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148-486: The British Army during the Napoleonic Wars was small (~40,000 troops) at the outset compared to those of other European countries like France and Prussia. The British Army used foreign volunteers, such as French Royalists , Germans , Greeks and Corsicans to supplement its forces. In 1813 one fifth of the army, 52,000 men, were such volunteers. The British Army in 1813 contained over 250,000 men. Meanwhile,

296-406: A tailor , shoemaker or carpenter had to serve an apprenticeship before they could open a shop, whereas a man's appointment as assistant surgeon required only a passing acquaintance with medical matters brought about by family connections or patronage . Treating the wounded was only a small part of the medical officers' duties. By far the largest part consisted of caring for the sick. Among

444-595: A French expedition under General Humbert landed in the west of Ireland. After inflicting an embarrassing defeat on a British militia force at the Battle of Castlebar , Humbert's outnumbered army was surrounded and forced to surrender. This was the last war fought between the East India Company and the Kingdom of Mysore. British regular regiments again formed part of the East India Company army, this time under

592-505: A brief occupation the allied position became untenable with the news of the disastrous Austrian defeat at the Battle of Ulm . In 1806, French troops invaded southern Italy, and British troops again went to aid the defenders. A British army under the command of General John Stuart won a lopsided victory at the Battle of Maida . For the rest of the war, British troops defended Sicily, forcing Ferdinand to make liberal reforms. An allied force consisting mainly of Corsicans, Maltese and Sicilians

740-568: A bungled attack on Buenos Aires on 5 July 1807, in which the British troops suffered heavy casualties and were trapped in the city. Finally he capitulated, and the troops returned ignominiously to Britain. Whitelock was court-martialled and cashiered . In August 1807, an expedition was mounted to Copenhagen, to seize the Danish fleet to prevent it falling into French hands. The expedition was led by General Lord Cathcart . A British land force under

888-756: A crested red dragoon-style helmet , as depicted in the drawing of Richard Church and of later drawings of Greek War of Independence (after 1821) leader Theodoros Kolokotronis who continued to wear the helmet. Footwear consisted of what are described as "tied sandals" and in illustrations resemble the moccasin -like tsarouhia of the Evzones, only they lack pompoms and have extra lacing to keep them secure. Officers are depicted as wearing taller, higher-heeled three-quarter shoes or short boots. The troops refused to carry British knapsacks, only haversacks . The men were armed initially with sawed-off muskets, but gradually came to prefer British-issue muskets and by 1813 this

1036-475: A daily beer money allowance in addition to their regular wages; the practice was started on the orders of the Duke of York . Additionally, corporal punishment was removed for a large number of petty offences. Before 1788, the British infantry had no uniform drill system, so each commanding officer maneuvered his regiment according to his own method. When war broke out in 1793, according to historian Henry Bunbury,

1184-410: A dark blue, later grey, double-breasted greatcoat. After 1811, officers were permitted to wear a short tailed coatee, grey pantaloons or trousers and low field boots on campaign. Officers wore silver or gold epaulettes (depending on regimental colours), with regimental badge to designate rank. An 1810 order stipulated that subalterns wore one epaulette, on the right shoulder, while captains wore one of

1332-418: A decoction of boiling Madeira viper's bugloss. Medical care during a battle was usually primitive and completely unhygienic. Depending on when a wounded man was brought in, it could take up to twenty minutes for a leg or arm to be amputated. If the surgeon had already performed a large number of amputations, his instruments such as the bone saw were usually already blunt. If the soldier was wounded very early in

1480-548: A large number of transports. The French saw them move towards Savona , which made them fear for a moment the landing on the beach, which stretched from Sampierdarena to Arenzano ; this beach was manned only by three detachments of the 102nd Infantry Regiment (France) , stationed in Arenzano , Voltri and Sestri Ponente . On the 12th the Coalition attacked Pégot in the position of Monte Fasce. They fought all day, but

1628-589: A man whose "whole life had been a crime", yet whom Britain found it expedient to detach from his brother-in-law, Napoleon , by guaranteeing his Kingdom of Naples in return for an alliance. Having instructed the forces under his command in Sicily to make a landing at Livorno , Bentinck then travelled north, with a day's stop in Rome , to join them. The disembarkation at Livorno began on the 9 March and took three days to complete, Murat's Neapolitans already having occupied

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1776-427: A more ornate pattern on the right shoulder. Field officers wore one on each shoulder, badged with a star (for majors), a crown (lieutenant colonels) or star and crown (colonels). Grenadier, fusilier and light infantry officers wore more ornate versions of the shoulder wings their men wore on both shoulders; trimmed with lace, chain or bullion. Generals, from 1812, wore an aiguillette over the right shoulder, and rank

1924-610: A possibility of harming a foreign power that was increasingly viewed as hostile to the Modern Greek Enlightenment and under stress due to the rise of nationalism in the empire . When Britain took over the Ionian Islands, it initially relied on small numbers of British and British-foreign troops along with the local volunteer militias, the largest of which was on Zakynthos ( Zante ), numbering some 2,000 men, with another approximately 2,000 dispersed over

2072-435: A punishment battalion. The soldiers were mostly dependent on themselves for food. There were no cooks; each man took turns to prepare the daily meals, breakfast and lunch. Anything over and above the ration issued had to be bought out of the shilling per day that each soldier received. The daily ration consisted of half a pound of bread and 1 pound (450 g) of beef (including bones) and a quart (1.1 litres) of beer . The beef

2220-410: A reform of the sale of commissions, making it necessary for officers to serve two full years before either promotion or purchase to captain and six years before becoming a major , improving the quality of the officers through the experience gained. Only a small proportion of officers were from the nobility; in 1809, only 140 officers were peers or peers' sons. A large proportion of officers came from

2368-424: A room about 2.1 metres high, 9.1 metres long and 6 metres wide, with a foul-smelling atmosphere (the urinals consisted of nothing more than wooden buckets). Quarters for married couples were created by partitioning off part of the barracks with the help of blankets. On campaigns, soldiers often lived in improvised shelters made of branches, leaves and straw - until the early 1810s, tents were not widely available in

2516-608: A soldier. By 1792, the infantry of the British army had grown to 135 regiments. In addition, numerous French émigrés and foreign regiments were serving in Britain, so that the militia and volunteer forces were also increased accordingly. The regular militia forces were recruited by ballot, and each county had to provide its own contingent. The militia entered active service when they formed into fixed units and were called up for active service, although they could even be combined into regular line regiments. The local militias (as opposed to

2664-483: Is notable that the jackets worn by sergeants were distinctive in that they were embellished with gold lace. The jacket was scarlet and lined throughout — the sleeve with linen and the other parts with white serge. The skirts were of a shorter length and sewn back, furnished with white serge lining and edged with gold lace. A single-breasted jacket, buttoned across the front, was worn, with the left side edged with gold. The buttons were gilt and set at distinct intervals, while

