Chapter V: Part 5

This officer engaged in the profession of arms in the reign of William III., and, after serving the Crown with zeal and fidelity for many years, he was eventually rewarded with the highest honours of the service. His first commission was dated the 26th of December, 1690; and he served in the Netherlands under King William until the peace of Ryswick. Having rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel of the Tenth Regiment of Foot, he proceeded, on the breaking out of the war of the Spanish succession, with the expedition to Portugal, and was appointed Adjutant-General to the army commanded by the Earl of Galway, with the brevet rank of Colonel, by commission dated the 22nd of August, 1704. After the death of Colonel Duncasson, who was killed at the siege of Valencia de Alcantara, in May, 1705, the command of the Thirty-third Foot was conferred upon COLONEL WADE, by commission bearing date the 9th of June in the same year. Continuing to serve in the Peninsula, and, by his personal exertions, gaining laurels even in the midst of the reverses and disasters which befell the army, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General on the 1st of January, 1708; and, in the following year he received a complimentary communication from King Charles III. (afterwards Emperor of the Romans), with the commission of Major-General in Spain; in which country he served during the remainder of the war, and highly distinguished himself in the command of a brigade of infantry at the battle of Saragossa in 1710.

On the accession of King George I., Brigadier-General Wade was advanced to the rank of Major-General; and, proving a faithful and trustworthy servant to the Crown, at a time when jacobin principles were prevalent in the nation, his Majesty appointed him, on the 19th of March, 1717, Colonel of the FOURTH HORSE. In 1724 he commanded in Scotland; and some important roads through the Highlands were constructed under his direction and superintendence. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General on the 7th of March, 1727; to that of General on the 2nd of July, 1739; and he was further advanced to the rank of Field-Marshal on the 14th of December, 1743. In the following year, this distinguished veteran, being then in the seventy-sixth year of his age, engaged in active service, and commanded the British troops in the Netherlands in the campaign of 1744, but afterwards returned to England; and, in the succeeding year, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief, during the absence of his Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland on the Continent. In the autumn of the same year a rebellion broke out in Scotland, and Field-Marshal Wade commanded an army in Yorkshire, and was actively engaged in the pursuit of the rebels after their retreat from Derby. He was Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance and one of his Majesty's Privy Council; and, after serving the Crown a period of fifty-eight years, died on the 14th of February, 1748, in the eightieth year of his age.

THE HON. SIR CHARLES HOWARD, K.B.,

_Appointed 15th March, 1748_.

THE HONOURABLE CHARLES HOWARD, second son of Charles third Earl of Carlisle, entered the army in the second year of the reign of King George I., and was appointed Captain and Lieutenant-Colonel in the Coldstream Guards in April, 1719. He was appointed Deputy-Governor of Carlisle in March, 1725; rose to the rank of Colonel on the 23rd of April, 1734; and was appointed Aide-de-camp to King George II. He was promoted, on the 1st of November, 1738, to the command of the Nineteenth Regiment of Foot; was appointed Brigadier-General on the 18th of February, 1742, and proceeded with the army, commanded by the Earl of Stair, to Flanders, in the same year. He was promoted to the rank of Major-General on the 4th of July, 1743; to that of Lieutenant-General on the 9th of August, 1747; and, in March, 1748, to the Colonelcy of the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS. In June, 1749, he was created a Knight of the most honourable Order of the Bath; and, in March, 1765, he was promoted to the rank of General.

SIR CHARLES HOWARD was Governor of Forts George and Augustus in Scotland; one of the Grooms of the Bedchamber; and was many years a Member of Parliament for the city of Carlisle, of which he was Lieutenant-Governor; and died on the 26th of August, 1765.

LORD ROBERT MANNERS,

_Appointed 6th September, 1765_.

