Chapter VII: Part 7

With the first division were landed the seven military artificers of the ‘Ajax,’ who were present in the action of that morning; and eight hours afterwards commenced to trace the necessary works for besieging Aboukir Castle. Next day the remainder of the detachment landed from the ‘Asia’ transport, and dispersed in small parties of about four each to the several brigades of the army, advanced to Alexandria. Under the direction of their officers, the ‘Ajax’ artificers superintended the construction of batteries for eleven guns and three mortars in front of Aboukir, laying all the platforms themselves, and restoring, when damaged by the enemy’s fire, the cheeks of the embrasures which were formed by a double row of sand-bags backed or strengthened by a row of casks filled with earth, a plan suggested by Major M‘Kerras, royal engineers, previously to his being killed; but which was not again resorted to, during the subsequent operations of the campaign. On the 19th March the castle surrendered.

On the heights of Alexandria, the artificers with the column under Sir Ralph Abercrombie, superintended the erection of batteries and redoubts of sand-bags, fascines, and gabions, which formed a strong line of defence from the sea to Lake Maedie. The Aboukir party joining on the 20th, also assisted in the works until their completion. Unable, from being unarmed, to take an active part in the battle of Alexandria on the 21st March, they occupied themselves in the essential duty of carrying shot, shell, and ammunition to the artillery and the troops.

After the battle the military artificers had the charge, under their officers, of renewing the works on the heights, and when completed were appointed to aid in effecting the inundation of a portion of the country. This was accomplished by cutting seven channels in the dyke of the canal of Alexandria, through which the waters of Lake Aboukir rushed into Lake Mareotis, then nearly dry, and about ten feet below the level of Lake Aboukir. Across the Nile they subsequently threw a bridge of boats, to facilitate the communication between Alexandria and Rosetta, re-forming it when swept away by the rapidity of the current; and afterwards they assisted in the construction of a similar bridge across the openings in the dyke of the canal of Alexandria for the convenience of the shipping.

Four of the artificers who were at the siege of the castle of Aboukir were attached to the brigade under Colonel Spencer, and served at the reduction of Rosetta, Fort St. Julian—against which they constructed batteries for two guns and two mortars—Elhamet, Alkam, and Rahmanieh.

Shortly after they proceeded to Grand Cairo and were present at its surrender on the 27th June. A brief interval elapsed, when they returned to Alexandria, by the river Nile, in the large which contained the field equipment of the detachment. On reaching Alexandria, the entire detachment was divided into two parties, one under Captain Bryce, the chief engineer, and the other under Captain Ford, royal engineers; and were subsequently present at the siege of the castle of Marabout, the taking of Redoubt de Bain, and at the final fall of Alexandria on the 27th August. No casualties in killed and wounded are reported to have taken place among the men during the campaign; and though no particular testimony to their merits appears to have been recorded, from the circumstance of their being so few in number, and from the absence of prominent occasions of exhibiting their zeal and efficiency, arising from the enemy capitulating and surrendering many of his works without resistance, still they were permitted in common with the other troops that served in Egypt, to wear the device of the Sphinx on their appointments. A like honour was also conferred upon the military artificers who served with the mission to Turkey.

Immediately following the capture of Alexandria, an expedition was sent to Elba, under Admiral Lord Keith and General Sir Eyre Coote. Five military artificers were attached to it on board the ‘Amphitrite’ transport, under the orders of Captain Birch, royal engineers; but, when between Rhodes and Candia, an English man-of-war brought intelligence of peace to Lord Keith, and the descent upon the island was relinquished. Thereupon the ‘Amphitrite’ sailed for Malta, where the artificers remained for six weeks, employed in repairing the fortifications. During this period, they were joined by others of the detachment from Alexandria, and re-embarking, arrived in England in February, 1802. The residue of the detachment, detained for a while at Alexandria and Malta watching the development of events, reached these shores in August, 1803.

On the Duke of Kent being appointed Governor of Gibraltar, his first care was to introduce some wholesome regulations for diminishing the drunkenness and crime so prevalent in the garrison. Stringent measures were therefore adopted with regard to the sale of liquors and wines in the canteens, scrupulous attention was paid to the appearance of the men in the streets, and drill and discipline were rigorously enforced. These reforms, however, were received with much discontent; and on Christmas-eve of 1802 the stifled feeling of insubordination broke out into mutiny.

In this _émeute_ the greater part of the military artificers took an unequivocal but unimportant part. The Duke’s new rules interfered more essentially with the practices and indulgences of the companies, than with any other troops in the garrison. Besides being subjected to the general rigours imposed on the troops, the artificers were deprived of the privilege of working privately in the town, and were once a week taken from the command of their own officers, and drilled and disciplined by the Town Major. These innovations upon old usages produced considerable disaffection in the companies, and many of the more reckless and turbulent were not backward in ranging themselves on the side of the mutineers. Joining a party of the Royals at night, at the Town Range Barracks, they proceeded in company to the South Barracks, where, on approaching to make arrangements for a simultaneous rising, the 18th Royal Irish fired upon them, with no better result than tearing the feather from the hat of one of the privates of the artificers.

This harmless volley had the effect of cooling the ardour of the mutineers, and the rebel artificers becoming tranquil, returned home; but on the Saturday following, another and more decided exhibition being expected, the officers of engineers met at the barracks, to endeavour to prevent any co-operation with the mutineers. Meanwhile the companies received their working pay, and all restrictions being taken off the canteen, the intemperance that followed soon rendered the men too insensible to discharge any duty effectually, either for the Crown or the mutineers. During the night a strong party of the 25th regiment appeared at the gates to demand the services of the companies; but sergeant William Shirres, assisted by a small guard of the corps, closed and daringly held the gates against the exasperated rebels, and prevented any communication with the barracks. Without entering further into the progress of the mutiny, it will be sufficient to add, that it was soon suppressed, and three of the ringleaders of the 25th regiment were shot on the Grand Parade by sentence of a general court-martial.

