In May 1802 the, regiment
marched to Ash-ford, where they were reviewed by George III., who expressed
himself satisfied with its appearance; but although the men had a martial
air, they had a diminutive look, and were by no means equal to their
predecessors, either in bodily appearance or in complexion.
Shortly after this review the
regiment was ordered to Edinburgh. During their march to the north the men
were everywhere received with kindness; and, on approaching the northern
metropolis, thousands of its inhabitants met them at a distance from the
city, and, welcoming them with acclamations, accompanied them to the castle.
They remained in their new quarters, giving way too freely to the
temptations to which they were exposed, by the hospitality of the
inhabitants, till the spring of 1803, when, in consequence of the
interruption of peace, they were embarked at Leith for the camp then forming
at Weeley, in Essex. The regiment at this time did not exceed 400 men, in
consequence chiefly of the discharge of 475 men the preceding year. While in
Edinburgh (December 1,1803) new colours, bearing the distinctions granted
for its services in Egypt, were formally presented to the regiment.
As a means at once of
providing for the internal defence of the kingdom, and recruiting the
regular army, an act was passed to raise a body of men by ballot, to be
called "The Army of Reserve." Their services were to be confined
to Great Britain and Ireland, with liberty to volunteer into the regular
army, on a certain bounty. In the first instance, the men thus raised in
Scotland were formed into second battalions to regiments of the line. The
quota raised in the counties of Perth, Elgin, Nairn, Cromarty, Ross,
Sutherland, Caithness, Argyle, and Bute, which was to form the second
battalion of the 42d, amounted to 1343 men. These embarked in November at
Fort George, to join the first battalion in Weeley barracks, about which
time upwards of 500 had volunteered into the regular army. In April of this
year Captain David Stewart, Garth, was appointed major, and Lieutenants
Robert Henry Dick and Charles M’Lean, captains to the second battalion of
the 78th regiment. In September following, Colonel Dickson was appointed
brigadier-general; and Lieutenant-Colonels James Stewart and Alexander
Stewart having retired, they were succeeded by Lieutenant-Colonels Stirling
and Lord Blantyre. Captains M’Quarrie and James Grant became majors;
Lieutenants Stewart Campbell, Donald Williamson, John M’Diarmid, John
Dick, and James Walker, captains; and Captain Lord Saltoun was promoted to
the Foot Guards.
In consequence of the removal
of a part of the garrison of Gibraltar, the first battalion of the 42d, and
the second battalion of the 78th. or Seaforth Highlanders, were marched to
Plymouth, where they embarked early in October for Gibraltar, which they
reached in November. Nothing worthy of notice occurred during their stay in
Gibraltar. Since their former visit, the moral habits of the 42d had
improved, and they did not fall into those excesses in drinking in which
they had previously indulged. The mortality consequently was not so great as
before—31 only out of 850 men having died during the three years they
remained at this station.
In 1806 Sir Hector Munro, the
colonel of the regiment, died and was succeeded by Major-General the Marquis
of Huntly, afterwards Duke of Gordon.
After the battle of Yimiera,
which was fought on the 21st of August 1808, the British army was joined by
the 42d from Gibraltar, then 624 men strong, and by the Gordon and Cameron
Highlanders from England. Major-General Sir Arthur Wellesley, who had gained
the battle, was superseded the same day by two senior generals, Sir Harry
Burrard and Sir John Moore, who were, strange to tell, again superseded by
General Sir flew Dalrymple the following morning. Generals Burrard and
Dalrymple having been recalled in consequence of the convention of Cintra,
the command of the army devolved on Sir John Moore, who, on the 6th of
October, received an order to march into Spain. Having made no previous
preparations for marching, the advance of the army from Lisbon was retarded;
and as he could obtain little assistance from the Portuguese Government, and
no correct information of the state of the country, or of the proper route
he ought to take, he was obliged to act almost entirely upon conjecture.
Conceiving it impossible to convey artillery by the road through the
mountains, he resolved to divide his army, and to march into Spain by
different routes.
