The World Turned Upside Down - 7th Virginia Continental Regiment.

 

As the largest, and wealthiest of the new American states, Virginia was called on in 1776 by the Continental Congress for six regiments of infantry; the state however had already decided to raise nine regiments, eight of which were to have ten companies, and the ninth only seven at first, later raising their establishment to ten.

For the 1st to 7th Regiments, the ratio was set at three rifle companies to seven musket companies, with the 8th and 9th all muskets

The 7th Virginia Regiment was authorised on January 11th, 1776,  for service with the Continental Army, at Gloucester, Virginia, and was organized under Colonel William Daingerfield between February 7th - May 8th, 1776 at Gloucester Court House to consist of 10 companies from Halifax, Albemarle, Botetourt, Gloucester, King William, Essex, Middlesex, Cumberland, King and Queen, Orange and Fincastle Counties.

The 7th Virginia Regiment (1776-1778) - Revolutionary Virginia

Even before the news of the Battles of Lexington and Concord reached Virginia, the British Colonial Governor, Lord Dunmore had already clashed with the local patriots in the Gunpowder Incident at Williamsburg on 20th–21st April 1775, later fleeing the city on June 8th, 1775, staying on British warships, which roamed through the Chesapeake Bay.

Governor of the Province of Virginia, John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore - Joshua Reynolds

On November 7th, 1775, Dunmore declared martial law and issued an emancipation proclamation granting freedom to enslaved men who joined the British side. British troops occupied Norfolk, Virginia's largest city, where Dunmore recruited loyalists to fight the rebellious colonists, organising them into the Queen's Own Loyal Virginia Regiment, and with the former slaves into an Ethiopian Regiment commanded by white officers.

Colonial Virginia, illustrating the movements of Governor, Lord Dunmore in 1775-76 from Williamsburg to Norfolk and his eventual expulsion from the state following his defeat at Gwynn's Island 

On arrival in Norfolk, Dunmore ordered the fortification of the bridge across the southern branch of the Elizabeth River, about nine miles south of Norfolk in the village of Great Bridge, the bridge forming a natural defensive point since it was on the only road leading south from Norfolk toward North Carolina, and was bordered on both sides by the Great Dismal Swamp, with access to the bridge on both sides via narrow causeways. 

A period map of Eastern Virginia illustrating the position of the rebel held Great Bridge and the British stockade, Fort Murray, near Norfolk at which Dunmore's forces were defeated and forcing him to evacuate Norfolk.

Dunmore sent 25 men of the 14th Foot to the bridge, where they erected a small stockade fort they called Fort Murray on the Norfolk side of the bridge, also removing the bridge planking to make crossing it more difficult, whilst the fort was armed with two cannons and several smaller swivel guns. The men of the 14th were augmented by small companies from the Ethiopian and Queen's Own regiments, bringing the garrison size to between 40 and 80 men.

On the morning of December 9th, 1775, Dunmore ordered an attack across the narrow causeway, with British forces advancing six men abreast, firing by platoons, against the Patriots holding entrenched positions who waiting until the attackers were within fifty yards unleashed a devastating volley, that saw key British officers, including Captain Charles Fordice and Lieutenant John Batut, killed or wounded, and the attack collapsing under heavy fire, later drawing comparisons to events near Boston as Virginia's Bunker Hill.

A sketch by Lord Rawdon of the 1775 Battle of Great Bridge, Virginia. Title: A view of the Great Bridge near Norfolk in Virginia where the action happened between a detachment of the 14th Regt: & a body of the rebels. 

A. A stockade fort thrown up by the regulars before the action.
B. Entrenchments of the rebels.
C. A narrow causeway by which the regulars were forced to advance to the attack.
D. The church occupied by the rebels.

After the Battle of Great Bridge, the British realised that they lacked enough soldiers to keep using Norfolk as a base of operations, and rather spitefully shelled the city setting fires to many buildings on January 1st, 1776 when they evacuated it, abandoning their first land base in Virginia. Virginia rebels would later burn the rest of Norfolk in January, to retaliate against Scottish merchants in the town who had supported King George III and to prevent British forces from using the place as a future base.

After the destruction of Norfolk, the fleet stayed in the Elizabeth River, with Dunmore's presence requiring Virginia to keep militia in the region rather than send reinforcements to George Washington's army near Boston and New York, but a smallpox outbreak aboard the British ships and later during occupation of Gwynn's Island decimated Dunmore's force.

Captain Thomas Posey led a rifle company of the 7th Virginia Regiment
at the Battle of Gwynn's Island.

The 7th Regiment played a prominent role in driving Lord Dunmore and his loyalist forces off Gwynn's Island and out of Virginia. Captain Thomas Posey commanded a rifle company in the 7th regiment and chronicled the engagement in his journal.

British Forces on Gwynn's Island consisted of the 14th Foot (150 men), Royal Marines (100 men), Queen's Own Loyal Virginians (150 men) and Lord Dunmore's Ethiopians (200 men) plus the support of two sloops and two cutters.

Map of action at Gwynn's Island, Chesapeake Bay 1776 - Thomas Jefferson

The American force under Brigadier General Andrew Lewis consisted of detachments from the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 7th Virginia Regiments (200 men), Virginia Militia (1,000 men) and two Virginia Artillery companies manning fifteen guns of various calibres.