A few days after the Duke of Kent ordered the companies to be specially paraded for his inspection. Having passed down the ranks and moved to the front, his Royal Highness addressed them. He appeared to have been informed that the artificers had joined with the Royals and 25th regiment in their intemperate display; but added, that he felt every reluctance to give credence to the report, and also made some complimentary allusions to the services of the companies at the fortress. He then desired to know if there were any complaints, in order, if reasonable, to adjust them. The men, thus courteously invited, having stated their wish to be drilled by their own officers, his Royal Highness directed the Town Major to manœuvre the companies. Carefully the Duke watched the firelock exercise and the execution of the various evolutions, and, expressing his satisfaction with their appearance and drill, granted their request.

This year the cocked hat, worn since 1797, was superseded by the chaco, similar in size and shape to the one commonly adopted in the army. So strange an alteration—from the sage-like cocked hat to its trim substitute—obtained for the new head-gear the cimmerian appellation of the “smoke-jack.” The white heckle feather worn with the cocked hat, was retained. See Plate IX. As time wound up, this description of chaco lost its upright lines for one which, approaching a cone in shape, was called the “sugar-loaf cap.” The latter, again, was superseded by another in 1813, which, from its peculiar form, was familiarly styled the “bang-up.”

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Royal Military Artificers Plate IX.
UNIFORM 1802 Printed by M & N Hanhart.

]

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1803-1805.

Party to Ceylon—The treaty of Amiens broken—State of West India
company—Capture of St. Lucia—Tobago—Demerara, Essequibo, and
Berbice—Works at Spike Island—Capture of Surinam—Conduct of private
George Mitchell—Batavian soldiers join West India Company—Fever at
Gibraltar—Consequent mortality.—Humane and intrepid conduct of three
privates—Invasion of England—Works at Dover—Jersey—Chelmsford—Martello
towers at Eastbourne—Bomb tenders at Woolwich—Recruiting—Volunteers
from the Line and Militia—Treaty of St. Petersburgh—Party to
Naples—Ditto to Hanover.

Lieutenant-Colonel Bridges having been appointed commanding royal engineer in Ceylon, he applied for a detachment of the military artificers to accompany him to that station. The requisite sanction being procured, six artificers, comprising one corporal, two carpenters, one mason, one bricklayer, and one smith, embarked for the East in January. The precise object of despatching so small a party to so distant a settlement cannot now be learned, but every care was taken to choose men for the service whose activity and abilities as craftsmen were well known, and whose conduct was unexceptionable. “Select,” says the order to the officer called upon to furnish the party, “such men as you would prefer if going on the service yourself.” In June the party arrived at Trincomalee, but what specific services were performed by them in the colony it would be idle to conjecture. Before the autumn of 1806, four of the men died, but the other two held up against the climate till 1815, when one left for England and was discharged,[126] and the other died in April, 1817.

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Footnote 126:

John Wallace. It is related of him that he was lost sight of for many
months, and his appearance at Woolwich gave rise to as much surprise
as his person to doubt. All traces of the original man had worn away,
and from the oddness of his dress, and peculiarity of his manners, the
task of recognition was rendered still more perplexing. Eventually,
satisfactory proofs of his identity being obtained, he was again
acknowledged and discharged on a pension of 1_s._ 6_d._ a-day, his
service in the corps having exceeded thirty-three years.

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The treaty of peace between France and Great Britain was signed on the 27th March, 1802, and hailed everywhere with exultation. Soon, however, Buonaparte began to exhibit a spirit at variance with the solemn engagement, and his irrepressible ambition forced him to seek occasions for gratifying it. Increased power and dominion were the engrossing objects of his genius; and, singular as it may appear, states and republics fell under his sway without his lifting a sword to conquer them. All this transpired while yet the burst of joy at the peaceful negotiation was ringing in the courts of Europe; but Great Britain, though a sullen spectator of these events, caring more to be blamed for reluctance than impetuosity, at length interfered, and the result was, that war was declared with the French republic on the 18th May, 1803.

At that period the company stationed in the West Indies had nearly reached its establishment; and, as the sickness, so rife in former years, had greatly lessened both in malignity and extent, the general health of the men had much improved. So keen was Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley about maintaining his company complete, that whenever a death occurred or an artificer quitted the station through ill health, he invariably applied direct to the general officer in command of the troops, to order a tradesman of approved qualification and conduct to be transferred to it from the line. Alike interested in the efficiency of the company, the general officer always acceded to his request; and the company, consequently, was in excellent condition for affording effective co-operation in any active service.

Intelligence of the renewal of hostilities soon reached the West India islands, and an expedition was forthwith prepared to be employed in the capture of St. Lucia, under the command of General Grinfield and Commodore Hood. To this force were attached one sergeant-major, three sergeants, five corporals, and sixty-eight privates of the military artificers, who were engaged, on the 22nd June, in the storming of Morne Fortuné and taking of St. Lucia. Corporal William Dyson was killed at the storm,[127] but of the wounded, no particulars exist. Of the services of Colonel Shipley and his company in this capture, the General, under date of June 22nd, thus wrote:—“To Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley and the royal engineers, he is indebted in a high degree for assistance and professional advice.”[128]

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Footnote 127:

In the ‘London Gazette,’ 26 to 30 July, 1803, this corporal is, by
mistake, returned as sergeant.

Footnote 128:

‘London Gazette Extraordinary,’ August 15, 1803.

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In July the same company was present at the capitulation of Tobago, which surrendered without bloodshed to the forces under General Grinfield. “Great praise,” says the General in his orders of the 1st July, “is also due to the alertness and readiness of the royal artillery and royal artificers in their embarkation and disembarkation, both of themselves, ordnance, and stores, and for their attention to their discipline and duties” [129]

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Footnote 129:

Ibid.

