at length rewarded by the victory of Minden. " This was the 
 first occasion on which the British troops took aim by placing 
 
ANCIENT BADGE OF TWENTY-FIFTH. OR KING'S OWN BORDERERS. 
 
KINGS OWN IiUlU>KHEU.S. l.")7 
 
 the butt of the firelock against the shoukler, ami viewiug 
 tlie object along the barrel, when firing at the enemy, in 
 which niocle they had been instructetl during the preceding 
 peaic. On former occasions, the firelock was brought up 
 brciist-high, and discharged towards the enemy a good deal 
 at random ; because it was considered a degradation to take 
 aim according to the present custom. And in this year the 
 cavalry adopted the trumpet, in place of the side-drum and 
 hautbois." Throughout the war, the regiment suffered very 
 severely, its loss at the battle of Campen alone amounting to 
 two-thirds of its number. In the Regimental Records, which 
 artbrd a most interesting and ably-written account of the 
 many " brave deeds " of the regiment, as well as a comprehen- 
 sive, yet most accurate, record of the wars in which it was 
 concerned, and to which we are largely indebted, it is re- 
 corded: "17G0, December 9, died, in the 34th year of his 
 age, of the wounds he had received in the battle of Campen, 
 Henry Reydell Dawnay, Viscount Down, Baron Dawnay of 
 Cowick, county York, M.P. for that county. Colonel in the 
 army, and Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the Edinburgh 
 Regiment, greatly regretted and lamented by every otlicer 
 and soldier of the corps, and by all his companions in arms. 
 His Lordship commanded the regiment in the battle of J^Iin- 
 • len." Notwithstanding the great superiority of the enemy, 
 il)ly commanded by the Marshal Duke de Broglio, the allies, 
 by the most heroic efforts, not merely held their own, but fre- 
 '[uently repulsed the enemy, especially at the battle of Kirch 
 Dcnkern, or Fellinghausen, where the French w«r.- defeated 
 
158 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 witli great slaughter. " Hitherto, punishments in the British 
 army were, to a certain extent, discretionary with command- 
 ing officers of corps, and inflicted by means of switches, gene- 
 rally willows; but during the present year, regimental courts- 
 martial, consisting generally of a captain and four subalterns, 
 were instituted, and punishment with a cat-of-nine-tails in- 
 troduced." 
 
 At length, in 1763, peace was restored. The Twenty- 
 fifth, returning to England, whilst stationed at Newcastle, 
 buried, with military honours, the shreds of the colours which 
 they had so honourably fought under at the battles of Fon- 
 tenoy, Culloden, Roucoux, Val, Minden, Warbourg, Campen, 
 Fellinghausen, and Wilhelmsthal. Having replaced the losses 
 they had sufi'ered in the recent war, and having enjoyed for 
 several years peaceful and pleasant quarters at home, our 
 Borderers, in 1768, embarked in H.M.S. "Dorsetshire," 70 
 guns, for ]\Iinorca, where they discharged the duties of the 
 garrison for some time with the Third, Eleventh, Thirteenth, 
 and Sixty-seventh regiments. 
 
 The magistrates of Edinburgh having denied a recruiting 
 party from the regiment the ancient privilege, conferred upon 
 it by the city in token of its good conduct at Killiecrankie, of 
 marching at all times through the streets and beating up for 
 recruits, the ire of the Duke of Richmond, whose brother, Lord 
 Georo-e Lennox, then commanded the regiment, was so stirred 
 by this indignity, that he applied for leave to have the title 
 of the regiment changed, and, in accordance therewith, it 
 was for a while known as the Sussex Regiment — Sussex 
 
king's own horderers. 159 
 
 being the county where the Lennox family held extensive 
 estates. 
 
 About this period France and Spain, at war with Great 
 Britain, coveting the possession of Gibraltar, had laid siege to 
 that powerful fortress. It was no easy thing in those days, 
 when our navy was comparatively in its infancy, to cope with 
 the armaments of such powerful neighbours — powerful alike 
 on land and water, and whose combined fleets had hitherto 
 "swept the seas." To throw in reinforcements, and re-victual 
 Gibraltar, was in consequence a hazardous undertaking; never- 
 theless the British fleet, under Lord Howe, not only success- 
 fully accomplishetl it in spite of the immediate presence of the 
 Spanish fleet, but signally defeated the foe ofi" Cape St Vincent. 
 The Twenty-fifth and Twenty-ninth regiments were on this 
 occasion thrown into the garrison, where they helped in the 
 successful defence of the fortress, baffling the most gigantic 
 efforts of the enemy to reduce it. 
 
 The Twenty-fifth was ordered home in 1 702, where it 
 arrived at a time when our country was in great peril from 
 internal enemies — the discontents which the fair promises of 
 the French Revolution ha<l excited, and which prove<l such a 
 lamentable delusion, had their effects even amongst "our sober 
 selves," begetting a progeny of evils which threatened to 
 shipwreck our gootl shii^ — the Constitution. Happily, the 
 abilities of our Administration brought the vessel of the 
 State in safety through the storm. Meanwhile France hatl 
 declared war against us, and the temjx>st, whiih had been 
 imminent, descended with terrible fur)'. Our fleet, which 
 
160 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 was then wofully inefficient, was put into commission; but, 
 for lack of marines, detachments from various regiments, 
 amongst others the Second (Queen's), the Twenty -fifth 
 (Borderers), the Twenty-ninth, and Sixty-ninth, were allotted 
 to this service. In this new capacity a portion of the Twenty- 
 fifth was ensao'ed in the several land actions which are recorded 
 in the fruitless defence of Toulon and conquest of Corsica. 
 Although this new duty was at first attended with many dis- 
 agreeables, it in the end proved a most profitable service to our 
 soldiers, who soon became reconciled to the change. The spoil 
 got on the sea by repeated captures far exceeded aught that 
 might have been expected on shore. On one occasion the "St 
 George" and "Egmont," with detachments of the Twenty-fifth 
 on board as marines, captured the French privateer "General 
 Dumourier," with a Spanish prize in tow, the "St Jago" — 
 treasure-ship containing about one million sterling. Under Lord 
 Howe this amphibious regiment was present to share the 
 glories of the fight which almost annihilated the French fleet 
 off Brest. At length, in 1794, the corps of marines having 
 been strengthened, the regiment was relieved and returned to 
 its native element — the land. Still we shall find that its ad- 
 ventures, as well as misadventures, throughout these records 
 manifest a strong predilection for the sea — perhaps not of 
 choice, but certainly of necessity. The loyalty of the regiment 
 whilst serving as marines was most conspicuous during the 
 mutiny which, in 1797, threatened very disastrous results. 
 
 In 1795, the regiment was sent to the West Indies; and 
 whilst stationed in Grenada, rendered most important service 
 
KINGS OWN BORDKUERS. 161 
 
 were employed in defeiuling (Jr.iiiiuhi from tlie incursions of 
 numerous hordes of Ijrigands who infested it. The heroic de- 
 fence of Pilot Hill by the Twenty-fifth, under Major Wright, is 
 one of the most gallant actions to be found in the recortls of 
 our army. Reduced by disease and the swor^ to about 130 
 officers and privates, these brave men refused to yield, well 
 knowing, moreover, the ferocious character of the enemy 
 with whom they had to deal. At length, exhausted and 
 without the means to sustain life or longer mamtain the 
 |X)st, they determined to break through the enemy, which 
 they successfully accomplished, joining the few British that 
 yet remained in St George's, the capital, where they w^re 
 hailed by the inhabitants as the saviours of the island ; the 
 ladias, in token of their appreciation of such valour, wore 
 ribands round their waists — inscribed, "Wright for ever;" 
 whilst the following address was presented to the relics of 
 the regiment : — " The inhabitants of this Island congratulate 
 Major Wright of the Twenty-fifth regiment, and his gallant 
 little garrison of Pilot Hill, on their safe arrival in St 
 George; and assure him that it was with the most lively sen- 
 sation of joy they beheld the lauding of a handful of brave 
 men, whom, a few hours before, they consideretl as devoted to 
 the relentless cruelty of a savage and ferocious enemy ; and 
 impressed with a high sense of their meritorious exertions in 
 defence of that post, and the well-conducted retreat upon the 
 evacuation of it under the most desj)eratc circumstances, 
 retjuest his and their acception of this tribute of their appro- 
 bation and thanks, so justly due to such bravery and conduct" 
 
162 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 The arrival of reinforcements enabled tlie British once more 
 to take the field, recovering the posts which lack of numbers 
 had compelled them hitherto to abandon; and in the end, the 
 brigands, defeated, were dispersed, or craved, by submission, 
 the clemency of the Government. 
 
 Meanwhile the detachments which had been called in from 
 the marine service on iDoard the " St George," the " Egmont," 
 the "Gibraltar," the "Monarch," the "Stately," and the "Ee- 
 union," with a number of recruits obtained chiefly from 
 among the Dutch sailors, who had become prisoners of war, 
 were enrolled as a second battalion. Encamped vrith the army 
 assembled on Shirley Common, this battalion was, in 1795, 
 moved to the coast, and embarked on board the "Boddington" 
 and the "Belfast." The fleet, containing the army, which 
 amounted to nearly 26,000 fighting men, consisted of about 
 300 sail. A variety of accidents arose to detain the expedi- 
 tion, and ultimately caught in a tempest, the vast armament 
 was broken or dispersed. In the confusion which ensued, the 
 "Boddington," with part of the Twenty-fifth on board, her 
 ofiicers having opened the sealed orders, and found the West 
 Indies to be the destination of the expedition, encountering 
 many perils, at length reached Barbadoes in safety; whilst 
 the "Belfast," with the remainder of the regiment, was 
 captured by a French corvette, the "Decius," twenty-four 
 guns. The unfortunate prisoners were treated most cruelly, 
 and the more so that a conspiracy to rise upon their captors 
 had been divulged by one of the Dutchmen who had re- 
 cently joined the regiment. Landed at St Martin's, they 
 
163 
 
 Were afterwards removed to ihc common gaol at Guadaloiipe, 
 during the passage to which the men of the regiment rose 
 against and overpowered the crew of one of the transports, 
 and succeeded in escaping to the British island of Grenada, 
 where they joined their comrades of the first battidion who 
 -till survived. The otHeei's remaining prisoners virere in- 
 humanly treated, and only released by exchange, after endur- 
 ing for ten months the miseries of confinement on board the 
 prison hidk " Albion " — a vessel captured from the British. 
 On their passage to rejoin the regiment which had returned 
 liome, calling at the island of St Christopher, they had the 
 satisfaction of \vitnessing the captain and crew of the 
 " Decius " in irons as prisoners. Unhappily this " chapter of 
 accidents " had not yet ended. On the homeward voyage 
 the transports, under convoy of the "Ariadne" frigate, en- 
 countered so severe a tempest that several foundered — the 
 frigate was under the necessity of throwing her guns over- 
 board; the "Bee" transport, shifting her ballast, was cast on 
 her beam ends, and was only saved by a marvel of mercy — 
 saved from the storm, to become the prey of a French priva- 
 teer. Lauded as prisonei*8 in France, the officers were sent 
 on their parole into Brittany, until regularly exchanged. 
 ' >n returning, the surnvors rejoined the relics of the regi- 
 ment in Plymouth lines in 1797. Whilst in garrison here, 
 along with the Second and Twenty-ninth Foot, and the Down 
 Militia, the regiment was exposed to the villany of an evil- 
 disposed and dLsaffected chiss — revolutionary incendiaries — 
 the creatures of an iniquitous delusion, in whose soul the God- 
 
1G4 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 like emotion of patriotism had been stifled, and who appeared 
 the specious friends yet certain foes of virtue. Armed with 
 all the seductive attractions of the licentious liberty they 
 preached, they therewith hoped to ruin our ancient constitu- 
 tion, and set up in its stead the lying, fatal dogmas of de- 
 mocracy. To accomplish this end, they strove to destroy the 
 bulwarks of our strength as a nation by the seduction of 
 our soldiers and sailors. In the presence of other grievances, 
 and the absence of immediate redress, these incendiaries had 
 succeeded but too well in imposing upon the navy, and excit- 
 ing a dangerous mutiny, to which we have abeady referred, 
 as illustrating the fidelity of the Twenty -fifth, w^ho served as 
 marines, and who could not be induced to forsake their duty 
 to their country, nor stain the honour of the regiment by any 
 defection. We now turn to record the fidelity of the regi- 
 ment as equally creditable in the army; and we have 
 pleasure in adding the following as a testimony of the 
 loyalty which animated our Borderers. This interesting docu- 
 ment — the production of the Non-Commissioned Officers of 
 the regiment — afi"ords us an earnest of their anxiety to detect 
 and briug to punishment the incendiaries who had dared to 
 sap the allegiance of the soldier : — 
 
 "Nemo me impune lacessit. The subscribing Nou-Com- 
 missioned Officers of H.M. Twenty -fifth regiment of foot, find, 
 with great regret, that attempts have been made by base and 
 infamous persons to alienate some of the soldiers of this garrison 
 from their duty to their King and country, by circulating in- 
 
KINGS OWN BORDERERS. 165 
 
 lliimmatory papers aud hand-bills containing the grossest fiilse- 
 liood aud misrepresentation, thereby insulting the character of 
 the liritish soldier. In order to bring the incendiaries to the 
 punishment they so justly deserve, we hereby otier a reward 
 of ten guineas (to be paid on conviction) to the person or 
 persons who will inform upon, secure, or deliver over to any 
 uf the subscribers, the author, printer, or distributor of papere 
 or hand-bills criminal to the military establishment and laws 
 of the coimtry, or for information against any such j^erson 
 found guilty of bribing with money, or of holding out any 
 false allurements to any soldier in this district tending to 
 injure the good order and discipline of the army; which 
 reward of ten guineas is raised and subscribeil by us for this 
 purpose, and will immediately be paid on conviction of any 
 such ofl'euders. God save the King! 
 
 "Signed by the whole of the Non-Commissioned 
 Officers of the Regiment." 
 
 Stationed in Jersey in 1 798, on returning to Enghuid the 
 regiment formed part of the army encamped on Ilarham 
 Downs and Shirley Common, until embraced in the unfortu- 
 nate expedition wliich, in 171)9, under the Duke of York, occa- 
 sioned the loss of so much British blood and treasure in a 
 vain attempt to deliver Holland from the thnUdom of Fnmce. 
 Notwithstanding the glory obtainctl in the battle of Egmont- 
 op-Zoo, little practical go(xl rcsultctl. The Dutch seemed dis- 
 inclined to help themselves, and the French were in such force, 
 whilst our expedition was so inadequate to do more than hold 
 
166 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 its own, that retreat and the ultimate abandonment of the enter- 
 prise ensued as a necessary consequence. On the return of the 
 army, the Twenty-fifth was encamped on Shirley Common, 
 where the troops assembled were, in 1800, reviewed by the 
 King, who afterwards engaged in a sham fight with the Duke 
 of York, and is represented as having beaten him. Shortly 
 thereafter an expedition sailed under Sir Ealph Abercromby 
 for Spain, but ill success there led that chief ultimately to 
 direct his efi'orts for the expulsion of the French from Egypt. 
 Here he fell gloriously, at the battle of Alexandria, in the 
 arms of victory. The Twenty -fifth joined the army towards 
 the close of the campaign. The surrender of the French 
 having completed the deliverance of Egj^Dt, the army returned 
 in part to England, whence, in 1807, the Twenty-fifth was 
 sent out to the West Indies, where, in 1809, it shared in the 
 capture of the French island of Martinique. 
 
 " In the year 1813, while Lieut.-Colonel Light commanded 
 the first battalion. Twenty-fifth Foot, in the island of Guada- 
 loupe, happening to dine with the Governor, he was riding home 
 to the barraclvs, distant about one mile from the Governor's 
 house, in a violent thunderstorm with heavy rain. A vivid 
 flash of lightning coming very close to his horse, the animal 
 took fright, and suddenly sprang over a precipice of fifty-four 
 feet deep, w^hich lay about five yards from the road on the 
 right, into a river swelled considerably by the rain. The 
 horse was killed by the fall, but Lieut.-Colonel Light swam 
 on shore, with very little injury, and walked home to his 
 barracks, a quarter of a mile distant from the place. 
 
king's own borderers. 167 
 
 "Lord George Henry Lennox, son to Charles, second Duke 
 of Riclimoud, and father of Charles, fourth Duke of riichnioud, 
 was colonel of the Twenty-fifth Regiment from 22d December, 
 1762, to 22d March, 1805 (the day of his death), a space of 
 forty-two years and three months. His lordship was particu- 
 larly attached to the regiment; so much so, that, notwith- 
 standing his great interest — being a personal friend of the 
 King (George IlL) — his lordship was understood to have 
 declined being removed to any other corps, although it was at 
 the time alleged and believed that he had frequently the offer 
 of a cavalry regiment. Lord George Henry Lennox was truly 
 L father to the corps — never sparing any expense iii its 
 equipments, and never failing to use all his interest in pro- 
 moting the oilicers to every vacancy which occurred in the 
 corps; and his lordship has been known, in anticipation of 
 a failure in this respect with the Commander-in-chief, to 
 have solicited and succeeded with His I^Lijesty in prevent- 
 ing promotion in passing out of the regiment " — and in the 
 word " Mind en " being allowed to be borne on its colours and 
 appointments. 
 
 Having been engaged in nearly all the actions which, one 
 by one, reduced the French West Indian Islands and placed 
 them under British nde, the regiment returned to England 
 in 181G, whilst the second battalion was about the same 
 time disbandeil or mcrgcil in the first battalion. After doing 
 <luty in various garrisons in Ireland for nearly ten years, 
 the regiment, in 1825, once more was sent out to the West 
 Indies. 
 
168 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Since its return to Great Britain it has remained on home 
 service, excejDting now, when, again increased to two bat- 
 talions, the first is stationed at Gibraltar, whilst the second, 
 garrisoning Edinburgh Castle, revels in the pleasing associa- 
 tions of " auld langsyne." 
 
QUEEN'S COLOURS OF TWENTY-FIFTH. OR KING'S OWN BORDERERS. 
 
THE TWENTY-SIXTH FOOT; 
 
 OR, 
 
 CAMERONIANS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 •'The Martyr's Hill's fore;iken, 
 
 In simmer's dusk sac calm, 
 Tljcre's nac gath'ring now, lassie, 
 
 To sing the e'cning psalm; 
 But the martyr's grave will rise, lassie, 
 
 Aboon the warrior's cairn; 
 And the martyr soun' will sleep, Lissie, 
 
 Aucatb the 'wa\'ing fern." 
 
 ORIGIN AND EARLY HISTORY — Dl'NKELD — 1089-1091. 
 
 The bigotry which at various times in our workl's liistory 
 
 has lightetl the fires of persecution, lias always proved itself 
 
 impotent to make men righteous or unrighteous. Rather 
 
 has it entailed a curse upon the tyrant whilst inflictinrr a 
 
 woe upon the people who groaned hcncath his rule. The 
 
 freeilom which the accession of the House of Oranffc con- 
 
 ferrod upon every rank of society, and every phase of bc- 
 
 w 
 
1 70 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 lief, established the sovereignty of William and Mary, not 
 merely over the heads of the people, but in the love and 
 loyalty of their hearts. We have already alluded to the 
 origin of the Twenty-fifth as expressive of these sentiments, 
 and we now turn to the history of the Twenty-sixth, or 
 Cameronians, as furnishing another exponent of the gratitude 
 and loyalty of the emancipated Covenanters. The origin of 
 this famous regiment — well worthy, by the lustre of its 
 deeds, of the pen of a IMacaulay to record — has elicited from 
 that great national historian the following graphic account, 
 which, as well for the sake of variety as its own excellence, 
 we are here tempted to quote: — 
 
 " The Covenanters of the West were in general unwilling 
 to enlist. They were assuredly not wanting in courage; and 
 they hated Dundee with deadly hatred. In their part of the 
 country the memory of his cruelty was still fresh. Every 
 \dllage had its own tale of blood. The greyheaded father was 
 missed in one dwelling, the hopeful stripling in another. It 
 was remembered but too weU how the dragoons had stalked 
 into the peasant's cottage, cursing and damning him, them- 
 selves, and each other at every second word, pushing from the 
 ingle nook his grandmother of eighty, and thrusting their 
 hands into the bosom of his daughter of sixteen; how the 
 adjuration had been tendered to him; how he had folded his 
 arms and said 'God's will be done;' how the colonel had 
 called for a file with loaded muskets; and how in three 
 minutes the goodman of the house had been wallowing in a 
 pool of blood at his own door. The seat of the martyr was 
 
CAMERONIANS. 171 
 
 stiJl vacant at the fire-side; and every child could point out 
 his grave still green amidst the heath. When the people of 
 this region called their oppressor a servant of the devil, they 
 were not speaking figuratively. They believed that between 
 the bad man and the bad angel there was a close alliance on 
 definite terms; that Dundee had bound himself to do the 
 work of hell on earth, and that, for high purposes, hell was 
 permitted to protect its slave till the measure of his guilt 
 should be full. But intensely as these men abhorred Dundee, 
 most of them had a scruple about drawing the sword for 
 William. A great meeting was held in the parish church of 
 Douglas; and the question was propounded, whether, at a 
 time when war was in the land, and when an Irish invasion 
 was expected, it were not a duty to take arms? The debate 
 was sharp and tumultuous. The oratoi-s on one side adjured 
 their brethren not to incur the curse denounced against the 
 inhabitants of Meroz, who came not to the help of the Lord 
 against the mighty. The orators on the other side thundered 
 against sinful associations. There were malignants in William's 
 army: Mackay's own orthodoxy was problematical: to take 
 military service with such comrades, and under such a general, 
 would be a sinful association. At leuiith, after much wran«r- 
 ling, and amidst great confusion, a vote Wius tiiken; and the 
 majority pronounced that to take military service would be 
 a sinful association. There was, however, a large minority; 
 and, from among the members of this minority, the Earl of 
 Ang\is was able to raise a l>ody of infantry, which is still, 
 after the lapse of m«>re than a hundre<l and sixty years, known 
 
172 HISTOEY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 by the name of the Cameroniau Regiment. The first Lieut.- 
 Colonel was Cleland, that implacable avenger of blood who 
 had driven Dundee from the Convention. There was no small 
 difficulty in filling the ranks, for many west country Whigs, 
 who did not think it absolutely sinful to enlist, stood out for 
 terms subversive of all military discipline. Some would not 
 serve under any colonel, major, captain, serjeant, or corporal 
 who was not ready to sign the Covenant. Others insisted 
 that, if it should be found absolutely necessary to appoint any 
 officer who had taken the tests imposed in the late reign, he 
 should at least qualify himself for command by publicly con- 
 fessing his sin at the head of the regiment. Most of the 
 enthusiasts who had proposed these conditions were induced 
 by dexterous management to abate much of their demands. 
 Yet the new regiment had a very peculiar character. The 
 soldiers were all rigid Puritans. One of their first acts was to 
 petition the Parliament that all dnmkenness, licentiousness, 
 and profaneness might be severely punished. Their own con- 
 duct must have been exemplary: for the worst crime which 
 the most austere bigotry could impute to them was that of 
 huzzaing on the King's birth-day. It was originally intended 
 that with the military organisation of the corps should be 
 interwoven the organisation of a Presbyterian congregation. 
 Each company was to furnish an elder; and the elders were, 
 mth the chaplain, to form an ecclesiastical court for the 
 suppression of immorality and heres}^ Elders, however, were 
 not appointed; but a noted hill preacher, Alexander Shields, 
 was called to the office of chaplain. It is not easy to conceive 
 
CAMERONIANS. 173 
 
 that fanaticism can be heated to a higher temperature than 
 that which is indicated by the writings of Shields. Accord- 
 ing to him, it shoidd seem to l)e the fii"st duty of a Christian 
 ruler to pereecute to the death every heterodox subject, and 
 the fii-st duty of a Christian subject to poinard a heterodox 
 ruler. Yet there was then in Scotland an enthusiasm com- 
 pared with which the enthusiasm even of this man was 
 lukewarm. The extreme Covenanters protested against his 
 defection as vehemently as he had protested against the 
 Black Indulgence and the oath of supremacy, and pronounced 
 every man who entered AngiLs's regiment guilty of a wicked 
 confederacy with malignants." 
 
 Inmiediately after its formation, the regiment, which was 
 raised to a strength of near 1000 men in a few hoiu*s, marched 
 and was stationed in Edinburgh, where it served to keep 
 under the rebellious schemes of many a hot-headed Jacobite. 
 Although Dundee appeared the natural enemy of such a 
 regiment, still it had not the satisfaction of being present at 
 Killiecrankie, where that great chieftain fell in what may be 
 well considered the greatest victory of his life. The disasters of 
 the fight, and the apparent ruin of the Royal ciuise, called for 
 immediate succour being sent to ^lajor-General Mackay; but 
 the blunders of those in power at Edinburgh, distrusting 
 Mackay, and, like too many councils, essaying to be generals 
 as well as statesmen, very nigh consigned our Cameron iaus to 
 a cniel fate. Advancing into the heart of the disaffected dis- 
 tricts, and stationed at Duukeld, the regiment— Init for its 
 dauntless spirit and heroicr endurance, and the incapacity 
 
1 74 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of General Cannon, who had succeeded Dundee in the com- 
 mand of the rebels — would have been utterly cut to pieces. 
 The result of the conflict was most glorious, early display- 
 ing the mettle of this gallant regiment. Lord Macaulay thus 
 summons the rich elegance and might of language to describe 
 the scene: — 
 
 " The Cameronian regiment was sent to garrison Dunkeld. 
 Of this arrangement IMackay altogether disapproved. He 
 knew that at Dunkeld these troops would be near the enemy ; 
 that they would be far from all assistance ; that they would 
 be in an open town ; that they would be surrounded by a 
 hostile population; that they were very imperfectly dis- 
 ciplined, though doubtless brave and zealous ; that they were 
 regarded by the whole Jacobite party throughout Scotland 
 with peculiar malevolence ; and that in all probability some 
 great effort would be made to disgrace and destroy them. 
 
 " The General's opinion was disregarded ; and the Came- 
 ronian s occupied the post assigned to them. It soon appeared 
 that his forebodings were just. The inhabitants of the 
 country round Dunkeld furnished Cannon with intelligence, 
 and urged him to make a bold push. The peasantry of 
 Atliol, impatient for spoil, came in great numbers to swell 
 his army. The regiment hourly expected to be attacked, 
 and became discontented and turbulent. The men, intrepid, 
 indeed, both from constitution and enthusiasm, but not yet 
 broken to habits of military submission, expostulated with 
 Cleland, who commanded them. They had, they imagined, 
 been recklessly, if not perfidiously, sent to certain destruction. 
 
CAMEKOMANS. 175 
 
 They were protected by no ramparts : they had a very scanty 
 stock of aniniunition : they were lionimed in by enemies. An 
 officer might mount and gaHop beyond reacli of danger in an 
 hour: but the private soklier must stay and be butcliered. 
 'Neither 1/ said Clehand, 'nor any of my officers will, in any 
 extremity, abandon you. Bring out my horse, all our horses : 
 they shall be shot dead.' These words produced a complete 
 change of feeling. The men answered that the horses should 
 not be shut, that they wanted no jtlcdge from their brave 
 Colonel except his word, and that they would run the last 
 hazard with him. They kept their promise well. The 
 Puritan blood was now thoroughly up ; and what that blood 
 was when it was up had been proved on many fields of battle. 
 " That night the regiment passed under arms. On the 
 morning of the following day, the twenty-first of August, all 
 the hills round Dunkeld were alive with bonnets and plaids. 
 Cannon's army was much larger than that which Dundee had 
 commanded, and was accompanied by more than a thousand 
 horses laden with baggafje. Both the horses and banrijaffe 
 were probably part of the booty of Killiecrankie. The whole 
 number of Highlanders was estimated by those who saw them 
 at from four to five thousand men. They came furiou.sly on. 
 The outposts of the Cameronians were speeilily driven in. 
 Tlie assailants came pouring on every side into the streets. 
 The church, however, held out o])stinately. But the greater 
 part of the regiment made its stand behind a wall whi<'h 
 surrounded a house belonging to the Marquess of Athole. 
 This wall, which had two or three days before been hastily 
 
176 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 repaired with timber and loose stones, the soldiers defended 
 desperately with musket, pike, and halbert. Their bullets 
 were soon spent; but some of the men were employed in 
 cutting lead from the roof of the Marquess's house and 
 shaping it into slugs. Meanwhile all the neighbouring houses 
 were crowded from top to bottom with Highlanders, who 
 kept up a galling fire from the windows, Cleland, while 
 encourao-ins; his men, was shot dead. The command devolved 
 on Major Henderson. In another minute Henderson fell 
 pierced with three mortal wounds. His place was supplied 
 by Captain Munro, and the contest went on with un- 
 diminished fury. A party of the Cameronians sallied forth, 
 set fire to the houses from which the fatal shots had come, 
 and turned the keys in the doors. In one single dwelhng 
 sixteen of the enemy were burnt alive. Those who were in 
 the fight described it as a terrible initiation for recruits. 
 Half the town was blazing ; and with the incessant roar of 
 the guns were mingled the piercing shrieks of -uTetches 
 perishing in the flames. The struggle lasted four hours. By 
 that time the Cameronians were reduced nearly to their last 
 flask of powder : but their spirit never flagged. * The enemy 
 will soon carry the wall. Be it so. We \r{S\. retreat into the 
 house: we will defend it to the last; and, if they force their 
 way into it, we will burn it over their heads and our own.' 
 But, while they were revolving these desperate projects, they 
 observed that the fury of the assault slackened. Soon the 
 Highlanders began to fall back: disorder visibly spread 
 among them; and whole bands began to march off to the 
 
CAMEKUNIANS. 177 
 
 hills. It was ill vaiu that their general orderetl them to 
 ret urn to the attack. Perseverance was not one of their 
 military virtues. The Cameronians meanwhile, with shouts 
 of defiance, invite<l Amalek and Moab to come Ixick and to 
 try another chance with the chosen people. hut these 
 exhortations had as little effect as those of Cannon. In a 
 short time the whole Gaelic army was in full retreat towards 
 Vihi'iv. Then the driuus struck up: the victorious Puritans 
 threw their caps into the air, raised, with one voice, a psalm 
 uf triumph and thanksgiving, and waved their colours, colours 
 which were on that day unfurled for the fii'st time in the 
 face of an enemy, but which have since been proudly borne 
 in every quarter of the world, and which are now embellished 
 with the 'Sphinx' and the 'Dragon,' emblems of brave actions 
 achieved in Egj'pt and iii China." 
 
 "The Cameronians had good reiusuu i<j In,- j"yiul and 
 thankful ; for they had finished the war." The loss of the 
 regiment did not exceed 70 men, whilst the rebels lost 300; 
 but the death of their brave Commander, Colonel Cleland, 
 was a source of great regret to the Cameronians. This 
 desperate resistance, insignificant in itself, so cooled - the 
 liery zeal of the clans, that, melting away like snow, (lencral 
 ('annou was compelled to retreat, and, soon without an 
 army, to submit. 
 
CHAPTER XVII, 
 
 " Farewell! ye dear partners of peril, farewell! 
 Tho' buried ye lie in one wide bloody grave, 
 Your deeds shall ennoble the place where ye fell. 
 And yoiir names be enroU'd with the sons of the brave." 
 
 1691-1862 — THE NETHEELANDS — REBELLION, 1715 — AMERICA — 
 EGYPT — CORUNNA — WALCHEREN — INDIA — CHINA — CANADA. 
 
 In 1691 the regiment joined the British army then serving 
 in Flanders against the French, and, by its steady valour, 
 fully maintained its character at the battle of Steenkirk and 
 the siege of Namur. So highly did the King appreciate its 
 worth, that, when peace induced the Government to disband 
 many regiments, he retained the Cameronians in his own pay, 
 on the establishment of the Dutch Estates. 
 
 The arrogant pretensions of the House of Bourbon to the 
 vacant throne of Spain, in opposition to the claims of the 
 House of Hapsburg, re-kindled the flames of war, and bade 
 France and Austria, as the principals, seconded by Bavaria 
 and Britain, engage in mortal combat. Of the British 
 army sent to Holland in consequence, the Twenty-sixth 
 formed a part. In 1703, brigaded with the Tenth, the 
 Sixteenth, the Twenty-first, and the second battalion of the 
 First Koyal Scots, it served with great distinction in the army 
 
CAMERONIANS. 1 71) 
 
 of Alarlborough at Douawerth, ami specially at the battle of 
 Bleiiheiin, where, suffering severely, it had to lament the loss 
 of nineteen otHcers. At the battle of Ramilies, in 1706, 
 the regiment, after being much exposed throughout the 
 fight, was engaged in the pursuit of the beaten foe until 
 midnight. It further sliared the sanguinary glories of 
 Malphujuet ere the war was terminated by the peace of 
 Utrecht in 1713. Soon after its return home, the infatuation 
 of the Jacobites, whose licentious habits could not brook to 
 be bridled by the austere yet healthier morale which pre- 
 sided in the Protestant Court of the House of Hanover — 
 longing for the restoration of that of Stuart as likely to 
 afford freer scope for the indulgence of their own evil appetites 
 — organised a conspiracy, which brouglit forth the rebellion 
 of 171 J. The Earl of .Mar, an imbecile chief and ungrate- 
 ful minion of the Court, essayed to be its leader in Scot- 
 land, whilst Sir John Foster and other cavaliers vainly 
 strove sinmltaneously to arouse the malignant Jacobitism 
 which slumbered in the northern counties of England. To 
 meet the few who had dared to challenge the existini:: 
 sovereignty, and under Foster were advancing southward 
 through Lancashire in hopes of being reinforced by other 
 malcontents, a body of royal troops was hastily collected, 
 chiefly cavaliy — the Twenty-sixth being the only infantry 
 re^ment. Without order, a distinct plan of action, or any 
 definite understanding as to a leader, the enemy, who had 
 taken possession of, and proposed to hold Preston against the 
 assiiult of the Ik>yalist army, was easily broken, dispersed, and 
 
180 HISTOPtY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 their cause utterly ruined. During this uufortunate rebellion, 
 which occasioned the effusion of much blood, Colonel Black- 
 r^jcp — ^']io had accompanied the Twenty-sixth in its conti- 
 nental campaigns, where he was ever distinguished among 
 "the bravest of the brave," and whose ably- written records have 
 bequeathed to our day much that is valuable in the thread 
 of Scottish military history, and interesting in the annals of 
 the Cameroniau regiment — at this period commanded the 
 Glasgow Volunteers. The rebellion being suppressed, the 
 reo-iment was placed upon the Irish establishment, garrisoning 
 various posts in the emerald isle until the year 1727, when 
 it was removed to reinforce the troops which then defended 
 the important fortress of Gibraltar, baffling the most stupen- 
 dous efforts of the Spaniards to reduce it. Eleven years later 
 it was sent to Minorca, and thence returned home in 1754. 
 This long absence on foreign service was succeeded by an 
 interval of quietude at home, so far at least as the service of 
 our Cameronians was concerned. In 17 75, the unhappy con- 
 flict began which bereft us of a valuable colony, and severed 
 us from those who ought to have been one with us as brethren. 
 Like the Northern States of America now, so we then, in the 
 pride of our own self-righteous will which had been chal- 
 lenged, supposed to enforce legislation by the sword. Hence 
 a British army, including the Twenty-sixth, was sent out to 
 America. Although at first the progress of our arms was 
 graced with many successes, still the end proved most dis- 
 astrous. The Colonists, sorely schooled in adversity, learned, 
 through many defeats, how to conquer, the more so when the 
 
CAMERONIANS. 181 
 
 shining al)ilities of Wasliinii;ton appearing, tlirectcd their native 
 valour and commanded their confidence as well as tlieir 
 obedience. Shortly after the capture of St .lohn's, a detach- 
 ment of the regiment having been embarked in a vessel for 
 secret service, the expedition, discovered by the enemy, was 
 pui*sued and captured. When escape was seen to be impos- 
 sible, and resistance hopeless, to prevent the colours falling 
 into the hands of the foe, they were wound round a cannon 
 shot and sunk in the river; and thus, however severe the 
 dispensation wliich befcl themselves in being made prisoners 
 of war, the regiment was spared the aggravated pain of seeing 
 the colours it had followed to so many glorious successes — 
 the epitome of a soldier's honour — becoming now, in the hands 
 of the enemy, the record of its present misfortune. Subse- 
 quently the regiment was engaged with the army, under 
 Lieut. -(Jencral Sir Henry Clinton, during the campaigns of 
 1 777—78. 
 
 Returning home from Halifax, in 1800, the transport, 
 containing one company of the regiment, under command of 
 Captain Campbell, was captured by the French privateer 
 " Grande Decidee." With the British army under Sir Ralph 
 Abercromby — which achieved the deliverance of Eg}'pt — the 
 Cameronians won a title by distinguished scn'icc, to include 
 " Eg}pt " among the records of its bravery. ^Meanwhile, the 
 necessities of the state were such that, the Government 
 resolving to strengthen the army, a second battalion was 
 raised and grafted upon the good old stock of the Twenty- 
 sixth. In thf.-^o tiniis df war little rest could be exjxjctal. 
 
182 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 To the brave, the patriot, it was peculiarly a time of action, 
 not mere idle alarm. Our country rejoiced in the security 
 which was ensured by an army, of which our Cameronians 
 were so honoured a representative. Our sovereigns benig- 
 nantly smiled upon and proudly felt themselves happy when 
 they regarded the ranks of these our giillant defenders, nor 
 feared invasion so long as they possessed the allegiance of 
 such soldiers. Grievino; that so laro-e a kino-dom as that of 
 Spain should have fallen a prey to the rapacious perfidy of 
 Napoleon, and sympathising with the patriotic eff'orts which 
 a spirited people were then putting forth to be free, our 
 Government had recognised in that peninsula, with its ex- 
 tensive sea-board, a fair theatre for action, and as the result 
 proved, a vulnerable point where Europe might strike a fatal 
 blow at the absorbing dominion of France. Following up 
 these ideas, and in answer to the earnest petitions for help 
 from the people themselves, who gathered together into 
 patriotic bands, yet dared to struggle against the tyranny 
 which enslaved and ruined all who owned its supremacy, 
 our Government, in 1808, sent out a British army under 
 Sir John Moore, which, co-operating with the natives and the 
 British army of Portugal, it was vainly hoped should expel 
 the enemy. The Twenty-sixth regiment, included in this 
 expedition, was doomed to share its cruel disappointments, 
 yet earn a title to the glory which must ever rest upon the 
 memory of the soldiers of Corunna. With the native daring 
 of his race, Sir John Moore advanced with 25,000 men into 
 the very heart of Spain, and only retreated when the ex- 
 
CAMERONIANS. 183 
 
 jiccted aid from the Spaniards had been dissipated by their 
 defeat and ruin, and when Napoleon in pei-son, at the head 
 of an army of 300,000 men, threatened to overwhehn his 
 httle phahinx of British. Then, but not till then, he under- 
 took that masterly retreat which achieved the salvation of his 
 brave troops, and in the end loaded himself with honour, as 
 closing a life of worth, he won the laurel crown, and 
 
 " Like a soldier fell " 
 
 in the arms of victory. Lieut.-General Hope thus fitly 
 records the irreparable loss sustained in the death of Sir 
 ■lohn Moore: — 
 
 " I need not expatiate on the lo.ss which the army and his 
 country have sustained by the death of Sir John Moore. His 
 tall has deprived me of a valuable friend, to whom long 
 experience of his worth had sincerely attached me. But it is 
 chiefly on public grounds that I must lament the blow. It 
 will be the conversation of every one who loved or respected 
 his manly character, that after conducting the army through 
 an arduous retreat with consummate firmness, he has 
 terminated a career of distinguished honour, by a death 
 that has given the enemy additional reason to respect the 
 name of a British soldier. Like tiie immortal Wolfe, he is 
 snatched from his country at an early period of a life spent in 
 her service; like "Wolfe, his last moments were gilde<l by 
 the prospect of success, and cheered l>y the acclamation of 
 victory; like Wolfe, also, his memor)' will for ever remain 
 
184 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 sacred in that country wliicli he sincerely loved, and which he 
 liad so faitlifuUy served." 
 
 The brunt of the action fell upon the Fourth, the Forty- 
 second, the Fiftieth, the Eighty-first regiments, a portion of 
 the brigade of the Guards, and the Twenty-sixth regiment. 
 We are left to regret that the Twenty-sixth had not afterwards 
 an opportunity to avenge the death of its commander upon the 
 French — not again being seriously engaged in the desolating 
 wars of the time, which deluged the Continent with blood ere 
 a lasting peace had been attained by the triumph of Waterloo. 
 This blank in the active history of the regiment may be 
 accounted for from the fact that, after its return to England, 
 serving with the army in the Walcheren expedition, it 
 suffered so severely in that unfortunate campaign, that only 
 ninety effective men returned to represent it. Nevertheless, 
 in 1811, recruited, it was embarked for Portugal, and in the 
 following year removed to Gibraltar, where the fatigues of 
 military duty pressed so severely upon the raw lads who then 
 constituted the regiment, that sickness appearing, fated many 
 of those brave youth, who feared not man, to faint and fail in 
 the presence of this unseen and unrelenting foe. 
 
 On the return of peace the second battalion was reduced. 
 In 1826 the regiment was sent to India, where it served suc- 
 cessively in the presidencies of Madras and Bengal. 
 
 If the sword, the pestilence, or the famine should slay 
 each their thousands, the vice of intemperance, the crying 
 iniquity of our land, has slain its tens of thousands. The 
 throne, the senate, the pulpit, and the press, alike deplore 
 
UARQUIS OF OALHOUSIE. LATE GOLONEl OF THE ?6th CAMERONIANS 
 
CAMERONIANS. l'^.") 
 
 its ravages; and although (lifTering as to the remedy to be 
 applied, professedly all declare a crusade against this social 
 hydra. Exalted, not alone by our own might, or our own 
 goodness, but by the blessing of God resting upon these, 
 Britain may well be regarded as the lighthouse, divinely 
 lighted, shedding abroad upon the tumultuous waste of sin 
 and ignorance around the saving light of truth and righte- 
 ousness. Strange inconsistency! notwithstanding all this, our 
 merchants sacrifice honour at the shrine of gold, and amass 
 wealth by becoming the moral degenerators of others who 
 have the sublime virtue — which we lack — to expel by enact- 
 ment the dnig which would ruin, by the passion it excites, an 
 intellectual nation. In defiance of these enactments, and 
 despite our fair professions, we regret to think Britain should 
 afford countenance to the ojiium traffic, and lend the might 
 of her arms to maintain it, altliough involving a breach of the 
 law of China, and inflicting upon the Chinese a moral wrong. 
 Happy are we to know that there were not a few amongst us 
 who had the courage to repudiate the action of Government 
 in this matter, and at length awakening our people to the 
 inifpiity, so impressed our rulere as to induce a better policy. 
 But for the supreme vanity and duplicity of the Chinese, war 
 might have been averted. Their obnoxious impudence, and 
 the insults they strove to heap upon us, necessitated the 
 vindication of our honour, and occasione<l the landing of a 
 British force to chastise their folly and protect British pro- 
 perty. Accordingly, in 1840, the Twenty-sixth, with the 
 Eighteenth and Forty-ninth regiments, and other Indian 
 
1S6 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH RBGDtESTS. 
 
 trvx»p«s^ eiubc^rked from MainLS. and, amTing in China, ao- 
 oomplished a landiug on the island of Clmsan. Excepting 
 in some few cases where the Chinese did bdiave themsdres 
 like men in the defaice of their coontry, our scddieis Tictori- 
 ooslj' marched upon the cities^ of Shanghae and Chin-Keang- 
 foo, which fell an easy tiium{^ to tfadr daring. The 
 campaigns afford little to interest us in ibeai record : we are, 
 therefore, content to sa j the arduous serrices of our troops 
 wtore rewarded, and, with the Sghte^ith, Forty-ninth, Fifh*- 
 fifth, and Ninety-eighth p^imoits, our Camoonians won the 
 distinction of the " Dragtm." Betuming to Calcutta in 1843, 
 the Twoity-dxth proceeded thence to En^and, and in 1850 
 garrisoned Gibraltar. In 1S53 the r^im^it anbariced for 
 Osmada, and was stationed at Montreal, afterwards, le-embari:- 
 ing , removed to Bermuda, whosce, in 1859, it <Hice more 
 returned to the beloved sh^es of our native land. Bestored 
 to Scotknd in 1S61, ganisioning Edinburgh Castk, the r^ 
 ment was welcomed amongst us with every expresdon of the 
 highest vcx»»ation and heartfelt interest as the representatiTe 
 of the Cun^onians, whoee prompt loyalty and patriotism, 
 more than » hundred and seventy ye^&rs a^ wrested that 
 sauK castle from the dcmiini<Ni of the Stuart, and he^ed to 
 give that libotj of £utlL which we now so abundant^ enjoy. 
 
CIIArTER XVITl. 
 
 "Think on Scotia's ancient heroca, 
 Think on foreign foes rcjjcU'd, 
 Think on glorious Bruce ami Wallace, 
 Wha the proud usurpers quell'd." 
 
 LIFE GUABDS — SEVENTH HUSS^VRS — SEVENTEENTH LIGHT 
 DRAGOONS — SEVENTIETH FOOT. 
 
 Not to exceed the limits we prescribed in setting out, we are 
 reluctantly compelled, in fulfilling our promise, to group into a 
 single brief chapter a variety of records incidental to our history. 
 
 LIFE GIAUDS. 
 It is only fitting to note, that two troops of Scots Life 
 Guards, raised in Scotland shortly after the Restoration, and 
 engaged with the Scots Greys and Claverhouse's Scots Horse 
 in putting down Presbyterianism by the sword, were at the 
 Revolution included in the si)lendid cavalry of the Life Guards, 
 which have since been retained in waiting upon the sovereign — 
 their magnificent equipment and martial appearance, lending 
 dignity to the pageant of Royalty. Their excellence as soldiers 
 has been proved in the memorable victory of "Waterloo." 
 
 TIIE SEVENTH lilhWUh- ylEEN'S OWN." 
 Vi.scount Dundee's regiment of Scots Dragoons, or, as 
 familiarly known in Scottish song, " the lx)nnets o' Bonnie 
 
188 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Dundee," refiismo; to enter the service of William and 
 Mary upon the involuntary abdication and flight of James 
 IL, retiring into Scotland, becoming partners in the treason 
 and rebellion of their fiery leader, involved in his ruin, was 
 lost to the country. As if to replace this regiment, which 
 had thus fallen to pieces, the King, in 1690, raised a new 
 cavalry corps in Scotland, known as Cunningham's Dragoons. 
 It shares much of the history, and participates largely in the 
 honours, which we have already attempted to describe as 
 belonging to the " Scots Greys." The regiment was disbanded 
 in 1713; but, two years later, re-formed from three companies 
 of the Scots Greys, two companies of the Koyal Dragoons, and 
 one newly raised. As the " Seventh Queen's Own Hussars," 
 it has never since ceased to sustain its early reputation for 
 steadiness and valour — the tokens of which, emblazoned upon 
 its colours and appointments, are comprised in these two 
 words: "Peninsula" and "Waterloo." 
 
 SEVENTEENTH LIGHT DEAG00X8. 
 Whilst France and Britain fiercely contended as to the 
 extent of their dominions in the American continent, where 
 each might well be supposed to have enough and to spare. 
 Lord Aberdour, in 1759, raised a regiment of cavalry in 
 Scotland. Light dragoons had just then been introduced 
 into the service, and proved a most valuable arm thereof. 
 We have failed to discover precisely in what services this corps 
 was employed, but are inclined to think, with the Fifteenth 
 Light Dragoons, the Inniskilling, and Scots Greys, it must 
 
Tin: SEVENTIETH FOOT. 
 
 180 
 
 have served in Gennany, imder the Duke of Brunswick, dur- 
 ing tlic Seven Years' War. It was disbanded in 1 763. 
 
 The Seventeenth Lancei*s, inheriting the martial ardour of 
 this old regiment, have more than sustained the credit of the 
 " Seventeenth " — bearing upon its colours and appointments 
 "The Alma," "Balaklava," "Inkermann," and "Sevastopol"— 
 and has gained a mightier fame as one of the five regiments 
 who formed the Light Cavalry Brigade under the Earl of 
 C'ardiiian in his memorable charn;e durinf' the Crimean war, 
 titly styled, from its fatiU glory — "The Death's Bide." 
 
 TIIK SKVKNTir.TII I'nOT, OH srilKKV KKCIMKNT. 
 
 The disputes arising in 1758 between France and Britain 
 as to the boundary line of their American colonies failing to 
 be amicably adjusted, war was accepted as the stern arbiter. 
 To meet the emergency, our army wivs increased, and the — 
 
 Second liattaliou of the 3cl Foot constitute*! tlic Gist Koginiont. 
 
