alarming state of public affairs—want of cavalry in india—orders for raising the 23rd light dragoons—colonel sir john burgoyne—regiment embark for india—arrive in madras—desperate state of affairs—madras misgovernment—horses for the regiment.
alarming as was the state of our affairs in 1779, it was much worse in 1781. in january, a rupture occurred with holland, so that great britain found herself simultaneously at war with france, spain and holland, while engaged at the same time with her revolted colonies in america. the navy was overtaxed and inadequate to the demands made on it, and the command of the sea had passed into the hands of our enemies. gibraltar had been besieged since july 1779, the siege continuing till february 1783, the only assistance that could be given being in the shape of stores and reinforcements at uncertain intervals. in america, things had gone from bad to worse. on 19th october[20] 1781, cornwallis was forced to capitulate at yorktown with the whole of his army, a disaster which practically brought the war in america to a close, though it lingered on for nearly a year and a half longer. in india, affairs were nearly as bad. the three most important of the native powers at that time were hyder ali of mysore, the mahrattas, and the nizam of hyderabad, and matters had so turned out that we were at war with them all three. on the outbreak of war between england and france, the french settlements quickly fell into our hands. hyder ali was much under french influence, and the fall of the french settlement at mahé, which was detrimental to his interests, aroused his resentment. he was an able soldier and administrator, and his army was, at that time, the best organised among the native powers. collecting his forces, he fell like an avalanche on the carnatic which he desolated. some troops sent against him, under colonel baillie, were literally annihilated; another force, under sir hector munro, was obliged to retreat, so that at the end of 1780, the company’s authority in the south of india extended little beyond the precincts of the town of madras. reinforcements were sent from bengal under sir eyre coote. the results of the campaign of 1781 were, however, indecisive, in spite of a victory gained by sir eyre coote, at porto novo (1st july), and some minor successes. it was estimated that one-third of the british forces were lost in the campaign. in western india, the bombay government had engaged in hostilities against the mahrattas, and met with disaster. on the coast a powerful french fleet had appeared under suffren, one of the ablest seamen france ever produced. the european forces of the east india company were at that time in a miserable state. public recruiting in england was forbidden, and the ranks were filled with the refuse of society. felons with fetters on them were shipped as soldiers; foreigners and adventurers of all ranks[21] were received; many of whom only wanted a passage to india, in order that they might desert, as soon as possible, after they landed in the country; invalids, vagrants, and men under the proper size for military service. the whole were “in a most wretched condition, almost indeed without subordination.” the only reliable european troops in the country were the king’s troops, and the company’s artillery into which the best of their recruits were drafted. lord cornwallis, writing six years later of some troops he had recently inspected, says:
“what shall i say of the company’s europeans? i did not think britain could have furnished such a set of wretched objects—i would infinitely rather take the 73rd regiment upon service with me, than the whole six company’s battalions—indeed i have great doubts whether by drafting the whole six, i could complete one serviceable battalion to the present establishment.”
it is only by appreciating the condition and circumstances of our military services in india at this time, and the jealousy existing in the highest quarters in england of the exercise of the authority of a government by the east india company, that the almost independent position held by the king’s troops in india can be understood. the chief want was in cavalry, and it is a proof of the ill-judged parsimony or poverty of the company that, in a country so well adapted for that arm, where the cavalry of the enemy were counted by tens of thousands, they should have failed, till the time treated of, to produce an efficient mounted corps. m. le maitre de la tour, a french officer in the service of hyder ali, writing about the events then occurring, says:
“ ... the english have never yet succeeded in the attempt to form a good troop of european horse in india. as they have sent a regiment of dragoons[3] from england,[22] it is probable that their arrival may place the affair on another footing. though it may not immediately be conceived, the reason of the want of success in forming their intended troop of horse, consisted in the good discipline to which they were desirous of subjecting them.