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In the following September, Colonel Shipley and one sergeant-major, three sergeants, one corporal, and thirty-three privates, were attached to another expedition under the same General, and were present at the capture of the colonies of Demerara, Essequibo, and Berbice. Like Tobago, these islands surrendered without resistance. At each of the subjugated settlements and at Trinidad, a small party was left to carry on the current services and improve the defences. The head-quarters still remained at Martinique. During the year the deaths in the company did not exceed twelve men; and its strength at the end of the year was eighty-seven of all ranks, of whom only eight were ineffective from sickness.

Early in the year Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Charles Holloway was appointed commanding royal engineer at Cork, and at once commenced a minute examination of the fortifications under his charge. These were found to be defective, inasmuch as they did not sufficiently command the surrounding country and harbour. Sir Charles, therefore, among many works which he suggested for the defence of the district, projected an extensive fort for Spike Island to be erected on the site of Westmoreland Fort, which was to be demolished. Authorized to carry his plans into execution, he applied and obtained in October, the services of an efficient detachment of tradesmen, consisting of a sergeant, and master mason, thirteen artificers, and one labourer of the Woolwich company, to aid in destroying the old fort and in erecting the proposed new one. As the works progressed and their completion was pressed, the detachment, in December, 1804, was augmented to thirty-eight non-commissioned officers and artificers; and in January, 1805, to a full company of one hundred strong, under the denomination of the “Spike Island Company.” Between five and six thousand civil mechanics and labourers were daily employed at the fort, over whom, to a certain extent, were placed the non-commissioned officers of the company, as masters of the respective trades, or foremen of particular portions of the work.

Arrangements for an expedition against Surinam having been perfected, Major-General Sir Charles Green and Commodore Hood sailed there in April. Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley, royal engineers, as also one sergeant-major, two corporals, twenty privates, and one drummer of the artificers accompanied it, the rest of the company not being available for the service in consequence of being greatly dispersed through the different islands. Surinam being very difficult of approach, Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley, on the 29th April, went on shore to procure tidings with respect to the best means of reaching the settlement. On returning, he reported that a body of troops might be conducted to the rear of Forts Leyden and Frederici. Accordingly, twenty of the military artificers with side arms and felling axes, ten of the 6th West India regiment similarly provided, a detachment of 140 men of the 64th regiment, and about thirty seamen, all under Brigadier-General Hughes, landed on the night of the 29th, and proceeded through almost impassable woods, led by negro guides, to the place of assault. After five hours' laborious marching, the stormers arrived near the rear of Frederici Battery, which was gallantly taken, as was also Fort Leyden soon after; and Surinam surrendered on the 5th May. “No obstacle,” says the despatch of Sir Charles Green, “could damp the enterprising spirit of our seamen and soldiers. They underwent great fatigue in executing these works, which, however, they cheerfully submitted to under Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley, who, as usual, was unceasing in his exertions.”[130] Severe as the storming is described to have been, only three soldiers were killed; of whom one was a military artificer,[131] private James Connolly, at the assault of Fort Leyden. Of the number wounded, no official account has been traced.

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Footnote 130:

‘London Gazette,’ 19 to 23 June, 1804.

Footnote 131:

Ibid.

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Private George Mitchell, represented as a highly-meritorious soldier, distinguished himself in the assault, as, indeed, did the whole of the detachment. As well on the march as in the two successive assaults, he was conspicuous for his perseverance, promptitude, and bravery, and when entering Frederici with the foremost troops, was severely wounded by the side of his officer, Lieutenant J. R. Arnold, R.E., who led the storm. For his services on this occasion he was promoted to be corporal, and subsequently for the same reason to the rank of sergeant. He also received a present from the Patriotic Fund at Lloyd’s, in testimony of the opinion entertained of his services.[132]

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Footnote 132:

In the subsequent campaigns of the West Indies he behaved equally
meritoriously; and in garrison and the workshops always conducted
himself well. Besides being an excellent mason and foreman, no
artificer in the service, perhaps, had a better practical idea of
mining, in which he signalized himself at the destruction of Fort
Desaix, Martinique. After sixteen years' arduous service in the West
Indies, he was sent to Woolwich and discharged in July, 1814.

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On the reduction of the place, the Batavian troops were released from their former allegiance, and at liberty to become either citizens in Surinam, or soldiers in his Britannic Majesty’s forces; but the barren and uninviting prospects that a captured country presented prevented many from settling, and they readily offered to enrol themselves under the British standard. Availing himself of the opportunity, Lieutenant-Colonel Shipley accepted the services of seventeen Batavian artificers and enlisted them for the company. Fourteen deaths were reported in the company during the year; and on the 31st December its strength was eighty-eight of all ranks.

A fever of a very malignant character appeared at Gibraltar in August, and continued its ravages during the autumnal months. Brought in by a foreigner, who took up his abode in the vicinity of the married quarters of the royal artillery, the disorder was soon communicated to the latter; and, by the end of September, it spread with a rapidity only equalled by its virulence. Ere long the whole fortress was infested by the pestilence; and, as if to render the calamity more awful, it was preceded by an earthquake, which agitated the whole Rock. Out of a population computed at 10,000, including 4,000 troops, no less a number than 5,946 died between the 1st September and 31st December. So great a mortality in so short a period is unexampled in the history of that fortress.[133]

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Footnote 133:

Sir James Fellowes ‘On the Fever of Andalusia.’