 •1th 
 Hth 
 11th 
 12th 
 I'Jth 
 20tl. 
 'SM 
 2ith 
 
 :nxf 
 
 33<1 
 84th 
 36th 
 37th 
 
 C2d 
 
 C3d 
 
 G4th 
 
 C5th 
 
 66th 
 
 fi7th 
 
 GHth 
 
 69th 
 
 70th 
 
 7 1st 
 
 72«1 
 
 7.'M 
 
 Ttth 
 
 76th 
 
190 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Thus the Seventieth was born out of the second battalion 
 of the Thirty-first English Eegiment, (raised about the year 
 1702, during the reign of Queen Anne, and for some time 
 serving as marines in the fleet). Shortly after its formation, 
 being stationed in Scotland, and largely recruited in Glasgow, 
 the Seventieth was styled, in consequence of its interest in that 
 city and its light grey facings, the "Glasgow Greys," Ten 
 years later the facings were changed to black. In 1 782, pro- 
 bably in compliment to its colonel, it became the "Surrey 
 Eegiment." From some unaccountable reason, in 1812 it was 
 restored to somewhat of its original character as the "Glasgow 
 Lowland Regiment;" and again in 1823, likely for recruiting 
 purposes, it was re-christened the " Surrey" — which designa- 
 tion it still retains. Althouo;h stationed in British America 
 during the war which raged amid the wilds of the New World, 
 we do not find it fortunate enough to be engaged. Indeed, 
 the captures of the islands of Martinique in 1794, and 
 Guadaloupe in 1810, seem to be the only trophies which it 
 has been honoured to attain. No doubt its ranks contained 
 the same brave spirits as have everywhere and always sus- 
 tained the credit of the British soldier — yet have these 
 been destined to reap in quietude a glory by good conduct 
 no less meritorious, although apparently less lustrous, than 
 that which is acquired amid the carnage of the battle-field — 
 consecrated in "the stormy music of the drum," and pro- 
 claimed in the shrill sound of the trumpet. 
 
THE SEVEXTY-TIIIHI) FOOT 
 
 ORIGIXALLT 
 
 SECO>'r> nVTT ALIGN 
 
 FOPJY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 ' Then our sodgcrs were drest in their kilts and short hose, 
 Wi' their bonnets and Ix'lts which their dress did compoHe, 
 And a bag of oatmeal on their backij to make brose. 
 
 O! the kail brosc o' auld Scotland, 
 
 And O the Scottish kail brose." 
 
 178a-18r.2 — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE — INDIA — MANGALORE — 
 SERINOAPATAM — NEW SOUTH WALES — GERMANY — WATERLOO 
 — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. 
 
 The immense and increasing territory whicli circumstances 
 had placed under British protection, and in the end consigned 
 to our possession in India, occasioned a considerahlc increase 
 of our army in order to maintain these new gotten provinces 
 against the incursions of neighbouring and powerful tribes. 
 
1 92 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Thus, in 1780, a second battalion was raised for the Forty- 
 second Eoyal Highlanders, which was ultimately constituted 
 independently the Seventy-third regiment. The battalion 
 was embodied at Perth, under Lord John Murray as Colonel, 
 and Macleod, of Macleod, as Lieut.-Colonel. Amongst its early 
 officers, Lieutenant Oswald was distinguished as the subject of 
 a strange speculation which at this time so tickled the brilliant 
 imaginings of our " literati," as to call forth from the pen of a 
 learned doctor an elaborate disquisition, intended to prove 
 that Napeolon the Great was none else than Lieutenant 
 Oswald, who, imbibing republican ideas, had passed over to 
 France, and by a chain of circumstances been elevated from 
 the command of a republican regiment to be the great captain 
 and ruler of France. Such marvellous transformations were 
 by no means uncommon in the then disordered state of 
 French society. Virtue as w^ell as vice was ofttimes the idol 
 for a time, to be exalted and adored. But the life and 
 adventures of Lieutenant Oswald, however notorious, did not 
 attain such a grand ideal. With his two sons, he fell fighting 
 at the head of his regiment in La Vendee in 1793. 
 
 Scarce had the battalion been completed ere it was shipped 
 for foreign service. Intended to prosecute an attack upon 
 the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, the aim of the expedi- 
 tion was frustrated by the promptitude of Admiral Sufferiu, 
 who commanded the French fleet, and arriving; first at the 
 colony, prevented a landing being successfully efi'ected. The 
 expedition thus interrupted sailed for India, in the passage 
 making a valuable capture of richly laden Dutch Indiamen. 
 
FORTV-SKCONl) llOVAL lllGHLANDKRS. 193 
 
 Til the division of tlie spoil arising, after much disputing, the 
 soldiers shared. One hundred and twenty officei*s and men 
 of the regiment fell a prey to the scurvy and fever on the 
 voyage, which, from the ignorance and incapacity of the com- 
 manders of the transports, was protracted to twelve months. 
 The "^lyrtle," without maps or charts, separated from the 
 fleet in a tempest, was only saved by the cool resolution of 
 Captain Dalyell, who, amid many perils, succeeded in navigat- 
 ing the vessel to St Helena, and so rescuing many valuable 
 lives who otherwise would probably have been lost. Arrived at 
 Madras, the battalion was immediately advanced into the 
 interior, where the critical position of British atlaii*s, assailed 
 by the numerous black legions of llyder Ali and his son 
 Tip])oo Saib, aided by a French force under General Lally, 
 rendered the presence of every bayonet of importance. The 
 utmost eftbrts of Lieut.-Colouel Thomas Frederick Alackenzio 
 llumberston could only muster a British force of 2500 men, 
 of whom 2200 were Sepoys. Nevertheless, with these he 
 advanced to check the progress of the enemy, who hatl an 
 army of 10,000 cavalry and 14,000 infantry. Notwithstand- 
 ing this immense superiority in numbei*s on the part of tlie 
 enemy, nothing coidd daunt our troops; bravely they held 
 their own, defying the most desperate attempts of the foe 
 to drive them back. The general order thus records tbo 
 action that ensued: "This little army, attacked on ground 
 not nearly fortified, by ver}* superior numbers, skilfully di.s- 
 posed and regularly led on; they had nothing to depend on 
 but their native valour, their di.scipline, and the conduct of 
 
194 HISTOPtY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 the officers. These were nobly exerted, and the event has 
 been answerable. The intrepidity with which ]\Iajor Camp- 
 bell and the Highlanders repeatedly charged the enemy was 
 most honourable to their character." 
 
 More effectually to strike at the power of the Sultan by 
 cuttino- him off from the source whence he had hitherto drawn 
 his supplies, a considerable force was ordered to assemble in the 
 Bombay Presidency, and, under Brigadier-General ]\Iatthews, 
 assail Beddinore. To join this army the battalion was 
 embarked and sailed for Bombay, whence, advancing into the 
 country, it effected a junction with the army near Cundapore. 
 The Highlanders were particularly distinguished in the attack 
 and capture of a series of forts which impeded the march, and 
 especially so in the taking of a strong fortress which lay in 
 the way, named, because of its strength, Hyder Gurr. The 
 enemy was so impressed by the spirit evinced in these 
 assaults, that, dreading a further attack, they evacuated 
 Beddinore without an attempt to defend it, which was im- 
 mediately occupied by the British in January, 1783. This 
 battalion was not of the army which soon after was sur- 
 rendered to the enemy by General Matthews, who foolishly 
 deemed himself too weak to withstand the imposing force 
 which had surrounded him in Beddinore. 
 
 The conduct of Major Campbell, who commanded this 
 battalion in the defence of Mangalore, stands forth in brilliant 
 contrast to the errors which led General jMatthews to surren- 
 der an equally brave army into the cruel hands of the Mysore 
 tyrant. AVith 250 Highlanders and 1500 Sepoys, Major 
 
rouTV-sEeoNn royal hkmilanukiis. 193 
 
 Campbell, although assaile<l by an anny of 100,000 men, 
 ;ii(.lecl by a powerful artillery, defeiuled Maugaloro for nine 
 mouths. ThrouMiout the siee;o the defemlers behaved with 
 the most heroic constancy and gallantry, although experi- 
 encing the piuchiugs of famine, and exposed to the most cruel 
 disappointments. Even the Sepoys, emulating the High- 
 landers, so distinguished themselves, that, in compliment to 
 their bravery, our countrymen dubbed one of their regiments 
 their own third battalion. Truly it was a new and strange 
 thing to have within the Ro^'al Highland Regiment a cohort 
 of "brave blacks;" yet it displays a generous sentiment 
 which rertects honour upon the regiment. Three times did a 
 British squadron enter the bay, having on board stores and 
 reinforcements, yet as often did this needed and expected aid 
 retire without helping these perishing, exhausted brave — out 
 of respect to the armistice of a faithless foe, which for a time 
 existed and apparently terminated the siege. Their perfidy 
 in one instance, scorning the sacredness of treaties, exploded a 
 mine, which blew into the air the flag of truce then waving 
 from the British ramparts. Reduced to the last extremities, 
 shut up to a dark despair, indignant for the seeming neglect of 
 friends, and dreading the relentless wrath of the enemy, the 
 brave garrison accepted the only hope of life which yet re- 
 mained, by surrender; and, be it said to the honour of the Indian 
 character — with the generosity which becomes the conquering 
 soldier in the presence of a bravo yet vanquishetl foe — the torms 
 im|»o>ed were such as enabled the exhaiLste<.l remnant of the 
 garris«»n to retire with all the honours of war. Scarce 500 
 
1.96 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 effective men could be mustered to march out of the fortress, 
 and these so feeble as to be hardly able to bear the weight of 
 their muskets. Colonel FuUarton, in his interestino; volume 
 upon British India, thus writes : " Colonel Campbell has made 
 a defence which lias seldom been equalled and never sur- 
 passed." The memorial of this service is still borne alone 
 upon the colours and appointments of the Seventy-third. So 
 redundant with honour had been the services of this second 
 battalion of the Forty-second Eoyal Highlanders, that when 
 the army, in 178G, was being reduced, by the disbanding 
 of second battalions, the representations of the officers of the 
 regiment were so favourably received by the Government, that 
 this battalion was retained as an independent corps, under the 
 command of Sir George Osborn, Bart., thereafter known as the 
 Seventy- third Regiment. In the division of Major-General 
 Robert Abercromby, the regiment joined the army of Lord 
 Cornwallis, which, in 1792, advanced upon Seriugapatam; the 
 attack was only arrested by the proposals of a treaty of 
 peace. In the brigade of Lieutenant-Colonel David Baird, 
 the Seventy -third was engaged in the reduction of the 
 French colony of Pondicherry, and, in 1795, in the army 
 of Major-General James Stuart, assailed and occupied the 
 valuable island of Ceylon. At length the arm of vengeance 
 — vengeance for the murdered brave who had fallen vic- 
 tims to the cruelty of Hyder Ali in the pestilential dun- 
 geons of Seriugapatam — so often threatened, yet always 
 averted, descended to consume the guilty city and destroy 
 its merciless ruler. Seriugapatam fell l->efore the arms of our 
 
ATTACK ON THE 
 
 ENTRCNCHEO CAMP 
 
 or MIL' 
 
 -4 — 
 
 SERINGAPATAN 
 
 flmf<^^ 
 
 ^iS^te/ M 
 
 -.^. 
 
 Baa ^'X::.. 
 
 " ""='"'•'" "<'=»an iia,i 1,0011 route.1, chargwl up n 
 
ATTACK ON TME 
 
 ENTRESCHED CAMP 
 of 
 
 smimfiKFiM 
 
 vn. 
 
 
 
 
 / r^K -^-<^ 
 
 r ^Vr^'^^ 
 
 i 
 
 
 0. V/ 
 
 '^^ 
 
 */* 
 
 
 British ampon^&e'^Ti.VhlSc 
 
 hii .,,i^i^'^ 
 
FORTY-SECOND ROYAL IIKJllLANDERS. 197 
 
 troops, including the Seventy-third Regiment, in 1709. The 
 history of the regiment at this period is associated witli tlic 
 early achievements of the "Great Duke," then the Honourable 
 Colonel Arthur Wellesley. 
 
 Returning home in 1805, the regiment proceeded to Scot- 
 land to recruit, and in 1809, despoile<l of its Highland 
 character, laid aside "the garb of oM (laul " and the 
 designation it had hitherto enjoyed. Increased by the ad- 
 dition of a second battalion, the first battalion was sent to 
 New South Wales; whilst the second, remaining at home, was, 
 in 1813, employed as the solitary representative of the British 
 army in the north of Germany. 
 
 The Annual Register gives the following account of the 
 battle of Gorde, where it fought with honour: — 'SVfter land- 
 ing at Stralsund, and assisting in completing the works of that 
 town, Lieutenant-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 Lieutenant-General 
 Count Wallmoden, which dangerous service he successfully 
 effected, though he had with great care ami caution to creep 
 with his small force between the large corps d'armCe of 
 Davoust and other French Generals at that time stationeil 
 in Pomerania, Mecklenburg, and Hanover. Having joined 
 Count Wallmoden, the Seventy-third contributetl greatly to the 
 victory that General gained over the French on the plains of 
 Gorde, in Hanover, where Lieutenant-Colonel Harris, at the 
 head of his battalion, declining any aid, and at the moment 
 when the German hussars had bton routed, oharcrt'd up a 
 
its merciless ruler. SeriDgapatcam tell lietore rue ium& 
 
FORTY-SECOND ROYAL HIGHLANDERS. 197 
 
 troops, including the Seventy-third Regiment, in 17.09. The 
 history of the regiment at this period is as.soci.ited with tlie 
 early achievements of the " Great Duke," then the ITonouraljlc 
 Colonel Arthur Wellesley. 
 
 Returning home in 1805, the regiment proceeded to Scot- 
 land to recruit, and in ISOf), despoiled of its Highland 
 • haracter, laid aside " the garb of old Gaul " and the 
 designation it had hitherto enjoyed. Increased by the ad- 
 dition of a second battalion, the first battalion was .sent to 
 New South Wales ; whilst the second, remaining at home, was, 
 in 1813, employed as the solitary representative of the British 
 army in the north of Germany. 
 
 The Annual Register gives the following account of the 
 battle of Gorde, where it fought with honour: — " ^Vfter land- 
 ing at Stralsund, and assisting in completing the works of that 
 town, Lieutenant-Colonel Harris, with the Seventy-third, wai5 
 detached into the interior of the country, to feel for the enemy, 
 md also to get into commimication with Lieutenant-General 
 Count Wallmoden, which dangerous service he successfully 
 ofTected, though he had with great care and caution to creep 
 with his small force between the large corps cVamiCe of 
 Davoust and other French Generals at that time stationeil 
 in Pomerania, JMecklenburg, 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 Lieutenant-Colonel Harris, at the 
 head of his battalion, declining any aid, and at the moment 
 when the German hussars lia.l b.in n.nted, charged up a 
 
198 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 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." 
 
 This battalion was also hotly engaged at the desperate 
 conflict of Quatre Bras, and the decisive victory of Waterloo, 
 in 1815. In the Kaffir Wars, which desolated South Africa 
 from 1846-47, and 1850-53, the Seventy-third bore an im- 
 portant part. It was also present in India during the recent 
 Sepoy Mutiny. Having abandoned its national character 
 since 1809, it does not fall within the scope of this work 
 further to follow the narrative of those achievements that 
 have never failed worthily to sustain the excellence which — 
 whilst our own — belonged to it. We are sure that, whoever 
 they be that now represent the Seventy-third, the perusal 
 of this imperfect sketch will not make them ashamed of its 
 Highland origin, but rather incite them to emulate those brave 
 deeds, the glory of which they are privileged to inherit. 
 
rilK SKVKNTV-FIITIf Ino 
 
 OBIGIXALLT 
 
 HIGHLANDERS 
 
 CHAPTEK XX. 
 
 " Courage! Nothing e'er witlistood 
 Frot'iucu fiphting for their gotxl; 
 Annc«l with all their fathers' fame, 
 They will win and wear a name 
 That shall go to cndK-ss glory, 
 Like the gods of old (I reck story; 
 Kftise*! to heaven and heavenly wfirth, 
 For the gooil thoy gave to earth." 
 
 17S7-1802 — INDIA — (ATE OF GOOD HOPE — TXT>I \X ^r^TTXY. 
 
 ly CJencral Stuart's admiral »le and interesting auniiLi ot' the 
 Higldand Regiments, the In-ief record of the Seventy-fifth 
 Highlanders is introduceil by a .series of wholesome counsels 
 as to military administration, gathered from liis own largo 
 experience and wide field of diligent inquiry, from which we 
 shall quote a few extracts as being useful and helpful to our 
 history. It seems that this regiment, raised by Colonel 
 Robert Abercromby in 1787 from among his tenantry aroimd 
 
200 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Stirling, and the veterans wlio, in earlier life, had served under 
 him in the army as a light brigade, had been subjected to 
 an unusually strict system of discipline, which had operated 
 prejudicially upon the corps. The system adopted "was formed 
 on the old Prussian model; fear was the great principle of 
 action; consequently, it became the first object of the soldiers 
 to escape detection, more than to avoid crimes." This system, 
 when enforced, "was carried into effect by one of the captains 
 who commanded in the absence of the field-ofiicers. He was 
 an able and intelligent officer; but he had been educated in a 
 school in which he had imbibed ideas of correctness which 
 required no small strength of mind • to enforce, and which, 
 when enforced with severity, tended to break the spirit of the 
 soldiers to a degree which no perfection in movement can 
 ever compensate. When applied to the British soldier in par- 
 ticular, this system has frequently frustrated its own purpose." 
 Brotherly-kindness and charity — patience and forbearance — 
 are virtues which should not be banished, but rather be 
 exercised, as thoroughly consistent with the best military 
 institutions. A considerate attention to the wants, nay, the 
 very weaknesses of the soldier, is likely to accomplish more for 
 good discipline than the stern frigidity of mere military 
 despotism. It was in the camp that the iron Avill of Napoleon, 
 unbending, achieved a charmed omnipotence over his soldiers, 
 and by a single simple, pithy sentence fired them with that 
 ardour and devotion which made Europe tremble beneath the 
 tread of his invincible legions. The charm was only broken 
 when the vastness of his dominion had scattered the old 
 
TnE SEVENTY-FIFTH FOOT. 201 
 
 soldiers of the empire, and the feeble conscript failed to sus- 
 tain the veteran remnant of "The Guard," the more especially 
 at a time when disasters, quickly crowding upon liis arms, 
 and bereft of the invincibility which had hitherto been in- 
 separable to his presence, no power remained to animate the 
 soul of the recniit, rudely torn from his home and pressed 
 into the fatal vortex of the dying army. The marvellous 
 sway of this great captain over the hearts as well as the wills 
 of his soldiers teaches many useful lessons, and illustrates 
 what General Stuart so well observes: — "When a soldier's 
 honour is in such little consideration that disgraceful punish- 
 ments are applied to trilling faults, it will soon be thought not 
 worth preserving." "We must have a degree of faith equally in 
 the honour as well as the loyalty of our soldiers, to help them 
 to a cheerful and not a Kussian stolidness in the discharge 
 of duty. In the case of the Seventy-fifth "the necessity 
 of this severe discipline was not proved by the results, when 
 the regiment passed under the command of another officer. 
 The .system was then softened and relaxed, and much of the 
 necessity of punishment ceased; the men became more quiet 
 and regidar, and in every respect better soldiers. A soldier 
 sees his rights respected, antl while he performs his duty, he 
 is certain of being well treated, well fed, well clothed, and 
 rogidarly paid; he i.s, consequently, contented in his mind and 
 moral in his habits." 
 
 At length released from the terrors under which, for 
 eighteen months, the corps liad l>ccn trained, it embarked 
 
 for India, where, with other Iving's regiments, chiefly Iligh- 
 
 2a 
 
202 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 land, and the Britisli native troops, it was present with great 
 credit at the several attacks upon Seringapatam, which, in 
 1790, terminated in the capture of that capital. Subsequently 
 the Seventy-fifth was engaged with the army under Lord Lake in 
 the campaigns of Upper India. It was one of the five British 
 regiments which, in 1805, were so disastrously repulsed in an 
 attempt upon the strong fortress of Bhurtpore. Returning 
 to England in 1806, like the Seventy-third, the regiment was 
 shortly thereafter shorn of its dignity as a Highland corps, 
 not a hundred Hio-hlanders remainiuo; in its ranks. 
 
 We cannot but lament the circumstances which have 
 bereaved us of an interest in so many regiments once 
 representatives of our Old Highland Brigade. Believing 
 our " Scottish Rights Association " to sympathise with us 
 in these regrets, and believing it to be composed of men 
 truly in earnest, we commend, to their most serious con- 
 sideration — not merely as a theme for eloquent disquisition, 
 but as a field for action — the revival and preservation, in 
 their original integrity, of the old Scottish and Highland 
 regiments. By suggesting some better mode of recruiting 
 and stirring up our countrymen to rally round the national 
 colours of those regiments, which still in name belong to us, 
 they may be prevented from still farther degenerating, and 
 sharing a similar fate as those who have already been 
 lopped from the parent stem — lost to our nationality, lost 
 because of our own apathy, lost in the great sea of British 
 valour. A very interestiDg cotemporary work, giving "An 
 Account of the Scottish Regiments/' published by Mr Nimmo 
 
THE SKVENTY-KIFTH FOOT. 203 
 
 of Eilinburgh, and compiled by an ofticial well versant in 
 these matters, is now before us, and shows how the tide of 
 professed improvement, encroaching in this utilitarian age, is 
 likely soon to obliterate the ancient landmarks. Waxc after 
 wave of civilisation has broken upon the shore of privilege 
 and custom, hallowed by a venerable age, and, by assimilation, 
 would sweep away the time-honoured characteristics which 
 distinguish our Scottish soldiers and people. 
 
 The Seventy-fifth regiment served with distinction at the 
 Cape of Good Hope during the Kaffir War of 1835, which 
 threatened to wrest that valuable colony from us. It is also 
 distinguished for its heroic efibrts before Delhi during the 
 Indian Mutiny, where Lieutenant Wadeson and Private 
 Patrick Green won the Victoria Cross.^^ With the Royal 
 Tiger emblazoned upon its colours — a distinction gained on 
 the same sultry plains for previous service in India, conferred 
 in July, 1807 — it increased its meritetl reputation by driving 
 the enemy before it, at the point of the bayonet, and effecting 
 the capture of all his guns. The conduct of the little army 
 which achieved the fall of Delhi is thus eulogised by the Gover- 
 nor-General: — " Before a single soldier, of the many thousands 
 who are hastening from England to ujjhold the supremacy of 
 the British power, has set foot on these shores, the rebel force, 
 where it was strongest and most united, and where it had the 
 
 • For thcBO anil in.iny other (letAik, the Author i.H in*lobt«>l to tho • ' /* 
 
 the firitish Army" by Mr Carter, who has thor^-iii cinleavourtti to iinli\ : .o 
 
 ticvoral regiments, and to nbow the particular deedji, not only of the ooq«, but also 
 of tho officers and men. 
 
ASHAVLT 
 14'!! S'qj(eniLeria57. 
 
 kale 
 ^ 
 
 »> 
 
 huniraol 
 
THE SEVENTY-l'lFTH KnoT. 203 
 
 of Ecliiiburgh, and compiled by an ullicial well versant in 
 these matters, is now before ns, and shows how the tide of 
 professed improvement, encroaching in this ntilitarian age, is 
 likely soon to obliterate the ancient landmarks. Wave after 
 wave of civilisation has broken upon the shore of privilege 
 and custom, hallowed by a venerable age, and, by assimilation, 
 would sweep away the time-honoured characteristics ^\hieh 
 distinguish our Scottish soldiers and people. 
 
 The Seventy-fifth regiment served with distinction at the 
 Cape of Good Hope during the Kaflir War of 1835, which 
 threatened to wrest that valuable colony from us. It is also 
 distinguished for its heroic eflforts before Delhi during the 
 Indian Mutiny, where Lieutenant Wadeson and Private 
 Patrick Green won the Victoria Cross.^' With the Royal 
 Tiger emblazoned upon its coloure — a distinction gained on 
 the same sultry plains for previous service in India, conferred 
 in July, 1807 — it increased its meritctl reputation by driving 
 the enemy before it, at the point of the bayonet, and effecting 
 the cxipture of all his guns. The conduct of the little army 
 which achieved the fall of Delhi is thus eulogised by the Gover- 
 nor-General : — " Before a single sohlier, of the many thousands 
 who arc hastening from England to uphold the supremacy of 
 the lirilish power, has set foot on these shores, the rel>cl force, 
 where it was strongest and most united, and where it had the 
 
 • For these and innny other (letAib, the Author in in<lobt»>«l to the " MulaU of 
 ih>' firitish Army" by Mr Carter, who lum then-iii en«lejivo«rwl to indiviilualiac the 
 ■«<>voral regitnctitft, and to aIiow the |mrticular deixU, not only of tlie cor]«i, hut aLio 
 
 '<( tho otRr»n-s and mi-n. 
 
204 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 command of imboimdecl military appliances, has been de- 
 stroyed or scattered by an army collected within the limits 
 of the North-western Provinces and the Punjab alone. 
 
 "The work has been done before the support of those 
 battalions, which have been collected in Bengal from the forces 
 of the Queen in China, and in Her Majesty's eastern colonies, 
 could reach Major-General Wilson's army; and it is by the 
 courage and endurance of that gallant army alone ; by the 
 skill, sound judgment, and steady resolution of its brave 
 commander; and by the aid of some native chiefs, true to 
 their allegiance, that, under the blessing of God, the head 
 of rebellion has been crushed, and the cause of loyalty, 
 humanity, and rightful authority vindicated." 
 
TIIK XIXKTIKTIl I'miT: 
 
 OB, 
 
 V E RT II S II I R E \OL\J N T i: I : R S 
 
 CHAJ'TER XXI. 
 
 "He, ill the firuiamunt of honour, stanik 
 Like a star, fixed, uot moved vnth ouy thiuidcr 
 Of j)«)pidjir api'hiuik', or sudileii liyhtniiij; 
 Of self -opinion ; lie hntli siivvtl hia couiitr)', 
 Aud iiiiuks 'twas but Lis duty." 
 
 179i-l^C2 — GIBRALTAR — MINORCA — EQYPT — WEST INDIES — 
 CRIMEA — INDIAN MUTINY. 
 
 From the wilds of Perthshire have hailed many of the best 
 and bravest soldiere, whose deeds grace our military aiiuals, 
 and whose lives have been the em boil i men t of all that truly 
 ennobles character and makes the man. Of these there is 
 none perhaps more justly celebrated than Thomas Graham, 
 Lord Lyuedoch, whose abilities early markeil him to be the 
 leader of the patriotism of his native coimty, which, in 
 17i)4, found its expression in the enrolment of the Nine- 
 
20 G HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 tieth Eegiment of Foot, or Pertlisbire Volunteers. Shortly- 
 after its formation, the corps was included in the army under 
 Lord Moira; and in 17.95, from the Isle Dieu, proceeded to 
 reinforce the garrison of Gibraltar. With the Twenty-eighth, 
 the Forty-second, and the Fifty-eighth regiments, the Ninetieth 
 formed the force which, under Lieutenant-General Sir Charles 
 Stuart, in 1798, assailed and captured the island of Minorca 
 from the Spaniards. A more important service, and more 
 serious encounter with the enemy, awaited the arms of the 
 Ninetieth, as part of the expedition of Sir Ealpli Abercromby, 
 which, in 1801, was destined to drive the French out of 
 Egypt. Commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Hill, afterwards 
 Viscount Hill, it was brigaded with the Eighth, the Thirteenth, 
 and the Eighteenth regiments. At this period the regiment 
 wore helmets, giving it the appearance of a body of dismounted 
 cavalry. At Mandora, believing it to be such, and supposing, 
 in consequence, that being thus out of its own element, the regi- 
 ment should lack the wonted steadiness of British infantry, the 
 French cavalry charged fiercely and repeatedly upon the Nine- 
 tieth, yet always fruitlessly. The phalanx of our Perthshire 
 men remained firm, whilst many a saddle was emptied by its 
 murderous fire. It was on this occasion that Sir Ealph Aber- 
 cromby, separated from his stafi", having his liorse shot under 
 him, was on the point of being captured, when a- soldier of the 
 Ninetieth afi'orded such prompt assistance, and by heroically 
 exposing his own life in defence of his commander, accomplished 
 his rescue. At the same battle. Colonel Hill, Avho, as the 
 associate of AVellington, afterwards shared the glory of the 
 
rERTHSHIRE VOLINTEERS. 207 
 
 l*eninsular campaigns, had liis life saved by the fortunate 
 circumstance of the hehnet he wore. "A musket ball struck 
 it on the brass rim with such force, that he was thrown from 
 his horse to the ground, and the brass completely indented. 
 Without this safeguard, the ball would have passed through 
 his head." The conspicuous bravery of the Ninetieth and 
 Ninety-second regiments on this occasion was rewarded by 
 the honourable distinction of "^landora," in addition to the 
 "Sphinx" and "Egypt," borne by other corps engaged in the 
 expedition. 
 
 "Whilst the British were accomplishing glorious results 
 on the plains of Spain, the Ninetieth was employed, in 
 1809-10, with the Seventh, Eighth, Thirteenth, Fifteenth, 
 Twenty-third, Twenty-fifth (flank companies), Sixtieth, Sixty- 
 third, and Fii-st West Indian Regiments, in the reduction of 
 the valuable island of ^lartinique. This success was soon 
 afterwards followed by the capture of Guadaloupe, in which 
 the Ninetieth bore a conspicuous part. The five and thirty 
 years which intervene betwLxt this and the next active service 
 in which the regiment was engaged, although a blank so far 
 as mere fighting is concerned, displayed in its soldiers 
 excellences not less to be admired than those which mani- 
 fest a mere physical might or brute courage. From the 
 " Account of the Scottish Regiments " — to which we have 
 already referred — we find that in 1812 the comjKwition of the 
 regiment in its several battalions was as follows: — English, 
 101)7; Scots, 538; Irish, 48G; Foreigners, 24. Total, 2144. 
 
 In 1846 the Katlirs of South Africa attempted to recover 
 
208 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 their ancient territory from British dominion, and accom- 
 panied these attempts with a series of predatory incursions 
 uj)on our settlements, especially in the neighbourhood of 
 Graham's Town. It became necessary, for the defence of the 
 colony, to assemble a British army of some strength. Ere 
 this could be accomplished, much valuable property became 
 the prey of these savages, and many lives were sacrificed on 
 the altar of their vengeance. At first the disparity in 
 numbers was very great — so great as to preclude a decisive 
 result in our favour — the whole British force scarcely amount- 
 ing to 700 men, whilst the enemy possessed 60,000 sable 
 warriors. Moreover, the peculiarity of the warfare in " the 
 bush " served somewhat to advantao'e the foe, and nejiative 
 the superiority we might otherwise enjoy, from troops better 
 armed and disciplined. The assembled British, augmented 
 by reinforcements from home, comprised, besides Royal 
 Artillery and Engineers, the Seventh Dragoon Guards, the 
 Sixth, Twenty-seventh, Forty-fifth, Seventy- third. Ninetieth, 
 and Ninety-first regiments, the first battalion of the Rifle 
 Brigade, and the Cape Mounted Riflemen. This army, ad- 
 vancing in two divisions, after undergoing the most harassing 
 service, exposed continually to the attack of an unseen and 
 treacherous enemy, at length so hunted down the guerilla 
 bands which infested the country, that the Kaffirs were glad 
 to purchase peace by the surrender, as hostages, of their chief 
 Sandilli, together with his brother and eighty of his princi- 
 pal followers. "During this long and protracted desultory 
 warfare great fatigue and exertions had been undergone with 
 
PERTHSHIRE VOLrXTEERS. * 200 
 
 the characteristic heroism of the British soldier; and the 
 humanity and forbearance disphiyed by him towards the 
 tickle, treacherous, and revengeful enemy, were as conspicuous 
 ;vs hi.^ bravery," 
 
 Tlie Ninetieth joined the " army of the Crimea " before 
 Sebastopol early in December, 1854, and served during that 
 fiital winter when so many brave men fell the victims of 
 disease, induced by the hardships to which they were exposed, 
 and which so abundantly displayed the unmurmuring firm- 
 ness of the British soldier, so graciously cheered l)y the 
 sympathy of our beloved Queen, who thus beautifully ex- 
 pressing her feelings, has unwittingly rewarded the heroic 
 endurance of our soldiers, by conferring, in these words, a 
 well-merited tribute to their bravery, which must ever be 
 treasured by our country: — 
 
 " Would you tell Mrs Herbert that I begged she would let 
 me see frequently the accounts she receives from ^liss Night- 
 ingale or ^Ira Bracebridge, as I hear no details of the wounded, 
 though I sec so many from ofticers, etc., about the battle- 
 field, and naturally the former must interest mc more than 
 any one. Let IMrs Herbert also know that I wish Miss Night- 
 ingale and the ladies wouM tell these poor noble woundetl and 
 sick men that no one takes a warmer interest, or feels more 
 for their sutTerings, or admires their courage and heroism more 
 than their Queen. Day and night she thinks of her beloved 
 troops; so does the Prince. Beg Mrs Herbert to communicate 
 these my words to those ladies, as I know that our sympathy 
 
 is much valued by these noble fellows. Victoria." 
 
 2b 
 
210 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 It was during the tliird bombardment of Sebastopol, and 
 in tlie assault and defence of tlie fortifications known as tlie 
 Quarries, that the Ninetieth first seriously encountered the 
 Eussians. In this attack, which took place on the 7th June, 
 1855, the regiment was gallantly led by Lieut.-Colonel Eobert 
 Campbell, who fell severely wounded. Belonging to the 
 Light Division, it afterwards formed part of the assailing 
 force which so heroically yet unsuccessfully attempted to 
 carry the powerful defences of the Eedan. Fearing the result 
 of a second assault, sustained by the same impetuous valour, 
 and incited by the resolve to wipe out the seeming stain of 
 the previous repulse, the Eussians declining the contest, beat a 
 timely retreat, evacuating that portion of the fortifications 
 deemed no longer tenable, and by a series of masterly move- 
 ments successfully efiecting an escape to the other side of the 
 harbour, from whence the Governor negotiated the surrender 
 of the entire city. These good tidings, received with joy by 
 all classes at home, elicited from the Throne the following 
 expression of our nation's gratitude to the heroes of the 
 " Crimean Army :" — 
 
 " The Queen has received with deep emotion the welcome 
 intelligence of the fall of Sebastopol. Penetrated with pro- 
 found gratitude to the Almighty, who has vouchsafed this 
 triumph to the allied army, Her Majesty has commanded me 
 to express to yourself, and through you to her army, the pride 
 with which she regards this fresh instance of their heroism. 
 The Queen congratulates her troops on the triumphant issue 
 of their protracted siege, and thanks them for the cheerfulness 
 
I'EKTllSIimE VOLUNTEERS. 211 
 
 and fortitude with wliich they have encoimtered its toils, aud 
 the valour which has led to its termiuation. The Queen 
 deeply laments that this suecess is not without its alloy, in the 
 heavy losses that have been sustained; and while she rejoices 
 in the victory, ller Majesty deeply sympathizes with the noble 
 sufl'erei-s in their country's cause." 
 
 It remains for us now simply to record the memorable 
 services of the Ninetieth in that dark jieriod of our country's 
 history — the Indian Mutiny. Brigaded with our Higldanders, 
 "Havelock's Seventy-eighth — the Saints," the regiment was 
 advanced, under Generals Outram and Ilavelock, for the relief 
 of Lucknow. Whilst guardino; the bam2:anre near the Alum- 
 bagh, the Ninetieth was fiercely attacked l)y a strong column 
 of the rebel cavalry, and it was only after a desperate fight and 
 much loss that the mutineers were repulsed and dispersed. 
 The further relief of Lucknow being accomplished by Sir 
 Colin Campbell, now Lord Clyde, the regiment was there- 
 after engaged with the Forty-second and Fifty-third storm- 
 ing the position of the mutineers at the Martinicre. The 
 numerous acts of indivi<lual bravery which marked the con- 
 duct of 80 man}' of our Perthshire Volunteers have received, 
 as the reward of distinguishetl merit, the decoration of the 
 "Victoria Cross;" whilst Perthshire may well indulge a becom- 
 ing pride as slie reviews the famous achievements of her 
 soldier sons. 
 
 ** Courage, therefore, brother-men. 
 Cry 'Ctntl!' and to the fight .igaiu." 
 
THE NINETY-FIEST FOOT; 
 
 OB, 
 
 AEGYLLSHIEE, ORIGINALLY HIGHLAKDEES. 
 
 CHAPTEE XXII. 
 
 " The Campbells they are a' in arms, 
 Their loyal faith and truth to show, 
 With banners ratthug in the wind; 
 
 The Campbells are coming, 0-ho, 0-ho!" 
 
 1794-1862 — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE — PENINSULA — CORUNNA — SHIP- 
 WRECK—KAFFIR WARS — INDIAN MUTINY. 
 
 To the cursory reader of Scottisli history it appears some- 
 what strange that a chief such as the Duke of Argyll, who, 
 of first importance amongst our Scottish nobility, possessed 
 of so vast a territory, and exercising an almost regal power — 
 notwithstanding the military character of his family, and the 
 many officers of celebrity who have sprung from among his 
 vassals — should have comparatively failed to induce his 
 tenantry, so famed for bravery in our national wars, to 
 assume, as a body of soldiers distinctively belonging to the 
 
THE NINETY-FIRST FOOT. 213 
 
 clan of Campbell, that prominence in our army to which 
 their ancient renown entitles them. This may be explained 
 in the fact that the natives of Argyllshire have always mani- 
 fested a strong predilection for the navy rather than the 
 army, probably arising from the almost insular position of the 
 county, and the sea-faring life of so many of its people. The 
 Ninety-first, at first numbered the Ninety-eighth, which now 
 remains the only, and, in our day, ill-defined representative 
 of the martial renown of the Campbells, was raised by Lieut.- 
 Colonel Duncan Campbell of Lochnell, and embodied at 
 Stirling in 1794. It was almost immediately thereafter 
 embarked for service at the Cape of Good Hope, where it 
 remained until that colony was restored to the Dutch in 
 1801. The severe and constant drain which had drafted 
 from the scanty popidation of our Highlands and Lowlands 
 whole regiments of recruits, had so exhausted the military 
 resources of our country that, in 1809, it was found impos- 
 sible to maintain all the numerous Gaelic corps which then 
 existed in their original national integrity and completeness. 
 Hence the Seventy-third, Seventy-fifth, Ninety-first, and the 
 old Ninety-fourth (Scots Brigade), were of necessity doomed 
 to lay aside the Highland costume, and, to a great extent, 
 abandon their Scottish character. This regiment was pre- 
 sent in the brigade of Brigadier-General Craufurd in reserve 
 at the battles of Roleia and Vimiera in 1808, which seemed 
 to foreshadow the triumphs of after years. It was also with 
 the array of Sir John Moore in his disastrous retreat, termi- 
 nated so gloriously in the victory of Corunna, the lustre of 
 
214 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 which was only dimmed by the death of the hero, who fell 
 whilst yet achieviDg it, and whose decease Marshal Soult, 
 with a true soldier spirit, alike with ourselves lamented. 
 Chivalrously he paid the last tribute of military respect to 
 the departed brave, by firing the funeral salute, and raising 
 a monument over the grave of his fallen foe. The generous 
 behaviour of Marshal Soult, notwithstanding his after faults, 
 must ever command our admiration, and remain a record of 
 his own nobleness — the tribute of the friend of the brave; 
 and justified the ovation he received at the hands of the 
 British public, when he visited our shores as the ambassador 
 of Louis Philippe. 
 
 For a moment the success of the French seemed complete, 
 and the sway of Napoleon universal ; whilst the British army 
 appeared, as had been often threatened, " driven into the sea." 
 But the British meantime returning to England, the chasms 
 which want, fatigue, and the sword had occasioned in the 
 recent retreat, were speedily filled up, and now our army 
 only waited the opportunity when, returning to the Peninsula, 
 it should avenge the past and deliver the oppressed. Soon, 
 under Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Wellesley, landed at 
 Lisbon, it began that victorious career which, by a per- 
 petual series of successes, advanced the tide of war through 
 Spain, and, at length entering France, helped materially to 
 overthrow the dominion which the Empire had usurped. 
 Although the Ninety-first claims an interest in the actions of 
 the "Peninsula," it was not until the British army was about 
 entering France that its connection therewith led to con- 
 
THE NINETY-FIRST FOOT. I'lf) 
 
 spicuoiis service — the memorials of which are still borne upon 
 the colours and appointments of the regiment in these words : 
 the "Pyrenees," the "Nive," the "Nivelle," " Orthes," and 
 " Toulouse." 
 
 From these scenes of stirrin2; and thrillinfj interest, we 
 turn to record a siinial instance of heroism which, occurrinix 
 nearer our own time, presents an illustrious example of 
 the qualities which brightly distinguish the British soldier 
 far more truly than even the triumphs of the battle-field. 
 We give the incident as inscribe<l by order of the Duke of 
 Wellington in the Eecords of the Regiment, who declared " he 
 had never read anything so satisfactory," that is, in its com- 
 pilation, and the marvellous obedience to orders and fidelity 
 to duty it serves as a report to show : — 
 
 "The reserve battalion of the Ninety-first Regiment 
 arrived in Table Bay on the 25th of August, 1842, under the 
 commanti of Lieut.-Colonel Lindsay. 
 
 "On the 27th of August the command of the battalion 
 and of the detachments embarked on board the 'Abercrombie 
 Robinson' transport, devolved on Captain Bertie Gordon of 
 the Ninety-first Regiment, Lieut.-Colonel Lindsay and ^lajor 
 Ducat having landed on that day at Cape Town. 
 
 "The situation of the transport was considered a dangerous 
 one from her size (being 1430 tons), and from the insuflicient 
 depth of water in which she had brought up. The port- 
 captain, who boarded her on the evening of the 25th, advised 
 the captain to take up another berth on the following day. 
 This was impossible, for the wind blew strong into the bay 
 
216 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 from the quarter which is so much dreaded there, and had 
 continued to increase in violence during the 26th, 27th, and 
 28th August. 
 
 "At eleven o'clock p.m., on the night of the 27th, it was 
 blowing a strong gale, and the sea was rolling heavily into 
 the bay. The ship was pitching much, and she began to feel 
 the ground; but she rode by two anchors, and much cable 
 had been veered out the nio;ht before. 
 
 " Captain Gordon made such arrangements as he could, in 
 warning the officers, the sergeant-major, and orderly non- 
 commissioned officers to be in readiness. 
 
 "From sunset on the 27th the gale had continued to 
 increase, until at length it blew a tremendous hurricane; and 
 at a little after three a.m., on the morning of the 28th, the 
 starboard cable snapped in two; the other cable parted in two 
 or three minutes afterwards, and away went the ship before 
 the storm, her hull striking, with heavy crashes, against the 
 ground as she drove towards the beach, three miles distant, 
 under her lee. 
 
 " About this time the fury of the gale, which had never 
 lessened, was rendered more terrible by one of the most awful 
 storms of thunder and lio;htnin2j that had ever been witnessed 
 in Table Bay. While the force of the wind and sea was 
 driving the ship into shoaler water, she rolled incessantly; 
 and heaved over so much with the back-set of the surf, 
 that to the possibility of her going to pieces before day- 
 light, was added the probability of settling down to wind- 
 ward, when the decks must have inevitably filled, and 
 
THE NINETY-FIRST FOOT. 217 
 
 every one of the seven huiulred souls ou board must have 
 perisheil. 
 
 " Wliile in this position the heavy seas broke over her side 
 and poured down tlio hatchways. The decks were opening in 
 every direction, and the strong framework of the hull seemed 
 compressed together, starting the beams from their places. 
 Tlie ship had been driven with her starboard-bow towards the 
 beach, exposing her stern to the sea, which rushed through 
 the stern ports and tore up the cabin floors of the orlop-deck. 
 
 "Tlie thunder and liditnini' ceased towards mornintr, and 
 the ship seemed to have worked a bed for hei-self in the .sand, 
 for the terrible rolling had greatly diminished, and there then 
 arose the hope that all on board would get safe ashore. 
 
 "At daybreak (about seven o'clock), it was just possible 
 to distinguish some people on tjhe beach opposite to the wreck. 
 Owing to the fear of the masts, spars, and rigging falling, as 
 well as to keep as much top-weight as possible off the ship's 
 decks, the troops had been kept below, but were now allowctl 
 to come on deck in small numbers. 
 
 "An attempt was made to send a rope ashore; and one of 
 
 the best swimmers, a Krooman, volunteered the trial with a 
 
 rope round his body; but the back-set of the surf was too 
 
 much for him. A line tied to a spar never got beyond the 
 
 ship's bows, and one fired from a cannon also failed. One of 
 
 the cutters was then carefully lowered on the lee-side of the 
 
 ship, and her crew succeedetl in reaching the shore with a 
 
 haiding hne. Two large surf-boats were shortly afterwards 
 
 conveyed in waggons to the place where the ship was stranded, 
 
 2c 
 
218 HISTOEY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 and the foUowiDg orders were given by Captain Gordon for 
 tlie disembarkation of the troops, viz. : — 
 
 " 1st. The women and children to disembark (of these 
 there were about seventy). 2d. The sick to disembark after 
 the women and children. 3d. The disembarkation of the 
 troops to take place by the companies of the Ninety-first draw- 
 ing lots; the detachments of the Twenty-seventh Eegiment 
 and of the Cape Mounted Eiflemen taldng the precedence. 
 4th. The men to fall in on the upper deck, fully armed and 
 accoutred, carrying their knapsacks aud great-coats. 5th, 
 Each officer to be allowed to take a carpet-bag or small port- 
 manteau. 
 
 " The disembarkation of the women and children and of the 
 sick occupied from half-past eight until ten o'clock a.m. The 
 detachments of the Twenty-seventh Regiment and of the Cape 
 Mounted Riflemen followed. That of the Ninety-first was 
 arranged by the wings drawing lots, and then the companies 
 of each wing. 
 
 "At half-past ten a.m., one of the surf-boats which had 
 been employed up to this time in taking the people ofi" the 
 wreck, was required to assist in saving the lives of those on 
 board the 'Waterloo' convict ship, which was in stiU more 
 imminent peril, about a quarter of a mile from the ' Aber- 
 crombie Robinson.' 
 
 "Havino; now but one boat to disembark four hundred 
 and fifty men, and the wind and sea, which had subsided a 
 little since daylight, beginning again to rise, together with the 
 captain's apprehension that she might go to pieces before 
 
THE NINETY-FIRST FOOT. J II) 
 
 sunset — which (however unfounded, as was afterwards proved,) 
 powerfully intluenced Captain Gordon's arrangements — it 
 became necessary to abandon the men's knapsacks, as they not 
 only filled a greater space in the surf-boats than could be 
 spared, but took a long time to hand down the shi[)'s side. 
 The knapsacks had been brought on deck, but were now, for 
 these reasons, sent below again, and stowed away in the 
 women's standing-berths. 
 
 "The officers were likewise informed that they would not 
 be allowed to take more than each could carry on his arm. 
 The disembarkation of the six companies went on regularly, 
 but slowly, from eleven a.m. until half-pa-st throe p.m.; there 
 being but one boat, which could only hold thirty men at a 
 time. At half-past three p.m., the last boat-load left the ship's 
 side. It contained those of the ship's officers and crew who 
 had remained to the last; the sergeant-major of the reserve 
 battalion Ninety-first; one or two non-commissioned officers, 
 who had requested permission to remain; Captain (Jordon, 
 Ninety-first Regiment; and Lieutenant lilack, K.N., agent of 
 trans]X)rts. This officer had dined at Government House the 
 night before, but came on board the wreck with one of the 
 first surf-boats that reacheil it on the foUowiug morning. 
 
 " Nearly seven hundred souls completed their disembarka- 
 tion after a night of gi-eat peril, and through a raging surf, 
 without the occurrence of a single casualty. Among them 
 were many women and children, and several sick men, of 
 whom two were sup|K>scd to be dying. 
 
 " Although it had been deemeil prudent to abandon the 
 
220 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 men's knapsacks and tlie officers' baggage, the reserve battalion 
 of the Ninety-first Regiment went down tlie side of that 
 shattered wreck, fully armed and accoutred, and, with the 
 exception of their knapsacks, ready for instant service. It 
 would be diflicult to praise sufficiently the steady discipline of 
 that young and newly-formed battalion, thus severely tested 
 during nearly seventeen hours of danger; above eight of which 
 were hours of darkness and imminent peril. That discipline 
 failed not, when the apparent hopelessness of our situation 
 might have led to scenes of confusion and crime. The double 
 guards and sentries Avhich had at first been posted over the 
 wine and spirit stores, were found unnecessary, and they were 
 ultimately left to the ordinary protection of single sentries. 
 