One of these divisions,
consisting of the brigade of artillery and four regiments of infantry, of
which the 42d was one, under the Hon. Lieutenant General Hope, marched upon
Madrid and Espinar; another, under General Paget, moved by Elvas and
Alcantara; a third by Coimbra and Almeida, under General Beresford; and a
fourth, under General Mackenzie Eraser, by Abrantes and Almeida. These
divisions, amounting together to 18,000 infantry and 900 cavalry, were to
form a junction at Salamanca. General Moore reached Salamanca on the 13th of
November, without seeing a single Spanish soldier. Whilst on the march,
Lieutenant-General Sir David Baird arrived off Corunna with a body of troops
from England, for the purpose of forming a junction with General Moore; but
his troops were kept on board from the 13th to the 31st of October, and,
when allowed to disembark, no exertions were made by the Spaniards to
forward his march.
Whilst waiting the junction
of General Baird and the division of General Hope, which, from its
circuitous route, was the last of the four in reaching Salamanca, General
Moore received intelligence of the defeat and total dispersion of General
Blake’s army on the 10th of November, at Espenora de los Monteros, as well
as of a similar fate which subsequently befell the army of General Castanos
at Tudela. No Spanish army now remained in the field except the corps under
the Marquis of Romana, but acting independently, it tended rather to
obstruct than forward the plans of the British commander.
It was now the 1st of
December. General Baird had reached Astorga, and General Hope’s division
was still four days march from Salamanca. Beset by accumulated difficulties,
and threatened with an army already amounting to 100,000 men, and about to
be increased by additional reinforcements, General Moore resolved on a
retreat, though such a measure was opposed to the opinion of many officers
of rank. Whilst he himself was to fall back upon Lisbon, he ordered Sir
David Baird to retire to Corunna, and embark for the Tagus. He afterwards
countermanded the order for retreat, on receiving some favourable accounts
from the interior, but having soon ascertained that these were not to be
relied on, he resumed his original intention of retiring. Instead of
proceeding, however, towards Lisbon, he determined to retreat to the north
of Spain, with the view of joining General Baird. This junction he effected
at Toro, on the 21st of December. Their united forces amounted to 26,311
infantry, and 2450 cavalry, besides artillery.
The general resolved to
attack Marshal Soult at Saldanha; but, after making his dispositions, he
gave up his determination, in consequence of information that Soult had
received considerable reinforcements; that Buonaparte had marched from
Madrid with 40,000 infantry and cavalry; and that Marshals Junot, Mortier,
and Leferbe, with their different divisions, were also on their march
towards the north of Spain. The retreat was begun on the 24th of December,
on which day the advance guard of Buonaparte’s division passed through
Tordesillas.
When ordered again to
retreat, the greatest disappointment was manifested by the troops, who,
enraged at the apathy shown by the people, gratified their feelings of
revenge by acts of insubordination and plunder hitherto unheard of in a
British army. To such an extent did they carry their ravages, that they
obtained the name of "malditos ladrones" or cursed robbers from
the unfortunate inhabitants. The following extract of general orders, issued
at Benevente, on the 27th of December, shows how acutely the gallant Moore
felt the disgrace which the conduct of his British troops brought on the
British name:—" The Commander of the Forces has observed, with
concern, the extreme bad conduct of the troops, at a moment when they are
about to come into contact with the enemy, and when the greatest regularity
and the best conduct are most requisite. The misbehaviour of the troops in
the column which marched from Valdaras to this place, exceeds what he could
have believed of British soldiers. It is disgraceful to the officers, as it
strongly marks their negligence and inattention. The Commander of the Forces
refers to the general orders of the 15th of October and the 11th of
November. He desires that they may be again read at the head of every
company in the army. He can add nothing but his determination to execute
them to the fullest extent. He can feel no mercy towards officers who
neglect, in times like these, essential duties, or towards soldiers who
injure the country they are sent to protect. It is impossible for the
General to explain to his army his motive for the movements he directs. When
it is proper to fight a battle he will do it, and he will choose the time
and place he thinks most fit. In the mean time, he begs the officers and
soldiers of the army to attend diligently to discharge their part, and leave
to him and to the general officers the decision of measures which belong to
them alone."
It is quite unnecessary, in a
work of this nature, to give the details of this memorable retreat. Suffice
it to say, that after a series of brilliant and successful encounters with
the enemy, and after enduring the most extraordinary privations, the British
army arrived in the neighbourhood of Corunna on the 11th of January 1809.
Had the transports been at Corunna, the troops might have embarked without
molestation, as the French general did not push forward with vigour from
Lago; but, as they had to wait the arrival of transports from Vigo, the
enemy had full time to come up. The inhabitants showed the greatest kindness
to the troops, and, in conjunction with them, exerted themselves with much
assiduity to put the town in a propar state of defence.
