Richard Cannon

“ Authentic accounts of the actions of the great,—the valiant,—the loyal, have always been of paramount interest with a brave and civilized people. Great Britain has produced a race of heroes who, in moments of danger and terror, have stood, "firm as the rocks of their native shore;" ”

“ On the 6th of April, 1815, the royal authority to bear on its guidons and appointments the word "Peninsula," as a mark of the Prince Regent's approbation of its conduct in Portugal, Spain, and France, under Field Marshal His Grace the Duke of Wellington, was communicated to the regiment; and shortly afterwards the veterans of the Peninsula were again employed on foreign service; the return of Bonaparte to France, his resumption of the imperial dignity, and the flight of Louis XVIII. to Flanders, having rekindled the flame of war on the continent. ”

“ The retreat was continued several miles, the men in high spirits at their wonderful success; at length they were met by the retiring French infantry, and by all the beaten cavalry which could find refuge with it. For a few exhausted dragoons to have engaged [45] that body of troops would have been madness, and the Thirteenth were forced to abandon their captures and make a detour to the right to join the army, which they effected, and went into bivouac in the neighbourhood of Campo Mayor. The loss of the regiment was twelve men and seven horses killed ”

“ The numbers and improved organization of the allied army enabled the British commander to drive the enemy before him with a strength and violence which the French could not withstand. Rivers were crossed, rocks and mountains were climbed, and barren tracts traversed, with so little opposition, that the power of the enemy appeared to be paralyzed; but in the plains of Vittoria Joseph Bonaparte made a stand, and the Thirteenth Dragoons took part in the engagement on the 21st of June, when the French army sustained a decisive overthrow. ”

“ The French infantry retiring steadily, recovered their artillery, and effected their retreat. Meanwhile the Thirteenth and some Portuguese squadrons, commanded by Colonel Otway, who formed as a support during the attack, were pursuing the French troopers at a rapid pace; on arriving at the bridge of Badajoz, they were fired upon by the guns of that fortress. The regiment then halted and retired to secure the prisoners, and captured artillery and baggage. Some of the French drivers, refusing to surrender, were sabred, and the mules were mounted by men of the Thirteenth. ”

“ I suppose there were about six hundred naked dead bodies lying on the ground at one view. The French colonel was killed by a corporal of the Thirteenth. This corporal had killed one of his men, and he was so enraged, that he sallied out himself and attacked the corporal, who was well mounted and a good swordsman, as was the colonel himself. Both defended for some time; the corporal cut him twice across the face; his helmet came off at the second, when the corporal slew him by a cut which nearly cleft his skull asunder, cutting in as deep as the nose through the brain. ”

“ In Great Britain, where so large a number of persons are devoted to the active concerns of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and where these pursuits have, for so long a period, been undisturbed by the presence of war, which few other countries have escaped, comparatively little is known of the vicissitudes of active service, and of the casualties of climate, to which, even during peace, the British Troops are exposed in every part of the globe, with little or no interval of repose. ”

“ The loss of the battle of Preston-pans proved a serious disaster, as the rebels obtained possession of a train of artillery, and a great quantity of arms, and were afterwards enabled to penetrate into England. The Thirteenth Dragoons joined the troops under Field-Marshal Wade, at Newcastle, and afterwards returned to Scotland, and the colonelcy was conferred on Colonel Francis Ligonier, from the forty-eighth foot, an excellent officer, conspicuous for zeal for the service and personal bravery. ”

“ Marshal Massena's army also marched into Estremadura, and the allies again raised the siege of Badajoz, and took up a position behind the Caya, where the enemy did not venture to attack them. When the French armies retired, the Marquis of Wellington proceeded towards the Agueda, leaving the Thirteenth Dragoons in the Alemtejo, under Lieut.-General Hill; they were formed in brigade with the ninth dragoons and second hussars, of the King's German [51] Legion, under Major-General Long, and were stationed at Villa Viciosa, and afterwards at Monforte, a small town nineteen miles from Portalegre. ”