2812-476: Is what they carried. They wore sword bayonets on waist belts instead of shoulder or cross-belts (this was also common among British light infantry and rifle units). Officers carried longer sabre -style weapons, just as their light infantry counterparts in Western European armies did. The men were supposed to be issued pistols , but it was "thought prudent" not to issue them to the men as they were, in

2960-521: The 85th Foot as colonel commandant of the regiment on February 2, 1813. A 250-man detachment took part in the British Siege of Genoa and La Spezia in the spring of 1814. The regiment disbanded in 1816. Officers were Greek , apart from British regimental staff . The day-to-day language of the regiment was Greek ; however, in order to avoid confusion when the regiment or elements of the regiment were brigaded with other British units, English

3108-684: The Anglo-Corsican Kingdom of 1794–1796 and gain for Britain another useful base in the Mediterranean . In Genoa meanwhile, on the 24th, he received representations from the provisional government in Milan beseeching Britain's support for the maintenance of an independent Kingdom of Italy rather than the restoration of Austria's rule over Lombardy . With Napoleon's abdication of both the French and Italian thrones on 11 April,

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3256-666: The Austrians . In this regard, the Piedmontese general Vittorio Amedeo Sallier della Torre, commander of the Italian Levy of the British army, created a draft of the Constitution in which, looking forward to the union of Piedmont, Liguria and Lombardy, he hoped for a charter that would guarantee a liberal government, although he was a staunch reactionary. With Napoleon's double abdication on the 11 April however - though

3404-462: The Black Watch tartan. White, yellow or red lines were added to distinguish between regiments. Trousers for the rank and file were generally of white cotton duck canvas for summer use, and grey woollen trousers were issued for winter wear, although considerable variation exists in the color of the woollen trousers. Originally, the white trousers were cut as overalls, designed to be worn to protect

3552-575: The British Army , and increased to an authorized strength of 1,129 men of all ranks. It was sent to suppress an insurrection in Montenegro in June of that year, but baulked at being sent to Sicily in 1813. On 22 May 1813 the unit was reviewed and found to be in a "very indifferent state, with no field officer present and company officers at a loss to discipline the men"; Church was badly wounded in

3700-733: The Channel Islands . It was decommissioned on 12 July 1802, after the Peace of Amiens , after which most personnel (but not all) returned to the Batavian Republic, under an amnesty in connection with that treaty.The Dutch Emigrant Artillery was formed in Hanover in 1795 from remnants of Franco-Dutch units. It consisted of three companies and between 1796 and 1803 served in the West Indies to man guns in forts there. In 1803 it

3848-671: The Ligurian capital, while the Austrians occupied Lombardy (destroying the Kingdom of Italy ), and proclaimed the ephemeral Republic of Genoa , then abolished at the behest of the Congress of Vienna and ceded to the restored Kingdom of Sardinia . Setting sail from Sicily on January 30, 1814 , William Bentinck initially made his way to Naples . There he reluctantly signed an armistice with Joachim Murat , whom he personally detested as

3996-636: The National Historical Museum, Athens . Richard Church was depicted wearing a similar helmet-and-cuirass outfit plus metal greaves and knee protectors with gilt lion's heads along with a braided version of the uniform of the unit's sister regiment, in a painting now housed in the Royal Gallery . Both of these romanticized outfits imitating Ancient Greek styles were probably intended for ceremony and were not worn in their entirety in combat, although Kolokotronis did sometimes wear

4144-577: The Ottoman Empire , which ruled the majority of Greek-speaking areas at the time, participated in on-again, off-again alliances with France under Napoleon. Many Greeks fleeing Ottoman persecution or local disputes on the mainland ended up in the Ionian Islands, which were beyond the reach of Ottoman authorities. When Britain became the enemy of the Ottoman Empire, it provided, if not an actual chance to fight for national liberation , at least

4292-496: The Principality of Lucca and Piombino in return for having rendered up Tuscany without a fight, she had, by the time of Bentinck's appearance at Livorno , retired to Lucca . Upon hearing of his landing, she sent a delegation to gain assurances that Murat's pact would be respected. Bentinck replied that it would not. If she did not depart immediately, he said, she would be arrested. With 2,000 British troops dispatched towards

4440-543: The Royal Corsican Rangers . At the outset, its authorized strength was one battalion of 800 men, its actual strength was 548 officers and men when it took part in its first action, the successful capture of Lefkada (then called Santa Maura due to still-lingering Venetian influence ) from the French , but suffered high casualties. Later, it was moved to Zante ( Zakynthos ) which served as its base and reached its full authorized strength. In 1811, Church

4588-844: The Royal Navy in the Vlieter Incident , all during the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland in 1799. The brigade was commissioned on 21 October 1799 on the Isle of Wight , after it had been organised by the Hereditary Prince of Orange who had been an allied commander during the Flanders Campaign of 1793–95. The troops swore allegiance, both to the British Crown, and to the defunct States-General of

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4736-606: The Treaty of Amiens , under which Britain restored many captured territories to France and its allies. The "peace" proved merely to be an interlude, with plotting and preparations for a renewal of war continuing on both sides. Shortly after the resumption of war on the continent, the East India Company once again became involved in war with an Indian power, this time with the Maratha Empire, supported by France. British regiments of infantry, artillery and cavalry once again formed

4884-445: The 1790s, a soldier's pay was 1 shilling per day. Of this, he had to pay 1½ pence a day for bread and meat. A total of 5 shillings and 6 pence per week was withheld for transportation and equipment. After deducting all costs, he was left with just over 18 shillings net per year. The daily pay for officers ranged from 4 shillings 8 pence for a cornet/ensign to 32 shillings 10 pence for a colonel. To create an additional incentive to join

5032-532: The 2nd and 3rd sport bang ups as the soldiers of the 52nd who were the first in the Division that put them on have christened them.." All regiments were expected to be compliant with regulations by April 1814. Grenadiers and Foot Guards continued to be issued bearskins, but these were not worn while on campaign. It was in 1802, during this period of uniform transition, that enlisted soldier rank insignia were first designated by chevrons . Their introduction allowed

5180-557: The Albanian fashion". Enlisted men wore red jackets with yellow cuffs, facings, and trim; for the officers, these were gold and white, over a white shirt, foustanella , breeches and stockings. Headwear was usually a red cap (resembling a fez or small beret , like the fario of the Greek Evzones ). In some contemporary prints, the officers and men are depicted wearing fillets ( kefalodesmoi ) instead of caps. Officers wore

5328-499: The Americans) frequently used buck and ball in their muskets, the British infantry used only standard ball ammunition. While the red jacket is regarded as the archetypal British uniform, it is evident that there were considerable variations and distinctions between units and ranks. One can cite, for instance, the case of Wellington's elite Foot Guards. With regard to the uniforms of private soldiers and non-commissioned officers, it

