Chapter III: Part 3

The termination of the war in Europe and North America had been followed by the reduction of the strength of the army, and the second battalion of the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment was disbanded at Londonderry on the 3rd of January, 1816; the men were sent to the Isle of Wight for the purpose of joining the first battalion. The regiment had, however, returned from India, and its numbers being above the establishment of a corps on the Cape station, they were permitted either to volunteer to regiments not complete, or receive their discharge. The establishment, at this period, was fifty-four officers, one thousand and seventy-seven non-commissioned officers and soldiers; but a reduction of thirteen officers and two hundred and ten soldiers was soon afterwards made.

In October one company of the regiment was detached to the frontiers of the colony, to relieve a company of the eighty-third regiment, which had been detached a considerable period.

[Sidenote: 1817]

Lieut.-General Lord Hill was removed to the fifty-third regiment, in February, 1817, and was succeeded in the colonelcy of the SEVENTY-SECOND, by Major-General Sir George Murray, G.C.B., G.C.H.

On the 10th of June four companies of the regiment embarked at Simon’s Town, for Algoa Bay, where they arrived in fifty-four hours, and marched from thence to Graham’s Town, the frontier head-quarters, to relieve the twenty-first light dragoons, who were ordered to proceed to India. These companies were distributed in detachments along the bank of the Great Fish River, to occupy posts established a short time previously, and to construct others, in continuation of a chain, to protect the frontiers against the depredations of the warlike tribes of Kafirs, who maintained a constant state of preparation for aggression and acts of hostility, and whose propensities appear more suited to plunder and warfare, than the cultivation of their country. This proved an arduous and toilsome duty, in a country nearly devoid of resources, infested by savage animals and marauding Kafirs; the soldiers lived under canvas, were frequently exposed to the inclemency of the weather, especially while constructing new posts, and patrols were constantly moving from station to station; yet the men were preserved, by the care and attention of their officers, remarkably healthy, and the eldest soldiers, who had been long accustomed to the comparative ease and luxury of the service at the Mauritius and Cape Town, performed this difficult duty with facility.

[Sidenote: 1819]

Notwithstanding every effort made to cover the country, depredations were frequently committed, and a party of Kafirs having succeeded in stealing a quantity of cattle from a Dutch farmer, in the beginning of February, 1819, the circumstance was reported to Captain Gethin, who was stationed at De Bruins Drift. The captain instantly pursued the robbers, with a few soldiers, accompanied by a number of Dutch farmers, mounted and armed; he came up with the cattle in a country covered with thick underwood, and trusting to the support of the armed farmers, in the event of an attack, he entered the bush with a few men, and was proceeding to drive out the cattle, when the party in advance was surrounded and attacked by a number of Kafirs armed with spears and clubs. The captain and his small party made a determined resistance; but the farmers stood aloof, leaving the soldiers to perish. Captain Gethin was overpowered, and fell pierced with thirty-two wounds; one serjeant and one private soldier were also killed on this occasion. Captain Gethin was a highly respected, brave, and intelligent officer; he had distinguished himself in the Peninsular war, particularly at the siege of St. Sebastian, and had been rewarded with promotion; his death was much regretted.

[Sidenote: 1821]

A detachment of the regiment continued on the frontiers, and took an active part in the border warfare with the Kafirs, whose predatory habits it was found difficult to restrain; the head-quarters remained at Cape Town, with detachments at Simon’s Town and Robben Island, until December, 1821, when it was relieved by the sixth regiment, and embarked for England. Two companies remained behind three months for the want of transport, and fifty soldiers of good character who had claims to pension, were permitted to settle in the country.

On the departure of the regiment from the Cape, the Governor, General Lord Charles Somerset, was pleased to express, in orders, his approbation of the conduct of the corps during its stay at that colony, and to add, that he should not fail to make known its excellent behaviour to the Commander-in-Chief, and to recommend it to His Royal Highness’s particular favour and protection.

[Sidenote: 1822]

In March, 1822, the regiment landed at Portsmouth, from whence it proceeded to Fort Cumberland, and in May to Plymouth, where the two companies left at the Cape, joined in June. In July the regiment embarked for Woolwich, where it occupied part of the Horse Artillery barracks.

[Sidenote: 1823]

The regiment was removed to the islands of Jersey and Guernsey in May, 1823.

Major-General Sir George Murray was removed to the forty-second, the Royal Highland regiment, in September, 1823, and was succeeded by Lieut.-General Sir John Hope from the ninety-second regiment.

The excellent conduct of the regiment on all occasions, which had procured for it the commendations of the general officers under whom it had served, had been repeatedly brought before the Commander-in-Chief, His Royal Highness the Duke of York and Albany, by the commanders of the colonies in which it had served, and had been communicated to His Majesty, King George IV., who was graciously pleased to authorise, on the 11th of December, 1823, its resuming the HIGHLAND COSTUME, with this difference, that the officers and men should wear _trews_ instead of _kilts_: at the same time the King was pleased to approve of its assuming, as a special mark of royal favour and approbation, the title of the “SEVENTY-SECOND, OR THE DUKE OF ALBANY’S OWN HIGHLANDERS.”

[Sidenote: 1824]

On quitting the islands of Jersey and Guernsey in April, 1824, the regiment received a vote of thanks and approbation from the principal inhabitants and public functionaries of the former, and a similar document from the Royal Court of the latter, expressing their high sense and admiration of its discipline, and of the peaceful and orderly behaviour of the non-commissioned officers and soldiers. The regiment embarked from Jersey and Guernsey in April, and proceeded to Plymouth, to relieve the sixty-first foot.

In June His Majesty approved of the regiment assuming, as a regimental badge, the DUKE OF ALBANY’S CIPHER AND CORONET, to be borne on the regimental colour.

From Plymouth, the regiment embarked for Scotland on the 31st of August: it landed at Newhaven on the 13th of September, and was met on the beach by its Colonel, Lieut.-General Sir John Hope, who marched into Edinburgh Castle at its head: the regiment afterwards sent detachments to Stirling, Fort William, and Dumbarton.