“ The Thirteenth Light Dragoons, partly mounted on horses sent from America, had a few skirmishes with the armed bands which possessed the country, and a party of the regiment which accompanied the expedition against the town of Bombarde, had an opportunity of charging the enemy with great effect; but the climate soon reduced the regiment to a skeleton: it lost twenty officers, seven troop quarter-masters, and two hundred and thirty-three soldiers in six months, and the few remaining officers and soldiers were removed to Jamaica in December. ”

“ The British pressed forward in a semi-circular form, to enclose the French, who halted with their infantry in square, and their cavalry formed in their front and rear. Colonel Michael Head was directed to attack with the two squadrons of the Thirteenth, amounting to two hundred and three officers and soldiers, and he led them forward with the most distinguished gallantry [4] ; a regiment [43] of French hussars advanced to meet the Thirteenth, and the opposing horsemen raised a loud shout and rushed upon each other. Several men were overthrown by the shock ”

“ Portugal and Spain had, in the mean time, [34] become the theatre of war; the French emperor had overrun those countries with troops, and had placed his brother Joseph on the throne of Spain; and a British army, commanded by Lord Wellington, was aiding the inhabitants of the Peninsula in their resistance to the gigantic power of Napoleon. The Thirteenth Light Dragoons were selected to join the Peninsular army. Eight troops, mustering about nine hundred officers and soldiers, embarked at Portsmouth in February, 1810, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Michael Head ”

“ When Badajoz was besieged, the regiment advanced and formed part of the covering army. During the advance and the subsequent operations, the Thirteenth were employed in the arduous outpost duties of the army, and engaged in affairs and skirmishes, which were of frequent occurrence, owing to the constant alerts occasioned by the enemy's cavalry in their front, who took every opportunity of endeavouring to cut off the foraging parties, patroles, &c. ”

“ The young Pretender put the clans in [15] motion to meet the king's troops, who were not half so numerous as their opponents; and on the 20th of September the two armies confronted each other near the village of Preston-pans, seven miles from Edinburgh. When the Thirteenth Dragoons had formed in line, Colonel Gardiner rode along the ranks and addressed the men in the most animated manner; the soldiers desired to be led against the enemy, and Colonel Gardiner suggested to Sir John Cope the advantages which would probably result from an immediate attack on the insurgent bands ”

“ Captain White expresses his obligations to Major Charles A. Vigoureux [2] of the thirty-eighth regiment, who was a volunteer with him; and to the Alferes Pedro Raymando di Oliviera, commanding the Portuguese troop (which he states to have done its duty extremely well, and to have shown much gallantry) , and also to Lieutenant Samuel Charles Turner, of the Thirteenth Light Dragoons, to whose activity and courage he reports himself to be indebted for several of his prisoners. I trust the whole [38] will be considered to have merited the approbation of the commander-in-chief. ”

“ It is presumed that a record of achievements in war,—victories so complete and surprising, gained by our countrymen,—our brothers,—our fellow-citizens in arms,—a record which revives the memory of the brave, and brings their gallant deeds before us, will certainly prove acceptable to the public. ”

“ After the retreat of the rebels from Derby back to Scotland, the regiment marched to Edinburgh, where a small army was assembled under Lieut.-General Hawley, and the rebels [18] having besieged Stirling Castle, the troops advanced, in the middle of January, 1746, to raise the siege, and halted near Falkirk, where a camp was formed. The rebels advanced to meet the King's forces, and a general engagement was fought on Falkirk Moor on the 17th of January. Colonel Francis Ligonier, of the Thirteenth Dragoons, was taken ill of a pleurisy ”

“ The torrent of battle flowed in favour of the rebels, and one wing of [19] the King's army retired; a few regiments, however, maintained their ground with the most heroic bravery, and were supported by Colonel Ligonier with a party of dragoons; after dark, the King's troops being exposed to a heavy rain, retired to Linlithgow. Colonel Ligonier covered the retreat with his dragoons to Linlithgow, and being drenched with rain and benumbed with cold, he was seized with an inflammation in the throat, of which he died on the 25th of January, much regretted by the regiment. ”