“the excellence of the english cavalry is sufficiently acknowledged in europe: and its advantages consist less in the goodness of the horse, than in the choice of the horsemen. the pay of a horseman in england is such as renders his situation very eligible; so that the sons of rich farmers and tradesmen are very desirous of entering into the service. this being the case, it is in the power of the officers to select handsome well-formed men of good character, and to keep them in good discipline merely by the fear of being dismissed. the officers who were first entrusted with the formation of a body of cavalry in india, thought to establish and preserve the same discipline among them, without attending to the great difference of time, place, and persons. the recruits sent from england to india are in general libertines, and people of bad character: and, as the company will not dismiss a soldier, all the punishment inflicted on a horseman is, to reduce him to serve in the infantry; so that a man is no sooner put among the cavalry, than he is sent back to his former station. the french have succeeded in forming very good cavalry in india, by attending more to their horsemanship, and less to their discipline and manners.”
hyder ali’s cavalry numbered at that time about twenty-five thousand horsemen, among which was a body of french dragoons and hussars. the company maintained no cavalry establishment, beyond a small european troop formed, as related by m. le maitre de la tour. when at war, they borrowed a few hundreds of horsemen from the nawab of arcot, unpaid, undrilled, and undisciplined.
sir eyre coote, the commander-in-chief in india, was loud in his demands for cavalry. in his dispatch on his victory at porto novo he wrote:
“from the want of a corps of cavalry on our side equal in number to the service required, we were, with victory decidedly declared, obliged to halt just beyond the enemy’s[23] grounds, not being able to take advantage of so distinguished a day; for with a corps of cavalry, the enemy’s guns, stores, &c., would, to a certainty have fallen into our hands.”
again, after the battle of arnee, (2nd june 1782) he wrote:
“there was nothing wanting to have enabled me on this occasion to ruin and disperse hyder’s army, but a respectable body of cavalry. one thing is certain, that had i such a corps we should have captured the greatest part, if not the whole of his cannon.”
under the urgent demands made on them, the court of directors applied to the crown for the loan of a cavalry regiment, and, in accordance with the usual practice at that date, it was determined to raise a regiment for service in india. on the 24th sept. 1781, the following warrant was issued to colonel sir john burgoyne bart., of the 14th light dragoons, a cousin of general burgoyne who surrendered at saratoga in 1777.
warrant for forming a regiment of (light) dragoons under the command of colonel sir john burgoyne bart.
1781.
george r.
whereas we have thought fit to order a regiment of light dragoons to be forthwith formed under your command which is to consist of six troops with four serjeants, four corporals, one trumpeter, one hautboy, and fifty four private men in each troop, beside the usual number of commissioned officers; these are to authorize you by beat of drum or otherwise to raise so many men in any county or part of our kingdom of great britain, as shall be wanted to complete the said regiment, to the numbers above mentioned. and all magistrates, &c., given &c. this 24th[24] day of september 1781, in the twenty first year of our reign.
by his majesty’s command,
c. jenkinson.
to our trusty and well-beloved sir john burgoyne bart. colonel of our 23rd regiment of (light) dragoons, or to the officer appointed by him to raise men, for our said regiment.
in the london gazette, for the same date, the following appointments are made.
23rd light dragoons.
colonel sir john burgoyne, bart. of 14th dragoons is appointed to be colonel.
major john floyd of 21st dragoons to be lieutenant colonel.
captain thomas nash of 16th dragoons to be major.
to be captains of troops.
captain jonathan thomas of 15th dragoons.
captain lieutenant lewis majendie of 15th dragoons.
captain lieutenant john campbell of 20th dragoons.
lieutenant john beckwith of 15th dragoons to be captain lieutenant.
to be lieutenants.
lieutenant william gilbert child of 21st dragoons.
lieutenant william walton of 21st dragoons.
cornet john fullerton of 21st dragoons.
cornet guy henry crawford of 21st dragoons.
cornet t. j. venables hinde of 16th dragoons.
the roll of officers was completed in subsequent gazettes, but several changes took place before the embarkation of the regiment.
colonel sir john burgoyne, bart, of sutton park in bedfordshire, was an officer who had served in several[25] regiments, the 7th royal fusiliers, the 52nd foot, the 58th foot, and was lieutenant colonel of the 14th light dragoons at the time of his appointment as colonel of the 23rd light dragoons. he also held the offices of comptroller of the port of chester, and muster master of foreign troops serving in north america. on being appointed to serve in india, he was granted local rank as major general in the east indies from 1st june 1781, and was subsequently made major general in the army, 20th november 1782.[4] it is probable that the regiment was largely composed of drafts from the regiments that furnished it with officers, viz.: the 8th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 20th, and 21st light dragoons. the regiment was first brought together in the vicinity of his home, and, under order dated 28th december, marched from bedford to portsmouth to embark for india. the following orders and instructions had previously been issued, and subsequent events were to show how much the admonition as to disputes with the officers of the east india company were needed.