5476-647: The British Infantry Rifle, more commonly known as the Baker rifle , was formed in 1800, and was brought into the line as the 95th Regiment of Foot (Rifles) in 1802. Some of the light units of the King's German Legion were also armed with the same weapon. The rifle-armed units saw extensive service, most prominently in the Peninsular War where the mountainous terrain saw them in their element. At

5624-419: The British armies earlier, been ravaged by disease, so only isolated garrisons opposed the British forces. In 1805, as part of the manoeuvres which ultimately led to the Battle of Trafalgar , a French fleet carrying 6,500 troops briefly captured Dominica and other islands but subsequently withdrew. In 1808, once the British were allied to Portugal and Spain, they were able to concentrate their forces and capture

5772-523: The British army was lax in its discipline, completely without a system and very weak in numbers. This deficiency largely persisted until Lieutenant-General John Moore began teaching his developed system of drill and maneuvers at Shorncliffe Army Camp in 1803. The foundations of the drill taught at Shorncliffe were the Rules and Regulations for the Movements of His Majesty's Infantry by General David Dundas and

5920-543: The British as allies turned against them. Guadeloupe was recaptured in 1796 by Victor Hugues , who subsequently executed 865 French Royalists and other prisoners. Eight thousand reinforcements under Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby arrived in 1796, and secured many French territories, and those of Spain and the Netherlands (which was now titled the Batavian Republic and allied to France). However,

6068-605: The British entered the city. Fresia was able to leave Genoa with military honours. When the city surrendered to him on 18 April 1814, he instead proclaimed - contrary to the intentions of the Coalition - the restoration of the Republic of Genoa and the repeal of all laws passed since 1797 , much to the enthusiasm of the Genoese population. At the same time, he dispatched an expeditionary force to Corsica to attempt to revive

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6216-746: The British hold on Lisbon , it resulted in the three generals' recall to England, and command of the British troops devolved on Sir John Moore . Siege of Genoa (1814) The siege of Genoa on 13–18 April 1814 was the capture of the port city of Genoa from the First French Empire by a British–Sicilian army. It was the last battle of the War of the Sixth Coalition 's Italian campaign, as on 4 April, Napoleon had abdicated as emperor of France. The Anglo-Sicilian forces, commanded by Lieutenant General William Bentinck , laid siege to

6364-507: The British were preparing a general attack. That day the allies landed at Nervi with infantry, artillery and cavalry, and attacked the position of Sturla. At the beginning of the action, the gunners of the Sturla battery bombarded them but then abandoned the position. Pégot brought them back and ordered to open fire again. The general was wounded in the clash. General Jean-Pierre Piat, who was nearby, replaced him. The fighting lasted all day on

6512-575: The Duke of York negotiated a capitulation which allowed the British to sail away unmolested. In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte had invaded Egypt, as a stepping stone to India , which was the source of much of Britain's trade and wealth. He was stranded there when Vice Admiral Nelson destroyed the French fleet at the Battle of the Nile . In alliance with the Ottoman Empire , Britain mounted an expedition to expel

6660-570: The Dutch colony of Trincomalee , Ceylon, which remained in British possession until 1948. A rebellion inspired by a secret society, the Society of United Irishmen , broke out in Ireland. The British Army in Ireland consisted partly of regular troops but mostly of Protestant militia and Irish Yeomanry units. The rebellion was marked by atrocities on both sides. After the rebellion had already failed,

6808-607: The Franco-Prussian agreement handing control of Hanover to Prussia, the ministry recalled Cathcart's army from Germany. One of Britain's allies was Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies , whose kingdom was important to British interests in the Mediterranean. In 1805 British forces under the command of General James Craig were part of an Anglo-Russian force intended to secure the Kingdom of Naples . However, after

6956-647: The French Republican Armée du Nord, the Armée des Ardennes and the Armée de la Moselle. The Allies enjoyed several early victories, (including a largely British-fought battle at Lincelles ), but were unable to advance beyond the French border fortresses and were eventually forced to withdraw by a series of victorious French counter-offensives. The Allies then established a new front in southern Holland and Germany, but with poor co-ordination and failing supplies were forced to continue their retreat through

7104-584: The French from Egypt. After careful preparations and rehearsals in Turkish anchorages, a British force under Sir Ralph Abercromby made a successful opposed landing at the Battle of Abukir (1801) . Abercromby was mortally wounded at the Battle of Alexandria , where the British troops demonstrated the effectiveness of their musketry, improved discipline and growing experience. The French capitulated and were evacuated from Egypt in British ships. After Britain's allies all signed treaties with France, Britain also signed

7252-530: The French from Portugal, once from Spain; had penetrated France, and killed wounded or captured two hundred thousand enemies — leaving of their own number forty thousand dead, whose bones whiten the plains and mountains of the Peninsula. Sir William Napier on the Peninsular War. In 1808, after Bonaparte overthrew the monarchs of Spain and Portugal, an expedition under Sir Arthur Wellesley which

7400-533: The French possessions one by one; Cayenne and Martinique in 1809, and Guadeloupe in 1810. Haiti was left to the insurgent armies. In 1805 news arrived in London that Napoleon had broken up his invasion camp at Boulogne , and was marching across Germany. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom William Pitt immediately equipped an army of 15,000 men, and deployed it to Hanover under

7548-642: The Legion were regarded as the equal of the best regular British units. The King's Dutch Brigade was formed from former personnel of the Dutch States Army (defunct since 1795), who had emigrated to Germany and Britain after the Dutch Republic was overthrown by the Batavian Republic ; from deserters from the Batavian army; and mutineers of the Batavian naval squadron that had surrendered to

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7696-542: The Militia, and a small number had been gentlemen volunteers , who trained and fought as private soldiers but messed with the officers and remained as such until vacancies (without purchase) for commissions became available. Promotion was mainly by seniority; fewer than 20% of line promotions were by purchase , although this proportion was higher in the Household Division . Promotion by merit alone occurred, but

7844-529: The Netherlands , the former sovereign power in the Dutch Republic. The troops received both the King's Colours and regimental colours after Dutch model. The brigade counted four regiments of infantry of 18 companies each, 1 regiment of Chasseurs (also of 18 companies), 1 battalion of artillery of 6 companies, and a corps of engineers (96 companies total). The brigade was used in Ireland in 1801, and later on

7992-728: The Regulations for the Exercise of Riflemen by Francis de Rottenburg. The former was published in a simplified form as A System of Drill and Manceuvres, the latter was expanded into Instructions for Light Infantry and Riflemen. Drill was a very important part of the training at Shorncliffe, and a methodically progressive course was followed from recruit to trained soldier. Recruits were first trained individually, then in squads and finally as trained soldiers in companies and battalions. The entire system consisted of three phases, each with three instructions based on weapon handling skills. First,

8140-610: The Secretary of State for War remained the supreme head of the military administration. His department, the War Office, controlled troop movements, facilities and pay rates, while he was accountable to Parliament for the costs of the army and had to settle disputes arising from the clash of civilian and military interests (e.g. billeting). Irrespective of this, the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers continued to be under

