Osprey - Warrior 088 - British Light Infanfryman of the Seven Years' War - North America 1757-63...

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British Light Infantryman of the Seven Years' War North America 175 7-63

Transcript of Osprey - Warrior 088 - British Light Infanfryman of the Seven Years' War - North America 1757-63...

Page 1: Osprey - Warrior 088 - British Light Infanfryman of the Seven Years' War - North America 1757-63 (E-book)

British Light Infantryman of the Seven Years' War North America 175 7-63

Page 2: Osprey - Warrior 088 - British Light Infanfryman of the Seven Years' War - North America 1757-63 (E-book)

LIEUTENANT COLONEL IAN M

McCULLOCH is a military

historian and former Deputy Director of History & Heritage

for the Canadian Forces, currently serving at NATO

Allied Command HQ in

Norfolk, Virginia. He has been

published in numerous

international journals and magazines and Is finishing

a book entitled "Sons of the Mountains» chronicling the

service of the three Highland

regiments that fought In North

America during the Seven

Years' War.

TIM J TODISH Is a native

of Grand Rapids, Michigan,

and a graduate of Michigan State University. A retired

police officer with over 27

years service, he now works

as a historical writer and

consultant. His published

works Include America's FIRST First World War.

The French and Indian War,

The Annotated and

Illustrated Journals of Major

Robert Rogers, and

Alamo Sourcebook 1836: A Comprehensive Guide

to the Alamo and the Texas

Revolution.

STEVE NOON was born In

Kent, UK, and attended art

college In Cornwall. He has had a lifelong passion for

illustration, and since t 98!5

has worked as a professional

artist. Steve has provided

award-winning illustrations for renowned publishers Dortlng

Kindersley, where his Interest

In historical illustration began,

and he has Illustrated several

books for Osprey.

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Warrior . 88 O SPREY

~L SHING

British Light Infantryman of the Seven Years' War North America 17 57-63

lan M McCulloch & Tim J Todish · Illustrated by Steve Noon

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F~rst published In Great Bntaln rn 2004 by Osprey Publrohrng, Elms Court,

Chapel Way, Belley, Oxford OX2 9LP, Unrted Krngdom

Ema I. rnfo@ospreypubhShrng com

C 2004 O.prey Publ sh ng Ltd

All ng11ts teS<lfVed Apart from any far dearrng fcx the pUrpose o' pnvate study.

research. cnt.crsm Ot "'II ~w. a• """"'tied undar the Copynght. Oesrgns and Patems Alct 1988. no pan of thrs pUbhcaton may be reproduced. stcxed 1n a

retr811al system. or trat>Sm~tteo 1n any lorm or oy any means. etectronrc,

e ectncn chemocal. mechanocal. opt en•. ptlotocoP)'1119 recor<:llng or otnetw1se.

wrthout !"e p<rOf v.•rtten perm1ssoon of the coPyr gnt owner EnQu nes Should be

adore"<><! to the 1'\;blishefs

A CtP cata ogue recOtd fO< thrs book IS a variable from the Bntrsh Lrbrary

ISBN 1 84 1 76 733 6

tan McCurloch and T m TO<Jrsh have as..erted thM nght under the Copynght,

Designs and Patents Act. 1988. to be ldentlfred dS the Authors o f thrs Work

Edrtor Srmon Rrchert

Oesrgn: Ken Varl Orophlc Design . Cnmbnd ge. UK

Ind ex by Alan Thatcher

Maps by John Rrchards

Ong rnated by The [ lectronrc Page Comp any. Cwmb ran. UK

Pnnted rn Chrna through World Prrnt Ltd

04 05 06 07 08 10 9 8 7 6 !> 4 3 2 1

FOR A CATALOGUE OF All BOOKS PUBLISHED BY OSPREY MtUTARY A ND

AVIATION Pl EASE CONTACT

The Market ng Ma118ge<. Osprey Dorect UK. PO Bo• 140,

Wellrngborough, NQf1hants. NN8 2FA. Umtad Krngdom

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Artist's note

Readers may care to note that the ong1nal pa1ntings from which the colour plates 1n this book were prepared are available for private sale. All reproduction copyright whatsoever ts retained by the Publishers. All enquines should be addressed to

Steve Noon, 50 Colchester Avenue, Penylan, Cardiff. South Wales UK CF23 9BP

Steve would ltke to thank Allan and Rosemary Jones from the Corps of Light Infantry. whose website can be found at www. espintdecorps. usmchq. com

The Publishers regret that they can enter into no correspondence upon this matter.

Author 's Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank. f1rst and foremost. his esteemed colleagues: Timothy J. Todish who prov1ded his vast knowledge on weapons and un1forms of the period as well as conduct1ng the detailed research on the colour plates; and, Steve Noon, our artist, who brought it all to life. Thanks also go out to the many people and 1nst1tutions 1n Canada, the US and UK that ass1sted in the preparat1on of this book. In no particular order. they are: Bnan Leigh Dunnigan. Curator of Maps at the Will iam L. Clements Library, M1ch1gan; Nicholas Westbrook. Executtve D1rector and Chnstopher Fox, Antony D. Pell Curator of CollectiOns. Fort Ticonderoga Museum. New York; J .R. Maguire; Bob Andrews; George Bray Ill: Jerry Seymour: Gary Zaboly; Robert Gnffing; John Buxton: the Nat1onal Archives of Canada, Ottawa: L1eutenant Colonel Dan McKay, Deputy Director, Directorate of H1story & Hentage. Department of National Defense. Ottawa; Jo Wooley, Public Relations, Nattonal Army Museum, London, UK; the Ohio State Historical Society; Fort Ligonier Museum, Pennsylvania; Peter Rind1sbacher: Dr Stephen Brumwell; Colleen Todish; and my wife, Susan Johnson McCulloch. The author would also like to thank his editors William Shepherd, Rebecca Cullen and Simon Richert, who, in the words of Lord Selkirk, are to be commended for their 'guid guiding'.

Cover IllustratiOn: MaJor George Scott, 40th Foot, 1758-59. Reproduced for the ftrst t1me here 1n color, this portratt by John S1ngleton Copley gives us a very valuable look at some of the umform and equ1pment mod1f1cat1ons made by Light Infantry soldiers in North America. (Private collection)

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CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 4

CHRONOLOGY 7

RECRUITMENT AND ENLISTMENT 9

DRESS, EQUIPMENT AND APPEARANCE 11

TRAINING AND TACTICS 17

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE 23 Lodgings • Everyday Tasks • Food • Cannibalism • Diet and Disease

Drink and Discipline • Flogging and Hanging • Women • Songs and Music

ON CAMPAIGN 43 Weather • Wildlife • Terrain • Scalping and Torture • Looting • Medical Services

MOTIVATION 50

ESPRIT DE CORPS 51

FACE OF WAR 53

CONCLUSION 58

MUSEUMS, COLLECTIONS 58 AND RE- ENACTMENTS

BIBLIOGRAPHY 60

COLOR PLATE COMMENTARY 61

INDEX 64

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BRITISH LIGHT INFANTRYMAN OF THE SEVEN YEARS' WAR, 1757-63

INTRODUCTION

'A S e rvice Truly Cri t ical ' he Se\t'll Year~· \\'at (l755-171i3) \\<l!-1 the \\odd's first global W<ll, a conllict ~panning the continenb of l'\onh America, Europe and Asia. Fought principallv between Britain, France and their

rc~pectiw allies. it i~ known sintplv <L'\ 1 he French and Indian wa1 in 111o;,t Anwlican hi:-otot) hooks and is generally acknowledged to have started at a n:n1ote ~pol on the Pc11m)•lvanian frontier in 1754. i\nglo-Frt·nch ri,·alries in the tce1nin).{ f(>rcMs and 1 ich river plains of the disputed Ohio River vall<'\' led to an cxchan).{t' of shots between Virginian Provincial" kcl bv a \Ot111g ollitT1 nanH'd ( .eorgc Washington and a force of French ~oldier~ anclthcit Indian .tlli<'s. fhe result was a diplomatic incident that r~calatcd in10 a <Ti,is between Bt;tain and France. Both coutllrit·-. dispatched c'\pedillonan lorn·-. of Rt·gular troops to :-..onh AnH'1i< ,, 1n anticipation of hostilities.

Before the wat '''" nen offirialh declared in April 17:):1, ~l.1j01 Ce1H:t .tl ~d\\,11 d Bt .tel dO< k had ad,<mced ,,;th 2,200 Bt;ti~h R<'gular-. and . \nwt;can Prm in< t.tl-. .tgainst F01 t Duquc::.ne, a woockn I' rcnch I ott on 1 he fork~ of the Ohio Riwt and '>itt• of the pn·o;cnt-d<l\ citY of Piu~burgh in \\t'\LCIII Penm\h.llli.t. One of three Briti'>h <'XJWditiom agaim.t French frontier posts, Bntclclork'.-, lot ct· \\'<t'> '>twprbcd ~even miles short of it!> ol~jenin· b} a V<t'>t lv inlet ior ron e ol lndian~ and French colonia l soldin!'>. ,\ s Braddock\ men tried to stand and light Europe<llt-~tvlc against an elusiYe foe using Indian tactics or enwlopment and concealmen t, the)' were slaughtered and their general kilkd. l'ltio.; ~hocki n !-\ defeat sent a clear message LO the D11kc of Cumberland. the Captain­(~cneral of Britain·~ army. as wdl as other senior ofliccr., oltht· clav. Tltc North Attll't;can theater of war dclllandcd a sp<·cial t~ pc of soldier.

On European battll'fielch, the e~sential ta<;ks of !'>Couting. !>U cening .tnd skinnbhing for an army on campaign \\Tre ll'>llalh a!'!signed to the cavalry. In the \\ildcttH''>'\ howl'\ cr. troops were re<>tricted to u-.ing l.tkc' .tnd \\,tl<'l\\cl\~ .l.'> no highways exi'>ted and the tt'tt<tin, much of it mountainous, """ roH'red with .t 11111-grm,th ps·ime\al forest. \\'ith the lattcl'>cape totalh un~uitahle lot cavaln.

4 the British heaw infantn ('>nled on the Prussian

Mastering the terrain. Light

Infantry training in the rugged

Adirondack Mountains under

the tutelage of Lord Howe (left

foreground). Note the cropped hair, trimmed hats, Indian-style

backpacks, leggings and

moccasins. Ltght Infantrymen (LI)

had to be able to travel light in

all seasons and weather, over

all types of terrain, skills

unfamiliar to most European

style heavy Infantry of the day. (Courtesy of Gary Zaboly)

r

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morlcl of the eighteenth centur:) would have to quid.lv adapt and deve lop its own 'foot <'avalry' capable of traversing all kiuds of terrain as \H·II a~ scouting and ~kirmi~hing with an opponent alreadv well-versed in the art~ of forest fi~h ti ng.

\journal of the d.t\ neatlY summccl up the problem an·a..,:

In an Amet·ican campaign e\en thing i~ Let rible ; the f.t( e of the country, the climatt· , tlw enem>·· There i~ no refrc~hllll'ttt for the healthy, nor relief' fw the sick. A va~t inhmpitable ck~etl. unsafe and trcacherou~. ~urrounds them, where victorie~ at c not ded!>ive. but defeat~ are ruinou': and ~imple death i.., the least mi .. .fortune. \\hirh tan happen to them. I hi-. form'> .t \CtYin· trui: ctttical, in '' hich all the firm IlL''>' of the bodv and mmd I' put to

the severest u ml; and all the cxertiom of courage and .tdd res~ are called out.

'\ot th Americ.t rame as a shock to most British veteram a<.Cll!>ttomed to ..,oldicring in Flandet•,' open counlt\..,idt• with level road' ,IJld small 10\\ m and \illagco; itllt't"-tper'ied alon~ thl· wa\ to prm tdt· H'ad' billets. Ont· old · Flanderl .. i n ' \dlO suniwd Braddot J.,.'l! ill-fated npedition to

tal..c Fon Duquesne in 17:>:> wa~ di..,m.ned ll\ the 'Tree:-, ~m.unps anrl Thickets' and observed that 'the \'l't) htn· of the Count!\' i~ l'nough to strike a D<~mp in the tnmt re~olttt<' Mind.' 11<: despondentlv concluded, ' I ran not conceivt: how \\'at can be tll<tck in such a coutHn·. '

Of lourse New \\'oriel warfare .md ih .ntendant problt·m.., had been with tht: Bt-itish tolont~h from tlw o\11\l'l of theit an i\,tl and the ('•;tabli-.hmem of Jamt:~to\\ 11 , tht: fit..,t Btlli'h sculement, 111 )()07. \\'ar' with the coastal lndiano., forth<' first ~>0 \l'ats of the ~t·ttk-t~' precarium existence were Jollowcd b} a protracted 70 year strugglt: lot 1'\orth Amnica \\~ th New Fratl('l'. located to t itt' north and W('St. Stalling in 1 o89. That )attn petiod comistt'(l. in fact. of fout ~eparate wars. 1 he fit st three: thl' \\'at of the Leagut· of I lapsburg (li!H9-97). the \\'ar of the Spanish Succt''>'>ion (I 70~-1 :3) and the \\'at of tlw -\u~uian Sucre'>'> ion ( 1/..J...J-..IR). wne fought b) the roloni<,ts of both mother counu il·.~ ustn~ lolonial methods and militat) tnources to hand. rhe French utili;cd their Indian a ll ies from the outset and armed tltt·m with muskets. I ht· American frontier militias Wl'l't' thus forced to assimilate the be!>t r('attlll'S of Indian

Cockpit of war. The southern

end of Lake George In upstate

New York as it would have looked to Robert Kirkwood

and other Light Infantrymen In

Amherst's 1759 expedition to

take Forts Ticonderoga and

Crown Point. Batteaux and

float ing batteries can be seen

m arshalled at the water's edge.

(Courtesy of the David M . Stewart Museum, Montreal)

5

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6

tanic~ in 01 dcr lO dkctiH:h rolullet their enem y: )>mall­unit opcratiom. looM· f(>rmation~. infonnal <ircss, swift mm·emetll, li rc cti~cipl inc. ambw .. h and surprise auack. Aided b, ,1 gt e<llt't population ba)>e and t.heir mm fndian allic~. mam .\nwrican lmntitT~men became adept at marksman~hip. a ~kill \dtH h inut·a~cd <l.' more acnarate \\t:apon\ \\l't c· dl'\<'l<>pt'd .

. \r the Ollt\t' t of tht• Snt'll Year-i \\'ar howe,·er. the frontier had mat< hcd \H ..... t\\arch from t.he coa~ta l < omnHtll itie~ ol the L'hirtt·en Colonie~ and thei t inhabitant~ lud lo\t tlw ~hooting and ranical <>kill1'> dt·\e)opcd thmugh ll ial and cnot to counter the tactic~ ot thc.:it I udian and Facnc It adwr..,arie' in t.he prc,;ous three war .... In I 7.i.i. Cc·orge \\'a~hington himself pointed ou t th e poo1 <)tta lit v and limited capabilit.ie!.. of 111ost colonial militias (with the l'Xcqnion of selecred Ranger units guarding the Iron tiers). I le wrote:

t-.lilitia. you will lind 11 <.'\'t' t answer your cxpect.ations, no dependence is to be placed on them; rhev a re obstinate .tud pel\t'l:...e, tltn are egged on b~· lhe ollic crs. who lead tht•tn to arL~ of disobedience, and when thn arc ordet nl to certain po~ts for t.he secuaity ol ~lot es, 01 the pt otettion ol t.he inhahilan~. ,~;11, on a sudden, 1 c~ohe to lean· them. and the unitC'rl ,;gilance of their officers ran not pte\ cnt it.

\long campaign to di~tant field., that also iiWOI\'t·d defending agaan~t Indian tactic' ol ~H·;alth and ambmcade wa.!> one for ''hich colonial milit.i,t~ \H'Il' cmitH.'Illh un-,uitcd and. moreover, one in \\hich the\ were utl\\illing to )><II ticip.tH'. l .ieutenant Cmemor Robert Dim,;ddic ol \ 'irginia. hmH'H't, J...1ww \\ hne to lind men to meet t.he challcngc. I k \\role to hi!..ltiend James .\ht'tetombv in England in 1755: ' I am still ol Opinion willt<Hll lmcc from I lome. we shall hardly be able to driw the French I rom the ( >hio; \H' wantl\lil itat) ~len, and part.icularl) Inginceas.'

Were t.ht· ' I\ I ili ta t v 1\kn' , tht' British regulars, equal to the task? Were t.hey capahk of waging protracted campaigns in a virtua l wilclernes.~ again!it clu~ivc aclvcr~aric.\, cxpnts in all a~pects of irregular warf~trc? Some perhaps were not prepa red fur the rut.hless savagery of scalping and can niba lism cnrmtntned, but many soldiers and their officers were well­inured to it regttlat warla tl' and skirmi!i..hing eit.her from expct ienCC!.. iu Scotland or on the battlefield~ of Europe.

War in '\onh .\nwrica lot armies was essent.ially a pmblem of ma not' II\ 1 c·, rommun ira tiom and rcsupph. And while the principal ta~J... of generalship wa' sian ph mm ing a force of moderate site into contact ''ith the enetm, the fare ol battle was, for the British Reguhu who had to

pcneuaH· httndred~ of mik~ int.o trackless and unsett.lcd <·ountn. a daunting one.

\_,pit ing rommandct ~ thu' nC'edect a mall, highlv-t.rained arnw ol e'pett\: ltght uoop~. Rangn' and £i·iendJr Indian!> for ~couting <lltd ~kiami-.hing; baueau' lllt'll to mon• the armies along the '''aten,·a,~ which 'len eel a' the onh highwav<.,; and artillenn1en and engineer.., lO lm

The enemy. Eestern woodland

Indians such as these lroquoian

warriors pictured here were the

cunning opponents of the Light Infantry soldier. Many Items of

Indian dress were adopted by

the latter such as moccasins,

leggings, powderhoms and

tomahawks. Indians friendly to

the British cause Instructed Light

Infantrymen In bush tactics as

well as the use of snowshoes

and canoes, while others taught the skills to captives like Robert

Kirkwood. (Source: Directorate of

History & Heritage, Department

of National Defense, Canada)

II

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siege to th e French forts once the a rmy had closed with its objectives. I ong lines of communication also necessitated the building of well­garrisoned. defen:.ible fo1 t11 and rlq>ots along the WU)'·

T he V('ar 17:'J7 saw British commande• s introduce lor the first timt•, an expe•imental. temporary t:OJ p:. that -;ten•med from the nature of the terrain as well as the tactic:, of a n e lusive and savage foe. T h ese warrior's were (ailed 'light troops' or ' Light lnfallln · lU distinguish them lrom their comrades 'ening as lwa\'} infan tr \ in the marching regiments. Si111i lar to the widc~pread practice ol I Hth ccntu n armies ta~ing g• en.1clicr com panic\ I rom thci1 re\pecth·e battalion:, to fo1111 '>pecial ':,hoc~ ll oop· battalion:,. Ml the l>hmtt·•. agile men and mark-.-men ol the other flank compnny of a reginH.'Ill became pa•t ol an elite act hoc corp:, special it.i ng i 11 S(Olll i ng, patroll in g, snTcn ing a nd ~kinn ishing I or the am1). B\' the end of' the Seven Years' \.Var in ~onh America, thc:.e 'Choc;cn l\kn' had become the most '\t'a:.oned and utilita11.m n·tt·•-an<> of Britain's 'Ame1 kan Anm ·-the Light InfantrY.

During tht.• period ] 7:>7-176-l. tlw '.\mc:rican t\rnl\'· underwent a dynamic period of transrormation. a process in wh irh the l.ight lnf~mtryman with his special "kill sets lwcame an integral part ol am· cxpeditionan force. New ell t'~s. new Wl'<tpons. new tactic\, and most of ,til a new etho' aroc;e to lllO\(' the pron·~, along to ill> log1( al condu,ton: adapt or die. The emlution ol the Light Infantry soldie1 in tandem ,,ith th e physical as we ll a~ psychological ch al lt·llgt·s con fronting him, would sec: the<>e warrior<> gain pride. prominc iHT. and respt·ct throughotll B1 itain\ ·.\lllt::l iran .\rnw' a11cl a:. c;uch, \Ill pa.,., the grenadit:r as the elitl'

'olditT of cl10in·.

CHRONOLOGY

Spearhead. Light Infantry and

Rangers lead the way on Lake

George, 1758. All soldiers had to

be profic ient In the use

of boats, such as the whale boat

pictured here, and the larger

batteaux, as they were the

princ ipal m eans of transport

through the North American wilderness. (Courtesy of

Gary Zaboly)

8 July 1755 Defeat of Braddock s Column on exped1t1on to Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh) by Western Indians.

authorised. Loudoun recalled and replaced by Major General Abercromby as Commander-in-Chief.

December 1756 Creation of the Royal American Regiment authorised.

January 1757 77th Montgomery's Highlanders ra1sed. Robert Kirkwood enlists.

July 1757 Kirkwood and 77th Foot sail for Charleston. SC. August 1757 Loudoun's exped1hon from Halifax to

Louisbourg cancelled. 1 September 1757 Kirkwood and 77th Foot land in

Charleston, SC and go into garrison. 5 September 1757 Robert Rogers commences

seven-week Ranging school for volunteer gentlemen destined for Light Infantry or Ranger commiSSIOns.

December 1757 Creation of Gage's Light Infantry

April 1758 Kirkwood's regiment sent to Pennsylvania for Fort Duquesne expedition.

1 June 1758 Ten Light Infantrymen per regiment designated marksmen and 1ssued niles for Abercromby's T1conderoga exped•tton.

8 June 1758 L1ght Infantry land and lead the way at the Louisbourg land1ngs.

6 July 1758 Light Infantry land and lead the way at north shore of Lake George near Ticonderoga. Lord Howe killed at the head of Gage's Light Infantry.

8 July 1758 Light Infantry fight at Battle of Ticonderoga. Lead assault and cover withdrawal.

9 July 1758 Abercromby retreats. 7

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Robert Kirkwood could rightly

claim on his return from ten years service In the French &

Indian War that " few Men have traveled more than ho has, In the

back parts of North America" .

Kirkwood soldiered from the heat

of the Carolinas to the storm­

blown crags of St. John's,

Newfoundland, westwards t o

l ook upon Niagara Falls and

navigate the Great Lakes as far

as Detroit, and, In 1765· 6 , travelled down the Ohio and

Mississippi Rivers to the Gulf of

Mexico , stopping brlety In Florida before returning to Philadelphia.

26 July 1758 LoUtsbourg capitulates. August 1758 K1rkwood and the 77th Foot reach Fort

Bedford in western Pennsylvania Kirkwood s f1rst scout.

September 1758 Ktrkwood captured by Shawnee Indians during Major Grant 's fatled attack on Duquesne.

29 May 1759 Kirkwood escapes from a Shawnee war party. 20 June 1759 Kirkwood arnves at Fort Cumberland.

Returns to 77th Foot. July 1759 77th Foot part1c1pate in Amherst 's capture of

Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Po.nt. 13 September 1759 Ktrkwood departs Crown Point as a

volunteer on Rogers' Infamous St Francis Raid. Wolfe's Light Infantry land and lead way onto Plains of Abraham the same day.

7 November 1759 Kirkwood arnves at Fort No. 4. with other ra1d surv1vors.

28 April1760 Light Infantry dec1mated with Murray's army at Battle of Stllery (Ste Foy), Quebec.

17 May 1760 S1ege of Quebec by Lev1s' Franco-Canadian army raised.

June 1760 Kirkwood's regtment marches to Oswego for Amherst's 1nvas1on of Canada by way of Lake Ontario and down the St Lawrence R1ver.

6 September 1760 Amherst s. Murray s and Haviland's arm1es converge at Montreal.

8 September 1760 Montreal capitulates 13 September 1760 K1rkwood detached for duty with

Robert Rogers to take possesston of the French western forts.

8 November 1760 Rogers takes possess1on of Detro1t.

~ ~

/ ~

I I .• II I I ... ,_,\ " . / ..

\ \ '\

I, I I

\ \ I

._.._ 11'1"' \ 'I ••••••••• ~ ~~tl

--··- I .'~ttl h --• I 'f);: UI>OOI» l'to (t/1 ~llf)'

I I II I RA VI I ~ A \JD 11A ITI FS 0 1

I'll.! VA I I ROIII·RI KIKKV.UOD (77"' rcxn 42'" 1 oo 1 1

I' A \11 RICA 1757. 1767

May 1761 77th Foot dtspatched to Carolinas to fight Cherokees Without Kirkwood

1 July 1761 Kirkwood amves at Albany and g1ven R & R. August 1761 K1rkwood deserts. November 1761 Kirkwood apprehended and 1mpnsoned

at Fort Ontano. 1 December 1761 77th Foot dispatched for serv1ce .n the

Canbbean Without K.rkwood. 24 January 1762 Light Infantry storm Mt Tarnenson

in Martinique. 27 January 1762 Light Infantry capture Morna

Grenier, Martinique. 4 February 1762 Martinique surrenders. 7 June 1762 British land for siege of Havana. 24 June 1762 French capture St. John's Newfoundland. 11 August 1762 Havana surrenders. 13 August 1762 Kirkwood pardoned by General Amherst

for desertion. Sent on Wilham Amherst 's expedition to retake St. John's, Newfoundland.