[Sidenote: 1825]

New colours having been prepared for the DUKE OF ALBANY’S OWN HIGHLANDERS, the regiment was assembled at Bruntsfield Links, on the 1st of August, 1825, under Lieut.-Colonel Calvert. The new colours were presented to the Colonel, Lieut.-General Sir John Hope, by Lady Hope, with a suitable address; they were afterwards consecrated by the Chaplain, the Rev. Mr. Moon, in an eloquent prayer, in which he implored the God of Battles ever to crown them with honour and victory; Sir John Hope then presented them to the regiment, which was formed in square to receive them, and said:--

“In delivering to your charge these colours, which have been presented to the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment by Lady Hope, I am fully aware that I am not addressing a newly-raised corps, whose name and character have yet to be acquired. As it has pleased His Majesty to confer so distinguished an honour on the regiment, as to permit the SEVENTY-SECOND to assume the name of the DUKE OF ALBANY’S OWN HIGHLANDERS, I cannot omit congratulating the corps on having received so flattering and honorable a mark of approbation, and expressing my conviction, that this additional badge, which is now placed on these colours, will afford a new and powerful inducement for maintaining the high character which the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment has so long and so deservedly possessed. I feel particularly gratified that the honour of delivering these colours has devolved on me, and that their presentation should also have taken place in the capital of the country where the regiment was first raised, and after its return from a long period of honorable and distinguished service. The country being now at peace, there is no opportunity for the SEVENTY-SECOND to gain fresh honours by victories in the field; but the regiment may deserve and obtain almost equal honour and credit by setting an example of discipline and good conduct on home service, which becomes now particularly incumbent when so highly distinguished by being named after His Royal Highness the Commander-in-Chief, to whom the whole army is indebted for the present state of order and discipline to which it has attained. That the SEVENTY-SECOND will ever continue to deserve the approbation of His Royal Highness I make no doubt: and I have now to offer my most sincere good wishes for the prosperity of the corps collectively, and of every individual officer, non-commissioned officer, and private soldier of the regiment.”

Towards the end of July, routes were received for marching to Port Patrick, for embarkation for Ireland; and before quitting Edinburgh, the regiment received the thanks of the Lord Provost and Magistrates for its exemplary conduct; it landed at Donaghadee on the 26th of August; and the head-quarters were established at Belfast.

[Sidenote: 1826]

[Sidenote: 1827]

In September, 1826, the regiment marched to Londonderry, from whence nineteen detachments were sent out; and in May, 1827, the detachments were called in, and the whole proceeded to Dublin.

Orders were received in September to form _six service_ and _four depôt_ companies; the service companies embarked for Liverpool, from whence they proceeded to London, where they arrived on the 9th of October, and took the duty at the Tower.

[Sidenote: 1828]

On the 5th of January, 1828, the first life guards, royal horse guards, four battalions of foot guards, and the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment, were reviewed on the parade in St. James’s park, by Field-Marshal the Duke of Wellington, in presence of Don Miguel, Infant of Portugal.

In April the regiment marched to Canterbury, where it was inspected on the 2nd of June by General Lord Hill, commanding-in-chief, who was pleased to state,--“That although it had been his lot to see and serve with most of the regiments in the service, he felt he should not be doing full justice to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders, if he did not express his particular approbation of every thing connected with them, and add, he had never before seen a regiment their equal in movements, in appearance, and in steadiness under arms.”

The regiment remained at Canterbury until the end of June, when it marched to Gravesend, where it embarked, under the orders of Lieut.-Colonel Arbuthnot, for the Cape of Good Hope--a colony where the reputation of the corps was established, and it landed at Cape Town in September and October following.

[Sidenote: 1830]

In May, 1830, the depôt companies were withdrawn from Ireland, and landing at Glasgow, were stationed in Scotland during the five following years.

[Sidenote: 1833]

While the service companies were stationed in Cape Town, the aggressions of the Kafir tribes, which are divided into three nations,--the Amapendas, the Tambookies, and the Amakosa, assumed a formidable and an atrocious character previously unknown. The colonial boundary extended, on one side, to the Keiskamma, but a chief named Macoma, had been permitted to reside within the British territory. Owing to some atrocities committed by him and his followers on the Tambookies, which were attended with the shedding of human blood within the colony, he was deprived of the lands he held by sufferance in the British territory. His expulsion was, however, not strictly enforced until 1833, when he was removed beyond the boundary, and he became violently exasperated against the British. The predatory habits of the Kafirs also led to disputes, when the British were searching for stolen property, and the lenity observed towards the aggressors emboldened them, and occasioned them to become more audacious in their attacks.

[Sidenote: 1834]

Towards the end of 1834 thousands of Kafirs rushed into the colony, and commenced the work of murder, rapine, and devastation by fire, among the settlers.

[Sidenote: 1835]

The SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders were stationed at Cape Town, when the news of these alarming events arrived at the seat of government, and they were immediately ordered towards the frontiers. Three companies sailed for Algoa Bay, on the 2nd of January, 1835, and arrived at that place on the 10th; the other three companies advanced up the country by horse waggons; and as the regiment approached Graham’s Town, it traversed the scenes of outrage, and witnessed the ruins of once flourishing farms bearing marks of savage vengeance; the town was found barricaded, and the houses turned to fortifications. Ten thousand Kafirs had penetrated the colony, and the smoke of ruined farms, with the cries of widows and orphans, were seen and heard on every side.

Having advanced towards the frontiers, the head-quarters were established at Graham’s Town, and detachments were employed in chasing the vengeful marauders from the confines of the British possessions.