Brigadier General William Woodford

Following Gwynn's Island, the 7th Virginia encamped in York and Williamsburg during the autumn and winter of 1776, before marching to join Washington's army in New Jersey, assigned on May 11th, 1777 to Brigadier General William Woodford's 3rd Virginia Brigade.

For 1777 Washington had plans to organise his army on a consistent basis, intending that each division would be made up of three brigades, and that each brigade would have three full strength regiments, however a shortage of general officers and full strength regiments prevented a full implementation of this plan; never the less at the start of 1777 his main army, less those brigades from Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire in the Hudson Highlands or with the Northern Army and a North Carolina Brigade en route from home, had the following structure:

Greene's Division - 1st & 2nd Virginia Brigades

Stephen's Division - 3rd & 4th Virginia Brigades

Sullivan's Division - 1st & 2nd Maryland Brigades

Lincoln's Division - 1st & 2nd Pennsylvania Brigades

Stirling's Division - 3rd Pennsylvania & New Jersey Brigades

The first shipments of French aid had arrived, and along with General Henry Knox's practice of now assigning a company of artillery to every brigade, with 3, 4 or 6-pounder guns, the 'Corps of Light Infantry', better known as Morgan's Riflemen was formed in late May early June.

In June Captain Posey and a detachment of 7th Virginia riflemen joined Colonel Daniel Morgan’s Select Rifle Corps for detachment to the Northern Department and would later take part in the battles of Freeman's Farm and Bemis Heights during the Saratoga Campaign of that year.

In late August 1777, after a distressing 34-day journey from Sandy Hook on the coast of New Jersey, a Royal Navy fleet of more than 260 ships carrying some 17,000 British troops under the command of British General Sir William Howe landed at the head of the Elk River, on the northern end of the Chesapeake Bay then known as Head of Elk, approximately 40–50 miles southwest of Philadelphia.

After a skirmish at Cooch's Bridge south of Newark, the British troops moved north and Washington abandoned a defensive encampment along the Red Clay Creek near Newport, Delaware, to deploy against the British at Chadds Ford. This site was important as it was the most direct passage across the Brandywine River on the road from Baltimore to Philadelphia. On September 9th, Washington positioned detachments to guard other fords above and below Chadds Ford, hoping to force the battle there.

The 7th Virginia Regiment as part of Woodford's 1,200 strong brigade, under Major-General Adam Stephen, mustered 472 men all ranks, and on September 11th 1777 the regiment would participate in the Battle of Brandywine, part of Washington's force detailed to resist the approach of Howe's flanking attack that developed four hours into the battle; and with the 7th Virginia together with the rest of Woodford's brigade, positioned around the Birmingham Meeting House opposing the advance of the British Light Infantry and Hessian Jägers.

Division: Major General Adam Stephen
3rd Virginia Brigade: Brigadier General William Woodford (1,200 men)*
3rd Virginia Regiment (150) all ranks
7th Virginia Regiment (472)
11th Virginia Regiment (377)
15th Virginia Regiment (200)

4th Virginia Brigade: Brigadier General Charles Scott (800)
4th Virginia Regiment (314)
8th Virginia Regiment (157)
12th Virginia Regiment ((117)
Grayson's Additional Continental Regiment (100)

Patton's Additional Continental Regiment (124)

*Numbers of men quoted from G. Novak.

Following the defeat at Brandywine, and the British occupation of Philadelphia, Washington's reorganised army attacked at Germantown on the 4th October 1777.

I covered the confused actions of the Virginians under Major-General Adam Stephen in my post looking at the 15th Virginia Continental Regiment.

JJ's Wargames: The World Turned Upside Down - 15th Virginia Continental Regiment.

Stephen's men fought in the fog with troops led by General Anthony Wayne, and he was later accused of being drunk during the battle, and after being convicted in a court martial, he was stripped of his command and cashiered out of the army, making him the only Continental Army general court-martialled and immediately dismissed from the service during the war.

Washington’s men had fought with skill in the Philadelphia Campaign of 1777, often on the offensive while campaigning against superior numbers of professional British soldiers, and although they lost two key battles, as well as Philadelphia, to the British, Washington’s soldiers emerged from these experiences with a renewed confidence in their fighting abilities, needing a little more training to reach their full potential.

Baron Steuben drilling American troops at Valley Forge in 1778 - Edwin Austin Abbey

The encampment at Valley Forge in the winter of 1777 provided the opportunity for the training required under the tutelage of Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, with the 7th Virginia Regiment now under the command of Colonel Alexander Mcclanachan, and Lt. Colonel Holt Richardson entering Valley Forge with 427 men assigned to the regiment, but with only 46 fit for duty.

During the encampment at Valley Forge, an estimated 1,700 to 2,000 soldiers died from disease, possibly exacerbated by malnutrition and cold, wet weather, and with the most common killers being influenza, typhus, typhoid, and dysentery.

On November 1st, 1777 the regiment was reorganised to consist of 8 companies.

On May 6th, 1778, the army joyously celebrated France’s alliance with and formal recognition of the United States as a sovereign power; and the expected arrival of the French greatly altered British war plans, triggering their evacuation of Philadelphia in June.

Washington rapidly set his troops in motion to bring on a general engagement with the enemy, with the 7th Virginia Regiment leaving Valley Forge with 376 men assigned, and 226 men fit for duty. On June 28th, at the Battle of Monmouth, N.J., Washington’s men demonstrated their improved battle prowess when they forced the British from the field.