15 September 1762 Kirkwood participates in the successful climb and capture of Stgnal Hill, St. John's.

10 February 1763 Treaty of Paris ends Seven Years' War. May 1763 Western lnd•ans under Pontiac attack Bntish forts. 19 July 1763 Kirkwood's light company of 77th jo•ns

Bouquet 's relief exped1t1on to Fort Pitt. 31 July 1763 Captatn Dalyell s force of 80th Light Infantry,

60th Foot and Rangers ambushed at Bloody Run outstde Fort Detrott

5-6 August 1763 Kirkwood and 77th hght company ftght as part of Bouquet s force at the Battle of Bushy Run.

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9 August 1763 Fort Pitt relieved. 14 September 1763 309 Seneca warriors ambush and

massacre two companies of 80th Light Infantry on Niagara portage tra1l.

25 October 1763 Kirkwood transferred to 42nd Royal Highlanders (Black Watch).

1 July 1764 Colonel Bouquet's Muskingkum expedition against the Cherokee departs Fort Pitt. Kirkwood and 42nd Foot participate.

15 November 1764 Bouquet's force including Kirkwood's company returns to Fort P1tt.

24 August 1765 K1rkwood departs Fort Pitt down the Ohio as part of Captain Thomas Stirling's company to take possession of the Ill inois French forts.

9 October 1765 Kirkwood's company arrives at Fort Chartres and takes possession next day.

1 December 1765 Kirkwood's company relieved by the 34th Foot from New Orleans.

13 December 1765 Kirkwood's company departs for New Orleans

5 January 1766 Kirkwood's company amves 1n New Or1eans. 27 February 1766 Kirkwood's company departs by sh1p

for Pensacola, Florida. 13 March 1766 Kirkwood's company arnves in

Pensacola, Florida. 15 June 1766 Kirkwood's company arnves 1n New York

and marches to barracks 1n Philadelphia. In gamson for next twelve months.

June 1767 Kirkwood and 42nd Highlanders relieved by 18th Foot. Sail home from New York.

28 July 1767 Kirkwood and remnants of Black Watch arnve Cork, Ireland.

RECRUITMENT AND ENLISTMENT

1Going fo r a Soldier ' ( )ne of our hc't accounL' of life as a B1 iti'h Light lnf.mtn llll'll in N01th Ame1ica d11ring the Seven Year~~· War b found in "flu• Almuw.1 and Adventure~ oj Rolmt Kil/(,· ! .aft• of the Rt~ya/1/i~hlrmr/ RP~illlt'llf, published in Limerick, Ireland. 1775, ju~t bd(m~ the Anwrica11 Revolution . I lis ~torv «mstitutc' a wn rare ,·oirc I rom the ran b. a rc:markahl<' < hronide ll\ ,1

plivate 1>oldie1 of !-tome of the most \iciou' wood!> tighung and cruek't ~kirmishing C\Ct' cncoumered b)' tJ1e Btiti'h at mv up untilthi!> tinw. With an eye to book ~ales, howcvn, Kirkwood wa.'l not adver~e to embellishing ~ome of IIi~ adventure~ in ~o1th America wi1h a few h1rid campfire talc' or. in <;om<· caw.;, plagiati1ing from otJ1e1 ~oldiers' account!\, mo~t nolahly ,1 17111 centun French ofli< er. the Baron de l.ahoman. Kirkwood ,tbo neglected LO tell reader~ that he \V<L~ confined for cle,cnion in li61. pardonccl by Major General Amherst in 176~ and ~em on the: expedition to recaplltre ~t.John's Ncwloundland from the French. Rv the time Robe1t Kirkwood n·lluned from 'a 't·nice truh n itical' in :--.Jonh .\mt·Jica in 1767, our rogui'h hero \\'<IS an accomplished mat k.man. htlllll't. ,md trad .. c·t. pru!icien1 in the use of canoe-;, ~nowshn<'.' and tumplinc:-.. the ultimate Light Infanuyman of the sell-strled 'Amc·• ican Al111)''·

'I was born in the town of Air, in 1he West pan~ o! the Nonh of B1 itain of hone-;t, old, rr<'ditahle parenh.' Kirkwood \\'IOl<' on his rt'llllll

in hi\ book. 'and the~ gmc· me what Ill<\\ be l·alled a common crlucauon. because tlwi1 circumstance.-, could not <t!lord beuc·r; but tht'\ \H'Il' ra1 dulto b 1 ing me up in the knowlcdg<' ami fear of Cod.· And it was to

Corl that Kirkwood swore an oath: that lw was a Pm1estant willing to

honorabh 'c1 H' hi~ King mer~eas. But onh aftcr the 1eu uiting sergeant had dctennined his prmpeC!i,·e renuit wa' 'able Rodicd. Sound in l.imhs, free from Ruptun.·.-,, Scald hc·Mb, ulcerom .-,orcs 01 any remarkable ddormity.' A barrel-maker by trade, Kirkwood also quitklv ~atis!ied the sergeant's reuui1ing orders that warned him against taking 'Stroler~. Vagabonds. Tinkt' J s. Chimne\ 'weepers. ( :ollit'l'> or SayJm '· · Finalh·, he made -;urc that Kirk,,ood \\as one 'hotn in the Neigh bow hood of'the plan· they are inli.,tcrl in· and a man of whom he could ·get a good Account.' 9

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10

Recruiting. A detail of See John the Soldier, Jack the Tar by

William Hogarth, depleting a

recruiting sergeant measuring a

prospective candidate. All

recruits had to be 'able-bodied,

sound of limb, free of ruptures,

scald head, ulcerous sores or any remarkable deformity'.

(Courtesy of the William L.

Clements Library)

'I enlisted in his J\l~~je~tv\ 77th Rt•gt. Of Foot, com1nanded by Colonel Archibald ~1ont~omcr\' in the la1lt:1 end of the )Car 1756,' noted Kirk11ood, 'from which tinw I """' emplovcd in recruiting <llld Disciplining 1he rcgimt·nl, 1d11ch 11a., mmth compmed or impre!>!>'d men JJ Olll the r lighland~ .. I hi, ~tatt'llH.'llt i~ interC'sting a-. the British redcoat or the Sc\(·n \'c:u .,· \\'at wa~ technicallY a \'olunteer. as wa.<> Kirkwood , h111 m.u11 lllt' ll had no thoiu:.

Kirkwood 's regiment ( initiall1 <.tiled the Fir'>l lli~hland B.utalion. later numbered fi2nd . then !<'-numbered the 77th Foot) was not a typical marching regiment , !wing one of two Highland battalions spccialh raised lo1 't'l 1 i«: in l':o1th Anwrica . . h such , K.itl..wood's officer., were the cream of Campbell and (;rant gentry and not afraid to use <;ome gc·mle < ot•rcion and political influence in 'beaLing up' a :.uitabk lllllllbcr of ~t·nuit~. Lud01ic Cram, the cousin or ~l~jor .James Cran 1 under whom Kirkwood would ~ern: and be taken prisoner, wa'> a pr01nincn1 Whig landowner. He told his tenantry that it wa1. a maHer of dan honour that his kinsman's company be amon~ 1he flrq to he compkted. lie per~onall)' instructed them to 'manage malLei-; so as that all llw young fellows upon !<:steaL who incline the ann; got• inlo his Companie preferable to an) other.' While the I ale of thmc who did not comph· when the recruiting partie~ came 'i~iting wa~ not clearly ~tated, hi!> clo~ing remarks," hilst polite, clict no1 ka\'c much to the imagination. Ile told them bluntly: 'If IOU hme the le<hl 1·eguard all of you upon this occa~ion ... I hopt.· b1 \OUI ron dun at this Lime 1 ou ' II gin: me reason to <.onti n uc 'ow afTenionatC' t.·iend and humble scn1:. ·

B\ the Spring of 1757, Kirl...\\ood\ 1 e~imcnt. the 77th Foot. and l-1 aser'~ Highlander!>, the 7Rth Foot. h.td '>llllJU">'>ed tlwir recruiting

quota' o f 1000 men. each banal ion hoa.,ting 500 '>til ph1.., recruiL~ or ·..,upernumcran men' of whom 200 1\otlld .tuo111pam them to . onh Amt..-ica. Compared to other battalion.'> of IIH' da\, thi~ i.., impres<;iYc for a Ji,e month recruitin~ drin•. e-.twcialh when nne 1akn into account that Kirkwood's regiment turned 472 1 en uit.' away. Famine and chronic unempltnment in the recruiling 1cgions WCH' th<' principal reasons for successful recruitmC'nl in 1757. As tlw war progn·.,scd. another se1en regiments wen: raised in the llighlamb with cli~appointing and d i min i!>lting results.

As r<'cruiting of a t)1)ical Briti~h redcoat i1. already adcqut~tely discu-;scd in \Varrior 19: Briti~h Hnlmal 17-10- CJJ. which .giv<'~ complete details on 18th century terms of enlislmcnl anct the pay wstcm, we ct~n 1110\'(' on to how Light lnf~11llnmcn were ~<'krted and recruited internallv from within thei1 0\\ll battalion~. Fi1 and intelligent \'Olllt~ oflitels and ~enior non-commi~~ioncd officer-. (J\'CO~) were selected bv their lieutenant-colonel who, in turn, kept a 'ha1 p el't• out J01 potential talent cxi~ting within th<: <:igh t otlH.'I I u,i I it'l 01 ·hat' com pan ie~ of the b.tttalion. The tYpe of man requi1ed f01 'The I ight lnf~tntn ~cnict·· had to be a cut abow the ordinan ,oJdicr and no1 tontt·nt 1dth ju:.t firing elbow-to-elbow platoon \'olle\!> with hi-. lOillladt:' inM·t-piece battles.

A direUi\'e issued in :-\onh . \nwrica prim to the ">icge of Louisbourg 175R gin•<; us a good idea of the kind of 1 <'< 111it 1 t·quil ed. 'I h<: battalions just arri,ed from Europe we1 e 'to prm·icl<: a<.ti\e marchers and men that

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.uc expert at firing hall.' Those that hac! hc<.·n in Nonh \nwrica fm a couple of years ~dread} Wt:'re to provide 'thmc men most an ustomed to

th e 'vVoods' and 'good marksmen'. In t'l>Sence, they had to be phy~icall) lit, expert shoL~. and willing to be detached on independent ~crvice. A~ ~lajor General jelr<: 1 ,. Amher!>l put it: 'alert, Spirited -;old it-t~. able to

endure fatigue'. I nvadabh, the men recruited for the light <.ompanies lookt·d upon them.,t·hcs in the same light a'> one officer n·rordcd in hi., journal, a1. 'Chosen ~l <.·n ·.

DRESS, EQUIPMENT AND APPEARANCE

'S ee th e droll figure w e a ll M a ke' In February 1758, \hum George Stott. 40th Foot. comm.tnder of tlw Light lnlamry and Rangers for the I.ouishourg expedition, \Hote to

Lord Loudoun. the Commandn-in-Chief in North America. rc<·ommending dres~ and kit for 'th e bush fight', with a functional explanation lor each article of kit and its practicalir,. Thi~ information wa., undoubtedh passed to Colonel rluuna-. (;age, then ac tiYdY raising .mel equipping the li1st ollicialh recognised regiment of Light lnfantn 1egular-. in the B1itish \mw. The HOth Font were quickh nicknamed 'The I.eathercap~· bl'cau.,e of their adopted headgear.

Although Rob('rt Kirkwood negil'< ted to tell us nwth about his clothi n g or kit, Major (;eorge Scott '~ letter contains a good ~ummary of the geneiic kit requi1cd. 'The Lt·athel Cap,' he argued, 'if propcrh jack't and ma(lc of good Leather i~ int<"nded to fend off th<.· blm\ of a ~c<tlping-Ax 01 !on dock. h i'i also better adapted to the l lood of a Cloke than ,\ ll,ttt ,md "ill ket·p ll.~ form.' The coat lw proposed wa:- the <;anw as the reguhu issue, but with ~horter skirts and imide breast pocket:-., the laprb t'XI<'nding to tht· waist to pro\'ide <·xtra warmth in winter. A Light lnlanrqman \\Ould abo han: wom ~hott t1 ou!>crs !01 e.t.,<' of mm·eme111, and hu~kin'i, kt·eping his unifo1111 light and p1.1< ti< .tl and 1 <·during the amount he would be <'xpccted to Uti I y,

Kirkwood spent M>l llt' time as a p1 i:-oner of the Shawnee. and it is therefore birl\' safe to a~:-.unw that he w.ts one of manv Light InfantrYmen to adopt Indian motct~im. Knox cl<·~n ihe~ the~e in '>Oill<' detail:

These slipper~ a1 <' gt·ncrally mack of the skin of a beavc·r, e lk, calf, sheep, or oth<'r pliant leather. hall~ l r<"ssed: each mo~ma11 is of one intire piece ... ; thn ha\e no additional sole or heel-piece and mmt he used with three or tour II iLe :-ocki.. 01 fold~ of thick flannl'l \\Tapt round tlte foot; they an· exn'l'dingly \\aim. and much litte1 lor the winter<; of this country than our European shoe, as a pcrso11 ma~· walk ove1 sheets of icc without the ka<;t danger ol falling.

M ajor George Scott, 40th Foot,

by Copley, c.1758-59. Scott

was the commanding offi cer

of the Provisional Light Infantry

Battalion who d ist inguished

himself at the 1758 Loulsbourg

landings. He proposed m any reforms to British uniforms,

kit and weapons for the Light

Infant ry service. Here he wears

a cut -down unifo rm of his

ow n design and holds a leather cap In his right hand. Other

Items, shown far left, Include

a m usket w ith a short kni fe

bayon et Instead of the common

t riangular style.

(Private Collection)

11

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Standard wcaponrv for a Light lnlanll\111an abo ,·aried from regula• i~~llt'. , \ carbine rather than a fir<·lock wa' gencr-alh p• dt·•• t•cl bec·;ntM' the ~honer (thu-. lighwt) bat rei ,,a., con<;ickrcd ca.'>icr to .tim and. ~uitabh blac l..t·•wcl. imp• owd a marksman\ .H'Citt.l<'\. In the ~<'" Yotl.. theater of war, (.age·~ Light lnf,uun \H'Il' i'>'>llcd with firelod.s that 'were cut shonet and the stock!. dn.'~'>ed lO mal..e them lighter' a.~ well as ten 'tiffiecl carbines' for u~e by their bc~1 marl'itllt'll on the 17:JH Ticonderoga campaign. The Light lnbnuyman wa:. a(.,o t:quipped with a tomahawk that could be u~ed from a disl~mn· m in close cng-.tgcmcnt!> with the enemy, and a short knife med for dressing game or eating- nteals. Kirkwood's regiment, the 77th Fool, requested as early a:; J 757 to lighten their !>oldiers' load by leaving their hroaclsworcls in Philaddphia bd(Jrc campaigning in the wilderness. I lis commanding ollicer argued: 'Our rncn arc young a nd the less they arc loaded the better, il you Gill give u1> a little help ... in this ma1te1, they'! March like so many Cn·v-ll01tnds.'

A :~5th Fool Light ln lantnman's experience scning in \Noll(:\ at Ill\'

at Quebec in 17.'19 illusu ates how the tomahawk was an important backup to the mmkct in dme-quaner fighting. hut only if one was well skilled in it:. use. ~<·rgcant.John.John'ion recorded that in:

an Engagement h<'tW<'<'n our ()couring Parries and the Indians, [Ill\ f1 iendJ .,,1\\ ,\11 Indian who lir'd at him, but missed him; ... he le\ellcd hi~ Piece and fit'd at the Indian and mi1>1>'d him likcwi-.c: upon "hich the Indian immediatelv threw his Tommahawk ,u him and mi-..,'d him: wht·reupon the ~oldier catching up the Tommahawl.., till ew it at the Indian and levell'd him, and then W<'lll to scalp him; hut~ other Indians came behind him, and one stuck a ' lomnwhawk in his Back; but did not wound him so much as 10 pn·,cnt hi:- E~tapt: from them.

Buskin!> wen: m ore popularly known as ' Indian lcggingll' or 'mitasscs', whi ch .J o hn Knox of the ·13rd Foot described as:

Leggcrs. leggins or Indian spallerdashes are usually made of I rite or o ther coarse woolen doth ... at least three quarters of a yard in length; each leggin about three: quarters wide ... thcn double it and M.'\\ it tog-ethet lmm end to end ... fitting this long nm nm bag to the shapl' of the kg ... lied round under the knee and abO\c the ankle with garters of tlw same colour; bv which the legs are preM'l H'cl ft om manv Ia tal accidents, that may happen b\ briars. swmps of 11 ee'>. 01 underwood, etc. in marching through a close, woodv co 1m 1 n ·.

The catuidge bo' propmed b' Scott was to be covered \\ith tin which would ·guard the ammunition from the least weu or damp'. 1\luch

12 lighter than a kathet Gil touche bo>... it would also carry 'elc,en mutHI'>

This rare example of a

powderhorn used by

a Regular British soldier is

Inscribed "William Davison in

lnnlskllllng 1758 or XXVII Regt."

George Scott argued that all

Light Infantryman should carry

a powderhorn containing "Pistol powder" with a finer, more

combustible grain. The horn

was usually slung off the left

shoulder under the right armpit,

a quicker and more convenient

way of priming one's musket in

the midst of a flreflght. (Courtesy

of the Fort Ticonderoga Museum)

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more·. The powder horn that he n.·<.omrm·nded was lm <. ;u n in~ ·Pistol powdn' with its finer and more comhlt~tible ~rain . Ea!>.il)· ready to hand and )> lun~ ofT the left shou ldc.>r under the right armpit, the horn was a quicker and more com·enient wa\ of priming one\ nut.,ket, Scott argut>d, and "'"' not ·,ubjt·ct to bum primin~ or mi'' firl''. It also ptl'n:·nted the mo't t ommon ·fault whit h len are -,ubjen to Ill time of .\ttion ... \ 'it .. that of ~pilling one hall of their Caru idgt· of powder and 'ometimes more in primin~ and shutting their Pans'. The 1 t·-.ult of such tH'rvou!>ncs!> or sloppinc:!>s on the part ol a soldi er in a firdight meant that the musket ball would not be 'sent with half the f'orcc it i~ intended or arwthing near the di,tance it an~ht to go'.

Ceorge Scou\ \en,ible recomnwndation<; were ba~ed on watching liw '\ova Scotia Ranger'- assigned to hi-. command 1\,lgmg conMant irr c~ular warfare againM t\ licmac warrior~ and their FrcrH:h aJlies. He <oncluded that if hi:. proposab wert' .lCtcpted, they would reduce the Mandard weight of a British regula r b) I :~ pounds, 'a difkn·nce which I conceive wi ll be a great advantage'.

()f course, durin~ winter, a Light lnfantn111a11, like hi\ hat companY <<>lleague<>, had to wear adrlilional clothing and use addition.li t•quipment in order to !>unin: the hrtter weather. cro" icc and ~now' te11.1in. then elm<· with and de:-.tm~ his enem). 1 ht· dr t'!l'> for all troop-. •n the :'-Jonh American \\>inter wa11unonhodox, adapted fmm Indian warriors' clothing and usually a que:-. tion of' survival vtTS\11'1 neatness and uniformity. Robert Kirkwood made sewral trips dlll'in~ wirll<'t, but with his Indian trai nin~

and pri\-ate's outlook neglected to give u~ much deLail. I !owner, John h.no\. of the -1:~1 d Font. described in hi~ detailed journ.ll the \\inter apparel or General June\ ~ l urray·~ <11111\ gaiTisoning the raptured citY of Quebec in 1760. 'tating: 'our guard~ ... mak[c) a grote'>CJlll' <lppearance in their dillcrcnt dtt'~M·~.

'Our im·cntions to guard us aga inst the extreme 1 igour of this tlirnatl'.' he contillltt·d, 'arc beyond imagination: the unifonnitY. a-; well

ABOVE MAIN A wllderness

modification. A cut-down musket

slmllar to those used by some

Light Infantry soldiers ln North

America during the Seven Years'

War. The shortened barrel• rendered them less cumbersome

for the close-in bushfightlng

characteristic of the wlldemess.

Although some features suggest

that this particular musket may

have been shortened slightly after the war, It almost certainly

saw service in North America.

(Campus Martlus Museum, Ohio Historical Society)

ABOVE INSET Highland dirk,

c.1758. Used by Volunteer

Peter Grant at the Battle of

Ticonderoga, 1758, the dirk w as the preferred hand-to-hand

combat weapon of the Highland

Light Infantry soldier because of

Its familiarity. The 78th Fraser

Light Infantry used them with

deadly effect against French

grenadiers using hand-held

bayonets In the bloody battle

for Dumont's Mill at the Battle

of Slllery (Ste Foy) near Quebec,

Aprll 1760. (Courtesy of the National Army Museum, Chelsea)

13

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A Nova Scotia Ranger, c. 1755.

These frontier soldiers were the

model for Major George Scott's proposed dress reforms for

British Light Infantry. Familiar

with Gorham's Rangers, Scott had

seen the utility of their

dress and equipment first hand

after several years In garrison

in Nova Scotia. It appears most recommendations were adopted

by Colonel Thomas Gage when

raising the first regular Light

Infantry unit of the war, the

80th 'Regiment of Lightly Arm'd

Foot'. Recreation by artist Gerry

Embleton. (Courtesy of the

Directorate of History & Heritage,

Department of National Defense, Canada)

a~ nicet). ol the c lean m<·thodical ~olditT, is buried in the rough lur-\\'lought garb of the frozen Laplande1: and we 1 aLIH'I re~t:'mhk a masquerade than a bodr of regular 11 oop-..' Kno' added 1 hat ·notwitlhtanding all ou1 p1 t't.nltiom •. M:'\ lT,tl men and ollicet'> han: '>ttflcH·cl h' the intemene.,., of the cold, lwing frmt-hit~t·n m then l,tcc ... hand'>, feet and othe1 /Nil/\ le,\'>t to he ,u-..pcucd!'

'\\'atchn>ab' 01 gn'<llr<>.tt-.. \H'IT common item<; is..o;ued to one in e\·crY dght men and '>hared b\ tho!>e going out on opc1 ational mi-.sion:-. 01 :-.tanding '>elll!]. Knox memion' a pa1 t\ ol the •l:~rd Foot on it:-. wm· from Fort Edward in l\m;\ ~entia to llalif<LX in l\larch I 7f>H with oflitel., cl~t·:-,t•d in bmwn cloaks and the men in bnm11 'watrhcoat., ·. R, lkcemher of the same year, the men had their clothing is~ue augmeutcd with llannel undt·Hvai.,tcoaL'> and kggers, or ' indian stockiugs', \\hilt· M<~jOI Ccnerai.Jdkry Amher:-t had issued similar instmcliom regarding flannd lor warm socks a~ well as lcggi Il l-{~ and wai~tcoaL'i. The Bli tish conquemr~ of ~lonllt';d in 171i0 were CJIIick to adopt the ~dnter eire•" ol thci1 f01n1et Joes- the 'capote' or blanket coat ol the Ft t'IH h Canadians, u~ualh· white with blue bar-. at the hood. culls and 'ihi1 t.

In ordc1 lm ,, I ight lnfantnman to patrol. forage ,md ,J..i•mi"h '"< < e.,,(ulh in the winter he needed the .,,uue mobilit\ on·• 'now that hi!» enemies po"c">ccl. \II le;Uil<:d tht' <Ill of w;ing

snm,'>hm·"· a <;kill taught to the:>m IJ, thei1 Rangt'l 01 Indian auxiliaries. kno' de!>uibe~ ho'' Light lnlantnnwn at Quebec became \en pmlicient on snow'\hoes, o;urpri~ing tlwi1 F1 <'II< hand lndi,m e1wmie~ 011

\t'\t'l <1l orcao;ion,. The ~nm,·shoe~ the\ u~ccl we1c:

hoop' of hickory, or other tough \mod, belldcd to ,, particular lorm, round l>efo1T; and the otht.•r two t'Xltl' lnitit'~ ol the hoop te:>rminate in a point behind. :-.ec11rcd tog<'ther with strong twine; the inward space is worked like clmc netting. with catgut ot the dricd entraib of other anintal-. . .. l'hey must be used under lllo~gosans, a:. well for the sake of the wearer·., l'ect, to keep then• \\·arm and preserve them from the ~nO\\.