Preparations were made to carry hostilities into the heart of Kafirland, to visit with necessary chastisement the atrocious aggressions of the tribes, and to enforce such measures as should be calculated to prevent the recurrence of similar outrages. The force assembled for this service was divided into four columns: the first was commanded by Lieut.-Colonel JOHN PEDDIE, K.H., SEVENTY-SECOND regiment; it consisted of a detachment of the royal artillery with two guns, a detachment of the Cape mounted riflemen, the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders, a provisional battalion, and the Swellendaham burghers; and in the middle of March it advanced to the right bank of the Keiskamma, from whence it penetrated into the interior of Kafirland. The predatory tribes were incapable of offering serious opposition; they were chastised for their atrocious conduct, subdued, deprived of a portion of their territory bordering on the frontiers of the colony, and such additional precautionary measures were adopted as appeared necessary to ensure the safety of the British subjects.

The SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders were employed in Kafirland during the months of April and May: the head-quarters were afterwards established at King William’s Town until October, when they were removed to Graham’s Town.

In June of this year the depôt companies proceeded from Scotland to Ireland.

[Sidenote: 1836]

On the death of Lieut.-General Sir John Hope, the colonelcy of the regiment was conferred on Major-General Sir Colin Campbell, K.C.B., from the ninety-ninth foot, by commission dated the 15th of August, 1836.

[Sidenote: 1837]

[Sidenote: 1838]

The head-quarters of the service companies remained at Graham’s Town three years, furnishing detachments along the frontiers, occupying posts, and performing much trying and difficult service: in October, 1838, they were relieved from this duty, and returned to Cape Town.

In May, 1838, the depôt companies returned to Scotland.

[Sidenote: 1839]

During the year 1839 the service companies were stationed at Cape Town, and the depôt companies at Paisley and Dundee.

[Sidenote: 1840]

After taking part in the important duty of protecting the possessions of Great Britain at the Cape of Good Hope nearly twelve years, the service companies were relieved in April, 1840, and returned to England, and disembarked at Portsmouth on the 8th of June following: the regiment was subsequently stationed at Fort Cumberland: the depôt had proceeded from North Britain to Portsmouth in May, 1840.

The following general order was issued by Major-General Sir George Napier, K.C.B., commanding the forces at the Cape of Good Hope, on the 10th of April, 1840, upon the embarkation of the SEVENTY-SECOND for England:--

“His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief cannot permit the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders to embark for England, from the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, in which they have been stationed for the long period of twelve years, without his expressing his marked approbation of the conduct of this highly disciplined and exemplary corps while under his immediate command; and from the reports His Excellency has received from Colonel Smith, the Deputy-Quarter Master-General, under whose orders this regiment has been during the greater part of the above period, including a very arduous and active service in the Field, His Excellency is enabled to record, which he does with great satisfaction, the very meritorious services of the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders, in whatever duty they have been engaged, whether in the Field or in Quarters.

“His Excellency begs to assure Major Hope, the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers of the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment, that he will ever feel a lively interest in their welfare.”

[Sidenote: 1841]

In July, 1841, the regiment proceeded from Portsmouth to Windsor.

[Sidenote: 1842]

On the 26th of January, 1842, new colours were presented to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highland regiment by Field-Marshal His Grace the Duke of Wellington, in the quadrangle of Windsor Castle, the ceremony being honoured by the presence of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, the King of Prussia, and other distinguished personages. The following is the Duke of Wellington’s address to the regiment on this interesting occasion:--

“Colonel ARBUTHNOT,[21] and you, Gentlemen, Officers, and you, Non-Commissioned Officers and Soldiers, of the SEVENTY-SECOND Highland regiment,--I have attended here this day, in compliance with the wishes of your Commanding Officer, and by permission of Her Majesty, to present to you your new colours. These colours have been consecrated by one of the highest dignitaries of our Church, and are presented to you in the presence of Her Majesty, and of her Illustrious and Royal Guest the King of Prussia, of Prince Albert, and a number of most distinguished personages. They are composed of the colours of the three nations, and bear the cipher of Her Majesty; and I have no doubt, from your previous character and your present high state of discipline, that you will guard them under every circumstance, to the utmost of your power. These Colours you are henceforth to consider as your Head-Quarters, and in every circumstance, in all times of privation and of distress, you will look to them as your rallying point; and I would again remind you, that their presentation is witnessed by the Monarch of one of the most powerful nations in Europe--a nation which boasts of an army which has heretofore been a pattern for all modern troops,--and which has done so much towards contributing to the general pacification of Europe. I have long known the SEVENTY-SECOND Highland Regiment. Half a century has now nearly elapsed since I had the pleasure of serving in the same Army with them in the Plains of Hindoostan; since that period they have been engaged in the conquest of some of the most valuable colonies of the British Crown; and latterly, in performing most distinguished services at the Cape of Good Hope. Fourteen years out of the last sixteen they have spent on Foreign service; and with only eighteen months at home for their re-formation and their re-disciplining, appear in their present high state of regularity and order. The best part of a long life has been spent by me in Barracks, Camps, and Cantonments, and it has been my duty, as well as my inclination, always to study how best to promote the health and discipline of the troops; and I have always found it only to be done by paying the strictest regard to regularity and good order, and the greatest attention to the orders of their Officers. I address myself now particularly to the older soldiers, and wish them to understand that their strict attention to their discipline, and respect to their superiors, will often have the best effect on the younger soldiers; and it is, therefore, their duty to set a good example to their juniors by so doing; and by these means alone can they expect to command the respect and regard of the community amongst whom they are employed. I have made it my business to enquire particularly, and am rejoiced to find that the SEVENTY-SECOND have always commanded that respect and regard, wherever they have been stationed, to which their high state of discipline and good order so justly entitle them. You will, I am sure, always recollect the circumstances under which these Colours are now given into your charge; having been consecrated by one of the highest dignitaries of the Church, in the presence of Her Majesty, who now looks down upon you, and of her Royal Visitor: and I give them into your charge, confident that at all times, under all circumstances, whether at home or abroad, and in all privations, you will rally round them, and protect them to the utmost of your power.”