orders and instructions to sir john burgoyne colonel of the 23rd regiment of (light) dragoons for the conduct of his regiment on their passage to the east indies dated 29th november 1781.
george r.
you will before embarking call together the officers of the regiment under your command, and recommend to them in a particular manner the avoiding all manner of disputes with the officers of the east india company, and that they use their utmost endeavours to live with them in the greatest harmony, as the contrary behaviour will be[26] very displeasing unto us, as well as detrimental to the service they are jointly to be employed in;—the respective officers of companies are to recommend the same to the non commissioned officers and soldiers under their command; the officers of the east india company having the same orders, as to their behaviour to our land forces.
you will give the strictest orders for keeping up good discipline and regularity both whilst the troops are on board the east india companie’s ships, and on shore, and if any commissioned, non commissioned officer or soldier shall be guilty of any crime or disorder whilst on board the said ships, he shall be immediately confined, and you will order courts martial to be held and the delinquent to be punished there.
the officers of our said forces on board the said ships, shall give the necessary orders for the men under their command, consulting with the commanders of the said ships, in every thing relating to their service on board, dividing the men into watches, with a proportionable number of commissioned and non commissioned officers.
the necessary orders shall likewise be given for airing the bedding daily, for keeping the births (sic) clean and sweet, for preventing gaming, and selling drams or spirituous liquors and putting out the lights between decks with all which commissioned officers shall be chargeable.
no officers or soldiers shall go on shore out of any of the said ships, without the consent of the captain of the ship as well as ye commanding officer of the land forces, and whenever any men are allowed to go on shore, commissioned or non commissioned officers are to be sent with them, who are to be answerable for their conduct whilst on shore, and are to make a report thereof upon their return on board.
weekly returns of the officers and men of our said forces, on board each ship, shall be[27] constantly made out, and sent to you, as often as opportunity offers, and monthly returns of our said forces under your command shall be transmitted by you for us, to our secretary at war, as also a report of every thing that happens when you have an opportunity of sending them.
you will transmit with as much expedition as the opportunity of time, distance and place can admit, the original proceedings and sentences of every general court martial, to the commander in chief in the east indies who is to send the same to the judge advocate general in london.
in every thing you will consider the honour of our forces, the good of our service, and the interest of the east india company whose territories and commerce you are sent to protect and establish, you will therefore chearfully (sic) concur in all things which the principal officers of the east india company shall judge conducive thereto, and for that purpose you will use your utmost endeavours to preserve a good harmony and understanding betwixt our land forces and those of the east india company.
given at our court at st james’s this 29th day of november 1781, in the twenty first year of our reign.
by his majesty’s command
barrington.
in a letter, dated london 25th january 1782, from the east india directors to the president and council at fort st. george, the madras authorities were thus advised of the dispatch of the regiment to india—
“his majesty having been graciously pleased to order a regiment of light dragoons, dismounted, and two regiments of foot[5] to proceed to the east indies for the protection and defence of the company’s possessions, we hereby inform you that they embark on board the ships[28] now under dispatch for india. instructions have been given by our chairman and depy. chairman to provide horses to be in readiness for the dragoons, in order to render them fit for immediate service upon their arrival: and we rely upon these instructions having been duly complied with. the strength of the regiments and lists of the officers are as follows—
establishment of a regiment of light dragoons commanded by colonel sir john burgoyne, bart.
1 colonel and captain.
1 lt.-colonel and captain.
1 major and captain.
3 captains more.
6 lieutenants.
6 cornets.
6 quarter masters.
1 chaplain.
1 adjutant.
1 surgeon.
1 surgeon’s mate.
24 serjeants.
24 corporals.
6 trumpeters.
6 hautbois.
324 private men.