The Continental Congress ordered a reorganization of the Continental Army on May 27th, 1778. Under this resolve, the Virginia quota was reduced from fifteen infantry regiments to eleven. The Virginia regiments were still under strength and continued to dwindle in 1779, reduced to a fraction of their paper strength; at this point, regimental history becomes very confusing to track.

Given the number of men fit for duty, these “regiments” are not really “regiments” at all any more, yet they are still named as such.

On July 22nd, 1778 the 7th Virginia Regiment was relieved from the 3rd Virginia Brigade and assigned to the 2nd Virginia Brigade, part of Major General Lord Stirling's division, and the following year in April 1779, following yet another army reorganisation begun in the latter half of 1778, the 7th Virginia Regiment was at Middlebrook, NJ with 244 men, all ranks assigned, but having just 166 men fit for duty.

As directed by Congress the previous May, the Virginia Line was rearranged in September 1778, by reducing the fifteen regiments to eleven, the reorganization seeing the 5th Virginia Regiment (of 1775) redesignated the 3rd Virginia and the 7th Virginia regiments becoming the "new" Fifth Regiment, with the Commander of the "new" Fifth being Colonel William Russell.

Little is written about the 5th Regiment during the winter of 1778 -79. In the reorganization of the Virginia Line in May 1779, the 5th Regiment became part of Brig. Gen. William Woodford's Brigade, and following operations in the Northern Colonies, the Virginia troops were ordered south to join Major-General Benjamin Lincoln in defence of the Southern Colonies, and these troops under Woodford and Scott entered Charleston, South Carolina on April 7th, 1780.

On May 12th, 1780, General Lincoln surrendered the city of Charlestown, along with the entire Virginia Line of Continental troops to the British.

In 1780, the word “Detachment” comes into use, describing a 700-man conglomeration of these “regiments.” 

The 1st Virginia Detachment was led by Richard Parker. The 2nd Virginia Detachment was formed out of various regiments under the 2nd Virginia Regiment’s original colonel, Brigadier General William Woodford, including elements of the 2nd Virginia Regiment, and the 3rd Virginia Detachment would be formed under Colonel Abraham Buford and was composed of elements of the 7th Virginia, as well as various pieces of other units.

The Battle of Waxhaws - Graham Turner

The first two Detachments of the Virginia Line served at the Siege of Charleston in South Carolina and were surrendered to the British Army on 12th May 1780.

The 3rd Detachment was cut to pieces at the Battle of Waxhaws; the Virginia line had effectively ceased to exist, with the single exception of the two-company 9th Virginia Regiment of 1779, which was stationed at Fort Pitt (the present Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania).

Any discussion about the look of a particular American Continental Infantry regiment is always likely to couched in many caveats and for the historical wargamer looking to recreate a look to his forces many choices have to be made in the decision process of what to depict and how.

In October 1778 General Washington held a lottery, drawing to determine which colour coat, blue or brown, would be distributed to state regiments, which saw blue coats assigned to North Carolina, Maryland, New Jersey and New York, whilst brown coats were to be provided to Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

The colours carried by my 7th Virginia Regiment are taken from the insert in the Perry Miniatures plastic Continentals box set.
I have copied them onto a heavy paper, rather than cut them directly from the insert, which is rather too heavy to fold as required when mounted on the staff. 

My 7th Virginia Regiment are depicted as if Washington had had his way, with brown coats faced in a darker red than usual, together with red turnbacks, and with the officers in the grey waistcoat and breeches ordered to complete the look of the 1778 regiment. The drummer's green livery is purely speculative and assumes a captured British drummer's coat, less the lace, has been rapidly furnished for use.

The colours carried are using some of the options offered with the Perry Miniatures plastic Continentals, with which this unit is modelled, and depicted being carried by the Virginian detachment in Graham Turner's picture above. The regiment is finished off with a set of low profile sabot bases from Supreme Littleness Designs, and I have built it as a 24-figure strong unit to better represent its strength of 472 men at the start of the Philadelphia Campaign and will likely use it like this to represent a combined Virginia Regiment for other actions.

One of the more interesting aspects of representing the Virginian regiments on the table will be recreating their rifle companies, perhaps providing a more enhanced skirmishing capability, but a reduced rate of volley fire to simulate the slower loading rifle companies. Of course after June 1777, one might just choose to assume the unit is all musket, with the Riflemen on detached service with Colonel Morgan.

Work now proceeds on to the next two units to feature here on JJ's, namely His Majesty's 44th Regiment of Foot, and the 11th Virginia Continental Regiment.

As always more anon.

JJ

Battlefields in Devon - Battle of Chagford, 8th February 1643.

The Battle of Chagford was a classic skirmish action between opposing horse, wielding similar pistols, that would cause the death of Sir Sydney Godolphin amid the village streets of this lovely Devon village.
Cromwell's Ironsides charge Prince Rupert's Horse, 1644 - Graham Turner.

 

It's been a few years since I posted on a battlefield visit in my own home county of Devon, but this opportunity to post about the Battle of Chagford came about due to an aborted hot-air balloon flight Carolyn and I were due to make earlier this month, and always aware of potential places to visit on the excuse of fitting in a pub-lunch we found ourselves sitting in the Three Crowns Hotel, that just happened to be at the centre of this fierce little cavalry skirmish fought in February of 1643.

The village of 'Chagforde' lies on the eastern edge of Dartmoor as seen in this period map, and over which we should have been flying in a hot-air balloon this month, our flight postponed due to adverse weather conditions.

It was in fact July 2021 that I last did a Devon Battlefield post covering a visit to Slapton Sands and Start Point, link below.