Jlard-sole shoes. Knox added, could be liS<·d at a pinch but 'the,· will nol bind on ~o well' and would wear out the ~IH)\\~hoc SOOIH:'I.

In .Januarv 1760, the ''eathe1 at Que be< was so 'cold and win<h·, \\ith thift:-. of~nm\ ·to which were added 'lrcqll<'l1! \how('!'- ol hail, liquid and fHTiing rain,' \\Tote Knox, 'that th<' tO\\ II .. . i~ ont' intiH· ~heel of ice'. In orde1 to get up and down the '>lt't'Jl hilt... of tht' \\.llled rin. the '>oldiers h,td to tie metaJ ice-creeper" ro thei1 foot\H'<ll, though "no' record' getung down ao; an easier propmit!Oit. 'Bt·•n~ to mount guard in the lm\t't town .' he \\rote, ·1 found it impo.,...ihle to g<·t dm\ll \\ith •mien and \\t' \\ete therefore obliged to '>it down on tht' .'>ummil and slide to the bottom, one- after another to p1 t'H'Ill ,tu idt'lll:-.. the nwn·~ arms being

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load eel.' ln··<Tl'l'J>C'I''\ were also used on patrol b' Light lnfantn and Rangers to eros<; fro;en lake~ or climb ic\', rod.v ten·ain.

Tht' di'>pt>ro,cd rt.~tur e of the Yarious annie' in North . \mer ica meam that Light lnfarrtnmcn Ill each theater took on difkrerrt ·IJ>)>l'<ll<llltt''> depending on their commander~' prefer encc'>. B\ compar·ing the clirccti\'e\ of the \<triom campaign~. hmH'\l'l, a fairly accurate picturT of what tlw generic LigiH lniantrYman lpokecl like and how his appeara11cc cvul\'cd can he drawn.

The earlic~t dc~niption of British Light Infantry cll t•ss appeared in arr anonpnou'> soldier's account of' the 1758 Louishourg calllpaign which stated: 'The Light lnbnu·y ... arc a hoclv of men draughtt'd Olll or tlrc• lt~gimCIII' ami doarhcd M>lllething like the fndiam. LO

)>COlli the wood~.' \\'(' an· also informed that Light lr rfanu 'lilt' II \\l'rt' clre'>'>Cd 'some in blue. \onw in green Jacket.<. ami Dr<l\\t'l\, lor the t'a\iel hlu,hing through the \\'nod\: with Rufl, of black Rear\ 'kin round their '-ccb. the heard of their upper Lips. sonw gro,,n into \\ hi,ker .... other' not ... o. hut all \\ell <;muttcd on that pan. ''ith little round Hat.<. likt> \l'H'I <II of ou1 ~camen ·.

Thi~ temporarY moH' awa\ from wearing scarlet jad.cb wa' <Ill allt'lllpt at < ,1mouflage; a pr M tical rc~pomc to the necrl for not being seen in the wood:- hy one\ ~har p-sightcd enemies. Fm \Ottng Rolwrt Kirkwood on hi~ fiN campaign in the Penmyl\'anian \\OOds in I i!JH. this requirement was co1nmon 'cn~c for 'the trees and the Indian~ \\TIT of the ~amc colour. and thi~ cirnrmMan cc, trifling as it may appeal, aught always to lw cou!>.iclcr'd bv f'on-c~ who mean to operate with sucn·s~. a:. against them. at that ~ea~on they han· a ~llrt' \'iew of you, but von can't have the kast idea of them '.

A Light lnhtntnrn<tn was also encouraged to break up thc whitent''>S of hi.'> bcc befurt' going on ope1atiom bv growing a beard or 'snmtting' it wi th charcoal. Ccorgc Scott\ practical recommendations included the suggc~tion that Light I nfantn1l1<'11 's o;hortjacket<; should he 'the colour of tht' b;u k or II('('~·. a<hin: adopted b\ Gage's Light In fantrY of l75H. who wore brm' n jacket.' with black button~ and no facings. brown 'hor t troU\t'l\ ami brown lcggiug .... In 176:\. thi'> ·regiment of light-arm'd foot' ~\\itcllt'd w a .,hm t ~t<llkt tuuic, !.teed orange. \\ith black button\.

During thl' 17:1H campaign againM Fort Ticonderoga, .1 Lrght I nfanu> nMn '<'n ing in .Janw' \hercromh' \ ann\' undem·ent 'ignificant drt>Si> changt''> that pr omptcd mam ob.,en,ttions from diflerent '>pcctatm-..; on his appear-ance. The change~ occurred under tllt' w·.nchful t'\l' of Aberuom b\ \ dmamic ~l'< ond-irH·ommand. Brigadier George . \ugmtus H oM', Coloncl of' tht' 5:ilh l•oot. L01 d I lowe had alreadv t'xpt'rinwnterl hv

Enemy 'Light Infantry'.

Indigenous warriors such as

the Indian hunter pictured here w ere adept In the use

of snowshoes and were expert

marksmen. This warrior Is

dressed In French woollen

tucque, •capote' or blanket coat

and moccasins. His mittens lie

on the ground as he reloads.

(National Archives of Canada,

NAC C· 122387)

15

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16

Detail of 'Leathercap' of Gage's Light Infantry at Lake George, by

Thomas Davies, c.175g, One of

only two known contemporary

depletions of a British regular

Light Infantry soldier In America during the Seven Years• War.

This Leathercap climbs the military road from Fort George

and fortified encampments

clustered at the southern end

of Lake George In upstate

New York. (Courtesy of the

Fort Ticonderoga Museum)

hming hi~ entire ballalion aclopt Light Infantry dress and institutt>d hi~> rdunn~ throughout Abercrombv\ atmy. Regular:. and Prm;ncials alike. 'You would laugh to ~t·c· the droll figure we all 11l<tkc,' \\101(.' ,1 \!,~saC:hli!>Ct~ o{Iicer tO a Boston papc1. · Rq.,ruhu a.-. ''ell ~L'> prmincials have cut then coah -.o a., '>«u-ct•h· to reach their waist!> ... No ollict.•t 01 pth<ltt.' i!> all<)\\ed to can; more than one blanket ot l~ar-;kin ... 0;o women follm, 0111 r.unp to w;Lsh the linen. Lord I lowe ha!-. alt each !-.hown the ex.unple bv going to the brool-. and wa ... hing hi1> 0\\11.'

The bcar'ikin \\'ils lllltlti-pmpost'. !>ening a!> a tnallrcs!>, blanket ot <L'> a backpac:l-. in which to

roll one's hawt 'iark ron tai n i ng rations and personal itt'lllS of kit; eating and cooking utcn~il:-, and spare clothing. !lowe had more order:, dravm up instructing 'the v\·1wle Army to have their hat~> rut ctown that thev mav know one anothet front th~: Enemy·, causing Dr Richard Tluck, an army surgc·on, to comment \\TVI\' that 'we ar<:' now litcrall't an Arm\ of Round he.tcb' wtth the 1)1 ims of the hats wom 'slouched about two lnche~ and a half" broact·.

F111-the1 orders ~tared that 'the ollifn., do not t<ll n theit sashes, but wear the it gorge~ on dut\ ·. !I owe \\antt>d none ol his men !{t-'lling entangled 111 the \\Oo<b. or <L'> Dr Tiuck put it, 'Ftl'nch sticl-.1111-{ in our Skins'.

Commanding officer<; " ·ere kit 10 dwo-,t· '' h.ll colm legging!> their Light ln1.mu-.. soldier<, \\!Jttld \\t'<ll .111d \\l'll' diH·ned to ensure that 'The harrells of the Firelocks olthe Light lnfantn mmt all he made blue or brown. to take off the glillct in!-{; and the nMt-. of the Light lnhmu: mm be quite plain, or with the la<.ings ol the Regt. ;L, the Commanding Officer\ like best. rhe less thev arc <,('('II in the Wood~ the better.'

I' he (j nal de\'C topmen 1 and standa 1 di~ation ol Light I nf alltf) dress .md .tppearance took place in the i!pring of 175!) when General Amherst, the Commander-in-Chief in Amet ira, i.\SII<'cl a dnw; poliq. We: !cam from a directive issued in \Volfe's at Ill\' that a ll thl· Light lnlantrymeu of the arm\ scning in North America were, hcncd(>rth, to be uniform in appearance. The following instt uctio11s arc worth CJllOting in fu ll :

!'he following order for the dress of tlw Light I 11 r;Ultry, as approved of by hi-; excellency General i\tnh('rst: ~1~jor-Ccnc·ra l Wolfe desires 1 he same ma\' be exactlv con formed to h\ 1 ht> light troops under hi~ comm;md: the sleC\ es o1 the [ t cell coat are put on the waistcoat and, instead of coat-slee\e~. he ha~ rwo wings like the grenadiers, but fuller: and a round :.lope teaching .tbout haliwm clown his arm; which makes hi!> coat of no encumbrance to him, but can be slipt off "ith pleasure; he h<L<; no lace, but the lap(•b n.·main: be~ide~ the u'ual pockets, he ha<> two, not guitt· -.o high as hi'> b1 ea.,t, made of leather. for balb and flitw.; .mel a flap of rt'ct doth on the inside, which secure<> the ball from rolling 011t, if he !-thoulcl fall. II i' 1-.napsack is carried ,·en high betwt·en hi-. shoulders. and b f'a!>tened

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with a strap of web o \'er his shoulclet, as Lhe Indian~ ('<U n· lhei r pack. I lis cartout h-1)()' hangs undct hi~ ann on the left 'irlc. slung \\ ith Ieathem su .tp; ,md his horn undt•t the other <II m on tlw tight; hanging b,· a nan ow<.' t weh than that med for his kn.tp\,ICI...: hi~

canteen clmm hi.'> back, under his kn:lp'>ack anrl covered with clolh; he has a rough c:<IS<.' lo r his tomah()( k, with a buuon; and it hangs in a lea thern sling clown his side like a hangn, between his coat and wai:-.t-coat. I'\o ba\Ottel; his leggins have leathern ~ t rap.., under his ~hot'S like spancrda:-.hc~; hb hat i!. m.1de into a cap, with ,\flap and a button. anrl \\ith "'much blackcoth added as "ill come: un<ll'l his chin and keep him \\,tnn when he lie' dmm: it hook., in the front, and is made like the old \'elvet cap., in l:.ngland.

Looking likt: a Ligh t lnl'anuy man . or cou rse, was no t ctwugh in the woods to guaranHT \liCCt'SS. On lv good train ing and arlual combat cxpctience in the wilcl t·t ncs~ could pwduce a good Light lnfanlnman. <t\ George To'' mhc.·nd . • 1 subordin.uc of \\'olfc 's. \\Tote to Cenenll ,\ mhnst some 'eat' latn: ' It i~ not a Shott Coat ... that makt'' a Light lnfantrv Man, but as you know. Sir, a Confidence in hi~ Aim & that Stralag<'m in a perwnal conilict which i ~ derived fro m Expt'rientc.'

TRAINING AND TACTICS

'F i t for t h a t Service' h onicallv, Robert Kirkwood receiYcd his Ligh t Infan try 'training' from ~orth America's expert~- his SltawtH't' lndian captors. ·nlkt·n prisone t o n Major J ames Gra nt 's botched ra id or Fort Duquesne in September

Death of Lord Howe, 6 July 1758

at the head of Gage's Light

Infantry. Lord George Augustus

Howe was one of the British Army's leading advocates of light

dress and tactics. His death was

not only a blow to reformists but

also contributed significantly to

the serious defeat suffered by

his army two days later on the

Heights of Carillon near Fort

Ticonderoga. Recreation by

Patrice Courcelle. (From

Campaign 76: T1conderoga 1758 by Rene Chartrand.)

17

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1758, ~pared from the ~cal ping knife and adopted as a 'brother' into the tribe, Kirk11ood wa~ trained in the wav of the woods. lle learned w track, hunt and ~ki1111i~h a~ wdl a~ becoming proficient in the u~e of canoes and \now~hoe~. !J i~ ~ix-month tutelage culminated in him being deemecll1\' hi., Shawtw<· 'hroth<'r,· a~ ready 'm take up the hatchet' a~ .t fellow 11'<t 11 i01.

Ki1 k1wod I<'WI(kd in hi.,joumalthat in the spring of 1759, hi., tribe 'began w form t1 larg<· scout against the Cherokees . . . thi, pat t'l compmed of thl'll be.,t 1\cliTior'> and was in numbe1 about fmt1 '. Kirkwood wa ... cln·s.,<·d in btet'ch clout .md Indian leggings: 11ith hi., hai1 dre'>secl in '>calplock he took up hi'> rif1e, powderhorn, tomah.m k and ~tal ping knift·. and n<>~>'>ed the Ohio Ri\er heading ~uuth. '\\'e had a 11a1 dance, hal'ing ou1 face~ black'd in to!...en of the dc-;uuction and immediate cl<'ath IH' nwant to gil'c our <'ncmics.'

Al'te1 ·,.,el'eral skit tn ishes with the Cherokees', Kirkwood and anotht•t white capti\'l' tlllned Indian warrior ">lipped away and mack their e1>cape back to cil'i li '\at ion. rh e first white man they encountered 'ran 11i th a ll pns~ible speed. being Mlrt' Wt' Wt'rt' Indians. v\'c: ha llut'd to him , but to no purpose, he adckd ~peed to his flight in such a manner, that had not my comrade who was very ni1nblc, run him cl<m11, we could nel'er ha\'(' [had] the lea~t com·crsation with him.' The white hunter 'expected on being­m·crtakcn to hal'(' the to111ahawk ~u uck in his scull, but was agrccahl} dereil'ed, when he founci by our di~cout'ic that we were J.,.nglishnwn'.

On Kid,1,ood\ lt'tllln w hi~ 1eg-iment se\'era.l 1\eeb latel, 'gteat w;" thcirjo\' and su1 pri~c "h<'n the\ ~aw me as one risen from the dead. fm thev suppm.ed I hac! been killed amon).\'"t the Indians'. Kirk11ood ptoudh renHded he 11,1., 'p.tttirul.u II t.1!...en not.ice of by 111\' officen,', .111d 11ith his new -,kills and ('\.JWiti\<' becanw .1 1-:.tluabk instructor for other nwmhcr-. of hi' 1 egimt·nt- the onh one who had been u-ained b\ the l'IH'I11\.

j u~t a .... ell e~>' dtf ft•t eel It 0111 theater Lo UH:'ater. ~o did the '>t.utdard, qualit\ and amount of training. No two l.iglu Infantrv corp'> were trained the same "'" hc«Hl'>C no "1 iuen doctrine exiMed. Evervthing wa-. ne11. F01 cxa111pl<:. the men at ll alifa, lom1ed into light companie!> fo1 the 1757 Loui<;bourg <'ll.pcdition under Lord Loudo1tn, found .t \'en ~ln'IHHH IS training- rcg-imc awaiting them. Muck fonificatiom and work.... were buil t. and a Lig-ht Infantry soldier would ha1·c: spent each dav ahcrna tely attacking ancl defending them. This practice ma) haw sccnH•cl a lig-h t-lwartcd cxerci~e to most British Regulars but as Ca ptain Lieutl'lla lll l lc nry Pring le, ~7th Foot, explains: 'altho' ol'ten time~ several cirC llllts tance~ would happen which made us laugh (as there were no balls flying about) 8.: thcH' were many jukes concerning this mock Fort, yet it ccttainl) wa:o. info1ming to those who were absolute strangers in thi~

lT'>J){'Ct, of whom the l arge~ I portion of the army was compmecl'. But Loudoun had to abort the 1757 Loui!.bourg expedition due to

loL<~I F1 ench na,·al '>liPl'l iu1 it\ ,md tet dble weather and tlm:o. n•tutned his rq.,rimcnh to win tel quarter., in Halifax, '\ew York and Pcnnwl\'ania. T he -,,une H',ll, l .onl I oudoun had not been keen to rai~e additional Range1 com panic:'> to au a~ light tmops because of their in01 dinatt' cxpcn'i<'. their poor di,ripline. and, as theY expanclcd, climini~hing qual it' "' <'li.J)('I ic1H t•d "oocb.men were killed off and replat eel "ith 1 "" prminri.tl'> .lnd ell unk<·n I ilf-1 alT. But he reluctant!) did M) to bm time

18 'till I can make 'onw of our own people fit for that Senice'.

Marksman. Ten men in every

Light Infantry company were

Issued rifles such as this

marl<sman from the 55th Foot (Howe's). They were probably

all of European manufacture

In the German Jager style.

This soldier has a backpack

fastened with an Indian tumpline

which could also be slung across

the forehead for especially heavy loads. (Courtesy of Gary Zaboly)

OPPOSITE Training. Cherokee

warriors led by war chieftain

'Little Carpenter' trained Light

Infantry such as Robert Kirkwood

of the 77th Foot (Montgomery's

Highlanders) during General

Forbes' 1758 expedition against

Fort Duquesne. Kirkwood praised

' the firm and Intrepid conduct of the Little Carpenter and his

Indians'. In this detail from the

painting Warriors by Robert

Griffing, a Highlander of the

77th Foot teams the finer points

of tracking, a skill not uncommon

In many men of the Highlands who came to America with

deerstalklng and shepherding skills. (Courtesy of Robert

Griffing and Paramount Press)

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In an exchange of' letters bctween Loudoun and th<• Duke ol Cumb<.·t land on 'the Bu~hlight in ''hi< h the [French] haw 110 great an ad,·antage '" theit Canadiam and Indiam', the latter ad\i~c·d hi-. friend 'to

teach \out u·oop~ to go out on Scouting Partie": f(>J 'till regular Officer.. with men they can uu~t. !eat n to

beat the wood~. and an as Irregu lar!>, rou wi II never gain an>· certain h nelligt•nce of the Enemy, nor screen and protect a tn arrhing column '.

The di"tinction of being the first Light lnf;ulln in the Britil>h Arnn went to

the previous!\· IIH'lltioncd !:lOth Foot, or Cage\ I ight InfantrY. rai-.ecl in Dt.·c-

L_

I ' I

I '

L ember l i5i. It ron'>i'>ted of experienced officers and nwn fmm the regimental light companic,, ~onw of whom had u-ained or '>el\('d ,,, voluntee1::. "ith Rogt•t •,' R.tngn'>. ~ome reuuiting wa.<, done in the colonie' a-. well, tlw pn•fened recruiL-. being wood:>men. hut mu-.t men inclined to join hac! ah each done -.o and prefened the t-anger com paniC'> that ullered moll' IM' and le-.~ cli-.ripline. Gage's Light Infantnnwn thus underwent cxtcmi\'{' lt~tining under expetienced oflicers .md ~CO-.. onc of them recmding- in .June 175H that their soldiers were cmplo) cd 'in Exercising a tH.:'W t\kthocl of fighting, forming and marchtng in the Woods'.

Lig-ht Infantrymen wi th good shooting skills prior to

the Ti< onderoga expedition or 1758 lintncl ( hcmscl\'l'S issued with a new weapon before the campaign. Eighty 'ril1led barrel pieces' of btropcan origin were gi\'en to the ten be~l ~hots in each regiment of M~or General .James Alwrrrombv'!> large ann). Before the expedition wa-. launched, eadt t illeman was 'ordered to fire three rounds each' bdott· em bat J..ing on the boat:>. Eight\' men firing three rounds apiece docs not sound like a vel') long or com pre hemin· Largt't pt an ice. nor was it imended to be. It "•'"· in fact. the men ;eming in their ne" rifle~. a.<> each piece wa~ handcrafted anci each weapon had to be adju~ted to it-. tt'>l't. B, aclju..,ttng rear sights at given t-ange-.. the rinen1.1n < ould dett't mine his line of sight and whether hi-. pcr-.onal tin'lork aimed high or low . .\lusketrv and t.ttgt·t ptacti-.e, commonly referred to a<> 'firing at i\l a1 1..~· (h<·mc marbnwn) became a top training pt-iorit\ lot all l .ight InfantrY soldiers as well as

ABOVE A 1757 diagram for a proposed five-company Light Infantry regiment that became the finst of Its kind In the Britlsh Army - Gage's L.lght Infantry. Dotted lines show the evolutions required to shake out companies from column Into tine and facing the enemy after passing through a defile. (Courtesy of the William L. Clements Library)

19

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20

Scouting ahead. A soldier of the

80th Foot or Gage's Light Infantry scouts forward of the army with

friendly Indians on campaign.

(Courtesy of Gary Zaboly)

Robert Rogers at Detroit, 1760.

While Rogers did not Invent the

Ranger concept, he was

lnstl'\lmental in writing the first woodsflghtlng manual and ac ting

as chief lnstl'\lctor for many

British Light Infantry officers. In

the fall of 1760, Rogers and a

combined force were dispatched

to accept the surn~nder of Detroit

and the other French posts after

the fall of Montreal. (Courtesy of Gary Zaboty)

their companions in tlw hat compan ies. By the spring of 176 1, when the battalions of the 'Amnic.ut Attm' wet c preparing for !>enice in the Cat ibbean, Amht'l st could obser\'e with <>onw ~ati~LI< tion that 'alii he mt·n arc ~o good mall..'>men, that it 1 cquirt·:. o n ly a little prani~t· to l..ccp the it handl> in·.

\\'ith the rerogmuon that his Light lnlant1 \lilt' II 1 eq uit ed pl\\:.icall\' fit and ,,·ood'' i'>c oflin.•r.,, in Septem ber 1757 Lord Loudoun mclct ed Captain Robert Rogers, the fantou~ Rangct, to imtrun :)5 handpicked ·gemlcmcn \ Oittlll<'t-rs' ~ening in the ran k:. ' in th e n tnJ.,ri llg disc iplim·. methods or marching, ambu-;hing. fighli lt).{, t' t( . that they might be

beuer ((Ualilied iix any future services again:-. t th(' enemy'. lf' judgcd by Roger<; as ((Ua li ~iecl cadets a f't e t th e intc·nsi\'C ~even-week course, these )'Oung sold iers were to be C<>llltllissioned as t' tt ~igns in llwir own regimental light companies, or l11c Ra ngers. as \~ICancic·s ocn u-rect .

Se\el<ll othe r ofiicers in difk tTttt theatcrl> of' war were simultaneously pulling pen to paper and a rticulati ng wha t wa.\ needed in training British 1 egulars to cope \\ill t 'the bmhfight ·. Brigadicr-Ccneral J oh n Forbes, entrusted with the 175H expedi tion to ta l..c Fot t Duque;.nc, wrote to his 'L'coud-in-<ommand, Bouquet, that it wa.'> pat <tmount to 'compl" anct team the .\n of \\'an from Ennf'm\ l nrliam or pcopk ... who haw ~cen the Countn· and the \\'an carried on it'. Bouquet, ,, Swi~!i ollicn who had expeticnced inegulm '"u L11 eon Eut op('<lll ;.en it e. quitkh concuned and \lancd to mm m1d accomrc hi\ Roval \ nwricam lil..c the lndiml-;. fie. too. obtained rifles for hi<> marksmen - I(} in numbet - ''' well as in\'cnting his O\\ n u-.tining cxcrci;.e lO pt epa1 e hi' men lot \\Oo<b lighting. sending them into the thick forc<;t in small column~> \\ith nm men abre<L~t, 'which dcplo\'ect into line in two minutt•;, wi th the lig-ht troops en l'duufli [literally

"scarfed", meaning in a '>etn·n w the front!'. An r\ melican Pnwincin l ob-;cn ing BOll((llt't's train ing

regimen wrotf': 'E\'f' rv a fte tn oon ht· t'Xt'rciscs h i;, men in the woods and bushes in the mann t•r of' hb own inw ntion , which ,~; ll be of grea t ~ervin• in an engagement with lnctians.'

Bouquet wo11ld late r identify gt'n t' ra lmaxims that applied in all Indian warfare stating tha t the re wasn 't 'anything new or extraordin arv in this wav o l' lighting- which 'lt'<'ms to have been common to most Barba1·ian;,'. Fi rM, they a lways 'surro und their enemy'. he wrote. 'The second, tha t th('y a lwav~ fi ght scaucrcd. and never in a compact hod v. T he thi rd tha t thev never stand their ground when auackcd, but immcdiateh give way to the charge.' For a Light ln f~tnmman, it f(>llowed then:

bt T hat the troop-. cle,tincd to t:ngage lncliam mu:.l be ligh tly cloathed. armed and <l<TOllll ed. 2nd That hming no n·.,islance to encounter in the attack and the defense. the\ .uc noL to be dr;l\\n up in close order. which onl\' ,,;11 expose thcm without ncccs~ity w a greater loss.