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The two companies of artificers in the garrison were early visited by the epidemic and but few comparatively escaped. Of those who were fortunate enough to bear up successfully against the disease, it was ascertained that the chief part had previously suffered from yellow fever in the West Indies. The artificers' barracks at Hargraves' Parade were a considerable distance from the locality where the disorder originated, and consequently, for a time, were free from fever; but several of the men having been employed in attending the sick civil master artificers of the department, at their own homes in the town, and the married families of the companies having unrestrained access to the Parade, infection was thus communicated to the single men in barracks; and the effect was seen too late to adopt any sanitary measures or restrictions to prevent its ingress. In August three men died, and in September ten, whilst the numbers affected by the malady were very considerable. By the beginning of October the fever had extensively spread; and all work in the engineer department being suspended, the companies were confined to barracks, and the families in quarters prohibited from appearing in the streets of the town unless from urgent necessity. Soon afterwards, to preserve their health, they were removed into camp at Beuna Vista. Nothing, however, could arrest the advance of the disorder: gloom and horror hourly increased, and in a very few days the sickness at the encampment far exceeded anything that had occurred at Hargraves', By the end of the month a mournful diminution had taken place, ninety men having fallen a prey to the epidemic! In November, providentially, the fever sensibly waned, and only twenty-three men died; and in December, after carrying off four more men, its influence ceased to be felt at the fortress. At the approach of the disease the companies mustered 263 of all ranks; but by the termination of the year 130 had died; thus reducing the companies to the strength of 133.[134] Here it may be added, that the royal military artificers lost during the fever more men proportionally than any regiment or corps in the garrison.[135]

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Footnote 134:

According to Sir James Fellowes, 229 men of the companies were
admitted into hospital with the fever, of whom 106 recovered, and 123
died; but as Sir James has omitted the statistics for August in his
tables, the apparent disparity between the two accounts is reduced to
the trifling difference of 4 only, a mistake which, doubtless,
occurred from some inaccuracy or accidental omission in the
information furnished to Sir James from the Ordnance Hospital records.

Footnote 135:

This statement is borne out by Sir James Fellowes. See p. 450 of his
work ‘On the Fever of Andalusia.’

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Amidst so much mortality, great alarm and irresolution naturally prevailed; and whilst many excusably avoided all possible contact with the infected, there were not wanting men of humanity and courage to volunteer their attentions and services to the sick and dying. Several instances of signal disinterestedness could be recorded, and the names of not a few mentioned, who fell a sacrifice to their generous zeal; but the following men, by their exertions and unshaken devotion in the discharge of the onerous offices assigned to them, seem to have been regarded with peculiar admiration, and therefore deserve whatever notice can be accorded to their merits in these pages.

Private John Inglis performed the important duty of orderly to the sick in the hospital at Windmill-hill, and to assiduous attention united marked kindness and tenderness, shrinking from no difficulty and dreading no danger. During the fatal month of October his watchfulness and exertions were incessant, and his patience and humanity were as conspicuous as his fortitude.

Private James Lawford undertook the melancholy service of receiving the dead, both for the artificers and the artillery, and conveying them to the burying-ground near the Grand Parade. Horrible and hazardous as was this duty, he persevered in its performance with a coolness and intrepidity that was perfectly amazing.

Private James Weir was the principal gravedigger, and attended to his appointment with unflinching ardour and self-possession. Surrounded by the pest in its worst forms, and inhaling the worst effluvia, he never for a moment forsook the frightful service, but laboured on, inspiriting those who occasionally assisted him, until the necessity for his employment no longer existed.[136]

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Footnote 136:

What was most extraordinary connected with these daring fellows, was
the fact, that throughout the epidemic, they enjoyed the most robust
health; but, after its cessation, fearing that they were loaded with
infection, and that a sudden transition to the garrison again would
cause the fever to return, the authorities deemed it prudent to send
the hearse-driver and gravediggers to camp at Beuna Vista, where,
after about two months' quarantine, they were permitted to rejoin
their companies.

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An attempt at invasion being daily expected from the French, earnest attention was turned to those parts of the coast of England upon which the descent would probably be essayed. Immense sums of money were accordingly placed at the disposal of the officers of engineers to carry into effect whatever projects might be approved for rendering the shore defences more secure. Increased exertions were, therefore, made in strengthening the permanent fortifications, enlarging the defences of Dover and Chatham, “constructing batteries at various points, building temporary barracks along the coast, and studding our shores with martello towers.”[137]

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Footnote 137:

‘United Service Journal,’ i., 1845, p. 483.

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Besides using all vigilance and exertion at the different ports where the royal military artificers were stationed, in furtherance of the general business of preparation and defence, detachments of the corps were constantly on the route from one place to another, erecting temporary or permanent works. In April, at the suggestion of Major-General Twiss, then commanding royal engineer in the Southern District, the party at Dover was much increased to assist in forming casemates in certain positions of the works on the western heights, by which to remedy the defects in the original construction.

At Jersey, in the same month, every precaution was taken to render the island capable of resisting any encroachment from its turbulent neighbours; and all the batteries and forts, as far as practicable, were manned with ordnance. In the execution of this service corporal and master-carpenter Daniel Brown, described as “a worthy man and a useful artificer,” was killed by a fall from the top of Platte Rocq Tower.

In September a small party was detached to Chelmsford, and superintended, under the direction of Captain G. Whitmore, royal engineers, the construction of a chain of temporary fieldworks, consisting of intrenchments, batteries, and redoubts, from Woodford Windmill to the windmill at Gallywood Common, a distance, by the line of works, of about two miles and a half. Various regiments of militia provided their contingents to execute these works, in which they were assisted by detachments from the royal waggon train and royal staff corps.

About the same time another party was despatched to Eastbourne to aid in building the circular redoubt there, as also in erecting several martello towers on the coast, at points best suited to protect our shores. Fluctuating in strength according to the general emergencies of the service, this detachment continued to work in the Eastbourne district until the summer of 1817, when, after assisting in the erection of all the towers as far as Rye Bay on the one side of Eastbourne, and Seaforth on the other, it quitted the district and the men composing it rejoined their companies.