8288-442: The Viceroy of Italy Eugène de Beauharnais , was commissioned by General Maurizio Ignazio Fresia, commander of the garrison of the Ligurian capital since February, to replace General Jean Victor Rouyer. On the same day, Recco was again heavily bombarded by the Coalition; the next day the fire was renewed and the French ships were forced to evacuate. On the evening of the 9th, General Pégot, having learned that an Austrian detachment of

8436-417: The West Indies, 43,747 died of yellow fever or other tropical diseases. Another 15,503 were discharged, no longer fit for service, or deserted. The islands of Martinique , Guadeloupe and several ports in Saint-Domingue were captured in 1794 and 1795 by expeditionary forces under General Charles Grey , but the British units were almost exterminated by disease. Haitian insurgents which had first welcomed

8584-427: The arduous winter of 1794/5. By spring 1795 the British force had left Dutch territory entirely, and reached the port of Bremen where they were evacuated. The campaign exposed many shortcomings in the British army, especially in discipline and logistics, which had developed in the ten years of peacetime neglect since the American War of Independence . The other major British effort in the early French Revolutionary Wars

8732-405: The arm in the attack on Lefkada and did not return to the regiment after recuperating. Instead, he was promoted lieutenant colonel went on to become colonel commandant the 2nd Greek Light Infantry , and his second-in-command went with him. At least one replacement major was cashiered for an unspecified offence, and another transferred out. This led to the gazetting of Lt. Col. Henry Cuyler of

8880-529: The army lost almost 25,000 men from wounds and disease while fewer than 9,000 were killed directly in action; however more than 30,000 were wounded in action, and many died in the days or weeks to follow. Seriously under-strength battalions might be dissolved, merged with other remnants into "Provisional battalions" or temporarily drafted into other regiments. Officers ranged in background also. They were expected to be literate, but otherwise came from varied educational and social backgrounds. Although an officer

9028-555: The army was withdrawn. To clear nests of French privateers and raiders, the Army captured the French dependencies in the Indian Ocean in the Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811 . With substantial contingents from the East India Company, British troops also captured the Dutch colonies in the Far East in 1810 with the successful Invasion of the Spice Islands and 1811, with the fall of Java . Those veterans had won nineteen pitched battles and innumerable combats; had made or sustained ten sieges and taken four great fortresses; had twice expelled

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9176-483: The army, recruits received a hand bonus of 7 pounds 12 shillings and 6 pence. In 1812 this bonus was increased to 23 pounds 17 shillings and 6 pence. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Army Medical Service had a Director General based at the Army Medical Board in London as well as inspectors and deputy inspectors in the respective theatres of war, to whom staff surgeons, regimental surgeons and assistants were subordinate in descending order of rank. In addition to

9324-414: The army. If no material could be found, the soldiers simply rolled up on the ground in their coats and blankets. Soldiers who violated the military rules even under these harsh conditions could be punished with a harsh punishment system. As a rule, only a general court martial could impose the death penalty. Other punishments could include flogging (up to a theoretical maximum of 1,200 lashes) or transfer to

9472-443: The battle, the instruments were still sharp so that a skilful surgeon could perform an amputation in just a few minutes. The first major engagement involving the British army during the Revolutionary period was the Third Anglo-Mysore War , between Kingdom of Mysore supported by France and led by Tipu Sultan , and the British East India Company supported by its local allies. British regular infantry and artillery regiments formed

9620-399: The beginning of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1793, the army was a small, awkwardly administered force of barely 40,000 men. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars , the numbers had vastly increased. At its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. The British infantry was "the only military force not to suffer a major reverse at the hands of Napoleonic France ." Throughout

9768-449: The beginning of the war, the cavalry consisted of 27 regiments organised into ten troops, each of which theoretically had 63 men. The troops were labelled with letters (A, B, C etc.) and the squadrons with numbers. As the cavalry regiments did not have a second battalion, two of these troops, known as regimental depots, were left permanently at home for recruitment and training purposes. The fighting units were grouped into escadrons : usually

9916-477: The city to carry out this threat, the heavily pregnant Elisa had no choice but to abandon the last of her territories and flee north, where she eventually fell into allied hands at Bologna . Elisa left Lucca on March 13. The next day, Bentinck issued a proclamation from Livorno calling on the Italian nation to rise up in a liberation movement. He declared: "Italians! Great Britain has landed her troops on your shores; she holds out her hand to you to free you from

10064-442: The collapse of the weaving trade and came from skilled artisan or even middle-class households. Most soldiers at the time signed on for life in exchange for a "bounty" of £23 17s 6d, a lot of which was absorbed by the cost of outfitting "necessities" but a system of 'limited service' (seven years for infantry, ten for cavalry and artillery) was introduced in 1806 to attract recruits. Soldiers began, from 1800 onward, to receive

10212-411: The command of General William Cathcart , with the intention of linking up with another allied Russian army and creating a diversion in favour of Austria, but Cathcart made no attempt to attack the flank of the far larger French army. Cathcart established his headquarters at Bremen, seized Hanover, fought a small battle at Munkaiser, and then peacefully waited for news. After the death of Pitt and news of

10360-469: The command of Arthur Wellesley routed a Danish militia force. After the city was bombarded for several days, the Danes surrendered their fleet. In 1807 an army and navy expedition under the command of General Alexander Mackenzie Fraser was dispatched with the objective of capturing the Egyptian city of Alexandria to secure a base of operations to disrupt the Ottoman Empire . The people of Alexandria, being disaffected towards Muhammad Ali of Egypt , opened

10508-412: The command of British general George Harris . The British forces defeated Mysore for the final time, capturing Seringapatam and killing Tipu Sultan . As part of the War of the Second Coalition , a joint Anglo-Russian force invaded the Netherlands . Although the British troops captured the Dutch fleet, but after the defeat at Castricum, the expedition was a failure and the British commander in chief,

10656-734: The command of the Master-General of the Ordnance . The Master-General was himself a military officer, but sat as a civilian minister in Parliament, where he was responsible for the Ordnance Department. His area of responsibility was in turn divided into a civilian part, which supplied both the army and the navy with supplies and ammunition, and a military part, that of the artillery and the Engineers, which he commanded as

10804-530: The conflict with Napoleon, the British military high command remained largely what it had been under Queen Anne. The only major innovation was introduced by William Pitt the Younger in 1794, when he created a fully-fledged ministry with responsibility for military affairs. However, the Secretary of War was also Home Secretary, Treasurer of the Royal Navy and President of the Indian Board of Control. Thus

10952-537: The continent (30 rounds per man in training for example, compared with only 10 in the Austrian Army) and their volleys were notably steady and effective. The standard weapon of the British infantry was the "India Pattern" version of the Brown Bess musket. This had an effective range of 100 yards, but fire was often reserved until a charging enemy was within 50 yards. Although the French infantry (and, earlier,