On the land side Corunna is
surrounded by a double range of hills, a higher and a lower. As the outward
or higher range was too extensive, the British were formed on the inner or
lower range. The French on their arrival took post on the higher range.
Several of the transports
having arrived on the 14th, the sick, the cavalry, and part of the artillery
were embarked. Next day was spent in skirmishing, with little loss on either
side; but on the 16th, affairs assumed a more serious aspect. After mid-day,
the enemy were seen getting under arms. The British drew up immediately in
line of battle. General Hope’s division occupied the left. It consisted of
Major-General Hill’s brigade of the Queen’s, 14th, 32d; and Colonel
Crawford’s brigade of the 36th, 71st, and 92d or Gordon Highlanders. On
the right of the line was the division of General Baird, consisting of Lord
William Bentinck’s brigade of the 4th, 42d or Royal Highlanders, and 50th
regiment; and Major-General Manningham’s brigade of the third battalion of
the Royals, 26th or Cameronians, and second battalion of the 81st; and
Major-General Ward with the first and second battalions of the Foot Guards.
The other battalions of Guards were in reserve, in rear of Lord William
Bentinck’s brigade. The Rifle corps formed a chain across a valley on the
right of Sir David Baird, communicating with Lieutenant-General Fraser’s
division, which was drawn up in the rear at a short distance from Corunna.
This division was composed of the 6th, 9th, 23d or Welsh Fusileers, and
second battalion of the 43d, under Major-General Beresford; and the 36th,
79th or Cameron Highlanders, and 82d, under Brigadier-General Fane. General
Paget’s brigade of reserve formed in rear of the left. It consisted of the
20th, 28th, 52d, 9 1st, and Rifle corps. The whole force under arms amounted
to nearly 16,000 men.
The battle was begun by the
enemy, who, after a discharge of artillery, advanced upon the British in
four columns. Two of these moved towards General Baird’s wing, a third
advanced upon the centre, and a fourth against the left. The enemy kept a
fifth column as a reserve in the rear. On the approach of the French the
British advanced to meet them. The 50th regiment, under Majors Napier and
Stanhope, two young officers who had been trained up under the general’s
own eye, passing over an enclosure in front, charged and drove the enemy out
of the village of Elvina, with great loss. General Moore, who was at the
post occupied by Lord William Bentinck’s brigade, directing every
movement, on observing the brave conduct of the regiment, exclaimed,
"Well done the 50th—well done my majors!" Then proceeding to the
42d, he cried out, "Highlanders, remember Egypt." They thereupon
rushed forward, accompanied by the general, and drove back the enemy in all
directions. He now ordered up a battalion of the Guards to the left flank of
the Highlanders. The light company, conceiving, as their ammunition was
spent, that the Guards were to relieve them, began to fall back; but Sir
John discovering their mistake, said to them, "My brave 42d, join your
comrades,— ammunition is coming,—you have your bayonets." This was
enough.
Sir David Baird about this
time was forced to leave the field, in consequence of his arm being
shattered by a musket ball, and immediately thereafter a cannon ball struck
Sir John Moore in the left shoulder and beat him to the ground. "He
raised himself and sat up with an unaltered countenance, looking intensely
at the Highlanders, who were warmly engaged. Captain Hardinge threw himself
from his horse and took him by the hand; then observing his anxiety, he told
him the 42d were advancing, upon which his countenance immediately
brightened up."
After the general and Sir David Baird had
been carried off the field, the command of the army devolved upon
Lieutenant-General Hope, who, at the close of the battle, addressed a letter
to Sir David, from which the following is an extract:—"The first
effort of the enemy was met by the commander of the forces and by yourself,
at the head of the 42d regiment, and the brigade under Lord William Bentinck.