Colonel Arbuthnot, in reply, said:--

“My Lord Duke,--It would be highly presumptuous in me, if I were to make any reply to the address which your Grace has delivered to us; but I cannot avoid stating that it is impossible for me, and indeed, I may add, out of the power of any one to express, how deeply I, my Officers, Non-Commissioned Officers, and Men, feel the high honour which has been conferred on us, by having had our Colours presented to us by the greatest Soldier the world has ever seen, and that in the presence of our Sovereign, His Majesty the King of Prussia, and Field-Marshal His Royal Highness Prince Albert.”

The regiment remained at Windsor until April, 1842, when it proceeded to Salford Barracks, from thence to Blackburn, and in September to Bolton, Lancashire.

[Sidenote: 1843]

In April, 1843, the seventy-second regiment proceeded to Dublin, and in August to Templemore, marching from thence to Fermoy in September.

[Sidenote: 1844]

Quitting Fermoy on the 2nd of July, 1844, the regiment proceeded to Buttevant, and on the 28th of September to Cork, having been put under orders for Foreign service. The six service companies, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Lord Arthur Lennox, embarked for Gibraltar in Her Majesty’s troop-ship Resistance, from Cork, on the 27th of November, 1844, and disembarked at their destination on the 12th of December following.

[Sidenote: 1845]

[Sidenote: 1846]

[Sidenote: 1847]

The depôt companies marched from Cork to Templemore in April, 1845, and to Nenagh in February, 1846. In September, 1847, they proceeded to Charles Fort, near Kinsale, and in December were removed to Scotland, and stationed at Paisley.

[Sidenote: 1848]

The regiment remained at Gibraltar until February, 1848, and on the 15th of that month embarked for Barbadoes under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Gascoyne, on board the Bombay transport. The following letter was addressed by General Sir Robert Wilson, Governor of Gibraltar, to the Adjutant-General reporting the embarkation:--

Gibraltar, 15th of February, 1848.

“Sir,

“I have the honour to acquaint you that Her Majesty’s
SEVENTY-SECOND regiment embarked this morning on board the
transport Bombay, and I have the satisfaction to add, that up to
the last moment this distinguished corps conducted itself so
as to merit the highest approbation that could be bestowed on
the commanding officer, officers, non-commissioned officers, and
privates for military qualities, and general deportment towards
the community at large.

I have, &c.
R. T. WILSON,
General and Governor.”

The SEVENTY-SECOND arrived at Barbadoes on the 14th of March, 1848.

The depôt companies continued in North Britain, until the 18th of May, when they embarked for England, under Lieut.-Colonel C. M. Maclean, and arrived at Sheerness on the 24th of May, at which period this Record is concluded.

1848.

SEVENTY-SECOND
OR
DUKE OF ALBANY’S OWN
HIGHLANDERS.

_For Cannon’s Military Records._

_Madeley lith. 3 Wellington S^t Strand._]

FOOTNOTES:

[6] From the Dutch service.

[7] From the Austrian service.

[8] Among the French prisoners was a wounded young serjeant of very interesting appearance and manners, who was treated with much kindness by Lieut.-Colonel Wangenheim, commanding the detachments of Hanoverians. Many years afterwards, when the French army entered Hanover, General Wangenheim attended the levée of General Bernadotte, who referred to the circumstance at Cudalore in 1783, and added,--“I am the individual who, when a young serjeant, received kindness from you in India.”--_Colonel David Stewart on the Scots Highlanders._

[9] “1790, 5th Sept. Camp at Coimbetore.--Dined with Captain Frazer; he talked of nothing but the storm of Palacatcherry. Captain Frazer has applied for, and obtained, the command of the four flank companies; it is very spirited of him, leaving the command of the regiment, and volunteering so dangerous a service; but he was as great as Cæsar this evening, and nothing would serve him but dying in the breach. He often appealed to me, when speaking of what the grenadiers could do.”--_Journal of Lieutenant Ronald Campbell, of the Grenadier Company, Seventy-second Regiment, 2 vols., fol. MS._

[10] LIEUTENANT CAMPBELL, of the SEVENTY-SECOND foot, appears to have been delighted with this part of the Mysore: he states in his journal:--“I have never seen any part of India comparable to the valley on our right; it is truly beautiful beyond conception! The hills that bound it form an amphitheatre, covered with wood, except where a rugged precipice or stupendous rock shows itself, and waterfalls enrich the scene. The valley is covered with delightful verdure, and luxuriant crops, interspersed with clumps of the stateliest trees in the world, bearing a charmingly variegated foliage; and beneath their shade, small houses, built of cajan-leaf and bamboo, afford shelter to the cow-herds who tend their flocks and watch their fields. Numberless villages are strewed in the valley, and everything bears the mark of peace and plenty. The inhabitants are protected by us, and as we passed, we saw in every field the busy husbandmen reaping the fruits of their labour. After coming to our camp ground, I walked out with Captain Braithwaite, and we found the untilled land covered with bringals, yams, and other vegetables, growing spontaneously. On our left hand lie the Animalli woods, famous for their extent and thickness, and for the size, variety, and quality of their trees (teak-wood being in the greatest abundance and perfection); also for the number of wild animals viz.--elephants, tigers, bears, wolves, and the wild-boar, with a numerous tribe of the rarest birds--peacocks in great numbers. Wild elephants are so numerous, that when Tippoo was here, about four months since, he caught, as we are told, seventy of them. We are encamped on the ground he occupied; I can trace the place where, they say, his own tents stood.”

[11] Journal of Lieutenant Ronald Campbell, of the Grenadier Company Seventy-second regiment, 2 vols, fol. MS.

[12] Journal of Lieutenant R. Campbell.

[13] A drawing of this fortress is given in the Journal of Lieutenant Campbell of the Seventy-second Highlanders.

[14] Lieutenant Campbell’s Journal.