11100-459: The core of the Company army, this time under the command of British generals Gerrard Lake and Arthur Wellesley . Maratha forces were defeated decisively at Assaye and Delhi and further losses eventually compelled them to make peace. When war resumed, Britain once again attacked the French possessions in the West Indies. The French armies which had been sent to recover Haiti in 1803 had, like

11248-532: The core of the East India Company army serving under the command of British general Lord Cornwallis . After some initial setbacks, Cornwallis was ultimately victorious capturing the Mysorean capital city of Seringapatam and compelling Mysore to make peace on terms favourable to Britain. In this theatre a British army under the command of the Duke of York formed part of an Allied army with Hanoverian, Dutch, Hessian, Austrian and Prussian contingents, which faced

11396-423: The corps of Laval Nugent von Westmeath had joined the insurgents at Val Fontanabuona, and seeing that the British continued to fire on Recco and Sori, Liguria , decided to leave his position, overnight. The retreat took place in good order, and on the morning of the 10th Pégot occupied the position of Monte Fasce . The Coalition had nine ships of the line and three or four frigates in front of Genoa, as well as

11544-580: The current Government recognised them or not. Ordering his troops north to besiege Genoa , Bentinck himself now headed to Reggio Emilia for a conference with Murat. At this conference on the 15th, he brazenly demanded that Tuscany be handed over to himself and evacuated by the Neapolitan forces then in possession of it. It was necessary, he argued, that Tuscany be under British jurisdiction, as otherwise he would have no logistical base from which to conduct future operations - to which Murat replied that it

11692-480: The day and night of the 17th, without the Garde Nationale bothering to calm it down. The next day the besieged surrendered. Also on the 18th, around noon, Bentinck sent Lieutenant General Robert Henry MacFarlane to hasten the surrender, threatening, if refused, to restart the attacks and bombings. The day was spent in negotiations and the next night the evacuation convention was signed. Thus, on April 20,

11840-502: The decimated British troops evacuated Haiti, and Guadeloupe was never recaptured, becoming a major privateering base and black market emporium. In 1795 a combined British army and Royal Navy force under the command of Major-General James Craig and Admiral Elphinstone captured the Dutch Cape Colony . It remained in British possession for seven years until the Peace of Amiens . At the same time another British force captured

11988-441: The distribution of pairs of guns among infantry regiments was a thing of the past; artillery had become far more centralised. Normally, foot artillery was divided into "brigades" with six to 12 guns; the term "battery", which is now associated with an artillery unit of this size, is a later invention. The unit could be further divided into sub-units, so-called "divisions", which consisted of two guns. A single crew with gun and carriage

12136-414: The effective strength of the infantry increased threefold between 1793 and 1801. By 1803, the strength of the entire British infantry totalled 126,677 men. Although the names of the colonels still took precedence in official usage until 1803, from 1792 all numbered infantry regiments were named after counties. Each regiment commanded by a colonel could have two or more battalions. However, as two battalions of

12284-418: The eighteenth century, but had been converted to dragoons to save money. The heavy cavalry wore red jackets and bicorne hats. The light cavalry units consisted of fourteen regiments of Light Dragoons, which had been formed during the eighteenth century to carry out the roles of scouting and patrolling. The light dragoons wore short blue braided jackets and the leather Tarleton helmet . The largest émigré corps

12432-416: The expensive breeches and gaiters worn by the rank and file, although on campaign, they were often worn by themselves; a practice which was later permitted except on parade. Soldiers were also issued with grey greatcoats starting in 1803. From the last years of the eighteenth century, the bicorne hat was replaced in 1800 by a cylindrical pattern infantry shako (known today as the "stovepipe"). In 1812, this

12580-432: The formations, field-exercise, and movements, of His Majesty's forces became the standard drill book for the infantry. As the wars progressed line infantry tactics were developed to allow more flexibility for command and control, placing more reliance upon the officers on the spot for quick reactions. The line formation was the most favoured, as it offered the maximum firepower, about 1000 to 1500 bullets per minute. Though

12728-517: The gates of the city to the British forces, allowing for one of the easiest conquests of a city by the British forces during the Napoleonic Wars. However, due to lack of supplies, and inconclusive operations against the Egyptian forces, the Expedition was forced to re-embark and leave Alexandria. In 1809, Austria declared war on France. To provide a diversion, a British force consisting mainly of

12876-557: The general, finding it impossible to resist, withdrew during the night; he went to occupy the position of Sturla , on the heights of Albaro, with the right to the sea, covered by a battery of 4 artillery pieces, and the left to Fort Richelieu. Coalition forces arrived near the walls of Genoa on 13 April. Bentinck was the commander of the British troops and commander in chief while the Sicilians were under General Vito Nunziante . The confrontation focused mainly on Sturla and Albaro, where

13024-473: The government in Milan was in search of a new sovereign who would better bolster their chances of survival and, in seeking to bind Britain to their cause, the suggestion was put to Bentinck that Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge , the seventh son of George III , would be a welcome candidate. Though Bentinck recommended they might look to Archduke Francis of Este as a more realistic candidate in order to mollify

13172-484: The heights of Albaro, and in the evening the Coalition howitzers succeeded in destroying the battery of Sturla. During the night the French position was corrected, linking it to the battery of the Torre dell'Amore. The gunners of this battery, abandoned their posts, were replaced by line gunners. [Meaning lost in translation from Italian to English] On the 14th the British renewed their attack on Albaro's position. Bentinck

13320-627: The helmet when he fought, even after the regiment disbanded. As officers, they both would have had the privilege of wearing pistols, and in Kolokotronis' career as a klepht, the carrying of more than one pistol would not have been uncommon. British Army during the Napoleonic Wars The British Army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars experienced a time of rapid change. At

13468-418: The iron yoke of Buonaparte...hesitate no longer...assert your rights and your liberty. Call us, and we will hasten to you, and then, our forces joined, will effect that Italy may become what in the best times she was. In thus attempting to bring about his long-nurtured dream of an independent Italian nation-state in the north and centre (he did not consider Neapolitans and Sicilians to be "Italian"), Bentinck

13616-427: The long-service medal of the 71st, instituted probably before 1808. Some of the more renowned regimental distinctions, such as those bestowed by the 42nd, 48th and 88th regiments, although commemorating contributions during the Peninsular War, were only established following the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars. It is notable that there were few regimental badges of distinction. For example, the crowns and stars worn over

13764-409: The loops were of gold lace, with the number and spacing of the loops varying according to the regiment. Finally, the dark blue collar, cuffs, wings and shoulder straps were trimmed with gold lace. There was no standardised supply for uniforms, and it was generally left to the regimental colonel to contract for and obtain uniforms for his men, which allowed for some regimental variation. Generally, this