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And lasth, that all their eYolutions must be pertmmcd \\ith great rapidity; and the men enabled by exercist' to pm!-!ue the enemy closely, when put to flight, and not gi,ing lhcm time to rally.

Bouquet's mtining program gave '>pedfic attention to items such as clothing. arms, training techniques, comtruction of tamp!> and :.l'llkmems. logiMit'> and tactical mano<•unes to meet most contmgencie .... Under his supervision, the compam replaced the battalion as the unit of mano<'U\TC, ancl troop~> were taught to sm1p::.hoot, whet'l on the run ovet broken ten-ain, swi m rivers and march on snowshoes. Robert Kirkwood and hi~ fellow Highlanders. no doubt, partook of lhis training. as Ensign Thoma~ Cist of tlw Virginia PrO\incials recorded that james Crant. ~l<tior of the 77th FoQt, tried to imtil 'lhe an of bmhfighting' in hi" men before lt'ading them on his ill-hued assault on ~ Oil Duquesne.

Kirkwood musr ha\ <' excelled for he \\,L'i one of twelll\ h.111dpicked ntt'll ordered to conduct a reconnctissann·-in-force against Fot t Duquesne in August 1758. Accompanied by Cherokee waniors led by the wdl-knmm war chieftain, Little Carpenter. they destrovcd a French and Shawnee war patt\' but failed to reach their ohjecti\'e. On their return to Fort Bedford. tiW\' were pursued 1)\ 'French and Shannie Indians dra\\ n to).{t·thcr for that purpo~e and the\ wen· often ne;u u" that we could pl.tinh cfi.,tinguish thcit haJloo'. l wo '>tat 1- realities clrivetl home to Kirkwood on hi~ first Bti lish Army scout wen·: if one wa'> too wounded to walk, <lllt' wa~ left lwhind to the mercies of the enemy: and, one had to be phvsiralh a.s well as nwntallv fit for ~uch t'xpedition~. Thb being the fir~t scout lt·ver went upon,' he \\TOte, \ou r.m imagine how fatigued 1 was, hut ,umcht the'>c hilld,hips. I had the comfort of a relief from the finn .111<1 inuepid n)llcluct of Little Cat pt'tllel and hi-. lncltam. ·

The 550 light troop~> preparing lot the 1758 Loui:.bomg- campaign under the watchful eye ol M~jor Scott wnt' told that onn· the} 'had b~ practise & experie nce, a('quircd a~ much Caution & Circum~penion as they ha\'e spirit & .\cti\'itv. the howling Barbariam' would 'flee bdote them'. \ccordingl\', a Light Infant I\ man was taught 'to attack & defend ... judi(.iou.,h alwavs cndea\ outtng 10 get upon the 1.- nenn \ Flank and equally watchful to prevent ll·ncirclementl' 1-utth<-'1 more, he wal> to 'be instructed to chusc good po~t~ and lay .. . in ambuscade to ad\'antage. to be akn, ~ilent, vigilant and obedient, read\' at all time~ ro 111rn

out '' ithout the le<t!>t noi-;e or Je,,.,t confu.,ion ·.

Light Infantn troop' were al'>o to

'alway., march in Single life:~. & gent•t alh fight in a single rank; pushing at tlt c Ent·mv when they 'i<'<' him in confusion, and that lhe Ground r;I\'OLII'S tlleit Eflot ts: 11('\er pursue \\ith too much eagenw~ .... not to give ''"d\, cxc ept in a n'l"\' great inequalil) of number..,·. \\'itlt t11e empha-.i'> on spreading out and u~ing cover tltcy wen· instructed to 'avoid huddling together, & running into a Lump; in sta h

A view of Fort Duquesne. A detail from the Robert Griffing painting

Triumphant Return to Fort

Duquesne , showing the French

fortress captured by British

troops under General John Forbes

In 1758, and the scene of Robert

Ki rkwood's capture by Shawnee

Indians. (Courtesy of Robert

Griffing and Paramount Press)

2 1

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ABOVE LEFT Two Light

Infantrymen, c.1759. A detail of

two Light Infantry soldiers, one

of the 46th Foot (lett) and one of

the Royal Americans (60th Foot),

from Benjamin West's Genera/

Johnson Saving a Wounded

French Officer from the Tomahawk of a North American

Indian , painted c.1764. This

is one of only two known

contemporary paintings of

British regular Light Infantry

In North America. (Courtesy

of the Derby Museum)

ABOVE RIGHT Lead and land fi rst. A painting by Peter

Rfndfsbacher depleting Wolfe's

Light Infantry landing at the cove

below tho Heights of Abraham,

Quebec In September 1759. They

silently scaled the heights and

took possession of them so the rest of the army could march up.

(Courtesy of Peter Rlndllsbacher)

a -.ituation the,· arc a fair object for their achn-,aric-.. & not able to emplm· then A.1 m~ to purpose'. Thc~c itTcgulat t.Kti<" 01 ·-.u at.tgem:.' highlight the additional ~kill1> that the common Briti'>h redcoat had to fulh m<L'>ter before bnoming a Light Infantt""\111an.

C\o amount of training hO\\t'H't could teplacc cxpnience. Only repeated expo~ure to wilderne1>s lighting could build up the confidence ami expertise of a Light lnfantnman expcCI('d LO counter the 'paim and howl' ol his advcrsarie11. \htim Pau id • .\latkellat, Wolle':. chid engineer at Quebec in 1759, and a sun ivor of Braddock'~ defeat on the Monongahela, gaw credence to 1lw old tnaxitn 'fami liarit:v breeds contempt', when he obset \'ed that the cuntinuou:. skirmi~hing had ' the good effect of using our men to 1hc wood~. and l~uniliat~ising them ·with the Canadians and Indians, whom they soon began to despise'.

Ott the whole, by 1761, Briti1>h Light lnfant t\' aml tlwir regimemal brethren were sutllcicntly trained to ignore th<' Indian ·ha lloo' or 'howl' ancl act with 'Spirit and Coolness' in mo),t :-.ituatiom. In fact, manv of them adopted the Indian hmd a~ tiH'il ohn,.Jana·s Grant noting how hi:. Highland Light Infantl)1nen on Martinique in 1762 hacl bolstered the rcsoln· of another regiment as the) moved up to -.uppotl 1 hem during battle. Gram remembered 'a huge boch of h t'n< h immediate!~ opposite m [\\·ere] d1iving in the 60th [ Roval . \m<•J-icam] who were slowly retinn~ before them to ou1 right down th<' hill. \\e in,tanth gave the Indian Halloo, pan of our Backwood" .H quit enwnll>; the bra\e fellow~ of the 60th instantly stood, a-. if t·i,cted to the -.pot and a<h·anccd \\ith us.' But c\·en the moM expericmT<I Light I nfantn man on campaign :.uflcrcd bloody defeat or mauling at the h.utd\ of the encnl\ from time

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to time, the cau~e of which wa:, usuall} attributable to a J,H k of alenness or failure to follm' the basic dictates of his training.

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

'Put noth ing t o cha nce' Lodgings A Light Infantryman being 'the most active and rcsolutt· 11oldicr' of hi!> regiment thought nothing of sleeping out 11nder the stnrs while on long scouting or raiding missions. He and hi~ comrades would cut branches and boughs of pine: f01ming a mattress to keep thcmscl\·(·s oflthe damp or hard ground. If the \\eather was cold, thev constructed rude lean-to -.IH'hcrs from the same materials in the Jndian !>t)IC. !.mel Loudoun de~n ibcd them a-. 'bush tents of pine boughs; two opposite each other ... a !-.pace between thelll in which they make great lire!'!, ancl the men in each of the tenLs lie with their feet to tlw !ires in which situation they arc tolerably comfUJtahk'.

On his return to h<L'>l' camp fo1 prm isions, rest and resupplY, Kirkwood .111d his colleague<; ''ould draw thei1 tenLs from regimental storage. The tCIIL'> \\el c usualh mack of light '"Her-proofed sailcloth and -.kpt tour to

eight men. In more t''>tablbhed camp'>, mde huts would h<' ronstructed, while in captured t0\\11S or cities such as Qu<'hcc, soldier~ were billeted in tuined houses and bui ldings.

Many ~oldicrs spt·nt weeks or month., aboard transpcHt ship~. either on thc:i• way to Amt'l ica, or taking p:ut a'> the landing lloop:, on Llw numewus amphibJUu-. operation., concllH ted in the \meri< a' dtuing Lilt.'

ScH'n Years' '\'a1. Operations again'>l Luui,bourg. ~lm tiJllque , Dominica. Cuba and the Grenada'\ meant that 1 cgimenL~ were pa< kt·d into ship~ under condition!> that rivalled those ol the slave track. Pri\'ate Jame!> Miller. on first comi ng to America in 1757, rememlwred that 'the accommodatiom of soldiers on board ship arc not \'ery <.OIHiuci'e to case o1 lwaiLI1. all between ded .. '> being scpmated b\ boards. into births fsic], and the,· creep into thc'e holes, in the hc:-.t manne1· the\ c;tn. one third of which. are generallv k~:pt on deck whilt' nl anchor'. Miller confc:-.secl that he \l'ldom went below, for there proceed\ \llch a disagreeabk -.tench. of putrid breath\, when \'CHI arc going down the hatrhwa\, that no being accu~tomed to

fH·1>h ;ur can bt'<ll. but mote particularly, when clwcsc, or grog, w<..·re serving, there i1> !'! ltrh a compound of' Villainous Smelb, enough to

\llffi>eate a llottcntot'.

Everyday Ta s k s Roht•1·1 Kirk·wood gi'e' u-; a good idea of the more romine tasls and outpost duties he and hi!-. fellow Light Infantrymen wen· railed upon to

How the barracks of Fort

Ligonier would have looked to Kll'kwood and his comrades

stationed there in 1758, and

1763-1765. The Light Infantry

became familiar w ith the roads

between Forts Pitt, Ligonier

and Bedford as one of their

most Important and dangerous tasks was convoy escort duty.

(Photo by Tim Todish)

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First glimpse of America. The

harbour of Charles Town, South Carolina as It would have looked

to Private Robert Kirkwood

and his fellow Highlanders of

Montgomery's 77th Foot on

arrlvalln September 1757. They

garrisoned the colony's capital

from September 1757 to April

1758. (Courtesy of the William L. Clements Library)

)Jerform. Aflcr fighting the ir way th rough to thc besieged f(>rt in the early wimcr of 1763/ 64 during Pontiac's I nclia n uprising, Ki rkwood and his com racks,

staid there but a short time, ha\ing LO escort the inhabitanL\ dmm the country and to come hack ''ith more pto\'isions. \\'e continued emplo~ ed in thi-. manrH·r 'till tlw first of Januan ( 176-l], the SilO\\ falling \0 deep, W(' were obliged to <ihO\ el it away e,·en· night LO make our beds .mel fires; eH·n man being prO\ided "llh a hatchet to cut wood. and a 'hoH·I for the :.no\\, we were obliged also to go in panic'>, all(( rrample 11 hdore the hor~es, in orrler to pre,ent their being mired 111 it.

h.irkwood c:.timated that in corwm protenion dutic'> 'we marched 1500 mile!>' before 'the Forr' I ,,·en·l \lOt ed wtth prmi:.ions'. Later that spt in g. · Pr0\i:.io11:. at laM bctomi ng ~rant', we made :.e\'era1 incursions inlO the fields around Fon Pi t [sic] ' 'here we found Indian corn in g reat plent\- ol which we brought considerahl<· (jllan li tiel> to the garTison and pounded it ior broth.' Such exrur sio ns were not wi thout u·agedy fo r Kirkwood wrote: 'we were fi·cCJIICn tly in grea t da nger lor lire Indians gave u:-. many a chace. On o ne of these ex ped itions I l o~t 111)' comrade who was taken, Kalped and died the !>arne day.' J'hc fo llowing winte r at Fort Pill, Kirkwood found h imself 'emplo)ccl in bringi ng coals into the garrison on:r the icc, in bags made ol cowh ide~. ' J ht· pit from which they are l':li.U<tCtcd is on the other !>ide of the l'i\·et :-..1anning-hally (:-..1onongahela) .'

The need for fuel in \\inteJ necc\~it:Hecl woodcutting expeclitions on an <tlmost dail\' basis at e' en foiL or outpmt. I hm protection parties were uccdccl to guard them and the~c \\ crt• u~uall\' drmm fi om the Light Inhmu·y or Rangers who were proficient in the ll\C or ~now~hoe'\ . • \lso c~\cntial was the La.Sk of clearing heaw \110\\\ ,m,n from the fortification:. to pre\'ent an~ enem) " -ailing mer dit<.he, and ramparts in :.now:.hoc:.. Henn Pringle, writing from Fort Ectward, ">cw \'otl in 1757 rt·corded: '\\'e h<ne had prodigious Snow<, \\hich il<L' t•mplmt•d .til the GatTi:.on in dearing the work!. & when the firM i~ r clllO\'t•d, a '>econd. two feet comes in

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the night. Our intercourse with the French is stop'd by it, as we have not had a d eserte r since, no r have we sent another Scout there yet.' Knox, servi ng at Quebec three vcar1> later, desc1ibed the ~ame type of fatigue in which 'the biucmess of tl1e M.'<L,oll [ w~~] not to be concei\'ed; se\'eral of the men who were dca1 ing th e snow that was loclgccl uucler the sc<u·p o f' the LOWtHvall wen: frm1h inen, an d some swooned away with the excessive cold' .

Other ot.Upost duties included deliH'l;ng ,;tal di!>patches through hostile counu;. a task that Kirkwood performed o nce at great peril. ' J being alw-ays forward ,' he \Hotc,

'unde rtook to carry a packet to Fort Ligonie r' as ' the lndia1111 ... had cu i o il" all communications between the Forts, so th at it was impo!-~~ibk to send an\' Intelligence from one place to anothct. · ~ctling ofT ,,;th anotlwr Light lnhmtryrnan and th<·ir clog. Kirkwood 1 eco1 dcd tl1at the\' t t·,tdll'd l .i~onie1 '\,ithout an> interccptiou' but o n the retumjoume\ ' the Iucl1am had got seem of us a nd lay in ''",lit'. Kirkwood and hi11 companion rc-.olwd 10 tran·l in darkness o nly and laid up the fo llowing day, botl1 fall ing a~kep.

'By th is imprudt'IKl'.' Ki rkwood noted . 'we th rew Olll');clws into the grcat('1>t danger. and would ha,·e certain tv been murdered, but fill· [ ourJ dog ... which was alarmed b\' the noi~e and the howling tht' lndi<m!> made; thn tracked u' to the ,·en· <>pot, .111d had waited until tht'\ had gathcr'd their ink1nal crew. to make a !'laetifice of m .' kn kwood and his romrade took to their heels, avoidi ng the road and t.ak1ng .tliicuitou<; bypath 'under tenibk apprehe nsio ns, f(>r all 1hc way we ht'ard the Jndian halloo'. T hey and tht' ir u·usl)' dog reached ' the Fort i11 saletY but our t'X[>t'dilion W£L'\ lllllliCkY ror tWO Of the SOldierS belonging 10 the gatTiSoll \\ ho had been out to look for hor;e' kll in with our pttt).Ut.'l'\ who scalpt them both and left them dPad on the !>pOl'.

Evc1;·day t<L<;ks MlllH' ti mes includ­ed a soldie r's formcr trad e and <)(cupation. In Ki t k\\ood's ca~l'.

'bring a coopc1 '" trade, 1 wa., emplm·ecl to mend out water e<L<;k.<; ' .

Fo1 any sizeabk campaign in tl1e wilderucss, any anll}' had to be se ll ~s ullic ie nt in ski lie d la bo u rc rs, whether regular sold iers. provincial., or hired ci,iliam. Bouquet was empha tic that troop' 'hould be ' taught to tl1ro'' up entrenchment,, mak(' f<L-;c ines and gabions. as well a!> to It'll u·ees, saw p lanks, consmtct canoes, cans, plu ugh!-1, barrows, roofs, C<L'\ks. batteau x and bridges. and to

' I lost my comrade'. A soldier Is

scalped by a French Amerindian

warrior. Light Infantry soldiers and Rangers took to scalping

enemy Indians in retaliation,

as well as for the five-pound

bounties that were offered for

such grisly war trophies.

(Library of Congress)

Building a Cabin. In fortified

camps of a more pennanent

nature, Provincial and Regular

soldiers were called upon to

construct their own cabins or storage sheds. Many soldiers

with a trade could earn extra

pay for such work. (Dover

Pictorial Archives)

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build ovens and loghousc~·. The\' would abo nc:ed lo 'become tolerablv good carpenters, ma.-.on)>, t.ailors, butcher~. ~hocmakcr~. etc.·

Food

The ,,·eekh ration Robert Kirkwood and hi., comrades could expect while b<t'>ed in a semi-pennanent camp or a fort g;mi~on was ·~e,·cn pound<; of bed, or, in lieu thereol, lour pound'> ol pork, which ~ thought to be equivalent; seven pounds of bi!>cuit bread I hat dtack] 01 the same weight of flour: -.ix ounces of butter, three pint., ot pca..,c, half a pound of rice; and thi.., is called se,·en ration1>'. \\'ith l(>tll to 'i" nH:n pet tent 01 hut, these t<ttions would have been pooled \dth mc~'>matc1>, and eithet a designated cook or the company women would prepare the daih meak

An orderly book tells us how the ptm i-.io1111 \\et e prepared on arrival in camp for distribution, the regimental quanennaMers rcl:>ponsible 'to

attend in person to sec the flower [sic] weighed deducting the weight of the cask; the pork unpack'd the :-.alt bt·at off of it and weighed. The bmter uupack'd and weigh d. Pease to be rereivecl by mesurc, rice b)' weight.'

In order to balance the men's dier, garrison anrl ramp garden~ were established so that men and olliccrs could grow l'resh vegetables such as cabbage, peas, carrots, asparagw, squash, corn and melons. Some rcgimenL'i kept milking cows, while other~ kept live sheep, pigs ami cattle which would be slaughtered l'rom tillH' to time to prO\·ide the men with fre1-.h meat. Sutlers and camp follo\\crs al'o attended each army and prmidcd baking and cooking ser\'iccs, the law: r usuallv for oflicer ... ~utlcr~ also provided luxurY items '>llch a!> egg1>, salt, pipe tobacco, sugar, mola.o,se1-. and a \\ide range of liquor:-..

Being an accomplished huntet, Robct t Kirkwood would undoubtedh haYc been sent out on hunting JMI tie'> to 'upplement the salted meat ration. btinging back such fresh gam<.· a' <ker, moo1-.e, ell.., bear. wild turkevo;, bulfalo and a various <l\\01 tnH·nt ol cluck.' and partridge. E'e!J· trip "''a' from the safet) of camp wa!> 1 ill' '''ith danget ~l'> Indian scalping parties lurked in the woods waiting for ju..,t thi' t\'J)<' of excursion. One part\ \entllling out of Crmm Point in .\l,trrh 17()0 to hunt deer as 'they thought the Ice of the Lake l>O bad the Indians could not approach,' recorded Hen I')' Ptinglc, were 'all made Pt isonns before our eyes & \~ithin cannon-shot of the Fort'. Pringk, who had been captured after Rogers' battle on snowshoes in l\·larclt 17!">8 thought the alfait l'rivulous: 'To be made prisoner where the Service doc:. not call is inexcusable ... They risk their life, their liberty & int<'lligenn· to the Enemy against a Pertridge or a Deer.' He conchtdcd, '\Ve should al present be olrl Soldiers in the American War & pu1 nothing 10 a chance li1r such a trifle.'

The game that Kirkwood and his lellow marksmen brought in for their compan) wall a1> varied as tiH' tt'tt a in tlte ~oldien, had to pa1>s through. While on the Ohio River. Kirkwood observed. 'Here the Buffalo arc as plenty as our black cattle in Emope, the Deer as nunH:.·rou)> as our Sheep, and wild Tut f...t·\~ in .1~ much abundance as our poulti).' \\l1en tasked \\ith his rom pam· ol Black \\'atch (ha,ing been tran!>ferrcd on disbandment ol the 77th at the Pea< e) to take po!>scssion o{ Ft cnch forL<; in Tllinois countn in 1765, Kit kwood "rotc: '"e had a good pastime in killing the Bullaloe'>, ''hie h ,n•n· th<.>n in their ptime ... Ther ha\'e a large hump on theit hack'>, wlten laid open, appears to be :-.olid fat. much like that of the bt east ol a CO\\. and it is really most

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delirious eating-. In sh01t, the whole carcase for tlw purpose of soup-making, is in my opinion, preferable LO any of our bed.'

Other mo~t· exotic fare tried by British soldiers included rattlestt<.tl .. e. porcupine and racoon. Captain James ~ l urrav of the Bla< k \\'atch wTote that 'rattle~naJ..cs make the 1 ichest and be-.tsoup that can be, which I cat of and like much. The meat i.s but insipid.' Knox on gatt ison in . ova Scotia confe~~t.·d to having tried racoon: 'the nesh of it white and tender, not unlike kid meat; but it was strong and or a disagreeable fi!>h\' flanl\tr'.

Fishing wa., another meam of supplementing the '>tand,ud anm l,u t.' and Kirkwood\ favourite catch of the da} was catfish. \\'hilst in Ohio country he wrote: 'You may catch large fish which thev call Catts, some weighing 100 pounds, itmnkes excellem sauce, and cats wry dcliciou~ly.

broiled on the coals.' Man\ soldiers canied lines, weight~ and hooks in tht'ir pacb - for the 175H Louisbourg expedition. the~e item-. wnc !>pt'cially i!-.!-.ucd and the men encouraged to fish. Knox noted that tht'\ 'took great C]Uantities ofthh over the l.hips' sides ... chieOy mackerel and pollock'. Whiil' ill garrison at ll alifax, the soldiers wt·rt~ able to buy 'most kinds or fi),h and panicularlv lobsters in great plcnrv'.

In 1762. a Light Tnfantn oflicer at the '>iege of Ilav<lll.t recorded that hi~ men caught 'a <>on of land-shellfi~h which carrie-. iL'> ~hell about (a.,

~nails do their~)· which lool..ed 'like a Crawfio;h or pr,\\\11. They run \l'l'Y

nimbly along. but when touched, halt and retire as guickly into their mm·able hou<>c1>- the Soldiers boiled and ate them'; the hl'ttnit crab~ were ·~o \er; plent\ in some pl.tcc,, that we wen· obliged to cleat them aw;l\ in order to -.it dmm'. His men abo took the it hatchets to tlw 'Cabbage Tn·e without compassion [andllaid their beaut' in the dust ... f01 LO get [fruit I which is at the verv LOp, the tree must be cu t dm\>11 & obliged us to make this Paradi<;c ~<'<'111 a desert'.

\\'hen hunting and fi<>hing could not tal..t.· place becam<· he wa.<> on the move. the Light lnfantn 111,111 ,,,\., expect<'d to ca•-r;· hi., own prmisiom lot the duration of the mi<>siott. fhe usual fate taken ,,-.:~., .,onw salt beef ot pork, parched Indian corn, peas. rice, hardtack bi~cuits. 'johnn( (o1 journey cake) and perhap:-. some sugar or dtocolare to provide imwnt <·net-g-.•, or to .,weeten hot chink.'>.

Cannibalism i\ stark exam pic of how despnall: men could become when deprin·d of rations on campaign i~ 1 <:hlll'd b' Robert Kirl..wood in hi-. ,\ft·mmn in :.ume gruc\Ollll' detail. A., one of the many Light Infantry 'voluttt<:ers ' who took part in Ro~ers' raid on St Francis in September 1759, hirkwood and the other'> \\l'te torced to retum home by a different route, living off th<' land after their Collccalccl boat.~ containing all their prmisiom for the return joumey had been di~co' t't cd b' the encmv. Eleven d<W:. aftet the raid and ~plit off in to groups of about 20 men, they

A pause on the march. Three Light Infantrymen fill canteens

and drink from a pond In the

wilderness on campaign. Men

were routinely warned not t o

take muddy o r brackish water

from ponds or swamps.