The village on your right became an object of obstinate contest. I lament to
say, that, after the severe wound which deprived the army of your services,
Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore, who had just directed the most able
disposition, fell by a cannon-shot. The troops, though not unacquainted with
the irreparable loss they had sustained, were not dismayed, but, by the most
determined bravery, not only repelled every attempt of the enemy to gain
ground, but actually forced him to retire, although he had brought up fresh
troops in support of those originally engaged. The enemy finding himself
foiled in every attempt to force the right of the position, endeavoured by
numbers to turn it. A judicious and well-timed movement which was made by
Major-General Paget with the reserve, which corps had moved out of its
cantonments to support the right of the army, by a vigorous attack defeated
this intention. The major-general having pushed forward the 95th (Rifle
corps) and the first battalion of the 52d regiment, drove the enemy before
him, and in his rapid and judicious advance threatened the left of the enemy’s
position. This circumstance, with the position of Lieutenant-General Fraser’s
division (calculated to give still farther security to the right of the
line), induced the enemy to relax his efforts in that quarter. They were,
however, more forcibly directed towards the centre, when they were again
successfully resisted by the brigade under Major-General Manningham, forming
the left of your division, and a part of that under Major-General Leith,
forming the right of that under my orders. Upon the left the enemy at first
contented himself with an attack upon our piequet, which, however, in
general maintained their ground. Finding, however, his efforts unavailing on
the right and centre, he seemed determined to render the attack upon the
left more serious, and had succeeded in obtaining possession of the village
through which the great road to Madrid passes, and which was situated in
front of that part of the line. From this post, however, he was soon
expelled, with a considerable loss, by a gallant attack of some companies of
the second battalion of the 14th regiment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Nicholls.
Before five in the evening, we had not only successfully repelled every
attack made upon the position, but had gained ground, in almost all points,
and occupied a more forward line than at the commencement of the action;
whilst the enemy confined his operations to a cannonade, and the fire of his
light troops, with a view to draw off his other corps. At six the firing
ceased."
The loss of the British was
800 men killed and wounded. The 42d had 1 sergeant and 36 rank and file
killed; and 6 officers, viz., Captains Duncan Campbell, John Fraser, and
Maxwell Grant, and Lieutenants Alexander Anderson, William Middleton, and
Thomas MacInnes, 1 sergeant, and 104 rank and file wounded. The enemy lost
upwards of 3000 men,—a remarkable disproportion, when it is considered
that the British troops fought under many disadvantages.
In general orders issued on
the 18th of January, Lieutenant-General Hope congratulated the army on the
victory, and added,— On no occasion has the undaunted valour of British
troops been more manifest. At the termination of a severe and harassing
march, rendered necessary by the superiority which the enemy had acquired,
and which had materially impaired the efficiency of the troops, many
disadvantages were to be encountered.
[Hello from Spain. I have been reading the story
of Sir John Moore and the battle of Corunna from your webpage. I simply would
like to remark that lots of people here in Corunna admire deeply the brave
fight of this brave soldier while defending our city from the French
invaders. Here is a picture of Sir John Moore´s burial place. It is placed in
the middle of a small and beautiful garden built in 1834 to honour his memory.
Maybe you would find it interesting to post it at your page. Best regards,
Susana Barral.]
"These have all been
surmounted by the conduct of the troops themselves; and the enemy has been
taught, that whatever advantages of position or numbers he may employ, there
is inherent, in British officers and soldiers, a bravery that knows not how
to yield,—that no circumstances can appal,—and that will ensure victory
when it is to be obtained by the exertion of any human means.
"The lieutenant-general
has the greatest satisfaction in distinguishing such meritorious services as
came within his observation, or have been brought to his knowledge.
"His acknowledgments are
in a peculiar manner due to Lieutenant-General Lord William Bentinck, and the
brigade under his command, consisting of the
Fourth, FORTY-SECOND, and Fiftieth Regiments, which sustained the
weight of the attack."
Though the victory was
gained, General Hope did not consider it advisable, under existing
circumstances, to risk another battle, and therefore issued orders for the
immediate embarkation of the army. By the great exertions of the naval
officers and seamen, the whole, with the exception of the rear guard, were
on board before the morning; and the rear guard, with the sick and wounded,
were all embarked the following day.
General Moore did not long
survive the action. When he fell he was removed, with the assistance of a
soldier of the 42d, a few yards behind the shelter of a wall. He was
afterwards carried to the rear in a blanket by six soldiers of the 42d and
Guards. When borne off the field his aid-de-camp, Captain Hardinge,
observing the resolution and composure of his features, expressed his hopes
that the wound was not mortal, and that he would still be spared to the
army. Turning his head round, and looking steadfastly at the wound for a few
seconds, the dying commander said, "No, Hardinge; I feel that to be
impossible." A sergeant of the 42d and two spare files, in case of
accident, were ordered to conduct their brave general to Corunna. Whilst
being carried along slowly, he made the soldiers turn frequently round, that
he might view the field of battle and listen to the firing. As the sound
grew fainter, an indication that the enemy were retiring, his countenance
evinced the satisfaction he felt. In a few hours he was numbered with the
dead.