13912-429: The manual laid down that lines were to be formed in three ranks, the lines were often formed only two ranks deep, especially in the Peninsula. While the French favoured column formation, the line formation enabled all muskets available to fire at the enemy. In contrast, only the few soldiers in the first rows of the column (about 60) were able to fire. British infantry were far better trained in musketry than most armies on

14060-569: The men were given half a litre of unground wheat or a sheaf of wheat from the field, or two pounds of potatoes . Some regiments endeavoured to provide their men with a more balanced diet, such as the weekly rations for six men: 42 pounds of bread, 28 pounds of meat, 7 quarts of spirits, 6 quarts of oatmeal , 4 quarts of peas . Soldiers were allowed to marry , but wives were expected to submit to army rules and discipline, as well to contribute to regimental affairs by performing washing, cooking and other duties. Six women per company were officially "on

14208-453: The most devastating ailments were tropical diseases , which caused a high mortality rate. The treatments for such ailments were sometimes unusual: for example, an infusion of rue , sage, mint , rosemary and wormwood in strong vinegar was recommended as a cure for typhoid fever , to which camphor dissolved in brandy was added. This mixture was rubbed into the face and loins. Others tried to cure themselves of yellow fever by drinking

14356-456: The municipality to send a delegation to Bentinck to urge him to suspend the bombardment. Bentinck refused any proposal and demanded that the city be handed over, after the capitulation of the forts Santa Tecla and Richelieu. The French troops then withdrew, in good order, behind the Bisagno (river) , and the British did not pass San Martino d'Albaro. The civil unrest in the city increased during

14504-602: The news took time to cross the Alps - Bentinck's capacity to influence events on the ground while, with the war against the Emperor still raging, all was still to a great extent up in the air, largely came to an end. As did his Government's motive for toleration. His erratic behaviour over the recent months had led the Prime Minister Lord Liverpool to brand him simply "mad", and his scope of authority

14652-508: The nucleus of a free Italian state under his own aegis - and left for Genoa . There had, in any case, been no discernible response from the Tuscans to Bentinck's proclamation, while in Genoa he would find a welcoming audience at last. Bentinck had been ordered to take and occupy Genoa in the name of the king of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel I . On 9 April, General Jean Pégot, sent to Genoa by

14800-411: The only other official methods of rewarding brave or meritorious conduct. These were awarded to ranks not lower than an officer who had commanded his battalion or regiment. A small number of medals were presented by their regiments to deserving soldiers, the majority of which were not governed by any system. However, there are exceptions, such as the 'Order of Merit' of the 5th Foot, instituted in 1767, and

14948-702: The other islands. These were armed at their own expense, and unpaid. They were drawn from the population of the islands and from mainland Greece and Albania, from men with varying levels of experience. A decision was taken to form an elite, paid unit from among the experienced troops, and to give them additional training. The regiment was raised in the Ionian Islands in March 1810 by then-Captain Richard Church who already had experience managing foreign (i.e. non-British) troops from his previous appointment in

15096-978: The pickets would abscond. In 1812, the Independent Companies of Foreigners were formed from among French prisoners of war for service in North America. The companies became notorious for lack of discipline and atrocities in Chesapeake Bay, and were disbanded. The nominally Swiss Regiment de Meuron was transferred from the Dutch East India Company in Ceylon in 1798. It consisted even when first transferred of soldiers of mixed nationalities, and later recruited from among prisoners of war and deserters from all over Europe. It later served in North America. Two Swiss units in French service were also taken into British service about

15244-560: The poor, who suffered immensely through much of this....[And women who] participated in the war not just as relations of combatants but as sutlers, prostitutes, laundresses, spinners, bandage-makers, and drawing-room news-followers. In the aftermath of the American War of Independence , during which the British infantry had fought in looser formations than previously, rigid close-order linear formations had been advocated by Major General David Dundas . His 1792 Rules and regulations for

15392-582: The poorly-regarded 1796 Pattern British Infantry Officer's Sword . In light infantry units and the flank companies of line units, they carried the Pattern 1803 sabre instead. In highland regiments, most officers carried a basket-hilted claymore . Apart from the orders of chivalry , which were restricted to the higher commissioned ranks, the Army Gold Medal and the even rarer Army Gold Cross , which were awarded for actions between 1806 and 1814, were

15540-400: The port beforehand. Napoleon's sister Elisa , though having now abandoned her Grand Duchy of Tuscany , had nevertheless not given up completely in attempting to salvage something out of the collapse of her brother's Empire . Having obtained from Murat - husband of her sister Caroline - the guarantee that he would obtain the consent of the Coalition he had just joined to her retention of

15688-513: The positions of San Martino and San Francesco. The French troops were forced to evacuate their positions, as well as the plateau between the Richelieu, Santa Tecla and Sperone forts. The batteries of the Torre dell'Amore, taken from behind, were removed, and the Coalition bombarded the city. This induced the Genoese to rebel against the French. The mayor and archbishop Giuseppe Spina went to Fresia to urge him to capitulate. The general allowed

15836-663: The rank chevrons by the 28th Foot, the long-service stripes worn above the cuff by the 72nd, and the 52nd's 'VS' badge ('Valiant Stormer', awarded to survivors of the 'forlorn hope' of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz) are examples of such distinctions. At the start of the French Revolutionary Wars, the "heavy" cavalry were equivalent to dragoons or "medium" cavalry in the French and other armies. They consisted of three regiments of Household Cavalry , seven regiments of Dragoon Guards and six regiments of Dragoons. The Dragoon Guards had been regiments of heavy cavalry in

15984-633: The rapid differentiation of sergeants and corporals from private soldiers . Colour sergeant and lance corporal ranks soon evolved as well.Officers were responsible for providing (and paying for) their own uniforms. Consequently, variable styles and decorations were present, according to the officer's private means. Officers in the Infantry wore scarlet coattees with long tails fastened with turnbacks. Close-fitting white pantaloons, tucked into tall Hessian or riding boots were worn, often covered with grey wool and leather overalls on campaign, in addition to

16132-479: The rearmost rank; in a closed column the surplus ranks were on the flank, which was not the pivot point. Unlike other armies of the time, the British did not use conscription to bolster army numbers, with enlistment remaining voluntary. In periods of long service, battalions generally operated under strength; many discharges and deaths were due to wounds and disease. During the Peninsular Campaign ,

16280-400: The recruit was trained in the correct handling of his weapon. This was followed by shooting training and, finally, positioning in the correct shooting position. Once the three previous lessons had been successfully completed, the next three lessons were carried out. These included shooting in open formation, shooting while advancing and shooting while retreating. The last three lessons included

16428-478: The regimental surgeon, there was a hospital mate and several staff doctors in the military hospital. However, there was no organised medical corps; each medical officer wore the uniform of his respective regiment. There was often a lack of competent medical officers. In 1799, the medical officer of the West Middlesex Militia, Dr Hugh Moises, criticised the training of assistant surgeons, noting that