[15] On the 12th of August, as the Grenadiers and Captain Gordon’s company of the SEVENTY-SECOND were on duty in the trenches, exposed to a burning sun, and a severe cannonade from the fortress, Colonel Campbell, field officer of the trenches, sent his orderly to Lieutenant Campbell of the Grenadiers, requesting that the piper of the Grenadiers might be directed to play some _pibrachs_. This was considered a strange request to be made at so unsuitable a time; it was, however, immediately complied with: “but we were a good deal surprised to perceive that the moment the piper began, the fire from the enemy slackened, and soon after almost entirely ceased. The French all got upon the works, and seemed more astonished at hearing the bag-pipe, than we with Colonel Campbell’s request.” _Lieutenant Campbell’s Journal._

[16] On the 5th of May, 1801, the regiment lost its distinguished commanding officer, Lieut.-Colonel HUGH FRAZER, who had always evinced a lively interest in its reputation. He entered the army in November, 1775, as lieutenant in the first battalion of the seventy-first regiment, then raised under Major-General Simon Frazer and Lieut.-Colonel Sir William Erskine, for service in North America; and in 1778 he was promoted captain in Seaforth’s Highlanders, now the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment, which corps he accompanied to India. He served with his regiment at the attack on Cudalore, and the capture of Palacatcherry, in 1783; and he commanded the SEVENTY-SECOND during the campaigns in the Mysore in 1790, 1791, and 1792, at the capture of Pondicherry in 1793, and at the conquest of Ceylon in 1795, and was conspicuous for personal bravery, ability, and a deep interest in the honour of his corps. He was always foremost to volunteer his personal services, and those of his regiment, at the post of honour and danger; and some high ground near Seringapatam, the scene of his gallantry, was named “Frazer’s Hill.” He was promoted to the majority of the regiment on the 2nd of March, 1791, and to the lieut.-colonelcy on the 1st of September, 1795. He bequeathed 500_l_ to the officers’ mess, to be appropriated in such manner as should best commemorate his attachment to the corps, and his esteem for the officers.

[17] Number of men which landed at the Cape of Good Hope in January, 1806, under Major-General Sir David Baird:--

+-------------------------+--------------------------+----------------+
| | | Number landed, |
| | | including |
| BRIGADES. | REGIMENTS. | Recruits |
| | | for India, |
| | | attached. |
+-------------------------+--------------------------+----------------+
| 1st. Commanded by { | Twenty-fourth | 600 |
| Brigadier-General { | Thirty-eighth | 900 |
| Beresford { | Eighty-third | 800 |
| | | |
| 2nd. Under Brigadier- { | Seventy-first | 800 |
| General Ferguson { | SEVENTY-SECOND | 600 |
| { | Ninety-third | 800 |
| | Fifty-ninth | 900 |
| | Company’s recruits | 200 |
| | Seamen and marines | 1100 |
| | Artillery | 200 |
| | Twentieth Light Dragoons | 300 |
| | +----------------+
| | Total. | 7200 |
+-------------------------+--------------------------+----------------+

[18] “The soldiers suffered excessively from the heat of the sun, which was as intense as I ever felt it in India; though our fatigue was extreme, yet, for the momentary halt we made, the grenadier company (SEVENTY-SECOND) requested the pipers might play them their regimental quick step, _Capper fiedth_, to which they danced a Highland Reel, to the utter astonishment of the fifty-ninth regiment, which was close in our rear.”--_Journal of Captain Campbell, Grenadier Company_, SEVENTY-SECOND _regiment_.

[19] Afterwards Lieut.-General Sir Colquhoun Grant, K.C.B. and G.C.H., Colonel of the Fifteenth, or King’s Hussars, who died in December 1835.

[20] In December of this year the regiment lost a valuable officer, Lieut.-Colonel RONALD CAMPBELL, extracts from whose Journal have been given in the preceding pages. He performed duty in India with the 36th regiment; and was appointed Ensign in the SEVENTY-SECOND, by commission dated the 20th of November, 1788. He was attached to the grenadier company during the war with Tippoo Sultan, and signalized himself on several occasions, particularly at the storming of Bangalore, and at the capture of Savendroog; he also distinguished himself at both the engagements near Seringapatam. His Journal, with the plans and drawings, contains a detailed account of the leading events of the war with a description of the country; they show the interest he took in his profession, with a laudable desire to become well informed on military subjects, and they prove him to have been an intelligent, brave, and zealous officer. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in May 1792; and served at the capture of Pondicherry in 1793; also at the reduction of the Dutch settlements in Ceylon in 1795; in October, 1797, he obtained the command of a company. In 1805 he was brigade-major to Brigadier-General M^c Farlane, who commanded a portion of the Western district in Ireland, and was afterwards appointed brigade-major in Jamaica, but resigned his situation on the staff of that island, to command his company (the grenadiers) in the expedition to the Cape of Good Hope, where he had additional opportunities of distinguishing himself, and was appointed Commissary of Prisoners. On the 22nd of November, 1807, he was promoted major in his regiment, which he accompanied, in 1810, with the expedition against the Mauritius, where many valuable stores were captured, and he was nominated prize-agent to the brigade from the Cape of Good Hope. In 1812 he was promoted to the rank of Lieut.-colonel in the army, and appointed deputy adjutant-general to the forces serving on the island of Jamaica. He performed the duties of that situation two years, and fell a victim to the climate, his decease taking place on the first night after his arrival at Portsmouth, on the 14th of December, 1814. He had the reputation of a virtuous, brave, intelligent, humane officer, endowed with a strict sense of honor and distinguished as a polite gentleman and scholar.

[21] Colonel Charles George James Arbuthnot was appointed from the half-pay unattached to the SEVENTY-SECOND regiment on the 25th of September, 1826, and on the 17th on May, 1831, was removed to the ninetieth light infantry; on the 23rd of February, 1838, he exchanged to his former regiment, the SEVENTY-SECOND; and on the 28th of June of that year, he was promoted colonel by brevet. In November, 1841, he was appointed one of the Equerries to Her Majesty, and on the 14th of April, 1843, was removed to the half-pay unattached.