 "Although the ship was straining in every timber, and 
 the heavy seas were making a fair breach over us, the com- 
 panies of that young battalion fell in on the weather-side of 
 the wreck, as their lots were drawn, and waited for their turn 
 to muster at the Ice-gaugway: and so perfect was their confi- 
 dence, their patience, and their gallantry, that although 
 another vessel was going to pieces within a quarter of a mile 
 of us, and a crowd of soldiers, sailors, and convicts were 
 perishing before their eyes, not a murmur arose from their 
 ranks when Captain Gordon directed that the lot should not 
 be applied to the detachments of the Twenty-seventh Eegiment 
 and Cape Mounted Eiflemen, but that the Ninety-first should 
 yield to them the precedence in disembarking from the wreck. 
 
 " The officers of the Ninety-first Regiment who disembarked 
 with the battalion were Captains Gordon and Ward, Lieutenant 
 
THE NINETY-FIRST FOOT. 221 
 
 Cahill, Ensigns ISl'Iuroy and Lavcrs, and Assistant-Surgeon 
 Stubbs. If from among the ranks of men who all behaved so 
 well, it were allowable to particularise any, the names of 
 Acting Sergeant - Major Murphy, Colour - Sergeant Philips, 
 Sergeant ^lurray, and Corporal Thomas Nugent, deserve this 
 distinction. It was through the first that Captain Gordon 
 communicated his orders, and carried them into execution. 
 Every order he (Sergeant-iSIajor ^lurphy) received was obeyed, 
 during the confusion of a wreck, with the exactness of a 
 paradc-groimd. He never left the particular part of the ship 
 where he had been stationed, during the darkness and terror 
 of the night, although a wife and child seemed to claim a 
 portion of his solicitude; and when he received permission to 
 accompany them into the surf-boat, he petitioned to be allowed 
 to remain with Captain Gordon to the last. 
 
 " The two sergeants were young lads, barely twenty-two 
 years of age. They had married shortly before the battalion 
 embarked at Kijigstown, and their wives (quite girls) were 
 clinging to them for support and comfort when the ship parted 
 from her anchors. The guards were ordered to be doubled, 
 and additional sergeants were posted to each. This brought 
 Sergeants Philips and Murray on duty. AVithout a murmur 
 they left their wives and joined the guards of the lower deck. 
 Their example of perfect obedience and discipline was eminently 
 useful. 
 
 " And, if an ofliccr's name may be mentioned, the conduct 
 of Assistant-Surgeon Stubbs well deserves notice, lie was in 
 wretched health; but on the first announcement of danger he 
 
222 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 repaired to the sick-bay, and never left his charge until they 
 were all safely lauded. 
 
 " And, though last in this narrative, the beautiful calmness 
 and resignation of the soldiers' wives ouoht to be ranked 
 among the first of those ingredients of order which contributed 
 to our safety. Confusion, terror, and despair, joined to the 
 wildest shrieks, were fast spreading their dangerous influence 
 from the women's quarter when Captain Gordon first descended 
 among the people on the lower decks. A few words sufliced 
 to quiet them, and from that moment their patience and sub- 
 mission never faltered. 
 
 " By half-past three p.m. the bilged and broken wreck was 
 abandoned with all the stores and baggage — public and regi- 
 mental — to the fast-increasing gale, and to the chances of the 
 approaching night." 
 
 The excellent conduct of the Ninety-first throughout the 
 Kaffir Wars of 1846-47, and again in 1850-53, received, with 
 the army, the grateful thanks of the country, conveyed through 
 the Government, in these expressive terms, to Lieutenant- 
 General the Hon. Sir George Cathcart : — " The field of glory 
 opened to them in a Kaffir war and Hottentot rebellion, is 
 possibly not so favourable and exciting as that which regular 
 warfare with an open enemy in the field afibrds, yet the 
 unremitting exertions called for in hunting well-armed yet 
 skulking savages through the bush, and driving them from 
 their innumerable strongholds, are perhaps more arduous 
 than those required in regular warfare, and call more con- 
 stantly for individual exertion and intelligence. The British 
 
THE NINETY-FTBST FOOT. 223 
 
 soklier, always cheerfully obedient to the call, well knows that, 
 when he has done his duty, he is sure to obtain the thanks 
 and good opinion of his gracious Queen." 
 
 The subsequent foreign service of the Ninety-first has 
 been in the Mediterranean, and in September, 1S58, it pro- 
 ceeded overland to India. 
 
THE SCOTS BEIGADE; 
 
 OB, 
 
 THE OLD NINETY-FOTJETH FOOT. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 " When midniglit hour is come, 
 
 The drummer foi^sakes his tomb, 
 And marches, beating his phautom-drum, 
 To and fro through the ghastly gloom. 
 
 " He plies the drum-sticts twain, 
 "With fleshless fingers pale, 
 And beats, and beats again, and again, 
 A long and dreary re veil! 
 
 " Like the voice of abysmal waves 
 Resounds its unearthly tone, 
 Till the dead old soldiers, long in their graves, 
 Awaken through every zone." 
 
 "When we regard tlie battle-fields of earth, and think of the 
 mighty dead who slumber there, apart from feelings of 
 sentimental or real respect for the sacred dust, imagination 
 animates the scene, as Memory, conjuring up from the graves 
 of the past, bids us confront the soldiers who lived, and fought, 
 and have long since died to " gild a martial story." Yet it is 
 
THE OLD NINETY-FOURTH FOOT. 225 
 
 our business, in the present undertaking, to gather from tho 
 mouUlering records of a bygone age, tlie truth, and rescue 
 from the shades of oblivion that " martial story " which 
 belongs to the soldiers of Scotland. 
 
 The Old Scots Brigade claims an antiijuity of nearly 300 
 years, and only pelds in prominence to that of the Royal 
 Scots, which in previous chapters we have discussed. The 
 love of adventure, the hope of gain, and the troubles at home 
 having variously conspired to expatriate many Scotsmen, 
 these readily found employment in the armies of the Con- 
 tinent, wherein, conspicuous for fidelity and braver}', their 
 services were highly appreciated, frequently honoured as a 
 distinctive, select corps, or as a body of royal guards. In 
 the States of Holland, about the year 1568, our countrymen 
 were included in numerous independent companies of soldiers, 
 which, in 1572, united into several regiments, constituted one 
 brigade — the Old Scots Brigade — the strength of which varied 
 from four to five thousand men. 
 
 " The first mention we find of their distinmiished behaviour 
 was at the battle of Reminant, near Mechlin, in the year 1578; 
 the most bloody part of the action, says Meteren, a Dutch 
 historian, was sustained by the Scotch, who fought without 
 armour, and in their shirts, because of the great heat of the 
 weather. After an obstinate engagement, the Spaniards, com- 
 manded by Don Juan of Austria, were defeated." 
 
 Throughout the long and sanguinary wars which ulti- 
 mately resulted in the deliverance of Hollan<l from the dominion 
 
 of Spain, the valiant behaviour of the Scots was very remark- 
 
 2d 
 
226 HISTOKY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 able, and is honourably recorded in most of the old histories 
 of the period. The brigade was originally commanded by 
 General Balfour, and under him by Colonel Murray and 
 Walter Scott, Lord of Buccleugh. It learned the business of 
 war under those great masters of the art, the Princes Maurice 
 and Frederick Henry of Orange. Its early history is one with 
 that of the present Fifth and Sixth Eegiments of the line, 
 which then constituted the English Brigade, long commanded 
 by the noble family of De Vere, afterward the illustrious 
 House of Oxford, " King James VI. of Scotland having in- 
 vited the States-General to be sponsors to his new-born son, 
 Prince Henry, on the departure of the ambassadors, fifteen 
 hundred Scots were sent over to Holland to au2;ment the 
 brigade." 
 
 At the battle of Nieuport, in 1600, the firmness of the 
 Scots Brigade saved the army of Prince Maurice from im- 
 minent danger, and contributed largely in attaining the 
 victory gained over the Spanish army of the Archduke Albert 
 of Austria. " After having bravely defended the bridge like 
 good soldiers, they were at length forced to give way, the 
 whole loss having fallen on the Scots, as well on their chiefs 
 and captains as on the common soldiers, insomuch that eight 
 hundred of them remained on the field, amongst whom were 
 eleven captains, and many lieutenants and other officers." 
 
 At the siege of Ostend the Scots, by their unflinching- 
 steadiness, helped so materially in the defence that the giant 
 eff'orts of the enemy under the Marquis Spinola, one of the 
 ablest of the Spanish Generals, failed to accomplish its re- 
 
lilh "'LI. NINETY -FOURTH 1-OoT. 2:27 
 
 cluction by force of arms. A capituhition, honourable alike 
 to besieger aud besieged, was agreed upon; "and the garrison 
 mardied out with arms, ammunition, and liaggage, drums 
 beating, and colours Hying, after having held out three years 
 and three months." 
 
 "According to a memorial found in the pocket of an 
 otiicer of Si)inola'3 suite, after he was killed, the number 
 of slain on the side of the Spaniards amounted in all to 
 seventy-six thousand nine hundred and sixty-one men. Tiie 
 loss on the part of the States was not less than fifty 
 thousand. When the remaining garrison, which consisted 
 of only three thousand men, arrived at Sluice in P'landers, 
 Prince Maurice received them with the pomp of a triumph; 
 and both oflScers and private men were promoted or otherwise 
 rewarded." 
 
 The gallant conduct of Colonel Henderson, who commande<l 
 the brigade in the defence of Bergen -op-Zoom in 1621, is 
 worthy of note. At the siege of Bois-le-duc in 1629 we find 
 the brigade composed of three regiments, respectively com- 
 mande<.l by Colonels Bruce, llalket, and Scott (Earl of Buc- 
 cleugh, sou of the Lord of Buccleugh previously mentioned). 
 We do not pretend here to follow the narrative of sieges 
 and battles in which the brigade was at this period en- 
 gaged. We shall only further mention that at the siege of 
 Siis-van-Ghent in 1644, Colonel Erskine, at the head of one of 
 the Scots regiments, won great renown by his excellent 
 bravery, being foremost in effecting the ]>assage of the river 
 Lys; and again, at the siege of Ohcnt, O^lonel Kilpatrick and 
 
228 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 another Scots regiment fulfilled a similar mission with equal 
 credit. The peace of Munster, concluded in 1648, gave an 
 honourable issue to the contest in favour of the Dutch, who, 
 for a little while, were permitted to enjoy repose from the 
 horrid turmoil of war. 
 
 The British Revolution, which drove Charles II. from 
 the throne of his father and established instead the Pro- 
 tectorate of Cromwell, occasioning his exile — a king without 
 a kingdom or a throne — his Scots partizans, sharing his 
 banishment, greatly recruited the Brigade, where many of 
 them gladly found refuge and honourable employment. 
 
 Cromwell, in the plenitude of power, insisted upon the 
 Dutch Estates declariuo; the exclusion of the House of Oran2;e 
 from the Stadtholdership, thereby hoping to break what 
 appeared to be an antagonistic power to his rule, because of 
 the bond which, by marriage, united the families of Orange 
 and Stuart, imagining, in the blindness of bigotry, thereby to 
 crush out the last remnant of Jacobitism, and extirpate the 
 creed which had inflicted so many and grievous evils upon 
 his country. The effect of this unfortunate exclusion Act was 
 immediately felt throughout the States of Holland in the con- 
 fusion and distress which it entailed. Takins; advantao;e of 
 these circumstances, and the imbecility of its rulers, the crafty 
 and ambitious monarch of France, Louis XIV., without pro- 
 vocation, and with no other aim than his own aggrandisement, 
 at once invaded Holland with three vast armies, under three 
 of the greatest soldiers of the day — Conde, Turenne, and 
 Luxembourir. With these difficulties and dansfers the embar- 
 
THE OLD NINETY-FOUUTH FOOT. 229 
 
 rassments of tlie State so iucreased that its feeble rulers in this 
 hour of terror implored the aid of William, Prince of Orange, 
 readily restoring all the rights they had formerly despoiled 
 him of, and conferring upon him the powers of a Dictatoi'ship. 
 The genius of A\'illiam proved ecpial to the emergency. At 
 once he set to work, restoring the army to its ancient vigour, 
 and reforming all manner of abuses which had crept into the 
 government. 
 
 Vs'e are happy to record that, however weak and faulty 
 the Dutch army had become, the Scots Brigade retained its 
 eflectiveness, despite the languor of the State, and, in con- 
 sequence, particularly enjoyed the Prince's confidence on his 
 restoration. It was commanded by Colonels Sir ^Uexander 
 Colyear (Robertson), Graham, and Mackay, in 1G73. United 
 into one J>ritish brigade, the three Scots and the three 
 Eui'lirih rciiiments served to<rether under Thomas Butler, 
 Earl of Ossory, throughout the wars with France. On the 
 death of the Earl of Ossory in IGSO, the command was 
 conferred upon Henry Sidney, Earl of Roniney. 
 
 On* the outbreak of Monmouth's Rebellion in England and 
 Argyll's Rebellion in Scotland, King James II. sent for the 
 three Scots regiments, then serving in Holland, which, on 
 being reviewed by the King on their arrival at Gravesend, 
 drew forth the following compliment, expressed in a letter of 
 thanks to the Prince of Orange for his prompt aid — "There 
 cannot be, I am sure, better men than they are; and they 
 do truly look like old regiments, and one cannot be better 
 plciisctl with them than I am." 
 
230 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Colonel I J ugh ]\Iackay, who commanded the brigade on 
 this occasion, was promoted to the rank of Major-General. 
 
 On the return of these regiments to Holland, the perfidy 
 and ingratitude of James gradually oused out and revealed his 
 truer character. Eightly esteeming the value of such soldiers 
 to the Prince of Orange, and ever jealous of that Prince's 
 increasing power, he vainly attempted to seduce the brigade 
 and persuade it to exchange into the service of the King of 
 France. He was further extremely mortified to find that, apart 
 from the influence of the Prince, the men declined to serve 
 under the Roman Catholic officer he proposed to appoint. 
 When dangers thickened around himself, he earnestly desired 
 its return; alas, too late! already sickened with his unworthy 
 conduct, the brigade refused to obey. 
 
 In the subsequent Revolution the English and Scots 
 brigades were of essential service to the Prince of Orange — 
 "commanded by General Mackay, a Scotsman of noble family, 
 sailed under the red flas;." 
 
 At the battle of Killiecrankie the Scots Brigade was pre- 
 sent, but unable to withstand the furious onset of the High- 
 landers, betrayed a weakness altogether inconsistent with its 
 previous reputation, being utterly routed and dispersed. It is 
 very remarkable that Viscount Dundee and General Cannoji, 
 who commanded the rebels, had both previously served in tlie 
 Scots Brigade. Afterwards, employed with the Royal army 
 in Ireland, it somewhat redeemed its character by good conduct 
 at the siege of Athlone and the battle of Aghrim, at both which 
 it held the post of peril and of honour with great credit. 
 
Tin: ol.l" MNi;TY-ll>l HIT I KtOT. 231 
 
 Peace liaving been restored to unhappy Irchuul, the brigade 
 was sent to join the British army in Fhmders, and at the 
 battle of Steenkirk suftered severely, especially in the death of 
 General Mackay, who finished a career of honour on that 
 bloody fiL'ld. The retreat of the allied army in 161)5 was 
 successfully covered by the Scots under Brigadier Colyear, 
 afterwards Earl of Portmore. On tiie death of Brigadier 
 /Eneas ^laekay, at the siege of Nanmr, the command of the 
 Scots regiments was conferred on Robert Murray of Melgum, 
 afterwards General Count jNIurray, Commander-in-Chief of the 
 Emperor Joseph's forces in the Netherlands, and acting 
 Governor-Genenil of these provinces. On the Peace of Ryswick 
 in 1697, the Scots Brigade returne<.l with the army to Britain, 
 and was stationed in Scotland until 1698, when it was restored 
 to the service of Holland. 
 
 During the Wars of the Succession the Brifrade was 
 increased by the addition of three new Scots regiments, and 
 the command conferred on John, Duke of Argyll — the "Great 
 Argyll" — of whom it is well said — 
 
 "Arjryll, the State's whole thunder Iwni to wieKl, 
 .-Villi lUmke alike the Council and the Field." 
 
 It was hotly engageil in all the great actions of the war, and 
 amongst the fearfid carnage of Malplaquet mourned the loss 
 of a brave officer, John, Marquis of Tullibardine, eldest sou of 
 the Duke of Athole. On the conclusion of hostilities, in 1713, 
 the three new regiments of the brigade were disbandetl. The 
 peace was not again seriously disturl^ until 1745, when the 
 
232 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 outbreak of war occasioned the increase of the brigade Ijy the 
 addition of second battalions, and a new regiment under com- 
 mand of Henry Douglas, Earl of Drumlanrig. The total 
 strength of the brigade at this time rose to about 6000 men. 
 At the battle of Roucoux five battalions of the Scots, forming 
 the extremity of the left infantry wing, covered the retreat of 
 the troops from the villages abandoned in front. "An ofiicer 
 who was present relates that General Colyear's regiment, in 
 which he then served as an Ensign, was drawn up on the 
 ridge of a rising ground, the slope of which was to the rear, 
 so that by retiring a few paces the cannon-balls must have 
 passed over their heads; but it was thought requisite that they 
 should appear in full view of the French, who kept up an 
 incessant fire of their artillery upon them for more than two 
 hours, without ever advancing near enough to engage with 
 small arms. The ardour of British soldiers to charge an enemy 
 by whose fire they saw their comrades fall on every side, may 
 easily be conceived, but was so much restrained by the autho- 
 rity of their officers, that the whole brigade seemed immove- 
 able, except when the frequent breaches which the cannon 
 made in the ranks required to be closed up. The intrepidity 
 and perfect order which those battalions then showed, were 
 greatly extolled ever after by the Prince of Waldeck, and 
 likewise by Baron d'Aylva, a Dutch General of distinguished 
 reputation, who happened to have the command of that part 
 of the army. He had before shown a violent prejudice against 
 the Scots," but their gallantry on that memorable occasion so 
 impressed him, that ever after he regarded the Scots with 
 

 J- 
 
 nFPir.FR OF PiKEyEN. 1650. 
 
Tilt: OLl» MNKrV-FOURTH FoOT. 233 
 
 peculiar favour, ami ou ouo occasion in his presence, a certain 
 Prince having observed that the Scottish soldiers were not of 
 such a size as those of some German regiments, the General 
 replied, " I saw the day that they looked taller than any of 
 your grenadiers." 
 
 In the defence of Bergen-op-Zoom, two of the Scotch bat- 
 talions, supported by a Dutch battalion of infantry, made a 
 most determined stand, refusing for a long time to yield ground 
 to the enemy, until superior numbers compelled them to retire. 
 Some idea of the severity of the strup^gle may be formed from 
 the fact that Colyear's battalion, which had gone into action 
 660 strong, could only muster 156 men afterwards. It is 
 thus described by an old writer: — "Overpowered by numbers, 
 deserted, and alone, the Scotch assembled in the market-place 
 and attacked the French with such vigour that they drove 
 them from street to street, till fresh reinforcements pouring in 
 compelled them to retreat in their turn, disputing every inc-li 
 as they retired, and fighting till two-thirds of their number 
 fell on the spot, valiantly bringing their colours with them, 
 which the grenadiers twice recovered from the midst of tlie 
 French at the point of the bayonet. 'Gentlemen,' said the 
 conquering General to two officers who had been taken 
 prisoners — Lieutenants Travcrs and Allan Maclean — 'had all 
 conducted themselves as you and your brave corps have doni-. 
 I should not now be master of Bergen-op-Zoom.' " 
 
 Succeeding the sunshine of victory, there arose a cloud 
 \\Y>on its histor)' which we wish, f(>r the credit of our Govern- 
 ment, we could omit to record. Denied the privileue «>f 
 
 2k * 
 
234 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 further recruiting at home, the States of Holland insisted 
 upon the admission of foreigners into its ranks, and thus 
 to a great extent its Scottish character was destroyed. 
 When war broke out and our country needed troops, our 
 Scotsmen repeated the petition that their brigade should be 
 recalled for the service of their own land. The request was 
 refused, whilst regiments were raised in Scotland, and even 
 German auxiliaries enrolled upon the British establishment, 
 rather than do what appears only an act of justice to the 
 soldiers of the Old Scots Brigade. As if further to exasperate 
 the Scots, when war was declared between Britain and Hol- 
 land, and our brigade thus placed in a cruel dilemma, unheeded, 
 it was surrendered to the enemy, who, almost as prisoners 
 of war, sent it to garrison distant fortresses on the inland 
 frontier. At length recalled by George HI. in 1 7.93, it was, 
 in 1795, sent to reinforce the garrison of Gibraltar, and in the 
 following year was removed to the Cape of Good Hope. In 
 1798 it was transferred to India, where it shared with the 
 Highland regiments the glory of "Seringapatam" in 1799, 
 and the battle of "Argaum" in 1803; the former being after- 
 wards authorised for the colours and appointments. 
 
 Returning home in 1808 as the Ninety-fourth regiment, it 
 was actively and creditably engaged in the various actions of 
 Spain and the South of France, and received permission to 
 bear on its colours the words — " Ciudad Rodrigo," " Badajoz," 
 "Salamanca," "Vittoria," "Nivelle," "Orthes," and "Toulouse," 
 and also the inscription of "Peninsula." In the defence of 
 Cadiz it suffered very severely, and amongst its brave was 
 
THE OLD NINETY-FOURTH FOOT. 235 
 
 foimd a heroine — a sergeant's wife, who on this occasion dis- 
 played a remarkable degi'ee of cool courage, which is fitly 
 described in Mr Carter's admirable work, "Curiosities of War." 
 The regiment was di.sbanded at Belfa.st in 1818. A new 
 regiment, raised six years afterwards, now bears the number 
 of the Ninety-fourth, but lus yet has had no opportunity to 
 distinguish itself. We only hope it may emulate, nay, if 
 possible excel, the deeds of the Old Scots Brigade, which so 
 worthily sustained the characteristic valour of the Scot. 
 
THE NINETY-NINTH FOOT: 
 
 OB, 
 
 LANARKSHIRE. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 " How sleep the brave, -who sink to rest, 
 By all their country's wishes blest ! 
 "When spring, with dewy fingers cold, 
 Returns to deck their hallow'd mould, 
 He there shall dress a sweeter sod, 
 Than Fancy's feet have ever trod. 
 By fairy hands their knell is rung, 
 By forms unseen their dirge is sung ; 
 There Honour comes, a pilgrim gray. 
 To bless the turf that wraps their clay. 
 And Freedom shall awhile repair 
 To dwell, a weeping hermit, there !" 
 
 182i-18G2 — COLONIAL EMPIRE — SOLDIER'S LETTER — CHINA. 
 
 However deeply interested vre may personally feel in Lanark- 
 shire, and however proud Ave may be of the many gallant 
 soldiers who have gone forth from us to fight the battles of 
 our one country, still to the Ninety-ninth the relationship 
 indicated above exists scarcely but in name. Nay, even as a 
 
THE NINETY-NINTH FOOT. 237 
 
 Scottish regiment its present composition would belie its 
 seeming nativity. As in the case of many other regiments, so 
 with it, these titles have been mostly attached for purposes of 
 recruiting, and seldom bestowed to record the origin of the 
 corps. Nevertheless, it is looked for as a conse<|ueuce that 
 the designation thus conferred should serve to stimidate the 
 youth of Lanarkshire, bid them rally round the Niuety-uinth, 
 and thus constituting it their own, immortalLse its number by 
 distinguished service in its ranks. 
 
 The regiment was raised in 1824, along with the present 
 Ninety-fourth, Ninety-fifth, Ninety-sixth, Ninety-seventh, and 
 Ninety-eighth regiments, at a time when our vast colonial 
 empire demanded an augmentation of our army to ensure its 
 adet[uat€ defence. Notwithstanding the anxiety of the Ninety- 
 ninth to be released from the monotony of a passive service, 
 and engage in the more stirring scenes of battle peculiar 
 to the soldier, its brief history displays few events specially 
 calling for notice, having been doomed to quietude, and denied 
 by circumstances an opportunity of distinguishing itself during 
 the Indian or Crimean wars. The following remarkable letter 
 from one of its soldiers, extracted from Mr Carter's interesting 
 volume, the "Curiosities of War," is truly a curiosity: — 
 
 " My Lord Duke, — I mean to take the liberty of writing 
 these few lines before your Grace, flying under the protection 
 of your wings, and tnisting in your most charitable heiirt for 
 to grant my request. 
 
238 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 " May it please your Grace to reject me not, for the love 
 of the Almighty God, to whom I pray to reward your soul 
 in heaven. 
 
 " My Lord Duke, I shall convince you that I am a pt°. 
 soldier in the 99th depot, at Chatham, a servant to Her 
 Majesty since the 29th of September, 1846; likewise that I 
 was born of poor parents, who were unable to provide any 
 means of education for me but what I scraped by over-hours 
 and industry, till I grew thus eighteen years of age, and was 
 compelled to quit their sight and seek my own fortune. 
 
 " I think I am possessed of honesty, docility, faithfulness, 
 high hopes, bold spirit, and obedience towards my superiors. 
 I partly know the Irish language, to which I was brought up, 
 and am deficient of the English language, that is, of not being 
 able of peaking [(^y. speaking] it correctly. One of my past 
 days, as I was guiding a horse in a solitary place, unexpectedly 
 I burst into a flow of poetry, which successfully came from my 
 lips by no trouble. From thence I wrote during the following- 
 year a lot of poems, some of which, it was given up, being the 
 best composed in the same locality for the last forty years past. 
 How^ever, I did no treason, but all for the amusement of the 
 country. 
 
 " j\Iy Lord, I mean to shoe a little proof of it in the fol- 
 lowing lines: — 
 
 Once from at home, as I did roam my fortune for to try, 
 All alone along the road, my courage forcing high ; 
 I said sweet home, both friends and foes, I bid you all good-bye. 
 From thence I started into Cork and joinetl the 99th. 
 
THE NINETY-NINTH FOOT. 239 
 
 This famous corjw, which I oilore, is brave and full of might, 
 "With firo and uwonl, would li^dit the fiH?, and maki- thoir force rotin.-. 
 Siijiplieil an.' tluwe with Irisli IVn-t for to coini»o8o in rliyniu', 
 I pray to God hia grace upon the flaming OUth. 
 
 " My Lortl, to get an end to this rude letter, my request, 
 autl all that I want, is twelve mouths' leave, for the mere pur- 
 pose of learning both clay and night, where I could accommo- 
 date myself according to my pay, at the end of which twelve 
 months I might he fit for promotion in the protection of 
 Her ^lajesty. 
 
 " Your most obedieut Servant, 
 
 Public opinion is inclined to regard a war with China as 
 something ridiculous; to smile at the odd equipment of its 
 "Braves," and laugh at the absurd pretensions of its "Celes- 
 tials." We fancy its hosts, like a summer clond, as something 
 to be at once dissipated by the first breath of the Western 
 breeze. In this we have deceived ourselves, and on more than 
 one occasion paid the penalty of our folly in the blood of the 
 gallant few, who, overwhelmed by countless numbers, the 
 victims of a matchless perfidy, have fallen as exposed to an 
 almost certain destniction. Alone, as in a nest of hornets, we 
 felt the sting of tlefeat when we had supposed an easy victory. 
 Our discipline, our braver}', and our superior anns, faileil to 
 grasp the success we had imagined w;is to be had for the 
 mere taking. The trutli was revealed when too late; wo had 
 imderrated the valour of the foe, and too much dcspisal their 
 means of defence; then we learned l)y a bitter experience that 
 
240 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 our liaDclful of brave men, in the language of Pitt, " were 
 capable of achieving everything hut impossibilities!' 
 
 The Ninety-ninth was engaged in the recent Chinese war, 
 but only in time to share the concluding glories of the cam- 
 paign which crowned a severe and harassing contest in the 
 capture of Pekin. The good conduct of the regiment on this 
 occasion amply demonstrated the excellence of the corps — of 
 what honourable service it was capable, and betokened an 
 illustrious history, which may yet render it famous as the 
 Lanarkshire regiment, and fill a larger space in the national 
 records of "Our Brave" 
 
 " Great acts best write themselves iu their own stories; 
 They die too basely who outlive their glories." 
 
THE OLD HIGHLAND BRIGADE. 
 
 CHAP T i: R Y X V. 
 
 " In the garb of old Gaul, with the tiro of old Kume, 
 From the heath-covLT'd mountains of Scotia wo comt*, 
 Where the Konians endeavour'd our country to jpiin, 
 Hut our ancestors fought, and they fought not in vain. 
 Such is our love of liberty, our country and our Uiws, 
 That, like our ancestors of old, we'll stand in freeiloni's cause, 
 We'll bravely fight like heroes boKl for honour and applaus4.>. 
 And defy the French, with all their art, to alter our laws." 
 
 Loudon's — Montgomery's — fraser's — keith's — Campbell's 
 — DUKE OF Gordon's — Johnstone's — eraser's — m'donald's. 
 
 Passinu through the glens of the Grampians, northwanl.s or 
 westwards, we are introduced to the sterner grandeur of the 
 Scottish Higlilands. Having hrietiy viewed the glorious 
 recortls of our Lowland regiments, we feel as more im- 
 metliately in the heart of our subject when, entering upon 
 its second part, we pro^xwe to give an account of our High- 
 land regiments. We think we cannot fairly be chal]enge<l for 
 an undue partiality to the latter, or be thought guilty of 
 injustice to the former, in jrielding the prominence to the 
 Highlanders, because they retain more of the national charac- 
 teristics, whilst the Lowlan<ler8, intoniiingle<l with others. 
 
242 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 have sadly degenerated from the original purity of the Scot- 
 tish, if indeed they have not already forfeited every claim, 
 beyond the name, to be included in the catalogue of Scottish 
 regiments. 
 
 The romantic story of the clans bids us return to the 
 feudal age, when strange but true war revealed itself to be the 
 unwitting civiliser of the ancient world; apparently the 
 harbinger of evil, yet in reality the herald of good — the 
 purifier — the evil out of which, in the mysterious providence 
 of God, blessing should in the end abundantly flow. In the 
 Highlands the memorials of these barbaric times of civil strife 
 among the clans are sadly ample and very evident; scarce a 
 dell but bears traces of the ruin which fire and sword had 
 inflicted; scarce a glen but has its tale of v7oe; scarce a heath 
 but beneath the cairn gathers to its shaggy bosom the ashes of 
 some warrior chief. But there were also times in our history 
 when the stormy tempest of angry passion was at least for the 
 moment hushed, and the fiery valour of the clans, gathered 
 into one, descended from the Highlands, resistless as the moun- 
 tain torrent, to do battle for Scottish freedom in the day of 
 Scotland's need. And thus their gallant demeanour upon the 
 field of Bannockburn has waked the muse of Scott to immor- 
 talise their fame, as he beautifully tells of our "Scottish Chiefs" 
 in his " Lord of the Isles." 
 
 The devoted loyalty of the clans to the unhappy Stuarts 
 has given to their history a melancholy interest, and claims 
 our admiration, because of the dauntless resolution with which 
 they vainly strove to maintain the falling fortunes of that 
 
THE OLD HIGHL-\ND BRKJADK. 
 
 243 
 
 ilcgenerate race, although manifested on the wrong side; fur- 
 nishing, moreover, a theme for song wliich hiis given birth to 
 some of the most touching lyrics of our bards. 
 
 Shortly after the battle of Culloden the fighting strength 
 of the various chins was rated by Lord Forbes for the Govcrn- 
 nient as follows: — 
 
 Argyle, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . 3000 
 
 BroatUilbane, 
 
 
 
 . 1000 
 
 LoclmcU and other CbieftAinA of the CauipbellA, 
 
 
 
 lUOO 
 
 Macleans, ....... 
 
 
 
 500 
 
 Maclachlans, 
 
 
 
 
 
 2<K) 
 
 Stewart of Ajipin, 
 
 
 
 
 
 ;{oo 
 
 Mactlougals, 
 
 
 
 
 200 
 
 Stewart of Graiidtully, 
 
 
 
 
 300 
 
 Clan Gregor, 
 
 
 
 
 700 
 
 Duke of Athole, 
 
 
 
 
 
 30<X) 
 
 Faniuliarsi:)iw, 
 
 
 
 
 
 ->oo 
 
 Duke of Gordon, 
 
 
 
 
 
 300 
 
 Grant of Grant, 
 
 
 
 
 
 xbO 
 
 Macintosli, 
 
 
 
 
 
 mjO 
 
 Macpherson.*), 
 
 
 
 
 
 100 
 
 Frascrs, .... 
 
 
 
 
 
 '.m 
 
 Grant of Gleuinorriston, 
 
 
 
 
 
 150 
 
 Chisliolnui, 
 
 
 
 
 
 2<H) 
 
 Duke of Perth, 
 
 
 
 300 
 
 Scaforth, ... 
 
 
 lOOO 
 
 Croniarty, Soatwell, GairiDch, an 
 
 d (itiK-r LliiLltaiii^ nt lilt 
 
 
 Maokonzii'M, 
 
 
 1500 
 
 Menzikti, 
 
 
 3«X) 
 
 Munrocs, 
 
 
 300 
 
 RoSBiW, 
 
 
 600 
 
 Sutherland, 
 
 2000 
 
 MackayH, 
 
 800 
 
 Sine lairs. 
 
 IKK) 
 
 Maciionalil of Slato. 700 
 
 Macdonald of C'laiironaid. 
 
 
 
 
 
 700 
 
244 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Macdonell of Glengary, 
 
 
 
 
 500 
 
 Macdonell of Keppoch, 
 
 
 
 
 300 
 
 Macdonald of Glencoe, 
 
 
 
 
 130 
 
 Robertsons, 
 
 
 
 
 200 
 
 Camcrons, ..... 
 
 
 
 
 800 
 
 iM'KiuDon, 
 
 
 
 
 200 
 
 ftlacleod, . . . . • 
 
 
 
 
 700 
 
 The Duke of !&[ontrose, Earls of Bute and Moray, Macfarlaues 
 
 ) 
 
 Colquhomis, M'Xeils of Barra, IM'Nabs, M'Naughtans 
 
 
 Lamonts, etc., etc., 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 . 5600 
 
 31,930 
 
 Government, awakened to tlie danger which threatened the 
 peace of the country whilst the fiery valour of the clans, unre- 
 strained, ran wild — save for the chieftain who exercised a 
 species of independent sovereignty, not always for the weal of 
 the State — wisely determined to enlist the sympathy of these 
 petty tyrants on its side, and present a more usefid and nobler 
 field for the employment and development of that exceeding 
 bravery and martial spirit which have ever characterised the 
 clans, and the efi'orts of which had, when embraced in the rebel 
 army of the Stuarts, justly caused most serious alarm. "I 
 sought for merit," said the great Chatham, " wherever it was 
 to be found ; it is my boast that I was the first minister who 
 looked for it and found it in the mountains of the North. I 
 called it forth, and drew into your service a hardy and intrepid 
 race of men, who, when left by your jealousy, became a prey 
 to the artifice of your enemies, and had gone nigh to have 
 
 overturned the State These men were brought to 
 
 combat on your side, have served with fidelity, have fought 
 with valour, and conquered for you in every part of the world." 
 
 I 
 
THE OLD HIGHLAND BUIOADE. 245 
 
 About the year 1740, a variety of companies of IliglJaiul- 
 ers, known as the " Bhick AWitch," were regimented, and, under 
 the Earl of Crawford, formed the Royal Forty-second Uiyh- 
 ktnderSy whose history will be treated in succeeding chapter; 
 meanwhile, we shall shortly enumerate the several cor{)s, since 
 disl)anded, which at several periods constituted the Highland 
 Brigade. The oldest of these 
 
 Loudon's Highlanders, 
 
 was raised by the Earl of Loudon, a nobleman of great influ- 
 ence in the Highlands, in 171 "j. In its short but eventful 
 career, the regiment served with credit and fidelity during the 
 rebellion of 1745, and afterwards with equal distinction with 
 the allied army in Holland. At the battle of Preston it was 
 luifortunately captured. Having completed its term of sen-ice, 
 the regiment was disbanded in 1748. 
 
 On the outbreak of the American war, the Government 
 again appeiiled to the clans to enrol beneath the British banner, 
 ami on no occasion with more splendid success. Of the regi- 
 ments then embarked were 
 
 Montgomery's Highlanders, 
 
 raised in 1757 by Archibahl Montgomery, afterwards Eiirl of 
 Egliuton, and which scrvetl with its cotemi>orary, 
 
 Fraser's Highlanders, 
 in America throughout tlie war. Tliis last was raised, hence 
 
246 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 its title, by Sir Simon Fraser, son of Lord Lovat, a chieftain 
 enjoying largely the confidence of the clans, yet dispoiled of 
 his lands and destitute of funds by the misfortunes of the 
 recent rebellion, in which he had figured conspicuously among 
 the Jacobites. 
 
 Immediately upon their embodiment, these two regiments 
 were embarked for America at Greenock. Associated in the 
 British army, they were honourably distinguished in the con- 
 test which ensued. Their disbandment took place respectively 
 in 1775 and 1763. Hostilities having extended to the conti- 
 nent of Europe, and the Government thoroughly appreciating 
 the value of the Highland soldier, resolved to enrol, in 1759, 
 other two regiments for service in Germany, respectively 
 
 The Eighty-Seventh, or Keith's Highlanders ; and 
 The Eighty-Eighth, or Campbell's Highlanders. 
 
 These so seasonably impressed the enemy with the might of 
 Scottish valour, that it is alleged the French so magnified 
 the numbers of our Highlanders as to imagine our army con- 
 tained twelve instead of two battalions of kilted warriors. A 
 French officer, lamenting his o^vn little stature and A\ishing he 
 had been a six-foot grenadier, is reported to have become quite 
 reconciled with himself, " when," as he expresses it, " he had 
 seen the wonders performed by the little mountaineers." One 
 of the journals of the day has this curious account of our 
 Highlanders: — ""They are a people totally different in their 
 dress, manners, and temper from the other inhabitants of 
 Great Britain. They are caught in the mountains V)hen young. 
 
THE OI.T> HKIHLAND BRIGADE. 247 
 
 and still run ^^ itli a surprising degree of swiftness. As they 
 are strangei-s to fear, tlicy make veiy good soldici-s wlien 
 disciplined." Accustomed to regard retreat as equivalent to 
 defeat, as something cowardly, it was with gi-eat reluctance 
 our mountaineers yiclde«l ol)edience to such commands. 
 
 The Eighty-Ninth, or Duke of Gordon's Highlanders, 
 
 was raisetl by His Grace, upon his extensive estates, in 1 75i*, 
 and was destiueil for service in India. Also, raised in 1760, 
 
 The Hundred-and-First, or Johnstone's Highlanders. 
 
 These, with other Highland corps, were disbanded on the con- 
 clusion of the war in 1763, but not without having won the 
 nation's confidence — deserving well of the country, whose 
 gratitude followed them. 
 
 A few years later and a new American war ])urst forth, 
 intensified in its virulence by its civil character. In the 
 attempts made to suppress the rebellion of the colonists the 
 old Highland brigade, re-assembled, was highly distinguished. 
 
 Sir Simon Fraser of Lovat, who had already shown liis 
 forv\-ardness in raising the clans in 1757 and ranmiiff them in 
 regiments in defence of the State, now restoreil to the patri- 
 mony which the rebellion of his pre<lecessor had forfeite*], was 
 again the first to gather aroun<l him a regiment of clansmen, 
 known as 
 
 The Seventy-First, or Phaser's IIiohlanders. 
 
248 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 This corps was engaged in the very hottest of the contest, 
 especially in and around Savannah and Charleston. One only 
 instance, illustrative of the excellence of the regiment, we have 
 space to quote: — At Stone Ferry, assailed by 2000 Americans, 
 Captain Campbell, with 59 men and ofiBcers, heroically main- 
 tained his post, until only seven soldiers were left standing — 
 the rest beins; either killed or wounded. To most of the men 
 this was their first encounter with the enemy; "they had not 
 yet learned to retreat," nor had they forgotten what had been 
 always inculcated in their native country, that "to retreat was 
 disgraceful." When Captain Campbell fell, he desired such of 
 his men as were able to make the best of their way to the 
 redoubt, but they refused to obey, as it would bring lasting 
 disgrace upon them all to leave their officers in the field with 
 none to carry them back." The seven men retired carrying 
 their wounded officers with them, and accompanied by those 
 of the soldiers who were able to walk. Fraser's Highlanders 
 closed a brilliant career as part of the unfortunate garrison of 
 Yorktown, who were obliged to capitulate, and so, as prisoners 
 of war, only restored to their liberty and country on the con- 
 clusion of the war, when they were disbanded. In this last 
 disaster, Fraser's Highlanders became associated with another 
 body of Highlanders, 
 
 The Seventy-Sixth, or McDonald's Highlanders, 
 
 which had been engaged in the war, although at first on a 
 different field. 
 
TMK OLD UnniLANl) BKKiADE. .24 !» 
 
 Tl»e Seventy-Fourth, or Aruylushirh Highlanders 
 
 servc<l at the same period with the British army of tlie north 
 on the frontiers of Canada. Acting with tliese were two 
 battalions of HighUmd emigrantxS, mostly veterans of the 
 previous war, who, serving in the Highland brigade of that 
 time, had thereafter accepted the bounty of Government and 
 settled in America, known ;is the 
 
 Royal Highland Emigrant Regiment. 
 
 IJosides these, the wars of the time induce^l the formation of the 
 
 Athull 1Iigiil.\nders and Aberdeenshire Highlanders; 
 
 and, when the French Revolution further enveloped the 
 world in the Hames of war, 
 
 The Ninety-Seventh, or Strathspey Highlanders; and 
 The Hundred-and-Sixteenth, or Perthshire Highlanders; 
 
 constituted a part of the old Highland Briga<^le. Without 
 more e.xtendeil detail or enumeration of the many Highland 
 corps once on our army establishment — now disbanded — 
 esteeming we have sufficiently recordeil the story of the old 
 brigade, to enable the reader to feel it worthy his attention, 
 as replete with incidents of heroism and daring scarcely ever 
 surpassed — we come to the consideration of the present High- 
 lan<l nriyadc. 
 
THE HIGHLAND BRIGADE. 
 
 THE FORTY-SECOXD FOOT: 
 
 OR, 
 
 EOYAL HIGHLANDEES-" BLACK WATCH." 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 " Awake on your hills, on your islands awake, 
 Brave sons of the mountain, the frith, and the lake! 
 'Tis the bugle — but not for the chase is the call; 
 'Tis the pibroch's shrill summons — but not to the hall. 
 
 " 'Tis the summons of heroes for conquest or death, 
 When the banners are blazing on moimtain and heath : 
 They call to the dirk, the claymore, and the targe. 
 To the march and the muster, the line and the charge." 
 
 "BLACK watch" — FONTENOY REBELLION 1745 — AMERICA 
 
 1729-1760. 
 
 This distinguished regiment has long deservedly enjoyed the 
 public favour. It is the link which binds us to the Old 
 Highland Brigade, of which it remains the only and worthy 
 representative. Mr Cannon, in his Military Records, thus 
 introduces his account of the regiment by the following 
 

 ^jm 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 2j1 
 
 eulogy on the excelleuce of our HighliUicl soldiers: "The 
 Ilighlaiulers of Scotland have been coaspicuous for the pos- 
 session of every military virtue which adorns the character of 
 the hero who has adopted the profession of arms. Naturally 
 patient and brave, and imired to hardship in their youth 
 in the hilly districts of a northern climate, these warlike 
 mountaineei*3 have always proved themselves a race of 
 lion-like champions, valiant in the field, faithful, constant, 
 generous in the hour of victory, and endued with calm per- 
 severance under trial and disiister." As already noted, the 
 Government had wisely determined more largely to enlist the 
 sympathy and good services of the clans on their side; and, in 
 consequence, had armed a certain proportion of the well- 
 affected clans — such as the Campbells, the Fnisers, the Grants, 
 and the Munroes — who, formed into independent companies 
 under the command of their own or other well-known 
 chieftains, were quartered in the more troubled districts of 
 the Highlands, where the Jacobite clans of Cameron, Stuart, 
 M'Intosh, M'Donald, and Murray rendered their presence 
 necessary for maintaining order and preventing any sudden 
 rising, as well as for the protection of property in those 
 lawless times. They were called the "Freicudan Dhu," or 
 " Black Watch," from the sombre appearance of their tartan 
 uniform, compared with the scarlet coats of the regular 
 soldiere. They were mostly composeil of the sons of the 
 landed gentry, as the Government felt that care was necessary, 
 especially in this their first exi^eriment. in selecting indi- 
 viduals who had something at stake in the common countr}'. 
 
252 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 and consequently afForcling some guarantee for their fidelity. 
 The success of the experiment was soon abundantly manifest ; 
 and whilst, in 1729, the "Black Watch" consisted only of 
 six companies, ten years later these were asseml^led at 
 Perth, augmented to ten companies, and regimented as the 
 Highland Regiment, under the Earl of Crawford. The 
 original high character of this famous regiment has never 
 been excelled; no, not even by the Royal Guards. Nearly 
 all its members were six feet in height — illustrious for 
 physical prowess and might — highly connected, as may 
 be well inferred from the fact that many, when proceeding 
 to drill, went on horseback, followed by servants bearing 
 their firelock and uniform. On one occasion the King, 
 having heard of the splendid physical appearance of the 
 men, desired to see a specimen ; and accordingly three 
 were sent up to London. One of these, Grant of Strath- 
 spey, died on the way; the other two, M'Gregor and 
 Campbell, were presented to His Majesty, and, in presence 
 of the King, the Duke of Cumberland, Marshal Wade, and 
 other officers, performed the broadsword exercises and 
 "that of the Lochaber axe. Their dexterity and skill so 
 pleased His Majesty that he gave each a gratuity of one 
 guinea — a large sum in those days — imagining he had 
 appropriately rewarded them ; but such was the character of 
 these men — above want, generally in good circumstances — 
 that each bestowed his guinea upon the porter at the palace 
 gate as he passed out. There is one feature which we 
 record with more peculiar pleasure, as leaving a mightier 
 
THE FOHTY-SECONI) FOOT. J.jli 
 
 impress of character upon these gi^llant men, and we quote it in 
 the words of an English historian who was evidently no friend 
 of theirs, yet wondrously surprised, as he relates, "to see these 
 savages, from the othcer to the commonest man, at their 
 several meals, first stand up and pull oif their boimets, ami 
 then lift up their eyes in the most solemn and devout 
 manner, and mutter something in their own gihberish, by 
 way, 1 suppose," says he, "of saying grace, as if they had been 
 80 many Christians." 
 
 The idea that they should only serve m ihcir own country 
 had so strongly jJos.sesseil the minds of many, that, when 
 marched into England, and learning they were destined for 
 service in the West Indies — a place associated in their minds 
 only as a place of j)unLshment for felons and the like — the 
 regiment mutinied; but by a judicious blending of firm- 
 ness and lenity on the part of Government, this splendid 
 corps was not only brought to submit, but preserved to 
 win honour for our country, and amply redeem, by brave deed.s, 
 'the faults which for a moment clouded its early history. 
 
 In 174:{ the Highlanders joined the Briti.sh army in 
 Flanders, where their conduct was so exemplary that the 
 Elector Palatine specially thanked our King " for the excellent 
 behaviour of the regiment while in his territories, and for 
 whose sake," he addetl, "I will always pay a res]»ect and 
 regard to a Scotsman in future." Of their valour, no higher 
 tribute can be paid than to say that at the battle of Fon- 
 tenoy, where the regiment made its first essay in arms, our 
 lligldanders were placed in brigade with the veterans of the 
 
254 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMEKTS. 
 
 British Guards. The result proved them to be every way worthy 
 of the compliment. Truly they presented the choicest troops of 
 the land, and eminently their success, like a meteor flash, 
 for a moment lighted up the fortunes of battle and promised 
 victory. Alas! all in vain; the disasters in other parts of the 
 field compelled retreat. Marshal Saxe, who commanded the 
 French on this occasion, with all the generosity which becomes 
 a soldier, and who could distinguish valour even in a foeman, 
 said of the Highlanders — " These furies rushed in upon us 
 with more violence than ever did a sea driven by a tempest." 
 The rebellion of Prince Charles Edward in 1 745 occasioned 
 the recall of the Forty-second, or, as it was then designated, 
 the Forty-third, from the Continent, the scene of its early 
 glory. With the army, the regiment was encamped in the 
 south of England, prepared to dispute the menaced landing 
 of a French force upon our coasts, which the rebels hoped 
 should effect a favourable diversion. Meanwhile, three new 
 companies which had not as yet joined the regiment, 
 served in the royal army against the rebels — one company 
 being taken prisoner at the battle of Prestonpans. The 
 internal peace of the country being secured by the decisive 
 victory of CuUoden, many of the regiments returned to Flan- 
 ders; whilst the Highlanders, with 2000 of the Foot Guards 
 and other troops, attempted a descent upon the French coast, 
 but failed to accomplish that success which had been, antici- 
 pated, from the superior strength of the enemy. In the 
 attack upon port L'Orient, assuming the disguise of High- 
 landers, a body of French, in a sally, succeeded in approach- 
 
THE FORTY-SECONl) FOOT. 255 
 
 ing the British lines, and li;i<l nearly entered them when 
 discovered. They experienced the deadly wrath of our true 
 ITip;hlanders, whose blood was roused because of the indignity 
 offered to the kilts in the foe attempting to deceive our troops 
 thereby. The result proved that it needed more than the 
 tartans to constitute the genuine Highlander — the dauntless 
 native courage being wanting. 
 