16576-530: The regular militias) functioned as reserve forces with scattered and irregularly distributed units that could be called up in times of national emergency. The volunteer units were privately raised units, usually supported by a wealthy patron or organization. They grew into a large force — in 1806 they comprised almost 329,000 people. During the course of the wars against Napoleon, the British armed forces were expanded by subsequent Acts of Parliament, often by raising additional battalions for existing regiments, so that

16724-412: The remuneration low, it attracted mainly those for whom civilian life was worse. The Duke of Wellington himself said that many of the men "enlist from having got bastard children – some for minor offences – some for drink". They were, he once said, "the scum of the earth; it is really wonderful that we should have made them to the fine fellows they are." In Scotland however, a number of men enlisted due to

16872-460: The same regiment were rarely deployed together, the most important tactical formation was the battalion. It was commanded by a lieutenant-colonel and consisted of ten companies, each of which was commanded by a captain. A number of infantry regiments were newly formed as, or converted into, dedicated regular light infantry regiments. During the early war against the French, the British Army

17020-504: The same time. The Regiment de Roll was originally created from the disbanded Swiss Guards in the pay of France. Dillon's regiment was also formed from Swiss émigrés from French service. These two regiments were merged into a single provisional battalion, termed the Roll-Dillon battalion, at some stage in the Peninsular War. The Regiment de Watteville was another nominally Swiss unit, which actually consisted of many nationalities. It

17168-558: The smallest tactical unit that could operate independently. Heavy and medium cavalry regiments such as dragoons or cuirassiers consisted of four escadrons until the number was reduced to three by 1811. The light cavalry Hussars not only retained their four squadrons, but were even expanded by a fifth in September 1813. The artillery was divided into battalion artillery, mounted artillery and park artillery. The battalion artillery usually consisted of three-pounders or light six-pounders, and

17316-477: The strength were allowed to return to Britain with their husbands, resulting in a large number of women and children abandoned in France, with no provisions or means of returning to their homes. Officers also needed permission from their commanding officers to marry, and for their wives to accompany them, but they were not subject to quota, although restrictions might be made due to the officer's age or seniority. In

17464-447: The strength" and could accompany their husbands on active service, receiving rations and places on troop transports. If there was competition for these places, selections would be made by ballot. Many soldiers also found wives or companions from amongst the local populations, whose presence in the army train was generally tolerated, despite being beyond the quota. However, at the conclusion of the Peninsular War only those wives officially on

17612-440: The supplies as well as subsidies to Britain's allies...revenue agents, who collected the wide variety of taxes imposed to finance the wars; farmers, whose fortunes rose and fell not just with the weather but with the war; elites, who amidst war maintained many of the same old routines and amusements; workers, when the context of war found opportunities for new jobs and higher wages but also grievances that led to strikes and riots; and

17760-448: The tactical application of the first six lessons. Exercising as a squad comprised five lessons covering various formations. Next came marching at normal and fast pace, as well as turning and advancing or retreating from the right or left side of a line. The fourth lesson consisted of: Forming groups of three while standing or marching and some fairly complex pivoting movements. The drill of the battalion consisted of various movements based on

17908-415: The three basic formations of line, column and square: In closed formation, the rank and file were 1.5 meters apart; in open formation, three. If the battalion stopped to fire, or a section stopped to swing forward, the rear rank moved up to within 30 cm of the front rank. When the battalion marched in a line, a possible surplus unit was 4.5 m away from the rearmost unit. In an open column it was within 1.5 m of

18056-426: The troops recently evacuated from Corunna was dispatched to capture the Dutch ports of Flushing and Antwerp . There were numerous delays, and the Austrians had already surrendered when the army sailed. The island of Walcheren , where they landed, was pestilential and disease-ridden (mainly with malaria or "ague"). Although Flushing was captured, more than one third of the soldiers died or were incapacitated before

18204-489: The view of one historian 'always volatile', although officers carried. At least one contemporary print by Charles Hamilton Smith shows enlisted men of the sister regiment wearing pistols, another two by Goddard depict an enlisted man with a single pistol, possibly French pattern, and the other an officer of the 1st with a brace of pistols and enlisted man with one. Kolokotronis sported a brace of engraved pistols and an ornate cavalry-style cuirass , which are now on display at

18352-467: Was always cooked, which resulted in half a litre of broth per day. During the Spanish War of Independence , the ration was 1 pound of biscuits or half a pound of bread, 1 pound of beef or mutton and a pint of wine or 1 ⁄ 3 pint (0.19 litres) of rum . Sometimes the soldiers were put on half rations, or received only one pound of bad beef a day for a whole week. If no bread was available,

18500-510: Was amalgamated into the Royal Foreign Artillery . The Chasseurs Britanniques were originally formed from French Royalist emigres in 1801, and served throughout the wars. The unit served chiefly in the Mediterranean until 1811, when it participated in the later stages of the Peninsular War. It had a good record in battle but later became notorious for desertion, and was not even allowed to perform outpost duty, for fears that

18648-593: Was bolstered by light infantry mercenaries from Germany and the Low Countries , but the British light infantry companies proved inadequate against the experienced and far more numerous French during the Flanders campaign, and in the Netherlands in 1799, and light infantry development became urgent. The first rifle-armed unit, the 5th Battalion of the 60th Regiment, was formed mainly from German émigrés before 1795. An Experimental Corps of Riflemen , armed with

18796-525: Was denoted by the spacing of buttons on the coatee: Major generals wore their buttons in pairs, lieutenant generals in threes and full generals wore their buttons singly spaced. Until the issue of the 1812 pattern infantry cap (or "Belgic") in 1812, company officers wore bicorne hats; afterwards, they usually wore the same headgear as their men while on campaign, their status as officers denoted with braided cords. Generals, field officers and staff officers generally wore bicorne hats. Officers were usually armed with

18944-488: Was driven from Capri in 1808. The next year, British troops occupied several Greek and Dalmatian islands, although the French garrison on Corfu was too strong to be attacked. The British retained their Greek islands until the end of the wars. The Dutch colony at the Cape of Good Hope was a vital port of call on the long sea voyage to India. An expedition was sent to capture it in 1805. (It had first been captured in 1796, but

19092-444: Was expelled by Spanish troops and local militias. General Auchmuty mounted a second invasion of the region in 1807, capturing Montevideo . Lieutenant General Sir John Whitelocke was sent from Britain to take command in the region, arriving at the same time as Major General Robert Craufurd , whose destination had been changed several times by the government, and whose troops had been aboard ship for several months. Whitelock launched

19240-596: Was formed in 1801 from the debris of four Swiss regiments formed by the British for Austrian service, and served at the Siege of Cadiz and in Canada in 1814. The British Army also raised units in territories that were allied to Britain or that British troops occupied. These included the Royal Sicilian Volunteers and two battalions of Greek Light Infantry. Initially the 1st Regiment Greek Light Infantry