JJ's Wargames: Start Point, Hallsands and Slapton Sands

For this expedition I turned to my little tome that often sits in the glovebox of our car, 'Battlefield Walks Devon' by Rupert Mathews which contains walking routes for eighteen battle sites of which about ten have been covered here on the blog, with Chagford completing the eleventh, and with all the other visits labelled 'Battlefields in Devon' in the sidebar.

The Battle of Edgehill fought on the 23rd October 1642, was the first major engagement of the English Civil War and it ended indecisively, preventing a quick victory for either side, and bringing matters to a head between the English Parliament and King Charles I, adamant that he ruled absolutely by the divine right of kings; and the battle demonstrating to both sides that the evolving nature of warfare, transitioning from medieval shock tactics to the use of firearms and artillery set the stage for a protracted civil war between Royalists (Cavaliers) and Parliamentarians (Roundheads), with control of London and strategic towns remaining crucial throughout the conflict.

I visited the battlefield of Edgehill back in 2017, link below.
JJ's Wargames: Battle of Edgehill 1642

In the wider country both sides sought to enforce their grip on local administrations, as control of local councils ensured that taxation from that town or county flowed to whichever side had secured that control.

The guide map from 'Battlefield Walks Devon' shows the
layout of the village and key points of interest.

Whilst the County of Devon declared for the King, some of the small mercantile and industrial towns and villages, particularly Plymouth, preferred the Parliamentarian cause, with Chagford one such village, garrisoned by a small troop of Parliamentary horse, to secure it against Royalist forces mustering in Devon.

The typical old Devon cottages that make up the centre of Chagford, seen here along the narrow Low Street, leading up to the village square, and along which the Royalist horse attacked.

Colonel Northcote and his officers took lodgings in Whyddon House, now the Three Crowns Hotel, whilst the men were billeted in the houses of the village.

One of the finest churches on Dartmoor, St Michael the Archangel, Chagford is undoubtedly little changed from February 1643 when battle raged among the surrounding streets.

Sir Ralph Hopton, the Royalist commander in Devon ordered Colonel Berkeley with a troop of horse and another of dragoons to attack Chagford and capture it.

The view from the church to the east of the village towards the countryside through which the Royalist horse made their attack on the morning of 8th February 1643.

The Parliamentarians were not caught completely by surprise that morning, as the garrison was alerted to the attack by pickets placed at the eastern end of Low Street causing the sleepy garrison to be on the streets when the Royalists came clattering into the village square.

The Market Square is today dominated by this small Council office and shops, but this building was absent during the battle as the square was open for market traders to set up their stalls, and it was here where the fierce fighting took place.

It was in Market Square that the main fighting took place, where a savage street fight erupted between the opposing sides.

The stone porch of the former Whyddon House, now the Three Crowns Hotel.

Led by the dashing Sir Sydney Godolphin, MP for Helston, and famed poet, one squad of Royalist horse made straight for Whyddon House to attack the Parliamentary commanders who, by the time Godolphin and his men arrived, were emerging from the house, leading to a brisk fight around the ornate stone porch of the building.

Godolphin received a pistol bullet in the thigh that severed the main artery, causing him to collapse against the stone walls of the porch.

Redoubling their efforts, the Royalists forced their way into the house, though not before Northcote and several of his men had escaped by scrambling out the back. with most of them getting away and scattering among the hills on the edge of Dartmoor, before regrouping and heading east towards more friendly territory.

The village carpark with Meldon Hill in the background, on the edge of Dartmoor, and over which I suspect many of the Parliamentary garrison evaded capture as they fled the village.

Chagford was secured for the King without much enthusiasm by the locals, but the unfortunate Godolphin lay dying from his wound, made comfortable in Whyddon House, before succumbing and being buried two days later in the chancel of All Saints Church in Okehampton on the 10th February 1643.

In memorial of his gallant passing the poet Clinton Scollard penned the following tribute, part of which read;

They rode from the camp at morn

With clash of sword and spur.

The birds were loud in the thorn,

The sky was an azure blur.

A gallant show they made

That warm noontide of the year,

Led on by a dashing blade,

By the poet-cavalier.

Time moves on and the ancient property evolved into a charming old world inn, its solid granite walls, splendid mullioned windows, massive oak beams and huge fireplace being complemented by, of course, a resident ghost, said to be the sombre shade of the tragic Sidney Godolphin.

The former Whyddon House, now the Three Crowns Hotel in which Colonel Northcote and his officers were billeted when the Royalist attack commenced, and where Carolyn and I enjoyed a splendid lunch.

He wanders the hotel's cosy interior resplendent in full Cavalier dress and sporting a handsome plumed hat, making fleeting appearances, occasionally startling witnesses by suddenly manifesting in front of them and fixing them with a sad stare.

I can highly recommend a visit to beautiful Chagford if the opportunity arises, providing easy access for walks on Dartmoor, and the Three Crowns adding a bit of historical interests as well as local accommodation, bar and restaurant where we enjoyed a very pleasant lunch.

I hope you enjoyed this little excursion into Devon's military history, and as always more anon.

JJ

The World Turned Upside Down - His Majesty's 42nd Royal Highland Regiment of Foot.

In the aftermath of the 1st Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, Independent Companies of militia were raised from loyalist Highland clans for policing and peacekeeping duties. These companies were commonly known in Gaelic as 'Am Freiceadan Dubh', or 'The Black Watch', due to their unpopular nature and their dark green government-issue tartan.