Thus died, in the prime of
life, one of the most accomplished and bravest soldiers that ever adorned
the British army. From his youth he embraced the profession with the
sentiments and feelings of a soldier. He felt that a perfect knowledge and
an exact performance of the humble but important duties of a subaltern
officer are the best foundation for subsequent military fame. In the school
of regimental duty, he obtained that correct knowledge of his profession, so
essential to the proper direction of the gallant spirit of the soldier; and
was enabled to establish a characteristic order and regularity of conduct,
because the troops found in their leader a striking example of the
discipline which he enforced on others. In a military character, obtained
amidst the dangers of climate, the privations incident to service, and the
sufferings of repeated wounds, it is difficult to select any point as a
preferable subject for praise. The life of Sir John Moore was spent among
his troops. During the season of repose, his time was devoted to the care
and instruction of the officer and soldier; in war, he courted service in
every quarter of the globe. Regardless of personal considerations, he
esteemed that to which his country called him, the post of honour; and, by
his undaunted spirit and unconquerable perseverance, he pointed the way to
victory.
General Moore had been often
heard to express a wish that he might die in battle like a soldier; and,
like a soldier, he was interred in his full uniform in a bastion in the
garrison of Corunna.
["it was not without
cause that the Highland soldiers shed tears for the sufferings of the kind
and partial friend whom they were now about to lose. He always reposed the
most entire confidence in them; placing them in the post of danger and
honour, and wherever it was expected that the greatest firmness and courage
would be required; gazing at them with earnestness in his last moments, and
in this extremity taking pleasure in their successful advance gratified at
being carried by them, and talking familiarly to them when he had only a few
hours to live; and, like a perfect soldier, as he was, dying with his sword
by his side. Speaking to me, on one occasion, of the character of the
Highland soldiers, "I consider," said he, "the Highlanders,
under proper management, and under an officer who understands and values
their character, and works on it, among the best of our military materials.
Under such an officer, they will conquer or die on the spot, while their
action, their hardihood, and abstinence, enable them to bear up against a
severity of fatigue under which larger, and apparently stronger, men would
sink. But it is the principles of integrity and moral correctness that I
admire most in Highland soldiers, and this was the trait that first caught
my attention, It is this that makes them trustworthy, and makes their
courage sure, and not that kind of flash in the pan, which would scale a
bastion today, and tomorrow be alarmed at the fire of a picquet. You
highland officers may sleep sound at night, and rise in the morning with the
assurance that, with your men, your professional character and honour are
safe, unless you yourselves destroy the willing and excellent material
entrusted to your direction." Such was the opinion particularly
addressed to me, as a kind of farewell advice in 1805, when my regiment left
his brigade to embark for the Mediterranean. It was accompanied by many
excellent observations on the character of the Highland soldier, and the
duties of Highland officers, especially what regards their management of,
and behaviour towards their soldiers, and the necessity of paying attention
to their feelings. The correctness of his views on this important subject I
have seen fully confirmed by many years’ experience."—- Stewart’s
Sketches.]
When the embarkation of the
army was completed it sailed for England. One division, in which the 42d
was, landed at Portsmouth; another disembarked at Plymouth.
The regiment was now brigaded
at Shorncliffe with the rifle corps, under the command of Major-General Sir
Thomas Graham. As the second battalion, which had been in Ireland since
1805, was about to embark for Portugal, they could obtain no draughts from
it to supply the casualties which they had suffered in the late retreat and
loss at Corunna but these were speedily made up otherwise.
The 42d was next employed in
the disastrous expedition to Walcheren, and returned to Dover in September
1809, having only 204 men fit for duty out of 758, who, about six weeks
before, had left the shores of England. The regiment marched to Canterbury
on the 11th of September, where it remained till July 1810, when it was
removed to Scotland, and quartered in Musselburgh. The men had recovered
very slowly from the Walcheren fever, and many of them still suffered under
its influence. During their stay at Musselburgh, the men unfortunately
indulged themselves to excess in the use of ardent spirits, a practice which
would have destroyed their health, had not a change of duty put an end to
this baneful practice.
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