LORD ROBERT MANNERS, son of John second Duke of Rutland, choosing a military life, purchased an Ensigncy in the Coldstream Guards on the 26th of July, 1735; was appointed Lieutenant in May, 1740; and Captain and Lieutenant-Colonel in the First Foot Guards on the 22nd of April, 1742. In December, 1747, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel, and appointed Aide-de-camp to King George II.; and, in 1751, his Majesty gave him the Colonelcy of the Thirty-sixth Regiment of Foot. The rank of Major-General was conferred upon Lord Robert Manners on the 7th of February, 1757; that of Lieutenant-General on the 7th of April, 1759; and, in 1765, King George III. gave him the Colonelcy of the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS, with the rank of General, five years afterwards: he died on the 31st of May, 1782.

PHILIP HONEYWOOD,

_Appointed 7th June, 1782_.

PHILIP HONEYWOOD, having entered the army at an early age, rose to the rank of Major in the King's Dragoons, now Third Light Dragoons, with which corps he proceeded to Flanders in 1742, and displayed great gallantry at the battle of Dettingen on the 26th of June, 1743, where his regiment was warmly engaged with the French household troops and suffered severely. Major Honeywood received five wounds in this action, and, being thought dead, he was stripped by some plunderers, and lay in that state six hours on the field of battle. He, however, revived, and, having recovered of his wounds, resumed his regimental duties, and was at the battle of Fontenoy on the 11th of May, 1745. In the autumn of the same year the rebellion broke out in Scotland, when the King's Dragoons were ordered to return to England; and, on the flight of the rebels from Derby, the regiment, being sent forward in pursuit, overtook the rear-guard on Clifton Moor, in Lancashire, on the 19th of December, and a sharp action ensuing, Lieutenant-Colonel Honeywood again displayed his wonted bravery, and was severely wounded in the shoulder. He, however, recovered; and, on the 17th of March, 1752, was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the army; and, in April, 1755, King George II. gave him the Colonelcy of the Twentieth Regiment of Foot; from which he was removed, in May of the following year, to the Ninth Dragoons. He was promoted to the rank of Major-General on the 17th of May, 1758; and, on the 5th of April in the following year, he obtained the Colonelcy of the Fourth Irish Horse, now the Seventh Dragoon Guards.

During the Seven Years' War, Major-General Honeywood commanded a brigade of cavalry in Germany under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, and performed a distinguished part in many skirmishes and general engagements; particularly at the battle of Warbourg, on the 31st of July, 1760, when he led his own regiment to the charge with signal gallantry: the enemy was overthrown, the most dreadful slaughter followed, and many of the French were drowned in attempting to escape across the river Dymel. In December of the same year he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General; and, continuing to serve in Germany, he acquired great celebrity, and was commended by the Commander-in-Chief in his public despatches. After his return to England he was advanced to the rank of General; and a vacancy occurring in the Colonelcy of the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS, in 1782, King George III. conferred that appointment on this distinguished veteran.

General Honeywood was many years Governor of Hull; he was also Member of Parliament for Appleby; and died on the 20th of January, 1785.

RICHARD BURTON PHILIPSON,

_Appointed 23rd February, 1785_.

RICHARD BURTON commenced his military service in the reign of King George II.; and, having attained the rank of Major in the Royal Dragoons on the 1st of May, 1759, proceeded with his regiment to Germany in the spring of the following year. In the battles, skirmishes, fatigues, and privations of the three subsequent campaigns, MAJOR BURTON had his share; as well as in the honours acquired by the British cavalry. After his return to England he was permitted to take the surname of PHILIPSON. On the 25th of January, 1771, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal Dragoons; and, in 1775, he was appointed Colonel in the army and Aide-de-camp to King George III. On the breaking out of the American war, several new regiments were raised, and Colonel Philipson was promoted to the rank of Major-General, and appointed Colonel of the Twentieth Light Dragoons (a corps formed of the light troops of several other regiments), on the 25th of April, 1779; from which he was removed, on the 23rd of February, 1785, to the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General on the 28th of September, 1787; was Member of Parliament for Eye, in Suffolk; and died on the 19th of August, 1792.

SIR WILLIAM FAWCETT, K.B.,

_Appointed 22nd August, 1792_.