Figures 1 to 4 illustrate Scottish rebels, with the only recognisable emblem being the Jacobite white cockade. Figure 5 shows a grenadier of a Scottish regiment circa 1715, Figure 6 a grenadier of the 'Cameronians', circa 1709, a Covenanter regiment raised by William in 1689, and Figure 7 representing a soldier of an independent company in 1730, wearing the dark-green government tartan.
British Infantry Uniforms - Liliane and Fred Funcken.

In 1739 King George II ordered that all the independent companies be merged into a single line infantry regiment, and the ten Independent Highland Companies of "Black Watch" were officially formed into the "43rd Highland Regiment of Foot", a regiment of the line in 1739 under Colonel John Lindsay, 20th Earl of Crawford and Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Robert Munro, 6th Baronet, and was first mustered in 1740, at Aberfeldy, Scotland. 

Colonel John Lindsay, 20th Earl of Crawford

During the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748), the regiment impressed the Duke of Cumberland with its ferocious Highland style of fighting that surprised the French at Fontenoy in 1745, and later that year it was sent back to guard southern England against invasion, with one company being sent north to fight the Jacobites at Culloden. In 1747 it was given a numerical ranking as the 43rd Foot, rising to the 42nd two years later when the previous 42nd, Oglethorpe's Regiment was disbanded.

Figure 1 illustrates an officer of the 43rd Regiment nicknamed 'Am Freiceadan Dubh', or 'The Black Watch', and Figure 2 shows an officer of the same regiment in 1745. Figure 3 is a soldier of the Black Watch in 1740, and Figure 4 a soldier in the uniform of 1742. Figure 5 shows a corporal, identified by the white shoulder-knot, circa 1743.
British Infantry Uniforms - Liliane and Fred Funcken.

From early 1747 to the end of 1748, it was in Flanders but otherwise was stationed in Ireland until 1756, and in 1756 it was formally titled the 42nd (Highland) Regiment of Foot and was sent to North America on the outbreak of the Seven Years' War, and what became known as the French and Indian War.

The 42nd Royal Highland Regiment saw action at the first battle of Ticonderoga, also known as the Battle of Carillon, where it lost over half of its men in the assault in July 1758. 

The 42nd Royal Highland Regiment in action at the first battle of Ticonderoga, July 8th, 1758 - Patrice Courcelle.

The second battalion of the Black Watch was sent to the Caribbean but after the losses of Ticonderoga, the two battalions were consolidated in New York, and the regiment would be present at the second battle of Ticonderoga in July 1759 and the surrender of Montreal in September 1760, following which they were sent to the West Indies again where they saw action at Havana, Martinique and Guadeloupe.

“The Battle Of Bushy Run: August 16th, 1763” by Don Troiani.
An account of the battle in the history of the 42nd Highlanders Regiment says that the Colonel of the regiment called in his posts as if about to retreat and the Indians believing that they had victory rushed forward from behind their cover becoming fully exposed. They were then instantly charged in the front and in the flank, by two companies of the 42nd Highlanders, and were thrown into confusion and routed.

In August 1763, the regiment fought in the Battle of Bushy Run while trying to relieve Fort Pitt, modern Pittsburgh, during Pontiac's Rebellion, and in 1767 the regiment left North America, and went to Cork, Ireland later returning to Scotland in 1775.

Lieutenant Colonel Sir Thomas Stirling,
42nd Royal Highland Regiment of Foot.

Thomas Stirling was born on 8th Oct 1733, the second son of Sir Henry Stirling, bart. (1688-1753) of Ardoch, Perthshire, by Anne, third daughter of Thomas Gordon, admiral of the Russian fleet and governor of Cronstadt. 

He received a commission from the Prince of Orange on 11th Oct 1747, and served ten years in the Scots brigade (afterwards the 94th), which was then in the Dutch service. On 24th March 1757 he was made captain in the 42nd highlanders, having raised a company for that regiment, and he served with it in the conquest of Canada, the capture of Martinique in 1759, and of Havana in 1762. In 1765 he was sent to take possession of the Illinois country ceded to Great Britain by the peace of 1763.

Stirling had become major on 12th Dec 1770, and lieutenant-colonel on 7th Sept 1771, in the regiment; and he raised its strength from 350 to 1,200 men in five months in 1775.

Forbes's history says that;

 'he was indefatigable in training his men to the manner of fighting practiced in the former war with the Indians and French bushmen, which experience had shown to be so well suited for a closely wooded country. Well versed himself in this mode of warfare, Colonel Stirling imparted it to his troops by first training the non-commissioned officers himself, and then superintending their instructions given to the soldiers.'

The 42nd Royal Highland Regiment of Foot in America, 1776-1783.

On the 10th April 1776 the 42nd Royal Highland Regiment was inspected by General Oughton and reported a total strength of 921 Highlanders, 74 Scotch Lowlanders, 3 English, 1 Welsh, and 2 Irish soldiers, following which the regiment sailed for America (Boston) on the 1st of May with Frasers (71st Highland Regiment) in a fleet of 33 ships. 

The British Army in North America - Gerry Embleton (Osprey)
The illustration shows the likely look of the 42nd in America in Plates 2 and 3, with the regiment forced to adapt to conditions and the situation on arrival at Halifax in Nova Scotia in July 1776, with Plate 1 showing a soldier in uniform conforming to the 1768 regulations, with his kilted plaid in 'government sett'. An inspection return referred to the difficulty in getting plaids, and the need to adopt 'more commodious dress for the American service'. Contemporary reports speak of shortages or broadswords, with the soldiers preferring just carrying the bayonet.