(Courtesy of Gary Zaboly)

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~truggkd solllhwards through a rugged wildellll'~S ~trangdy dt·,·oid of any wildlile. Kirkwood recalled 'being so alllincd '' ith th<' cold and hunger which ''e now began to feel in an in10kr<1hk dq.,rrec·. fhe 'deepness of the -.now and the swamp ness of the counu-., mack it impo,,ibk for us to ~tir for -.e,nal del\'!>. During thi!> mi.,erable pt·riod \H' wen· obliged to !>Crape under the "now for acon1s. and even eat our shoe~ and helL'>, and broil our powder homs and thought it deliciou" eaung. ·

Kn·kwood acknowledged that ,1 c.tpti\(.' Indian woman in their parry W<L'> extremeh helpful in gathering cdihlc mohand barks. but when the '-Pl'ctn· of death hv '>tarvation loomt•cl, ~l.tjot Roger~. who led Ki1 !...wood'~ part). saw the woman as theit on I~ chance of ~lll'\'i\·al. 'She was plump and fat.· recalled Kirkwoncl, 'h;l\ing nwre flc'>h upon her than fiye of us. and \l~jor Roger-. Sl'\'t•ral time!> ptopo~ed to make away with her. but we would never COIIM'llt 10 it.·

v\'hen Kirkwood's party was 'reduced to ten in tllullbcr. weak and ... in the greatest extremity'. he wrott• about \1<001 Rogers 'who J observed was stronger than any of w •. l'ollowecl the squaw who W<Ls gone out to ~ather roots, and there he kill'd all(\ cut her 11p, and brought her to our fire, where he divided and ca!-.l lots for the share:-, which were distributed to each an equal pan. Wl· 1 hen broikd and ate most of her; and then received great strength tlwrelw.'

Umull)Jisingl), Rogers' own published jmunals makt-' no metllion of thi::. alleged incidem. but thl:'re is conclusin· evidence that other panics of Rogers' fragmented command 1 e~ot ted to thi' last 'extreme !'>Uni,·al' expedient. The ston· ol Lieutenant (.cOt gt· Campbell's detachment, 1eCo1ded b) a contemporan hiMorian, Thomas .\fante, in his Hi\IOrJ of fllf / .alP \\{n· in Xm1h , \mpnra, recnllllt'- lum th.n pan' ate the remain~ of thei1 own men who had bt•en killed .llld ldt 011 the uail b\ a\enging Indians some da\!> earlier.

Diet and Disease

The 'Amelican Army' was cognitant of the important link between a 'oldier'o;; diet and his abilit\ to withMand di..,ca'l'. Perhap~ the mo~L common and persiswnt <lllliction wa~ !>CUI vy. popular!)' believed to be the cmsc and scourge of the Royal Nm') in the I Rth century I TowcYer, ~oldicrs in North American winter CJIItlrtt•rs that were located far from citie:- or towns were the most sul>ceptible, ha\'ing no recourse to fresh vegetables or meat. A diet solei>· of sail pork, hard biscuit and rum was alm ost guaranreed to cause an outbreak of' scurvy and Private .J ames Miller in garrison at Quebec in 1760 nott'd that 'it .mack a dreadful havock amongst us'. Another soldier of the garrison wrote th;~t 'the soldiers· disorders arc chien\ ~corbutic, wit It f't'vet ~ and dysenteries'. a tan 'far from being 1>urprising when we conside1 the !>e\'CtT fatigues and hard~hip~ they have ... which, with indifferent cloathing, uncomfortable barracks, worse bedding and their being in tit el\' confined to a salt pnwi!>ion diet. are !>ullicient to reduce 01 emaciate the moM robust constitutions in this extremeh· frigid dimatl' · .

. \ pre,·entath·e measure fo1 ;;cun'\ mL'> the i-.-.ue of \pruce beer' ,,hich anmding to john Knox was ·an e'cellent antbc01 butic ... made from the top'> and brcmches of the Spruce-tret•, hoikd for three hours. then straint•d into casks, ,.,;Lh a certain quantitY of molas'>e'>: and as :-oon as it is cold. it is fit for use. V\1len we were incampcd at I Ialifax. the allowance was

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two quarts a da, to each man, or thrt•c and a half gallons per week.'

As Amherst's army mo\'ed north on its 1759 Ticonderoga campaign, 01 de•., <,latcd: · f.igh t barrels of sptute beer to

he allowed to each Rq~t and one barrel to each company of Grenadiers & Light ln fanU')'.' Pr<·vt·n tative mcas1 ltTs were al~o taken to en~utc the men had frc!>h suppli<"' of water and man\' routine orders of the da} testilr that the men wnc oflcn warned not to take muddy or brackish wa ter from ponds or swamp!>. l.onl H owe, an ad\'ocatc of Light l nl~\lltry,

ditcctcd that all hi' <;oldicr.., on the march '!>hould not be permitted to \toop to chink, a' ther are generally inclined to clo. but obliged to lilt \\<Her in theit canteens, and mix ginger with it'.

During the 1762 lla\'ana siege, poor water coupled wi t II the cx trcme ()('at brought on sickn(•ss at an alarming rate. Private .Jam e.., Miller of the I 3th Foot recorded: • I he fatigue~ on shc>n: were exce'>siH·. tht' bad \\<ttcJ brought on di ... ot den •. which \\t'l <'mortal. \OU would M'<' the men\ tongue~ hanging out parch'd like a mad dog's, a dollar wa' freCJ.uenth given for a CJ.Uart of' water.' Some men, not trusting the wal<•t, 1 e:-.o• ted to

alcohol. the resu lt being, as Mill et n·called, meeting 'officers and Soldiers. drunk e\·erv hour of the dav'. Such hard drinking under a tropical ~un, no doubt, contributed to the 'American ,\ till\ 's' spiralling monalit\ rates. Some 5,366 soldier!> wet c lost at I Ia, ann lwtw<Tll June .tnd Onobcr 1762, n·prc,enting about 40 per cent of thl· ,o)dier'> p• <'M'nt. Of the'<' \oldil·rs, just :Jfi() wnc killed in aCLion 01 died of \\Oltnd11. The remaindc1. ~.70H, succumbccl to disease.

Drink and D isci plin e \\lwn Robert Ki rkwood wa~ ofT dut\, he was not a\'Crsc to 'tYing one on· to n·licH' stress. \ftcr hb return from the 176 I 1\urreude• ol French fort<; on the Great Lake,, he relates that he and his comrad<'' arl'iH:cl in .\lban~. New York ancln~jo~ed 'a honevmoon, for we had all our back pay given to us, which. tho· earned hardh, we ~pent metrih ... \'CriP,;ng the o ld pro\'erb "got like horses and sp<'nt like asses'". The site of his and his friends' hangovers b not t ('Corded but we do know that an inebriated Kirkwood was charged \\ith desertion shorth afterwards. No doubt he \\'as in no hut n to rejoin his regimcm for an expedition to the apth-named ' Fe\el blan<b' of the Caribbean. Kirkwoorl wa.., <aught and confined at Fort Ontario on 2 December 1761, but \\-<Ill gi,cn a •eprien.· six month~ later when all ablc-bodicrl nwn who could he :-.pared from the North American garrisons Wt'r(' rormcd in to a fighting force (0

retake Newfoundland from the F1·ench.

Fort garden. In order to balance

the men's diet, garrison camp

gardens were established so

that men and officers could

grow fresh vegetables such

as cabbage, peas, carrots,

asparagus, squash, com and

melons. Some regiments kept milk cows while others kept

live sheep, pigs or catttes which

would be slaughtered from ttme

to time to provide the men with

fresh meat. This detail Is from an 1762 engraving of Fort Royal tn

Guadaloupe, by l ieutenant

Archibald Campbell, Royal Engineers. (Courtesy of the

William l . Clements Library)

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Landing at Havana, 1762. A

detail from a Dominic Serres

view of troops landing stores In

the tropical heat of Cuba. Many of the newly arrived battalions

from Europe were still dressed

for fighting a conventional war.

Despite adapting uniforms,

heat exhaustion, sunstroke

and dehydration weakened the

men to such an extent that yellow fever, malaria and

dysentry became rampant and

mortality rates by disease

surpassed those of men killed In action by six to one. (Courtesy of

the William L. Clements Library)

Kirkwood also rccalkd the dangers of rlrunken•w.,., on the frontier. <:<,pecialh among!>tlhe .\uH•rinclian ... who firmh bl'lie1ed tlw effect~ to be tht• \\OJk of-;pi•its so 1h.tttlwi1 beha\'iour \\all cxcu..,ed whiJ...t under the innuence. lie was JJC:<Il h tomah.nd,ed to death b\ ,\ drunken Sha,,nee chuing hil> fi1~t dms of r.tpti\il\ btu san:d b, hi~ acloptiw 'bmther·. On anothe1 occasion in Ohio rounlll', he wimes~ed 'an afha\' . . . betwixt our part) and the French Indians 1d10 qua.-reled with one another in their drunken !iL<> and wi 1h their scalping knives killed one of our Indians anrl lost two of their own p<ll't\ Ml that we had to make peace between th em tlw next morning'.

F01 l>oldiers cooped up in the isolated ga• ri!IOII forts in the wilderness there was liult· to do in the oH:.Citu.v hour'> but cat, ~Jeep. gamhle and drink. At F01t Stam, i>.. in 1759. a commande1 "1 ote that clnmkcnne~l> had beronw a ~erious problem .t.., tht· men began 'to debauch themseh es 1)\ D• inking a Great Deal too much P<"rnicious & hm1ful ... :-\cw l<. ngl.tnd Rum'. The latter, popula1 II known as 'h.illdnil', was issued daill 10 the men, a gill or quarter pint their authorised ration. Men could ca111 an extra gi ll in lieu ol money for extra dulies such as road bui lding or fon ronslruction, and in some cast·s were given extra gills n11 their relurn from sln'llUOII'i patrols or successful cxpeditiom. A Light ln!~tntryman would dl illlc hi~ rum with water and take it out when ~routing or on amhu~h parmi, w warm his bone:-. on particular!\' cold nights. \\'hen nu11 was not available. captured stocks of Frendt b1 .tnch such a~ tho11e taken a£ Loui'ibourg and Quebec were ul>ed a-. a '"bstitute.

D1 ink was understandabh seen as an um,ekomc intOIIH' nience by most commander~. as dJullken troops were the antithe'iis of well-disciplined and aleJt M>ldiers. Strict regular ions were put in place on sutlers during military opcrmio11s so that unnecessary temptation was kept from the men and they could stay focussed anrl ttlert 10 1 he tash at hand. l\'eeclless to say cntcrpri~ing soldiers could alwm:-. find drink M>lllCI\here and Pri\'atc .James ~Iiller, who sen eel with th<· 15th Foot at Quebec in 1759-60 rccallt·d 'Liquor~ were extrcmch ' canT, and when

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the men could procure them, they generally drank to execs~. it wa' 110 uncommon thing in the morning. to find -;e,·<.•ral men froLen to death, from the abo\'e cau.,e. ·

Strictme.., agaimt tht' ~ale of alcohol were mualh relaxed after a '>UCCcssful campaign or when regiment<., \\ellt into "1nt('r quarters. \\'hilc heavy dtinking could be ,t killct in hot 01 cold climates, it was also one of the root causes of army ctime. British hi-;todan Stephen Bnunwell remarked in his excellent sltld\' of the Briti~h ~oldier in North Ametica, Rf'droat.\: 'it i~ tnlu~ualto lind a court case in which alcohol [did] not play some part'.

lnsolcnn:, \'iolence against superiors, theft and murd<'r wert· common outcomes of too much drink and were ckalt wi th t1ccord ing ly b} General Courts Martial. Dc~pite Light Infantrymen being the most active a nd spirited soldiers of their battalions, they we tc abo human. Thus many were brought to account at one time or another for breaking MHll(' regulation or committing some peuv crime. Robert Kit kwood was no exception and in 1762 we find him mentioned in orders publi'>hed in New York on l ~ August 1762: 'General [Amhcr~t l ha" been pleased to pardon, joseph Craddo<k of tlw 22d Regimt, pt·boner on board the J.une:-.. & Robert Kirkwood of the 77th Regimt, pri~oner on board the Fanm. & as tht'\ are going upon Service, the General hopes the\ will <>he\\ them~ehes b\' tlwit hch<l\ iout desening of this ;\let-c).' 1 he tugcnt operational nen•.,.,it\ and the fan that Kirkwood was an experienced Light lnfantnman probabh had a lot to do ,,;th him earning <1 reprien· from the usual punishment meted out for desertion- death b\' hanging

or the lash.

Flogging a nd Hangi ng Punil-hnwnt in the Hritish Army was quick and severe, the lash or cat-o'-nine-w ib bt'ing the most common chastisement of the private soldier and the 0 1 igin of the standard provincial epithet norma lly Lhrowntheirway- 'Biooctvhack~'. One pr0\1ncial Light fnfantt;man W<L~ horrified the firM timt· lw witne~11ed the !logging of a British regular. Massarhuo;ettl- Sergeant Dadd Pen;· recorded in his memoir~:

Thet e i" one thing I \\ould hen:' notice, which shows a ~pecimen of Btitish cntclt\ "ithout a parallel, I could hope. in the history of that nation. Thrc<' men, fill 'onH' trining offence which I do not recollect , \H'tl' tied up to be '"hipped. One of them was to re<t'i\e eight hundred l<t,Jws. the other~ fi\'e hundred apiece. B\' the time the\' had recei,ed three hundred !ashe~. the fle-;h appeared to be entiteh· whipped It om thcit ,boulder'!.. and the' hung as mute and motionlec;s a" though thev had been long since depri,ed of lile. But thi~ \\<l~ not enough. I he doctor ~tood by with a \ial of sharp "ufl. \\hich he would e\er and anon applv to their noses, and finding. bv

Drink. Off-duty soldiers carousing outside a pub. A detail from See John the Soldier, J&ek

the Tar, by William Hogarth. Drink was seen as an evil necessity by most commanders.

Drunken troops were the antithesis of well-disciplined

and alert soldiers so strict regulations were put In place during military operations to ensure the men stayed focused and alert to the tasks In hand. Needless to say, enterprising soldiers could always find drink somewhere. (Courtesy of the William L. Clements Library)

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32

OPPOSITE Gambling. A detail from a 1762

engraving of Fort Royal Guadeloupe by Lt. Archibald Campbell, Royal Engineers. Playing

cards was one of the favorite off-duty pastimes

In frontier garrisons to while away the hours.

(Courtesy of the William L. Clements Library).

OPPOSITE BELOW Drinking in the tent lines.

Private James Miller recalled meeting 'officers and soldiers, drunk every hour of the day.' Such

hard drinking under a tropical sun no doubt

contributed to the 'American Army's' spiraling

mortality rates. Some 5 ,366 soldiers were lost

at Havana between June and October 1762,

representing about 40% of the soldiers present.

Of these soldiers just 560 were killed in action

or died of wounds. The remainder, 4,708,

succumbed to disease. A view of Fort Royal , Guadeloupe by Lieutenant Archibald Campbell,

Royal Engineers. (Courtesy of the William L.

Clements Library)

I he pt~ i n it gm·c them, that some signs of Iii<: H'lnainecl, he would tell them, 'Dam11 vm1. you can bear it yel'- and then r!l(' \\hipping would commence ,,g,,i 11. It was the most cruel puni~hniClll I t'\l'l' :.aw inflicted. or hacl C\'Cr co1Kei' eel of before - by far

wor-.e than death. I ll'lt at tht· lime ,c, though 1 could han· taken <>ummarv wngeance on tho~c "ho "ere the authors of it. on the <>pol, had it been 111 Ill\ power to do it.

;\len of Gage·., Ligh1 lnl~mtn . who one Highlander described a.., 'the .Jailbirds ol \nwrica', ~ccmcct to ha\'c a \CI) high incideiHT ol !logging and dcaLh bv execution, while Highland unit., lil..e Kirkwood\ by compari~on had relati\ely lillie . r-. tiliwrv record., of August J7.:>R from the Lake George n1mp, "hett' Aberrromby'~ a1my rested and licked its wounds after the drubbing they hac\ received at Ticonclcrogn, n·H'n l thtlt desertion wa$ a serious problem LhaL had to be dealt wit h quirk!)' and ~evcrel)'· They stated on 25 August 175R that :John Andrew, John Harrison, Thos Vincent & v\'m Moor, o l I lis ~<:jc~ty's Rcg1 of Light lnfanu:· arc to suiTer Death tomon ow mo1ning at nine o'clock, for Desertion, in the frmll o!' 1heir own Regt. A picquet of thar regiment to guard the abme P1 i~mwr~ !'rom the ProvosLs & and Lhc whole Regiment to be under a1ms, to aLtend the Executions.' Hanging wa~ muallv the punishmenL resen·ect for traitors, dcl.erter~ lotlllcl 111 the uniform of the French or for ~oldiers \dlO mtll den:d thei1 0\\ n romradelt.

Women Robert Kirkwood and hi., lcllo" Lightlniantrnnen were no strangers to \\Omen as th<• ',\mel ican Anm · had its share of

(runtu~rwi 1111 palfl' -II I

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DAILY liFE AT FORT CROWN POINT, 1761

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80TH (GAGE' S LIGHT INFANTRY): LATE WAR

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alii I\' wi' es and camp followers, simph referred to in 1he records of the day a~> the 'women'. Kirkwood's rq.\"iment and others usually had an establishment of -;ix women per company, who performed a myriad of chon·, from cooking and sewing to nursing and laundering.

Ki1 !..wood's Alemo/1\, intended for a male audi<'nce and specificall) wriuen fo1 ~oldier~ going on duty 10 North 1\nH'rica, mentions Indian women sewral times. During his captivity and when adopted in10 the tribe to replan· a fallen warrior, he wa!> not onlv outfitted and arnwci as an Indian, hut inherited ,\ ,,ife. 'ion and. cornfield. ! Iii> new wif<.' ·,ct•m'd Yen· glad at my appea•-,ulet'.' recalled Ki1 !..wood, 'but begg-ed she might he excul>ed my bed, a11 'lhe thought thi!> sacrifice due I<> [her husbaud'~ I memory'. Kirkwood confessed to h(' 'not Lhe least clisplcascd with nw spouse's bchm iour' and 'coulcl have forever di-;pcn~ed with he1 company'.

Other o;oldiers, including officers g;ulisoned at remot<: outpo.:,~ and fOIL~>, took unofficial Indian \\i,·es 011 a rq,rular basi!>. to keep them company. Captain Quinton Kennedy of Cngc's I.ight Jnf~llltry was one of the b('M known, his cxploiL~ making the pages of Thf' Srot'~ J'vlawaine: 'Kennedy ha~ rnanicd an Indian squaw, whoM: uibe has made him a king ... I !(' ha~ leameci the language, paint<; and dresses like an lndi;m m1d ... IIi' wilt- goes ,,;th him and canies her prmisions on her ba< !... ·

~lilimry record!> of the 1758 and I 759 Ticonderoga e'pcdiuon1> tell us 1hn1 women were not pcnniued to follow the army on campaign. ln~tead, they were instructed to report for senicc as nurses al lh(' General Ho~pital in Albany. Orders on 15 May 175H :-tatecl that all 1 q~imental

commanding officer<> wt•rt· 'to give in 1hc women's name~ tlwv intend 'hould•eceYe [~ic] the allowance for ptmi,ion this campaign anci nre to n•commcnd -The firM that came with the Regt from Emop if they arc willing to be nur-;e., to tlw Gen. Hosptl when required. Tlw' art: not to

exceed 4 per com pan\.' Many a young Light Infantryman wounded on the Plains of Abraham

at Quebec in 1759 found themselves 1cndcd by French Augtt'ltine num. who according to John Knox were 'voung-, handsome and fair . . . \\11en our poor fellows were ill and ordered to be removed hom thei• own odiou., regimental hmpitals to [the Tlmpital-General] the\ indt·cd were 1 en de• eel inexpresllibh happy.'

1\n entry from Crown Point in .June 1761 indicate-; that ·~upcrnumerary' women over and above those carried on regimental establishments were allow~:d to accompanv their husbands, ln11 on the under'>tanding thcv did not draw rations; l.his implie!> that too mail\

umuh women and their families were at Crm,n Point and 1hing-. were out of hand. They were ordered 'to go down the.• countn' and 'to be ready to depart earl~· on Sarurdav morning \~ith their children and baggage. thev will have Batoes [halleaux] to carry Lhem to Ticantcroga and must clllbrace the first opportunity or going across Lake George. If an)' of them presume to remain af'ler this order, or to return to Crown Point. [they)

Hanging. Hanging w as usually the punishment reserved for t raitors, deserters, sold iers who had murdered their own comrades or had stolen f rom civilians. The offender's entire reg iment w as usually paraded to witness the execution and thus be reminded that moat t ransgressions of the Articles of War w ere punishable by death. (Dover Pictorial Archives)

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TOP Camp laundress. Woman doing laundry In camp. A

detail of the painting Passing the T7me of Day. (Courtesy

of John Buxton and Paramount Preas)

BOTIOM Indian family. On his capture by the Shawnee

in 1758, Robert Kirkwood was adopted into the tribe to

replace a fallen warrior and, In the process, inherited

the dead man's wife, Infant son and cornfield. A detail

of the painting Leaving. (Courtesy of Robert Griffing

and Paramount Press)

may depend on being dnunmcd out of the regiment.' These order). olwiouslv did not ha\'e the desired effect, <Ls manvwonwn and children took to the woods rather than lea\e their mt·n.

Order:. a da' latt't tool-.. on a nwre strident tone and placed the onus on their hu~banrl~: 'The women who ha\e alhtonclcd thi' morning and ha\'e not obeyed the order of \C~tndm muM depart tomotTow morning at "iun d-..ing with their baggage, their hw.band-.. to bt· <Hquainted tlltlt if the\' disobn. that their names will lw put in or dt·r~ diM harhring them forc\'cr from the 1 eginwn t.' There was no further mention of the imident in following entries. indicating that complianct• wail &wilt from the more rcbelliou.'> women.

Other car np follower.'> intluded pro~:~titutes and smlcrs, both pcclclling wares but of differing sorts. Thc fonncr were l'ouncl in tlw many towns and cities of North Arnerictt, whe rever armies and f1eets gathered; ... omt• l'ollowcd the regimerlls as they moved from garri~on to garrison. One prmincial soldier at the Lake Cemgt· camp in October 1758 recorded with some di~guM in hi.., diar~·: 'this alternoon their was a Lolhter Corporal married to a Road Island whore'.

\\'omen '>tlller<>, on the other hand, were enterpri-..ing <>oldit·r-..' WIH''> who aned a<; mone\-changn.., or \old '>m.tll luxur' item!) not pro,ided b\' the anm :.uch a'> 'rolkd tobacco, tobacco leaf. Scot~ :.null, hard !'>oap, lump ~ugar, ordinar~ !'>nwking pipe~. Outt h pipes. Llu eads. needles, pim, tapes, flannel!'>, coar!-.e woolen cloths. nail!'>. bolt~:~,

locks, ha'lp!., garden tool~ and stalionm-v supplies.' Fiercely independent and aggressi\'e, they sometimes incurred the wrath of' commanders by selling too much liquor or llouting camp discipline. The 42nd Highlanders' order!. for 17 May 1759 in Albany stated that 'all the petit Sutlers lent..s in the rear or any other whereabout the Regt' were lO be 'struck immediately and if any woman what.'>ocwr pn·tcnds to pitch tent about after this, near the regt, the Qr. Mr. is to order it lobe stnrck and burnt direnlv'.

Songs a nd Music For some ofl-dut\ Light lnfanu;·mcn, singing and music offered a pleasurable wa' LO pas.'> the time in an isolated outpost or whii<' carousing in a ta\'CI11. Songs that ha\'e sur.i,cd to this dm are a mixture of ribald ddnking songs \\ith chormes, patriotic marching tunes like 'The British Grenadier<.' and The Grenadiers' March', or melancholy ballads such as 'The Highland Man Kist his ~1other' or 'For the Sake of Gold she left

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me·. A Light lnfanuvman in I lowe's 55th Foot,John Bremner, preserved his favmuite fiddle tunes in his joumal, a sampling of which include: 'The Lady's Rreastknot'; 'Lochiel's Reel', ··n1e Malunan Comes on ;>.1onday'; 'The Flowerl> of Edinbmgh'; and '\\'ekome, \\'elcomc, Brother Debtor'. 'Hot Stuff, written b\ a ~crgeant of the 47th at the 'iiegc of Quchcr to the tunc of 'Lilies of France', wa'> a campfire f~wmuite aflcr 1759. The third verse boasts that tlw 'Chosen Men' of the Seven Years' W<1r were a force not to be trifkcl with:

\\'ith powdo- in hi.., pet·iwig, and ~null in his llO'>C

~lon~ieur will run down our descent to oppose And the Indians wi ll come but tht· Light Infa11try Will ~oon compel them to betake to .t tilT.

The lruh. \\'el~h and particular\\ the ~otti~h ll ighlandcr brought \\ilh them a rich oral tradition of music, songs, r<'ritations, proverbs, tiddles and itllHHTtlt games. William McMurdo was an accomplished pipet and poet who snvc:d in Kitl..wood's rq~im<'nt, the l\lontgomerie Highlandet~. Fra~e1 \ l lighlanders hn<t'ltl·d a Corporal lain Camplwll "ho i:, atuibutt•d with the wmpm.ition 'At the Siege of Quebec', a popular Gaelic 1>ong which lwrame a favouri te in the llighlnnds after the war.