 Returning home, the regiment Wiis stationed a while in 
 Irelaufl, until removed to reinforce the army fighting in 
 Flandere, in alliance with the Austrians and Dutch, against 
 the French. Excejiting, however, at the siege of Hulst, and 
 covering the embarkation of the army for South Beveland, 
 the regiment was little engaged in these campaigns, being kept 
 in reserv'e in South Beveland. Returning to Britain in 1749, 
 the Highlanders were variously stationed in Ireland during 
 the following six years. In 1756, the outbreak of hostilities 
 in America between the British and French colonists called 
 for the immediate presence of a British army, of which 
 the Forty-second formed a part. On their arrival, the 
 strangeness of their garb excited the interest of "the Indians, 
 who flocked from all quarters to see the strangere, who, they 
 believed, were of the same extraction as themselves, and there- 
 fore received them as brothei-s." Landtxl in America, Lord 
 Loudon, as commander-in-chief, hesitateil to a<lvance agaiu.st 
 the enemy until his soldiers had acquired some knowle<lge of 
 the novel warfare of the bush in which they were to be so 
 much engaged. Tlie enemy, meanwhile, reaj^ed many valuable 
 advantages from the precious moments thus lost through the 
 
256 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 over- cautiousness and procrastination of tlie British com- 
 mander. 
 
 In 1758, with the Twenty-seventh, the Forty -fourth, the 
 Forty-sixth, the Fifty-fifth, two battalions of the Sixtieth, and 
 upwards of 9000 provincials, the Forty-second formed the divi- 
 sion of our army, under Major-General James Abercromby, 
 which attempted the reduction of the strong fort of Ticonderoga, 
 on Lake Champlain. The obstacles to be overcome, and the 
 strength of the garrison were such, that the utmost and repeated 
 efforts of our soldiers failed to effect its capture. The dis- 
 tinguished bravery of the Forty-second is thus commemorated 
 by an eye-witness: — " With a mixture of esteem, grief, and envy, 
 I consider the great loss and immortal glory acquired by the 
 Scots Highlanders in the late bloody afl'air. Impatient for 
 orders, they rushed forward to the entrenchments, which many 
 of them actually mounted. They appeared like lions, breaking 
 from their chains. Their intrepidity was rather animated 
 than damped by seeing their comrades fall on every side. I 
 have only to say of them, that they seemed more anxious to 
 revenge the cause of their deceased friends, than careful to 
 avoid the same fate." Their valour was further rewarded by 
 an order to dignify the regiment with the title of the "Roycd" 
 Highlanders. So desperate was the fight, that the loss of the 
 regiment exceeded 650 men and officers. It was here that 
 the gallant and brave Brigadier-General Viscount HoAve, of 
 the Fifty-fifth regiment, met his death: he who had been "the 
 life and soul of the expedition," and was peculiarly the 
 favourite of the soldiers. 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 257 
 
 In October, 1758, a second battalion was raised at Perth 
 and grafted upon the good old stock of the Koyal llighlandei-s. 
 Soon after its formation, it Avas embarked for Barbadoes, 
 where it joined the expedition under Afajor-Geuerals Ilopson 
 and Barriiigton, which was balllod in an attempt upon the 
 French Island of Martinique. This reverse was, however, 
 somewhat avenged by a more successful attack upon the 
 Island of Guadaloupe, which, after four mouths' hard fightinf 
 and much suffering from the insalubrity of the climate, was 
 surrendered to the British. The defence is remarkable as 
 artording a striking instance of female heroism in the pei*son 
 of Madame Ducharmey, who, arming her negroes when others 
 had retired, refused to yield, resolutely defending the island 
 for some time. 
 
 Bemoved from the West Indies to the continent of America, 
 the second battalion was at length united to the first. These 
 formed part of the expeditionary force, under General Amherst, 
 which, advancing, occupied the strong fortresses of Ticondc- 
 rago, Crown Point, and Isle aux Noix, successively evacuated 
 by the French. In the campaign of 1760 our Highlanders 
 were with the army which, crossing Lake Ontario, descended 
 the St Lawrence, effected the surrender of Montreal, and in 
 its fall sealed the subjugation of the entire province of 
 Canada. 
 
 2u 
 
CHAPTEE XXVII, 
 
 " For gold the merchant ploughs the main, 
 
 The farmer ploughs the manor ; 
 But glory is the sodger's prize, 
 
 The sodger's -nealth is honour. 
 The brave poor sodger ne'er despise, 
 
 Nor count him as a stranger: 
 Remember he's his coimtry's stay, 
 
 In day and hoiu* o' danger," 
 
 MARTINIQUE' — HAYANNAH — BUSHYRUN — ILLINOIS — AMERICAN 
 REVOLUTION — HALIFAX — CAPE BRETON — 1762-1769, 
 
 Its sobriety, abstemious habits, great activity, and capability 
 of bearing the vicissitudes of the West Indian climate, had com- 
 mended the selection of the Forty-second as part of an expe- 
 dition then assembling at Barbadoes for a renewal of the attack 
 upon the valuable island of ]\Iartinique, which, after some severe 
 fighting, was surrendered, in 1762, by the French governor to 
 the British commander, Major-General the Honourable Eobert 
 Monckton. Scarcely had the rude tempest of war subsided in 
 its wrath, and the genial calm of peace asserted its blessed influ- 
 ence over the nation, ere that tranquillity was again disturbed by 
 the malignant passions which unhappily prevailed, and launched 
 our country into antagonism with Spain, Reinforced by fresh 
 troops from home — including our Highlanders — the British 
 army of the West Indies, under the Earl of Albemarle, 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 259 
 
 embarking, effected a lauding on the Spanish island of Cuba, 
 and gloriously captured its wealthy metropolis, acquiring 
 therein i)rize-money to the enormous extent of three millions 
 sterling. After achieving this very successful result, the 
 regiment, tmbracal in one l>attalion, returned to the continent 
 of America, where it was employed in most hara.ssing duty, 
 checking ami punishing the depredatory incursions of the 
 Indians, who were ever on the alert to avenge themselves on 
 the white men of the colony, whom they could not help 
 regarding, and not altogether unreasonably, as their spoilei*s, 
 and hence their natural enemies. At Bushyrun the Forty- 
 second encountered the army of red warriors, and intlicted a 
 severe defeat, which so sorely distressed them, that, tendering 
 their submission, a favourable peace was thereupon secured. 
 Thereafter a party of a hundred men, detached from the 
 regiment, under Captain, afterwards General Sir Thomas 
 Stirling, was engaged in an exploring expedition, journeying 
 3000 miles in ten months, as far as Fort ChartcrLs on the 
 Illinois; and notwithstanding all the difliculties and dangers 
 encoimtered in the way, returning to head-quarters safe and 
 sound. At length, after these many faithful and arduous 
 services, the regiment received the order to return home. 
 Enjoying the esteem of the colonists, its departure was most 
 deeply regrettcil. The regiment reacheil Cork in October, 
 17G7, and remained on duty in Ireland for about twelve 
 years, whence it was removed to Scotland in 1775, to bo 
 recruited. Scarcely bad its establishment been completed 
 wlien the American Revolution, involving our coimtry in 
 
260 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 a new war, occasioned its recall to that continent. On 
 the eve of its departure from Greenock, the regiment com- 
 prised 931 Highlanders, 74 Lowlanders, 5 Englishmen (in 
 the band), 1 AVelshman, and 2 Irishmen — ample evidence of 
 its genuine Highland character. In the passage outwards 
 the fleet was separated in a tempest, and a company of 
 the Forty-second, which had been quartered on board the 
 "Oxford" transport, was so unfortunate as to be captured by 
 an American privateer. Ketained as prisoners on board the 
 "Oxford," the soldiers succeeded in overpowering the crew, 
 and, assuming the command of the vessel, navigated it 
 to the Bay of Chesapeake, unwittingly to find themselves 
 in the enemy's grasp, who held possession of the bay. As 
 captives, our Highlanders were removed into the interior 
 of the continent, where every attempt was made to seduce 
 them from their allegiance, and tempt them to enter the 
 American service, but, "true to their colours," without avail. 
 ]\Iean while, the rest of the regiment had joined the British 
 army in Staten Island, under General the Honourable Sir 
 William Howe. 
 
 During the whole course of the war which followed, it 
 may with truth be averred that no one regiment was more 
 constantly employed, serving chiefly with one or other of 
 the flank corps, and that no regiment was more exposed to 
 danger, underwent more fatigue, or sufi"ered more from both. 
 
 The events of the war are so much a matter of history, 
 that we forbear to detain the reader with more than a mere 
 enumeration of those in which the Forty-second bore a con- 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 2G1 
 
 spicuous pai't. lliiving, through the buttle of Brooklyn, 
 iichiovod the capture of Loug Islaiul, landing with the British 
 army on the mainland, the Highlanilei*s were present with 
 distinction at the siege of Fort Washington, the capture of 
 Fort Lee, the re-taking of Trenton, but especially in the 
 atlair of Pisquata, where, assailed by overwhelming numbers, 
 the gallantry of the regiment was beyond all compliment. 
 The Forty-second was also present, although in a subor- 
 dinate position, at the battle of Brandywine, where General 
 Washington was defeated. On the 20th Septend^cr, 1777, 
 it was detached with the first battalion of Light Infantry and 
 the Forty-fourth regiment, to surprise a strong force of Ameri- 
 cans which lay concealed in the recesses of the forest in the 
 neighbourhood of the British camp, purposing to annoy the 
 army and cut off stragglers. The surprise — effected with 
 scarcely any loss — favoured by the darkness of the night, 
 was successful. The enemy, wholly unsuspecting, was utterly 
 dispersed with great slaughter. The regiment was further 
 engjiged in the attack upon Billingspoint and the defence of 
 Germanstowu. 
 
 At length allied with France, the Americans were so 
 helpetl and encouraged that it became necessary to concen- 
 trate the British army, and, in consequence, relinquishing 
 many of their more distant conquests, our trooj^ retired to the 
 sea coast to oppose the threatened debarkation of a French force 
 from their fleet which cruised off the coast. Dispersed by a 
 storm, this armament faile<l to afford that assistance which 
 had been anticipateil, com[>elling General Sullivan, who 
 
262 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 commanded an auxiliary army of Americans, to abandon the 
 siege of Nieuport, in Kliode Island, and beat a precipitate 
 retreat to the mainland. Meanwhile, the Forty-second, 
 with the Thirty- third. Forty-sixth, and Sixty-fourth regi- 
 ments, successfully accomplished the destruction of the 
 arsenals and dockyards of Bedford and Martha's Vineyard. 
 At Stoneypoint and Vereplanks, after a desperate struggle, 
 the persevering efforts of the Koyal Highlanders were re- 
 warded with complete success. Under General Sir Henry 
 Clinton, the regiment formed a part of the expedition which 
 undertook and achieved the siege of CharlestoA\Ti. The 
 increasing force and daring of the enemy, inspired and sus- 
 tained by the genius of AVashington, glorying in the disaster 
 of Yorktown, where a British army was forced to surrender, 
 induced peace, which, concluded in 1782, put an end to 
 further hostilities. The regiment served for a while there- 
 after in Halifax, and, ere it returned home in 1789, garrisoned 
 the island of Cape Breton. Whilst in Nova Scotia, in 1785, 
 Major-General John Campbell, in presenting a new set of 
 colours to the regiment, thus ably addressed it — an address 
 which, in its excellence, lives to encourage our army, and 
 than which we are convinced no better epitome of a soldier's 
 duty exists : — 
 
 " I congratulate you on the service you have done your 
 country, and the honour you have procured yourselves, by 
 protecting your old colours, and defending them from your 
 enemies in different en<2;a2;ements durinoj the late unnatural 
 rebellion. 
 
 i 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 263 
 
 " From those ragged, but houoiirable remains, you are 
 now tx) transfer your allegiance ami fidelity to these new- 
 National and Regimental Standards of Honour, now con- 
 secrated and solemnly dedicated to the service of our King 
 and Country. The.^e coloui-s are committed to your im- 
 mediate care and protection; and I trust you will, on all 
 occasions, defend them from your enemies, with honour to 
 yourselves and service to your country — with that di.stin- 
 giiishecl and noble bravery which have always characterised 
 the Royal ITigulanders in the field of battle. 
 
 " With what pleasure, with w^hat peculiar satisfaction — 
 nay, with what pride, would I enumerate the difterent 
 memorable actions where the regiment distinguished itself. 
 To particularise the whole would exceed the bounds of this 
 address; let me therefore beg your indulgence while I take 
 notice only of a few of them. 
 
 " And, first, the conduct of the regiment at the battle of 
 Fohtcnoy was great and glorious! As long as the bravery of 
 the fifteen ])attalions in that conflict shall grace the historic 
 page, and fill the brciist of every Highlander with pleasure 
 and admiration, so long will the superior gallantry of the 
 Forty-second Regiment bear a conspicuous part in the well- 
 fought action of that day, and be recorded in the annals of 
 Fame to the latest posterity! 
 
 " I am convinced that it will always Ixj a point of honour 
 with the corps, considered as a collective body, to supjwrt and 
 maintain a national character! 
 
 " I'-T this purpose you should ever remember that, being 
 
264 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 a national and reputable corps, your actions as citizens and 
 civil subjects, as well as your conduct as soldiers, will be 
 much observed-^more than those of any other regiment in 
 the service. Your good behaviour will be handed down 
 with honour to posterity, and your faults, if you commit any, 
 will not only be reported, but magnified, by other corps who 
 are emulous of your civil as well as of your military character. 
 Your decent, sober, and regular behaviour in the different 
 quarters you have hitherto occupied, has rendered you the 
 distingTiished favourites of their respective inhabitants. For 
 the sake, then, of your country — for the sake of your own 
 established character, which must be dearer to you than 
 every other . consideration — do not tarnish your fame by a 
 subsequent behaviour less manly! 
 
 " Do not, I beseech you, my fellow-soldiers, allow your 
 morals to be corrupted by associating with low, mean, or bad 
 company. A man is always known by his companions ; and 
 if any one among you should at any time be seen spending 
 his money in base, worthless company, he ought to be set u]) 
 and exposed as an object of regimental contempt! 
 
 " To conclude : As you have, as soldiers, displayed suffi- 
 cient valour in the field by defeating the enemies of your 
 country, suffer me to recommend to you, as Christians, to use 
 your best endeavours, now in the time of peace, to overcome 
 the enemies of your immortal souls ! Believe me, my fellow- 
 soldiers, and be assured, that the faith and virtues of a 
 Christian add much to the valour, firmness, and fidelity of a 
 soldier. He, beyond comparison, has the best reason, and 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 205 
 
 the strongest motive, for doing his duty in scenes of danger, 
 who has nothing to feai*, but every thing to hope, in a future 
 existence. 
 
 " Ought you not, therefore, to be solicitous to adorn your 
 minds with, at least, the principal and leading Christian virtues, 
 so that if it should be your fate hereafter to fall in the field 
 of battle, your acquaintances and friends will have the joyful 
 consolation of hearing that you leave an unspotted name, and 
 of being assured that you roi5e from a bed of honour to a 
 crown of inimortidity.'' 
 
 21 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 " O! to see his tartan trews, 
 Bonnet blue, and laigh-hcel'd shoes, 
 Philabeg aboon liis knee ! 
 That's the hid that I'll gang wi'." 
 
 THE HIGHLANDS — FRENCH REVOLUTION — FLANDERS — GERMANY 
 WEST INDIES GIBRALTAR MINORCA EGYPT EDIN- 
 BURGH — 1789-1803. 
 
 The honourable bearing of tlie Eoyal Highlanders throughout 
 the war had been so conspicuous as to win for them the 
 hearty esteem of their countrymen. Hence their return was 
 welcomed by all classes, and their progress northward was 
 little else than a triumphal march. At Glasgow, the joy 
 of the people was unbounded. 
 
 Whilst stationed in Scotland, the regiment was called to 
 fulfil a most painful duty, in the suppression of the riots 
 which had arisen in the Highlands from the expulsion of the 
 poorer peasantry from the haunts and homes of "auld lang- 
 syne." From a long and quiet possession, they had come to 
 consider such as their own, and therefore were disposed to 
 resist the right of the legal proprietor, who desired to 
 disencumber his estates of the unproductive poor, and render 
 these lauds remunerative, rather than, as hitherto, a barren 
 burden. 
 
TUE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 267 
 
 To curb the furious passions which the evil gcuii of the 
 Freuch Revohitiou had let loose, wherewith to plague Chris- 
 teiiLloiu, the might of Britain was called to the rescue. The 
 Forty-sccoud, largely recruited, was accordingly embarked at 
 Hull, and joined the British army fighting under the Duke of 
 York in Flandei"s. Soon, however, the regiment was recalled, 
 to form i»art of a meditated enterprise against the French 
 West Indian Islands. This scheme being abandoned for the 
 present, it Wiis engaged in a vain attempt to aid, by a descent 
 on the French coast, the Vendean royalists, who yet dared 
 manfully, but, alas! ineffectually, to stniggle against the 
 sanguinary tyranny of the Revolution, for liberty and righteous- 
 ness. Returning to Flanders, the rofj-inient was doomed to 
 share the retrograde movement which had been necessitated 
 by the overwhelming superiority of the enemy, and the listless 
 indilference, nay, even hate, of the Dutch, whose cause we had 
 tissumed to espou.se. Retreating through Germany to Bremen, 
 the sufferings of the army were severe, but endured with a 
 fortitude which well commanded the admiration of friend and 
 foe. Never were the capabilities of the Highland soldier more 
 thoroughly tested, and more trium}»hantly apparent, than iu 
 the midst of the fatigues of an incessant warfare, the severities 
 of a bitter winter, and the discouraging prosix3cts of retreat. 
 Under these cniel circumstances, whilst other regiments 
 countetl their losses by hundreds, the Forty-second only lost 
 twenty-five men. 
 
 Returning to England, the regiment was once more 
 includes! in the long-con templat<xl West Indian expedition. 
 
268 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 A vast armament had been assembled in 1795, and sailed at 
 first prosperously, only to be dispersed and driven back with 
 heavy loss by a furious tempest which almost immediately 
 arose. A second attempt, promising as favourably, encountered 
 a like catastrophe, but not so fatal. Although dispersed, some 
 of the transports continued the voyage, others returned to 
 port, and some few became the prey of the enemy's privateers. 
 Providence seemed to be adverse to the expedition, or in 
 friendly warning indicated the coming struggle — when hearths 
 and homes, menaced by a relentless, dangerous foe, needed 
 that a large portion of this ill-omened expedition should be 
 retained for the defence of our own shores, and play a more 
 important part in the exciting events of the Revolutionary 
 War. Five companies of the Eoyal Highlanders were thus 
 detained at home, and soon afterwards removed for service to 
 Gibraltar. The other five companies of the regiment, embarked 
 in the "Middlesex," East Indiaman, battling the tempest, 
 completed the voyage, and rendezvoused at Barbadoes, whence 
 they proceeded, ^sdth Avhat remained of the vast armament, 
 against the French island of St Lucia, which, after some sharp 
 fighting, was wrested from the Republicans. In the subse- 
 quent attack upon the island of St Vincent, the Highlanders 
 were praised for the " heroic ardour " they always displayed, 
 but especially illustrated in the attack upon the post of New 
 Yigie, on the 10th June, 1796, on which occasion Major- 
 General David Stewart relates the following episode of the 
 wife of a soldier of our Royal Highlanders : — " I directed her 
 husband, who was in my company, to remain behind in 
 
THK FOllTY-SECOND FOOT. 2G9 
 
 charge of the men's knapsacks, which they had thrown off to 
 be light for the advance up the hill, lie obeyed his orders; 
 but his wife, believing, I suppose, that she was not included 
 in these injimctions, pushed forward in the assault. When 
 the enemy had been driven from the third redoubt, 1 was 
 standing giving some directions to the men, and preparing to 
 push on to the fourth and last redoubt, when I found myself 
 tapped on the shoulder, and turning round, I saw my 
 Aniiizoniim friend standing with her clothes tucked up to the 
 knees, and seizing my arm, 'Well done, my Highland lads!* 
 she exclaimed, 'see how the brigands scamper like so many 
 deer!' 'Come,' added she, 'let us drive them from yonder 
 hill.' On im^uiry, I found she had been in the hottest fire, 
 cheering and animating the men, and when the action was 
 over, she was as active as any of the surgeons in assisting the 
 wounded." 
 
 Allied with the Caribbee Indians, the Republicans, driven 
 from the open plain and the regular stronghohls of the island, 
 found a refuge in the woods, where, screened by the luxuriant 
 foliage of the forest, or perched in unassailable jxjsitions, they 
 maintained a guerilla warfare, which to our troops proved of 
 the most trying and hanissing kind, similar in character to 
 that sustained by our Highlandei-s in the backwoods during 
 the American war. Mr Cannon, in his valuable official 
 records of the regiment, gives the following description illus- 
 trative of the general character of the contest: — 
 
 "The out-posts being frequently alarmed by parties of the 
 enemy firing at the sentries in the night, a serjeant and 
 
270 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 twelve Highlanders, under Lieutenant David Stewart, pene- 
 trated the woods at nine o'clock in the evening, with short 
 swords to cut their way through the underwood, to discover 
 the post or camp from whence these nightly alarms came. 
 After traversing the woods all night, an open spot, with a 
 sentry, was discovered; this man fired his musket at a dog 
 which accompanied the soldiers, and then plunged into the 
 wood, as the serjeant rushed forward to cut him down. The 
 soldiers were on the edge of a perpendicular precipice of great 
 depth, at the bottom of which was seen a small valley crowded 
 with huts, from whence issued swarms of people on hearing 
 the report of their sentry's musket. Having made this 
 discovery, the soldiers commenced their journey back; but, 
 when about half way, they were assailed by a fire of musketry 
 on both flanks, and in the rear. The Caribbees were expert 
 climbers; every tree appeared to be manned in an instant; 
 the wood w^as in a blaze, but not a man could be seen — the 
 enemy being concealed by the thick and luxuriant foliage. 
 As the Highlanders retreated, firing from time to time at the 
 spot from whence the enemy's fire proceeded, the Caribbees 
 followed with as much rapidity as if they had sprung from 
 tree to tree like monkeys. In this manner the retreat was 
 continued, until the men got clear of the woods." 
 
 The reduction of the island being at length completed, the 
 five companies of the Forty-second were employed in an 
 inefi'ectual attack upon Porto Eico. In 1797, from Martinique 
 the companies returned home, and, on reaching Portsmouth, 
 presented a clean bill of health — somewhat extraordinary in the 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 271 
 
 circumstances, yet silently but unmiatakeaMy testifying to the 
 good conduct of the corps, and the completeness of its economy. 
 In 1798 the several companies were united at Gibraltar, 
 whence the regiment proceeded, with other troops, under 
 Lieut.-General the Honourable Sir Charles Stewart, against 
 the Spanish island of Minorca, which, with its capital, 
 Ciudadella, was speedily surrendered, although the defending 
 force exceeded in number the attacking force; the Spaniards, 
 by the admirable dispositions of the British, being deceived 
 as to our actual strength. This achievement was but the 
 presage to a more glorious enterprise. The ambition of 
 NapoleoiT had pictured for himself an Eastern Empire; and to 
 work out the realisation of his dream, he had transported the 
 veterans of Italy into Egypt, as the basis of his operations. 
 Already had the burning sands of the dreary desert wasted 
 the strength of this " Army of the East," and his conquering 
 legions been arrested in their triumphal career by the stern 
 decrees of Nature's God, when our island-might dared to 
 challenge the boasted "Invincibles" of France. The Forty- 
 second was included in the expedition which, \inder Sir Ralph 
 Al>ercromby, was so long detained and tosseil upon the treache- 
 rous waves of the Maliterranean, the slave of a cruel uncer- 
 tainty as to its destination. At length the fleet cast anchor 
 in Aboukir Bay, and despite the prou<l array of horse, foot, 
 an«l artiller}- which linctl the beadi and manned the hills 
 environing the bay — each of which contributed its deadliest 
 thunder to daunt or destroy our gallant army — the British 
 successfully eflecte<l a landing in March, 1801, gained a victory' 
 
272 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 which, apart from the honour accruing to our arms, served 
 to revive the fainting spirit of Europe, and gave a glimpse of 
 hope to the enthralled who had been crushed by the military 
 tyranny of France. 
 
 Passing over the action of Mandora, we arrive at the 
 battle of Alexandria, wherein the valour of the Eoyal High- 
 landers, associated with the Twenty-eighth regiment, has never 
 been excelled. Posted amid the ruins of an old Eoman 
 palace, and looking down upon the classic memorials of a 
 by-gone age, the Forty-second, on the morning of the 21st 
 March, 1801, awaited with portentous silence the approach 
 of the foe, who, concealed by a thick mist, advanced, pur- 
 posing to surprise our position. The assault was conducted 
 with the wonted impetuosity of the French, and the defence 
 maintained with characteristic firmness by the British. Amid 
 the confusion of the fio;ht, the uncertain liolit of the mornino^, 
 and whilst our troops were hotly engaged at all points, the 
 famed " Invincible Legion " of Napoleon crept silently and 
 unnoticed to the rear of our Highlanders, cuttino; the wino-s 
 of the regiment asunder. A desperate and deadly fight 
 ensued, when these redoubtable troops discovered and en- 
 countered each other. The French, entering the ruins of the 
 palace, displayed a valour worthy the title they bore, and 
 which, in other circumstances, might have won that better 
 success which such heroic bravery merited as its reward. 
 Exhausted and overpowered, with 650 fallen, the relics of the 
 " Invincibles," of whom there remained but 250, surrendered 
 to our Highlanders. Scarce had the regiment achieved this 
 
:^::-^ 
 
 p ■-■i^* 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 273 
 
 Splendid result, ere it Wiis anew assailed by a fresh aud 
 more powerful, but not braver column of the enemy. At 
 length these repeated and resolute attacks of cavalry, infantry, 
 and artillery, broke the array of the Forty-second. To all 
 appearance flight seemetl the only refuge, and prudence might 
 have urgeil the same as being the better part of valour. The 
 French cavalry at this critical moment charged the regiment, 
 deeming an e;vsy conquest at hand, but nothing daunted, grouped 
 into small detached parties, the Highlanders faced about and 
 fearlessly encountered the foe. Sir Ralph Abercromby. wit- 
 nessing the gallant behaviour of his countrymen in such a 
 crisis, unable to reinforce them with troops, hastened to the 
 spot to encourage, by his presence, these brave men, exclaim- 
 ing, ^vith patriotic fervour, " ^[y brave Highlanders, re- 
 member your country, remember your forefathers!" Thus 
 nerved to resistance, and cheered to know that so be- 
 loved a commander beheld with pride and grateful affection 
 their efforts, the result was soon gloriously evident in the 
 retreat, flight, and ruin of the cavalry, who imagined they 
 would have annihilatoil the Ijrokcn, bleedinir remnant. Durinf^ 
 the fight. Sir Ralph Abercromby was furiously assailed by 
 two dragoons. " In this unequal conquest he received a blow 
 on the breast ; but witli the vigour and strength of arm for 
 which he was distinguished, ho seized on the sabre of one of 
 those who stniggled with him, and force<l it out of his hand. 
 At this moment a corporal of the Forty-secon<l, seeing his 
 situation, ran up to liis assistance, and shot one of the 
 
 assailants, on which the other retired. 
 
 2k 
 
274 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 " The Frencli cavalry diarged en masse, and overwlielmed 
 the Forty-second ; yet, thongh broken, this gallant corps was 
 not defeated; individually it resisted, and the conduct of each 
 man exalted still more the high character of the regiment." 
 
 Towards the close of the battle the Highlanders, having 
 expended their last cartridge, were on the point of being 
 annihilated — although still resolutely resisting with the bayonet 
 — when the French, repulsed everywhere, relaxed their efforts, 
 and gradually retired. The loss of the regiment, in killed 
 and wounded, exceeded 300 men; but the most grievous loss 
 of all, felt by every rank, was the fall and subsequent death 
 of Sir Ealph Abercromby. 
 
 It is unnecessary here further to detail the various events 
 which marked the progress of the British arms in Egypt — 
 crowned in the conquest of its two capitals, Cairo and 
 Alexandria, accomplishing the extinction of the French 
 dominion in the land, and for ever dissipating the dream of 
 Napoleon, which had promised an Eastern Empire — an idea 
 early and fondly nurtured, but, like the toy of a child, as 
 quickly cast away when it failed to please, and, by that despot, 
 abandoned when circumstances presented an easier path and 
 more glorious results to his ambition in the crown of France. 
 
 On the return of the Royal Highlanders, every compli- 
 ment was lavished upon the regiment by a grateful country. 
 "Whilst at Edinburgh in 1802, Lieutenant-General Vyse, in 
 presenting a new set of colours, thus closed his address to 
 the regiment: — "Remember that the standards which you 
 have this day received are not only revered by an admiring 
 
THE FOKTY-SECOND FOOT. 275 
 
 world, as tlio houourable monuments and trophies of your 
 former heroism, but are likewise regarded by a grateful 
 country as the sacred pledges of that security which, under 
 the protection of heaven, it may expect from your future 
 services. 
 
 " ^lay you long, very long, live to enjoy that reputation 
 and those honours which you have so highly and so justly 
 merited; may you long participate and share in all the 
 blessings of that tranquillity i\ud peace which your laboura 
 and your arms have restored to your native country; but 
 should the restless ambition of an envious and daring enemy 
 again call 'you to the field, think then that you Ix-hold the 
 spirit of those brave comrades who so nobly, in their country's 
 cause, fell upon the plains of Egypt, hovering round these 
 standiirds — think that you see the venerable shade of the 
 immortal Abercromby leading you again to action, and 
 pointing to that presumptuous band whose arrogance has 
 been humbled, and whose vanity has been compelled, by 
 your intrepidity and courage, to confess that no human force 
 has been 'invincible' against British valour, when directetl by 
 wisdom, conducted by discipliiie, and inspired by virtue." 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 " When wild war's deadly blast was blawn, 
 
 And gentle peace returning, 
 And eyes again with pleasm-e beam'd 
 
 That had been blear'd Avi' mourning, 
 I left the hnes and tented field, 
 
 Where lang I'd been a lodger. 
 My humble knapsack a' my wealth, 
 
 A poor but honest sodgcr." 
 
 THREATENED INVASION THE PENINSULAR WAR — CORUNNA 
 
 TOULOUSE — QUATRE BRAS — WATERLOO — CRIMEA — INDIA 
 
 1803-1862. 
 
 The peace of Amiens in 1803, which for a short period re- 
 leased our army from the bloody toils of war, was but as the 
 portentous calm presaging the lowering storm, when the waves 
 of angry passion, lashed into fury, should beat upon the shore 
 of every continent of the world. The pride of France had been 
 humbled, and the ambitious schemes of her haughty despot 
 thwarted by British valour, which, upon the plains of Egypt, 
 had wrested from veteran legions their boasted "invincibihty." 
 The French navy, moreover, had been swept from the seas 
 and all but exterminated — there remaining not an armament 
 in Europe which could dare to dispute the British ocean 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 277 
 
 sovereignty. Stung by the remembrance of many defeats by 
 seii ;uitl land — the painful recollection of which ever and 
 anon haunted and troubled the dreamer of universal empire, 
 bef:rettinf]j 
 
 "The vengeance blood alone could quell" — 
 
 a Spirit of malignity was awakened in the mind of Napoleon. 
 These combined occasioned the concentration of the giant 
 might of his empire upon the western shores of France, 
 purposing therewith to crush, were it possible, the only 
 power which, amidst the general wreck of nations, yet lived 
 to challenge his assumed omnipotence. Vainly he hoped to 
 bridge the channel, or, as he termed it, the "ditch," which 
 dividetl this beloved land from our natural rival and im- 
 placable enemy, France. Loudly he threatened that, with 
 an army of 600,000 men, he would land to desolate our 
 homes, and overwhelm our country in a doom as awful as 
 had hitherto befallen less favoured countries. But apart from 
 the "ditch," which proved an inip;issal>le gulf to the mightiest 
 efforts of his power, the patriotism of our jx^ople, appreciating 
 the emergency, was equal to the danger, and in 1804 achieved 
 the following magnificent result: — 
 
 Army in the Britbh hk«, 129,039 
 
 Colonics, ... 3«,fi,'l() 
 
 ImliA, . . 22,H97 
 
 Recruiting, . 633 
 
 Militia in (ireat Britain 109,9-47 
 
 .S01,04C 
 
278 
 
 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Regular and IMilitia, 
 Volunteers in Great Britain, 
 
 Total in Great Britain, 
 Irish Volunteers, 
 
 Llilitary, . . . . 
 Navy, 
 
 Grand Total in arms, 
 
 301,040 
 347,000 
 
 648,046 
 70,000 
 
 718,046 
 100,000 
 
 818,046 
 
 In this vast armament we must include a second battalion 
 raised in 1803, and attached to the Eoyal Forty-second. In 
 1805 the first battalion was removed to Gibraltar. Napoleon, 
 disappointed in his favourite scheme of effecting our conquest, 
 suddenly directed his march eastward, launching the thunder- 
 bolts of war with remorseless wrath upon the devoted 
 sovereignties of Germany, yea, piercing, in his aggressions, the 
 gloomy wilds of Eussia. By a crooked policy, begetting a 
 matchless perfidy, Napoleon had found further employment 
 for the myriad spoilers who looked to him for prey, in the 
 invasion and appropriation of S^Dain and Portugal. In this 
 crisis of their country's calamity, the patriots of the Peninsula 
 invoked the friendly aid of Britain, as alone able to help them 
 in the unequal yet protracted struggle for independence they 
 maintained. Ever the champion of the weak and oppressed, 
 Britain descended to the rescue; and in accordance therewith, 
 a British army, under Sir Arthur WelleSley, lauded in Portugal 
 in 1808. The first battalion of the Forty -second was ordered 
 to join this expedition from Gibraltar, but reached too late 
 to participate in the glories of Koleia and Vimiera. The 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 271) 
 
 deliverance of Portugal being for the time accomplished, the 
 Forty-second thereafter joined the army of General Sir John 
 Moore, which attempteil to drive the French from Spain. 
 Ipadequately supported, this gallant chief failed to do more 
 than penetrate into the interior, occasioning the concentration 
 of the several French armies to repel him. Unalde to cope 
 with such a vast superiority, retreat was inevitable. Shattered 
 by the vicissitudes of the war, his army retired to the sea 
 coast, liotly pursued by a powerful French force under Mai-shal 
 Soult. At length halting near Conmna, the British, in defence 
 of their embarkation, accepted battle from the French, which, 
 whilst victory crowned our arms, was dearly bought in the 
 death of Sir John !Moore. Brigaded with the Fourth and 
 Fiftieth regiments, under Major-General Lord William Ben- 
 tinck, and in the division of Sir David Baird, these regiments 
 sustained the weight of the attack. Twice on this memorable 
 day did the Commander-in-Chief address himself to the High- 
 landers, In the advance to recover the lost village of Elvina, 
 he uttered these thrilling words, awakening the recollection of 
 the time when he himself had led them to victory — "High- 
 landers," he said, "remember Egypt!" And again, when 
 sorely pressed by the enemy, having expended their whole 
 ammunition, he thus distinguished them: — 
 
 " 'AI3- brave Forty-.sccond, join your comrades, ammunition 
 is coming, and you have your bayonets.' At the well-known 
 voice of their general, tho Highlanders instantly sprang 
 forward, and closed upon the enemy with bayonets. About 
 this period Sir David Baird was wounded, and forced to quit 
 
280 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 the field, and soon afterwards Sir John Moore was struck to 
 the ground by a cannon ball. He was raised up, his eyes 
 were steadily fixed on the Highlanders, who were contending 
 manfidly with their numerous antagonists, and when he was 
 assured that the Forty-second were victorious, his countenance 
 brightened up, he expressed his satisfaction, and was removed 
 to the rear, where he expired, to the great regret of the officers 
 and soldiers, who admired and esteemed their excellent com- 
 mander." 
 
 On dark Corunna's -woeful day, 
 When Moore's brave spirit passed away, 
 Oiir Highland men, they firmly stood, 
 Xor France's marshalled armies could 
 
 Break through the men of Scotland. 
 
 In this severe fight the loss of the Forty-second exceeded 
 200 killed and wounded. In consequence of this victory, the 
 British were enabled to embark without further molestation 
 from the enemy. The regiment arrived in England in 1809. 
 As soon as sufficiently recruited — brigaded with the Seventy- 
 ninth and Ninety-second regiments, constituting the Highland 
 Brigade — it was embarked with the army which attempted to 
 gain a footing in Flanders; but failed, rather from the evil 
 effects of the climate, inducing a malignant disease, than the 
 sword of the enemy. Of 758 men, which comprised the 
 battalion, 554 were stricken down or disabled in less than 
 six weeks. Meanwhile, the second battalion, which had joined 
 the army of Lord Wellington in Portugal, suff'ered severely 
 from a similar cause w^hilst stationed on the banks of the 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
THE FORTY -SECOND FOOT. 281 
 
 Guadiana River. Commanded by Lieuteiiant-ColoDel Lord 
 Blantyre, this battalion was creditably present in the actions 
 of the Peninsular War, which arrested tlie progress of the 
 French under Mai-shal Massena, at Busaco, and finally 
 defied their every ctlort at the formidable, imprcgnaljle lines 
 of Torres Vedras. The battalion won a title to the distinc- 
 tion of "Fuentes d'Onor," by gallantly resisting a charge of 
 French cavalry thereat. It was present at the siege of 
 Ciudad Rodrigo, and, previous to the battle of Salamanca, 
 was joined by the first battalion from England, with whom 
 it was consolidated. A recruiting party was sent home to 
 enrol a new second battalion, afterwards disbanded in 1814. 
 
 It is needless here to detain the reader witli a record 
 of the military transactions of the war. These words — 
 "Pyrenees," "Nivelle," "Nive," "Orthcs," "Toulouse," and 
 " Peninsula " — borne upon the colours and appointments of 
 the regiment, are sulliciently e.xiiressive of its galhintry. At 
 the battle of Toulouse, the public despatch refei*s to the 
 conduct of the Forty-second as "highly distinguished through- 
 out the day;" whilst an officer of the regiment contributes 
 the following account of its dauntless behaviour on tho 
 occasion. In the sixth division of our army, and in brigade 
 with the Seventy-ninth and Ninety-fii-st regiments, he says: — 
 " \\ e advanced under a heavy cannonade, and arrived in 
 front of a redoubt, which protected tho right of the enemy's 
 position, where we were formed in two lines — the first 
 consisting of some Portuguese regiments, an<l the reserve 
 
 of the Highland Brigade. 
 
 2 I. 
 
282 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 " Darkening the ■\\'liole liill, flanked by clouds of cavalry, 
 and covered by the fire of their redoubt, the enemy came 
 down upon us like a torrent; their generals and field- 
 officers riding in front, and waving their hats amidst shouts 
 of the multitude, resembling the roar of an ocean! Our 
 Highlanders, as if actuated by one instinctive impulse, took 
 off their bonnets, and, waving them in the air, returned their 
 greeting with three cheers. 
 
 " A death-like silence ensued for some moments, and we 
 could observe a visible pause in the advance of the enemy. 
 At that moment the light company of the Forty-second 
 regiment, by a well-directed fire, brought down some of the 
 French officers of distinction, as they rode in front of their 
 respective corps. The enemy immediately fired a volley into 
 our lines, and advanced uj)on us amidst a deafening roar of 
 musketry and artillery. Our troops answered their fire only 
 once, and, unappalled by their furious onset, advanced up the 
 hill,, and met them at the charge. Upon reaching the summit 
 of the ridge of heights, the redoubt which had covered their 
 advance fell into our possession ; but they still retained four 
 others, with their connecting lines of entrenchments, upon the 
 level of the same heights on which we were now established, 
 and into which they had retired. 
 
 " Major-General Pack having obtained leave from General 
 Clinton that the Forty-second should have the honour of 
 leading the attack, which it was hoped should drive the 
 French from their strong position, that distinguished officer 
 exultingly gave the word — 'The Forty-second will advance.' 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 283 
 
 We immediately began to form for the charge upon the 
 redoubts, which were about two or three hundred yards 
 distant, and to which we liad to pass over some ploughed 
 fields. The grenadiers of the Forty-second regiment, fol- 
 lowed by the other companies, led the way, and began to 
 ascend from the road; but no sooner were the featiiei*3 of 
 their bonnets seen rising over the embankment, than such a 
 tremendous fire was opened from the redoubts and entrench- 
 ments, as in a very short time would have annihilated them. 
 The right wing, therefore, hastily formed into line, and, 
 without waiting for the left, which was ascending by com- 
 panies from the road, rushed u[)on the batteries, which vomited 
 forth a most furious and terrific storm of fire, grape-shot, and 
 musketry. 
 
 " The redoubts were erected along the side of a road, and 
 defended by broad ditches filled with water. Just before our 
 troops reached the obstruction, however, the enemy deserted 
 them, and tied in all directions, leaving their last line of 
 strongholds in our possession; but they still possessed two 
 fortifieil houses close by, from which they kept up a galling 
 and destructive fire. Out of about five hundred men, which 
 the Forty-second brought into action, scarcely ninety reached 
 the fatal redoubt from which the enemy had fle<l. 
 
 " As soon as the smoke began to clear away, the enemy 
 made a last attempt to re-take the redoubts, and for this pur- 
 I)osc advancetl in great force. They were a second time re- 
 pulsed with great loss, and their whole army was driven into 
 Toulouse, which they evacuated on the 12th of April, 1814." 
 
284 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS, 
 
 The peace which crowned these glorious achievements 
 aflforded but a brief interval of repose to our army. In 
 the spring of the following year, Europe was startled in 
 her dream of fancied security by the sudden and unex- 
 pected return of Napoleon from Elba. In the campaign of 
 Waterloo, which quickly and decisively broke his power, 
 and almost annihilated the military strength of imperial 
 France — with which strong, convulsive eflfort it hoped to 
 restore its earlier and mightier dominion — the Forty-second 
 claims a most conspicuous place, especially in the action of 
 Quatre Bras, so immediately followed by the grander event of 
 Waterloo. The unexpected and furious attack of Marshal 
 Ney upon the advanced position of the aUies at Quatre Bras, 
 gave the French a momentary advantage. Eoused to arms, 
 and hurried forward to the scene of conflict, the Highlanders 
 (Forty-second and Ninety-second regiments) were conspicuous 
 for the promptitude with which they mustered and took the 
 field, hastening forward to relieve the gallant few that dared 
 to withstand the impetuous assaults of the French. The good 
 conduct of the Highlanders, whilst quartered in Brussels, had 
 so won the esteem of the citizens, that they are said to have 
 mourned for them as a brother, grieving for their departure — 
 perchance 
 
 " The luiretm-niug brave, — alas! 
 Ere evening to be trodden like the grass 
 Which now beneath them, but above shall grow 
 In its next verdure : when this fiery mass 
 Of living valour rolling on the foe, 
 And burning with high hope, shall moulder cold and low I 
 
THE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 285 
 
 "Last noon bchdil them full of luBty life; 
 I>aj*t eve, in U-auty's circle promliy {,'jiy; 
 The niitlnijjht brou^'ht the tti^'iial-souml of strife; 
 The morn the nuiTKliolliug in aniw; the day 
 Battle's nuignifieently-Ktern array! 
 The thumler-cloutlfl close o'er it, which, when rent, 
 Tlio earth is coverM thick with other clay. 
 Wliich iier own clay hliall cover — heap'd anil jient, 
 Rider and horBo, — friend, foe, — in one red burial blent!" 
 
 One historian speaks of the Forty-second as displaying 
 "unparalleled bravery;" whilst another thus narrates the 
 attack of the Highlanders at Quatre Bras : — " To the Forty- 
 second Highlanders, and Forty-fourth British regiment, which 
 were posted on a reversed slope, and in line, close upon the 
 left of the above road, the advance of French cavalry was 
 so sudden and unexpected, the more so as the Brunswickers 
 had just moved on to the front, that as both these bodies 
 whirled past them to the rear, in such close proximity to each 
 other, they were, for the moment, considered to consist of one 
 mass of allied cavalry. Some of the old soldiere of both 
 regiments were not so easily .satisfied on this point, and 
 immediately opened a partial fire ol)liquely upon the French 
 lancers, which, however, Sir Denis Pack and their own otlicers 
 endeavouretl as much as possible to restrain ; but no sooner 
 had the latter succeeded in causing a cessation of the fire, 
 than the lancers, which were the rearmost of the cavalry, 
 wheeled sharply round, and advance<l in admirable order 
 directly up<jn the rear of the two British regiments. The 
 Forty-second Highlanders having, from their position, been 
 the first to recognise them as a part of the enemy's forces. 
 
286 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 rapidly formed a square; but just as the two flank coui- 
 panies were running in to form the rear face, the lancers 
 had reached the regiment, when a considerable portion of 
 their leading division penetrated the square, carrying along 
 with them, by the impetus of the charge, several men of those 
 two companies, and creating a momentary confusion. The 
 long-tried discipline and steadiness of the Highlanders, how- 
 ever, did not forsake them at this critical juncture; these 
 lancers, instead of eff'ecting the destruction of the square, 
 were themselves fairly hemmed into it, and either bayoneted 
 or taken prisoners, whilst the endangered face, restored as if 
 by magic, successfully repelled all further attempts on the 
 part of the French to complete their expected triumph. 
 Their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Robert 
 Macara, was killed on this occasion, a lance having pierced 
 through his chin until it reached the brain; and within 
 the brief space of a few minutes, the command of the 
 regiment devolved upon three other officers in succession: 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Dick, who Avas severely wounded, Brevet- 
 Major Davidson, who was mortally wounded, and Brevet- 
 Major Campbell, who commanded it during the remainder 
 of the campaign." Their subsequent service at Waterloo 
 fully sustained, nay, rather excelled the heroism of previous 
 achievements. 
 
 Peace has long reigned over our land, and the after history 
 of the regiment appears, when shorn of a farther warlike 
 character, devoid of interest. AVe only, therefore, mention 
 that, after serving in various garrisons at home, the regiment 
 
TUE FORTY-SECOND FOOT. 287 
 
 was removal iu 182(1 to Gibraltar, thence iu 1832 to Alalia, 
 and thereafter, in 1834, to the Ionian Ish\nds. Returning 
 home in 1836, it was welcomed by a grateful public. In 
 1841 it was again stationed in the Ionian Islands, until 
 removed to Malta in 1843. 
 
 In the Crimean war, the Forty-second, with the Seventy- 
 ninth and Ninety-third regiments, shared the dangers and 
 the sutTerings through which, as our "Highland Brigade," 
 they gloriously won a deathless renown — as the "Rocks of 
 Gaelic Infantry." The regiment was present at the battle of 
 the Alma, the siege of Sebastopol, and with the expedition 
 against Kertch. Alany of its soldiers earned, as the reward 
 of personal courage, the Victoria Cross. 
 
 In July, 1857, the Forty-second proceeded to India, to aid 
 in the suppression of the mutiny. It still remains in India, 
 being now stationed at Dugshai, Bengal. It is worthy of 
 remark, that all the Highland regiments were more or less 
 employed in suppressing this terrible outbreak. 
 
 In conclusion, these records, if "aught inanimate e'er 
 speaks," speak in silent yet li\'ing eloquence to the soul, and 
 more than ever endear to us the soldiers who ijiherit, and who 
 will not fail to emulate, by their own good conduct and 
 gallant demeanour, the illustrious and glorious career of their 
 predecessors. 
 
THE SEYENTY-EIKST FOOT; 
 
 OB, 
 
 GLASGOW HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 "To leave thee behind me my heart is sair paiii'd, 
 But by ease that's inglorious no fame can be gaiu'd ; 
 And beauty and love's the reward of the brave, 
 And I maun deserve it before I can crave." 
 
 INDIA — GIBRALTAR — CEYLON — 1 777-1798. 
 
 Whilst the American continent was the scene of a sanguinary 
 and bitter strife, the embers of war were being quickened into 
 flame in another and far distant province of our vast colonial 
 empire. In India the usurpation of Hyder Ali had occasioned 
 the interference of the British, awakening the ill-disguised 
 hatred of the native race against the grasping policy of the 
 British, whose cupidity had already appropriated much of 
 their native land, and whose avarice was only too ready to 
 embrace any farther opportunity for aggrandisement. The 
 incendiaries of France had been busy sowing the seeds of 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 289 
 
 jealousy aiul distrust of the British rule, which soon produced 
 its iiialigujuit fruits in the cruel and remorseless war that 
 ensued. Thus encircled and assailed by enemies from so many 
 quarters at once, our Government, in its dire extremity, called 
 upon the patriotism of the country to supply the means of 
 defence. The result was most satisfactory; and in no case did 
 the appeal receive a more cordial response than amongst our 
 clansmen, from whence were drawn, in the course of eighteen 
 mouths, upwards of 12,500 Highlanders. From the following 
 list of the regiments raised in 1778 to meet this emergency, 
 the subject of our present sketch may be selected: — 
 
 72.1 Regiment, or Royal ^Linchcster Volunteers, diijbandccl in 17H.3. 
 I'M IlighLonil Regiment, . nnmlx»re<l the 71st Regiment in 17^0. 
 74th IlighLind Regiment, .... dislxindecl in 17H^t. 
 75th Prince of Wales' Regiment, di.sban(le<l in 17'<3. 
 