However the convoy was scattered in the Atlantic early into the voyage, that would later see two transports captured by the Continental Navy brig Andrea Doria, that would reduce the strength of the 42nd by 42 men, who would not rejoin the regiment until 1778, and leaving the balance to finally catch up with Howe's main army at Staten Island, landing on 5th August 1776 via Halifax, Nova Scotia, once the convoy was informed of the evacuation of Boston.

Once landed, the Grenadiers of the 42nd and 71st formed into 4th Grenadier Battalion, whilst the Light company joined those of the 7th 22nd 33rd 37th 54th 63rd 70th and 74th composing the 1st Light Battalion under Lt. Col. Robert Abercromby, of the 37th Foot. 

The Bonnet companies of the regiment, under Lt. Col. Stirling, were assigned to the reserve brigade under Earl Cornwallis, with 33rd, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Grenadier Battalions, and Royal Artillery, and the regiment was not heavily engaged in the fighting for Long Island with losses of Lieutenant Crammond and nine rank and file wounded.

The 42nd were among the British contingent of 4,000 British and Hessian soldiers that landed at Kips Bay at 10 a.m. on the 15th September, in a first landing wave of over eighty flatboats.

David Stewart of Garth tells the following story of the night of the 15th:

"This night Major Murray was nearly carried off by the enemy, but saved himself by his strength of arm and presence of mind. As he was crossing to his regiment from the battalion which he commanded, he was attacked by an American officer and two soldiers, against whom he defended himself for some time with his fusil, keeping them at a respectful distance. At last, however, they closed upon him, when unluckily his dirk slipped behind, and he could not, owing to his corpulence, reach it. Observing that the rebel (American) officer had a sword in his hand, he snatched it from him, and made so good use of it, that he compelled them to fly, before some men of the regiment, who had heard the noise, could come up to his assistance. He wore the sword as a trophy during the campaign."

The British landing at Kip's Bay, New York Island, 15th September 1776 - Robert Cleveley.

The operation was a British success, forcing the Continental Army to withdraw to Harlem Heights, and ceding control of New York City on the lower half of the island. However, Washington established strong positions on Harlem Heights, which he defended in a fierce skirmish between the two armies the following day; with elements of the 2nd and 3rd Light Infantry Battalions, along with the 42nd Highlanders ordered forward as reinforcements in support of a skirmish in the Hollow Way, an area of lower ground between two plateaus and in which two or three companies of British light infantry were subjected to a surprise American counterattack.

The fighting continued for an hour until the imminent arrival of more British forces caused Washington to call his troops back, however the number of troops grew to nearly 5,000 on each side as the British were pushed back, before Washington called off the attack after 6 hours because the Americans were not ready for a general engagement with the full British army.

Stewart of Garth records the 42nd losing one sergeant and three privates killed, and Captains Duncan Macpherson and John Mackintosh, Ensign Alexander Mackenzie (who died of his wounds), and three sergeants, one piper, two drummers, and forty-seven privates wounded.

The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in New York on November 16th, 1776, and was a British victory that gained the surrender of the remnant of the garrison of Fort Washington near the north end of Manhattan, being one of the worst Patriot defeats of the war.

Contemporaneous view drawn by British officer Thomas Davies of the attack against Fort Washington on November 16, 1776. Shows artillery fire on the fort and redoubts as well as several boats of soldiers (likely the 42nd) in the river. The New Jersey Palisades and the Hudson River are also shown in the background.

Howe's plan of attack was to storm the fort from three directions while a fourth force feinted; by then it had received reinforcements and was garrisoned by 3,000 men. Hessian troops under the command of Wilhelm von Knyphausen would attack the fort from the north, Percy was to lead a brigade of Hessians and several British battalions from the south, and Lord Cornwallis with the 33rd Regiment of Foot and General Edward Mathew with the light infantry were to attack from the east. The feint was to be by the 42nd Highlanders under Colonel Stirling, who were to land on the east side of Manhattan, south of the fort.

American casualties were 59 dead, 96 wounded and 2,837 prisoners from a total American garrison of about 3,000 men. In addition between Forts Washington and Lee across the Hudson, some 146 cannon were captured by the British.

Whilst the Crown forces of some 8,000 men lost 84 killed, and 374 wounded.

The Battle of Fort Washington - Don Troiani.
Hessians storm Colonel Rawling’s Redoubt of Pennsylvania Riflemen and three cannon. Margaret Corbin, who manned a cannon after her husband was killed, is featured.

Despite being intended as a feint, rather than the main attack, the 42nd climbed the cliff-face and overran the American defenders. Losses, according to Stewart of Garth were 1 sergeant and 10 privates killed, and Lieutenants Patrick Graeme, Norman Macleod, and Alexander Grant, and 4 sergeants and 66 rank and file, wounded. Stirling and his men were thanked in general orders.

A piper was killed at Fort Washington: 

"One of the pipers, who began to play when he reached the point of a rock on the summit of the hill, was immediately shot, and tumbled from one piece of rock to another til he reached the bottom."

In the winter of 1776 General Howe set up a chain of outposts stretching from Perth Amboy to Bordentown, the latter manned by the 42nd and Hessians, that saw a series of minor skirmishes that took place on December 22nd and 23rd, 1776; with the fighting taking place in Mount Holly, New Jersey, between an American force mostly composed of colonial militia under Colonel Samuel Griffin and a force of 2,000 Hessians and British regulars under Carl von Donop.