At Woolwich, during the later months of the year, parties were specially engaged in preparing and fitting out bomb tenders for the Channel fleet, by casing their magazines, making racks for shot, and executing such other precautionary services as would insure them from explosion and destruction in action.

Nor should the efforts made to carry on the recruiting with success be overlooked, since the steps taken were chiefly induced by the spirit of the times, and the anticipated wants of the coming war. In the previous year, after the treaty of Amiens was signed, the recruiting was suspended; but in June, 1803, it was resumed with an energy that promised to yield an abundant result. In addition to the old stations, several new ones were opened for obtaining candidates, and the bounty for recruits was increased to 14_l._ 3_s._ 6_d._ each! whilst the reward to the soldier, to stimulate him to exertion and vigilance, was augmented to 4_l._ 14_s._ 6_d._! The former levy money was ten guineas, but the improved premium amounted to nineteen guineas.

Notwithstanding the great demand for men, every care was taken to receive none in the corps who were not in every particular fully equal to its various duties; and the officers employed on the service were specially enjoined to engage such candidates only as were “stout made, able-bodied, well-limbed, healthy, and active, of good character, and good abilities as tradesmen; not over 30 years of age, nor under 5 feet 6 inches in height.” Under these restrictions, and as the call for mechanics in civil life was loud and pressing, only 53 artificers were received and approved of this year, leaving at its close 351 men to complete the corps to its establishment of 1,075.

No better success attended the recruiting in the year 1805. Full employment was offered by the country to every artisan disposed to handle his tools, and the sources of enlistment, therefore, were almost choked up. In this extremity, as the corps was very much below its establishment, application was made to the different regiments of militia for candidates; and the effect was, that 134 volunteers—all tradesmen and miners—joined the artificers, in April and May, from forty-six regiments. After a short interval, a similar application was made to the Horse Guards to allow artisans from the line to enter the corps. His Royal Highness the Duke of York, acquiescing in the proposal, conveyed his commands on the 8th July to every battalion in the service, both at home and abroad, to have volunteers, to the number of two carpenters and three bricklayers from each, transferred to the military artificers. By this arrangement the corps, which was 112 men in arrear of its establishment when the order was promulgated, was rendered complete by the end of the year. To each volunteer received was paid a bounty of ten guineas. The total number of recruits and men transferred from the line and militia during the year amounted to 435.

Filling up the corps in this manner was highly prejudicial to its best interests and general efficiency, so far as the transfers from the regiments of the line were concerned. Officers of those regiments were naturally averse to parting with their good men, and out of a batch of volunteers the five least reputable in every battalion, unless under extraordinary circumstances, were selected to be transferred. To prevent the reception of objectionable men, every precaution was taken by the officers of engineers appointed to this duty; but, with all their circumspection, some of the most abandoned characters were passed into the corps. With the different militias, however, this was not the case. All the volunteers were unreservedly surrendered to the recruiting-officer, who was at liberty to pick from the number those whom he desired, and subject them to whatever examination he pleased before accepting them. In this way some of the ablest mechanics and many of the best-conducted men and finest-looking soldiers joined the corps, and their behaviour and usefulness in after service furnished the best test of the advantages derived by receiving volunteers from the militia.[138]

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Footnote 138:

This observation would appear to clash with the remarks of Sir Charles
Pasley (note F, p. xvii. ‘Elementary Fortification’) upon the
impropriety of enlisting militia-men; but after carefully tracing the
history of many volunteers from that arm, the fact cannot be concealed
that the transfers alluded to were decidedly beneficial to the corps.
The best sapper, miner, and pontoneer, that ever served in the
corps—perhaps the best in Europe—was a militia-man; and the name of
Jenkin Jones, the faithful and zealous sergeant-major under Sir
Charles Pasley at Chatham, now quartermaster at Woolwich, need only be
mentioned, to verify the assertion and to corroborate the encomium.
Quartermaster Hilton, the efficient sergeant-major to the corps in
France under Sir James Carmichael Smyth, had also been in the militia.

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England had not yet taken any active measures against France, busied as she was in endeavours to protect her own shores; but as soon as the Powers of Europe had formed themselves into a coalition, under treaty signed at St. Petersburgh on the 11th April, to check the progress of Buonaparte, the British Government lost no time in giving effect to the engagement. Accordingly in that month, a body of troops under Sir James Craig embarked for the Neapolitan States to join with the Russians in expelling the French. To this expedition was attached a party of one sergeant, one corporal, and thirteen artificers of the Woolwich company, under the command of Captain C. Lefebure, royal engineers, which landed at Naples in November. Here the expedition remained inactive until the 19th January, 1806, when, from the defection of the Russians, it was deemed prudent to withdraw the troops and proceed to Messina, where the military artificers landed on the 18th February, 1806.

In October, another force was sent to Hanover, under Lord Cathcart, which, after it should achieve the liberation of that State, was destined to advance into Holland for the same purpose. One sergeant, one corporal, and fourteen privates of the Chatham company, under Captain J. F. Birch of the engineers, accompanied the expedition and landed in Swedish Pomerania the same month; but, by the time the force was prepared to enter into the contest, affairs were on the change; and Buonaparte having gained the brilliant victory of Austerlitz, the treaties of Presburg and Vienna followed, putting an end to the war, and leaving England alone an enemy to France. Unable, without assistance, to re-establish the independence of Hanover and Holland, Lord Cathcart’s army returned to England early in 1806, and the detachment of artificers rejoined the Chatham company in February of that year.

1806.

First detachment to the Cape of Good Hope—Misfortunes at Buenos
Ayres—Reinforcement to Gibraltar—Services at Calabria—Formation of
Maltese military artificers—Increase of pay to royal military
artificers—Augmentation to the corps and reorganization of the
companies—Establishment and annual expense—Working pay—Sub-Lieutenants
introduced—Indiscipline and character of the corps.