SUCCESSION OF COLONELS

OF

THE SEVENTY-SECOND,

OR THE

DUKE OF ALBANY’S OWN HIGHLANDERS.

KENNETH, EARL OF SEAFORTH.

_Appointed Lieut.-Colonel Commandant 29th Dec. 1777_.

Kenneth Mackenzie, grandson of William fifth Earl of Seaforth, who was deprived of his title and estates by act of attainder, for joining the rebellion headed by the Earl of Mar in 1715, adopted a line of conduct more consistent with the best interests of his country, than that pursued by his ancestors, and was a zealous supporter of the house of Hanover. He was created Baron of Ardelve in the county of Wicklow, and Viscount of Fortrose, in Scotland, in 1766, and advanced to the dignity of EARL OF SEAFORTH, in Ireland, in 1771. Grateful for these marks of royal favour, and anxious to promote the well-being of the kingdom, when Great Britain was engaged in war with the United States, and menaced by France, Spain, and Holland, he tendered his services to raise a regiment of Highlanders, now the SEVENTY-SECOND, of which he was appointed lieut.-colonel commandant by commission dated the 29th of December, 1777. His corps was soon fit for active service, and was admired for its warlike appearance. He embarked with it for the East Indies, and died on the passage in August, 1781, when his titles became extinct.

THOMAS FREDERICK MACKENZIE HUMBERSTON.

_Appointed Lieut.-Colonel Commandant, 13th Feb. 1782_.

Thomas Frederick Mackenzie Humberston, grandson of Colonel the Honorable Alexander Mackenzie, second son of Kenneth fourth Earl of Seaforth, was appointed Cornet in the first dragoon guards in June, 1771; in 1775 he was promoted to a Lieutenancy, and in 1777 to Captain of a troop in the same corps. He took great interest in the formation of the Highland corps raised by his cousin, the Earl of Seaforth, now the SEVENTY-SECOND, or the Duke of Albany’s Own Highlanders, in which regiment he was appointed Captain in January, 1778, and Major in March, 1779. He was quartered with his regiment at Jersey, and took an active share in repulsing the attempt made by a body of French troops to land on that island on the 1st of May, 1779. He afterwards took an active part in the formation of another corps of Highlanders, which was numbered the 100th regiment, of which he was appointed Lieut.-Colonel Commandant on the 5th of August, 1780. Soon after its formation, the 100th regiment was selected to form part of an expedition against the Cape of Good Hope, and its commandant had the local rank of Colonel in the expedition; the naval part of the enterprise was under the direction of Commodore Johnstone. While the fleet was at Praya Bay, in St. Jago, one of the Cape de Verd Islands, it was suddenly attacked by a French squadron; Colonel Humberston happened to be on shore at the time; but so great was his ardour to share in the enterprise, that he swam to one of the ships that was engaged with the enemy, who was repulsed. In the meantime the Dutch garrison at the Cape had been reinforced, the project of attacking that colony was laid aside, and Colonel Humberston proceeded with the land force to Bombay, where he arrived on the 22nd of January, 1782.

In the meantime the Earl of Seaforth had died on the passage, without male issue, and Colonel Humberston purchased his estates, and succeeded him in the command of the regiment, now SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders.

After a short stay at Bombay, Colonel Humberston sailed for Madras, but receiving alarming news on the voyage, of the success of Hyder Ali, he called a council of war, which decided, that a diversion on the Malabar side of Hyder’s dominions would be likely to prove of great advantage to the British interest; he accordingly landed at Calicut on the 18th of February, with a thousand men, and joining Major Abington’s Sepoys, assumed the command of the united force. He took the field, drove Hyder’s troops before him, and captured several forts. The monsoon approaching, he returned to Calicut, and placed the troops in quarters; he afterwards concluded a treaty with the sovereign of Travancore, who reinforced him with twelve hundred men. In September he again advanced--obtained possession of Ramjarree, and approached Palacatcherry, and had the misfortune to lose a portion of his baggage, when an attack was made on his rear. Hyder Ali detached his son Tippoo Saib against Colonel Humberston, with twenty thousand men; this force approached the British division and attacked its rear. After fighting every step of a long march, the colonel arrived at the river Paniané, which appeared impassable, but, after a painful search of two hours, a deep ford was found, and the soldiers passed the river, up to the chin in water, and only lost two black camp followers; they afterwards gained the fort of Paniané. Tippoo expected to find Colonel Humberston’s force an easy prey, and neglected to keep strict watch; he was surprised to find the British had passed the river. He afterwards attempted to carry the lines at Paniané by assault; but was repulsed with severe loss on the 28th of November. He blockaded the fort until he heard of his father’s death, when he withdrew.

Colonel Humherston afterwards joined the troops under Major-General Matthews, and was employed in several operations on the Malabar coast. He subsequently accompanied Colonel Macleod to Bombay, to make some representations to the council, and sailed from thence, on the 5th of April, 1783, in the Ranger, to rejoin the army. Three days afterwards that vessel was attacked by the Mahratta fleet, and after a desperate resistance of five hours, was taken possession of. Every officer on board was either killed or wounded, and among them the gallant Colonel Humberston was shot through the body with a four-pound ball, of which he died at Geriah on the 30th of April, 1783.

JAMES MURRAY.