“ The Honorable Henry Seymour Conway, second son of Lord Conway, and brother of Francis Earl of Hertford, was appointed lieutenant in the first foot guards in 1737, captain and lieut.-colonel in 1741, and in 1746 he was appointed aide-de-camp to the Duke of Cumberland, and promoted to the colonelcy of the fifty-ninth (now forty-eighth) foot. He was removed to the thirty-fourth foot in 1749, to the Thirteenth Dragoons in 1751, and to the fourth horse, now seventh dragoon guards, in 1754. ”

“ The Thirteenth Dragoons withdrew from Linlithgow to Edinburgh, and when the Duke of Cumberland took the command of the army and advanced against the rebels, the regiment was left at Edinburgh, and directed to patrole along the roads leading westward to prevent the insurgents receiving intelligence. ”

“ Major-General Sir Robert Dick was much gratified this morning to find Her Majesty's Thirteenth Light Dragoons in such high order. The major-general will not fail to report to the general commanding-in-chief the soldier-like appearance and steadiness of the men, and the serviceable condition of the horses; the movements were made with precision and celerity, notwithstanding the heavy sandy ground the regiment moved over ”

“ The remainder of the regiment, commanded by Colonel Head, quickly formed line,—charged,—cut down many of the enemy,—took two officers and a number of men and horses,—and continued in close and rapid pursuit for several miles, successfully frustrating every attempt of the French to rally, and driving them from the field in utter confusion. The enemy suffered a very severe loss in killed and wounded. ”

“ Lieutenants William Slater Smith and Frederick Geale, Adjutant Holmes, Quarter-master Greenham, one serjeant, twenty-eight rank and file, wounded; one serjeant, nineteen rank and file, and forty-four horses missing. Three hundred French were killed, wounded, and taken prisoners; the French colonel, Chamarin, of the Twenty-sixth Dragoons, was killed in single combat by Corporal Logan, of the Thirteenth Light Dragoons, which, with many other instances of individual bravery in this sharply contested affair, is recorded in the books of the regiment [5] . ”

“ When the rebel army advanced to cross the Firth, the Thirteenth Dragoons moved to Falkirk, and their commanding officer, Colonel Gardiner, was desirous of being reinforced by other troops, in order to be enabled to make some effectual opposition ”

“ One squadron of the Thirteenth Dragoons was attached to the light division on this occasion; a troop was with a brigade of Portuguese infantry, and five troops were at the head of the column. Having turned the town by the left, the regiment sent forward one troop to skirmish with the enemy, who retreated by the Badajoz road. ”

“ Colonel Gardiner left the sixth dragoons in Germany, and joined his regiment in England, and being a most zealous and efficient officer, he bestowed much care on its discipline, equipment, and the condition of the horses. ”

“ The ground was covered with cavalry equipments, arms, and dead and wounded men and horses. The conduct of the Thirteenth was highly commended in Major-General Fane's report of this action; the officers and soldiers were also thanked in orders by Lieut.-General Sir Rowland Hill, and the signal gallantry evinced by Captain James Macalister, who commanded the advance on this occasion, was rewarded with the rank of major in the army. The Thirteenth nobly upheld, on this occasion, their well-earned fame as bold horsemen and dexterous swordsmen ”

“ Richard Cannon, Principal Clerk of the Adjutant-General's Office; and while the perusal of them cannot fail to be useful and interesting to military men of every rank, it is considered that they will also afford entertainment and information to the general reader, particularly to those who may have served in the Army, or who have relatives in the Service.
There exists in the breasts of most of those who have [viii] served, or are serving, in the Army, an Esprit de Corps—an attachment to every thing belonging to their Regiment ”

“ The regiment remained at Jamaica until July, 1798, when it transferred a few of the surviving men to the Twentieth Light Dragoons, and the remainder, amounting only to fifty-two individuals, embarked for England, where they arrived in October, and landed at Gravesend. ”