In August of the previous year, an expedition under Sir David Baird sailed against the Cape of Good Hope, to which were attached one sergeant, two corporals, and seventeen artificers of the Plymouth company under Captain J. C. Smith of the royal engineers, who embarked on board the ‘Melantho’ transport. The artificers landed on the 4th January, 1806, with the artillery, and marched and encamped with them in the field; but Sir David Baird, conceiving that their services would be more beneficial in the castle after its capture, than in action, would not permit them to take part in the operations. They therefore halted about a quarter of a mile to the right rear of the position, and there remained until they marched with the troops into the castle. Ever since this capture, a detachment of the corps of varying strength has been employed in the colony, not only at Cape Town, but at many posts and forts at a considerable distance inland and upon the frontiers.

Two privates of the Cape detachment under Captain Kennett, of the corps, sailed in April with the force under General Beresford against Buenos Ayres. Landing at Point de Quilmes on the 25th June,[139] they were present at the surrender of the city on the 27th following. After a time the Spaniards, recovering from the panic which lost them their capital, retook it with signal success, and those of the British not killed, were taken prisoners. Captain Kennett was among the former, and one of the artificers was wounded. On the loss of their captain, the two men were attached to the artillery and served in the action of the 12th August, 1806, under Captain Alexander Macdonald, royal artillery: they subsequently were taken prisoners and remained so until January 1808, when they returned to England with the forces under General Whitelocke.

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Footnote 139:

‘London Gazette Extraordinary,’ September 13, 1806.

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To supply the casualties at Gibraltar occasioned by the fatal fever of 1804, a detachment of 133 artificers,[140] under Captain H. Evatt, royal engineers, embarked on the 31st December, 1805, and landed at the fortress in February following. The strength of the companies was thus increased from 174 to 307 of all ranks.

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Footnote 140:

With fifty women and forty children! More than, in _these_ days, are
permitted to accompany a _battalion_ on foreign service.

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Sir John Stuart, who commanded the army in Sicily, now undertook, at the solicitation of the Court of Palermo, an expedition against the French in Calabria. The detachment of artificers at Messina, reduced to twelve in number, furnished ten men, under Captain C. Lefebure, royal engineers, to accompany the troops. They were present on the 4th July at the battle of Maida; and afterwards at the siege of Scylla Castle from the 12th to the 23rd of the same month. Shortly after the capture, six of the party returned to their old quarters at Messina, leaving two non-commissioned officers and two artificers under Lieutenant George Macleod of the engineers, to superintend the restoration of the castle defences. In October the four men rejoined the detachment at Messina, where the whole continued to be employed in various engineering services for several years.

Artificers under military control and discipline being much required for the works at Malta, Lieutenant-Colonel R. T. Dickens, R.E., recommended the formation of three companies of Maltese tradesmen for the service of the engineer department; two to be stationed at Malta and Gozo, and one for employment in general duties in the Mediterranean, Gibraltar, and Egypt. English companies of artificers would have been proposed for the works of the stations named, had the efficiency and conduct of detachments previously sent from Gibraltar to Minorca, Sicily, and other parts of the Mediterranean, warranted it; “but,” says Sir Charles Pasley, “as the Gibraltar companies were, from circumstances, the worst in the corps, the detachments formed from them * * * * were found so very inefficient, that Maltese and Sicilians were preferred to Britons in the Mediterranean, for the important service of the royal engineer department.”[141] As well from this, as from other local[142] and economical considerations, the Government approved of the measure, and the royal authority for its accomplishment being obtained, the companies were formed on the 1st May.

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Footnote 141:

Pasley’s ‘Elementary Fortification,’ note A, p. iv.

Footnote 142:

In the treaty of Amiens it was stipulated that _one-half_ the soldiers
in the garrison at Malta should be natives; and although the treaty
had been violated by Napoleon, Great Britain still regarded its
provisions, in this respect at least, as sacred and obligatory.

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The Mediterranean or war company consisted of—

4 sergeants,
4 corporals,
100 privates,
1 drummer,
10 boys.
——
Total 119

and the companies for Malta and Gozo, numbered each—

2 sergeants,
4 corporals,
60 privates,
1 drummer,
——
Total 77

An adjutant from the royal engineers was appointed to the 1st company, and one, a foreigner—Matteo Bonavio[143]—to the other two companies at Malta and Gozo, to which was also added one sergeant-major and quartermaster-sergeant Guiseppe Sinerco, stationed at Malta. The total number of these companies with the staff amounted to 276. The pay of the war company was assimilated to that of the royal military artificers, while that of the other companies was fixed as under:—

s. d.
Sergeant-major or quartermaster-sergeant. 3 0 a-day.
Sergeant 1 6 ”
Corporal 1 3 ”
Private, or drummer 1 1 ”
Boy 0 6 ”

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Footnote 143:

Styled, by local usage, “Assistant Engineer.”

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The adjutants received 3_s._ per day each extra,[144] and the working pay of the non-commissioned officers and men was divided into two classes of 6_d._ and 9_d._, which they received in addition to their regimental pay. The non-commissioned officers, who were foremen, received as working pay 1_s._ a-day each.

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Footnote 144:

Of the regimental allowances of the foreign adjutant nothing is known,
nor can any record be discovered of the uniform worn by him.

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These companies were formed into a corps with the title of Maltese military artificers, and, like the old artificer company at Gibraltar, remained a distinct and separate body. They were officered by the royal engineers. Their clothing consisted of a close blue cloth jacket with black collar and cuffs, and Ordnance buttons; open blue cloth pantaloons and a military hat and feather. The sergeants were distinguished by sashes, the corporals by chevrons, and the sergeant-major by a uniform like the sergeant-major of the English companies.[145]

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Footnote 145:

In 1808 the companies were clothed in a uniform made of cotton,
manufactured in the island, similar to the local corps. The facings
were of black cloth. The sergeants and corporals were distinguished as
before, and the sergeant-major still wore the _home_ uniform. The
substitution of cotton for cloth was ordered on account of its being
cheaper and better adapted to the climate, besides forwarding the
views of Government, in aiding the sale of the staple commodity of the
island, deprived by the war of its usual vents.