_Appointed Lieut.-Colonel Commandant, 1st November, 1783, and Colonel in 1786._

James Murray, second son of Lord George Murray, who was lieut.-general of the Pretender’s forces during the rebellion in 1745 and 1746, served many years in the Forty-second Highlanders, in which corps he was appointed Captain on the 20th of July, 1757. He served with his regiment in North America, under General Sir Jeffery (afterwards Lord) Amherst, and after the conquest of Canada in 1760 he returned to Europe, and served under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick in Germany, where he received a musket-ball in the breast, which could never be extracted, and which prevented his being able to lie in a recumbent posture during the remainder of his life. In 1769 he was promoted to captain and lieut.-colonel on the 18th of December, 1777. He took an active part in the formation of the regiment of Highlanders raised by his uncle, John fourth Duke of Athol, which was numbered the 77th regiment, and he was appointed to the colonelcy by commission dated the 25th of December, 1777: in 1782 he was promoted to the rank of major-general. At the peace in 1783, when the Athol Highlanders were disbanded, he was nominated commandant of the Seventy-eighth, now SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders. He was appointed governor of Fort William, in Scotland; was many years a member of parliament for the county of Perth, and was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general in 1793. He died on the 19th of March, 1794. About eight weeks before his death he was stopped by two footpads on Hounslow Heath, when he jumped out of his carriage, drew a dirk, wounded one, and put both to flight.

ADAM WILLIAMSON.

_Appointed 19th March, 1794._

Adam Williamson entered the army in the reign of King George II., and on the 21st of April, 1760, he was promoted captain in the fortieth regiment. He served in North America during the seven years’ war, and in 1770 he was promoted to the majority of the sixty-first foot, with which corps he served at the island of Minorca; on the 9th of December, 1775, he was promoted to the lieut.-colonelcy of the eighteenth regiment, which corps he commanded many years with credit to himself, and advantage to the service. On the 20th of April, 1790, he was rewarded with the rank of major-general, and in July following with the colonelcy of the forty-seventh regiment, from which he was removed in 1794 to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders. In January, 1797, he was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general; he was also honored with the dignity of Knight of the Order of the Bath, and appointed governor of Jamaica. His death took place on the 21st of October, 1798, and was occasioned by a fall.

JAMES STUART.

_Appointed 23rd October, 1798._

James Stuart commenced his career of brilliant and honorable service, as ensign in the sixty-fourth regiment, in October, 1761; in 1764 he was promoted to a lieutenancy, and in 1768 he accompanied the regiment to North America, where he was advanced to captain of the grenadier company in 1770. He was stationed at Boston when hostilities commenced between Great Britain and the colonies in North America. He shared in the severe duties at Boston during the winter of 1775-6, when that town was blockaded on the land side by the Americans, and subsequently proceeded to Halifax, from whence he sailed with the expedition towards New York, and was employed, under General Sir William Howe, in the reduction of Long Island, in August, 1776, also in the movements by which possession was gained of New York, and the Americans forced from their positions at White Plains, which was followed by the capture of Fort Washington and Fort Lee. In the summer of 1777 he was engaged in operations in the Jerseys, and afterwards in the expedition to Pennsylvania; he was engaged at the battle of Brandywine, and in repulsing the attack of the Americans on the position at Germantown. In the winter he was selected, as an officer of ability and experience, for the commission of major in the regiment of Highlanders, raised by the Earl of Seaforth, now the SEVENTY-SECOND, or Duke of Albany’s Own Highlanders, to which he was appointed by commission dated the 18th of December, 1777; but he did not arrive from America until August, 1778. He accompanied his regiment to the East Indies in 1781, with the local rank of lieut.-colonel in that country, and on the 2nd of June, 1782, he was at the action with the forces of Hyder Ali near Arnee, under Lieut.-General Sir Eyre Coote. He commanded his regiment, in which he had been appointed lieut.-colonel in February, 1782, under Major-General Stuart, in the action near Cudalore, on the 13th of June, 1783, and was commended in the general’s public despatch, and in orders. He served at the siege of Cudalore; and subsequently penetrated into the Mysore under Colonel Fullerton, and was at the capture of the fortresses of Palacatcherry and Coimbetore. In 1788 he commanded a detachment sent against the refractory Rajah of the little Murwar country, when he engaged his opponents at Kallengoody, and captured Caliacoil, the capital. When Tippoo Sultan attacked the Rajah of Travancore, a British ally, Lieut.-Colonel Stuart commanded the left wing of the army assembled on Trichinopoly plain under Major-General Medows, and penetrated the Mysore. After the capture of Caroor, Daraporum, and Coimbetore, he was detached on the 23rd of July, 1790, against Palacatcherry, but his progress was impeded by heavy rains and mountain torrents, and his force was too weak for the reduction of the fortress; he therefore returned to Coimbetore. He was again detached, on the 2nd of August, against the fortress of Dindigal, which he took after a short siege. He afterwards traversed the country to Palacatcherry, which he besieged, and, when a practicable breach was made in the works, the garrison surrendered. He subsequently rejoined the army with his detachment, and was commended in general orders; and he took part in the operations of the campaign, evincing great personal bravery and ability on all occasions.

Lieut.-Colonel Stuart commanded the right wing of the army under General Charles Earl Cornwallis, K.G., during the campaign of 1791; and after the capture of Bangalore the commander-in-chief expressed in orders his “most grateful remembrance of the valuable and steady support afforded him by Lieut.-Colonel Stuart.” The lieut.-colonel also evinced personal gallantry and judgment at the battle near Seringapatam on the 15th of May, 1791, and in the other operations of this arduous campaign, including the retreat to Bangalore. On the 9th of December he was detached against Savendroog, which he captured by storm on the 21st of that month; and three days afterwards he took the fortress of Outra-Durgum by a _coup de main_, for both of which services he was highly commended in general orders. He commanded the centre division, under Earl Cornwallis, at the attack of the fortified lines at Seringapatam on the 6th of February, 1792, when he again distinguished himself, and also in the subsequent operations until the power of Tippoo was subdued, and he solicited terms of peace. On the 8th of August, 1792, he was honored with the appointment of aide-de-camp to the King, with the rank of colonel; and in February, 1795, he was promoted to the rank of Major-General. He commanded the expedition against the Dutch Settlements in the island of Ceylon, captured Trincomalee after a short siege, took the forts and island of Manaar, and completed the conquest of the Dutch colony at Ceylon by the reduction of Colombo in February, 1796. On the 3rd of May following he was promoted to the local rank of lieut.-general in the East Indies, and appointed commander-in-chief of the army under the Bombay presidency. On the 2nd of March, 1797, he was appointed colonel of the eighty-second regiment, and in 1798 he was removed to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders.