 76th Highland Regiment, .... di.sbande<l in 17Ht. 
 77th Regiment, or Athole Highlanders, . dislxinded in 17H3. 
 
 7Sth Iligldand Regiment, . numbered the 72d Regiment in 1786. 
 79th Regiment, or Royal Liverpool Volunteers, disbanded in 1784. 
 80th Regiment, or Royal Edinburgh Volunteers, disbanded in 1784. 
 81flt Highland Regiment, .... dislKindc*! in 17.H,1. 
 
 8-'d Roginu-nt, disbande<l in 1781. 
 
 83<1 Ri'gimcnt. or Rnyal Olaagow Volunteers, dialjandi-l in 17S.1. 
 
 The Karl of Cromarty and his son. Lord M'Leod, having 
 been partners in the guilt of rebellion in 1745, were made 
 partners in the punishment wliich followe<l. At length 
 pardoned, Lortl M'Leod wjw permitted to pass into honour- 
 able exile. He found employment in the Swedish army, 
 where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Gcneral. Opi>or- 
 
 tunely venturing to return, he was unexpcctc<lly received 
 
 2 m 
 
290 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 with much favour by the King, and his ofiPer to raise a 
 Hio-hlaud reoiment on his forfeited estates gladly accepted. 
 His success was worthy of his zeal; and at Elgin, in 1778, 
 he appeared at the head of a magnificent corps of 840 
 Highlanders, 236 Lowlanders, and 34 English and Irish, 
 which were accordingly regimented as the Seventy-third, 
 afterwards our Seventy-first Kegiment. The success of this 
 corps induced the formation of a second battalion, which 
 soon attained its complement. Although styled the "Glas- 
 gow Highland Light Infantry," that western metropolis can 
 boast no legitimate claim to an interest in its formation 
 beyond the thirty-four English and Irish recruits, who, it is 
 said, hailed from Glasgow. It acquired the property, at a 
 later period, when a second battalion was being grafted upon 
 the parent stem, when many of its citizens enlisting, mani- 
 fested so strong a predilection in its favour, as induced the 
 government to confer the present title, and ever since the 
 Glasgowegians have proudly adopted the Seventy-first as 
 their own. 
 
 Almost immediately on its completion, the first battalion 
 was embarked for India. Landing at ]\Iadras in 1780, 
 it became the nucleus for the Highland Brigade, which the 
 subsequent and successive arrival of the Seventy-second, 
 Seventy-third, Seventy-fourth, Seventy-fifth, and Ninety- 
 fourth Highland regiments constituted. These earned dis- 
 tinctions for gallant service almost exceptional to them- 
 selves. It is worthy of note — ehcitiug our surprise, yet reflect- 
 ing infinite credit on our arms — that notwithstanding the iusig- 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 291 
 
 uificance of the British force, opposed to the countless hosts of 
 the Indian chiefs — geuenvlly as one to ten — we almost always 
 prevailed. Had the native pride been less rampant, and the 
 Indian chiefs submitted to the superior generalship of the 
 French otHcei*s sent out to discipline their troops — wherein 
 was admirable material for good soldici-s — the danger to the 
 British would have been greater, and success more exceptional. 
 Fortunately for us, the incapacity of these sable chiefs to 
 command, and their exceeding fear of dictation, lost them 
 many an opiX)rtunity, and in the end prove<l our safety. 
 It is strangely tnie of the Indian soldier that, in the field, 
 when well led, he l)ehave3 with the utmost firmness, whilst, 
 in defence of fortifications or walled towns, he betrays a 
 weakness which altogether belies any favourable impression of 
 his resolution previously formed. Notwitlistanding the over- 
 whelming superiority of the enemy who, under Ilyder Ali, 
 threatened annihilation to the small force of 4600 men, includ- 
 ing the first battalion of the Seventy-third (as we nuist as yet 
 call the Seventy-first), these, under Major-Gcncral Sir Hector 
 Munro, dared to advance into the interior. Meanwhile, a divi- 
 sion of 3000 men, under Lieut.-Colonel Baillie, descending from 
 the north, strove to effect a junction with the army of General 
 Munro. The hesitation of the latter, when in presence of the 
 foe, to prosecute his advance, and secure his junction with the 
 former, placed the small force of Colonel Baillie in a position 
 of i>eril. This opportunity, vigorously improved by Hyder 
 Ali, occasioned its destruction, which, with two companies of 
 the Seventy- third, and other troops under Lieut.-Colonel 
 
292 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Fletcher, liacl, desj^itc the treachery of the guides, threaded 
 their Avay through the jungle, and arrived as a reinforcement 
 from Major-Gen eral Munro, but in reality as so many 
 more victims who should be engulfed in the fatal ruin so 
 nigh. The terrible disaster which ensued, and the calami- 
 tous result which yielded so many brave men prisoners into 
 the cruel, merciless power of Hyder Ali, can never fail to 
 inspire feelings of the truest sympathy. With a hundred 
 thousand men, he descended with the most sanguinary fury 
 upon this little and devoted column. Even when the whole 
 ammunition was, by an unlucky accident, blown into the air 
 in their very midst, and the British guns silenced, they 
 remained unconquered. The converging hosts of the enemy 
 drew closer around the little band of heroes, and poured in 
 upon them a deadly fire of artillery and musketry, to which 
 they could no longer reply. Eeduced to 500 men, " History 
 cannot produce an instance, for fortitude, and intrepidity, and 
 desperate resolutioD, to equal the exploits of this heroic band. 
 .... The mind, in the contemplation of such a scene, and 
 such a situation as theirs was, is filled at once with admiration, 
 with astonishment, with horror, and with awe. To behold 
 formidable and impenetrable bodies of horse, of infantry, and 
 of artillery, advancing from all quarters, flashing savage fury, 
 levelling the numberless instruments of slaughter, and dart- 
 ing destruction around, was a scene to appal even something 
 more than the strongest human resolution; but it was beheld 
 by this little band with the most undaunted and immove- 
 able firmness Like the swelling waves of the ocean. 
 
TDE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 293 
 
 however, when agitated by a storm, fresh cohimas mcessautly 
 poured in upon them with raloubled fury, which at length 
 brought so many to the ground, and weakened them so con- 
 siderably, that they were unable longer to withstand the dread- 
 ful and tremendous shock; and the field soon presented a horrid 
 picture of the most inhuman cruelties and unexampled car- 
 nage." "■• Happy were those who found on the burning sands of 
 Perambaukam "a soldier's grave;" happy indeed, compared with 
 the cruel fate of the survivors, who, reduced from 4000, scarce 
 mustered 200 prisoners, nearly all of whom were wounded. 
 Colonel Baillie, stripped, wounded in three places, was dragged 
 into the presence of the victor, who exulted over him with the 
 imperious tone of a conqueror. Baillie replied with the true 
 spirit of a soldier, and soon after died. The remainder, cast 
 into the dungeons of Bangalore, scantily fed on unwholesome 
 food, were doomed to endure a miserable imprisonment for 
 three long years. These trials, however, served only to bring 
 out, in brighter effulgence, the characteristics of the Highland 
 hero. "These brave men," says General Stewart, "equally 
 true to their religion and their allegiance, were so warmly 
 attached to their officers (amongst whom was one afterwards 
 destinal to win a mighty fame as their gallant Icivler — Sir 
 David Baird), that they picked out the best part of their own 
 food and secretly reserved it for their officers; thus sacrificing 
 their own lives for that of their officers, as the residt proved, 
 for out of 111, only 30 feeble and emaciated men ever 
 
 • N.'UTativc of tlio MilitAry Opcratiuns on tljo Corr>nwin<K'l Ci>.i8t from 1780 to 
 1781, by Ciptain Iducs Monro, of the Seventy -tliinl Ut.'gimcnt. 
 
294 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 emerged from that almost living tomb." Mrs Grant says in 
 her narrative, "Daily some of their companions dropped 
 before their eyes, and daily they were offered liberty and 
 riches in exchange for this lingering torture, on condition of 
 relinquishing their religion and taking the turban. Yet not 
 one could be prevailed upon to purchase life on these terms. 
 These Highlanders were entirely illiterate; scarcely one of them 
 could have told the name of any particular sect of Christians, 
 and all the idea they had of the ]\Iahommedan religion was, 
 that it was adverse to their own, and to what they had been 
 taught by their fathers ; and that, adopting it, they would re- 
 nounce Him who had died that they might live, and who 
 loved them, and could support them in all their sufferings. 
 The great outlines of their religion, the peculiar tenets which 
 distinguish it from any other, were early and deeply im- 
 pressed on their minds, and proved sufficient in the hour of 
 trial. 
 
 ' Rise, Muses rise, add all your tuneful breath ; 
 These must not sleep in darkness and in death.' 
 
 " It was not theirs to meet Death in the field of honour : 
 while the mind, wrought up with fervid eagerness, went forth 
 in search of him. They saw his slow approach, and though 
 sunk into languid debility, such, as quenches the fire of mere 
 temperament, they never once hesitated at the alternative set 
 before them." 
 
 " Billeted by death, he quarter'd here remained; 
 AVlieu the last trumpet sounds, he'U rise and march again." 
 
 In 1781, in the army of Lieutenant-General Sir Eyre 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 295 
 
 Coote, the regiment took the field, although sorely weakened 
 by sickness and the sword. After considerable manauivrinnr 
 on both sides, the two armies confronted each other on the 
 plains of Porto Novo. The British, not amounting to 8000 
 men, of which the Seventy-third was the only Line regiment, 
 were opposed to a vast host, exceeding 100,000. 
 
 Notwithstanding our great inferiority in numbers, the 
 enemy signally failed in every attempt to annihilate, as he 
 imagined, the heroic band who fought beneath the banner of 
 All)ion. Discouraged and worn out with these repeated and 
 unavaihng assaults, the foe was only too glad to retire and 
 escape from such a vain struggle, where superior numbers 
 could make no impression on bravery and discipline, but only 
 entailed disn-race and defeat. The excellent valour of the regi- 
 ment on this critical occasion, received the warmest approbation 
 of the Commander-in-chief. Sir Eyre Coote was particularly 
 pleased with the gallantry of one of its pipers, who, amid the 
 hottest of the fire, ceased not to cheer his comrades by the 
 shrill scream of his bag-pipes, which was heard even above the 
 din and roar of battle — so pleased, he exclaimed, " Well done, 
 ray brave fellow, you shall have silver pipes when the battle is 
 over," a promise which he most munificently fulfilled. Sir Eyre 
 Coote always retained a warm interest in, strong attachment 
 to, and confidence in the Highland regiments, which he learned 
 to esteem as the Mower of the British army. Having followed 
 up this great victory by a series of further minor successes, 
 the anny, reinforced by a boily of troops from the Bengal 
 Presidency under Colonel Pearsc, anew arrived upon the blood- 
 
296 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 stained plains of Perambaukam, so pregnant with mclanclioly 
 associations, and wliicli, yet reeking with the gore of the mur- 
 dered brave, bore memorials of the disaster which had overtaken 
 so many of their comrades but a year previous; stirred by these 
 painful recollections, our army consecrated the spot to avenge 
 thereon the butchery which had so lately bereaved them of their 
 brethren. The foe, too, were inspired for the fight, but by a 
 very different feeling. Superstition bade them believe their 
 gods propitious to the spot, and, as with them, to give over 
 the British as the victims of a new sacrifice. Thus impelled, 
 it may well be inferred that the struggle was severe and bloody, 
 although, as usual, British prowess triumphed. 
 
 To relieve the important fortress of Yellore, our army ad- 
 vanced by the Pass of Sholingur, where it encountered the 
 enemy. A protracted and desperate fight ensued, but nothing 
 could withstand the impetuous and persevering assaults of the 
 British, who ultimately drove the enemy before them. In the 
 spring of 1782, the relief of Vellore was a second time accom- 
 plished, despite the strenuous efforts of Hyder Ali to prevent 
 it. The after and unsatisfying inactivity of our army per- 
 mitted a poAverful French force, landed from the fleet of 
 Admiral Suffrein, to effect a junction with the Indian army, 
 and these together succeeded in reducing the important strong- 
 holds of Permacoil and Cudalore. These successes, energetically 
 followed up by Hyder Ali, threatened our utter destruction, 
 and brought about the battle of Arnee, in which the Seventy- 
 third was conspicuous under the leadership of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Elphinstone and, more immediately, of Captain the 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 297 
 
 lloiioiiruble James Lindsay. The British, reinforced by the 
 arrival of the Seventy-eighth (now the Seventy-second) regi- 
 ment, recently arrived from Europe, were in a position to assume 
 the offensive, and having anew provisioned Vellore, undertook 
 the siege of Cudalore, which was only abandoned for lack of 
 the requisite means of attack, thus postponing its fiite for 
 another year. So deeply interested was the Commander-in- 
 chief, Sir Eyre Coote, in this undertaking, that, vexed with its 
 miscarriage — esteeming himself inadequately supported by 
 Government in the attempt — grieved and disappointed, he 
 fell a prey to melancholy, which, ere an opportunity to 
 retrieve the present failure had come, the veteran chief had 
 fallen. He was succeeded in the command l)y Major-Goneral 
 James Stuart, and the army, reinforced by the arrival of the 
 Twenty-third Light Dragoons, the One-huudred-and-first and 
 One-hundretl-and-.second British regiments, and the Fifteenth 
 regiment of Hanoverian infantry, resumed the siege of Cuda- 
 lore under more auspicious circumstances. The defence was 
 resolutely maintained by the French under General Bussy. 
 The besiegers so vigorously pressed the enemy that he was at 
 length compelletl to withdraw within the fortress. The loss 
 on our side was very severe — the Seventy-third had to mourn 
 a melancholy list of nearly 300 comrades killed or wounded. 
 The news of a treaty of peace having been signed l)ctwecn 
 Great P»ritain and France, snatched the prize from our troops 
 which we had imagine*! within our grasp. 
 
 lu 1786, the numerical title of the regiment was changed 
 
298 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 from the Seventy-third to the Seventy-first, as at present, by 
 the reduction, etc., of senior corps. 
 
 Nothing of importance falls to be recorded in the course of 
 our narrative till the year 1790, when Tippoo Saib, the son 
 and successor of Hyder Ali, encroaching upon the territory of 
 the Rajah of Travancore, a faithful ally of the British, occa- 
 sioned our interference, resulting in a renewal of hostilities. 
 In the army of Major-General Medows, the Seventy-first and 
 Seventy-second regiments formed the second or Highland 
 brigade, afterwards increased by the addition of the Seventy- 
 fourth Highlanders from Madras. As we shall have frequent 
 opportunity of following the movements of the brigade in after 
 chapters, we will not here burden our history with a repetition, 
 contenting ourselves with the simple mention of the chief 
 events that ensued. Under General the Earl Cornwallis, 
 the Seventy-first was with the army in the various actions 
 which led to the siege and capture of Bangalore; thence it 
 proceeded with the expedition intended to act against Serin- 
 gapatam, but which, overcome by the force of circumstances, 
 in the meantime retired, awaiting a more favourable oppor- 
 tunity, when better prepared to accomplish the design. In 
 the interval, the regiment was creditably engaged in the re- 
 duction of the strong forts of Nundydroog, Savendroog, etc., 
 which had hitherto hindered our progress. At length, in 1 792, 
 the army resumed the enterprise against Seringapatam. This 
 forward movement alarmed Tippoo Saib, who, dreading the 
 fate which awaited his capital, strove to arrest the army by 
 accepting battle. The result proving unfortunate, the enemy 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 290 
 
 were driven within the ishuul on which the city stands, and 
 even here, ulthongh very strongly posted, the Mysorcans had 
 become so straitened in their circumstances, ami were so 
 pressed by the British, that, suing for peace, the Sultan was 
 only too glad to purchase the safety of his capital and preserve 
 the last remnant of Iiis once mighty dominion by any sacrifice 
 which the concjuerors chose to impose. Disappointed of a 
 further triumph, the army retired, laden with the spoil which 
 had ransomed the haughty metropolis and its ambitious prince. 
 Holland having caught the revolutionary fever which pre- 
 vailed in 1 793, and being allied with France, was involved in 
 the war with Britain, which, arising out of the sins of the Revo- 
 lution, had already torn from these states nearly their entire 
 colonial dominions. Pondichcrry, on the Coromandel coast, had 
 succumbed to our arms ; and the valuable island of Ceylon 
 was, in turn, wrested from the Dutch by a British expedition, 
 including the Seventy-first regiment. This was the last 
 achievement of any importance which was attained by the corps 
 in India. In 1 798, it received orders to return home, and, 
 after a long voyage, landed in safety at \Vo..l\vich. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 " Right onward did Clan- Alpine come. 
 Above the tide, each broadsword bright 
 Was brandishing like beam of light, 
 
 Each targe was dark below ; 
 And with the ocean's mighty swing, 
 Wlien heaving to the tempest's wing, 
 They hurled them on the foe. 
 I heard the lance's shivering "crash. 
 As when the whirlwind rends the ash ; 
 I heard the broadsword's deadly clang. 
 As if an hundi-ed anvils rang ! 
 
 But jNIoray wheeled his rearward rank 
 Of horsemen on Clan- Alpine's flank — 
 
 ' My banner-man advance ! 
 I see,' he cried, 'their column shake; 
 Now, gallants! for your ladies' sake. 
 Upon them with the lance ! ' 
 The horsemen dashed among the rout. 
 
 As deer break through the broom ; 
 Their steeds are stout, their swords are out, 
 They soon make hghtsome room." 
 
 GIBRALTAR — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE — BUENOS AYRES — PENINSULA 
 — FLANDERS — WATERLOO — CANADA — WEST INDIES — 1778-1862. 
 
 Whilst the first battalion was gallantly combating its 
 country's foes on the plains of India, a second battalion, 
 raised in 1778, had, in 1780, embarked for Gibraltar. On the 
 voyage, the fleet fell in with a valuable Spanish convoy of 
 Carracca merchantmen, guarded by several ships of war. Sir 
 
f 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 301 
 
 George Rotlney, the Ihitish admiral, having impressed the 
 Seventy-first as marines, assailed the enemy, and soon com- 
 pelled them to surrender. Arrived off Cape St Vincent, a new 
 and more formidable antagonist awaited the coming of the 
 British. A powerful Spanish fleet, under Admiral Don Juan 
 de Langara, appeared in sight, charged with their destruction. 
 But a very ditlereut result was the issue of the collision: out 
 of eleven line-of-battle ships, comprising the enemy, nearly all 
 either jjcrished or were captured. Arrived at Gibraltar, the 
 battalion was engaged in the defence of that important 
 fortress, contril)uting by its gallantry to beat off the most 
 stupendous efforts of Spain and France combined to reduce it. 
 Successively it witnessed the failure of the tremendous cannon- 
 ade with which the Spaniards assailed the fortifications, hoping 
 therewith to render these splendid works a heap of ruins, no 
 longer defensible even by British valour. In 1781, the ilank 
 companies of the battalion participated in the glopy of the 
 sortie which accomplished the destruction of the numerous 
 and powerful batteries and immense magazines of the enemy; 
 and finally, in the following year, it beheld the might of 
 France and Spain discomfited, and itself, surviving the iron 
 tempest of shot and shell with which the enemy proposed to 
 exterminate the garrison, was glorifieil along with the British 
 troops who dauntlessly maintained the fortress. Ten ix)nde- 
 rous battering ships had been prepared an<l were supposed to 
 achieve marvels in the tremendous artillery of the assault. 
 But alas! how oft is the counsel of the wise mocked and the 
 loftiest designs of man humbled by the God of battles! 
 
302 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Instead of victory, which it was fondly imagined should crown 
 such gigantic efforts of skill, these floating batteries were 
 nearly all utterly destroyed by the red-hot shot used for the 
 pur^jose by the British. Thus triumphing over the vast 
 efforts of two of the mightiest military powers of the age, our 
 brave garrison received the royal thanks, expressive of the 
 people's gratitude, conveyed through the Secretary of State 
 for War, in these flattering terms: — "I am honoured with 
 His ^Majesty's commands to assure you, in the strongest terms, 
 that no encouragement shall be wanting to the brave officers 
 and soldiers under your command. His royal approbation of 
 the past will no doubt be a powerful incentive to future exer- 
 tions; and I have the King's authority to assure you, that 
 every distinguished act of emulation and gallantry, which shall 
 be performed in the course of the siege by any, even of the 
 lowest rank, will meet with ample reward from his gracious 
 protection and favour." Peace at length dawued, and the 
 blockade was in consequence raised in February, 1783. The 
 second battalion, returning home, was disbanded at Stirling in 
 the autumn of the same year. 
 
 The first battalion, which had returned from India, had 
 proceeded to Scotland to recruit, but, being unsuccessful, 
 passed over to Ireland in 1800, where it received 600 volun- 
 teers from the Scots Fencibles. Afterward, when the peace of 
 Amiens had been transgressed, and a French invasion seemed 
 imminent, the "Army Reserve Act" occasioned the formation 
 of a second battalion at Dumbarton in 1804. Enrolled for a 
 limited time, and restricted to home duty, it was employed in 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 303 
 
 Vtorious garrisons in Seotlaml, IrehuKl, and South Britain, and 
 ^vas disbanded at Glasgow in December, 1815, on the termina- 
 tion of the war. Meanwhile, the alarm of invasion having 
 passed away, the first battalion, with the Seventy-second and 
 Ninety-thii-d regiments, formed the second or Highland 
 brigade, imder Brigadier-General Ronald Crawfurd Fergu- 
 son, engrossed in the army of Major-Geueral Sir David Baird, 
 destined to operate against the Dutch colony at the Cape 
 of Good Hope. Having successfully accomi)lished a landing 
 in Saldanha Bay, conquered at the battle of Bleuberg, driven 
 the Dutch army of Licutenant-General Janssens into the in- 
 terior, and advanced upon Cape Town, the fruitlessness of 
 further resistance becoming evident, the entire colony was 
 surrendered in 1806. In token of the honour accpiired by the 
 regiment in this enterprise, the words "Cape of Good Hope" 
 have been since borne by permission upon its regimental colour. 
 No sooner had this conquest been completed than the Seventy- 
 first was detached, with 200 men of the St Helena regiment — 
 making a total of 1087 rank and file, in an expedition against 
 Buenos Ayres, in South America. Commandeil by Brigadier- 
 General William Carr (afterwards Viscount) Beresford, this ill- 
 advised and ill-fate<l expedition at first met with considerable 
 success — a bloodless landing being effected, and the enemy easily 
 broken and disjierseil, all promised to go well. Recovering from 
 their first alarm, and ashamed that .such a handful of British 
 should have so easily assumetl to be their masters, the citizens, 
 gradually drawing together into a formidable phalanx, resolvetl 
 to wijx) away the disgrace, and achieve their liberty by the 
 
304 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 expulsion of the invaders. Driven into the citadel, without 
 hope of relief, and unable to contend against the hourly in- 
 creasing enemies that surrounded them and threatened ven- 
 geance upon them, the besieged felt themselves compelled 
 to surrender. Kemoved as prisoners into the interior 
 of the country, the battalion was treated leniently, but the 
 landing of a second expedition at ]\Ionte Video, fated to an 
 issue as unfortunate, occasioned a more rigorous treatment. 
 Negotiations having brought about an amicable arrange- 
 ment, the entire British, released, agreed to relinquish all 
 hostilities against South America. Unarmed and ununiformed, 
 the battalion reached Cork in 1807, and was immediately 
 re-equipped, and presented with new colours by Lieutenant- 
 General Floyd, who thus addressed it : — " Brave Seventy-first, 
 the world is well acquainted with your gallant conduct at the 
 capture of Buenos Ay res, in South America, under one of His 
 Majesty's bravest generals. 
 
 " It is well known that you defended your conquest vdth 
 the utmost courage, good conduct, and discipline to the last 
 extremity. When diminished to a handful, hopeless of suc- 
 cour, and destitute of provisions, you were overwhelmed by 
 multitudes, and reduced by the fortune of war to lose your 
 liberty and your well-defended colours, but not your honour. 
 Your honour. Seventy-first regiment, remains unsullied. Your 
 last act in the field covered you with glory. Your generous 
 despair, calling upon your General to suff'er you to die with 
 arms in your hands, proceeded from the genuine spirit of 
 British soldiers. Your behaviour in prosperity — your sufferings 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIIiST FOOT. 305 
 
 in captivity — aud your faithful discharge of your duty to your 
 King and country, are appreciated by all. 
 
 "You who now stand on this parade, in defiance of tho 
 allurements held out to base desertion, are endeared to the 
 amiy and to the country, and your conduct will ensure you 
 the esteem of all true soldiers — of all worthy men — and fill 
 every one of you with honest martial pride. 
 
 "It has been my good fortune to have witnessed, in a 
 remote part of the world, the early glories and gallant conduct 
 of the Seventy-first regiment in the field : and it is with great 
 satisfaction I meet you again, with replenished ranks, with 
 good arms in your hands, and with stout hearts in your 
 bosoms. 
 
 " Look forward, ofiicers aud soldiers, to the achievement of 
 new honours and the acquirement of fresh fame! 
 
 "Officers! be the friends aud guardians of these brave 
 fellows committed to your charge! 
 
 "Soldiers! give your confidence to your officers. They 
 have sharetl with you the chances of war ; they have bravely 
 bled along with you; they will always do honour to them- 
 selves and you. Preserve your regiment's reputation for 
 valour in the field, and regidarity in quarters," 
 
 Spain and Portugal having been despoiled of their inde- 
 pendence by the perfidious usurpation of France, Britain — 
 allierl with the patriots of the Peninsula in the struggle going 
 on for the emancipation of these kingdoms from tlie thraldom 
 of Napoleon — sent an army to Portugal, wliich included the first 
 
 battalion of the Seventy-first, and under the command of Sir 
 
 20 
 
306 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Arthur Wellesley, effected a landing in Mondego Bay in 1808. 
 Through the victories of " Roleia " and " Vimiera," com- 
 memoratcd upon the colours of the regiment, the convention 
 of Cintra was achieved, which expelled the French under 
 Marshal Junot, Duke of Abrantes, from Portugal. At 
 Vimiera, the Grenadier company of the Seventy-first, under 
 Captain Forbes, captured a battery of five guns and a 
 howitzer, which every attempt of the enemy failed to recover. 
 On the same occasion George Clarke, the piper of the regi- 
 ment, was specially commended for his gallantry in re- 
 solutely continuing at his post, although severely wounded, 
 cheering his countrymen by the wild inspiring music of the 
 bag-pipe. Corporal IM'Kay, at the same battle, was fortunate 
 enouo;h to receive the sword of the French General Brennier. 
 Advancing upon Madrid, associated in brigade with the 
 Thirty-sixth and Ninety-second regiments, the Seventy-first 
 was ultimately joined to the army of Lieutenant-General 
 Sir John Moore, which had promised to relieve the citizens 
 of that metropolis from the intolerant yoke of France. The 
 corps was with the British army in the disastrous yet glorious 
 retreat, terminated in the victory of Corunna, possessing a 
 melancholy interest from the death of the hero whose genius 
 had accomplished it, and which delivered a British army 
 from a situation of imminent peril. 
 
 Embarked, the regiment returned to England, and in 
 1809 — a year to be mournfully remembered, as fatal to the 
 wearing of the kilt in the army — it was ordered to lay aside 
 the Highland garb, and was uniformed as a light infantry 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 307 
 
 regiment. Every care was in consequence bestowed to j»ro- 
 mote its efficiency. Strcni^tliened, it was associated with the 
 Sixty-eighth and Eiglity-lit'th regiments in the light brigade, 
 and was ordered to accompany the army in the ill-advised 
 expedition, which wasted a splendid armament in a vain 
 attempt to obtain a footing in Flanders. The good conduct 
 of the regiment was nevertheless most conspicuous in tho 
 various actions of the brief campaign. 
 
 Returning to England towards the close of the year, in 
 the spring of 1810, the fii*st, second, third, fourth, sixth, and 
 tenth companies were selected to reinforce the army of 
 Lieutenant-General Viscount Wellington, then lighting in 
 Portugal. It arrived at a very critical period in the history 
 of the war, when ^larshal Massena, pressing our troops with 
 overwhelming numbei's, they were retreating towards tho 
 impregnable lines of Torres Vedras, defeatijig the sanguine 
 hopes of the French general. Tlie Seventy-first, commanded 
 by Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon. Henry Cadogan, wjis brigaded 
 with the Fiftieth and Ninety-second regiments under Major- 
 General Sir William Ei-skinc. Whilst maintaining these 
 formidable defences, the following incident is related of 
 Sir Adam Ferguson, who was so posted with his company 
 that the French artillery might operate with fatal effect upon 
 his men, but, for better security, they were ordered to lie 
 prostrate on the ground. While in this attitude the wiptain, 
 kneeling at their head, read aloml the de3cri[)tion of the battle, 
 as introducing our present chapter, and as selected from Sir 
 WiUter Scott's " Lady of the Lake." The little volume bad 
 
308 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 just come into the camp as a stranger, but was soon welcomed 
 as a friend. The listening soldiers, charmed with the poet's 
 tale, only interrupted the reading by an occasional and joyous 
 huzzah whenever the French shot struck the bank close above 
 them. Wearied, disappointed, and distressed by ravages of 
 disease amongst his troops, the French Marshal was con- 
 strained in turn to retreat — a retreat which, but for the 
 unslumbering vigilance of his pursuers, promised to be as 
 successful as the ability with which it was conducted merited, 
 worthy the genius of Massena — ^justly esteemed the right hand 
 of Napoleon. 
 
 In 1811 the regiment was joined by its other companies. 
 In the action of Fuentes d'Onor it was warmly engaged ; re- 
 peatedly and powerfully assailed by the enemy, it was all but 
 overpowered in the defence of the village, when, happily, the 
 Seventy-fourth and Eighty-Eighth regiments arrived to its 
 support, and so the post was retained. The corps was after- 
 wards detached as a reinforcement to the army of Marshal 
 Sir William Beresford, and subsequently, in the army of 
 Lieutenant -General Kowland (afterwards Viscount) Hill, 
 was employed in the southern provinces of the Peninsula, 
 keeping in check the French under Marshal Soult, and other- 
 wise covering the operations of the grand army of Welling- 
 ton. It helped to disperse and destroy a considerable detach- 
 ment of the enemy which had been surprised at Arroyo- 
 del-Moliuos. It was more especially commended for the ex- 
 ceeding gallantry it disphiyed in the capture of Fort Napoleon, 
 embraced in the action and commemorated in the word 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 309 
 
 "Alnuiraz." At the battle of Vittoria it suffered very severely 
 in the loss of nearly 400 men and oflicei-s; but the most 
 grievous loss was felt in the death of its Lieutenant-Colonel, 
 the Hon. Uenry Ctulogan, who largely enjoyed the esteem of 
 the soldiers. He "fell mortally wounded while leading his 
 men to the charge, and being unable to accompany the bat- 
 talion, requested to be carried to a neighbouring eminence, 
 from which he might take a last fLirewcll of them and the 
 field. In his dying moments he earnestly inquired if the 
 French were beaten; and on being told by an officer of the 
 regiment, who stood by supporting him, that they had given 
 way at all points, he ejaculated, 'God bless my brave country- 
 men,' and immediately expired." The ^Marquis of Wellington 
 thus gave effect to his own regrets in the official dispatch 
 communicating his fall: — "In him His Majesty has lost an 
 officer of great zeal and tried gallantry, who had already ac- 
 quired the respect and regard of the whole profession, and of 
 whom it might be expected, that if he had lived he woidd have 
 rendered the most important services to his country." 
 
 In all the after battles and actions, which resulted in the 
 expulsion of the French from Spain, and their repeated defeats 
 and ultimate rout on their native plains, the Seventy-first 
 bore an honourable part, returning to Britain in 1S14, 
 richly laden with a harvest of glory. A short interval of 
 peace soon recniiteil the "precious remnant" of the regiment, 
 an«l so restored its strength as enable<l it once more to go on 
 foreiim service. Ordered to embark for AmcricA, it was 
 fortunately detained by tempestuous weather, and so privileged 
 
310 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 to win laurels on a mightier field. Napoleon having escaped 
 from his honourable exile in Elba, by his presence in 
 France, overturning the ricketty government of the Bourbon, 
 involved that bleeding country in a universal ^yar, since it 
 brought down the combined wrath of Europe, whose allied 
 armies now hastened to arrest and punish the ambitious man 
 who had proved himself so dire a curse to Christendom. 
 Upon the plains of Waterloo the die for empire was cast and 
 lost. In that great battle the Seventy-first had a part, forming 
 with the first battalion of the Fifty-second, and the second and 
 third battalions of the Ninety-fifth, or Kifies — a light infantry 
 brigade which sustained the charge of three regiments of 
 French cavalry: one of cuirassiers, one of grenadiers-a-cheval, 
 and one of lancers. It also withstood the shock of the grand 
 final charge of the Old Imperial Guard, witnessing the discom- 
 fiture of these choice troops, so long the citadel of imperial 
 strength, now reeling, broken, dying, dead — of whom, borrow- 
 ing the w^ords, it may well be said — 
 
 "They never feared the face of man." 
 
 This great victory having ruined irretrievably the fortunes of 
 Napoleon, the allied army, rapidly advancing, entered Paris a 
 second time, and there dictated the terms of peace. The 
 Seventy-first remained in France as part of the " army of 
 occupation;" and whilst stationed at the village of Rombly in 
 1816, its soldiers were presented with the Waterloo medals by 
 Colonel Reynell, who thus, addressing the regiment, said : — 
 " These honourable rewards bestowed by your Sovereign for 
 
WATERLOO K 
 
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THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 311 
 
 your share in tlie i;reat and glorious exertions of the army of 
 His CI race the Duke of Wellington upon the field of Waterloo, 
 when the utmost efforts of the army of France, directed by 
 Napoleon, reputed to be the first captain of the age, were not 
 not only paralysed at the moment, bift blasted beyond the 
 power of even a second struggle. 
 
 " To have participated in a contest crowned with victory 
 so decisive, and productive of consequences that have diffused 
 peace, security, and happiness throughout Europe, may be to 
 each of you a source of honourable pride, as well as of grati- 
 tude to the Omnipotent Arbiter of all human contests, who 
 preserved you in such peril, and without who^^e protecting 
 hand the battle belongs not to the strong, nor the race to the 
 swift. 
 
 "I acknowledge to feel an honest, and, I trust, an excus- 
 able, exultation, in having had the honour to command you 
 on that day; and in dispensing these medals, destined to re- 
 cord in your families the share you had in the ever-memorable 
 battle of Waterloo, it is a peculiar satisfaction to me that I can 
 present them to those by whom they have been fairly and 
 honourably earned, and that I can here solemnly declare, that 
 in the course of that eventful day I did not observ'e a soldier 
 of this good regiment whoso conduct was not only creilitablo 
 to the English nation, but sucli as his dearest friends could de- 
 sire. I trust that they will act as powerful talismans, to keep 
 you, in your future lives, in the paths of honour, sobriety, and 
 virtue." A year later and Alajor-General Sir Denis Pack 
 presented new colours to the regiment, and, alluding to its 
 
THE SEVENTY-FIRST FOOT. 311 
 
 your share in the f^ivat and glorious cxerLions ut" the army of 
 His Grace the Duke of AVellington upon the fiehl of Waterloo, 
 when the utmost eflbrts of the army of France, directed by 
 Napoleon, reputed to bo the first captain of the age, were not 
 not only paralysed at the moment, but blasted beyond the 
 power of even a second struggle. 
 
 " To have participated in a contest crowned with victory 
 so decisive, and productive of consequences that have diffused 
 peace, security, and ha{)piness throughout Europe, may bo to 
 each of you a source of honourable pride, as well as of grati- 
 tude to the Omnipotent Arbiter of all human contests, who 
 preserved you in such peril, and without whose protecting 
 hand the battle belongs not to the strong, nor the race to the 
 swift. 
 
 "I acknowledge to feel an honest, and, I trust, an excus- 
 able, exultation, in having had the honour to command you 
 on that day; and in dispensing these medals, destined to re- 
 cord in your families the share you had in the ever-memorable 
 battle of Waterloo, it is a peculiar satisfaction to me that I can 
 present them to those by whom they have been fairly and 
 honourably earned, and that I can here solemnly declare, that 
 in the course of that eventful day I did not observe a soldier 
 of this good regiment whoso conduct was not only creditable 
 to the English nation, but such as his dearest friends could de- 
 sire. I trust that they will act as powerful talismans, to keep 
 you, in your future lives, in the paths of honour, s«jbricty, and 
 virtue." A year later and Major-General Sir Denis Pack 
 presented new colours to the regiment, and, alluding to its 
 
312 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 services, said : — " Never, indeed, did the character of the corps 
 stand higher; never was the fame of the British arms or the 
 glory of .the British empire more pre-eminent than at this 
 moment, an enthusiastic recollection of which the sight of 
 these colours must always inspire/' 
 
 Eeturning to England in 1818, the Seventy-first remained 
 on home service until 1824, when it was removed to Canada, 
 and in 1831 was sent to Bermuda, thence restored to its 
 native land in 1834. It returned to Canada in 1838, and in 
 1842 was included in a first and reserve l3attalion. Whilst 
 the latter remained in Canada, the former was ordered to the 
 West Indies, thence to Barbadoes, and in 1847 restored to 
 England. In 1853 the first battalion proceeded to the Ionian 
 Islands; and in November, 1854, the reserve battalion, which 
 had recently arrived from Canada, embarked for the Crimea, 
 followed by the first battalion from Corfu. Both battalions 
 were subsequently united on arrival at the seat of war. 
 "Sevastopol" commemorates its service before that place. The 
 regiment was next stationed at Malta, and was sent thence by 
 overland route, in January, 1858, to Bombay, and is now at 
 Sealkote, in the Punjaub. 
 
THE SE\ KNTV-SECOXD FOOT: 
 
 OR, 
 
 DUKE OF ALBANY'S HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CnATTER XXXll. 
 
 " We would not dip in that man's company, 
 That fears liia fellowship to die with n». 
 
 Then shall our names, 
 Familiar iu their mouths as household worda, 
 Be in their flowinj; cups freshly remember'd 
 From this day to the ending of the world; 
 We few, we happy few, we band of brothers. 
 For he to-day that slie*^ his blood with me. 
 Shall be my brother." 
 
 ORIGIN — CHANNEL ISLANDS— INDIA — CKYLON — ITTJ^lTOa. 
 
 The hi.story of the clans presents no more splendid illustra- 
 tion of that devotion which bound the clansman to hi.s chief, 
 and of the happy relationship implied therein, than is aftbnled 
 in the circumstances attendant upon the origin of the Seventy- 
 second Highlanders. The Earl of Seaforth, chief of the 
 
 Mackenzie, had, a.=? a leader in the rebellion of ITIT), been 
 
 2r 
 
314 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIME^'TS. 
 
 banished from bis country, bis title attainted, and bis estates 
 forfeited, yet, witbal, 400 of bis late followers and tenants 
 remitted to bim in bis exile a large portion of tbe rents tbey 
 mio;bt bave been liable for bad be retained tbe estate. Tbis 
 most generous testimony of respect and practical expression of 
 sympathy to tbe father was gratefully remembered by tbe son, 
 and, notwithstanding the changes which, passing over tbe face of 
 society, bad swept away tbe old institution of clanship, induced 
 the grandson, who, restored by purchase to the family pro- 
 perty, and by bis acknowledged loyalty, to the honours of tbe 
 Earldom of Seaforth, in return for these favours, volunteered 
 to raise a regiment for the Government. His appeal to bis 
 clansmen was amply successful. The Mackenzies and Macraes, 
 rallying around bim as their chief, gave thereby most hearty 
 and flattering testimony to their own loyalty to tbe King, and 
 unimpaired attachment to tbe family of Seaforth, which bad 
 so long and worthily presided over them. Accordingly, 1130 
 men were assembled and enrolled in tbe regiment — then known 
 as tbe Seventy-eighth — at Elgin, in 1778. Marched to Edin- 
 burgh, it was thence removed to the Channel Islands, where 
 its firm attitude, remarkable in such young soldiers, so won 
 the confidence of the islanders, and encouraged tbe militia, as, 
 together with our Highlanders, enabled them successfully to 
 resist an attempted debarkation of French troops on tbe island 
 of Jersey. 
 
 A sister regiment to tbe Seventy-first, the Seventy-second 
 (Seventy-eighth) was ordered to follow it to India in 1781, in 
 fulfilment of tbe original purpose for which both corps bad 
 
TUE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 315 
 
 been raised. The trausport service of those times was miser- 
 ably inetHcient, especially wheu compared with the Icviathau 
 ships and iloating palaces — the Scotias, Persias, and Grciit 
 Easterns — which in our day are, by a patriotic public, ever at 
 the command of our Government for any sudden emergency. 
 A voyage in a troop-ship eighty yciirs ago ofttimes consumed 
 more of life than the battlc-lield; was more fatal than the 
 dreaded pestilence which lurked in the swamps of the Indies; 
 nay, in some Ciises was as cruel in its miseries as the 
 horrors of the Black Hole of Calcutta. The passage of the 
 Seventy-second Highlanders to India proved to be such. Two 
 hundred and forty-seven men perished on the voyage, which 
 Wiis protracted to nearly ten months; and when the regiment 
 did arrive at ^ladras, only 361) men were mustered as fit for 
 duty. One trausport having parted from the fleet in a gale, 
 was placed in imminent peril, being destitute of charts, and 
 her commander utterly unfit for his position, having hitherto 
 trusted to keep his vessel in the track of the fleet. By the 
 wise precautious of Sir Eyre Cootc, although the requirements 
 of the service were urgent and entailed an immediate advance, 
 the Seven ty-.second regiment was not immediately hurried 
 into action, but time was allowed it to recruit its strength. 
 In consecpience of these measures, the regiment was soon able 
 to appear in the field with upwards of COO men. 
 
 Hyder Ali, who, by usuqiation, had ari.sen from being a 
 mere soldier of fortune to be the drea*led tyrant of the Mysore, 
 allied with France and Holland, threatened to expel the 
 British from the Indian continent. 
 
316 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 " 'Tis true that we are in great danger, 
 
 The greater, therefore, should our courage be." 
 
 These words of wisdom, from the glowing pen of Shak- 
 spere, worthy his mighty soul, bespeaking in every lineament 
 the true undaunted spirit of a son of Albion, were acted out 
 to the letter in the bold advance of the British against this 
 formidable coalition. Our army, under Major-General Stuart, 
 comprised the Seventy-third (afterwards the Seventy-first), 
 the Seventy-eighth (afterwards the Seventy-second), and the 
 One-hundred-and-first regiments, with a considerable body of 
 native troops and Hanoverians. The strong fortress of Cuda- 
 lore was the first to challenge the assault. Defended by a 
 veteran garrison of French, under General Bussy, it needed 
 the utmost gallantry of our Highlanders — "the ardour and 
 intrepidity giving presage of the renown they afterwards 
 acquired" — to force the enemy's lines, and ultimately compel 
 him to relinquish the external defences of the place and 
 retire more immediately within the fortress. Amongst the 
 prisoners was Colonel the Chevalier de Dumas, conspicuous as 
 "the bravest of the brave," also "a wounded young serjeant of 
 very interesting appearance and manners, who was treated 
 with much kindness by Lieutenant-Colonel Wagenheim, com- 
 manding the detachment of Hanoverians. Many years after- 
 wards, when the French army entered Hanover, General Wag- 
 enheim attended the levee of General Bernadotte, who re- 
 ferred to the circumstance at Cudalore in 1783, and added — 
 ' I am the individual, who, when a young serjeant, received 
 kindness from you in India.' " The death of Hyder AH, and 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. iil 7 
 
 the withdrawal of France, occasioned the breaking up of this 
 formidable league against the British power in India, and for 
 a moment the sun of peace smiled upon our war-worn 
 soldiers. 
 
 The new Sidtan of the Mysore, as capricious as his father and 
 predecessor, broke oft' the negotiations wliich had promised a 
 continued and favourable peace. In consequence, the Seventy- 
 eighth (Seventy-second) advanced, with the army imder 
 Colonel Fullerton, against the almost impregnable fortress of 
 Pidghantcherry, which was won mainly by the daring of the 
 Honourable Captain Maitland and a company of the regiment, 
 who, taking advantage of a violent storm, when the enemy, 
 seeking shelter from the pitiless rain, had left unguarded the 
 covered way, and thereby affording an opportunity which, 
 improved by Captain ^laitland and his company, gave such 
 a footing within the walls as terrified the defenders into 
 a speeily surrender. This success was followed by the fall 
 of Coimbatore, and might probably have been crowned in the 
 capture of Seringapatam, had not peace interferetl, postponing 
 the fate of the capital for ten years. 
 
 In 17D0, the unprovoked aggressions of Tippoo Saib, the 
 ambitious Sultan of the Mysore, upon the Iliijah of Travan- 
 core, an ally of the British, occasioned the renewal of the war. 
 Still associateil in a common glory with their brethren of the 
 Seventy-third (Seveuty-fii-st) Highlanders, the Seventy-eighth 
 (Seventy-second) advanced with the army under Major-Gen- 
 eral Medows, which, oljtaining jwssession unopposeil of Coim- 
 batore and capturing Dindigal, proceeded against the powerfid 
 
318 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 fortress of Palgliantclierry, which, notwithstanding Tippoo 
 Saib's utmost efforts to relieve it, was surrendered to the flank 
 companies of the two Highland regiments, under Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Stuart. 
 
 Aware of his own inferiority in the field, the Sultan 
 dared not hazard a battle, but omitted no opportunity to 
 harass and annoy our army wherever superior knowledge of 
 the country, position, or overwhelming numbers gave him the 
 advantage. The arrival of Colonel Maxwell's reinforcements 
 from the Bengal Presidency occasioned the addition of the 
 Seventy-fourth regiment to the Highland brigade; and, on 
 General the Earl Cornwallis assuming the command in 1791, 
 he approved this arrangement by retaining in one brigade 
 the Seventy-first, Seventy-second, and Seventy-fourth High- 
 landers. 
 
 Out-manoeuvred by the British commander, an entrance was 
 obtained through an unguarded defile into the enemy's terri- 
 tory. The siege of Bangalore Avas the immediate result, which, 
 despite its powerful fortifications and the menacing attitude of 
 the Mysore army, which anxiously strove to relieve it, was 
 gallantly won by storm in March, 1791. Having witnessed 
 the fall of this chief city of his empire, the Sultan precipitately 
 retreated, closely pursued by the Highland brigade. The 
 British army thereafter advanced against Seringapatam. 
 Alarmed for the safety of his capital, Tippoo ventured to try 
 the fate of battle. Defeated, he failed to arrest our progress, 
 all seemed lost, when unfortunate circumstances interposed on 
 his behalf, and a second time rescued the doomed city from 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 319 
 
 our grasp. Several minor enterprises beguiled tlic time ere 
 the march upon Seringapatam might be resumed. Saven- 
 droog was successfully stormed, and the strong fort of Outra- 
 Durgum was captured, chiefly through the heroic ardour of 
 two companies of the Seventy-second, who, having possessed 
 themselves of the town, pursuevi the fugitives to the rock upon 
 which the fort stood. We quote from Lieutenant Campbell's 
 Journal : — " Lieutenant M'Innes, senior officer of the two 
 Seventy-second companies, applietl to Captain Scott for liberty 
 to follow the fugitives up the rock, saying he should be in 
 time to entor the first gateway with them. The Captain 
 thought the enterprise impracticable. The soldiers of M'lnnes's 
 company heard the request made, and not doubting of consent 
 being given, had ru.shed towards the first wall, and were 
 followed by ^I'lnnes. The gate was shut: but Lieutenant 
 I^I'Pherson arrived with the pioneers and ladders, which were 
 instantly applied, and our people were within the wall, as 
 quick as thought, when the gate was unbolted and the two 
 companies entered. The enemy, astonished at so unexpected 
 an attempt, rctreatc<l with precipitation. ^I*Innes advanced 
 to the second wall, the men forced open the gate with their 
 shoulders, and not a moment was lost in pushing forward for 
 the third wall ; but the road, leading between two rocks, waa 
 80 narrow that only two could advance abrejist ; the pathway 
 was, in consequence, soon choked up, and those who carried 
 the ladders were unable to proceed; at the same time, the 
 enemy commenced throwing huge stones in numbers upon the 
 assailants, who commenced a sharp fire of musketry, and 
 
320 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 Lieutenant-ColoDel Stuart, who had observed from a distance 
 this astonishing enterprise, sent orders for the grenadiers not 
 to attempt anything further. Lieutenant M'Pherson forced 
 his way through the crowd, causing the ladders to be handed 
 over the soldiers' heads, from one to another, and before the 
 colonel's orders could be delivered, the gallant Highlanders 
 were crowding over the third gateway. The enemy fled on 
 all hands; the foremost of our men pursued them closely, and 
 gained the two last walls (there were five walls to escalade) 
 without opposition. The garrison escaped by the south-east 
 side of the fort, over rocks and precipices of immense depth 
 and ruggedness, where many must have lost their lives. By 
 one o'clock, our two companies were in possession of every 
 part of the fort, and MTnnes had planted the colours on the 
 highest pinnacle, without the loss of a single man. The Kile- 
 dar and two of his people were taken alive. Colonel Stuart 
 declared the business to be brilliant and successful, beyond his 
 most sanguine hopes." 
 