——
412
——
list of the officers of the twenty third regiment of light dragoons.
regiment. army.
colonel sir john burgoyne, bt. 24 sept. 1781. 29 aug. ’77. maj.-gen.
e. indies,
1st june ’81.
lt. colonel john floyd do.
major thomas nash do.
captains jonathan thomas do. 28 june 1779.
john beckwith 27th.
thomas crewe dodd 28th.
capt.-lieut. john petley 29th.
lieutenants wm. gilbert child 24th. 26 feb. 1780.
william walton 25th. 23 march ’81.
guy henry crawford 27th.
t. s. venables hinde 28th.
william sage 3rd dec. 9 oct. ’78.
cornets george williams 24th sept.
john campbell 25th do.
thomas eyre 26th.
john horsefall 27th.
john jaffrey 28th.
robert anstey 29th.
adjutant robert hilton 24th sept. ’81.
surgeon john m‘cullock 24th sept. ’81. ”
[29]
on the 5th january 1782, the regiment embarked at portsmouth, on board the ships ceres and royal henry forming part of the east india fleet sailing under convoy of vice admiral sir richard bickerton. in the same fleet sailed the two newly raised infantry regiments, a hanoverian regiment raised to serve the east india company for seven years, drafts for four king’s regiments then serving in india, and some recruits, raised in ireland, for the company’s service. lieutenant colonel floyd, with the greater part of the regiment, was on board the ceres. sir john burgoyne, with the rest of the regiment, sailed in the royal henry. floyd was in command of the regiment: sir john burgoyne being apparently in command of the whole of the troops. the voyage was an uneventful one, though not without some apprehension of meeting a french fleet. it was known that a french fleet was fitting out in brest, under the comte de guiche, to intercept them. on the 27th february, intelligence was received of a combined french and spanish fleet of 41 sail of the line and 18 frigates, that was cruising to intercept the convoy. the frigate that brought the intelligence had also passed close to a french squadron of 14 sail, that had only just missed the convoy: probably the squadron from brest. but no enemy was seen, and on 28th april, the fleet was safely anchored in rio, where it lay till 3rd june. in those days it was the custom to carry beer for troops at sea, as a protection against scurvy. the log of the ceres records that on 3rd march the beer had come to an end, and spirits were served to the troops. on the 15th march, the log records that there was “delivered to lieut. colonel floyd, commanding officer of the troops on board, 1 chest of tea belonging to the honble company, for the use of the military.” later on again the issue of spruce beer to the troops is recorded. it is evident that much attention, according to the medical lights of that day, was paid[30] to the health of the troops, with a view to landing them in india in as healthy a condition as possible. on the 31st march, they crossed the line with all the ceremonies observed on those occasions, now long since obsolete. the log records that at p.m. the captain “mustered the ship’s company to know who had crossed the line before, when we found 81 who had not, who all agreed to pay the usual forfeit except one seaman and two boys who were accordingly ducked three times from ye lee main yard arm.” we may be sure that all on board relieved the monotony of the voyage by taking part in the rough festivities of the day. lt. colonel floyd says in a private letter, “our dragoons are divided into two watches, and relieve each other every four hours, so the half of them are always on deck, chiefly for the sake of their health, and to assist the seamen in the operations of the ship, at which they now begin to be very handy.” on the 15th july, when nearing the cape, a danish ship “fresh from the cape” was spoken, and gave news that, on the 13th, 4 french sail of the line and 9 transports were to have sailed for the mauritius: also, that on 26th june, a french frigate and 12 transports with troops had sailed from the cape. but nothing more eventful occurred, and on 6th sept., the whole fleet anchored in bombay. there the convoy was broken up, and, on 15th, the ceres and royal henry sailed for madras, where they cast anchor on 19th and 20th october. hardly had they done so, when bad weather set in; the ships were blown from their anchorage, and, it was not till 26th and 27th october, that the regiment disembarked; the first british cavalry regiment to land in india. three deaths occurred among the men during the voyage, private jonas bateman on 23rd april, private joseph gardner on 4th june, and private simon kemp on 23rd september.