When Tippoo Sultan sought union with the republican government of France, for the purpose of waging war against the British power in India, Lieut.-General Stuart commanded the forces from Bombay, which co-operated from Malabar, in the invasion of the Mysore. Having passed the eastern frontier, he was met by Tippoo at the head of a numerous force, and he repulsed the attack of the Mysorean army at Seedasere on the 6th of March, 1799. He afterwards advanced to Seringapatam, where he arrived in the early part of May, and took part in the siege of that fortress, which was captured by storm on the 4th of May, 1799, when Tippoo Sultan was killed, which terminated the war.

On the 24th of February, 1801, Lieut.-General Stuart was appointed commander-in-chief of the forces on the coast of Coromandel; in 1802 he was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general; and in 1805 he returned to England. He was advanced to the rank of general in 1812. The decease of the excellent and highly respected officer occurred in 1815, after a distinguished service of fifty-four years.

ROWLAND LORD HILL, G.C.B.

_Appointed 26th April, 1815._

Removed to the fifty-third foot in 1817, and to the Royal Horse Guards in 1830.

SIR GEORGE MURRAY, G.C.B., G.C.H.

_Appointed 24th February, 1817._

Removed to the forty-second, the Royal Highland regiment, in 1823.

SIR JOHN HOPE, G.C.H.

_Appointed 6th September, 1823._

John Hope entered the Dutch service, as a cadet, in one of the Scots regiments (Houston’s) in the service of the United Provinces, in 1778, and served at Bergen-op-zoom and Maestricht, going through the subordinate ranks of corporal and serjeant. In 1779 he was appointed ensign, and in 1782 he was promoted captain of a company; but, being called upon to renounce his allegiance to the British monarch, he quitted the Dutch service, and in 1787 he was appointed captain in the sixtieth foot, but his company was soon afterwards reduced. On the 30th of June, 1788, he was appointed captain in the thirteenth light dragoons, and in 1792 he was nominated aide-de-camp to Lieut.-General Sir William Erskine, in which capacity he served the campaigns of 1793 and 1794, in Holland, and returned to England in 1795, when he was promoted to the majority of the twenty-eighth light dragoons, and in 1796 to the lieut.-colonelcy of the same corps, with which he embarked for the Cape of Good Hope in the same year. He served at the Cape until 1799, when his regiment was incorporated in other corps, and he returned to England. In April, 1799, he was appointed to the thirty-seventh foot, which corps he joined in 1800, in the West Indies, where he remained until 1804, when he returned to England, and exchanged to the sixtieth regiment. In 1805 he was nominated assistant adjutant-general in Scotland, and in 1807 he served as deputy adjutant-general to the expedition to Copenhagen, under Lieut.-General Lord Cathcart. He was appointed brigadier-general on the staff of North Britain in 1808, and subsequently deputy adjutant-general in that part of the United Kingdom. He was promoted to the rank of major-general in 1810, and appointed to the staff of the Severn district, from whence he was removed to the staff of the Peninsula in 1812, and served with the army under the Duke of Wellington at the battle of Salamanca, for which he received a medal. He subsequently served on the staff of Ireland and North Britain until 1819, when he was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general. He was honored with the dignity of Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order. In 1820 he was appointed colonel of the ninety-second regiment, from which he was removed, in 1823, to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders. He died in August 1836.

SIR COLIN CAMPBELL, K.C.B.

_Appointed 15th August, 1836._

This officer commenced his military career, as an ensign in the First West India regiment, his commission being dated 3rd of October, 1799. On the 21st of August, 1801, he was promoted lieutenant in the thirty-fifth regiment, and on the 12th of February, 1802, he exchanged into the seventy-eighth regiment, from which he was promoted to a company in the seventy-fifth foot on the 9th of January, 1805. He obtained the brevet rank of Major on the 2nd of September, 1808, and was promoted to the rank of major in the seventieth regiment on the 15th of December following; he was promoted to the brevet rank of lieut.-colonel in May, 1810, which was subsequently ante-dated to the 15th of December, 1808. On the 13th of August, 1812, he exchanged to the sixty-third regiment; on the 4th of June, 1814, was promoted to the rank of colonel, and on the 25th of July, 1814, was appointed lieut.-colonel in the Coldstream regiment of foot guards. He served during the Peninsular war, and was for a considerable time upon the staff of the army under the Duke of Wellington. The Prince Regent appointed him a Knight Commander of the Most Honorable Military Order of the Bath on the 2nd of January, 1815, and he also received a cross and six clasps for Talavera, Busaco, Fuentes d’Onor, Badajoz, Salamanca, Vittoria, Pyrenees, Nivelle, Nive, and Toulouse. Sir Colin Campbell also greatly distinguished himself in the field at the ever memorable Battle of Waterloo. He was advanced to the rank of major-general on the 27th of May, 1825, and in March, 1828, was appointed Lieut.-Governor of Portsmouth;--on the 15th of August, 1834, His Majesty King William IV. conferred upon him the colonelcy of the ninety-ninth regiment, from which he was removed to the SEVENTY-SECOND Highlanders on the 15th of August, 1836. On the 28th of June, 1838, he obtained the rank of lieut.-general, and Her Majesty, in July, 1839, was graciously pleased to appoint Sir Colin Campbell to serve upon the staff of the army in Nova Scotia and its dependencies; in November, 1840, he was appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Ceylon, from which island he had returned but a short period, when, after an illness of only two days, he expired at his residence in King Street, St. James’s, on Sunday the 13th of June, 1847.

LIEUT.-GENERAL SIR NEIL DOUGLAS, K.C.B. AND K.C.H.

_Appointed from the Eighty-first regiment on the 12th of July, 1847._

London: Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS, Stamford Street.
For Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

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

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