19388-553: Was formed, which by 1812 became the 1st (Duke of York's) Greek Light Infantry Regiment and in 1813 a second regiment composed of 454 Greeks 2nd Regiment Greek Light Infantry ) which occupied Paxoi islands. These regiments included many of the men who were afterwards among the leaders of the Greeks in the War of Independence , such as Theodoros Kolokotronis . The British barracks offered only rudimentary living facilities that were little better than prisons. Twenty men were housed in

19536-462: Was in the form of specific regimental badges, or ornamentation for specialised flank companies, but occasionally major differences existed. Highland regiments wore kilts and ostrich feather hats , although six of these regiments exchanged the kilt for regulation trousers or tartan trews in 1809. Officers of Highland regiments wore a crimson silk sash worn from the left shoulder to the right hip. Regimental tartans were worn but they were all derived from

19684-644: Was known as a sub-division. In the Royal Horse Artillery , the tactical unit corresponding to the brigade was the "troop" with six guns. The strengths of the brigade and the troop varied depending on the campaign and they were often less than the official strength. During the later part of the 18th century Britain was divided into three recruiting areas—with England and Wales generally called South Britain —which were further divided into Districts with their own Headquarters. Ireland had separate Districts and organisation, and Scotland, or North Britain ,

19832-627: Was less common. By 1814 there were over 10,000 officers in the army. Britain mobilized a vast civilian support network to support its 1 million soldiers. Historian Jenny Uglow (2015) explores a multitude of connections between the Army and its support network, as summarized by a review of her book by Christine Haynes: a whole host of other civilian, actors, including: army contractors, who provided massive quantities of tents, knapsacks, canteens, uniforms, shoes, muskets, gunpowder, ships, maps, fortifications, meat, and biscuit; bankers and speculators, who funded

19980-567: Was mounted against the French possessions in the West Indies . This was mainly for trade considerations; not only were the French West Indian islands valuable due to their plantation-based economy, but they acted as bases for French privateers who preyed on British merchant ships. The resulting five-year campaign crippled the whole British Army through disease, especially yellow fever . Out of 89,000 British soldiers who served in

20128-416: Was no other way to keep the peace. On the 17th, at two in the morning, the British carried out a false attack between Sestri Ponente and Sampierdarena, with fire support from the artillery. At five in the morning they opened fire on the French battery positioned to the left of Sturla. The Coalition approached the French ships from the coast and attacked with all their forces, amounting to more than 15,000 men,

20276-493: Was normally subordinate to an infantry battalion. Mounted artillery was formed in 1793 to create a type of mobile artillery unit that would follow the cavalry to give it more firepower or to move quickly to where more firepower was needed. Park artillery was the name given to the heavier guns such as the 12 pounders. These guns were less mobile and were used to take up certain advantageous positions from which their greater penetrating power could be brought to bear. From 1800 onwards,

20424-658: Was one administrative area. Home defence, enforcement of law and maintenance of order was primarily the responsibility of the Militia , the Royal Veteran Battalions , the Yeomanry and the Fencibles . Another structure of Recruiting Districts and Sub-Divisions existed alongside this. The British Army drew many of its raw recruits from the lowest classes of Britain. Since army life was known to be harsh, and

20572-645: Was originally intended to attack the Spanish possessions in Central America was diverted to Portugal. Wellesley won the Battle of Vimeiro while reinforcements landed at nearby Maceira Bay. Wellesley was superseded in turn by two superiors, Sir Harry Burrard and Sir Hew Dalrymple , who delayed further attacks. Instead, they signed the Convention of Sintra , by which the French evacuated Portugal (with all their loot) in British ships. Although this secured

20720-535: Was promoted major , and Brigadier General Robert Oswald , late of the 35th Foot as colonel for the Greek Light Infantry Corps , which at that time consisted of only the nominal battalion-sized 1st Regiment. Recruitment began for the second regiment, in order to build up to the corps-level strength, after which Oswald was promoted brigadier for the corps. The regiment was put on British establishment in 1812, becoming an official regiment of

20868-603: Was quite publicly repudiating the policy of his own Government - which was intending to largely restore the status quo ante bellum in Italy; with Austria in possession of Lombardy and the King of Sardinia re-established in Piedmont . For the next month, Bentinck was therefore operating as effectively an independent actor representative of Britain only, as Rosselli says, in the widest sense: in that he held himself to be furthering Britain's true interests, regardless of whether

21016-413: Was replaced by the false-fronted 1812 pattern infantry shako (known today as the "Belgic"). Despite modern literary claims to the contrary light infantry (including Rifle regiments) also converted to the 1812 pattern infantry shako from April 1813 as a letter by Colonel Sir Andrew Barnard of the 95th Rifles states:- " I have had caps enough in store to help the appearance of the 1st Batt. as it used to be but

21164-606: Was returned under the Treaty of Amiens.) British troops under Lieutenant General Sir David Baird won the Battle of Blaauwberg in January 1806, forcing the surrender of the colony. The naval commander of the expedition, Admiral Home Riggs Popham then conceived the idea of occupying the Spanish Plate River colonies. A detachment under Major General William Carr Beresford occupied Buenos Aires for six weeks, but

21312-461: Was supposed also to be a "gentleman", this referred to an officer's character and honourable conduct rather than his social standing. The system of sale of commissions officially governed the selection and promotion of officers, but the system was considerably relaxed during the wars. One in twenty (5%) of the officers from regular battalions had been raised from the ranks, and less than 20% of first commissions were by purchase. The Duke of York oversaw

21460-425: Was the King's German Legion , which was formed in 1803 and was composed mainly of German exiles from Hanover and other north German states. In total, it formed two dragoon regiments (which later became light dragoons), three hussar regiments, eight line and two light infantry battalions, and five artillery batteries. Although it never fought as an independent force, its units were often brigaded together. The units of

21608-473: Was the same argument on his side which dictated his own necessary possession of it. Suddenly threatening to turn his forces against Naples itself and restore the rightful Ferdinand IV if Murat did not give way, Bentinck was quickly reprimanded in a firm note from Castlereagh reminding him that he was instructed to co-operate in every way with Murat and Austria . At which he reluctantly withdrew his bid for Tuscany - which he had likely been hoping to turn into

21756-474: Was there in person. The British general had announced to the Genoese, through an emissary, that he would be inside the city the next day; he counted on the superiority of his strength. This information sparked some demonstrations in the city, and General Fresia considered it his duty to invite the municipality to deploy the Garde Nationale , although there was already some disorder in this body. But there

21904-519: Was used for all drill commands. This was generally the practice in all foreign units recruited by the British at the time. Elements of the regiment were often brigaded with other units, for instance, the assaults on Santa Maura, Genoa and La Spezzia also included elements of the Calabrian Free Corps . The men of the regiment were reported as wearing "Albanian dress" in 1810; their orders stated "clothing and accoutrements were to be made in

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