Colonel Count Carl Emil Ulrich von Donop

Col. Carl von Donop had placed Colonel Johann Rall at Trenton in command of about fifteen hundred Hessians and a small mixture of British regulars, while he sought a spot further south to station the bulk his forces, an estimated twenty-four hundred troops, a number far too many to fit in the small town of Trenton. 

Donop first stopped at Bordentown, about eight miles south of Trenton, but due to the size of his force was soon forced to divide his troops among other villages close by to adequately quarter his force.

Captain Johann Ewald, an officer of Jagers.
Ewald left a first hand account of events in his diary.

One of Donop’s officers in the jaeger corps, Capt. Johann Ewald, recorded what has become an invaluable source of information for the events that followed, keeping a diary of the daily movements and skirmishes. Ewald wrote:

'On the 19th Colonel Donop ordered me to accompany him to Black Horse to inspect the cordon of the left wing. The colonel took along Captain Lorey with twelve mounted jaegers, an officer and thirty Scots, and Colonel [Thomas] Stirling to reconnoiter the area of Mount Holly. We arrived at the village unhindered, where we obtained information that Colonel Griffin with two thousand men was stationed at Eayrestown, seven miles from Mount Holly. At eight o’clock in the evening we arrived back in Bordentown.'

On December 21st, about 600 of Griffin's troops overwhelmed a guard outpost of the 42nd located about one mile south of Blackhorse at Petticoat Bridge. 

Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Reed,
Adjutant to General Washington.

On the evening of December 22nd, Washington's adjutant, Joseph Reed, went to Mount Holly and met with Griffin, who had written to Reed, requesting small field pieces to assist in their actions, and Reed, who had been discussing a planned attack on Rall's men in Trenton with Washington, wanted to see if Griffin's company could participate in some sort of diversionary attack. Griffin was ill, and his men poorly equipped for significant action, but they apparently agreed to some sort of actions the next day.

On the morning of December 23rd, von Donop brought about 3,000 troops (the 42nd British (Highland) Regiment and the Hessian Grenadier battalions Block and Linsing) to Petticoat Bridge where they overwhelmed Griffin's men. 

Petticoat Bridge is just north of the village of Slab Town
There is an excellent account of the Battle of Iron Works Hill in the link below and where these maps come from.
The Engagement at Woodlane: Precursor to the Battle of Iron Works Hill, a Key to the American Victory at Trenton - Journal of the American Revolution

Griffin's troops retreated to Mount Holly where von Donop reported scattering about 1,000 men near the town's meeting house. Jäger Captain Johann Ewald reported that "some 100 men" were posted on a hill "near the church", who "retired quickly" after a few rounds of artillery were fired. Griffin, whose troops had occupied Mount Holly, slowly retreated to their fortified position on the hill, following which the two sides engaged in ineffectual long-range fire.

Von Donop's forces bivouacked in Mount Holly on the night of December 23rd, where, according to Ewald, they plundered the town, breaking into alcohol stores of abandoned houses and getting drunk.

John Hills’s 1778 map - Library of Congress
The Engagement at Woodlane: Precursor to the Battle of Iron Works Hill, a Key to the American Victory at Trenton - Journal of the American Revolution

The next day, December 24th, they moved in force to drive the militia from the hill, but Griffin and his men had retreated to Moorestown during the night, and for whatever reason, von Donop and his contingents remained in Mount Holly, eighteen miles and a full day's march from Trenton, until a messenger arrived on December 26th, bringing the news of Rall's defeat by Washington that morning.

The Battle of Trenton - Hugh Charles McBarron, Jr

From late 1776 to early 1777 elements of the regiment, were involved in the Forage War, a series of skirmishes and raids conducted by the Continental Army and local militias against British and Hessian forces in New Jersey, with the objective of disrupting British foraging parties, denying them supplies, and weakening their hold on the region. This guerrilla warfare tactic effectively harassed British troops and contributed to the American strategy of attrition.

On February 23rd, 1777 at Spanktown, New Jersey Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mawhood was sent with a reinforced brigade to destroy any rebel forces he could catch, setting out with a battalion each of light infantry and grenadiers, plus the 3rd Brigade, the latter formation consisting of the 10th, 37th, 38th and 52nd Foot, recently transferred from the Rhode Island garrison. 

British Army Uniforms 1751 - 1783, Carl Franklin

Near Spanktown, now Rahway, New Jersey, Mawhood found a group of militia herding some livestock covered by a larger body of Americans waiting on a nearby hill. The British officer sent the grenadier company of the 42nd Foot on a wide flanking manoeuvre, but just as the grenadiers prepared to launch their assault, they were fired on from ambush and routed with the loss of 26 men. 

At this moment, Maxwell sent his superior force forward to envelop Mawhood's force, the American force including the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th New Jersey Regiments, the 1st and 8th Pennsylvania Regiments, and the German Battalion. Mawhood's surprised men were hounded all the way back to Amboy, which they reached at 8:00 PM., the Americans claiming to have inflicted 100 casualties, and Mawhood admitting to losing 69 killed and wounded and six missing.

On May 10th, 1777 at Piscataway, New Jersey, Maj. Gen. Adam Stephen, with about 150 men, hoping to surprise the British 42nd Highlanders that was posted at Piscataway, attacked them. The Americans were driven off, with the British pursuing them for almost three miles to the American camp at Metuchen.