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This year Mr. Windham, the Secretary-at-War, warmly espoused the cause of the army, and ultimately obtained for it the redress he so earnestly sought. This was promulgated in the well-known Warrant called “ Windham’s Act,” which increased the pay of the soldier while serving, and provided a liberal pension for him on retirement, corresponding to his infirmities and services. On the 1st September, the Act alluded to was extended to the royal military artificers, and the advantages conferred upon the corps were as under:—

Total amount
of
pay a-day.
Increase.
d. s. d.
Sergeant-major on the staff. 5¼ 3 11½
Sergeant 3¼ 2 6½
Corporals:—
After 14 years 3¾ 2 4½
Between 7 and 14 years 2¾ 2 3½
Under 7 years 1¾ 2 2½
Privates and Buglers:—
After 14 years 2 1 4½
Between 7 and 14 years 1 1 3½
Under 7 years no increase 1 2½

In the prospect of a long war, to provide reinforcements for the execution of the extensive works in progress at Dover and Nova Scotia, and to be capable, to a certain extent, of meeting the contingencies that might arise, a royal warrant was issued dated 5th September, sanctioning a reorganization of the corps for general service, an augmentation of two companies, and a small increase to each of the other ten companies.

Under this arrangement the corps was distributed as follows, and the companies for the first time, appear to be distinguished by numbers; which, however, from the long habit of designating them by stations, soon became obsolete:—

1st. Woolwich Captain G. Hayter.
2nd. Chatham Major R. D’Arcy.
3rd. Dover Captain W. H. Ford.
4th. Portsmouth. Captain R. Fletcher.
5th. Gosport. Captain T. Fyers.
6th. Plymouth. Lieut.-Colonel T. Skinner.
7th. Spike Island Lieut.-Colonel Sir C. Holloway.
8th. { Jersey Captain J. Humfrey
{ Guernsey. Major J. Mackelcan.
9th. Gibraltar Captain H. Evatt.
10th. Gibraltar Captain G. Landmann.
11th. West Indies. Lieut.-Colonel W. Johnston.
[146]12th. Nova Scotia Captain W. Bennett.

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Footnote 146:

Sir John Jones states, evidently by mistake, that the corps was
composed of _thirty-two_ companies.—Journals of Sieges, ii., note 38,
p. 389, 2nd edit.

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By the authority of the warrant alluded to, the establishment of each company was remodelled, the ranks of Sub-Lieutenant and second corporal were created, and the total of all ranks per company increased from 100 to 126. Under the previous system of detaching men, the companies were mutilated, disordered and reduced; but under this enlarged organization, it was considered they would be more accessible, and better able to afford such accidental assistance as might be needed, without diminishing the companies to an inconvenient strength, or without particular detriment to the station. The subjoined detail shows the approved composition of a company at this period.

1 Sub-Lieutenant,[147] a new rank, with pay of 5_s._
a-day.[148]
1 Sergeant-major.
5 Sergeants.
5 Corporals.
10 Second Corporals,[149] a new rank, pay fixed at 1_s._
9_d._ a-day.
30 Carpenters, including 4 top sawyers.
20 Masons, } including slaters, tiles, and plasterers.
18 Bricklayers, }
10 Smiths,
10 Miners,
4 Wheelers,
4 Collar Makers,
2 Coopers,
2 Painters,
4 Drummers.
——
Total 126

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Footnote 147:

Styled _Second_ Lieutenants in the warrant by mistake. The
Sub-Lieutenants were junior to the Second Lieutenants of engineers,
but held rank with Second Lieutenants of the line, according to dates
of commission. This right was often questioned, but never, as long as
the Sub-Lieutenants were attached to the corps, officially settled. In
1835 the position of a Sub-Lieutenant (H. B. Mackenzie), who had
joined the line as paymaster being disputed, it was then settled that
_Sub-Lieutenants_ were _junior_ to _Ensigns_.

Footnote 148:

Subsequently increased to 5_s._ 7_d._ a-day, and after seven years'
service to 6_s._ 7_d._ a-day.

Footnote 149:

Holding comparative station with corporals of the line, according to
date of promotion.

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The total establishment of the corps, including the adjutant and sergeant-major on the staff, amounted to 1,514, exhibiting an increase above the former establishment of 439 men; and its expense for one year, exclusive of the working pay and other miscellaneous allowances, reached the sum of 45,500_l._ 17_s._ 7¼_d._ With the three companies of Maltese artificers, the corps mustered a force of 1,790 officers, non-commissioned officers, and men.

As a means of encouraging the men to exertion and good behaviour, their working pay was permitted to be increased, under the authority of the warrant before mentioned, from 6_d._ to 9_d._ or 1_s._ a-day. The non-commissioned officers invariably received the highest rate. None, however, could be advanced from the lowest to the superior rates without first being recommended to the commanding royal engineer at the station, by the junior officers, foremen, or overseers; and this system of rewards, except for special services, has been observed in the corps ever since.

The sergeant-majors who received the first commissions had been in the artillery, and were distinguished for their good services and bravery. To their zeal and expertness as soldiers, they added an intimate knowledge of drill and discipline—requisites of essential importance in the organization of a new force, but which, from the vague and indefinite character of the corps, became, almost necessarily, too temporizing and elastic to be sufficiently beneficial or respected.