WILLIAM FAWCETT, who descended from the ancient family of Fawcetts, of Shipden Hall, near Halifax, having, from his early youth, a strong predilection for a military life, his friends procured him an Ensign's commission in General Oglethorp's regiment, which was stationed in Georgia; but, a British force having been sent to Flanders in 1742, he resigned his commission, proceeded to the Continent, and, serving as a volunteer, was at the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy, where his gallantry attracted admiration; and he was appointed Ensign in a regiment raised by Colonel Johnstone, with which he served until the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, in 1748, when it was disbanded.

Being now unemployed, he engaged in the service of a mercantile establishment in the city of London; but, finding his propensity to a military life invincible, he subsequently purchased an Ensign's commission in the Foot Guards, and, by a strict attention to his duties, procured the favour of his Royal Highness William Duke of Cumberland, who gave him the Adjutantcy of the second battalion of the Third Foot Guards, which he held, together with a Lieutenantcy, which gave him the rank of Captain. Neglecting no opportunity of qualifying himself for the highest posts in his profession, he studied the German and French languages, acquired a knowledge of Prussian and French tactics; and, in 1757, published a translation of the 'Memoirs upon the Art of War, by Marshal Count de Saxe,' and 'The Regulations for the Prussian Cavalry;' and, in 1759, 'The Regulations for the Prussian Infantry,' and 'The Prussian Tactics.' These works met with great attention; and a new edition in 1760 was also well received.

In the early part of the Seven Years' War, Captain Fawcett served in Germany as Aide-de-camp to Lieutenant-General Grenville Elliott, where he acquired a practical knowledge of the military art; and his ardour, intrepidity, and attention to the duties of his situation were such, that, on the decease of Lieutenant-General Grenville Elliott, Captain Fawcett was recommended for the appointment of Aide-de-camp to Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, and he had also the offer of the same appointment to the Marquis of Granby: he chose the latter, and was sent to England with the despatches which gave the account of the victory at Warbourg; on which occasion, King George II. was highly gratified at having the particulars of this engagement related to him in the German language by Captain Fawcett. He was advanced to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the army on the 25th of November, 1760; and, continuing to serve in Germany, was appointed Military Secretary to the Marquis of Granby. It is recorded that, in Lieutenant-Colonel Fawcett's character, strength and softness were happily blended together, and to coolness, intrepidity, and extensive military knowledge, he added all the requisite talents of a man of business, and the most persevering assiduity. He was highly esteemed by every officer on the staff of the army, and was the intimate and confidential friend of the Marquis of Granby. He remained on service until the peace in 1763, when he returned to England; and his knowledge of the German language, with the information he possessed from his late office, was the occasion of his being employed by King George III. as Commissary to settle the claims made by the Allies against Great Britain for the expenses of the war.

In November, 1767, he obtained a company in the Third Foot Guards; and, in 1772, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the army, and appointed Deputy Adjutant-General to the Forces.

At the commencement of the American war, Colonel Fawcett was sent to Germany to negotiate with the states of Hesse, Hanover, and Brunswick, for a body of troops to serve in North America, Gibraltar, and the East Indies. He was appointed Governor of Gravesend and Tilbury Fort on the 2nd of October, 1776. In 1777 he was promoted to the rank of Major-General; in the following year he was appointed Colonel of the Fifteenth Regiment of Foot; and, in 1781, he was appointed Adjutant-General to the Forces. The rank of Lieutenant-General was conferred upon this valuable servant of the Crown in 1782; in 1786 his Majesty honoured him with the riband of the Order of the Bath; and, in 1792, gave him the Colonelcy of THE THIRD, OR PRINCE OF WALES' DRAGOON GUARDS.

In May, 1796, Sir William Fawcett was promoted to the rank of General; and, in July following, he was appointed Governor of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea. The office of Adjutant-General requiring greater exertions than his age would admit of, he obtained his Majesty's permission to resign, and, on retiring from his post, the King honoured him with distinguished marks of his Royal favour and approbation. In 1799 the Duke of York proceeded to Holland, when Sir William Fawcett was appointed by his Majesty to be _General on the Staff_ of the Army, and to perform the duties of Commander-in-Chief during his Royal Highness's absence.