General George Washington investigated the engagement, causing him to write a strong letter to Stephen expressing how displeased he was with his conduct.

British Army Uniforms 1751 - 1783, Carl Franklin

The 42nd fought bravely in this battle, receiving a special commendation from Lord Cornwallis, and their losses are recorded as "3 sergeants and 9 privates killed; and Captain Duncan Macpherson, Lieutenant William Stewart, 3 sergeants, and 35 privates wounded. 

Stewart of Garth tells the story of Serjeant Macgregor:

"On this occasion, Sergeant Macgregor, whose company was immediately in the rear of the picquet, rushed forward to their support, with a few men who happened to have their arms in their hands, when the enemy commenced the attack. Being severely wounded, he was left insensible on the ground. When the picquet was overpowered, and the few survivors forced to retire, Macgregor, who had that day put on a new jacket with silver lace, having besides, large silver buckles in his shoes, and a watch, attracted the notice of an American soldier, who deemed him a good prize. The retreat of his friends not allowing him time to strip the sergeant on the spot, he thought the shortest way was to take him on his back to a more convenient distance. By this time Macgregor began to recover; and, perceiving whither the man was carrying him, drew his dirk, and, grasping him by the throat, swore that he would run him through the breast, if he did not turn back and carry him to the camp. The American, finding this argument irresistible, complied with the request, and, meeting Lord Cornwallis (who had come up to the support of the regiment when he heard the firing) and Colonel Stirling, was thanked for his care of the sergeant; but he honestly told him, that he only conveyed him thither to save his own life. Lord Cornwallis gave him liberty to go whithersoever he chose."

On the 24th August 1777 the regiment disembarked at the Elk River, Maryland with the 28th, 49th, 5th, 10th, 27th,40th, 55th, and 15th Foot as part of General Howe's campaign to take Philadelphia and deal a severe blow to the main American army under General Washington defending the city.

The 42nd with a strength of 597 all ranks, would be part of Major General Grey's third brigade at the Brandywine, alongside the 15th, 17th and 44th Foot, but would not see action as it was held in reserve throughout the day, but the flank companies lost 4 privates killed, and 2 sergeants and 15 privates wounded.

Likewise the bulk of the regiment would miss the action at Germantown on the 5th October 1777 with only the light company involved that day.

Washington's counterattack at Monmouth showing the attempted flanking attack by Cornwallis and third brigade's and the 42nd's position at Sutfin Orchard, before being forced back and failing to stop the American pursuit at the Spotwood Middle Branch Creek.

In May 1778 General Clinton replaced Howe as commander in chief and prepared plans to evacuate Philadelphia for a return march to New York, that would see the 42nd with a strength of around 650 men part of third brigade that fought at Monmouth Courthouse on 28th June 1778.

The 42nd Foot defending the Sutfin Orchard, Battle of Monmouth (June 28, 1778)

The 42nd would experience the drill and training program that Major General Friedrich von Steuben had implemented at Valley Forge over the winter of 1777/78 as they were hard pressed by Major General Lafayette's counterattack in the Sutfin Orchard, eventually forced to give ground, by which time Clinton had secured the withdrawal of his army to Sandy Hook for onward transport back to New York, but giving the Americans a moral and propaganda victory by displaying their ability to go toe to toe with British regulars.

After the Philadelphia Campaign the 42nd became part of the New York garrison, participating in several raids into New Jersey and Virginia, to attack shipping and stores.

On 26th January 1780, the regiment boarded transports off Brooklyn, bound for the south and in time to participate in the Siege of Charleston between March 29th and May 12th, 1780. Losses were lieutenant Macleod and 9 privates killed, and Lieutenant Alexander Grant and 14 privates wounded.

A British map of the siege of Charleston in 1780

A 2nd Battalion was formed in March 1780, with eight officers from the 1st Battalion being detached to help raise the new battalion.

On the 4th June 1780, the regiment boarded transports for Staten Island returning as part of the British garrison until the end of the war, with the Light Company participating in the siege of Yorktown between September 28th to its fall on October 19th 1781.

A pen and ink drawing with graywash of Mangalore fort after it was taken by the British in 1783.
The artist was seated on the sand across the river.
By George Goddard, 4th December 1783. British Library.

The 2nd battalion was sent to India in January 1781 and took part in the siege of Mangalore in autumn 1783 during the Second Anglo-Mysore War.

On the 22nd October 1783 the 1/42nd left New York bound for Haliax, Nova Scotia, not returning home until May 1790 when it arrived in Glasgow. 

My 42nd Royal Highland Regiment of Foot are composed of the metal centre company men from Perrys miniatures and are modelled as a very strong 24 figure regiment given the unit regularly fielded in excess of 500 men, and I have plans to add another eight figures including extra command to allow me to bring two units of 16 figures for certain scenarios I have in mind.

The regiment is finished off with a set of Colours from GMB and some marvellous metal finials from Warlord Games, this after finding the Front Rank offerings are just too large to look right on the Perry command figures. Finally they are based using the equally marvellous low profile sabot bases from Supreme Littleness Designs.

I'm busy this weekend performing my duties as father of the bridegroom, as my younger son Will is marrying my soon to be daughter-in-law Olivia, hence this post has gone up a day earlier than my usual schedule; however the project continues with the showcasing of the 7th Virginia Continental Regiment in my next TWTUD post.

As always, more anon.

JJ