Efforts had on one or two particular occasions been made to avoid the faults and supply the omissions of earlier years; but the improvement before alluded to, had not reached the expectations of those who felt an interest in the corps. One obvious reason was, the nominal appointment of officers to companies, who were so incessantly shifted, that it was not uncommon to find a company passing under the command of three or four different officers in the course of twelve months;[150] and another was, the reluctance with which some commanding officers permitted the temporary withdrawal of the men from the works for the purposes of drill and discipline.[151] The free use of the means to train the men to subordination and the use of arms, to restrain them from irregularities, and fully to develop the organization and purposes for which the corps was raised, being thus interrupted, naturally tended to vitiate and lower its military pride, spirit, and appearance.

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Footnote 150:

This may be regarded as a favourable view of the case. Sir John Jones
states, “Each company was commanded for the moment by the senior
Captain of engineers, who might happen to be placed on duty wherever
the company might be; so that it was not unfrequent for a company to
be commanded by five or six captains in as many months.”—Journal of
Sieges, ii. note 38, p. 389, 2nd edit.

Footnote 151:

Pasley’s ‘Elementary Fortification,’ note a, p. iii.

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Bald and grey-headed non-commissioned officers with ages varying from forty-five to sixty-five, good artificers and foremen, but lacking the energy and demeanour of soldiers, were no rarities in the royal military artificers. Disinclined to learn, they but very imperfectly understood their military station, and seldom exercised their authority, except in the emollient guise of persuasion and advice. On all sides there was a yielding, that in some measure obliterated the lines of distinction between the different grades. Their interests seemed to be reciprocal and interwoven, and the best workman was generally esteemed the best man. Almost every military idea was sacrificed for “the works,” in which it would be hazardous to say, that they did not labour with ability and industry.

To check the growth of these unmilitary principles and practices, to enforce respect for position and authority, and to assist in maintaining in the corps the exercise of proper discipline and drill, the Sub-Lieutenants were established. Their duties were like those of adjutants, whom they superseded, and were, therefore, held responsible to their Captains for the conduct, efficiency, internal management, and payment of their respective companies. This, however, was but a transient expedient. An instalment only of the good that was expected was realised;[152] and it was left for a later period to enlarge and perfect what in this year, though spiritedly commenced, fell considerably short of success.

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Footnote 152:

Ibid., note F, p. xvii.

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1807.

Appointments of Adjutant and Quartermaster—Captain John
T. Jones—Disasters at Buenos Ayres—Egypt—Reinforcement
to Messina—Detachment of Maltese military artificers to
Sicily—Newfoundland—Copenhagen—Captures in the Caribbean
Sea—Madeira—Danish Islands in the West Indies—Hythe.

It having been determined to consolidate the appointments of Adjutant and Quartermaster to the royal military artificers, Major John Rowley[153] and Colonel George W. Phipps[154] resigned their offices.

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Footnote 153:

In the earlier years of his appointment he was much at Woolwich, and
personally superintended the affairs of the corps; but for some years
prior to the new organization, his duties in London seldom permitted
him to visit the head-quarters.

Footnote 154:

Colonel Phipps was never present with the corps. As Quartermaster, he
performed his duties in London. In consideration of his relinquishing
the Quartermastership, and also for his good services, he was granted
by His Majesty an allowance of 10s. a-day.—‘Accounts of Ordnance,
House of Commons,’ 1816, p. 31.

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To succeed to the vacancies thus created, Captain John Thomas Jones, an officer of undoubted ability and military experience, was brought from Sicily, and on the 1st January commissioned to hold both appointments.[155] Upon him, therefore, devolved the difficult task of arranging and directing the details of the new organization both at home and abroad, and of carrying into effect a general system of drill and discipline.[156] In this duty he continued until July, 1808, when, ordered on a particular service to the Asturias, he resigned the staff rank. From the time of the appointment of Captain J. T. Jones, the Adjutant was permanently stationed at the head-quarters at Woolwich, and his office also was established there.

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Footnote 155:

‘London Gazette,’ 20th to 24th January, 1807.

Footnote 156:

‘United Service Journal,’ ii., 1843, p. 110. ‘Jones’s Sieges,’ ii.,
note 38, p. 389, 2nd edit.

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Early in the year an expedition was sent against Chili under Major-General Crawford, accompanied by a sergeant and ten artificers under Captain J. Squire, R.E. Instead of proceeding to Chili, counter orders were received, and Captain Squire and his eleven men sailed with the force to Buenos Ayres. Arriving at Monte Video on the 14th June, they were accordingly landed and took part in the disastrous attack on Buenos Ayres, in which all the artificers were taken prisoners, and so remained until January, 1808, when they quitted with the force under General Whitelocke.

On the 6th March, Major-General Frazer, at the head of a small armament, sailed from Messina to dispossess the Turks of Egypt. To this force were attached, under Captain J. F. Burgoyne, royal engineers, four of the military artificers furnished from the detachment in Sicily, who embarked on the 19th February. Having in due time landed at Alexandria, they served at the capture of that city, also in the attack of Rosetta, and in the retreat to Alexandria. In September following these four artificers rejoined the party at Messina.

In the meantime the detachment at Messina was reinforced by a sergeant, one corporal, and eighteen privates of the Gibraltar companies, under Lieutenant George J. Harding, R.E., who embarked at the Rock on the 14th April. With the exception of the non-commissioned officers, this party was composed of irreclaimable drunkards, worthless alike as artificers or soldiers.

From the inefficiency of these men, the Maltese war company was ordered to furnish its contingent for service in Sicily, and accordingly a detachment of one sergeant—Evan Roberts—one corporal, and twenty-nine artificers, embarked at Malta on board the ‘Charlotte’ transport on the 23rd, and landed at Messina on the 30th July. In the autumn following, the whole of the party with two men of the royal military artificers as foremen, were detached to Augusta and Syracuse, to be employed on the works under sergeant Roberts.