 In 1792, the advance upon Seringapatam was renewed. 
 In the glorious events of the siege, the Seventy-second bore 
 a most conspicuous part, and largely contributed to the attain- 
 ment of the victory which destroyed the power of the Sultan, 
 and made him a suppliant for peace. 
 
 Scarcely had one enemy been overcome, ere a new one 
 appeared — the French, hurled into fatal antagonism with us 
 because of the unhappy avowal of sentiments subversive of 
 good order. Accordingly, in 1793, the Seventy-second was 
 engaged in the siege of Pondicherrj^ — the principal Indian 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 321 
 
 colony of France; wliich foil into our hands rather from a 
 mutiny among its defemlers than our own cfForts. It is 
 related by Lieutenant Campbell, that " the moment the piper 
 began to play, the fire from the enemy slackened, and soon after 
 almost entirely ceased. The French all got upon the works, 
 and secniLHl astonished at hearing the bag-pipe." The Dutch 
 having allied themselves with the French, paid the penalty of 
 their folly in the lo.ss of many of their most valuable colonies, 
 conquered by the British. Ceylon, the principal, perhaps the 
 most valuable of them, was in consequence assailed by our 
 Indian army, including the Seventy-second regiment, which, 
 capturing Trincomalee, Batticaloe, Manaar, and Colombo, 
 reiluced the i.sland under British dominion. This was the 
 closing achievement, for the present, of the regiment in Intlia. 
 Retuniing from Ceylon to PondicheiTy, thence removed to 
 Madras in 1 798, it was orderal home, and landed at Gravesend. 
 Tliese many and distinguished services are commemorated in 
 the word " Hindoostiui," now borne by Royal authority upon 
 its coloui-s and appointments. 
 
 2g 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 ''Then glory, my Jeanie, maun plead my excuse; 
 Since honour commands me, how can I refuse? 
 Without it, I ne'er can have merit for thee, 
 And losing thy favour I'd better not be. 
 I gae, then, my lass, to win glory and fame. 
 And if I should chance to come gloriously hame, 
 I'U bring a heart to thee with love running o'er, 
 And then I'U leave thee and Lochaber no more." 
 
 CAPE OF GOOD HOPE — MAURITIUS — INDIA — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE 
 
 — 1799-1862. 
 
 The regiment returned to Europe at ta very critical period in 
 our national history, wlien the rampant passions of revolution, 
 as yet untamed by adversity, imperiously taxed the nations 
 in their maintenance. It had no sooner arrived than it was 
 sent to Scotland to recruit, and thence, in 1801, to Ireland. 
 From the number of new regiments called into being at this 
 period to meet the necessities of the times, recruiting went on 
 but slowly. The respite from the dire calamity of war which 
 the Peace of Amiens afforded, occasioned a reduction in the 
 establishment of the Seventy-second. The resumption of 
 hostilities in 1803, not only called for an immediate augmen- 
 tation of its strength, but occasioned the addition of a second 
 battalion, which was employed in various home garrisons, 
 especially in Ireland, tliroughout the war, until disbanded in 
 1816. The immediate peril from a French invasion having 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 323 
 
 passed away, the Seveiity-SLVoud was ordered to join a secret 
 expedition under Lieut.-Uencral Sir Eyre Coote, K.B., but 
 was ultimately ineluded in the force under Major-General Sir 
 David Baird, which sailetl in 1805, and afier viewing the 
 beauties of Madeii-a, and laudinf]; for a few days' refreshment at 
 San Salvador in the Brazils, steered for the coast of Africa, 
 when the object of the exiHjdition was disclosed by an attack 
 upon the Dutch colony at the Cape of Good Hope. In addition 
 to its old comrades of the Seventy-fu-st, the Seventy-second was 
 associated with the Ninety-thii'd Regiment in the Highland 
 Brigade of the army. On the morning of the 6th .January, 
 180G, the British effected a landing in Lospard's Bay, despite 
 the efforts of the Dutch to prevent it. The Higldanders in 
 the van drove the enemy before them, and on attaining the 
 summit of the Blue Mountains, beheld the Batavian army 
 awaiting battle on the other side. The position of the enemy 
 was well chosen, and maintained with determined bravery. 
 The fate of the battle was only decided in our favour when 
 the Highland Brigade was brought forward, and "Brigadier- 
 GenenU Ferguson gave the word 'Charge.* A loud British 
 shout instiintly rent the air, and the heroic Highlanders closed 
 with bayonets upon their numerous adversaries, who instantly 
 fled in dismay, pursued across the deep sands by the victorious 
 Highland Brigade." As the army advanced towartls Cape 
 Town, the Dutch retired. The conduct of Lieutenant 
 ^I'Arthur and thirty men of the regiment in the capture 
 of Hout's I»ay, was conspicuous for the gallantry it evinced. 
 These repeatctl disasters convinced the Dutch of the hope- 
 
324 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 lessness of resistance against troops accustomed to conquer. 
 Accordingly, negotiations were entered into which resulted in 
 the surrender of the colony to the British. 
 
 In 180.9 the Seventy-second was ordered to discontinue 
 wearing the Highland costume, in consequence of the difficulty 
 experienced in gaining recruits. A year later the regiment 
 was selected to co-operate with troops from India in an attack 
 upon the valuable French colony of the Mauritius. The Indian 
 army arriving off the island first, the Governor determined to 
 maintain the defence to the last extremity, but the timely- 
 arrival of the Seventy-second so discouraged him, that, 
 abandoning the idea of resistance, he at once surrendered. 
 The corps remained in garrison at Port Louis until the 
 outbreak of a new war in America in 1814 occasioned its 
 withdrawal. It accordingly embarked for that continent, but 
 was detained at the Cape of Good Hope, where, after a brief 
 service, it was ordered to India, arriving at Calcutta in 1815. 
 The Eajah of Nepaul having, however, made his peace with 
 tlie British, the necessity for its service in that portion 
 of the world no longer existed, hence it returned to the 
 Cape of Good Hope, calling on the passage at the Mauritius. 
 Stationed at Algoa Bay, it was thence directed to occupy a 
 chain of posts along the banks of the Great Fish Kiver, charged 
 with the protection of the colonists from the numerous preda- 
 tory incursions of the Kaffirs. This proved an arduous and 
 dangerous duty; the soldiers being constantly exposed to 
 a surprise from the swarms of unseen enemies that ever 
 lurked in the bush around their camp. On one occasion, in 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 325 
 
 1810, a Dutch fiirmer, robbed of his cattle by the Kaftii-s, 
 sought the interference of the military for the recovery of his 
 proj)erty aud the puuishmeut of the thieves. Accompiiuied 
 by a body of armed farmers, a dctachmeut of the Seventy- 
 secoud, under Captain Gethin, overtook the thieves. The 
 little party of soldiers was instantly enveloped and cruelly 
 butchereil by a host of enemies, whilst the cowardly fimners 
 witnessed the destruction of their friends without venturing 
 to afford the slightest assistance. Captain Gethin was a 
 distinguished soldier, aud like a brave man "fighting fell," 
 pierced with thirty-two wounds. The Seventy-second con- 
 tinued efficiently to discharge this harassing duty until relieved 
 by the Sixth Regiment in 1821, when it returned home. It 
 was successively stationed at Portsmouth, Fort Cumberland, 
 Plymouth, and Woolwich. In 1823 it wiis removed to the 
 Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey. 
 
 Although the service of the Seventy -second, hitherto 
 confined to "Hindoostan" and the "Cape of Good Hope," 
 recordetl upon its colours and appointments, and embracing in 
 these, actions which had been comparatively lost sight of in 
 the multituile of grander events transacted on the battle-fields 
 of Europe, still, the true heroism of these, to bo just, must 
 convince us that the achievements of the Seventy-second are 
 "second to none," and well deser\'ing the splendid compliment 
 at this period conferred upon the regiment by HLs Grace 
 the Duke of York and Albany, the Commander-in-Chief. It 
 was jHinuitted, in reward of its valour, to wear its present 
 designation — 
 
326 history of the scottish regiments. 
 
 Duke of Albany's own Highlanders. 
 
 At the same time it received a further compliment, in the 
 restoration of the Highland costume, with the difference of 
 treivs instead of kilts. 
 
 Eeturning to England from the Channel Islands in 1824, it 
 thence proceeded to re- visit dear old Scotland. 
 
 " Home of m3^fat^le^s, my heart clings to thee." 
 
 Whilst stationed in Edinburgh, the lady of Lieut.-General 
 Sir John Hope (colonel of the Seventy-second), presented new 
 colours to the regiment. In 1825 it w^as sent to Ireland, and 
 stationed successively in Belfast, Londonderry, and Dublin. 
 Thence it proceeded to England; and whilst garrisoning the 
 Tower of London, was reviewed, with the First Life Guards, 
 the Royal Horse Guards, and four battalions of Foot Guards, 
 by the Duke of Wellington, in presence of Don Miguel of 
 Portugal. In proof of its efficiency, as worthy to be so 
 associated with our choicest troops, we quote the words of 
 General Lord Hill, when (the same year) he inspected the 
 regiment at Canterbury: — 
 
 " That althouo-h it had been his lot to see and serve with 
 most of the regiments in the service, he felt he should not be 
 doing full justice to the Seventy-second Highlanders, if he did 
 not express his particular approbation of every thing connected 
 with them, and add, he had never before seen a regiment their 
 equal in movements, in appearance, and in steadiness under 
 arms." 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 327 
 
 Having acquired these public honoui-s and Koyal favours, 
 the Seventy-second was once more ordered to the Cape of 
 Good Hope, to arrest and punish the aggressions of the KafHrs, 
 who continued to prey upon the industry of our colonists, and 
 had become a hinderance, by the terror they inspired, to the 
 progi'ess of the colony. At length the expulsion from the 
 colony of a vagrant chief, jMacomo, who had abused the 
 British protection, stirred the animosity of earlier years, 
 which, encouraged by our lenity, unmasked itself in a desolat- 
 ing irruption, especially evident in and around Graham's 
 To^^'u, which fell an easy prey to the rapacious fury of the 
 enemy. To avenge the innocent blood thus shed, and retaliate 
 the niiu that had been entailed, the Seventy-second advanced 
 with other troops into Kafiirland, iutlicting a severe but just 
 chastisement for the atrocities that had been committed; 
 taking, moreover, such i)ledges from the foe as it was fondly 
 hoped should secure protection and peace for the future. 
 Having apparently subduetl the spirit of lawless aggression, and 
 restored confidence in the colonists by a residence of nearly ten 
 years amongst them, the regiment returned home, and landed 
 at Plymouth in 1840. 
 
 Whilst stationed at Windsor in 1841, it waadestineil anew 
 to receive a signal mark of Royal favour — its new colours 
 being presented by the Duke of Wellington, in the quadrangle 
 of the palace, and in presence of Her Majesty the Queen, 
 Prince Albert, and the King of Pnisaia. In presenting these 
 colours, the Duke of Wellington thus addresse<l the soldiers: — 
 
 "I have long known the Seventy-second Highhind Regiment. 
 
328 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Half-a-centiiry has now nearly elapsed since I had the pleasure 
 of serving in the same army with them in the plains of 
 Hindoostan; since that period they have been engaged in the 
 conquest of some of the most valuable colonies of the British 
 Crown; and latterly, in performing most distinguished services 
 at the Cape of Good Hope. Fourteen years out of the last 
 sixteen they have spent on Foreign service; and with only 
 eighteen months at home for their re-formation and their re- 
 disciplining, appear in their present high state of regularity 
 
 and order I have made it my business to inquire 
 
 particularly, and am rejoiced to find that the Seventy-second 
 have always commanded that respect and regard, wherever 
 they have been stationed, to which their high state of discij)line 
 and good order so justly entitle them. You will, I am sure, 
 always recollect the circumstances under which these colours 
 are now given into your charge; having been consecrated by 
 one of the highest dignitaries of the Church, in the presence of 
 Her Majesty, who now looks down upon you, and of her Eoyal 
 Visitor; and I give them into your charge, confident that at all 
 times, under all circumstances, whether at home or abroad, and 
 in all privations, you will rally round them, and protect them 
 to the utmost of your power." 
 
 After a variety of home services, the regiment was removed, 
 in 1844, to Gibraltar, and thence, in 1848, to the West Indies. 
 Leaving the West Indies for North America in July, 1851, it 
 returned home in October, 1854. Proceeding to ]\Ialta in 
 January, 1855, and thence, in May following, to the Crimea, 
 it there gained "Sevastopol" for the regimental colours. 
 
oo 
 
 -J 
 
THE SEVENTY-SECOND FOOT. 329 
 
 Returning to England at the peace, the Seventy -second 
 remained at home until August, 1857, when the corps 
 embarked for Bombay on the breaking out of the Indian 
 mutiny, and serval with distinction in Central India, under 
 Sir Hugh Rose, especially in the storming of the strongly- 
 fortified town of Awah, beini:: thereafter associated with the 
 Seventy-first llighhind Light Infantiy in the campaign. 
 The regiment is still serving in the Bombay Presidency. 
 
 •2v. 
 
SEVENTY - FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 " This homage to the chief who drew his sword 
 At the command of duty; kept it bright 
 Through perilous days; and soon as Victory smiled 
 Laid it, unsullied, in the lap of Peace." 
 
 INDIA — SERINGAPATAM — ASSAYE — 1787-1806. 
 
 The proximity of two such formidable rivals as France and 
 Britain, notwitlistaudino; tlie friendlv intervention of the 
 Channel, has occasioned on both sides thereof an almost 
 perpetual series of alarms, jealousies, and feuds, too often 
 resulting in wars of the most stupendous magnitude, generally 
 involving in their toils the other kingdoms of Europe. It is 
 of one such crisis we write, when France, politically meddling 
 with the affairs of Holland, excited the suspicions of our 
 Government, and occasioned the combined interference of 
 Britain and Prussia, to preserve, no doubt, the "balance of 
 'power." Contemplating an appeal to arms, each prepared for 
 the expected struggle. France and Holland possessing a 
 large colonial empire in India, and both having a rival and 
 antagonistic interest in the politics of that country to the 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 331 
 
 new-born power of Britain, each marked that fiir-ofT land 
 as an important theatre of strife. Hence, our legLslatiiro 
 determined to strengthen our forces in that quarter of the 
 British world by the addition of four new regiments, ordered 
 to be raised in 1787. Two of these, the Seventy-fourth and 
 Seventy-fifth,* were raised amongst the Highlanders of Scot- 
 land; and the others, the Seventy-sixth and Seventy-seventh, 
 in England, or generally throughout the kingdom. No sooner 
 were these completed — nay, in the case of the Seyenty-fourth, 
 before being completed — than they were shipped off for 
 immediate service in India; whilst the question of their 
 maintenance was installed in Parliament as a subject of bitter 
 wrangling between the home Government and the East India 
 Company, affording a theme for the genius of Pitt to work 
 upon, and in the end to triumph, in the passing of the 
 "Declaratory Bill," which saddled the East India Company 
 with the expense. This Bill was afterwards confirmed by 
 Acts passed in 1701, and again in 17D3. 
 
 Of these regiments, thus raised, the Seventy- fourth claims 
 our present attention. It was asseml>led at Cdasgow under 
 command of Major-CJeneral Sir Archibald Campbell, K-B., 
 and was largely composed of Arg^'leshire Ilighlautlers — the 
 Campbells and their kin. To meet the urgent demand for 
 reinforcements, every soldier as yet available for duty was at 
 once forwarded to India, folio weil by a second instalment 
 of six companies, which completed the regiment, in 1781*. 
 
 • The Sir\-cnty-Iifth luw jiiat n-coivotl the Royal |H'nDUtuon to be styled tlio 
 Seventy-fifth, or "Stiki.inu.siiikf." lU'gimont. 
 
332 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Landed at Madras with, an effective strength of 750 men, the 
 Seventy-fourth, brigaded with the Seventy-first and Seventy- 
 second Highlanders, joined the army of ]\Iajor-General Medows 
 in 1790. The Earl Cornwallis assuming the command, 
 advanced upon Bangalore, which was taken by storm; there- 
 after the regiment was with the Highland Brigade in the 
 fruitless expedition against Seringapatam. Detached during 
 the winter for service in the Baramhal district, the Seventy- 
 fourth was very conspicuous for its spirited but ineffectual 
 attempt to storm Penagra, an almost impregnable hill fort, 
 which was only saved by the natural obstacles that defended 
 it, and defied the most desperate efforts of our Highlanders to 
 surmount. In 1792 the siege of Seringapatam was once more 
 undertaken, and considerable progress had been achieved, 
 when the intervention of peace disappointed our army of the 
 anticipated prize. 
 
 Brigaded with the Seventy -second and Seventy- third 
 Highland regiments, the Seventy-fourth was engaged in the 
 operations which brought about the surrender of the French 
 settlement of Pondicherry. The garrison, in consequence, 
 became prisoners of war, but the officers released on parole 
 were hospitably entertained by the captors. Amid these 
 hospitalities, an incident occurred which displays in bold 
 relief the generous gallantry of the officers of the Seventy- 
 fourth. With the French officers they were present in the 
 theatre, when the former, in love with the new-born ideas of 
 republicanism, in course of the evening vehemently called for 
 the revolutionary air "Ca Ira." This was objected to by the 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 333 
 
 Britisli; and from the uproar of words, a serious disturbance 
 arose to break in upon the harmony, and bewilder and terrify 
 the orchestra. Happily, the senior officer of the Seventy- 
 fourth, stepping upon the stage, obtained silence, and address- 
 ing the audience in a firm but conciliatory manner, stated that 
 the British officers had agreed not to insist upon their objec- 
 tions, but were prepared to sacrifice their feelings on the 
 subject, seeing such might gratify their French friends and 
 the ladies who had seconded the request. No sooner had the 
 air been played, amid the acclamations of the French, than 
 the same officer asked the audience to uncover to the National 
 Anthem — "God save the King." Rebuked by this generous 
 forbearance, and heartily ashamed of their rudeness in so 
 insisting upon theii* own gratification, the French felt them- 
 selves outdone in gallantry, and only too glad of an opjwr- 
 tunity to repair the discord they had bred, granted a ready 
 consent; and the Royal Anthem was only the more vociferously 
 welcomed that it had been forestalled by the revolutionary 
 ditty "Ca Ira." Ever afterwards the utmost cordiality sub- 
 sisted between the representatives of tlie two nations. 
 
 In 17J)S, when the war with France required a great 
 fmancitil eflfort adeijuately to sustain it on our part, and when 
 the patriotism of the public liberally and voluntarily con- 
 triliuted to the national funds for the purpose, the men of the 
 Seventy-fourth voteil eight days' pay; the non-commissioned 
 officers a half-month's pay; and the commis-sioned officers a 
 full month's pay, towiirds the vigorous prosecution of the 
 war — "a war unprovoked on our part, and justified by the 
 
334 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 noblest of motives: the preservation of our invaluable con- 
 stitution." 
 
 In 1799, with the army of Lieutenant-General Harris, 
 the Seventy -fourth advanced against Seringapatam, which 
 ultimately fell a conquest to our arms. The distinguished 
 service of the regiment on this occasion is recorded in 
 the word " Seringapatam " borne upon its colours. Subse- 
 quently it was engaged against the Polygars; and in 1801 was 
 removed to Bombay to replace the troops drawn from that 
 Presidency for service in Egypt. Under Major-General the 
 Hon. Arthur Wellesley, in the invasion of the Mahratta states, 
 the regiment was most conspicuous for its fortitude in 
 enduring many severe privations, and refusing withal to 
 petition or complain when grievances remained unredressed. 
 The capture of the strong fortress of Ahmednuggur, was but 
 the prelude to the exceeding glory so soon destined to grace 
 the records of the Seventy -fourth in the victory of Assaye. 
 
 On the 23d September, 1803, the British army, not 
 exceeding 5000 men, of which the Nineteenth Dragoons and 
 the Seventy-fourth and Seventy-eighth Highlanders were the 
 only King's regiments, came up with the combined hosts of 
 Scindiah and the Rajah of Berar, amounting together to 40,000 
 Avell-disciplined and excellent troops. Undaunted by this 
 formidable superiority, Major-General the Hon. Arthur Wel- 
 lesley at once ordered the attack, which undertaken with 
 spirit and upheld with heroic gallantry, soon overcame the 
 resolution and desperate defence of the enemy. The Seventy- 
 fourth, posted on the right of the second line, prematurely 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 335 
 
 advancing against the village of Assayc, became exposed to a 
 terrific tempest of shot and shell; and, moreover, charged by 
 a powerful body of horse when somewhat confusal by the 
 fatal eifects of the artiller}% was almost annihilated. True to 
 its duty, and borne forward by an unconquerable perseverance, 
 the Seventy-fourth struggled on, carried and maintained the 
 post, although at a fearful sacrifice of himian life, upwards of 
 400 men and otlicers being hors-de-cornhat. Uf iu ollicers, 
 the only one escaping scatheless was Quarter-jMaster James 
 Grant, who seeing so many of his comrades fall, although by 
 ofiice a non-combatant, resolved to share with his brethren the 
 dangers and the glory of the fight, and, accordingly, joining in 
 the terrible mClCe of the battle, resolutely fought till its close, 
 miraculously surviving the disasters of so severe and fatal a 
 strife. The ^Major-General thus writes: "Our loss \s> great, 
 but the action, I believe, was the most severe that ever was 
 fought in this countr}', and, I believe, such a <piantity of 
 cannon and such advantages have seldom been gained, by any 
 single victor}-, in any part of tlie world." 
 
 On this occasion the valour of the regiment was rewardeil 
 by the exceptional permission to carry a third colour, bear- 
 ing thereon the "Elephant" and "Assaye," specially com- 
 memorative of the unparalleletl glory of the day. The 
 inconvenience of a third colour has since brought about its 
 disallowance as other than an honorary distinction to be borne 
 only when on peaceful parade. 
 
 The severe losses of the regiment at the battle of Assayc 
 required it should be rcleasal from active duty for a time, to 
 
336 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 allow these losses to be repaired, and the wounded to recover 
 and resume their posts. However, in November of the same 
 year we find it in the field with the army on the plains of 
 Argaum, burning to avenge, by a new victory, the death of 
 friends sacrificed at Assaye. Major-General Wellesley, in his 
 official despatch, particularly commends the perseverance, 
 steadiness, and bravery of the Seventy-fourth and Seventy- 
 eighth Highlanders as materially helping to the triimiph of 
 Argaum. A variety of minor actions closed the campaign, 
 crowned by the submission of the enemy. 
 
 Thereafter selected by the Commander-in-Chief, the 
 regiment was detached with other troops, under his own 
 command, which marching sixty miles in twenty hours, 
 destroyed a camp of freebooters, which, quartered at Perinda, 
 had been the pest and terror of the neighbourhood. 
 
 In 1804, the regiment was stationed with the Seventy- 
 eighth and some native troops for protective purposes in the 
 territory of the Peishwah, until the war with Holkar anew 
 occasioned it to undertake more active service. In the capture 
 of Gaulnah, the Seventy-fourth was called upon to supply 
 volunteers for the forlorn hope. Such was the spirit of the 
 corps, that the whole regiment spontaneously ofiered itself. 
 
 After sixteen years' service in India, during which it was 
 almost always engaged with an enemy — earning therefrom the 
 name it afterwards gloriously upheld as the "fighting regiment" 
 — the gallant remnant was ordered to return home, and, in 
 consequence, embarking at Madras in September, 1805, landed 
 at Portsmouth in February, 1806. 
 
DUKE OF WUllNuiUN. 
 

CHAPTER XXXY. 
 
 " Upon his brow shame is asljanial to sit; 
 F«>r 'tis n tlirono where honour may be crowned 
 Sole monarch of the universal earth." 
 
 PENINSULA — AMERICA — WEST INDIES — CANADA — "THE WRECK 
 
 OF THE BIKKKN11I:aI)" — 180G-lbG2. 
 
 As soon as the Seventy-fourth had rctiirnecl, the business 
 of recruiting occupied tlie earnest attention of its officers. 
 Removed to Scothind for this purpose, it failed to comi)lctc its 
 establishment, and, in consequence, was transferred to Ireland 
 to receive its complement by volunteers from the militia. In 
 1810 it received orders to prepare for foreign service; and, 
 accordingly, embarked from Cork for Portugal, under Lieut.- 
 Colonel the Honourable Robert De Poer Trench, with a total 
 strength of 730 effectives. Arrived in the Tagus and dis- 
 embarked, it was advanced to Viseu. Its junction with the 
 allied army of Lord Wellington was hailed with delight by 
 that chief, who ever felt a warm interest in its history, as the 
 "Assayc regiment" wliose henxis had won for him his first 
 great victory. Complimenting Colonel Trench, he said: "If 
 the Seventy-fourth would iK-have in that countr}- as they had 
 done in India, he ought to Ix? proud to command such a 
 regiment." Included in the third or well-known "Fighting 
 
 Division" of Major-General Picton, the Seventy-fourth wa.s 
 
 2 s 
 
338 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 brio-aded witli the first battalion of the Forty-fifth, the Eighty- 
 eighth, and three companies of the fifth battalion of the 
 Sixtieth Eegiment. From the concentrated and overwhelming 
 military might of Napoleon, Marshal Massena was detached at 
 the head of 75,000 veterans, styled the "Army of Portugal," 
 charoed with the destruction of the British who had dared 
 to dispute the claims of his master to the dominion of the 
 Peninsula. In presence of such a superior foe, as regards num- 
 bers, Wellington resolved on retreat ; and, accordingly, with- 
 drawino- to his own defences, induced the enemy to draw off 
 in pursuit. Taking advantage of every position which by 
 natural or artificial strength aff'orded an opportunity to check 
 or impede the pursuit of the French, Lord AVellington fre- 
 quently severely punished the temerity of the foe. Thus, in 
 the battle of Busaco, where the Seventy-fourth for awhile 
 withstood the attack of an entire French column, until sus- 
 tained by the Ninth and Thirty-eighth regiments, it drove the 
 enemy down the hill. 
 
 Finally arrested by the formidable lines of Torres Vedras, 
 the French, vainly endeavouring to blockade the position, 
 fatally suffered from disease and want, whilst our troops 
 enjoyed every comfort in abundance and in safety within the 
 entrenchments. Convinced of the futility of any attempt to 
 surmount the defences of the position, Marshal Massena was 
 constrained in turn to retreat, closely pursued along the banks 
 of the Mondego by the British. With the third division, in 
 the van of the army, the Seventy-fourth was almost incessantly 
 engaged driving the enemy from post to post. For the relief 
 
 I 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH niGIILANDERS. 339 
 
 of Almeida, Marshal Massena, considerably reinforced, once 
 more ventured to advance. Encountering the light companies 
 of the fii-st, third, and fifth divisions, and the second battalion 
 of the Eighty-third Regiment, in occupation of the village of 
 Fuentes d'Onor, the French laboured to expel them. Rein- 
 forced by the Twenty- fourth. Seventy-first, and Seventy- 
 ninth regiments, and ultimately supported by the Forty-fifth, 
 Seventy-fourth, and Eighty-eighth regiments, the whole of the 
 enemy's sixth corps was routed and driven from the village 
 it had at first won. Interrupted in the siege of Badajoz by the 
 approach of the combined armies of ^larmont and Soult, the 
 British temporarily retired. A similar diversion by the army 
 of Marshal ^larmont in favour of Ciudad Rodrigo, in like 
 manner disturbed its blockade. Whilst quartered in this 
 vicinity, the third division of our army, threatened by an 
 attack from a very powerful corps of French, which, taking 
 advantage of the immediate presence of Marshal Marmont, 
 had undertaken a sortie from the fortress, retrciited. Under 
 command of General Montl)run, the enemy so severely pressed 
 the British division, that, in retiring, the Seventy-fourth 
 became separated from the rest, and was generally believed to 
 have been captured. A long detour, under the friendly shield 
 of night, enablcil the regiment to escape the danger and rejoin 
 the division in its camp at Guinaldo. Overjoyed in their 
 safe return, Major-General Picton utteretl these memorable 
 words, expressive of his fiiith in the valour of our Highlanders, 
 saying, " he thought he must have heard more firing before 
 the Seventy-fourth could be taken." 
 
340 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 On the retirement of the French, returning to the duties 
 of the siege, the regiment, on the 19th of January, was 
 inckided in the storming party which, despite the most 
 strenuous resistance of the foe, won Ciudad Eodrio-o. This 
 achievement was immediately followed by the re-investment 
 of Badajoz; a fortress esteemed impregnable, the more so as it 
 was defended by some of the choicest troops of France. The 
 progress had been so satisfactory, and the breaches in the ram- 
 parts deemed so far practicable, that by the 6th April, 1812, the 
 assault was ordered, and the Herculean duty of storming the 
 defences of the castle committed to the third division; 
 accomplished, nevertheless, after " a combat so furiously 
 fought, so terribly won, so dreadful in all its circumstances, 
 that posterity can scarcely be expected to credit the tale." 
 Lieutenant Alexander Grant of the Seventy-fourth, leading 
 the advance, entered the castle, but fell in the moment of 
 victory. "Foremost in the escalade was John M'Lauchlan, 
 the regimental piper, who, the instant he mounted the castle 
 wall, began playing on his pipes the regimental quick step, 
 'The Campbells are coming,' at the head of the advance along 
 the ramparts, as coolly as if on a common parade, until his 
 music was stopped by a shot through the bag; he was after- 
 wards seen by an officer of the regiment seated on a gun- 
 carriage, quietly repairing the damage, regardless of the shot 
 flying about him, and presently recommenced his animating 
 tune." Although the other assaults were not so successful, 
 still the triumph of the third and fifth divisions at their 
 several points of attack so turned the defences of the place. 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH UIGIILANDERS. 341 
 
 that resistauco appearing hopeless, the fortress was sur- 
 rendered. 
 
 Various raaiia3uvre3 at length brought about the battle of 
 Salamancii, where the French, under I^Iarshal ^larmont, were 
 totally defeated, driven "iis it were before a mighty wind 
 without help or stay." The brunt of the action was sustained 
 by the French divisiuu of General Thoniieres, originally 7UU0 
 strong, but which, notwithstanding the most splendid illustra- 
 tion of heroism, was utterly cut to pieces or dispersed. In this 
 great battle the third division figured conspicuously. Lord 
 Londonderry writes: "The attack of the third division was 
 not only the most spirited, but the most perfect thing of the 
 kind that modern times have witnessed. Regardless alike of 
 a charge of cavalry and of the murderous fire which the 
 enemy's batteries opened, on went these fearless warriors, 
 horse and foot, without check or pause, until they won the 
 ridge, and then the infantry giving their volley, and the 
 cavalry falling on sword in hand, the French were pierced, 
 broken, and discomfited. So close, indeed, was the struggle, 
 that in several instances the British colours were seen waving 
 over the heads of the enemy's battalions;" whilst the advance 
 in imbroken line of the Seventy-fourth, for upwanls of three 
 miles, testified to its efficiency, and drew forth the plaudits 
 of Major-Gentral Pakenhani, then commanding the division, 
 who vehemently e.xchiimed, "BcimtifuUy done. Seventy-fourth! 
 beautiful. Seventy-fourth 1" 
 
 The glorious residts immediately flowing from this great 
 victory, were crowned in the capitidation and occupation of 
 
342 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Madrid. Whilst stationed iu the capital, the gaieties of which 
 agreeably relieved the hardships of the camp, our officers 
 at the same time beheld the splendid misery the tyrant- 
 extortiouating rule of France had entailed upon the citizens, 
 many of whom, once great and opulent, now reduced to 
 abject beggary, gratefully accepted the assistance of their 
 deliverers. In these deeds of charity the officers of the 
 Seventy-fourth were not wanting, but, with those of the 
 Forty-fifth, daily fed about two hundred of the star\dng 
 grandees. 
 
 Meanwhile, the converging of the various French armies of 
 the Peninsula for the relief of Burgos, once more necessitated 
 the retreat of the British, who, evacuating Madrid, retired 
 towards Portugal, and finally halted, going into winter 
 quarters, behind the Agueda. The spring of 1813 found the 
 British army largely recruited, and with new energy prepared 
 to resume the ofiensive — to begin that victorious march which 
 stayed not until the heights of Toulouse owned the triumphs 
 of the British flag. 
 
 At the great battle of Vittoria, which may be said to have 
 broken the last remnant of French power in Spain, the third 
 division was most severely engaged; and the gallantry of the 
 Seventy-fourth was anew consj^icuous in its successful attack 
 upon the village of Arinez, whence it drove out the enemy. 
 In the after advance, over a rugged country, in jDursuit of the 
 retiring columns of the foe, the unbroken line of the Seventy- 
 fourth attracted general attention, and its admirable order was 
 highly commended. In the grand attack which completed 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH IIIGRLANDERS. 341} 
 
 the ruin of the French, tlie thirtl division, being foremost, was 
 assailed by a fiery storm of artillery and musketry, which 
 made fearful chasms in its ranks. At lengtli the success of 
 the fourtli division from another quarter compelled the enemy 
 to abandon his strong position, and soon converted the retreat 
 into a disorderly flight. Marshal Soult was afterwards sent 
 to command the army in the Peninsula, as " Lieutenant of the 
 Emperor," and never was his genius more conspicuous. His 
 master-mind came to the rescue ; he re-organised the broken 
 remnant of the once mighty host, and, largely reinforced, once 
 more atlvanced, thereby inspiring new confidence in his troops, 
 and casting a momentary gleam of hope athwart the lowering 
 horizon which presaged the storm steadily moving vengefully 
 towards devoted France. The hope thus excited was .speedily 
 dissipated, and ever}' effort failed to retrieve the disastrous 
 consequences of Vittoria. Driven successively across the 
 "Pyrenees," the "Nive," and the "Nivelle," he found a refuge 
 and a rest for his dispirited and wearied troops within the 
 fortress of Bayonne. At "Orthes" and "Toulouse" Wellington 
 required a great exercise of his own abilities as a chief to 
 overthrow the dogged resolution of his great antagonist, who, 
 equal to the crisis, by prodigies of skill, strove to avert the 
 dissolution of his master's empire. In all these closing actions 
 of the war, the Seventy-fourth, in the "fighting" third division, 
 more than creditably maintainal its part, returning home in 
 1815 crowned with glory. 
 
 Ireland l)ecame thereafter the scene of its more jXiaceful 
 service. Whilst stationed at Fennoy in 1818, new colours 
 
344 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 were presented to the regiment; and the shreds of the old 
 ones — which had been so victoriously borne in the battles of 
 the Peninsula — burnt to ashes, had their sacred dust treasured 
 up in the lid of a gold sarcophagus snuff-box, inlaid with part 
 of the wood of the colour-staves, and bearing the following 
 inscription: — "This box, composed of the old standards of the 
 Seventy-fourth regiment, was formed as a tribute of respect 
 to the memory of those who fell, and of esteem for those who 
 survived the many glorious and arduous services on which 
 they were always victoriously carried, during a period of six- 
 teen years, in India, the Peninsula, and France. They were 
 presented to the regiment at Wallajahbad in 1802; and the 
 shattered remains were burned at Fermoy on the 6th of April, 
 1818." 
 
 Having thus disposed of this venerable memorial of its 
 early renown, the regiment embarked at Cork for Halifax, 
 Nova Scotia. Its service in America and Bermuda in 1825, 
 and again in 1828, affords nothing of importance to detain the 
 reader. Returning to Ireland in 1830, it was employed in 
 various garrisons in that country until, ordered on foreign 
 service, it sailed for the West Indies in 1834. Thence, in 
 1841, it was removed to Canada, returning to England in 
 1845. By desire of the officers, the Seventy-fourth was 
 restored to its original dignity as a Highland corps, having 
 the trews instead of the kilt; and in 1846 re-visited Scotland 
 for a brief period, whence it proceeded to Ireland, where, 
 associated with the Seventy-fifth and Eighty-eighth regiments, 
 and other troops, it was encamped in the vicinity of Thurles 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. :U5 
 
 and Ballingarry, to overawe the rebellious, aiul repress the 
 foolish attempt at insurrection which, stirred hy idle dema- 
 gogues, hail excited the people during the fiimine of is IS. 
 This military demonstration proved sufficient to suppress, 
 without blooil, these ill-advised seditions. 
 
 One event remains to be recorded in our present sketch, 
 ere we close the brief summary; one event which alone is 
 all-sufficient to glorify the Seventy-fourth, although casting a 
 melancholy interest over its history, yet enslirining the memory 
 of its brave as heroic; one event which, although belonging in 
 common to the records of the Seventy-third and Ninety-first, 
 as well as other regiments, deserves its place here out of 
 respect to the lost and gallant officer commanding; one event 
 which sheds a brighter lustre, as it reveals in truer character 
 the qualities of the British soldier, than the exciting and 
 sanguinary achievements of the battle-field; one event which 
 wakes the soul to tniest sympathy, and bids the heart bleed at 
 the recitation of the narrative. 
 
 " Tlio youthful ftnil the hniv.'. 
 
 With their Um ty aud renown, 
 
 To the hollow chombera of the wave 
 
 In (larkncHB have gone down." 
 
 One event which has bidden a gush of grief for tlie lost and 
 
 brave from the noble-minded of every clime. Such was the 
 
 wreck of the " Birkenhca<l." This vessel, one of the finest in I f er 
 
 Majesty's ser\'ice, with a living freight of 632 souls, including 
 
 14 officers and 458 soldiers, draughts from various regiments, 
 
 reinforcements from home on their way to join theii comrades 
 
 2t 
 
346 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 fighting in Kaffirland, reaching Simon's Bay, had sailed thence 
 for Algoa Bay on the evening of the 25th February, 1852. 
 
 "All no! — an earthly freight she bears, 
 Of joys and sorrows, hopes and fears; 
 And lonely as she seems to be, 
 Thus left by herself on the moonlight sea, 
 In loneliness that rolls, 
 She hath a constant company 
 In sleep, or waking revelry — 
 Five hundred human souls!" 
 
 Striving to quicken the voyage by shortening the passage, 
 the commandant hugged the shore too closely off Cape Danger, 
 and in doing so the vessel struck upon a sunken rock whilst 
 steaming at the rate of eight" miles an hour. So tremendous 
 was the shock, that, although the night was clear and the sea 
 calm, the stately ship was in a moment a broken wreck. The 
 catastrophe occurred three miles from land, and six hours after 
 starting. Yet all save the vessel might have been saved, but 
 for the unfortunate command to back the engines, which had 
 the effect, instead of easing the vessel, to dash her amidships 
 upon the rocks, precipitating her fate; so that, in little more 
 than half-an-hour, breaking in two, she went down, with 9 
 officers and 349 men, besides fully 80 of the crew. Whilst 
 these so truly brave men were engulfed the prey of the 
 insatiate sea, the weak and helpless — the women and children, 
 ivere all saved, but only by such a noble sacrifice. The heart 
 sickens as we contemplate so dreadful a scene, thus pathetically 
 and feelingly narrated in the New York Express: — 
 
 " The steamer struck on a hidden rock, stove a plank at 
 
.</ ' 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 347 
 
 the bows, imd went to the bottom, we lielieve, in hall-an-hour's 
 time. There was a regiment of troops on board. As soon as 
 the aharni was given, and it became apparent that the ship's 
 fate was sealed, the roll of the drum called the soldiers to arms 
 on the upper deck. That call was promptly obeyed, though 
 every gallant heart there knew that it was his death summons. 
 There they stood as if in battle array — a motionless mass of 
 brave men — men who were men indeed. The ship every 
 moment was going down and down — but there were no 
 traitors, no deserters, no cravens there! The women and 
 children were got into the boats, and were all, or nearly all, 
 saved. There were no boats for the troops — but there was no 
 panic, no blanched, pale, quivering lips among them! . . . . 
 Men like these never perish; their bodies may be given to the 
 fishes of the sea, but their memories are, as they ought to be — 
 immortal ! " 
 
 These, records the Spectator — "the very men whom we 
 shrank from when we met them wearing Hying ribbons in 
 their battered hats, reeling through the streets — were the same 
 who went down in the 'Birkenhead' — as which of us can feel 
 sure that he would have had nerve to do? — in their ranks, 
 shoulder to shoiUdcr, standing at ease, watching the sharks 
 that were waiting for them in the waves — at the simple 
 suggestion of their officers that the women and children filled 
 the boats, and must be saved first. No saint ever die<l more 
 simply; no martyr ever died more voluntarily; no hero ever 
 died more firmly; no victim ever met his fate in a more 
 generous spirit of self-immolation." 
 
348 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Bravest of the brave, Lieut.-Colonel Seton of the Seventy- 
 fourth, displayed in his conduct, as commander of the troops, 
 a nobleness, a true courage, a self-sacrificing devotion, worthy 
 of his country, and which bespeaks the man — the hero; 
 and than which history or biography can furnish no brighter 
 or more illustrious example. It is indeed a pity so brave a 
 spirit should have fallen; and it shames the living — 
 
 " That instinct 
 Which makes the honour'd memory of the dead 
 A trust with all the living — " 
 
 that no suitable memorial marks his fall, save the common 
 tablet of a common grief for a common loss which stands 
 in the corridor of Chelsea Hospital, bearing the following 
 inscription : — 
 
 " This monument is erected by command of Her Majesty 
 Queen Victoria, to record the heroic constancy and unbroken 
 discipline shown by Lieutenant-Colonel Seton, Seventy-fourth 
 Highlanders, and the troops embarked under his command, on 
 board the 'Birkenhead,' when that vessel was wrecked ofi" the 
 Cape of Good Hope, on the 26th February, 1852, and to 
 preserve the memory of the officers, non-commissioned officers, 
 and men, who perished on that occasion. The names were as 
 follows: — 
 
 " Lieut.-Colonel A. Seton, 74:th Highlanders, Commanding the Troops. 
 Cornet Holt, Serjeant Straw, and three Privates, 12th Lancers. 
 Ensign Boylan, Corporal M'JNIanus, and thirty-four Privates, 2d 
 
 Queen's Regiment. 
 Ensign Mctford and forty-seven Privates, 6th Royals. 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTH HIGHLANDERS. 349 
 
 Fifty-tivc Trivatos, 12th llogiiuent. 
 
 Serjeant Ilicks, CorporaU llarrison and Cousins, and twenty-six 
 
 Privates, 43d Light Infantry. 
 Throe Privatt-s, 4,')th Regiment. 
 
 Coriwral Curtis and twenty-nine Privates, C<>th Riiles. 
 Lieutenants Robinson and Ucwth, and tifty-fuur Privates, 73d 
 
 Regiment. 
 Ensign Russell, Corponils Mathison and Willi:un I^^iird, and forty-six 
 
 Privates, 7-lth llighlandi-rs. 
 Serjeant Butler, Corporals Webber and Smith, and forty-one Privates, 
 
 9 1st Regiment. 
 Staff-Surgeon Idling. 
 Staff-.VssLstant-Surgcon Robertson." 
 
 " Yet morel the billows and the depths have more! 
 Iligh hearts and brave are gather'd to thy breast ! 
 They hear not now the booming waters rojir — 
 The battle-thunders wiU not break thiir rest. 
 Keep thy red gold and gems, thou stonuy gravel 
 
 Give back the true and brave!" 
 
 In the last and most sanguinary war with the Kathrs of 
 South Africa, which desolatocl that vahiable colony between 
 1850 and 1853, the Seventy-fourth was engaged, and fully 
 sustained its illustrious character. The enemy, sensible of his 
 weakness, avoided meeting our army in the field, and main- 
 tained a harassing series of skirmishes in the bush, which 
 proved most annoying and destructive. 
 
 It is remarkable that, in the course of our sketch, we 
 should so frequently have been pleasingly imprcs.seil with the 
 duty of recording the heroism of the ofiicers of the regiment; 
 and, commanded by such distinguishe<l chiefs, it is no wonder 
 the corps, moulded in their image, should fitly follow the good 
 and glorious examples which have rendered the Seventy-fourth 
 
350 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 SO signally known to fame. In the African campaign, its 
 commanding ojQScers are mournfully conspicuous as amongst 
 the lost and brave. Whilst employed in the operations 
 against the AVaterkloof Post in November, 1851, Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Fordyce was killed. 
 
 " At the moment he was hit, he was giving directions to a 
 company of his own well-loved corps, which was skirmishing 
 in the bush, and the position of which he wished to alter a 
 little. "Whilst raising his arm to indicate the ground he 
 alluded to, a huge Hottentot stepped rapidly from a thick 
 clump close by, and delivered the fatal shot; observing, with 
 characteristic cunning, the irreparable mischief he had done, 
 he screeched out, in hellish accents, 'Johnny, bring stretcher,' 
 and, turning on his heel, dived into the clump again before 
 the infuriated Seventy-fourth could wreak their vengeance 
 upon him. 
 
 " Simultaneously they madly rushed on, and, in their too 
 eager haste to renew the carnage, they rendered themselves an 
 easy prey to their savage foe, who struck down Lieutenants 
 Carey and Gordon, and many brave men, before they observed 
 the necessity of rallying, when the sad work of carnage was 
 amply avenged. Such, however, was the number of the 
 wounded, that a waggon had to be sent from the hiU to the 
 spot to carry off the sufferers to their bivouac. 
 
 " Fordyce lived a quarter of an hour after receiving his 
 death- wound. The ball had passed through his abdomen; 
 and, as he was borne away in the consciousness of approaching 
 death, he was just able to utter, in faint accents, the words — 
 
SEVENTY-FOURTU HIGHLANDERS. 351 
 
 '2\d'e care of my poor regiment — 1 am ready,' when he 
 passed phicidly away. Such w;us the end of this brave soklier. 
 In life, straightforward, thoughtful, a friend to the poor and 
 needy, and a truly Christian man; so in death he was calm, 
 resigneil, noble, and mindful of his duty both to God and man. 
 His latest expression showed that, while he committed his 
 regiment to the care of those whose duty it was, liis uppermost 
 thoughts lay in the final work of meeting his Maker. Such 
 was Fordyce, beloved and respected by all who had the good 
 fortune to know him!" 
 
 The regiment left the Cape for India in November, 1853, 
 and has since continued in the Madras establishment. Durii'C 
 the Indian Mutiny, a detachment of the t^'eventy-fourth, in 
 the autumn of 1857, formed part of a moveable column under 
 Brigadier Whitlock, on field service in the Kurnool district ; 
 and, in November, 1858, the head quarters composed a portion 
 of a moveable colunm, under Brigadier Spottiswoode, in the 
 Nizam country. The regiment is now stationed at Bellary. 
 
THE SEVENTY -EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS; 
 
 OR, 
 
 ROSS-SHIRE BUFFS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV 1. 
 
 "Rouse, roiise, ye kilted warriors! 
 Eouse, ye heroes of the north! 
 Rouse and join your chieftain's banners, — 
 'Tis your prince that leads you forth. 
 
 " See the northern clans advancing! 
 See Glengary and Lochiel! 
 See the brandish'd broad-swords glancing ! 
 Highland hearts are true as steel." 
 
 CHANNEL ISLANDS FLANDERS — CAPE OF GOOD HOPE INDIA 
 
 BATAVIA — 1793-1817. 
 
 Already had tlie noble lords of Seafortli stood forth foremost 
 in the breach where British liberty, involved in our glorious 
 constitution, was assailed by aggressive and vindictive foes; 
 already had the beloved chieftains of the Mackenzie bidden 
 their clansmen rally around the state, which a few years earlier 
 (1715) they had sworn to overthrow; already had the regiment 
 
 * 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HlflHLANDERS. 353 
 
 they thus contrilnitoil, the Seventy-secoiul, ilhimincd tlie pago 
 of history by the stirring narrative of its l)rilHaiit achievements, 
 autl, honoured by a grateful people, returned to its native 
 land, to rest for a time upon the laurels won on the far-distant 
 plains of India. Sprung from this race of heroes, as the new- 
 begotten and second representative of this distinguished 
 family in our army, the Seventy-eighth has strong claims 
 upon our interest and sympathy — an interest and sympathy 
 which have been quickened into a warm affection, finding 
 an echo in the soul of the bravo and noble of every land. 
 Appreciating the gallantry of its services at Lucknow in behalf 
 of suffering valour and murdered innocence, we hail it with 
 feelings of national gratitude as the " Saviour of India." 
 