Mu~ical instn1mcnts available to the soldiers \H'I t' iiies, flutes, tin '' hiMies and fiddle~. while llighland regiments had bagpipes to mal..t> their m'n di~tinctive mmic, the pipers of the Black \\'atch being the 1 cnow1ted l\klntyrcs, ht•t cditary piper~ to Clan Menzks. The last mu~k Robert Kirkwood heard before being captured by Indians was the skirl of the pipes and the beating of dmms trving to rally the 77th Highlander~ lighting for tlwi1 li\e~ outside l•on Duquesne.

ON CAMPAIGN

'Scourg'd and tortur'd the entire day' bt.•n Light Infantrnnan had w conrcnd \\ith the weathet. ,,;ldlife and terrain of 1 orth .\metica while on campaign before he could even think of dolling with the enemy, t>ach prmiding their own particular dangers for the unprepared or unwary soldier.

BELOW TOP Sutlers. A detail from Richard Short's 1759 engraving 'A General View of Quebec' depicting a female sutler In a tricorn hat talking to soldiers on guard duty. Sutlers were Independent merchants or pedlars who followed the army whilst on campaign. Many enterprising sold iers' wives

acted as money-changers or sold small luxury items not issued by the army. (National Archives of Canada, NAC C-335)

BELOW BOTTOM Highland fiddler. A detail of the painting Long Way from Home. The Irish, Welsh and particularly the Scottish Highlander, brought with them a rich oral tradition of mustc, songs, recitations, proverbs, riddles and Innocent games. (Courtesy of Robert Griffing and Paramount Press)

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44

Weathe r lt1 winter. Light lnl~mu·) ~oldiers serving on st·ntry duty, wooci-<"uUing panic~ or comov duty guicklv discmereci that th('ir i-;Mte clothing was ill ~uited to withstand the t·igout ~of the '\mth ,\m('t ican < limate. Wolfe·~ \ittoriou~ <mny in 1759 found thcm~ehe.., in din· Mrait.., when the\ occupied a citY in mim with 'e'' little metlwad cm·e• to protect them again~t the clement<>. Almo't all \llc<·umlwd to lro\thlle whik others died of 'ague· and pneumonia.

On Ch1io;tmas Day 17!19, Ceneral \lurrav remrciect the return of a Light lnfamry detachment It om IMtml. whi< h 'to a man, had been fmst-bit'. The next year at Cnmn Point on LaJ..e Champlain, the commander of the 27th lnni!-.I..illing Regiment n·corclt-d it 'was moHMrousl) cold', while Amhetstnoted that a 166-mau detachment on the march from that ganison to Fmt Ticonckrog-a had ·..,uffer'ct in an extraordinary manner from the intcnscncs1-o of the cold' and how the regimental surgeon, George Eagle, wa~> 'oblig'd to cut oil above 100 toe~·.

The other extreme was the d('bi litating heat ol tltc tropics, and many a Light lnl~unryman serving in .\1artiniquc and Cuba in 1762 preferred nig-ht operations to avoid the !-.Wdtcring IH'at of tlw cane fields and jungles . .\1cn in the 'American Arnw' seemed to haw fared slightlv beuer than the newly arrived battalions lrom Europe \vho were ~till dressed for fighting a conventional war. Commanding olliccrs of these European units had to be imtructcd 'to otCkt tlw Lining ... 1 iped L~icj out oJ the I\ len\ Cloaths, the Lapeb to be ta!..en oil and Skir~ cut Short'. Heat exhaustion, sunstroke and delwdration \H'a!..ened the men to such a state that yello\\ fen·r. malat;a and d\ '-l'tllen became· 1 am pant and mortalitY rate!) from dise~e surpas~ed tho~e of men !..tiled in .tction b' ~i.x to one.

Wildlife It wa' not only the climate that ''a' demanding-. 'unwrous in'>ects and ,,;Jdlife had to be contended ,,;rh, ""one light Infanrrv officer scning at the siege of Ha,~ana, 1762 conlc~>sccl in a kllt'l' home: '\\'e grew fiuniliar with the Scorpion!>, Toad-,, Santipcdc·..,, & Tar;mtulas or rather Spiders as large as my Tiand.' In the :\lorth Amniran woods, black tlies, deer tic~. leeches and other parasite!> made lilc miserable for the :-oldicr, mosquitoes being the most despised . .Johtt Knox wrote:

The tormenting musketa ... carries its sting in iL~ head and not in its tail as bees, wasps and other insects do; thev arc ~>o inexpressibly teasing that I ht~\'C known many people thrown into fevers by their virulence, and a person·~ head, face and neck so swelled and inflamed as not to haYc a feature dbtinguishable; for this cause we always wore long lim·n ttomer~. with crept· or green gatlle nets sewed to our hats, which hung down loo~e before and behind. with a ntnning string at the bottom to gather it round the neck occasionally.

Knox added 'no-see-urns' to the list of tormcntor'>, 'a diminutive kind of black fly which also sting~ most imolcrabl" ... scarce perceptible to

the naked e~e. and one would thin!.. it wa-. a pupil to the mus!..eta. gi\ing us little quarter whene\'er he comes.'

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~ornetimes men <'nrountered snakes with Robert Kirkwood even 1 ecoJ<Iing an alleged 'bit ( probablv an cmbelli'lhmcnt) to Snake Island on l.akt· Superior: 'thi~ i~land so full of Snakes of all kind~. that \UU mav hear the hiss a quartet of a mile from the i-.Jand'. On landing ' one of tltc ln diam came to till' with a large rattle .-.nake on the point of a spear, he cut otlthc head. and hming ript it open, presented nw with the h<'art and made me )>wa llow it yet alive, l<'lling me that it was a charm against all snakes, and that none uf them would ever attempt to do me the wm·~t injurv'. Kirk\wod noted '>Cepticalh that 'whether thi' wru. a 1 eal <It at m or nut, I uutnot tell', but the backwood-; soldier ,\\'ered that ' I IH'\t'l wa~ bit by am )>nake after'. H igltlancler .John Camplwll wasn't awed by snakes and wrote ro his brother: 'I have killed t.tttle snakes about lour feet long and as thick as the small of one's leg ... '.Vhcn toudwd they make a g reat noise with tlt<.'ir rattles. Their bite i~ not so bad as called, for it can be easily cured with oil or saiL'

Camps were also prone to vermin 'lurh as rats ancl mice it garbage and refuse was not pt operl) buried and 1 ecords uf the timt· <II t• full of clin·nive-. reminding commanders to enforce camp cleanlitH'S)o strictly. When on garrison in Annapolis Royal in Nova Scotia. Knox reported: 'it is inconn·ivablc ~ what quantities of mire we have on this g-round. insomuch that one can scarn· walk a few paces without seeing ur treading on them·. Orders from Quebec 1759 explicith warned all wldien. issm·d with snm,-.IH><''> to

hang rhem up after use or they would be eaten by ' Rott,.<; and IIH'acc'.

Te rrain k ttain could also he unforgiving. ll<'C<''>~

itating a Light lnf,utll\ soldier to Wt'ar leggings to protect his legs from pui~on i\y, poison sumac and brambles when moving througb the woods. N1 1rnerous men drowned traversing thin ice in spring 01 met an

LEFT Winter wood-gathering

party, Quebec, 1760. Collecting

fuel on sleighs was a mundane

but dangerous task for troops

of any fort or camp In the North

American winter and Light

Infantry was frequently tasked to

provide daily protection parties.

The woodcutters and their guardians were paid five shillings

per cord and usually returned

frostbitten for their troubles.

(Private Collection)

BELOW British encampment at

Crown Point. This view shows tent

lines and more permanent huts

erected to house Major General

Jeffery Amherst's victorious army

at Crown Point for the winter of 1759-60. A contemporary

watercolour by Ueutenant Thomas Davies, Royal Artillery.

(National Archives of Canada, NAC

C-13314)

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'We lost a hundred men on

our passage'. A contemporary

watercolour by Lieutenant

Thomas Davies, Royal Artillery,

c.1760, depleting Amherst'a

army shooting the Long Sault

rapids on the way to Montreal. (National Archlvea of Canada,

NAC C-577)

accidental death doing duty on the con~tant hoat service required to ferry ~upplies up and down the lakes and riv<'r~.

Robert Kirkwood in his A1mw111 noll')> several in~tances of the perils faced on North Amer;can waterwa,s. Sudden thundenaonns on any of the C.reat Lakes meant certain death f(u· men in ~mall whaleboat~ or batteau\.. Kirkwood "·arned that on Lak1.· b ie ·, ou meet with a long range of highlands, which i~ Yt'I"\ dangemu~ in pa~sing, fm if a storm o;houlrl a lise, your boats \\ill ine' itahh he da~h<'d to pi en·~ ,md l'\'CIY soul lost'. '[,,o years after Kirkwood\ sunt's!>ful pa~age of thb ~u-ctch, a -.udden '0\·ember stor·m deYa.'>t<Hcd a British fleet of baueaux can-ying 600 troops and much-needed supphcs from Niagara to Detroit. ~1anv of thc boa~ were shattered liJ..e matchwood, 70 men dnl\\ ned and \"dSt

quantitie~ of ammunition and prmillion., wt•n• lo~t. Equally dangerous was the practice of shooting rapid.'> in:-.tead of portaging, the latter a long ,md laborious process of unloading bmw, and carrying them and their cargoes manually overland until a quiet('!' !'!!retch of water could be reached.

On its atJproach to Momreal in 17()() Amherst's a rm >· :o.hot the rapids ncar Montreal, the result being 'we losr a hunnr('d men on our passage'. Kirkwood added that their deaths 'were orra~ion'd by their not being careful to keep their boats in the righ t channel, which can only be distinguished by the smoothness of the surface and it i~ always fatal to anvone who deviates from this rule'. A f(.·llow llighlander who braved the ~ame rapids with Kirkwood that nuctul cia> sadl) recalled, 'fellow creatures floating on the \vTecks and you p<Lssing them not !wing able to assist'.

Scalping a nd Torture The few journals and memoirs of pdnue soldier~ that suni~t• today are replete with tales of cal ping and torture, <l hmr or that weighed hca,ily on all ~oldiers' minds. Roben Kirkwood saw friend-. ~calpcd and tortured before hi<> eves, an experience that no doubt brutalised the voung Scot and steded him for f1.rture combat in the Amer ira.-.. After being taken prisoner b) the Shawnee at Fon Duquc.,m· in 1758. he \\WI 'scourg'd, and

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tortur'd the entire dar' ,,rith nine othe• pri~oners. flten Kirkwood sadly 1 ecalled, 'to my unspeakable grief and terror I saw five oflhe nine bu111ed in the most cruel manner'. The prisoners were tied to post., in the centre of heaped pine bough~. then their raptors stuck '>h<u pened pine root'> 'into the fle'lh\ paw; of the unhappY \ictims, [which] thC} M:'t ... on fire \\hich comumc[d] t.hem in a slow ancilingering manner'.

Many soldiers prekrrcd killing themselves before ~ubmit.t.ing to such a death. Private Allan Macphcrson of the 77th Foot, also at the same baule as Kirkw9od, tried to kill him'lelf before captut e but W<l!> di~atmed and taken prboner. :\1acphcrson, like Kirkwood, witnessed ft iends in excruciating agony anci decided to take action. I le ntade signs to the Indians that he wished to communicate and an interpreter was found. The ll ighlander told them that before he ciicd, he wi-,hcd to show them .t \CrY powerful medicine that. if applied to the 'kin, would cause it to n·1-.i~t

the ~trongest blow of a tomahawk. lie persuaded them w let him go into the woods undt•t guard where he collected th e requisite h erbs and plants to make the potion for a dcmonstrat.ion.

On his return, Ma<.pher~on boiled hi~ herbs, mack a past<.· , then rubhed it all on·r hi.., neck. Laving hi-; neck acrm<., a log. the ll ighlander dared tlwit ~tronge<;t watTiot to take up hi' hatchet. boa'-oling that the potion would pre\entthe least hun. Da,id Stewart of Carth, who heard this anecdote from o ne of his o ld soldier~ who had snvcd with Montgomery\ lligh landers recorded that '/\n Indian, levelling a blow with all his might, cut with such force that the head flew off to the di<;tance of ~everal vard .... T he Indians \H't c fixed in amMement at their mm credulit\, and the addre~~ \\ith which the p1 i~oncr had escap<·d the lingering death prepared lot him , but imteacl ot being enragcci at the escape of their ,;ctitn thn wt:'re so pleased with his ingl·nuity that they tt'frained from inflicting further cruel ties on the rcmu in i ug prisoners.'

i\ Light Infantryman, in addition to adoptin).{ tlw 'Indian howl' <l'i his 0\\ II, took up the ptactice or scalping an\ Indians he l..illcd. \\'olfe <;anct.ioned tile scalping of Indians or ·canadiam dre~!>cd as Indians' at Quebec in 1759 a<; irregular warfare flared on the pet;phetics of his encampments on a dail) b<L\is, and a bounty of ·£5 was ollercd lor C\'et)' Indian seal p brought in. J n one skir111ish on 2:~ August 1759, a 1111111 bcr of Cauadians painted and dressed as Indians were t.1.ken pri'ioncr and acc01 ding to a Highland ollicer were 'butchered in a most inhuman and Cnt<'l manner'. To ont• Light lnfanu1 man present, hm\t'\ et, ll \\.1.~ sweet justiC<' after seeing -;o mam· ft;end'> cut down in tl1e nasn lillie wm 'of sl..itmishing, cruclt) and devastat.ion' around Quebec. Private Richard llu mphrcys noted laconically in his journal how he and his Light Infantry comradt·~ 'kill'd and Sculp'd the whole party, Returning about three O'clock in the aftet noon to Camp v.1th their Sculps'.

'Scourg'd and tortur'd the entire

day'. Light Infantryman Robert

Kirkwood witnessed with horror

the torture of nine British prisoners taken at Fort Duquesne

In 1758, ' then to my unspeakable

grief and terror I saw five of the

nine burned in the most cruet

manner'. This contemporary

painting graphically depicts a

captured soldier, his face painted

black and body showing poker

bums, being burned at the stake. (Courtesy of the Seneca County

Museum, Tiffin, Ohio)

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4 8

Quebec conquered - dally routine. A contemporary print by Richard Short of Brit ish Infantry parading on the Place d'Armes In the captured city of Quebec, c.1759. Note the bombed-out houses and buildings In which British troops were quartered during the harsh w inter of 1 75~0 and subsequently were looted as a result. (Nat ional Archives of Canada, NAC c-361)

,-

Looting Light l nf~ull1)'111Cn had to tra\'el light, so weighing themselvt>s down with loot was not ad,~ sable if they were to :;urvive in tht· f(>rests. On one occa~ion duriug the siege or Quebec in 17:J9, tlw men :-.erving iu Major Da\l ing's I .ight lnfanll)' corps re1:.orted to looting Canf'tdian homes whilst in hot pursuit or pJisoners. '1\one tak('ll,' one HllOII)'lliOU~ Light J nfanU')~TiaJl recorded in his journal, but 'the partys brought in several sheep, hogs, fowl'>, etc., \dlh a great quantitY of hou~chold furniture and wea~ing apparel, at which conduCL ~h~<ll Da\ling '><Tm'd gt eatly oflended!' The animah \\ere considered \'alicl spoils of war but a\lloot of a personal nature \\'aS ordered to be deposited inside the 'illagt· cltmch.

One soldier after the battle of the Pl,1in:. of ,\braham unaba<>hedlv ,1dmiL'> he 'tt-a,·ers'd the battldkkl' in ... carch of loot aml ((mnd more thaJt he coumed on~ The field wa:. ··.u-e\\11 \\ith blct•ding catT<L\.'iC,, and covered with unemployed anns, a neat l:>ihct-mountt·d han gat I small -;word) lastened to the side of an apparcnrh headks.-, trunk ... attJ-acted 111\' attention.' he \\TOle. '\'\'hen the bodv wa~ 1111 ned o\'l'r to unbuckle the belt, Ill\ a~toni~hment \\"c1S indeed g-reat; his head lay undenteath hill brea<;t, one su·oke upon tl1e back of his neck having n1t thro' the whole, except a small part of the skin of the throat by which it rcmaim·d connected to the body.'

Normally soldiers were quickly punishc:cl 1'01 looting or stealing from the ri\'ilian popu lace as in the ca~e of Corporal Thoma~ Knipe of the 1Hth Foot who was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and reduced to private for ripping a pair of silver earrings from a Spanish woman's ear~ on the 1762 Havana expedition. And while ~>oldicrs were prohibited during the Cmibbean expeditions from plundet ing, the 'iame apparently did not apply to camp followers and army wives. J ohn Grant remembered dearing houses on Lhe out'ikirt<, of ll av;ma onlv to return ~>ome time lau.·r and find the houses ransacked. Out.,icl<' he found 'Soldiers wi,·es and camp followers' capering about itt theit plundered finery, being 'eqwpped most amuzingly [sic] in their bonowed plumes'.

Medical Services fhe Light tnrantl')' soldier, if wounded in sN-picce battles such as Ticonderoga, 1758, the Loubbourg landings. 175H, or the Plains of Abraham, 1759, at Quebec, could rcasonabh expect some form of

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rudinwntan care hom the primlOv<' medical ~r~tcm that the 18th cetttury Ht itish Anm had in place. More often than not, hcmt'\'t'r, the detached nature of th<.~ sen·icc in which patrolling, skirmishing or raiding meant travelling fast and light, any ~eriously WO\ItHkd Light Inhlllll'\'lllan had to bt• left behind. Kirkwood'~ first scouting patrol was an eYe-opener for him in this regard ,\:-.a !tiend was badh wounded 'whom we were unclt•r the necesc;itv of kming behind. w tth such quantitv of prmbiom a' could be conn·nientlv .spated'. I k added "ist fu lly: 'We nc,·er heard anything of him ailcr.'

Medical .service!\ were organisecl a long regimental line!\, each regiment having its own lto.spil~l with a ho1>pital sergeant and orderlies belonging to the regiment. Field hospitals of' a kind. with ~pt.·t tal oflicers atta< heel to then.l, \H'n' t''tabli..,hed in time of war to tal-c mn the sick and wounded 0\ etllo\\ f tom the regimental ho.,pitals c;uch "' t ht· ( ;cneral llospital established at \lbanv earh on in the Seven Yean-: \\,u or dw taking o\er of FrC"nch ho:-.pitals as wa.\ dotH' m Qucbcr in 17:1!1. Barracks in . ew York. Eliz<tbethtown and Ambo\ were converted into hospital!> in an att<·mpt to treat the huge numbers of f('\l'r-ridden met I ('otlling back It om the Caribbean opt't<ltions. A 'lick a ncl "ounded Light In fan tn man's recuperation would haH' been left to the t.<ll e of the inhabnant.' of the colom in which an anm wa-; campaig11ing. Nl kwood spent ttme "ith a fanuh in Connecticut n•ntpet<Hing after the St Francis Raid ol 17!'>9.

Cun~hot \\'Ottnd' during the Se\'Cn Yt·ar\ War wet e Mulled with ba1tdages moistened wi th wine or brandy. and if inkclion and ~uppuration threate11ed. antiseptico; ... uch a.'> lincture of mvrrh, hot tuqx·ntirw. bal~arn of Peru 01 camphor \\('1 (' o;omelime~ applied. r lephining a' .I muline procedun· in head injuric' \\";cL~ maintaitwd <L' \\";.L~ ntuteJi..,.uion of blood \'C'>'>el'> aftet- amputation. though the ttTklt•...., 'lopping oft arm'> and kg~ b\ the doten', as Frederick the Creal tet nted it. W<L'> acli,eh eli,< out aged. A Btitio;ft t\rmy surgeon gives a st<lndard account of what kind ol wounds could be expected in an IHth centurv hattlt' as well as their trcatmC'nt:

It'~ impossible to d<·,nihe the \"aJiet\' of \\·ounds from cannon '>hot, ~mall antl'>, "'ot d., and ba\Ollt'h. \h first intcution in cin•s-;ing wounds"'"' to '>top blet'ding. \\hit h I did b\· stitthtn~ the \t'\i>Cb, dry dreo;~>iug~. hanclage etc. II a\ ing no assistant, l ,t,oidecl arnpulalions a:, IIIli< It as possible, th<' ucressiry obliged IIH' in ~ome cases ... Tht· 11 igh t passed am ido;t the groan!. ol tit l' dvi ng anci thC' complaint~ of those who S\11\i\'C'd them ... Slight wounds \\t'll' dre:-sed \dth lttlsalm Traum.tllr ... Conttt\ion' from cannon-balls '>eldom rerover. ..... oon .,pread up\\<11 <f, and dm\llwards commonlv ,\lt('ncled ,,;th large emphvsema OH't the whole body .. . Drought ( d<-"lndrat ion) i'> the mo~>t untwrsal complaint from a ll tiH· vVounded and stu gcon.s would do bclll't in filling their lll<'dicirw chests with propC'r li(]uors for this pttrpo~><' ,

thau stuffing them '' ith apothecarie.., drug~.

~et geant Jame<; Thotn(Nll1 of Fra~er\ llighlanders had a clme call with a cannonball bctwt•t•n hi~ thighs at the 175H Loui~>bourg landings at Caharu' Bay, and 'alrhough this shot did not touch me, thl' thighs and calvt"s ol my legs wert' a llected and bccamt' as black a~ my hal, and for SOlll(' wceks I su11'ered a gteat deal'. Af'tt.'l the Battle or tltt.· Plain~ or 49

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Abraham in 1759, rt10mp~nn as~istcd in carrying wounded oil the baull'lield 'wht·t e casual! it·s Ia\ ou the field as thick as a OocJ.. ol sheep and just as thn bact fallen'. Ik noted that the French had ~uff(·red the mmt and coutmeuH·d ''ith sonw pit\, 'it was horrible to see the effect ol blood and du~t on thcit \\hite coats'.

fhc -;kill and mnn shm, n h' the . \ugustine nursing "i"e.-., ol Quebec .tltet the U.tttle of th<-' Plains or Abraham in 1759 ha'> all each been remarked upou . Fout d;ns after the epic baule and \dth the capitulation of the ell\, .111 Briti'>h wounrlerl from the outhing camp'> or ''ith their rcginwnt,tl ho,pital., \H'te centrali'>ed in the l lopitai-CetH'tal under the rat t' of the AuguHine SiHet~. Thi~ remarkable facilit\ and its traiued '\tafl pmhahlv s;ncd mam wounded men's Jives ou both sides for it appears to ha\ l' antiripatcd Flon·nce :-\ightingale 's reforms during the Crimcau War I 00 \ 't'<ll s latet. Knox ptabcd the nuns as 'cxcccdiugh humane and tcndct · and described their hospital in glowing term<;:

:-\oman ran lie down more clean and comfortable ... each patieut has his own bed with cmtains allotted to him ... The heel~> arc ranged in galkt ies on t•arh side, with a sufficient space between each for a pn~>on to pas~ through: these gallericl> an· scraped and ~''ept awm ('\'en· tnorning and afterward~ sprinkkd ''~th vinegar, that a \tl'<lll!-{t't i~ not seu~ible of' any unsa\'OU!'\ scent whatewr.

If too di,.thlccl to \Ct \T, a Light lnlantf') man, like other Briti'\h tegul.u.,, ''a~ eli'>< hat gcd .tnd ~ent home, mam abandoned 10 lend lot thern.,eh e~. Some "ho "en· lucJ..., could re-enlist in im·alid companie~> ''hi< h 11 aditionalh gatt i'>oncd pon and harbour dt•l'eme-; in Britain. Other~. if fmtun.ttt· l'tHmgh 10 h,ne had more than 20 H' at ~ M'l'\ i< c before being incaparit.ucd. could apph to the Roral Hu-,pital\ at Chel,ea in l.ondon 01 1\.ilmainham 111 Dublin as potential pcn~ioner'>. The majmit\, hm\t'\et. lwc.une begg~u·~ on the ~treets of the titie~.

,;~ihle remindn!-. of Britain\ m er'it'as war~>.

MOTIVATION

From the out;o,ct or theit hatd serncc 111 North America, Robnt Kirkwood and hi~ coll<'agucs saw themselves as avenging angel!.. Any notions of honour and glory they may have had upon their recruitment wert '~n·nchcd l'mnt their ~y1>tem on their first march through western Pennwlvania, ,;ewing 'the horrible ~ituation' or a once-beautiful C<Htllll). Kit I.. wood rccordt:d their shock in his joumal as the\ pas~eci:

I louses rlcscrtcd, the Corn fields. Orchards, and well filkrl I laggards H'l \lllol..ing, nwl.tnchoh proofs oft he barbarous en min of the metlile\s lndiam. Ihi~ Mene continued for the extent of eighn· mile'> ... hom Shippcmburg to Bedford ... and whocwr was so unhapp' a' to fall into the hancb of these inhuman \\Tetdlt''> \\<1~ eitht•t ~< alpcd .111d burnt or othenn1~·s barbarously used.