He died on the 19th of March, 1804; and his funeral was honoured with the presence of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of York, Clarence, Kent, and Cambridge, and of many noblemen and General Officers.

RICHARD VYSE,

_Appointed 2nd April, 1804_.

GENERAL VYSE entered the army, on the 13th of February, 1762, as Cornet of the Fifth Royal Irish Dragoons; obtained the rank of Lieutenant in 1766; and, having become particularly proficient in the duties of his profession, was appointed Adjutant of the regiment in March of the following year. Having purchased a Captaincy in 1771, he procured the commission of Major in the Eighteenth Light Dragoons in 1777; and, in 1784, was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the King's Dragoon Guards, which corps he brought into a high state of discipline and efficiency; and was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the army in 1791. On the breaking out of the war with France, in 1793, he proceeded with his regiment on foreign service; and, in the following year, commanded a brigade of heavy cavalry under his Royal Highness the Duke of York, and distinguished himself on several occasions--particularly at the battle of Cateau, on the 26th of April, 1794, where, after the fall of Major-General Mansel, he commanded two brigades throughout the remainder of the day, and materially contributed to the victory gained on that occasion. In October of the same year he was promoted to the rank of Major-General; in 1797 his Majesty gave him the Colonelcy of the Twenty-ninth Dragoons; and, in 1801, promoted him to the rank of Lieutenant-General.

After the decease of Sir William Fawcett, the King conferred the Colonelcy of the PRINCE OF WALES' DRAGOON GUARDS on Lieutenant-General Vyse, who was advanced to the rank of General on the 1st of January, 1812; and died in 1825.

SIR WILLIAM PAYNE, BART.,

_Appointed 2nd June, 1825_.

SIR WILLIAM PAYNE first entered the army, as Cornet in the Royal Dragoons, on the 25th of January, 1776; and, having served in the subordinate commissions, was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the regiment in 1794. He served in the Netherlands under his Royal Highness the Duke of York, and was present at the principal actions during the campaign of 1794. In 1796 he was removed from the Lieutenant-Colonelcy of the Royal Dragoons to the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS; in 1798 he was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the army; and, in 1805, he was removed to the Tenth Light Dragoons. He was promoted to the rank of Major-General in the same year, and served four years on the Staff in Ireland. In November, 1807, he obtained the Colonelcy of the Twenty-third Light Dragoons; and, in 1809, he proceeded to Portugal with the local rank of Lieutenant-General, and served the campaign of that year under Sir Arthur Wellesley. He took an active part in the operations by which the French were driven from Oporto; and commanded the British cavalry at the memorable battle of Talavera, fought on the 27th and 28th of July, 1809, for which he received a medal. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General on the 4th of June, 1811; was removed from the Twenty-third to the Nineteenth Light Dragoons in July, 1814, and to the Twelfth Lancers in January, 1815. He was further advanced to the rank of General on the 27th of May, 1825; and, in the following month, he obtained the Colonelcy of the THIRD DRAGOON GUARDS. He subsequently took the name of Galway; and died in April, 1831.

SAMUEL HAWKER, G.C.H.,

_Appointed 22nd April, 1831_.

FOOTNOTE:

[59] _Vide_ the Historical Record of the Sixth Dragoon Guards.

LONDON:
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TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE

Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.

A superscript is denoted by ^x; for example, und^r (under) or vi^d
(six pence).

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

Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. For example,
mean-time, mean time; War Office, War-Office; connexion; gallopped;
jesuitical.

Pg 5, 'Lievtenant vi^s' replaced by 'Lieutenant vi^s'.
Pg 16, the anchor for Footnote [16] was missing, and has been
inserted here.
Pg 24 Footnote [22], '--' inserted before "_London Gazette_".
Pg 27 Footnote [24], '--' inserted before "_Parker's Memoires_".
Pg 52, 'ordered so send' replaced by 'ordered to send'.
Pg 114, 'of' replaced by 'OF' in 'EARL OF PLYMOUTH' (twice).
Pg 117, 'of' replaced by 'OF' in 'FOURTH REGIMENT OF HORSE' (twice).