 Whilst the horrid cruelties perpetrated by the domagoguea 
 of Paris excited the commiseration of beholding Europe for an 
 unfortunate and misguided people, the victims of their own 
 folly, it at the same time inspired feelings of fear among the 
 terror-stricken tyrants of the Continent, and palsied the might 
 of their councils. A momentary irresolution seized tlie British 
 Cabinet, until the energy and elocpience of Pitt awakened the 
 Government to its tnic duty. Tlie charm which six;ll-lx)und 
 other states, failed to ravish ils of our freedom. Tlioroughly 
 aroused from the fatal lethargy into which the nation was 
 lacing lulle<l by false ideas of "liberty, equalit}', and fraternity" 
 — rightly intorprcte<l, lust, rapine, and murder — it assumed a 
 sounder policy, l)efitting its dignity. Buckling on its armour, 
 Britain fearlessly challengc<l this giant iniquity to trcspaps 
 
 upon the sacrotl soil of our chartcroil and constitutional 
 
 2u 
 
354 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 liberty. Impelled by a stern necessity, our country laid aside 
 
 the beloved garb of peace, and assumed the dread panoply of j* 
 
 war, as our "meteor flag" was unfurled — 
 
 "The flag which braved a thousand years 
 The battle and the breeze." 
 
 Fleet after fleet forsook the tranquil bosom of the harbour 
 where hitherto they had nestled, and struggling with the 
 stormy billows of the sea, begirt our island home with those 
 "wooden walls" which, defended by our "hearts of oak," have 
 so long been our pride, and deemed impregnable; whilst 
 regiment after regiment mustered on the beach, daring the foe 
 to set foot upon these hallowed shores. 
 
 In such times the noble lord of Seaforth a second time 
 drew his father's sword, and with the valour and loyalty of 
 his house swelling in his breast, called on his clansmen yet 
 remaining to follow him. Foremost, in the very van of this 
 army of patriots, was thus marshalled the gallant subject of 
 our sketch — the Seventy-eighth Highlanders. 
 
 Assembled and embodied at Fort George on the 10th July, 
 1 793, the fine physical appearance of the regiment was very 
 remarkable — a characteristic which it has been fortunate 
 always to maintain. 
 
 Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, was the scene of its 
 earliest service on comparatively peaceful duty. Eemoved 
 from thence, in 1794, to Holland, it ultimately joined the 
 alhed army, under the Duke of York, which vainly endea- 
 voured to stem the tide of French aggression, then inundating 
 the Netherlands, and bereaving these provinces of their ancient 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. 355 
 
 freeilora. Engaged iu the dofencc of Niuicgucn, it contributed, 
 by its excellent behaviour, to retard the progress of the enemy, 
 whilst that fortress held out. Overwhelniincj mifjht necessi- 
 tatcd the evacuation of the place ; the garrison iu consequence 
 retired with the army towards Germany. At ^leteren our 
 rearguard was overtaken by the advanced posts of the enemy, 
 when a bloody action ensued. In the course of the fight the 
 Seventy-eighth was charged by a regiment of French hus.sars, 
 who, wearing a uniform similar to the regiment of Choiseul 
 in the British service, and the better to deceive our troops, 
 shouting as they advanced, "Choiseul! Choiseul!" — thus mis- 
 taken for friends — were permitted to penetrate our line, and 
 were upon the Highlanders before their true character wi\s dis- 
 covered. Unmasked, in an instant the bold hoi-semen were 
 met by a terrific volley of musketry, which, emptying many 
 saddles, cooled the ardour of the assault, but could not arrest 
 their progress. Piercing the intervals between the companies 
 of the battalion, the cavalry furiously rushed upon the Iligh- 
 landei-3, trampling them down, but, being warndy received, 
 failed to overwhelm the gallant Seventy-eighth, whose finn, 
 unrtinching valour was very conspicuous, and altogether sur- 
 prising from so young a corps in such trying circumstances. 
 A column of infantry, which had witnessed the success of the 
 cavalry, now advanced, big with high hopes, a3 they sup]>osed, 
 to complete the niin of the British. ^leanwhile the further 
 career of the hussars had been stayed by the determined front 
 of a company of the Forty-second Royal Highlanders, covering 
 the village. Driven back in confusion upon the advancing in- 
 
356 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 fantry, both were finally repulsed, chiefly by the combined 
 efi'orts of the Seventy-eighth and Forty-second Highlanders. 
 The British resuming the retreat, retired to Bremen, whence 
 they took shipping, and returned home. During this their 
 maiden campaign, the Seventy-eighth was associated with the 
 Seventy-ninth Cameron Highlanders and the Forty-second 
 Eoyal Highlanders. The regiment was remarkable for its 
 steadiness under fire, and its fortitude in enduring the hard- 
 ships of a severe winter under canvas. On this occasion, too, 
 a very melancholy and humbling testimony is borne by our 
 foes to the prevailing sin of our British soldiers. The French, 
 who had seduced the soldiers of the old monarchy by minister- 
 ing to their evil appetites, sought by a like artifice to ruin 
 our army ; they accordingly bribed the infamous amongst the 
 Dutch to sell liquors to our troops at a mere bagatelle, with a 
 view to tempt them and intoxicate them. How truly lament- 
 able to think that even then this national vice had acquired 
 such a mastery, such a notoriety, as to be regarded by France 
 as our Aveakness, and by the nation as our disgrace! Notwith- 
 standing, we with pleasure record that the Seventy-eighth 
 was faithful to its duty. Indeed, these seductions could not 
 prevail against such a corps, whose history had ever been 
 distinguished by sobriety; so much so, that while it was 
 ill India it wq,s found necessary to restrict its soldiers 
 from selling or giving away their own allowance of liquor 
 to others. 
 
 Meanwhile a second battalion, raised in 1794, had sailed 
 for, and participated in, an expedition against the Dutch 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. 357 
 
 colony of the Cape of Good Hope. After a brief struggle the 
 colony was recluceil and occupied by the British, the battalion 
 remain inn in the garrison. 
 
 The fii-st battalion, with the army of Lord J^Ioira, was 
 engaged in a fruitless attempt to succour the Royalists of La 
 N'cndce, who yet withstood the ferocious assaults of the 
 Republicans of Paris. Landing on the Isle Dieu, the expedi- 
 tion anxiously waited a favourable opportunity to gain a 
 footing on the mainland. Alas ! in vain. The time for 
 action, frittered away, was not to be recalled. Returning to 
 England, the battalion was embarked for Bengal. Calling on 
 the way at the Cape of Good Hope, it was joineil by the 
 second battalion, and the two, consolidatal into one regiment, 
 proceeded to India. Arrived in February, 17D 7, nothing of 
 importance falls to be recorded during its sojourn in the 
 Bengal Presidency. Removed to Bombay in 1803, it joined 
 the army of Major-General the Hon. Arthur Wellesley. With 
 the Seventy-fourtli Highlandei-s, the Eightieth Regiment, the 
 Nineteenth Liglit Drag<-»ons, and several native battalions, the 
 Seventy-eighth advanced against the enemy — Scindia and the 
 Rajah of Berar. 
 
 The strong fortress of Amednuggur was the first obstacle 
 to be overcome in the line of march. For a while defended 
 resolutely, the struf^gle was very severe, but the moment our 
 Highlanders succeeded in scaling the high and narrow walls 
 encircling it, to the enemy all .secmeil lost, defence ap|Xiare<l 
 hopeless, and flight the only refuge. Thus this im[X)rt.ant 
 conquest was achieved with comparatively little loss. 
 
358 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 As in previous campaigns, so in the present, the business of 
 the war seemed to be not so much to overcome but rather to 
 overtake the enemy; who, sensible of his weakness in the field, 
 strove to avoid the hazard of a battle, contenting himself with 
 harassing our progress by a perplexing and incessant guerilla 
 warfare. The persevering energy of the British commander 
 was not, however, to be so duped of the prize he sought — the 
 triumph he aspired to. By forced marches he overtook and 
 surprised the foe by his unexpected presence on the banks of 
 the Kaitna. Although not yet joined to the reinforcements at 
 hand under Colonel Stevenson, from Bengal, and fearing the 
 escape of the enemy under cover of the night, now approach- 
 ing, the daring impetuosity of AVellesley at once ordered the 
 attack. Eeduced by detachments, the British army did not 
 exceed 4,700 men, of whom the Seventy-fourth and Seventy- 
 eighth Highlanders, and the Nineteenth Light Dragoons, were 
 the only line regiments; whilst the Indian army, encamped in 
 a strong position behind the almost dry channel of the Kaitna, 
 occupied the village of Assay e, and presented a formidable 
 array of 30,000 admirable troops, disciplined and led by 
 European officers, the whole sustained by upwards of 100 
 guns. The Seventy-eighth occupied the left of the first line, 
 whilst the Seventy-fourth, from the second line, ultimately 
 took post on the right. But for the cowardly flight of the 
 European officers commanding the Indian infantry, who 
 abandoned their troops at the first onset, the resistance 
 might have been far more formidable. The enemy's artillery 
 was admirably served, and galled the advance of the British 
 
SEVENTY-EIGDTII HIGHLANDERS. 359 
 
 line with a terrible fire, which was only silenced by the death 
 of the gunnel's, bayoneted whilst faithfully and steadily 
 fill til ling their duty. In the ultimate retreat, one brigade 
 refused to yield, although repeatedly charged by our cavalry; 
 maintaining its order and retiring fighting, preserved the 
 defeat from becoming a disorderly rout. The struggle was 
 the most severe, and the achievement the most glorious which 
 had hitherto marked our Indian warfare; illustrating the 
 determineil valour of which the enemy was capable, w^hilst 
 anew it honoured the prowess of our soldiers in the result. 
 
 Strengthened by Colonel Stevenson's division, now arrived, 
 including the old Ninety-fourth, or Scots Brigade, ]\Iajor- 
 Oeneral Wellesley continued to press the retiring foe, until, 
 overtaken at Argaum, he made a brief stand. In the battle 
 which ensued, whilst the Ninety-fourth occupied the left of 
 the line, the Seventy-fourth and Seventy-eighth together upon 
 the other flank, encountered the only considerable attack of 
 the enemy; which, undertaken by a body of 800 furious 
 fanatics, was sustained with exceeding valour, until the entire 
 column had fallen before the veterans of Assaye. Notwith- 
 standing the vigour of the assault, a very trifling lo.ss was 
 inflicted upon the British, and the enemy otherwise relinquished 
 the field almost without a blow, 
 
 A quaint story is told by General Stewart of the piper of 
 the Seventy -eighth, who, when the miLsicians were ordereil at 
 Assaye to attend to the wounde<l, esteeming himself included, 
 had in consequence gone to the rear. This desertion his 
 comrades attributed to fear, an«l the unfortunate piper. 
 
360 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 branded as a coward, felt the rebuke thus stingingly uttered : 
 " Flutes and hautboys they thought could be well spared, but 
 for the piper, who should always be in the heat of the battle, to 
 go to the rear with the ivJiistlers, was a thing altogether unheard 
 of." Bitterly sensible of the unmerited insult, he gladly availed 
 himself of a favourable opportunity at the battle of Argaum 
 to blot out the stigma and redeem his fame. He played with 
 such animation amidst the hottest of the fire, that, not only 
 restored to his comrades' confidence, he entailed the commands 
 of the colonel to be silent, lest the men so inspired should be 
 urged too soon to the charge. 
 
 The war was soon after brought to a glorious termipation 
 by the fall of Gawilghur. Thereafter removed to Madras, the 
 regiment remained in quietude till 1811, when, included in 
 the army of Lieutenant-General Sir Samuel Auchmuty, it 
 sailed with the expedition destined to ojDerate against the 
 valuable Dutch colony of Java. It required much severe 
 fighting, especially at and around Cornelis — a very strong 
 position, where the enemy, with concentrated might, main- 
 tained a resolute defence, only yielding when, with 1000 men 
 killed, the post had become no longer tenable — ere the island 
 was reduced. In this expedition the Seventy-eighth lost about 
 100 officers and men. Although the sword and the pestilence 
 had each claimed its victims, still they failed to vanquish our 
 Highlanders. 
 
 On the return voyage to India, a new enemy awaited the 
 gallant Seventy-eighth, threatening even more fatal results — 
 the sea, the ever - devouring sea. Six companies of the 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. 361 
 
 regiment which had embarko*! in the " Frances Charlotte," 
 transport, when twelve miles from the small island of Pre- 
 pares, on the 5th November, ISIG, struck upon a sunken 
 rock. In this awful crisis, when the grim King of Terrors 
 confronted our soldiers, and this living freight of brave 
 men, women, and children, seemed about to be engulfed in 
 a watery grave, amid the consteniation and wild dismay 
 inseparable from such a scene, the firm courage of our 
 Highlanders sustained them equally as amid the roar and 
 excitement of the battle-field. "With heroic gallantry, the 
 soldiers, caring for the weakness of woman and the helpless- 
 ness of childliood, nobly hazarding, prepared to sacrifice 
 their own lives that these might be saved, and so their duty 
 fulfilled. Instances of manly courage and true heroism like 
 these, tell us, in unequivocal language, that such are the fniit of 
 no mere idle sentiment and flitting emotion, but the result of 
 inborn, genuine character. Whilst the women and children 
 were conveyed in boats to the island, the men crowded upon a 
 small rocky islet, occasionally dry at low water, and situated 
 about 150 yards from the wreck. The ship, full of water, 
 soon after went to pieces, and disapix?ared beneath the waves. 
 The miseries of the ship-wrecked, from hunger and thirst, were 
 very grievous, and so cruel, that, although saved from becom- 
 ing the prey of the sea, they seemed but preserved for a more 
 terrible d(X)m. The gaunt visage of famine ap[>oare<l to torment 
 the perishing multitude with the pangs of an unutterable woe, 
 and every ray of hope seemed eclipsctl by the lowering dark- 
 ness of despair and the dismal shroud of the grave. But a 
 
 •J V 
 
362 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 merciful Providence was nearer to save. A vessel hove in 
 sight, and, responding to the hail of the men on the rock, sent 
 a boat to their aid, which took forty of the survivors on 
 board, but by a strange, unaccountable want of feeling, sailed 
 away without affording further assistance; leaving behind one 
 of its own boats, which, gone on the mission of mercy, and 
 whilst loading -^dth a second instalment, had been upset by 
 over-crowding. Fortunately, all escaped safely, scrambling 
 back upon the rock. On the 10th of November, a large ship, 
 the "Prince Blucher," attracted by the vestiges of the wreck 
 which had floated seaward across her course, was drawn 
 towards the island, and embarking as many as possible, sailed 
 for Calcutta; from whence, on news of the disaster, other 
 vessels were immediately dispatched, which brought off in 
 safety the remainder of the surAdvors, who had endured the 
 severest pinchings of hunger with soldier-like stedfastness for 
 upwards of a month upon the island. It is interesting to note 
 how both the Seventy-fourth and Seventy-eighth Highlanders 
 should thus have encountered the disasters of the deep, and in 
 these vicissitudes evinced so worthily the qualities of the 
 soldier and the hero. 
 
 In 1817 the regiment returned to England, and disem- 
 barked at Portsmouth. 
 
CHAPTER XXXYIT. 
 
 " 'Twuii a ttolilior who 8iX)kc — but his voice uow ia gone, 
 
 Ami lowly the hero is lying; 
 No Bouiul meota the ear, save the crocodile's moan, 
 
 Or the breeze through the palm-tree sighing. 
 But lone though he rests where the camel is Bceu, 
 
 IJy the wililernesa heavily i»acing; 
 Ilia grave in our bosoms shall ever be green, 
 
 Aiul his monument ne'er know defacing." 
 
 GIBRALTAR — SICILY — MAIDA — EGYPT — WALCHEREN — 
 FLANDERS — 1804-1817. 
 
 Altuough borrowing a good idea in pursuing a similar plan, 
 we esteem ourselves excused, and not guilty of too slavish an 
 imitation of General Stewart's account of the Seventy-eighth, 
 in his excellent memoirs of the Highland regiments. Thu.s, 
 having followed so far the history of the first battalion, we 
 now devote a chapter to the annals of the second battalion, in 
 which the dLstinguished officer above-named served with 
 honour, exceedingly beloved by the soldier's; and to whom, 
 as an author, we are largely indebted, having, by the vigour 
 of his iHjn, rescued from the shades of oblivion and the 
 crumbling ravages of time the history of our regiments and 
 the peculiar characteristics of our clans, and so preserved ever 
 fresh these endeared records of our brave clansmen and 
 soldiers, Scotland had already largely contributed to the 
 
364 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 noble army of defenders which in 1804, during the momentous 
 crisis in our national history of which that year was the scene, 
 had gathered round the constitution and challenged the would- 
 be invader. Of the genuine Highlanders enlisted at this 
 period, the following is a correct record : — 
 
 For the army of reserve, 1651 
 
 Militia — Inverness, Ross, Argyle, Perth, &c., &c., - - 2599 
 
 SuiijDlementary Ditto, 870 
 
 Canadian Fencibles, 850 
 
 Second Battalion of the Seventy-eighth Regiment, - - 714 
 
 Second Battalion of the Seventy-ninth Regiment, - - 618 
 
 Highlanders as substitutes in ^Militia regiments, - - 963 
 Recruits enlisted by the parties of the line, not exactly known, 
 
 but estimated at, ------ - 350 
 
 Total, - . .. . 8,615 
 
 The present battalion was the fourth raised by the family 
 of Seaforth within twenty-five years. It contained many 
 Islesmen, especially from the island of Lewis. Although to all 
 appearance little else than a regiment of boys of very tender 
 years, still they had within them the soul of the man, as after 
 events abundantly proved. Embodied at Fort George in the 
 winter of 1804-5 with a strength of 850, it was by request of 
 Major-General Moore placed under his command for purposes 
 of instruction in the new system of light infantiy drill. This 
 was a fortunate circumstance, and no doubt helped the 
 battalion, not merely in the acquirement of a thorough 
 military knowledge, but more especially served to instil a due 
 confidence, which gave it that steadiness in action for which it 
 was afterwards remarkable. The urgent requirements of the 
 
SEVENTY-EIOUTU HIGULANDEUS. 365 
 
 service having occasioned the removal of the battalion to 
 reinforce the garrison of Gibraltar, it was early (.lc|irived of 
 the benefits tlowiuEr from such an excellent course of traiuiiiir 
 under so able a master of the science of war. Nevertheless, it 
 had so improved the advantage which for a brief period it 
 enjoyed, lus made it a valuable addition to the garrison. 
 
 From Gibraltar it j)roceeded to Sicily, to join the arma- 
 ment, under Sir John JStuart, destined for a descent upon the 
 mainland of Calabria, in favour of the exiled monarch of 
 Naples and the patriots of Italy. The expedition, which sailed 
 from Melazzo in June, I8O0, included the Twenty-seventh, 
 Fifty-eighth, Seventy-eighth, Eighty-first, and ^Yatteville'8 
 Swiss Kegiment, afterwards reinforced by the Twentieth 
 Kegiment. Landing successfully in the bay of St Euphemia, 
 the British General strove to anticipate the attack of the 
 French under General Eegnier, who, with a force lately 
 augmented to nearly 8000, stood opposetl to the British, who 
 could scarce muster 4000 men, unsustained, moreover, by 
 cavalry. The enemy occupied a very strong position in the 
 vicinity of the village of ]\Iaida. Affecting to despise the 
 handful of British who had ventured to challenge the a.ssault, 
 Regnier, forsiiking his strong position, descended to the i»lains, 
 boasting he should drive the British into the sea. The two 
 armies advanced in hostile array in parallel lines across the 
 plain, halting when within a few hundred yards, and jwuring 
 in a deadly volley upon Ciich other. The precision of the 
 British fire so shattered tlie first line of the enemy, that, 
 broken, it retired in confusion ui)on the second line, and there 
 
366 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 struo;2:led to maintain itself against the attack of our first 
 brigade, comprising tlie Seventy- eighth and Eighty- first 
 regiments under Brigadier-General Acland. A Swiss reo;i- 
 ment bearing the name of its commanding officer, Watteville, 
 at this crisis of the fight advanced against the Seventy- 
 eighth, and mistaken, from its similarity of uniform, for the 
 corps of the same name, family, and nation in the British 
 service, which held post in reserve, our Highlanders ceased 
 firing, lest they should injure their supposed friends. When 
 undeceived, a vigorous fire warmly hailed the enemy, and 
 drove back the Swiss with great slaughter. Beaten thus in 
 every quarter. General Kegnier proposed, as a last resource, to 
 try the efiect of a flank attack upon the Twenty-seventh 
 regiment. Providentially, the Twentieth regiment arriving 
 on the field at this moment, hastened to sustain their comrades, 
 and by their unexpected appearance so discouraged the foe, 
 that the attack, languidly undertaken, was speedily given 
 over. The French now gave w^ay at all points, and retreated 
 precipitately, so swiftly, that without cavalry they could not 
 be overtaken — General Eegnier falling a prisoner into our 
 hands. 
 
 General Stuart had at first been grievously disappointed in 
 the boyish appearance of the Seventy-eighth, GOO of whom 
 were under twenty-one years of age; but now felt constrained 
 to confess their gallant conduct unsurpassed; having van- 
 quished the veteran troops of France, although fighting under 
 great disadvantages in the front line of this their maiden 
 engagement. Unfortunately, the British, unsupported, were 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIOlILiVNDERS. 3G7 
 
 unaMe to do more tlian destroy tho enemy's arsenals and 
 magazines at ^loutc Leon, ere prudence counselled their return 
 to Sicily. 
 
 Insignificant in itself, the result of the battle of Maida 
 exerted an important influence over Europe. Although the 
 numl)ers respectively engaged were small, still — occurring at a 
 time and in circumstances when Euro|)ean liberty groaned in 
 chains, and all the blcssincjs which bclon<:ed to it seemed to be 
 eclipsed in the dark night of tyranny, and when the sovereigns 
 of the Continent had submitted to the imperious yoke of 
 Bounaparte, when the friendly light of hope, flickering, seemed 
 to die out — the battle and the victory of Iklaida revived the 
 drooping spirit of Freedom, restored to new life the palsieil 
 pulse of Europe, and bade her many peoples awake from the 
 stupor of terror which the shackles of an iron despotism and 
 the cruel spoilings of rapacious might had imposed! It 
 required years of sore suffering and desperate struggling ere 
 the monster which so preyed upon the vitals of lil)erty could 
 be shaken off; and, emancipated from the oppressor's grasp, 
 the nations one ])y one once more breathed somewhat of tho 
 blesscil air of freedom. 
 
 Against their better feelings and judgment the Turks had 
 been cajoled into an alliance with France, and unwillingly as 
 our enemies, their territory m Egj-pt became the theatre of 
 strife, whereon a British army should again act. Accordingly, 
 in 1807, Licutenant-General Sir John Moore arrived in Sicily 
 from England, and assumed the command of the entcqirise. 
 In the army which set sail from Sicily for Eg}i)t, the second 
 
368 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 battalion of tlic Seven ty-eiglitli Higlilanders was included. 
 Landed, the expedition, flattered by various successes, con- 
 tinued to advance towards Alexandria; but the Turks, in their 
 peculiar mode of warfare, and their aptness in taking advan- 
 tage of every favourable circumstance in defence, proved more 
 terrible enemies than even the French, inflicting severe and 
 heavy losses upon the British. In an attempt to gain posses- 
 sion of the town of Eosetta, the Thirty-first Eegimeut was 
 nearly annihilated by the fire of the enemy from loop-holed 
 houses in the narrow streets, who could not be dislodged. 
 This attack in consequence failed; and the troops had to 
 mourn the loss of its leader, Major-General Wauchope, whilst 
 his second in command, Brigadier-General Meade, was wounded. 
 With hopes of facilitating and securing the friendly and 
 promised aid of the Mamelukes, a detachment of 720 men, 
 under Lieutenant-Colonel Macleod, was advanced on the 20th 
 of April to an important outpost of the army at El Hamet, on 
 the Nile. The detachment, consisting of a party from De 
 EoUe's Eegiment, two companies of the Thirty-fifth, and five 
 companies of the Seventy -eighth, was divided into three 
 divisions, and stationed accordingly. On the morning of the 
 21st, about seventy large boats filled with armed men were 
 seen descending the Nile, whilst several corps of horsemen 
 gathered around the detachment, and at once assailed the right 
 of the three divisions, at the same time so surrounding the 
 others as to prevent them rendering any assistance to one 
 another, or drawing together into one. The right division, 
 comprising the Highland Grenadiers and a company of the 
 
 i 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. .3G9 
 
 Thirty-fifth, fought with the fury of lions at bay, and was 
 utterly cut to pieces, along with its gallant commander, who, 
 whenever he had perceived the peril of the post, hastened to 
 rescue it or die with the brave. The little phalanx of heroes, 
 reduced to eleven, attempted to break through the host of foes 
 which beleaguered them, and so join their comrades in the 
 centre division. Unfortunately, most of them perished in the 
 attempt. Captain Mackay, the only surviving officer, was 
 struck to the ground by a blow on the neck from the scimitar of 
 an Arab horseman in pursuit. The blow failing to kill, by a 
 miracle of mercy he was saved, and carried in by his Serjeant. 
 The remaining divisions, conscious how unavailing any resis- 
 tance would be, surrendered, and after l)eing brutally plun- 
 dered, were conducted in triumph prisoners to Cairo, where 
 the vanity and the hatred of the people were gratified in the 
 parade of the captives through the principal streets of the city 
 for seven hours; exposed, moreover, to indignities of the 
 grossest kind — "These," said they, "are our hr'iti^h friends, 
 who came from their ships to kill us and our children." The 
 Pacha, however, sincerely sympathising, behaved with great 
 kindness, and did his utmost to screen the prisoners from the 
 blind wrath of the public, expressing his deep regret that 
 Britain should have become so involved in war with his 
 Government, which had been lonj]: acciLstometl to recrard the 
 British as friends and allies — never as foes. 
 
 In conse<|uence of the disaster at El Ilamet, the siege of 
 Rosetta was abandoned, and our army, retreating to Alex- 
 andria, thence negotiated for the release of the prisoners, and 
 
 2 w 
 
370 HISTOKY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 agreeing to evacuate Egypt, returned to Sicily. Of the cap- 
 tives thus released, a drummer of the Seventy-eighth, by name 
 Macleod, who had occasionally assisted the surgeon of the 
 regiment in applying poultices, etc., choosing to remain behind 
 in Cairo, by a somewhat extraordinary metamorphosis, set up 
 for a physician, and by consummate assurance attained a large 
 practice and acquired a larger fortune. From Sicily the bat- 
 talion was removed to Lisbon, and thereafter ordered home to 
 England, where it arrived in 1808. Subsequently transferred 
 to Scotland to recruit, it forwarded large detachments of very 
 superior volunteers from its ranks to the first battalion, then 
 fighting in India. 
 
 In 1809 a corps of 370 men was battalionized under the 
 Hon. Lieutenant-Colonel Cochrane, and embarked for Zealand, 
 where it shared the disasters of the Walcheren expedition, 
 afterward returnins; to the Isle of Wisiht. 
 
 In 1813, as a small corps of 400 Highlanders, the second 
 battalion of the Seventy-eighth joined the army of Lieutenant- 
 General Sir Thomas Graham, afterwards Lord Lynedoch, 
 which endeavoured to expel the French from Holland. On 
 the 13th January, with the second battalion of the Twenty- 
 fifth and the Thirty- third regiments, it encountered the 
 enemy at Merexem, where it behaved with signal gal- 
 lantry — an immediate charge with the bayonet by the 
 Seventy- eighth, ordered by Lieutenant -Colonel Lindsay, 
 decided the contest." The enemy was beaten with great 
 slaughter. At this period the juvenility of the battalion was 
 as remarkable as its valour — only 43 of its soldiers exceeding 
 
SEVENTY-EICHTH HIGHLANDERS. 'A7\ 
 
 twenty-two years of age. The battalion remained iu the 
 Netherlands until after the battle of Waterloo, but stationed 
 at Nieuport, wi\3 deprived of the privilege of being present on 
 that memorable and glorious field. Nevertheless, it added to 
 its good name by its excellent conduct, becoming peculiarly 
 endeared to the Belgians, who spoke of the Highlanders as 
 being "kind, as well as brave;" "Enfansde la famille;" "Lions 
 iu the field and lambs in the house " — so much so, that the 
 citizens of Brussels petitioned the mayor to request the 
 General-in-Chief to allow the Seventy-eighth to remain iu 
 garrison in that capital. 
 
 Keturning to Scotland in 1816, the battalion was sub- 
 sequently incorporated with the first? battalion as one regiment 
 on its return from India — conveying, with its few remaining 
 soldiers, a character for firmness truly remarkable in such 
 young soldiers, and adding the glories of Maida and Egypt to 
 those of Assaye and Java, acquired by the first battalion, and 
 now one in the Seventy-eighth. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 But hark! what means yon dismal wail — 
 Tlie shriek that's borne upon the gale? 
 It comes from India's sultry plain — 
 It calls for vengeance from the slain, 
 
 Nor calls in vain to Scotland. 
 
 'Tis the destroying hordes of hell, 
 "\^' hose hearts with fiendish passions swell, 
 Whose swords on ruined Beauty fell — 
 The Brave, the Fair, the Weak. Farewell! 
 Ye'U be revenged by Scotland. 
 
 Then Scotland, ]?y brave Havelock led, 
 Rush'd o'er the field of murder'd dead, 
 Fighting for "bleeding Beauty's" sake — 
 The very earth itself might quake 
 
 Beneath the wrath o' Scotland. 
 
 Haste ye to Lucknow's fainting brave; 
 Too long they've battled with the slave — 
 The weak and helpless Fair to save 
 From rapine, ruin, and the grave — 
 
 Hope comes wi' bonnie Scotland. 
 
 And now brave Havelock's work is done ; 
 He sets like to the evening sun ; 
 By him the crown of glory's won — 
 His God, beholding, saith "Well done!" 
 
 The Lost — the Loved o' Scotland. 
 
 PERSIA — INDIA — 1817-1862. 
 
 Escaping from the tedious details of peaceful service wliicli 
 for upwards of forty years mark the history of the Seventy- 
 

SEVENTY-KICnTH IIICHLANDERS. 373 
 
 eighth, wo now follow that gulhuit regiment to India — the 
 scene of its early glory, and since embalmed in our memory, 
 as presenting the most splendid testimony to its heroic 
 character. 
 
 In 1857 we find it transferred from Bombay to Persia, 
 and engaged in the expedition destined to chastise its vain- 
 glorious imd presumptuous monarch. An easy triumph crowned 
 the efforts of our arms. At Koosh-ab the Seventy-eighth was 
 present with credit; although that success was achieved rather 
 by diligent perseverance in long marches and l)attling with 
 inclement weather, than by any very remarkable feat of arms. 
 This name and that of "Persia" were gained for the regi- 
 mental colour during the campaign, in scenery hallowed by 
 sacreil memories, being supposed to be the site of the garden 
 of Eden. 
 
 But we hasten to look upon a darker picture — to find our 
 Indian empire on the verge of ruin, convulsed as in the agonies 
 of dissolution; its native military, whom we had trusted and 
 boasted, become traitors; their smothered vengeance, cherished 
 through years of duplicity, bursting forth to deluge our vast 
 dominion, and almost wrest it from us by a cruel reWllion; 
 all that once gloried in the very name of l^ritish doomed by 
 an un[)itying and relentless revenge to utter destruction, con- 
 signed to be the subjects of a gigantic perfidy. The mine had 
 exploded, and awful were the horrors of the tragedy it 
 revealed! Helplessness consumed by the devouring sword; 
 l)eauty wasted by demons of lust and passion; hoj>elc8s 
 bravery sacrificed to satisfy a bloody api)etitc — whilst with 
 
374 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 fiendish sliouts the villains gloated over the murders in which 
 their hands were embrued and which stained their souls, and 
 rejoiced in the atrocities they had committed. 
 
 Never was the British soldier placed in circumstances so 
 trying, and never did he display such heroism — a heroism 
 which, equal to the emergency, was alone able to deliver him 
 from the foul conspiracy of 150,000 armed and trained rebels, 
 who encircled him and thirsted vehemently for his blood. 
 
 Delhi, the great central tower of rebellious strength, was 
 the scene of months of hard fighting and sore privation; but 
 over all these British valour triumphing, was rewarded in the 
 reduction of that important stronghold, and the utter discom- 
 fiture of its daring defenders. But Luckuow reversed the 
 picture. There we find the British besieged by a countless 
 host of the enemy; there we regard a handful of brave men 
 resolved to sell their lives as dearly as possible, rather than 
 yield to the ruthless rebels who in multitudes encompassed the 
 Eesidency. To save the brave garrison from the terrible fate 
 which threatened them, and release the crowd of starving and 
 emaciated women and children who, claiming the protection of 
 the soldier, had found shelter there — to save and relieve these, 
 a little army might have been seen advancing by rapid 
 marches, encountering the greatest dangers, and eagerly press- 
 ing onwards to avenge their slaughtered friends. Stirred to 
 marvellous achievements by the appalling traces of massacre 
 perpetrated on the helpless and innocent, and which were 
 too apparent all around — roused to heroic action, nerved 
 to meet death or conquer in the awful and unequal struggle. 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. 375 
 
 the little army of Brigridier-Gencral Havelock pressed vigor- 
 ously forward to help and to avenge. It comprised of 
 European Troops: The third company of the eighth battalion 
 of Royal Artillery, (76 men); the First ^ladras Fusiliers, (376 
 men); the Sixty-fourth Regiment of Foot, (435 men); the 
 Seventy-eighth Highlanders, (284 men); the Eighty-fourth 
 Regiment of foot, (100 men); Bengal Artillery, (22 men); 
 Volunteer Cavalry, (20 men). Native IVoops: Ferozcpore 
 Regiment, (448 men); the Thirteenth Irregular, and the Third 
 Oude Irregular Cavalry, (95 men); Galundauze (18 men). 
 
 From Cawnpore the rebels had pushed forward to Futteh- 
 pore, purposing to destroy a small detachment of British under 
 Major Renaul, but these having succeeded in effecting a 
 timeous junction with the army of Havelock, the mutineers, 
 amounting to 3,.j00, were encountered by that chief, and in a 
 few minutes totally routed. The victory was ascribed by the 
 conqueror "to the British artillery, to the Enfield rifle, to 
 British pluck, and to the blessing of Almighty God." 
 
 On the 15th Jidy Brigadier-General Havelock came up with 
 the enemv first at the villacre of Aenij, and next at the bridjie 
 over the Pandoo Nudee, and was successful in each instance. 
 Anew in position under Nena Sahib (Doondoo Punt), the 
 rebels made a momentary stand at Ahirwa, but were imme- 
 diately defeated by a brilliant charge of our Highlanders. The 
 arch-traitor Nena Sahib, finding himself closely pressed by the 
 British column, and unable to defend Cawnpore, retired from 
 that fortress, after having, with savage barbarity, massacred 
 the women and children who by the foulest jierfidy had fallen 
 
376 HISTORY OP THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 into his power. The remains of these victims of his cruelty- 
 were afterwards discovered in the bottom of a well; and the 
 horrors of the tragedy are said so to have moved the soul of 
 our Highlanders, that, vo^^ng an oath of vengeance on the 
 blood-stained spot, they were stirred to redeem it on sub- 
 sequent occasions. Pursuing the enemy in the course of his 
 memorable march to Lucknow, Havelock defeated a strong 
 body of rebels gathered near Unao. Thrice he attacked, and 
 thrice he routed the mutineers who had as often congregated 
 at Busherut Gunge, and once at Bithoor. Cholera attack- 
 ing the British troops, so crippled the little army that, sur- 
 rounded by foes, Havelock was compelled to delay his further 
 advance until reinforced by Sir James Outram. On the 
 arrival of these fresh troops on 16th September, the command, 
 by seniority, devolved upon Sir James Outram; but with a 
 chivalrous feeling highly to be admired, that excellent officer 
 waived his claim, desiring Major-General Havelock to finish 
 the good work he had so well begun and was so nigh gloriously 
 completing, Sir James serving in subordination as a volunteer. 
 "On the 19th and 20th of September, the relieving force, 
 amounting to about two thousand five hundred men, and 
 seventeen guns, crossed the Ganges. The Fifth Fusiliers, 
 Eighty -fourth, detachments of the Sixty -fourth, and First 
 Madras Fusiliers, composed the first infantry brigade, under 
 Brigadier - General Neill; the Seventy- eighth Highlanders, 
 Ninetieth Light Infantry, and the Sikh Ferozepore Regiment, 
 made up the second brigade, under Brigadier Hamilton of the 
 Seventy-eighth; Major Cooper commanded the artillery brigade. 
 
/ i 
 
 ''<¥- .. 
 
 ^ 
 
 .:|;i^V 
 
 ^'^SSJ^JJ- 
 
 SIR HENRY HAVELOGK. 
 THE SEVENTY-EIGHTH, OR "ROSS-SHIRE BUFFS- 
 
SEVENTY-EIGHTH HIGHLANDERS. 3/7 
 
 consisting of Captains Claude, Olipliant, and ^lajor Eyre's 
 batteries; Captain Borrow commantleJ the Volunteers and 
 Irregular Cavalry." 
 
 Having distributed the army, Havelock resumed his for- 
 ward march, and after encountering several powerful bodies of 
 the rebels, and always witli the same success as hitherto, 
 Lucknow was reached, and the beleafiuered and almost 
 despairing garrison relieved. This happy result was dearly 
 purchased by the death of Brigadier-General Neill, a most 
 gallant and able oflficer. Colonel Hamilton, who led the 
 Seventy-eighth amid these labyrinthian dangers, won a dis- 
 tinguished name by his valour and coolness in many critical 
 moments. 
 
 Most deeply regretted, the hero who had achieved this 
 crowning triumph fell asleep in the very arms of victory. The 
 living exponent of all that was truly noble, generous, l)rave, 
 and heavenly, entered into his rest, there to enjoy the better 
 blessing of his God, to wear the cro\\'n of glory which cannot 
 fade, and which is more to be desired than all the i^crlsliing 
 treasures of earth, the gilded pageant of a world's renown, or 
 even the fitful gratitude of his country. Such was the death 
 of Sir Henry Havelock, which almost immediately followed 
 the final relief of Lucknow by our deservedly favourite chief- 
 tain, Sir Colin Campbell (now Lord Clyde). 
 
 " Brave Havelock 's gone! let Britain mourn — 
 Her bri);ht<st, Ixildotit hero's gone; 
 Strew Indian laurels round his tomb, 
 For there he glorious triumphs won. 
 
 2x 
 
378 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 "There he accomplished deeds of might, 
 
 AVhich stamp'd him bravest of the brave — 
 Cut through a host, put foes to flight, 
 And helpless prisoners dared to save. 
 
 " A Christian warrior — stern, yet mild. 
 
 He fought for Heaven, his Saviour's home, 
 Yet shrunk not from the battle-field, 
 Where all his talents brightly shone. 
 
 " But now Death's mandate from on high 
 His Father called ; he was prepared 
 For mansions sure beyond the sky ; 
 Earth's honours could not him reward. 
 
 " And now he's buried with the brave — 
 His battle 's fought, his vict'iy 's won ; 
 His country's cause he died to save. 
 Nor sunk until his work was done. 
 
 " Let England, then, embalm his name — 
 'Mongst heroes he may justly shine; 
 For soldier he of nobler fame — 
 His banner bore the stamp Divine." 
 
 In the latter defence of Lucknow the Seventy-eighth sus- 
 tained a prominent and a very honourable part, cheerfully 
 enduring the privations of a straitened and continued siege, 
 and ever foremost in repelling the foe when he dared to 
 attack. 
 
 The heart of the Scottish people followed ^dth a yearning 
 interest the movements of the Seventy-eighth throughout this 
 memorable campaign. With gratitude our countrymen hailed 
 the regiment, when a kind Providence recently restored it to 
 its native land, where every grade of society united to do 
 honour to that bravery which so conspicuously graced our 
 
SEVENTY-EIOUTH HIGHLANDERS. 37y 
 
 liiitioual history upon the dismal piiye of tlie IiKliun mutiny, 
 aud ill commumonition thereof u moiiiimeiit has been erected 
 iu Edinburgh, an IHustration of which is given in this work. 
 We close our sketch with the feeling that words have failed to 
 express the just admiration with which we must ever regard 
 this, the "scion of the Seaforth," the " Saviour of India." 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT; 
 
 OR, 
 
 CAMERON HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 " There's many a man of the Cameron clan 
 That has foUow'd his chief to the field ; 
 He has sworn to support him, or die by his side, 
 For a Cameron never can yield. 
 
 " Oh! proudly they walk, but each Cameron knows 
 He may tread on the heather no more ; 
 But boldly he follows his chief to the field, 
 Where his laurels were gathered before." 
 
 There is perhaps do name so deeply interesting in the annals 
 of the Highlanders as that of Cameron; no clan so truly the 
 exponent of all that is brave and noble, and none whose chief 
 has been so largely the exemplar in his life of all the god-like 
 qualities of the man, the patriot, and the hero, and whose 
 memory is so fondly cherished and so highly revered. Such 
 was the illustrious leader of the clan. Sir Ewen Cameron of 
 Lochiel — 
 
 "The crested Lochiel, the peerless in might." 
 
■ 
 
 
 1 
 
 Zj^ 
 
 ■ 
 
 _ 
 
 ^u 
 
 SIR EWEN CAMERON OF LOCHEIL. 
 ENTY-NINTH. "OR CAMERON HIGHLANDERS, 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 381 
 
 The Camerous by their conspicuous patriotism, marching 
 under the banner of the Lord of the Isles at the battle of 
 Banuockburn, contributed to illumine the page of our ancient 
 glory. 
 
 " Bruce, with the pilot's wary eye, 
 'Hie slackeniug of the storm couUl s])y. 
 'One effort more, and Scotland's free I 
 Lord of the I^les, my trust iu thee 
 
 Is firm i\a Aili>a Hock ; 
 Kxish on with Highland swonl and targe, 
 I, with my Carrick si>earnu'n, charge; 
 
 Now, forwan.1 to the shock I ' 
 At once tlie spears were forwanl thrown, 
 Against the sun the broadswords shone; 
 The pibroi.-h lent its maddening tone. 
 And loud King Robert's voice was known — 
 'Carrick, press on — they fail, they fail! 
 Press on, brave sons of Innisgail, 
 
 The foe is fainting fast! 
 Each strike for parent, child, and wife. 
 For Scotland, liberty, and life — 
 
 The battle cannot last ! ' " 
 
 But the clan attained even a greater reputation from its 
 devoted loyalty to the Stuarts, and its gallant efforts in their 
 cause, especially when led by Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel. 
 
 This chief was born in 1(J29, and eilucated at Inverary 
 Castle by bis foster-father, the Marquis of iVrgyll. Fascinated 
 by the chivalrous bciiring of Montrose, at the early age of 
 eighteen he deserted liis early i)atron, mustered his clansmen, 
 and proceeded to join the rebel army. Ere he coidd accomplish 
 his intention, the tide of war had turne<l against the Royalists, 
 and swept away the army of Montrose. Retaining his clans- 
 
382 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS, 
 
 men in arms around him, lie most effectually protected his 
 estates from the incursions of the soldiers of Cromwell. 
 
 In 1652, the Earl of Gleucairn, setting up the Royal 
 standard, received the ready co-operation of Lochiel against 
 the Republicans. Jealousy and distrust estranging the Royalist 
 chiefs, creeping into and distracting their counsels, breaking 
 the bond of union otherwise so mighty an agent to success — 
 Lochiel, keeping aloof from these troubles at head-quarters, 
 acting independently, effectively shielded the Royal army in 
 its consequent weakness, delaying the ruin which ultimately 
 overtook this unfortunate attempt to restore the kingdom to 
 Charles II. His exploits savour of the marvellous and 
 romantic; nevertheless, they in truth displayed the heroism of 
 his character and the genius of a master-mind in the business 
 of war. On one occasion a party of 300 soldiers had been 
 sent to ravage his estates around Inverlochy. Hastily collect- 
 ing thirty-eight of his clan, with a fearlessness amounting 
 almost to rashness, despite the remonstrances of the sager 
 veterans of his little band, to whose experiences he replied, 
 " If every man kiUs his man, I will answer for the rest," he 
 descended upon the unsuspecting troops with the utmost fury, 
 when a desperate and bloody struggle ensued. But nothing, 
 not even superior numbers, could withstand so furious an 
 attack by the Cameron s. Steadily fighting, the soldiers slowly 
 retreated to the boats from which they had landed, leaving 
 138 of their comrades dead on the shore, whilst the loss of 
 the Highlanders only amounted to seven men. 
 
 By many such deeds of daring, in which he always 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 383 
 
 displayed prodigies of valour, to his foes he appeared a dread 
 avenger, but to his frieuds he was known as a sure protector. 
 When all other opposition to its rule hatl been overcome by a 
 victorious Protectorate, Lochiel remained in arms for his King, 
 uncouquered, and seemingly unconquerable. Bribery could 
 not purchase the submission of so noble a spirit, and persua- 
 sion failed to gain over the allegiance of so faithful an 
 adherent of the exiled monarch. Fortunately, the good 
 policy of Cromwell effected an honourable compromise, con- 
 sistent with the dignity of this brave yet haughty chieftain, 
 which put an end to the cniel war which had already 
 exhausted the resources, and if persevered in, must have 
 extcnninated the gallant Caraerons. Unable to win his 
 alliance, the Protector wisely contented himself with a simple 
 peace. 
 
 Consistent with his ancient loyalty, when the Revolution of 
 1688 had expatriated the last and degenerate representative of 
 the unfortunate race of Stuart, and set up a new and a l>etter 
 order of things in the State by the installation of the family of 
 Orange on the Priti.sh throne, Lochiel joined the party of King 
 James, and resolutely determined to uphold his standanl as 
 unfurled in rebellion in 1689. Unsullied by the baser motives 
 of ambition and revenge which had driven Viscount Dundee 
 into rebellion, Lochiel devoteil his swonl to what he esteemed 
 the rifihteous cause of his riqhtful sovereijxn, who had been set 
 aside by the claims of a usuri>er. In the battle of Killie- 
 crankie, the charge of the Camerons and Highlanders led by 
 Lochiel was irresistible, and contribute<l largely to the attain- 
 
384 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 ment of the victory. It so happened (not uncommon in those 
 civil wars) on this occasion that the second son of Lochiel 
 commanded a company in the opposing army of King William. 
 Attached to the staff of General Mackay, that commander, on 
 viewing the array and position of the Highlanders, remarked 
 to the young Lochiel — " There," said he, " is your father with 
 his wild savages; how would you like to be with himl" " It 
 signifies little/' replied the other, "what I would like; but I 
 recommend it to you to be prepared, or perhaps my father 
 and his wild savages may be nearer to you before night than 
 you would like." And so it happened. Dundee delayed his 
 attack "till," according to an eye-witness, "the sun's going- 
 down, when the Highlandmen advanced on us like madmen, 
 without shoes or stockings, covering themselves from our fire 
 with their targets. At last they cast away their muskets, 
 drew their broadswords, and advanced furiously upon us, 
 broke us, and obliged us to retreat; some fled to the water, 
 some another way." 
 
 This great chief died at the ripe age of eighty-nine in 1718, 
 universally regretted. 
 
 His grandson participating in the rebellion of 1745, 
 occasioned the ruin of his family, and to a large extent 
 destroyed the military strength of the clan. Nevertheless, in 
 1775 we find the Camerons represented by a company in 
 Fraser's Highlanders, and as "Lochiel's men" combatting 
 with distinction in America, on the side of that Government 
 which a ferw years earlier they had conspired to overturn. 
 
 In addition to the Seventy-ninth Eegiment, now the only 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 385 
 
 Ihing rcprescntativo of tho clan in the British army, the 
 Camerous contributocl, in 171)9, a corps of fcnciblo militia — 
 the "Lochaber" Regiment. 
 
 The menacing aspect of affairs abroad, tlie political 
 wrongs perpetrated l)y revolutionary France, and the dark 
 cloud which threatened to envelope our own laud in 1704, 
 occasioned the augmentation of our army; and, in conse(|uence, 
 the Seventy-eighth (.Mackenzie), Seventy-ninth (Cameron), 
 Ninety-second (Gordon), and Ninety-thir«l (Sutherland) High- 
 landers sprung into being about this period. 
 
 Immeiliately upon the completion of the Seventy-ninth it 
 was hurried into action, and on the plains of Flanders made 
 its dchiU in arms. It was with the army of the Duke of York 
 which vainly strove to arrest the victorious career of tho 
 armies of republican France, led by these famous soldiers, 
 Piehegru, ^loreau, Jourdan, and Vandamme. 
 
 Returning home in 1705, it was thence removed to the 
 West Indies, and for two years was stational in Martinique. 
 After contributing variously to recniit other corps, especially 
 the Forty -second Royal Highlanders, it returned home a mere 
 skeleton, aroun<l which, na a nucelus, the otiicers succeeded, 
 after many an<l persevering efforts, in raising a new Highland 
 corps, un<ler the old designation. 
 