A \t'<lt ,tltet kitl..wood\ c<~pturc ,md e!.cape from the Sha\\nee, he 50 wa~ '>l'l\'ing in tlw 77th Foot's light com pam at Crmm Point and did not

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lw11itatc to Yohmteet f01 the St Frann~ Raid which raLed a ddcn:,cleso., Abt•ttaki ,·ill age lO the ground in Octo bet 1759. Kirkwood'.; decision was not di rticul t:

I went upon thi~ part\ being stimulaH•d with the hope of n ·venge [.tgaimt] a den of the most mischic,·iou'> and im·eteratt· t' nt' nHes the English c' er had ... Number! eo.,~ <II c their scene:, of blood-.hed and rapine, theM' lawleo;~ '\aYages had committed on our people, hut thank Cod a pniod was shottlv put to their cmcltr.

ESPRIT DE CORPS

'The Most Honourable Virtue' I he :-.uong sen~c of <.ommunity and gmup lm·alty was strongcM ,unong th (' ll ighland units in which Ki rkwood st•ncd, their dress and language di!>ting-uish ing them l'mm the rest of the red coaLs. Accorciing to that great chronicler of the Highland soldier, Stewart of Ga rth, l lighlanders were 'taught ro con-.ickr courage a-. the most honour .thlt- \'irtue. <. 0\\,ll eli( e as the mmt di-.graceful faihnj.( . Thu~ Kirkwood proudh· r<.·corded the hra\'cn of the Black \\'at(h \\ho fought along-.idc the 77th at nu-.h\ Run in 176:~. the regimenr to \\hich he Wa!> ll<lll~kncd the fo llowing year on disbandment of the ~1 ontgomery llighlanders: 'The ligh t company of the ·12<1 Rcgt ... withstood the enemy with a 1 <'solution that will a lway~ he rcnwmhered to their honour.· I Ie also noted with '<mil' ~ati~iaction th,lt it lhl~ his comp<lll\ entrusted to t,tkc pmsc-;<;ion of the Frt·nch forts in tlw 'lllenoi-. lOllllll' ' lot the King in I 71i:"'> •• , a result of the failure of 'the 22d tTgiment 1d10 h.td heen ~etll upon the ~en·ice

the >car before, but wa.., defeated and d 101 c hack by the Indians after they !tad reached t h<' hank~ of the ~1 bsi:-,si ppi ·.

I he 1 76~ expeditiom against t\ lartinir[IH', Dominica and I Iavana inH'Il'~tingly enough brought the hard-bitten 1etcran~ of the · \mcrican

Gallantry at Bushy Run. Ktrilwood proudly recorded the bravery of

the Black Watch who fought

alongside the 77th at Bushy run,

the regiment to which he was

transferred the following year on disbandment of the Montgomery

Highlanders: 'The light company of

the 42d Regt', he wrote, attacked

'the enemy with a resolution that

will always be remembered to

their honour'. Print after an oil painting by C.W. Jeffreys.

(National Archives of Canada, NAC C-43726) 51

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Arm~. late lO r;l('(' \\ ith Sl:\t'lCII B• itish battalions fiT~h from ~-urope. l ronicall\', it \\'a.'> the lonnc1 co1 p~ in their cut-elm,,, unilorms and hat!>. and ~polling

tomaha\\'ks and 1iflcs who lool..ed dmm their noM's at the <It: an, neath d1 essed redcoat,, -.omt.· of thci• office•' ~till

earning spontoorh1 [ icutcnant John Grant of the l~nd tlOtt·d """ that these Jt<.'I\Cnnwrs "\dw had latch ;urived It om the tal..ing ol Bcllislt• landed in ''hite SpallcJ dashe:-.. Cm gt't!> & 'pontoons and sashc.s, and llusted tlwi 1 prm isions to

their scJTant~. We older campaigners accu~tonH·d to bacl..woocb expnlilion/1 took ran• to equip our~cln•i~ with haversllrks con taining- <HII prm'i.sions and IH'n· rid icui<:d bv the gay gentJcmcn !or doing so.'

OnC' soldier remarking on the C'sprit de corps of the 'American ,\rn1\'' at Ma1 tinique ob~<·• \l'd that neither disease nor the rug-ged terrain could affect morale: · l lw <iimatc was very fatal to the troops, and the whoit.' arn11 " '"' \1,ited with ~id .. ne~ .... hut neither these or anv other dang<·rs which could plt'll'llt itsdl 11,1s ,1bk lO all,n that a1dor 01 desire of 1iUon which seemed to reign predominalllh throughout tlw ''hoi('.' That conlideme .mel '<~~dOl ' \\,Is nntt.·d di ... apprminglv hv ~onw comnunder,, e<,pecialh tht.· Lui of . \lbem;uk. t.ommander of tJw land l01ces .11 tht.· ~ieg-e of I Ia, ana in 17fi2. I k \\lOll' to hi' f1iend Jeff Amher-,t:

Your anm i!'. a fi ue out•. hr .11 e to the Ia'> I degree. almo-.t 'pmlt 1)\ the e"Xpcdirion up the Rivet 'it Lawrence ... Tht'\ ha\'e ColHJlll' rt' d in a lew dav., the MJon~eM countrY \'OU e\'er 'a". in the ,\nwrican \\tl\, running- 01 11ith the Indian [w ]hoop. That lll<llllll'l o( lighrin~ \\ill not alwav~ .,ucn·crl. and I dread their meeting of troops that ,,ill ~tand their ~round.

H111 the Light InEmt ryman of tJw 'American Am1)" would never lw calit'd upon agai 11 to lace French hca\'y int~mtry before the 176:~ peace, the only exceptio n being a Mil prise dawn attack <Uld rout of French grenadie1s from the fortified hill-top or Signal Hill in StJohn's, ' c,~t<ntndland in Septembe1 171i2. A Lil-(hl lnfanll)m;m 's pr·incipal enemy from the \\~li t er

of 1762 onward~ would be the Jndians of me Great Lake~ uncle• their accomplishect war chid Pontiac. Thev would have some spectacular 1ictories ~uch <LS Bu-.hv Run in 176:~. but also c;uffer some discourag-ing­defeaLs at :\iag;u a and Detmi t the s;une ~ear, ll1e latter outcome~ di1 ec th awihuwble to m·crnmfidence and poor march discipline.

On tlw "hole. tht· ptOft',sionalism and confidence ol the I i~ht lnhmtn '"" so IH'll l'stabli~hed b\ 1762 that Amher~~·~ confident prediction to lm light troop' the \ear-; earlier that once the\ 'had b' practi!>e & C:'JX'ri<'ll<t', arquired <1/1 much Caution & Circumspection a\ thev ha~t· Spirit & \cti,itv. the hO\ding Barbarians' would 'llee before

52 them' was fulh IC<tii,cd.

ABOVE The Battle of Bloody Run, 1763. (Courtesy of Gary Zaboly)

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FACE OF WAR

Robert Kirkwood's La st Ba ttle \\'ithout a doubt o;ix war'> of campaigning in the t\orth Alllt'tic.lll

wildt:nlt'~' helped p~t•pare Pt ivatc Robert Kirkwood of the 77th Foot ( r-. lontgom<·t;t• \ ll ighlander'>) lot hi\ final battle in 1763. ln the wot d' of one of lkitatn \ mo'>t renowned hislOrians, the Battle of Bw .. Jn Run 'till ~tan<b in the <lllll.lh of military history as ·one of the fierce•;t fought 1d th Indian!>'. Kit kwoocl \ commandet on this occa~ion wa~ the well-respected trainer and leader of men, Colonel J lent i Bouquet of the Roval Americans who, .J.\\'. Fortl'Kll<.' claims. 11as the right man in the right plact: at \he right time. ' ll ad any man of less experience in ~udt wa• fatl' been in command, he states. 'irs issue might well have been disastrous.' Bouqttet. at th e tim e, was modest and unassuming, attributing tlw lion's ~hare of credit to the presence of experienced nH·n like Kirkwood and their 'cool and ~teach· behaviottr'.

Kit kwoocl\ lit st inuodu< tion to the bush fight had been in 17.)H 11 hen he wa' ~elected to be in a ~O-man scotlling pat t\ tcmarcl<; the French-held Fort Duquesne ( Piu,but gh). a ... mall fighting patrol rt:inforccd with 60 Clwro\..ee warriors under the chieftain Atta\..ulla\..ull.l or 'l.iulc Carpenter'. OnlY

The victor of Bushy Run, 1763. A portrait of Colonel Henri Bouquet. (Private Collection)

\ersed in tht: 1 udinwnt.tt \ ,\..ill~ of ~hooting and ~. marching. Kirkwood h,\d trm elled light li\..e the rest of his colleague'> .111<1 rm<'t c:cl mam mile' cadt da,. He remembered mo:.tly the exucme fatigue, the ~udden ~avagen of an ambu~h in which tiW\ ck,llmerl a ~n·nch and Sha\\nee Indian war pany. then tlwit Lerrihing pur,uit b.u \.. to Fcut Ligoniet h\ a larger enen1\ wat part' hell-helll on rcvt·ngt:. I k tecalkd that hi~ patrol wa.\ ·,o much hara....,cd in our retreat' and the ctH'Il1\ so close that '1\·e could plainly di~tingui~h

their halloos ·. Several wec·ks latt·t he was capLUred b)· the ~ame Shawnet'\ at thl·

failed surprise attack on Fort Duquesne, la id low by painrul buckshot in his kg as he u icd to t·sntpe th<' massacre. Spared imntedi;-tte death by an Indian warrior, he was adopted int o the tribe and dressed in a breechclout, ~hirt and had his hair cut into a ~calplock. Kirkwood hidcd his time 0\'l' t thc next ll'at, gaining his tribe's trust and re~pcct as an able hunter. Bu)ing hintself a 1 ifle from French trader~ with hca\l't pelts, Kir\..wood wa' finallY included as a warrior in a raid against the Cherokees. itonkalh tiH' Indian'> 1\110 had first trained him on his an;,-;.tl in llt''>tt'l'll Penns\ lvania. But Kir\..wood ne,·er had to fire a shot in anger at hi' fotiiH'I ,\!lie' for he \lipped awav unnoticed witlt anothet white captile and mack hi' 1\il\ ba< \.. to hie; unit in time fm <.encral Aln herst \ 1759 rifondcJOga e\.pcdi tion.

\\'hilt' '>crYing at ( .rown Poilll. Kirkwood wa~ 'iingled out h\ the Iamott' ~lcti01 Robet t Ro~et\ •" a ..,\..ilkd hu..,hlighter and taken along on thl' 17.l\l St Fr;mri~ Raid. Kit \..woocl', experiences on Lhat grueling expedition taught him tht· hcndit\ of '>tealrh, surprise and how to liYe and forage ofT the land. IIi~ ... uni\al and teliabilit\' cau~ed him to he tcmpor,trih 53

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The siege of Fort Detroit.

An Harpers Illustrated Weekly

engraving of Pontiac's Indians besieging Fort Detroit from an oil

painting by Frederick Remington.

As the Indians had no artil lery

their only strategy was to bottle

up the defenders and prevent any reinforcement or resupply.

On hearing that French aid would

not be coming many of Ponltac's

native allies lost patience and

returned to their families for the

winter hunt in the fall . By mid·

November, Pontiac was forced to

lift the six month siege. (Private

54 Collection)

attacll<'rl 10 Rogers· Rangen who W<'H' as~ignt·d 1 o lake po~se~;,ion of Fort I ktt oi t and other western French pow .. 1 hat lwcanw 1 he pm~es~ion of the Crown \\ith the ~urrender of Ne'' Fl .llltl'. Ki1 kwood ..,pent ''eek!:> in canm·.., and whaleboaL~ and ha;, kit u;, detailed account;, of his exploits on the C• eat Lakes and the'' ildlik lw cncountc~t·d tiH'J c.

On hi~ rt-turn in the auwmn of 171) I l-...11 !..wood I{Ot d•unk in Alban) and de..,erted. but ''-as <>ub..,NJUenth ,111 <'..,t<·d ,111d confined at Fort Ont<u·io on 2 Decembe1 1761. In the -..umnH'J of 171)2, Kirk\,ood the rogue rerei\'ed a ''ekome ~t•p• icH'. All .tbk-hodu:d men I 10m garrisom in :-..onh .\merica were being a"t•mhkd to fOJlll a fighting force to retake Newfoundland from the I· ~t•nch. ~t. John'!-. h.1d tall en in a daring raid b' a combined French foltt' ''hibt the nt<tjmit\ of Brit.hh forces were 'ltill in Cuba be-;icging H;wana. h.i rkwoocl founcl himself mustered with men who had been con\'alc;,dng in l"l'\\ YorJ... hmpital\ as part of a pro\'isional force uncler Colonel William t\mht'l st. tht• same oflicer who had commanded Kirkwood's Light Infantry corps on th e approach to

Mo11tteal two years previously. Again u~ing ~teallh, :-.peed and surprise m·c· r a lmost. inaccessible terrain , Kirkwood and his comrades were \'iCiorious at Sign al I I ill against a much !'lllJWrior force.

On his return Kirkwood :-.p<·n t the wintn in Philadelphia with the remnants of his disea:-.e-shatt.ered regimc..·•H: manv of his lmmer friends died !rom yellow fc\'er contracted clttring the \liCCc~;,f'u l conf(uest of llavan.t. In the ~pring ol J 76:\ the Penm\ han ian and t'\(;'w York ft on tiers were ablate ~ the Ottawa wa1 chieftain, Ponti,t<.. took up the hatchet and mam cli~atfectcd trihcsjoinccl hi~ upming. Tht'\ laid ~iege to Fort Dell oil. sacked fi\ e snullc1 loth .mel kilkcl mmt ol thei1 garrison~.

~haw nee-.. ,\lingoes and Dehl\\ate'> be-.ic..·g<.·d l-ot t Piu (tlw 1 e-named Fort Duque<>ne) and on·r 2,000 men. wonwn .md children were killed . .,c...tlped or taken pri~oner in the \H'.,tt'lll wuknH:IH.,. 1-...it k\,oocl wrote:

In order to forcc..· relief to the inhabitants at Fort-Pitt. the remains of the 1st and 2d baualion~ of Rm .tl II igh 1.111dc..·• s ,md t.he residue of our regiment \\ere formed into OIH'. \\'e ntarchecl with the

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greatest expedition 'till we reached Carlisle lOO mile.•), above Philadelphia where we arrived the 19th of july and waited fot an c~con of 1500 p;~<:k-horses laden with Hour, 500 bullocks and a few sheep. This convoy was destined for Fort-Pitt ... which was block'd up bv the Indians and 300 of the inhabitants, besidcs the gatt ison in a !>taning condition.

Colonel llenri Bouquet's command consisted of about 160 men in total- the light and grenadier companies of the 42nd & 77th, 18 Royal Amct·icans, a company of Virginia Rangers and 60 packhor~c drivers. Bouquet procccdecl to Fort Ligonier, the last British-held f(Ht closest to Fott Pitt, manv of hi), men who wen• still ~ick from the \\ht Indian campaign falling out along the way. On 5 August 1763 Bouquet and hi~ llmall relief column "'t off to force-march 18 miles to the ned. at Bll!>ln Run, where he intended to pause briefly before auempting to nm the dangerous Tunic Creek defile by night.

One mile short of' his objective, Kirkwood and other Light Tttf~ullrymen performing their role as scouts 'came within sight of the etwmv\ fires and could b) the tracks we fell into, be t<.'ttain o{ their approach '. On the ,tlct t now 'our van de,crv'd the Indian., f who] \\hen the\ were com·inu:d that we saw them, immediately begun the attac~ itt the front. which i~ contrary to theit maxims in wat; thc} being accustomed to begin an engagement in the rear'.

Kirkwood and the 77th light companv, in t.andem with the 4~nd light company, took careful aim with their rille~ and dropped ~e\'(,'ral of' the tuttning warriot ~. I hn then fixed bayonet'> and, instead of rcu·eating. went forward ~ct <:-aming their 0\\11 W<u n ie~ to dri'e ofT tlw ,td\'ancing Delawares, l\.lingoes and Shmmee)o. The Indians meltl·d ''"''" only to reappear on the flanks of the strung-our column. Bouquet brought up the main force to support the hard-pressed light companies and tilt· action wasjoined, but soon Indian war whoops could be heard in IIH' rcar of the tolumn. Bouquet metered the entire force back into a dcfcnsiH' circle on Edge Hill, drawing the packhorset-. and their sack.<. of flow into the centre.

'lla,ing made a ~md of breastworJ... with the floutbag ... .' recalled Kit J...wood, 'we waitt·d their approach [ andj when the\' came do.,c up, we ga' e them our whole lite and rushed out upott them with fixt bayonets.' Kirkwood recorded with some satisfac tion that ' the Indiat~:>. were not vct y well used to thi~ way of' fighting I andj therefore tooJ... immediately 10 their heels and ldt the field ofbattk'.

I his hard-won n•.,pite ga,·e them time to organise thl:it defenses in thl· gathering twilight. f<>r. a~ KirJ...\\ood noted. the cncm' 'hmered in the woods about m ... ''hidt made the rommanding oflin•t not to think it expedient to lcaw that situation lm that night'. Surrounded by the ene my, Bouquet e ttl>Ltr<:·d his pcrimctct wa11 in good order and put out listening posts, before calmly sitting down to write a dctaikcl cli!->patch to

( :encral Amher<;t. l ie <;inglcd out t\lajor .\llt'n Campbell of' thc 42nd, <ommanding Kit ~wood\ ,·anguard, fot prai<>e and comnwndcd the gallantry of the Light Infantrymen who had not pani< ~t·d in the first contact. I Ie had Je~<; prai'\e for the pacJ...horse drivers, mo~t o( whom 'Stupefied by Fear, hid themselves in the bushes, or wnc incapable of hearing or obeying any Orders'. Casualties already cxccnled ()() killed and wounded and five drivers were missing. 55

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Light Infantry bayonet charge. 'We gave our whole fire and rushed out upon them with fixed bayonets'. On the first encounter with the attacking Indians at Bushy Run on the afternoon of 5th August, Kirkwood and his fellow Light Infantrymen gave the enemy cold steel. A detail from Robert Griffing's painting One Mile to Bushy Run Station. (Courtesy of Robert Griffing and Paramount Press)

'\\'t' begun w look aftet <llll \\OIIIHit'd,' 1 t'membered Kirkwood, 'manv of whom we found ~o faim f01 ''ant ol wat<' t that th(' \ muM han' ine,·itablv perished ifthev were not H'II('H'd '. Kit kwood and a !>mall panv rout ageou!>h crept out of the llo111 bag fot tifi< .ttion in the darknes!>. avoiding the Tndiam who had ;;utTntmcl<'d them. '\\e coulcllind [water] btu \\a.<; 'en· mudcl\.' he confe;;wd . 'but ltht' ''oundt'd ] \\t'l't' glad to gt't 11 am ''a'.' None of the uoop.., got .Ill\ :-.lt'ep th,tt night .md "hen moming dawned, the Indiam 'achanrcd and IH'gun to fire upon us'. 1\.irkwood and his comrade:-. made l'H'I\ ... hot coutll and preparations wen.· made behind the lluur bag batt itadl.'' to make hor~c Mretcher!> for can>ing the wounded men.

'At noon tht' fiting wa:-. \ '('!'\' hot,' tet01dcd Kirkwood. 'and the Indians became so insolent that thq told out Colonel who commanded I hat they would have his scalp hy nigh1.' Colonel Bouquet knew he had to lind some way ·w entice [the lndiam l lO con1e do:.e upon us, or to Stand their gTound when allackecl'. I It- ordered Kirkwood's light COillpany <L~ well as that of the ·I 2nd tO withdraw pn·cijJitously from the ptTimcter as if retreating in feat, tiH·n to t·xit qui< kh on the wuthern ~ide of the defenses and regroup a:- a mobik counter-auack force. The other companies were to clme the gap whibt exhibiting sign;; or panic and despair.

The Indians thought we wer<' going to b1 eak .mel run away,' recorded Kirkwood, ·and being :.\Ire of tlwit pre" came in upon m in the greatest disorder.· The two hght rom pan it'' mw,ide the pet·imeter nm' u~ed some dead ground and came up umeen on the right flank of the massed Indian attack. 'Thn '><><>II found their mi\take, · crowed Kit k\\ood. 'for we met them \\ith out lite fit'>t. and thc·n made a terrible havock amongst them with our fixt bmont'l'> ,\lld continuing to push them everywhere, they ;;et to their het•l.., and tH'Wr after were able to

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t<tlh again.' Fmn companic~ pur~ued the Indians for two mile~ \\hile tlw rco;t of the main boch mmed down to Bu~ln Run for much-nC'cdccl heo;h water. T he ca,ualti<''> fm two elm·.,· fighting were 50 killed. 60 wounded and j mi-,-.ing. one-thit cl of Bouquet's entire force. Bu~hv Run \\<l\ a dcci~iH~ anion in ~pitc of the -.mall numbers engaged, a<> it pron·clto he the tuming point in putting down Pontiac's Uprising.

Bouqut't\ titt•d column reached Fort Pitt on 10 August bttt the besieging u ihes had gone. '\\'t· at la:-t arri,·cd at the Fort,' Kirkwood \\Tole. 'and rei incd the in hahi tan L\ "ith provisions and t'\ en othet nert's;,an.' I k aclclecl, 'Our a11 i\·al gave new life to the whole.' Thi~ wa~ to he Kirkwood\ last baule, though the skirmishing, patrolling and com·o) dutie~ wou ld contin ue for at least another )'ear. ' We staid but a short Lime at Fort !'itt, having to t•scon the inhabitant.~ down thC' cou tttry and ron1e back with morc provisions. We continued employed in thi~ manner till the first of.J;ulltary [ 17fi1l j.'

During this ti llll' Kit kwood 's o ld regi ment, the 77th Foot (Montgomcrie's llighla ndet!'.). wa!-. disbanded and he transferred lo the senior and sok remaining High land regiment, the 12nd Foot. l it: subsequent!\· panicipatcd in Colonel Bouquet's expeditiom to the i\luskingum RiH·t that 'ummct to intimidate the Shawnee and othct Ohio t1 ibe-. and. the following \ear, wok pan in Captain Thoma'> Stirling\ e>..peditiun down the Ohio and i\lississippi to Illinoio; coutlln to take pm-.co;sion of F01t ck Chat tre~.

Kirkwood could tight!\ claim in his i\ lcmoirs that 'fe'' Men h.lH'

tt<l\ eled mott· than [ nw I in the back parL'> of ::--:orth Ametica ·. From , iagara Fall\, 10 , e\\foundland and the Carolinas, to the great we'>tt'l n plains fl,mking the ~li<>si<;sippi, thic; Light Infantr;1nan coveted ~ume 5.000 mile~ b~ loot. t.tnm·, \\haleboat and transport 'lhip in the course of his ten \{'ar~· campaigning.

Colonel Bouquet ordered

Kirkwood's Light Infantry company as well as the Lights

of the 42nd to withdraw

precipitously from the perimeter

as If retreating In fear (A) then to

exit at the southern end of the

defenses. The other companies

were to shrink the perimeter to

close the gap and also exhibit signs of a defensive collapse

(also A). The Light Infantry,

unseen by the Indians, formed up

In dead ground at B. They then

counterattacked and rolled up

the Indians' right flank from east to west, joined by two perimeter

companies at C when the Indians

were completely routed.

57

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BELOW Lieutenant Colonel

William Howe, Wolfe's Light

Infantry commander. A portrait of

the youthful leader of the Light

Infantry that landed first and led

the British Army up the cliffs

leading to the Plains of Abraham. Lieutenant Colonel 'Billy' Howe

was deemed to be the best

battalion commander In all

America by General James Wolfe,

and his Light Infantry were eJrtremely successful In

skirmishing and patrolling against

the Indians and French Irregulars

that constantly harassed the

British siege camps. (National Archives of Canada,

NAC C-96946)

CONCLUSION

'I conceive they know no difficulties' .\ Li~ht Infantry ~oldier wa~ 'a chmen man', the most 'acti\'c marcher', an ' ,tlerl. ~pirited ~oldict able to enchnt· fati~ue'. an 'at tificial sa\'age' .llld 'cxpet tat firing ball'. Ile was proficient .It ~cmlling and <>kim1ishing ,lJld could -;crap \\ith the best the hench and theit Indian allies could lllll'•tt· r. Like Kirkwood . he wa., at ea'c in r.moe.,, '' hakboaLs. and b,me,tux. :,hooting rapids 01 on p01 tage. but wa'> cqualh adept at

leadin~ the wav on m~jor arnphibiou., ""~ault'> 111 rot~unction with the RO\ .tl r\m1. I le was extremeh fit and agik, rould U!>C :,nowshoe!-1, scale u .tg'> while under fire ming the terrain. ot make hio; waY throu~h swamps and jungle tetTain bv da,· ot night In essence. the Light lnf.mtryman was the mo~t rel>ilient and moti,·ated 1 <:>dcoat of Britain's 'American A.rmy' dllling the SeYen Years' \\'at.