the reinforcements were sorely needed. so badly had[31] the east india company’s affairs prospered that, in october, there appeared a probability of the whole of the british establishments in southern india being destroyed. every where was discord, and disaster. the relations of the madras council, both with the naval and military commanders, were greatly strained. sir eyre coote had been obliged to return to bengal for a time on account of his health, and sir hector munro, commander-in-chief in madras, had resigned his command, while the pay of the native army was many months in arrears. so great had been the losses among the european officers, that, in spite of the stringent orders of the court of directors, the madras government had granted commissions to anybody they could lay their hands on. four naval actions had taken place off the coast during the year, between the french fleet under suffren and the english fleet under hughes, without any decisive result, though the balance of advantage was with the french. trincomalee had been captured by the french, and the shattered english ships had no place nearer than bombay where they could refit. by land, operations had been equally unsuccessful. in february, a british detachment consisting of about 100 europeans, 1500 sepoys, 360 cavalry, and 9 field pieces under colonel brathwaite, was forced to surrender to a combined mysore and french force, and, in april, cuddalore yielded to the same enemy. the operations of sir eyre coote, who was at that time commander in chief in india had not been successful. in an attempt on arnee he was outman?uvred by hyder, several small reverses were experienced, and, finally, he had fallen so seriously ill that he was forced to resign his command, and sail for bengal. negapatam was attacked by suffren and hyder in july, and was only saved by the timely appearance of the british fleet. to make matters worse, famine was raging in madras. the country had been abandoned[32] to the undisturbed possession of the enemy; great numbers of natives had flocked into the town for protection from hyder’s cavalry, and the ill success of our arms, together with scarcity of funds and bad management, prevented the collection of adequate supplies. “hundreds perished daily.”[6]
in the beginning of october, there were only 30,000 bags of rice in the place, the monthly consumption being 50,000. a large quantity of rice was afloat in the roads but could not be landed, owing to all the harbour boats being taken up for the service of the fleet.[7] on 15th october, a terrible storm arose: the fleet was blown off the coast, the flag ship being so much damaged that she was kept afloat with difficulty; several merchant ships were stranded or foundered at their anchors, and all the rice afloat was lost. “the shore for several miles was covered with wrecks and with the bodies of the dead and dying.”[8] before the storm, the admiral had declared his intention of carrying his ships round to bombay, and had positively refused to stop on the coast, though the absence of the fleet imperilled the safety of madras. some relief had been gained by the establishment of peace with the mahrattas, in may (treaty of salbye), though the final ratifications were not exchanged till february 1783: so that even in this quarter peace was not definitely secured.
it was under these depressing circumstances that the 23rd light dragoons landed in india, not to leave it again until the british arms were triumphant everywhere; a result to which the regiment contributed in no small degree. their arrival gave promise that future[33] successes in the field should not be so barren in results as had frequently been the case in the past. in their dispatch of 31st october 1782, the madras government, showing their satisfaction at the arrival of the 23rd light dragoons, quote sir eyre coote’s opinion that “a body of cavalry would have procured him the most solid and decisive advantages over the enemy” in the earlier operations.
the regiment landed with a strength of 360 privates fit for duty, and, by all accounts, appears to have been a splendid lot of men. madras letters described the troops landed as “remarkably healthy, and as fine a body of men as ever came to india ... particularly burgoyne’s men, who, when mounted, will be as fine a body of men as ever went into the field.” a contemporary writer mentions them as “this sightly corps,” and burgoyne himself, in the midst of his troubles two years later, writes, “the men are now the finest you can imagine.” immediately after landing, firelocks were served out to the men, and a party of them were exercised in heavy gun drill. in the course of the general mismanagement that distinguished the madras administration at that day, the regiment was first quartered in fort st. george, in what has been described as “a suffocating bombproof, from which three or four hundred french prisoners, afflicted with various pestilential diseases had been recently removed. the consequences were such as might have been expected. a fatal mortality so much prevailed that no less than two or three of the men were daily sent to their graves.” in consequence of the scarcity of provisions, biscuit was issued to all the european troops instead of rice. after a time, the regiment was moved to san thomé, four or five miles from madras. the four hundred horses ordered to be in readiness for the regiment, were not forthcoming, the few horses available[34] in madras not being large enough to carry european dragoons. an application for horses had been made to bengal, but received a discouraging reply. an allowance of rs. 600 per horse was therefore made to sir john burgoyne, to do his best with in mounting the regiment. the bengal government were ready to send horses but could not find means of transport. in the calcutta gazette for 21st december an advertisement appears, asking owners and freighters of ships to quote rates, and state what number of horses they would convey to madras for government. a week later, the gazette mentions that “lt. colonel eyre’s regiment of (native) cavalry is arrived at cowgatchy from monghyr. it is reported that this regiment is to be dismounted, and the horses sent to madras for the european cavalry lately arrived there.” but freight for the horses was not obtained. bengal had been denuded of troops, and it was impossible to send the horses by land without a strong escort. it was not till june following that four hundred horses arrived from bengal, by land, and the regiment was at last complete.