 On attaining a strength of 780 men, chiefly by the zealous 
 
 exertions of its original colonel, Allan Cameron of Errach, it 
 
 was ordercil on foreign service, and so, in 1799, joine<l the 
 
 expe<lition de#<tined to act against the enemy in Hollaml. 
 
 There, placed in the fourth brigade under Major-Geueral after- 
 
 2y 
 
386 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 wards Sir John Moore, it was associated with the second bat- 
 talion of the First Royals, the Twenty-fifth King's Own Bor- 
 derers, the Forty-ninth Foot, and the Ninety-second Gordon 
 Highlanders. In all the actions which marked this brief and 
 ineffectual campaign, the Seventy-ninth was worthily distin- 
 guished, and won the memorial thereof now borne upon its 
 colours — " Egmont-op-Zee." 
 
 In the Egyptian expedition of 1800, under Sir Ealph 
 Abercromby, the Seventy-ninth was brigaded with the Second 
 or Queen's and the Fiftieth Regiments, commanded by the Earl 
 of Cavan. 
 
 Having helped to the deliverance of Egypt from the 
 yoke of France, it returned to England in 1801. Whilst at 
 home it was increased by a second battalion raised in 1804, 
 when the vindictive wrath of Napoleon, roused into madness 
 by the defeat of his armies by the British in Egypt, had 
 gathered a countless host around Boulogne, whence, looking 
 across, he longed but once to set foot upon our shores, and 
 then he hoped to blot us out from the map as a nation, and 
 so satisfy the bitter hatred of years. Whilst the tempest of 
 human passion stood arrayed in portentous awfulness on the 
 other side of the Channel, the Seventy-ninth was with our 
 troops who anxiously waited the result. Suddenly the spirit 
 of the imperial dream was changed, and the armed multitude, 
 melting away, reappeared with a real terror upon the devoted 
 plains of Germany. 
 
 Allied with Napoleon, the Danes, in 1807, once more were 
 pressed into a quarrel with Britain. A British armament 
 
TUE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 387 
 
 appeared upon the coasts of Denmark. Our army, under 
 Lieuteiiant-General Lord Catlu-art, consisting of the first bat- 
 talions of the 2d (CoKlstream) and 3d (Scots Fusileei-s) Foot 
 Guards; first battalions of the 4th, 7th, 8th, 2:3d, 28th, 32d, 
 43d, 50th, 52d (second battalion), 79th (Cameron), 82d, 92d 
 (Gordon), and five companies of the first and second battalions 
 of the 95th (Rifles), and several regiments of the King's Ger- 
 man Legion, comprising a total of 28,000, of which 17,000 
 were British, advanced upon Copenhagen, overcame all oppo- 
 sition, occupied the capital, arrested the enemy's fleet, and hav- 
 ing achieved this almost bloodless victory, baflled the deep-laid 
 schemes of Napoleon, chai'ged with our destruction. 
 
CIIAPTEE XL. 
 
 • 
 
 "Though my perishing ranks should be strew'd in their gore, 
 Like ocean -weeds heaped on ;i surf -beaten shore, 
 Lochiel, untainted by flight or by chains. 
 While the kiudhng of life in his bosom remains. 
 Shall victor exult, or in death be laid low, 
 With his back to the field, and his feet to the foe ! 
 And, leaving in battle no blot on liis name. 
 Look proudly to heaven from the deatli-bed of fame." 
 
 PENINSULA — WATERLOO — CRIMEA — INDIA — 1808-1862. 
 
 In 1808 tlie Seventy-ninth was included in the army of Sir 
 John Moore, which endeavoured to aid the Spaniards and 
 Portuguese to rescue their country from the crusliing tyranny 
 of France. But what could 25,000 men, however brave, do 
 against 300,000 veterans, concentrated under the command of 
 experienced officers, and now advanced to destroy the daring 
 handful of British who had presumed to penetrate the heart 
 of the Peninsula^ We have already described the masterly 
 manoeuvres which extricated our army from a position of great 
 peril when in presence of so powerful a foe, and at the battle 
 of Corunna gloriously arrested the further pursuit of the 
 French. The Cameron Highlanders were brio-aded with the 
 Thirty-sixth and Eighty-second regiments, under Brigadier- 
 General Fane, but not actively engaged. 
 
 On the return of the regiment to England, it was shortly 
 ordered to Holland, there to be eno;ao;ed in a new effort for 
 the deliverance of that country. Landed with the army of the 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 389 
 
 Earl of Chatham in ^\'alchc^cu, it wad soon found impractic- 
 able to force the position of the French, wlio, nearer their own 
 resources than in Spain, were not so easily overcome. Fever 
 breaking out among the troops, so thinned the ranks, that of 
 near 40,000 etlectives, scarce a half returned fit for duty. 
 
 Long and sorely had our soldiei*s strug<;led to overcome 
 the gigantic tyranny of France, but like the many-headed 
 monster of heathen fiction, no sooner was one head wounded, 
 than a new one appeiired to challenge the attack. So, scarcely 
 had we succeeded in one (piarter ere the foe arose in terrible 
 strength in another. Thus we find our iirmies, sometimes in 
 Flanders, sometimes in the Peninsula, sometimes in Egypt, 
 sometimes in India, and sometimes in America, waging a 
 desperate and incessant war with this Gorgon-headed enemy. 
 
 In 1810 we once more return to Spain, where happily 
 more permanent results were to be achieved. Thither the 
 Seventy-ninth had gone to join the army of Lord Wellington. 
 
 At the battle of Fuentes d'Onor (Fountain of Honour) the 
 conduct of the regiment was beyond all praise. Occupying 
 that village with the Seven ty-fii*st llighlandei-s and Twenty- 
 fourth Foot, the Seventy-ninth Wiis exi)osed to the most furious 
 assaults of strong columns of French. Occiisionally driven out 
 of the village, yet always returning to recover it — which an 
 indomitable perseverance ever accomplished — triumphing over 
 all o}»{)osition, this key of the position was ultimately retaineil. 
 These regiments thus deservedly aopiiretl the largest share of 
 the glor}' flowing from such a victory. 
 
 From the battle of Salamanca it advanced with the army 
 
390 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. ' 
 
 which occupied Madrid. In the subsequent siege of the strong | 
 
 castle of BurfTOS, the valour of the regiment was most con- 
 spicuous, and in the several assaults its losses were very con- 
 siderable. Unfortunately, the approach of a powerful relieving 
 force snatched the anticipated prize from our grasp, arresting 
 the further progress of the siege, and necessitating the retreat 
 of the British towards Portugal. 
 
 Although for the present retiring, the eflfects of these 
 campaigns were very diflferent upon the combatants. The 
 British, elated with hope, incited to perseverance, brought a 
 new and living energy into the field when the rest of the 
 winter had passed away and the operations of the war been 
 resumed in the spring. On the other hand, the French — 
 depressed by the evil tidings of the Grand Army in Eussia; 
 tired, moreover, with incessant yet fruitless fightings; disunited 
 by discontent, privation, and jealousy — when the season once 
 more invited action, found their armies dispirited and disorga- 
 nised. No wonder, then, that the forward march of the British 
 led to a series of victories ever gracing our arms, until, sur- 
 mounting the natm-al barriers of the Pyrenees, our troops 
 descended into the plains of France in the day of that country's 
 humiliation. In the various actions of the "Pyrenees," the 
 Seventy-ninth was not seriously engaged. 
 
 It was present at the passage of the "Nivelle" and the 
 "Nive." On the latter occasion it was specially distinguished 
 for its well-directed fire, which caused great havoc in the 
 dense masses of the enemy which strove to defend the passage. 
 
 At the battle of Toulouse, in the brigade of General 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 391 
 
 Pack, with the Forty-second Royal Highlanrlers and the 
 Ninety-first (Argyllshire) Regiment, the Seventy-ninth Wiis 
 engaged in a desperate attack wliich carried a redoubt strongly 
 situated, and resolutely defended, on the crest of a series of 
 heights on the right of the position. A Fnncli (»lli('(.'r, 
 witnessing the advance of the Highlanders, excLaimed, "My 
 God! how firm these sans culottes are!" Another French 
 ofHcer in convei*sation said of them, "^Vli! these are brave 
 soldiers. I should not like to meet them unless well supported. 
 I put them to the proof on that day, for I led the division of 
 more than 5000 men which attempted to retake the redoubt." 
 A British officer, high in command, thus yields his testimony 
 to the valour of the brigade: "I saw your okl friends the 
 Highlanders in a most perilous position; and had I not known 
 their firmness, I should have trembled for the result." 
 
 On the abdication of Napoleon, peace for a time dispelled 
 the thunder-storm of war, and permitted the return of the 
 regiment to Britain. His escape from Elba again threatened 
 to crush out tlie reviving spirit of liberty beneath the iron lieel 
 of his sanguinary t}Tanny. Happily for Europe and for 
 France, the convulsive effort by which he strove to redeem 
 and avenge the past was utterly defeated by his total discom- 
 fiture at Waterloo, for ever dissipating his dream of conquest, 
 and closing his ambitious career. 
 
 Purjmsing to sever the British from the Pru.ssians, and beat 
 each in detail ere the Austrian and Russian armies could arrive 
 from Germany to resume the war, Napoleon, by one of those 
 rapid marches for which he was so fiunous, suddenly falling 
 
392 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH EEGIMENTS. 
 
 upon and defeating the Prussians at Ligny, turned with the 
 full weight of his power against the British, who were already- 
 engaged in a desperate struggle with the corps of ]\rarshal Ney 
 at Quatre Bras — fitly introducing the grander event of Water- 
 loo. Although impetuously assailed by an immensely superior 
 force, and suffering a loss of more than 300 men, the Seventy- 
 ninth behaved mth the utmost heroism. 
 
 "And wilfl and high the 'Cameron's gathering' rose! 
 The war-note of Lochiel, -which Albyn's hills 
 Have heard — and beard, too, have her Saxon foes: 
 How in the noon of night that pibroch thrills, 
 Savage and shrill ! But with the breath wliicJi fills 
 Their mountain jjipe, so fill the mountaineers 
 With the fierce native daring which instils 
 The stirring memory of a thousand years; 
 And Evan's, Donald's fame rings in each clansman's ears!" 
 
 In the subsequent battle of Waterloo, it was included in 
 the fifth division under Sir Thomas Picton, and in the fifth 
 brigade of the army under Sir James Kempt. Here it was 
 associated ^ith the Twenty-eighth, Thirty-second, and Ninety- 
 fifth (Rifles) regiments, and posted in defence of a hedge which 
 the Belgian troops had abandoned early in the fight. Against 
 this position three powerful columns of the enemy advanced. 
 "At this moment General Picton was killed, and General Kempt 
 severely wounded; but tlie latter never left the field. Like his 
 old commander, Sir Ealph Abercromby, he allowed no personal 
 consideration to interfere with, his duty; and although unable 
 to sit on horseback from the severity of the wound, he would 
 not allow himself to be carried away from his soldiers, whose 
 situation, pressed by a brave and powerful enemy, required 
 every assistance from his presence and talents. The enemy. 
 
THE SEVENTY-NINTH FOOT. 39^ 
 
 anxious to gain the position behind the hedge, repeated their 
 attempts, but every attempt was repulsed." The honourable 
 conduct of the regiment on this occasion, as a matter of history, 
 has been justly celebrated. 
 
 Occupying France for a while, the Seventy-ninth returned 
 to Britain in 1818, and has long been peacefully employed. 
 
 In 1854, when the aggressions of Kussia called upon the 
 nations "to defend the right," the Seventy-ninth, with the 
 Forty-second Royal Highlanders and the Ninety-third Suther- 
 land Highlanders, formed the original Highland Brigade in the 
 army of the Crimea. 
 
 At the battle of the Alma, co-operating with the Guards, 
 this brigade, under Sir Colin Campbell, won a great renown. 
 It was selected, with the other Highland regiments, under Sir 
 Colin Campbell, to renew the attack upon the Redan. Fortu- 
 nately, the retirement of the garrison to the other side of the 
 harbour afforded a bloodless victory. The regiment was 
 engaged in the successful expedition against Kertch. 
 
 Released by the conclusion of peace from the toils of war 
 
 on the distant plains of the Crimea, the regiment returned 
 
 home. Shortly thereafter, the outbreak of the Indian mutiny 
 
 required its presence in that far-off province of our empire. 
 
 Accordingly, embarked, it arrived there in 1858, and joined 
 
 the army marching upon Lucknow. On the suppression of 
 
 the revolt, it was retained in India; and we doubt not the 
 
 presence of such staunch defenders of the British constitution 
 
 will command peace — the military fire of "auld langsyue" still 
 
 burning in the bosom of the Cameron. 
 
 2z 
 
THE NINETY- SECOND FOOT; 
 
 OR, 
 
 GORDON HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XLL 
 
 The foe weel kenn'd the tartan front, 
 Which never shunn'd the battle's brunt — 
 The chieftain of our Highland men, 
 That led them on to vict'ry then, 
 
 As aye he cried, " For Scotland." 
 
 THE GORDON — CORSICA HOLLAND EGYPT — COPENHAGEN 
 
 SWEDEN — CORUNNA — 1794-1809. 
 
 The Duke of Gordon, ratlier as the proprietor of a vast domain 
 than the chief of a clan, enjoyed an almost kingly power in the 
 Highlands. Amongst his tenants were the Camerons of 
 Lochiel and the Macphersons of Clunie, whilst his few 
 immediate retainers were chiefly horsemen — almost the only 
 cavalry known in Highland warfare. The Gordons have ever 
 been distinguished for devotion to their king and country. 
 The friends of the Bruce, they were ranged on the side of 
 liberty at Bannockburn. Adherents of the Stuarts, we cannot 
 but regret the mistaken zeal which so nigh involved in a like 
 ruin so estimable a family. Happily, a better knowledge of 
 the failings of the dethroned dynasty showed the worthlessness 
 of the object of their attachment, and so estranged tliem from 
 their cause, that, in 1745, the representative of the Gordons 
 
DUKE OF RICHMOND. 
 THE NINETY-SECOND. OR "CORDON HIGHLANDERS. 
 
i 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. aQri 
 
 was fomul combatiug on the side of the Government, whilst 
 the chins upon their estates followed Lochiel and other chief- 
 tains, and fought on behalf of Prince Charles. 
 
 Fortunately, Government succeeded in enlisting the loyal 
 services of this powerful family; and by its influence regiments 
 of Highlanders were succes.sively raised in 1759, 1779, and 
 1793 (fencible), all of which have long ago been disbanded, or, 
 more properly, are now merged and represented in the subject 
 of our present sketch, the Ninety-second, raised in 1 794. The 
 eflbrts of the Marquis of Huntly, a captain in the Scots Fusilier 
 Guards, helped by the Duchess of Gordon, were most active 
 and successful in the business of recruiting. The ]VIarquis 
 was rewarded with the Lieutenant-Colonelcy of the regiment, 
 embodied at Aberdeen in June, 1794, and originally numbered 
 the 100th Regiment, afterwards the Ninety-second. 
 
 In September the regiment was embarked for Gibraltar, 
 where it remained in garrison, completing its drill, until the 
 following year, when it was removed to Corsica. With a 
 detachment, in occupation of the Island of Elba, it remained 
 in Corsica so long as the natives were content with the British 
 rule. When the rising fame of theh* great countryman, 
 Napoleon, excited their admiration, and they desired to be 
 merged in the glory of his "empire," our Government, cou- 
 "vinced of the inutility of maintaining an expensive garrison in 
 the island, and ever opposed to repres.-<ive measures antagonistic 
 to the feelings of the people, wi.sely resolved to leave them to 
 experience the bitterness of imperial tyranny. Accordingly, 
 the Ninety-second was withdrawn to Gibraltar in 1796. 
 
396 HISTORY OP THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 In 1798 the regiment returned to England, and thence 
 proceeded to Ireland, where it was employed in suppressing 
 the miserable attempts at rebellion got up by the disaflfected, 
 and encouraged by France. Although not actively engaged 
 in the field, its good conduct in garrison was very commend- 
 able, occurring at a time when the disorders of the country 
 presented many and powerful temptations. Fortunately, the 
 corps was soon released from the painful duty of appearing in 
 arms against those who should otherwise have been as brothers. 
 
 Under Lieutenant -General Sir Ealph Abercromby, who 
 commanded the expedition of 1799 which proceeded against 
 the French in Holland, the Ninety-second was included in the 
 brigade of Major-General (afterwards Sir John) Moore, and 
 associated with the First Royal Scots (second battalion), the 
 Twenty-fifth King's Own Borderers, the Forty-ninth Foot, and 
 the Seventy-ninth Cameron Highlanders. Landed at Helder, 
 it was engaged in the actions fought around the villages of 
 Crabbendam and Schagen, and commended for its " noble and 
 steady conduct." At the battle of "Egmont-op-Zee," whilst 
 escorting twenty pieces of artillery to the front, the Ninety- 
 second was fiercely assailed by a column of 6000 French. 
 Undaunted, the Highlanders stood the dreadful shock, when 
 bayonet met bayonet, and hundreds, locked in the fatal 
 embrace, fell the sacrifice of their own valour. Thus a horrid 
 rampart of dead and dying humanity lay between the 
 combatants. The carnage was terrible. The Ninety-second 
 alone had to lament a loss of nearly 300, and amongst 
 these its brave colonel, the Marquis of Huntly, and Lieu- 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 397 
 
 tenant-Colonel Erskiue, both woiUKletl. It was the charge 
 of the Ninety-second which began the action, their steady, 
 persevering gallantry which snstained it, and their nnsurpassed 
 valour which completeil the victory. Major-General Moore, 
 wounded in the conflict, Wius carried ofl* the field by two 
 soldiers of the Ninety-second. *' \\'e can do no more than 
 take him to the doctor," said they; "we must join the lads, 
 for every man is wanted." Grateful for this service, ]\Iajor- 
 General Moore otVered to reward the soldiers who thus 
 probably saved his life, but no claimant appeared; either the 
 superstition of the Highlander, dreading the curse which the 
 acceptance of such "blood money" was supposed to entail, or 
 his native pride, would not allow the acceptance of the gift, or 
 else, what is more likely, the men, by a glorious death, were 
 now beyond the rewards of this world. Thus disappointed, 
 Major-General Moore found another means of commemorating 
 this act of generous devotion, in selecting a soldier of the 
 Ninety -second as one of the supporters of his armorial bear- 
 ings. By the convention of Alkmaar, the army abandoned 
 Holland to the French; and therewith the (iordon High- 
 landers returning to England, were stationed at Chelmsford. 
 
 In 1800 the regiment was engaged in a fruitless enterjiriso 
 intended to aid the Koyalists of France by a descent upon the 
 coast of that country. The remainder of the year was spent 
 unaccountably wandering up and down amongst the garrisons 
 of the ^leditcrranean — Gibraltar, Minorca, and ^hUta. 
 
 In the spring of 1801 a detinite purpise was assigned to 
 the regiment, as part of the expedition assembled in Marmoricc 
 
398 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 Bay, destined, under Sir Ralph Abercromby, to deliver Egypt 
 from the usurped dominion of France. Accomplishing a 
 successful landing despite the assaults of a powerful enemy, 
 whose artillery from the heights above swept the bay of 
 Aboukir, the Ninety-second, placed in brigade with the First 
 Royal Scots and the two battalions of the Fifty-fourth Foot, 
 advanced with the army towards Alexandria. On the 13th 
 of March the French were encountered at Mandora, where, 
 forming the advanced guard of the left column, the Gordon 
 Highlanders shared the glory of the action with the Ninetieth 
 Perthshire Volunteers. "Opj)Osed to a tremendous fire, and 
 suffering severely from the French line, they never receded a 
 foot, but maintained the contest alone, until the marines and 
 the rest of the line came to their support." 
 
 The Gordon Hicfhlanders were honoured in beins; selected 
 to furnish a guard for the head-quarters of the Commander- 
 in-Chief. Sadly reduced by the inroads of sickness and the 
 sword, the regiment had been ordered to Aboukir, but the 
 battle of Alexandria occurring ere it had scarce begun the 
 march, arrested and recalled it to its place in line. The cam- 
 paign was closed by the surrender of Alexandria and the 
 submission of 24,000 veteran troops, who, under General 
 Menou, yet remained to France of the "Army of Egypt." 
 
 On the 15th of October, the Gordon Highlanders, embark- 
 ing from Alexandria, returned home, calling on the passage at 
 Malta, and finally arriving at Cork in 1802. The corps 
 remained in the United Kingdom for the five following years, 
 peacefully garrisoning various towns, during which period it 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 399 
 
 was increased by the acUlitioii of a secouil battalion, raised 
 in 1803, but disbanded in 1813. 
 
 In 1807 the first battalion wa.s included with the Forty- 
 third, Fifty-secoud, and Ninety-fifth regiments, in the reserve 
 brigade of the British army of Lord Cathcart, which, invading 
 Denmark a second time, occasioned the capitulation of Copen- 
 hagen, and arrested the Danish fleet. Keturning from this 
 almost bloodless victory, a body of 600 men of the battahon 
 was shipwrecked in the "Neptunis," but rescued after enduring 
 many and sore privations. 
 
 During the following year* the Ninety -second was employed, 
 under Lieutenant-General Sir John jMoore, in a vain expedition 
 to Sweden. Our aid being rejected, the army returned home. 
 
 It afterwards proceeded to the Teninsula, where it arrived 
 in time to learn that the Convention of Cintra had delivered 
 Portugal for the present from the thraldom of Marshal Junot, 
 the Emperor's Lieutenant. Placed in the division of Lieut.- 
 General Sir John Hope, the Gordon Highlanders advanced 
 therewith into Spain, where a junction was formed with the army 
 of Sir John Moore. It endured with firnmess all the hardships 
 of a disastrous yet successful retreat, crowning its perseverance 
 by its gallantry at the battle of Conmna, where it was called 
 to regret the loss of a gallant officer, Lieut.-Colonel Napier, 
 and, further, to mourn over the fall of the hero of the cam- 
 paign, Lieut.-Gencral Sir John Moore, who terminated a life 
 of honour and a career of glory on that memorable battle-field. 
 
 This victor}' secured the unmolested embarkation of the 
 array, which accordingly sailed for England. 
 
CHAPTER XLII. 
 
 "And, oh! loved warriors of the minstrel's land! 
 Yonder your bonnets nod, your tartans wave ! 
 The rugged form may mark the mountain band, 
 And harsher features, and a mien more grave. 
 But ne'er in battle throbbed a heart so brave, 
 
 As that which beats beneath the Scottish plaid ; 
 And when the pibroch bids the battle rave. 
 And level for the charge your arms are laid, 
 Where hves the desperate foe that for such onset staid ? " 
 
 WALCHEREN — PENINSULA — WATERLOO — 1809-1862. 
 
 In 180.9 the Ninety-second was engaged under the Earl of 
 Chatham in the unfortunate expedition to Walcheren, wherein 
 a splendid army in a few weeks was discomfited by the poisoned 
 breath of the pestilence. Of 1000 men comprised in the Gordon 
 Highlanders, only 300 returned effective to England. 
 
 In 1810 the regiment embarked for the Peninsula, and 
 joined the army of Viscount Wellington in the lines of Torres 
 Vedras. Brigaded with the Fiftieth and Seventy-first regi- 
 ments, under Major-Gen eral Howard, it advanced with the army 
 in pursuit of the French under Marshal Messena, shared the 
 glories of "Fuentes d'Onor," accomplishing the fall of Almeida. 
 
 The brigade was afterwards detached as part of the second 
 division of the army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Hill, 
 which covered the operations of the grand army under Well- 
 ington against the fortresses of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. 
 This division, pursuing the enemy towards INIerida, overtook 
 and surprised the bronzed veterans of the fifth French corps. 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 401 
 
 iincler General Gerard, when about to decamp from Arroyo 
 del Moliuos. The honour of this feat of arms is mainly due 
 to the Seventy-first and Ninety-second Highlandei-s, who, 
 during the raging of a fearful tempest, and screened by a thick 
 mist, charjred into the villafro. In the confusion the loss of 
 the enemy was immense; of 3000 only 600 escaped to tell 
 the tale of the catastrophe. It is said the enemy was fii-st 
 made aware of his danger by the scream of the bagpipes as 
 they appropriately played — 
 
 "Iley, Johnnie Cope, arc yc waukin' yet?" 
 
 Driven out at the point of the bayonet, the French were 
 utterly broken and dispersed. Few events reflect gi-eater 
 credit upon the Gordon Highlanders than this exploit. 
 
 It was the business of Lieut. -Gen. Hill so to eni^af^e the 
 attention of ^larshal Soult, that he should be prevented assist- 
 ing the army of Marshal ]\Iarmont, opposed to Wellington. 
 By the capture of Forts Napoleon and Ragusa at "Almaraz," 
 gallantly accomplished by the brigade, the separation of the 
 two Marshals Wiis eflected, and each forced to follow his owti 
 line of retreat, at every step widening the breach. 
 
 The battle of Salamanca having cleared the way, the 
 British advanced to Madrid; and, whilst Wellington pro- 
 ceeded against Burgos, I^ord Hill occupied the capital. The 
 concentration of the French armies for the relief of Burgos 
 occasioned the abandonment of that enterprise, and, for the 
 last time, com[>elled our army to retire towards Portugal, 
 evacuathig Madrid. "From the 27th October to the 20th 
 
 November, we were exposed," says Lieut.-CoL Cameron, " to 
 
 3a 
 
402 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 greater hardships than I thought the human frame could bear. 
 In most inclement weather, with the canopy of heaven for our 
 covering, wet, cold, and hungry, we were generally marching 
 day and night. Fifteen poor fellows of the Ninety-second fell 
 down, and were lost. My heart bled for them." 
 
 On reaching Alba de Tormes, an old Roman town, defended 
 by a ruined wall, it was deemed necessary to make a stand 
 against the pursuing enemy, who, urged forward by the vigor- 
 ous Soult, sorely pressed our army. Here the brigade, entrusted 
 with the honourable yet difficult duty of maintaining the rear 
 guard, behaved with extraordinary gallantry. The scene is 
 thus described by Lieut.-Col. Cameron : — " We did what we 
 could to improve our situation during the short time left us. 
 I threw an old door across the place where the gate once had 
 been, and barricaded it with sticks and stones. . . . AYe 
 had not a single piece of ordnance. Just as the clock of Alba 
 struck two, the French columns moved to the attack, and, 
 from that time until night, we sustained a hurricane of shot 
 and shell from twenty pieces of cannon! Their riflemen 
 threw themselves into ditches and ravines round the walls, 
 but their masses never forsook the protection of their artillery, 
 which was most dastardly for Soult, with ten thousand men!" 
 
 " It is said, that on the 8th, a French officer of high rank 
 approached so close to the position of the Ninety-second that 
 several muskets were levelled at him, when Cameron, disdain- 
 ing to take such an advantage, promptly forbade the firing 
 of a shot. It was Soult who was thus saved." 
 
 Thus arrested, the French did not again disturb the 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 40:1 
 
 retreat. Both armies going iuto winter quarters, the cam- 
 paign of 1812 terminated. 
 
 With the first ilawn of spring Wellington was again on 
 the move. Having re-organised his army, and been strength- 
 ened by considerable reinforcements from home, w ith 78,000 
 excellent troops, he proceedetl to drive the enemy before him. 
 The French, on the other hand, discouraged by evil news 
 from Russia, and denied that assistance they needed, because 
 of the more urgent necessities of the Grand Army, could not 
 be expected to act with the same energy as heretofore, yet 
 did they exceed these anticipations. 
 
 At "Vittoria" King Joseph and Afarslial Jourdan having 
 gathereil together their utmost disposable force, ventured to 
 try the fate of battle, hoping to check the progress of the 
 British, or at least secure a safe retreat, laden, ivs they were, 
 with the spoil of the Peninsula. But the battle of Vittoria 
 fatally disaj)pointed them, and rescued the treasures of Spain 
 from their avaricious grasp. In this battle, the Ninety-second 
 Highlanders, having been ordered to seize the heights whereon 
 the village of Puebla wiis perched, and hold the position to 
 the last, with persevering valour overcame a determinetl re- 
 sistance, pressed up the sides of the mountain, entered the 
 village with an impetuous charge, and, after a fierce stniggle, 
 drove the enemy out. 
 
 Having gainetl this great victory, the British now a«ldrcssetl 
 themselves to the Herculean task of forcing a passage through 
 the defiles of the "Pyrenees" into France. Notwithstanding 
 the stupendous eft'orts of Marshal Soult to retrieve the losses 
 
404 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 of Vittoria and defend these natural barriers of his countrj^ 
 the British still pressed "forward." On the 20th July, 1813, 
 whilst the brigade was threading its way through the pass of 
 Maya, it was vigorously attacked by a corps of 15,000 French, 
 who, forcing back that "fierce and formidable old regiment, 
 the Fiftieth," upon the Seventy-first and Ninety-second High- 
 landers, very nearly drove them out of the pass. These, 
 however, for ten hours stood the shock of this formidable 
 assault. "So dreadful was the slaughter, especially of the 
 Ninety-second, that it is said the advancing enemy was 
 actually stopped by the heaped mass of dead and dying. 
 Never did soldiers fight better — seldom so well. The stern 
 valour of the Ninety-second would have graced Thermop3dae." 
 Of 750 Gordon Highlanders who were engaged, only 400 sur- 
 vived it scatheless, but these returned in the truest sense 
 "conquering heroes," having, when every cartridge was ex- 
 pended, and in presence of succour, decided the victory as 
 their own by a desperate charge. Throughout the many con- 
 flicts which it needed to clear a passage through the Pyrenees, 
 and thereafter drive so terrible a foe successively across the 
 "Nivelle" and the "Nive," the Ninety-second always displayed 
 the same desperate resolution and valour. 
 
 At the sanguinary action of St Pierre, which raged ^^ith 
 exceeding fury for three hours, cumbering a little space of one 
 mile with more than 5000 dead and dying, the Ninety-second 
 impetuously charged and destroyed two regiments of the 
 enemy. Pressing onwards, the Highlanders were arrested by 
 a fearful storm of artillery, and forced to retreat upon their 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 405 
 
 comrades of the Seventy-first; who likewise yielding to the 
 iron tempest, both found shelter and rallied behind their 
 brethren iu brigade of the Fiftieth. "Then its gallant 
 colonel (Cameron) onco more led it down the road, with 
 colours flying and music playing, resolved to give the shock 
 to whatever stood in the way. A small force was the Ninety- 
 second compared with the heavy mass in its front, but that 
 mass faced about and retired across the valley. How gloriously 
 did that regiment come forth again to charge, with their colours 
 flying and their national music playing as if going to a review! 
 This was to understand war. The man who iii that moment, 
 and immediately after a repulse, thought of such military 
 pomp, was by nature a soldier." 
 
 Excepting at the battle of Toulouse, the Ninety -second was 
 daily engaged with the enemy, and always with equal credit. 
 
 The abdication and exile of Napoleon spread the calm of 
 peace over the face of Europe. Alas ! that it should have been 
 but as some sweet vision of the night, doomed to be dlssipateil 
 by the dawn of the morrow, when the sterner realities of life, 
 its toils and its wai-s, anew presentt^l themselves. The night 
 which had shrouded the destiny of imperial France was suc- 
 ceeded by a new day happily; but, as a brief winter's day, when 
 for a moment a glimpse of sunshine shone upon the spirit of 
 the old empire, as it seemed to revive beneath the influence of 
 the great Magician, who was wont to conjure up kingdoms 
 and dynasties by the mere fiat of his will. Soon we shall 
 find the daynlream of ambition eclipse«l in a darker night. 
 Already, we can almost read the mysterious writing, propheti- 
 
406 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 cally pointing to AVaterloo, as more surely sealing the fate 
 of imperial France. 
 
 In 1815 the rude blast of war once more summoned the 
 Ninety-second to the field, as the gathering hosts of France 
 and the Allies accepted the dread arbitration of war on the 
 chivalric field of Flanders. 
 
 In this campaign the Ninety-second was brigaded with the 
 First Eoyal Scots, the Forty-second Royal Highlanders, and 
 the Forty-fourth Foot, under Major-General Sir Denis Pack, 
 and placed in the famous fifth division of Lieut.-General Sir T. 
 Picton. The same tide of imperial power, which rose upon 
 the Prussians at Ligny, rolled along towards Quatre Bras, 
 and dashed its stormy billows in foaming wrath upon the 
 living rocks of British valour there. As the Gordon High- 
 landers encountered the furious onset of the corps of Marshal 
 Ney, Wellington himself was in their midst, and beheld their 
 splendid valour. Concealed in a ditch by the road-side, they 
 waited the charge of the French cavalry, as it ventured to 
 sweep past them in pursuit of the Bruns wickers. Here, 
 however, the pursuit was stayed by a fatal volley from the 
 Highlanders. At length the Duke gave the word, as he 
 observed the enemy pushing along the Charleroi Road, " Now, 
 Cameron," said he, " now is your time ; you must charge these 
 fellows, and take care of that road." Soon the massive 
 columns of the foe were broken and hurled back in confusion, 
 as the Ninety-second emerged from the awful conflict a bleed- 
 ing yet victorious remnant, having lost its brave commander, 
 Lieut.-Colonel Cameron, and nearly 300 comrades. Colonel 
 
i*^ 
 
 FRENCH REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 
 
THE NINETY-SECOND FOOT. 407 
 
 Cameron was deeply lamented by the regiment, and the whole 
 army. Temporarily buried in the vieiuity of the field of 
 his latest glory, his remains were afterwards removed, by his 
 family, to the churchyard of Kilmallie, where his sacred dust 
 now reposes beside the chieftains of Lochiel. No funeral in the 
 Highlands was ever so honoured — the great, the noble, the 
 brave, and upwards of 3000 Highlanders were there to pay 
 the last tribute of respect to the beloved soldier, now no more. 
 
 But the great event of these " hundred days " was at hand, 
 as the 18th of June dawned upon the plains of Waterloo. 
 
 It was late in the day ere the Gordon Highlanders were 
 brought into action to recover the farm-house of La Haye 
 Sainte, lost by the Belgians, and which the First Royal Scots 
 and Forty-fourth regiments had failed to regain, from a column 
 of 3000 French At this critical moment Major-General Sir 
 Denis Pack said, "Ninety-second, you must charge, for all 
 the troops to your right and left have given way." Although 
 mustering scarce 300 men, with characteristic dauntlessness, 
 the Highlanders rusheil impetuously to the attack, and in 
 another moment seemed lost amid the dark masses of the 
 foe. As if moved to help their countrymen, the Scots 
 Greys came to their aid, or rather to witness and complete 
 the victory the Highlanders had already won. Together, 
 shouting " Scotland for ever," these splendid corps renewed 
 the assault, which utterly ruineil the column of the enemy, 
 the survivors being only too glad to seek refuge in flight. 
 Sir Denis Pack having witnesse<l this magnificent charge 
 and its glorious eflects, commending the Ninety-second, said, 
 
408 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 "You have saved tlie clay, Highlanders." Meanwhile, behold- 
 ing with unfeigned regret the discomfiture of his troops, the 
 Emperor, at the same time, felt constrained to admire the 
 valour of the Highlanders, which had so signally triumphed, 
 exclaiming, " the brave Scots." 
 
 And on the plains of "Waterloo 
 The world confess'd the hravest feio 
 
 Were kilted men frae Scotland. 
 
 Pursuing the enemy, the allies entered Paris in triumph, 
 and thence, on the surrender of Napoleon, dictated peace. 
 
 Eeturning to England, the regiment was employed in 
 various home garrisons, until the year 1819, when it was 
 removed to the West Indies. During its sojourn there it was 
 almost destroyed by the dreadful ravages of fever among its 
 soldiers, and returned to England a mere skeleton in 1827. 
 In 1834 it was removed to Gibraltar, and thence, in 1836, to 
 Malta. Whilst stationed at Malta, it was reviewed by Prince 
 Maximilian of Bavaria, and further honoured in furnish- 
 ing a Guard to Her Majesty the Queen Dowager whilst resi- 
 dent in the island. In 1841 it was removed to the West 
 Indies, and two years later returned home. In 1851 it pro- 
 ceeded to Corfu. Eemoved to Gibraltar in 1853, it embarked 
 thence to the Crimea, arriving a few days after the fall of 
 Sebastopol. Eeturning to Gibraltar in 1856, in 1858 it was 
 despatched, via overland route, to Bombay. In the suppres- 
 sion of the Indian mutiny it was engaged at Eajghpur, Mon- 
 growlie, and Sindwah. It still remains in India. 
 

 ^_^ 
 
 
 
 
 V -i 
 
THE NINETY-THIRD FOOT; 
 
 OR, 
 
 SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XLI I I. 
 
 "Trust in the Ix>nl, for over triiist, 
 And Wnish all your fours, 
 Strength in the Lonl Jehovah i«, 
 Eternal as 1 1 is years." 
 
 CAPE OF GOOD HOPE — NEW ORLEANS — CRIMEA — INDIAN 
 MUTINY — l.SUt-l.SG2. 
 
 General Stuart writes of this most respectable corps: — 
 " None of the Highland corps is superior to the Ninety- 
 third Regiment. I do not make comparisons in point of 
 bravery, for, if properly commanded, they are all brave; but 
 it is in those well-regulatod habits, of which so much has been 
 already said, that the Sutherland Highlanders have for 
 twenty years preserved an unvaried line of conduct. The 
 light infantry company of this corps has beeti nineteen years 
 without having a man punished." 
 
 Unfortunately, it has not been so highly favoured iis many 
 of its predecessors in ha\'ing the same rare opportunities for 
 displaying in the field the sterner qualities of the soldier. 
 
 Nevertheless, in the few enterprises in which it has Ikjcu 
 
 3 b 
 
410 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS, 
 
 engaged, it has always shown itself to be equally meritorious, 
 possessing the same heroic valour which has so signally glorified 
 the Highland regiments in every corner of the world. 
 
 It was raised in the year 1800, on behalf of the ancient 
 and honourable family of Sutherland, by Major -General 
 William Wemyss of Wemyss. Of its original members, 460 
 were Sutherland men. It still retains its Hiofhlaud character, 
 perhaps more so than any other corps, and like many of them, 
 the Channel Islands witnessed its maiden service. 
 
 When the Peace of Amiens seemed likely to continue its 
 blessings to the country, and supersede the necessity of an 
 extensive military establishment, our Government proposed to 
 reduce the strength of the army, and the Sutherland High- 
 landers were accordingly ordered home to Scotland in 1802 
 for the purpose of disbandment. Ere this could be accom- 
 plished, symptoms of unquiet became too painfully evident in 
 the political horizon of Europe, which fortunately occasioned 
 the retention of this excellent remment intact amono; the 
 stalwart defenders of our land at a moment of peril such as 
 never before had threatened our independence as a nation. 
 
 As the danger for the present somewhat subsided, the 
 Ninety-third, in 1805, was included in the expedition which, 
 under Major-General Sir David Baird, proceeded against the 
 Dutch colony of the Cape of Good Hope. With the Seventy- 
 first and Seventy-second regiments it formed the Highland 
 brigade of Brigadier - General Ferguson, which landed in 
 Lespard Bay. On this occasion, thirty-five of the Sutherland 
 Highlanders were drowned by the upsetting of a boat in the 
 
THE NINETY-THIRD FOOT. 41 1 
 
 ^5urf. The only opjKwition of auy coiwetiuencc nia<le l>y the 
 Dutch Goveruor, Lieuteuaiit-General Juussciis, was encoautere<l 
 at Bhiw Berg, or Blue Mountains, where the irresistible charge 
 of the ili'j;hlanil Brii^raile decidetl the fortune of the battle in 
 our favour. After this experience of British valour, the Gover- 
 uor relinquished the contest, and surrendered the colony. 
 
 Retained in the garrison, "being anxioiw to enjoy the 
 advantages of religious instruction agreeably to the tenets of 
 their national church, the men of the Ninety-third Kcgiment 
 formed themselves into a congregation, appointed elders of 
 their own number, engaged and paid a stipend (collecteil 
 from the soldiei-s) to a clergyman of the Church of Scot- 
 land, and had Divine service performed agreeably to the 
 ritual of the Established Church." Consistent with this 
 excellent conduct, so gratifying to every thinking man who 
 claims a patriotic interest in the soldiers of his country, no 
 matter what be his creed, we quote a further illustration of the 
 godly character of these true soldiers. On their return from 
 the Cape of Ciood Hope, when "discmbarke«l at Plymouth in 
 August, 1814, the inhabitants were both surprised and grati- 
 fied. On such occasions it had been no uncommon thing 
 for soldiers to spend in taverns and gin-shops the money 
 they had savctl. In the present case, the soldiers of Suther- 
 land were seen in book-sel^prs' shops, supplying themselves 
 with Jiibles, and such books and trm'ts jis they recpiireil." 
 Mindful of the wants of the "ohl folks at home," "during 
 the short perio<l that the regiment was quartered in Plymouth, 
 upwards of £500 were lodged in one banking-house, to be 
 
412 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 remitted to Sutherland, exclusive of many sums sent home 
 through the post-office and by officers. Some of these sums 
 exceeded £20 from an individual soldier." We may well 
 expect great things from men of such a stamp, no matter what 
 be their profession — truly in them is exhibited "an honourable 
 example, worthy the imitation of all." 
 
 In the eventful times of which we write little rest could 
 be granted to the soldier. Thus, we find the regiment, within 
 a month after its arrival at Plymouth, on its way across the 
 Atlantic, as part of the expedition under Major-General the 
 Hon. Sir Edward Pakenham, destined to operate against the 
 city of New Orleans. Rendevouzed at Jamaica, the expedition 
 proceeded thence on the 27th November, and landed at Cat 
 Island, at the mouth of the Mississippi, on the 13th December, 
 1814. The unfavourable nature of the ground, the immediate 
 presence of an enemy greatly superior in numbers, and having 
 an extended line of formidable entrenchments whither to retreat, 
 rendered the enterprise one of difficulty and danger. Com- 
 manded by able officers having every confidence in their soldiers, 
 perhaps overrated as they overtasked their capabilities, the army 
 fearlessly advanced, surmounting all the obstacles which lay in 
 the way ere they confronted the citadel of the American position. 
 Nothing could surpass the heroism of the Commander-in-Chief, 
 who fell whilst leading the troops to the assault, nor the gal- 
 lantry of the -officers supporting him, of whom Major-Generals 
 Gibb and Keane (afterwards Lord Keane) were wounded — the 
 former fatally. Nothing could excel the dauntless bravery with 
 which the troops followed their leaders through the murderous 
 
THE NINETY-THIRD FOOT. 413 
 
 tempest of musketry ;uid arlillcry, which carried death and 
 destruction iuto their very midst; yet all was unavailing, save 
 the attack of Colonel Thornton upou the right of the enemy — 
 everywhere else these formidable entrenchments proved im- 
 pregnable to so smiUl a force, unaided by an ade<|uate artillery. 
 Thus, after a fearful loss of life and lind), Major-General Sir John 
 Lambert felt constrained to al>andon the attempt and sound 
 the retreat. Weakened by a loss of upwiuds of 1500 killed 
 and woundetl — nearly a third of which was sustained by the 
 Ninety-third, proof of the valour of the corps in this fiery trial 
 — the troops were re-embarked, and bade adieu to the scene of 
 so terrible a disaster. 
 
 On their return home in 181 j, the Sutherland Highlanders 
 were peacefully employed; for the long period of nearly forty 
 years its history presents a comparatively uninteresting re- 
 cord of military stations occupied from time to time, lightened 
 by such glimpses of character as these: — One inspecting otiicer 
 reports the Sutherland Ilighlandei-s to exhibit a "picture of 
 military (.U.scipline and moral rectitude;" another declares them 
 "altogether incomparable;" juid the colonists of the Cape of 
 Good Hope lament their loss as "kind friends and honourable 
 soldiers." Such are the men whose good conduct iu quarters 
 and in peace evince a sterling character which, never fiiiliug in 
 the day of battle, is ciipable of sustaining a great renown. 
 
 Passing down the stream of time, we arrive at the ye;ir 
 1854, and follow the Ninety-third to the Crimcii — 
 
 When dc8]nt power in priilc wnt forth 
 Her ftliivcB from ciupire uf the NorUi, 
 
414 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 To crush in her gigantic fold 
 
 The nation who its own would hold, 
 
 And wad be free like Scotland. 
 
 On leaving Plymouth en route to embark for tlie seat of war, 
 whilst other troops in like circumstances manifested a fearless 
 indifference, striving to kill the thoughts of long farewells by 
 marching to the tune of "Cheer, boys, cheer," in keeping with 
 their past history, the Sutherland Highlanders unostentatiously 
 preferred to chant a hymn of praise to the God of battles. 
 AMiat a lovely and impressive sight! — lovely in the sight of 
 God and man, to behold these brave men going forth as 
 Christian British soldiers beneath the banner of their country, 
 at the same time the banner of the Cross. 
 
 Thence we learn the secret of that Samson strength, deep- 
 rooted in the soul, which fixed them like a living rock of 
 Gaelic valour at Balaklava. They feared not to die, for death 
 to such was welcome, not to satisfy the cravings of a mere 
 earthly heroism, but because in that grim messenger they could 
 recognise the herald beckoning their immortal spirits on high, 
 opening the portals of a bright hereafter to an emancipated soul. 
 
 In our army, which after a variety of anterior and unimpor- 
 tant movements landed in the Crimea in September, 1854, with 
 a view to the humbling of the aggressive might of Russia, the 
 Ninety-third with the Forty-second and Seventy-ninth formed 
 the original Highland Brigade, so justly celebrated. No higher 
 compliment to its worth could have been accorded, than that of 
 being associated in the same division with the brigade of Guards. 
 Advancing towards Sebastopol, the enemy was discovered in a 
 
^^ 
 
 ;:^. 
 
 THE CRIMEA. 
 
THE NTNETY-THIRD FOOT. 415 
 
 very strong position, prcparcnl to dispute the passage of the 
 river Ahna. It needed all the skill of our oflicere, and a 
 desperate exercise of bravery on the part of our troops, to 
 drive the enemy from the position; and the occasion called 
 forth the native energ}' of the Ilighlandci-s, led by their 
 deserveiUy favourite chief, Major-General Sir Colin Campbell. 
 " Balaklava," than which no name Is more expressive of 
 glory dearly won, is commemorative of the triumphs of our 
 cavalry — the irresistible charge of the l^ea^y Brigade, and 
 the "death ride" of the dauntless Light Brigade. But 
 another and, if possible, a grander event im mortal i.scs the 
 scene. The story of '"the thin red line" which the Sutherland 
 Highlandei-s presented when, isolated from the army, alone 
 and in line, they withstood the desperate charge of the 
 Russian Ciivalry, is an exploit which must stir the soul of 
 every Scotsman. The cool intrepidity of Sir Colin Campbell 
 in such trying circumstances, and his unbounded confidence in 
 the mettle of his llighlandei-s, most remarkably glorify the 
 victors in the marvelloiLS residt. 
 
 Like billows (loalictl upon the rock, 
 Unmovc«l, ye met the dreadful Hhock; 
 When horxi'men furioiM clmrgetl your line^ 
 Brave Cunipliell eriiil, "Thow men are mine — 
 "Ye nevdua fear for Scotland." 
 
 The brigade was increasetl to a division by the addition of 
 the Seventy-first and Seventy-second Highlanders, and was 
 chiefly employed in reserve, covering Balaklava. In the final 
 bombardment of Sebastopol, the Highland regiments were 
 
416 HISTORY OF THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS. 
 
 selected to make the second assault upon the Redan, but in 
 the meantime the place was abandoned by the enemy. The 
 subsequent fall of Sebastopol brought about peace, when the 
 Ninety-third, released from the stern duties of war, returned 
 home laden with many honours. 
 
 The awful tragedy of the Indian mutiny, which cast its 
 dismal shadow over the history of the year 1857, once more 
 called forth the services of the Ninety-third. It followed its 
 favourite leader, Sir Colin Campbell, to the plains of India, 
 visiting with a terrible vengeance the murdering villains, the 
 traitors, and the rebels, as with the army it advanced to the 
 relief of the beleaguered garrison of Lucknow, yet struggling 
 for very life. In every instance where the foe was to be 
 encountered, the Sutherland Highlanders were most conspicu- 
 ous for their gallantry. Ha^dng finally captured Lucknow, 
 the regiment was engaged in several harassing conflicts with 
 the enemy, sharing in some of these, such as BareiUy, with the 
 Ninety-second. Its last action was fought in December, 1858, 
 near Biswah. It still remains in India, and is now stationed 
 at Peshawar. 
 
 Thus we close our History of the Scottish Regiments with 
 this latest illustration of Highland valour, and we think our 
 readers ^^11 admit, however faulty the writer, the theme at 
 least is worthy of their best attention, nay, is entitled to their 
 truest sympathy. 
 
 GLASGOW : FEINTED BY THOMAS MUBKAY AND SON. 
 

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