Robert Kirkwood's Alnnoin not onl} ,,n,T to highlight the e\'olution of the British Light lnl~tntryntan into a proCessional,

all-purpose soldie r, hut arc a lso vn)' much the story of the 'Arnetican Army', an army adapti ng itself into a tough,

flexible and innm·a tive fon:e whoM· \'ictorie~ ultimately won the respect of Britons and Anwricam alike during Britain'~ first global conllirt. The achievemenL'> of men like Kirk\wod, anclmarn othen like him, caused .\1ajor General .Jdkrv ,\mhn~t to 'av of his olrl 'Amet ican'' that it \\<I\ ,111 honour to command such :-.oldier~ 1d10,e 'rmhtant 'tea<h ~ood conduct anrl un"earied ex<•rtinn ol their abilities in carrYing on the c'tc.·n,tH' .111d 'Ul<e~~lul wm· in this counu'' entitled tlwm ·w hi~ mo~t '>in cere acknowledgem<•nt.,· and claimed that 'their happinel>s and glon [" ould I ,,h,m~ be in:.eparable

from hi~'. IIi!-> \'ottnger hroth<' J, \\'illiam Amherst, 'aid it best

of all, when he W<l:o. pu1 in < hargt• of 1'-.itl..wood and his comrades fot the approach mar<.lt on Montrcnl in 1760.

The roung Am herst proud!; \\lOll' that on one forward recon naissance-in-force: 'wt· lost ou r way [backl & did not

reach the Camp umil af'ter dark, through swamps & the thickest wood we could meet with '. I k confessed to be g lad of it

'as it shewed the temper or the Cu r ps. expecting IO lay out all night, without auy covering or anything 10 cat or drink. The bon volontt; and clwerfulness T had before met with amongl'.t them !'> till subsisted, & I concei'e thev know no dillintl tic:>. It wa~ a pkastu e l>Cn ing \\'ith :,uch a Co1ps.'

MUSEUMS, COLLECTIONS AND RE-ENACTMENTS

~hL~eumo.; which depict the role of the I .ight lnfantn n1.1n in :'\onh Ame!ica elut-ing the Se"en Years' \\'ar can lw fouud 111 Canada, the USA ami the t:K In all ca~e~. the mu ... <.·um~ aud their re!i>pecti\·c

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wcb~ite~ li-;tecl bl'iow have exhibit-. anci collection'> tJ1at highlight the.: equip­men t\, Wl'apom. and e\erHhn life· of all 1 Hth cc:ntun ~oldie: I'· ,mel in the \<L\C of the· l':o1th Amc:d\an hi-.tmical \itt'\, the hi.,ton of F1 cnrh and Indian panitipant~ ,L., \\t•ll. Details and .,pccilk dates for North ,\me·• ic.111 rc-enan nil' nt wtT ke nds k11own as 'gT<IItcl encamp­ments' can be found at the museum wcb!>ite!-,, the largc:~l lwing those ron­ductt·d annuall}' at F011

Ticonderoga. Fot l ;\liagara and F01t ck ( :hartrc..; res pee ti \'t'l v.

CANADA Fortrc~~ Loui-.btnu g. C.qw Breton. Park.\ Canada.

http: / I fortrcss.uccb.ns.ca/ llaJif.t:\ Cit.Hicl ~(u,cum. 'ova Stotia, Par~ Canada. http: / / parkscanada.gc.ca/ lhn-nh'i/ ns/ halifax/ index_E.asp Signal Hill. St.John\, \Jt•" loundlancl, Park-. Canada http:/ j www.parkscanada.gc.ca/ lhn-nhs/ nJ/ signalhill/ index_e.asp Qucbn F01tilicatiom & Haulefielcl , Quebec, http: I / www.parkscanada.gc.ca/ lhn-nhs/ qc/ fortifications/ index E.asp

USA Fort l'irondnoga l\h•scum, !\:('" York State, http: / / www.fort-ticondcroga.org/ Fort ' iagara 1\-1\JM'Uttl, ;\lew Yot k Statt~, http:/ j www.oldfortniagara.org/ Fort Ligonier M useu111, Pennsrl\'ania, http: / / www.fortligonier.org/ tour.htm Bushy Run Battldidd Pat k, Pcnnsvlvania, http: / / www.bushyrunbattlefield.com/ Fot t de Chartlt:"'> , lllinoi~. http:/ / WW\¥.slate.il.us/ hpa/ hs/ DeChartres.htm

UK Light lnl~mtn ~I meum, \\'im IH.>'>tt'r.

http:/ hvo.¥W.hants.gov.uk/ discover I places/ light-infmuseum.html :--:ation.tl .\1111' ~fll,t'lllll . Cht'l-.<'a. London , http: / www.nationaJ-army-museum.ac.uk/ National \\ar ~ht\t'lllll of S(otland (former!\' tlu: Scotti'>h L mtt'cl

Sen ice:. \tu~t·um ) http:/ / www.nms.ac.uk/ war / main.htm Impt'rial w •• .- l\htSt'lllll, London , http: / / W\¥W.iwmcollections.org.uk/ overview.asp

A replica of a British landing

craft. From the collection at the

National Army Museum, which

features exhibits on the life and times of the British soldier

during the Seven Years' War In

North America. This Is a scale

model of the boat used to transport Wolfe's Light Infantry

down the St Lawrence River and

land below the Heights of

Abraham. (Courtesy of the

National Army Museum)

59

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60

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Amhe1 ~l • .Jeflt•• \, Jouuwl of }tj]i'l~\ A.mhn-sl. RerrmfiiiK lht• ,\lilitary (ml'l'l of (;1'1/l'l"ril \mher51 in . \mnttn ftollt /75H to I 7v3, J.C. \\'eb~ter (ed.). To10nto. 19:H.

. \mher<;t, \\'illiam, .Jmtlllfil of \\'11/tam . lmhent in

.\mnun 175H- 1760. J.<. \\cb~ter (cd.), ToronLO. 19 :~ 1.

Bouquet. llenri, /Ju l'nfwt\ of lll'lln Bouquet, S.K. Ste\t·m. et a!. ( ed-.). (} 'ob. Harrisburg. 1951-51.

Callag-han. E.B. and Fen1m1, B. (eds), Donwtentl RPlatitll' to tlu• Colonial I ft\{0/ y of the .State of Sew

}I'JI·II. 15 ,·ol<;, ,\!ban,, IR5:~-R7. Dinwiddie, R .. 'f'h1' Ofjtl'irtl RPmrd1 of Robert

Dinwitld if·. / ,if•utt'llftiii-Govt•IIJOI of the Colony of Firp;inia, 1751 1758, Vol. 1, Richmond, I HH~.

Dought\', A.t:. and Pal mal t·<·. G.\\'. (ed~). 'l'hPSiege of Q11eher and Tht• !Jalflt• of thl' 1-'laim of Abraham, () 'ol<;, Queb<·<. I !10 I.

Fra1>e1. ~ l altolm. · I he CaJ)llllt: of Quebec. A Manmcripi.Jomnal Relating to the Operatiom Befm e Que he< hom Xth \la1, 1739, to 17th .\f,l\, 171i0. k.q>t b\ Colond .\lakolm Fra.o.er. Then l i<'ulenanl in th<..· 7Hth Foot (Fraser's llighland<·•-.)' . .Jownnl of tltl' \'ortel) for Arm_)' HiMonwl RPit·auh. '\ Il l. 1939. 135-68.

Hen<',, \\' illiam . .Jowna/\ of tlu /Jon \\ilbam 1/erfll"). 111 ,\or/It \mnna and l~'umfJI' fmm 1755 to 18J.I; with Ordt•t Book\ at Mou/mtl, 1760-1763, Bury St Edmund.-.. I !106.

Kirk ] wood]. Robel 1. 'fluou~lt So ,\Jrw) Dan~n:1: 71te ,\Jenwin awl t ltll'l'llllilt'\ of Robnt Kirh, / .all' of the

Royal llip;hlmlll Rt•p;illlt'llt, fan McCulloch and

Tim Tocli~h (eel\), Fki< l11nanns, :\IY, 20114 (reprint of Linu:ritk c:dition. cl77:>) .

Knox, John, l'ht• Sir~t· of Qudlt'r and thr C'runpaiff~H in .\mth \ mmm, I 75 7 I 7MJ, London. 1769 .

.\!ante. Ihoma,, lltr 1/t\lm) oj tltl' Lall' \\rtr 111 .\orth .·lmniw. London. 1 i7'2.

.\1cKellm, Pa1nck, \ "ihmt \noun/ of tlw 1~\pnlttion

Agtun~l Qurbn 111 tlu }no I 759. Quebt>c 18i8. ~!iller, Jtme.-.. ,\lt•mou\ of rm lnmbd, l1J3!l0 1Z9 &

Z9A, Maid\IOIW Ccnlll' for Kenti ... h ~tudiel>, n.d. 'The ~ fompeum 01derlv Book', Uulletin oftlu' Fort

Tirondt•mga ,\full'lllll {BF/,\1}, II . fi (J uh· 1932). pp. 2 19-:11; X II .:) (December 1!)69). pp. 32H-!i7; G (Ouolx:1 1970), pp. •13·1-61: XIJf, 1 (December 1970). HH- 11 6; X III , 2 (Ju n e 197 1). I !i 1-HtJ.

Mu rray, .Ja nws, jou mal of tlw Sit'Kfl of (ltll'VI'C from 1 Hth Stptnnlwr 1759to 25th May 1760. Toronto, 1939.

PargC'll i ~. S.~l. {eel.), 1\ lilitrll"\' ,\ffmn 111 .Vorlh ,\mnira 1758- 176'3: Si'lntrd IJ(){IIIIll'lll\ fmm tlu• Cumbniand PrtjJrt"!. in H'ind.1or C:a\1/r. London & :\cw 1ork. 19:~6.

\\'a~hing 1 nn, (;eoq:~c. f'/11• 1\ ntmg1 of Gn1rgl' \\(tilting/on, John C. Fiupauid. (l'd.). \ 'ol. II . \\'ashington, I !l:~ 1- 11.

\\'e~throok, :'\'ichol.t, (<'cl.). "'I ike Rocuing Liom B1 eaking Fmm lht·u CIMIIl'>": fhe Highland Regiment .u Ticonclnoga'. Rullrtm of the l·in1

l'imndnnKa .\lmt·um/IWI:\1/. XYI. 2. 1999. 11~91.

Niagara falls by Thomas Davies, c .1762. The falls as Robert

Kirkwood would have seen It In his wes tern travels. ('I saw

that amazing piece of creation' he told his readers, ' I mean

the great Falls of Nlagra, the largest cataract In the world'). (National Archives of Canada, NAC C-41051)

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COLOR PLATE COMMENTARY

PLATE A: LIGHT INFANTRYMAN, 55TH REGIMENT 1758 Under the leadership and example of Lord Howe, this soldter's appearance has changed drastically from official regulations, the main goal being functionality in the American wi lderness. The coat has been shortened and the lace removed. Although sttll shown here, In some cases even the colored facings were removed While there is also evidence that the watstcoats were often left behtnd, our ftgure still wears hts, although he has discarded his neck cravat. His tricorn has been cut down tnto a "round hat" wtth a brim about 2 1ktnches wide, and he wears Indian style leggings of blue wool to protect his legs in the woods.

The soldier carnes a cut-down Brown Bess musket, and wears a linen haversack conta1n1ng rations and personal effects. To reduce glare, his issued t1n canteen IS covered with wool, and the metal parts of hts musket are browned. The standard Issue buff leather walstbelt holds his bayonet scabbard, but a tomahawk replaces his traditional sword. A black "belly box" usually replaced the over the shoulder cartridge box, although our figure wears both. He also wears a powder horn. and carnes extra musket balls in addthon to hts paper cartndges.

We also see a variety of issued and personal items that might have been earned during a warm weather campaign. While 11 IS not likely than any one soldier would have all the 1tems shown here, they probably would have been found among a group of such men.

1. Brass sund1al compass. sim1lar to an example found on Rogers' Island

2 Lead penc1l and JOUrnal book wtth marbled paper cover 3 Sausage, hardtack, and cloth bags conta1nrng corn &

peas 4. Fishing k1t 5. Stoneware plate and si lverware based on examples

found at Fort Ticonderoga, along with a common horn cup. Stoneware was 1nexpens1ve. surprisingly durable, and was frequently used by sold1ers in the f1eld

6. Ivory dice 7 Leather bag w1th coins and currency 8. Brass button st1ck. to protect the soldier's clothtng

when polishtng his buttons 9. Horn comb 10. Clay pipe and tin tobacco box 11. Shaving brush, soapblock, and stra1ght razor 12. Small m~rror 13. Toothbrush 14 Leather wallet 15. Tinder box w1th fire steel, flint, and tow for fire lighting

(some covers were plain, while others held candle stubs)

16. Fold1ng knife

PLATE B: TRAINING FOR A WINTER SCOUT, QUEBEC CITY, WINTER 1769-1760

North American winters were severe, and soldiers who remained 1n service required spectalized clothing, tratnrng, and equipment rn order to surv1ve. Snowshoes were espectally 1mportant when traveling 1n deep snow Capta1n John Knox recorded that Light Infantrymen were required to "practtse walking on snow-shoes ... to this end five pair of these rackets are delivered to each corps . . . some of Capta1n Hazen's New-England Rangers are appornted to instruct our sold1ers 1n the use of them."

Here, Light Infantrymen of the 15th Regtment are betng tnstructed in the use of snowshoes by an N.C.O. of Rogers' Rangers (far right), as a junior officer watches. The American Army, and the Light Infantry and Rangers in particular, adopted a combtnation of wh1te and Native Amencan dress to enable them to survtve during the d1ff1cult w1nter months.

A view of Fort Ticonderoga from atop Mount Defiance, or

Rattlesnake Mountain. This is a view that Rangers and Light

Infantrymen scouting the French fort would have seen.

(Courtesy of Fort Ticonderoga Museum)

61

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62

In addition to gear prevtously descnbed. they wear woolen capotes, and carry bearskins and full fteld packs with the equtpment necessary for survtval.

PLATE C: DAILY LIFE AT FORT CROWN POINT, 1761

Thts scene shows typ1cal summer gamson life for soldters and thetr famlites.

In the foreground. three members of the 27th (lnmskilling) Regtment clean thetr nfles. whtle a corporal of the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regtment mspects one of his men. Although the smoothbore musket was the pnmary firearm. there were also a very hmtted number of nfles, presumably tssued to the best marksmen. Alexander Moneypenny notes m hts orderly book for June 12. 1758 that ten nfled-barreled guns were to be tssued to each regtment, but the exact specificattons are unknown. It is known that on March 2, 1757, 100 niles were purchased in Germany by Jacques Prevost of the 60th Regiment for use in North America. and that they came equipped wtth bayonets and other special tools, includtng their own bullet molds.

The soldters of the 27th wear two types of headgear, the fatigue cap and flap hats (bastcally tricorns with most of the brim removed and the front flap turned up}. For greater versatility, the Light Infantry compames 1n extstlng regiments removed the sleeves from thetr regimental coats and sewed them to their waistcoats. This resulted in a sleeved waistcoat and a sleeveless regimental coat, which could be worn 1n vanous combtnatiOns depending on the weather. Both standard military shoes and lndtan moccas1ns were worn, dependtng on avatlabthty. the weather. and the terratn. The dress of the Htghland soldters also shows adaptation to North Amencan condtttons. such as the lace bemg removed and leather pockets sewn on the coats.

In the mtddleground. we see a typtcally dressed camp follower wtth her daughter. and two boys carrytng firewood on a hand-barrow. The top secttons of the walls of Crown Point are visible 1n the background.

PLATE D: A WILDERNESS AMBUSH A mixed group of Light Infantrymen from the 80th (Gage's),

which was specifically ratsed as Light Infantry, a Regular regiment, and 42nd (Royal Htghland) Regiment are preparing to ambush a party of French-allied Indians that have just landed their canoes on the shore of Lake George.

The 80th's coat were made especially for them, and not converted from prevtously ISSued ones. Therefore. they are one piece, without the shoulder wings of the two-piece coats of the Ltght Infantry compantes of the Regular regiments. The 80th men are also weanng mthtary 1ssue brown canvas gaiters rather than woolen leggtngs. The Highlanders are wearing thetr standard dress w1th Light Infantry modiflcattons, and tn th1s case. blue lndtan style leggmgs whtch gtve far more protection than their traditional checkered stocktngs.

The corporal of the 80th, tdenhfted by the white cord on his right shoulder. IS holdtng a wooden whtstle to hts hps, about to gtve the stgnal to open f1re.

Smce these soldters are out 1n the field, they all have a day or two's growth of stubble on their faces. Although most British soldters of the penod were clean shaven. Light Infantrymen were encouraged to develop a "smutted" appearance for better concealment 1n the woods.

PLATE E: THE HAVANA CAMPAIGN, 1762 A Light Infantry soldier of the 27th (lnniskilling) Regiment

purchases drinking water from a Cuban woman, while another member of his regiment stands by, awaiting his turn. Troptcal heat and dtsease took a terrible toll of the troops in the Caribbean Campaigns. The soldiers 1n this scene are well tanned, but also fatigued and dehydrated. Their untforms are all faded from the troptcal sun, and their weapons and equipment have seen hard service but are not neglected.

To their rear. a squad of Htghland soldters IS being drilled by an N.C.O. They are regular battalion company soldiers, not Ltght Infantry Htgh on the htll, a Spantsh fort stands maJestically agatnst a troptcal background.

PLATE F : LOUISBOURG 1758- KENNINGTON COVE

Just after daybreak on June 8. 1758, Ma1or George Scott's Composite Light Infantry Battalion stormed ashore in a crashtng surf, at what IS now called Kennmgton Cove on Cape Breton Island.

In the foreground, several boatloads of Light Infantrymen from the 60th (Royal American) Regiment in blue facings are

Fort Niagara from the Niagara River. (Photo by Tim Todlsh)

r

...

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just httllng the beach. The men are jumping out rnto the surf and startrng up onto the rocky shoreline.

Beyond them, Ught Infantrymen of the 35th (Otway's) Regrment rn buff facings have already landed and are charging up a small brush-covered hill to engage French irregular soldiers and their Indian allies.

The defending force of French irregulars and Micmac Indians was quickly overcome, and the British soon had a firm hold on the landrng site. This resolute amphibious assault by the British Light Infantry paved the way for the eventual capture of the important French seaport of Louisbourg

PLATE G: THE STORMING OF SIGNAL HILL In the late summer of 1762. the Bntrsh mounted a

campaign to recover Newfoundland and rts valuable fishing waters from the French. The expedition's commander, Lt. Col. William Amherst. recorded the capture of Signal Hill, one of St. John's most formidable defenses, on September 15: "The enemy gave them a fire and we never returned a shot, till we had gained the summit and these two Companies drove three Companies of the French Grenadiers and two p1ckets from the most advantageous ground I ever saw, -really almost inaccessrble."

Here we see a composite Highland company of Montgomene's 77th (green facrngs) and Frazrer's 78th (buff facrngs) Reg1ments, along wrth some 60th (Royal Amencans) and Massachusetts Provincial Light Infantrymen (in blue coats),· storming Signal Hill, whrch is defended by Grenadiers of the Regiment de Ia Marine. In the center. Hrghlander Robert Kirkwood bayonets a French Grenadier as he and his fellow Ltght Infantrymen penetrate the French lines. At the upper right, Captain Charles MacDonnell slashes with hrs sword just before be1ng fatally shot in the thigh.

PLATE H : 80TH (GAGE'S LIGHT INFANTRY): LATE WAR

A corporal wrth a twrsted whrte cord on hts nght shoulder is 1nspectrng the nfle of one of his men. Hts 1761-1763 coat is ltghter brown than earlier ones, the facings are off-white, and the buttons are yellow instead of brown. The warstcoat is shorter than earlier rssues, but both it and the breeches are the traditronal dark brown color. He wears standard brown canvas issue gaiters over his breeches and leather shoes.

The private standing at attention wears a dark brown coat of the old pattern of 1759-1760. The facrngs, however, are orange brown. dating rt to 1760-1761. Hrs warstcoat and breeches are dark brown in color. He wears blue woolen leggrngs over hts breeches, and lndran style moccasrns

Both soldters wear the black leather flap hat wrth feathered plume that was standard throughout the regrment.

While the "exploded kit" 1n Plate A shows an early Light Infantrymen, and focuses on the weapons and personal equipment of soldiers armed with smoothbore Brown Bess

'Authors' Note· After thos plate was completed. our froend and colleague

Rober1 Andrews discovered onformatlon 1n General Amherst's papers

ndocatlng that In 1762. the Massachusetts Provoncoals may have been

unformed on all brown. rather than the blue·faced red •hown here. It os hoped

that funhet research w II be able to clartfy thos mattet

muskets, thrs plate features the niles and correspondrng equipment issued to a limrted number of hand-ptcked troops throughout the war. The nfle ts one of those procured by Jacques Prevost in 1757, dtscussed prevrously tn Plate C.

The ttems tn the "exploded kit" show the unique aspects of the rifle and the specralized equipment needed to operate and malnta1n it. 1. The barrel of a smoothbore (left), as the name implies.

is completely smooth, while a rifled barrel (right), has a senes of spiraling grooves cut into it, whrch gnp the ball and cause tl to spin, givrng rt greater accuracy and range

2. Whtsk and ptck set, used to keep the pan and touch hole clean

3. T1n oil bottle 4. Wooden loadrng block with holes that would gnp a

patched ball t1ghtly enough to hold t1 rn place, but strll loosely enough so that it could be pushed on through and into the barrel using the ramrod or short starter

5. Flints and lead wrappers, used to hold the fltnt securely in the jaws of the lock

6. Small priming horn, which holds a finer grained powder to prime the pan for better ignition

7. A paper cartndge. shown ready to roll and ftntshed 8. The steps rn loadrng a nfle: a. Powder is poured down the barrel from a torn-open

cartndge b. A cloth patch and lead ball are partrally rammed down the

barrel wrth a short starter, then fully seated wrth the ramrod

c. A small amount of frne powder is placed rn the pan from the pnmrng horn

9. Hand forged screwdriver 10. A "turn-key," a type of British military issue screw driver

Note: Little Is actually known about the military niles and accoutrements of the French and Indian War era. It os possible that the loadrng block and short starter may not have seen military use, although they were used by other nflemen of the period

Scalping- A barbarous practice. An 18th century painting by Benjamin West depleting two Light Infantrymen In their

cropped caps and jackets, watching as a British officer prevents an Amerindian ally from scalping a cowering French officer. (Courtesy of the Derby M useum)

63

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6: 6 4

INDEX

Referent<'' to rllu,tr.tuon' .Ill' ,Jw,,n in bold. Pl.llt'' ,,,.. 'ho11n 1111h JM)(I' .lllcl t.tplrcm lot ,uor' 111 hr.tcl.t·t'

\llwm,uk, ~ .. ul of "•:? \nu·r ic ,,, '\en rh c .UUJMIJ.tU tn 1-·h. 8 . \nwnLill \1111\ i , ~II. 211, :_H), II. ">1-:>:!.

)h

\mh<''''· \1,,,,, (,,·m·t,tl Jdlen !1. II, II. lh. 20, H. >2. -,~~

\mhn ''· ( .olorwl \\ tlh,un :; I. .'\H, h:l

batt.tlton,, Klltl'h f (:\11, ti:!.j>.l). "•2 Klo()(h Run , H.utlr ol 52 hoat' 5, 7, 22. :10. f (:IH. h'!. ti:IL 46. lh. 59

vt nl\0 ,hap-.. RouC]'IC'I, Colond I len11 20 2 I , 2:>-'!.li, 53,

'\:\, .-.: •• .-.{i, 57 lktcldork, ~1 ajo r (~r'lll't,all·.clw.llrl I Bremnt•r,John 1:\ Bu'h" Run , ll,ut lt• of 51. 52, .''i:l. r;:-,.;,7, 56,

57

C.unphcll, Major ,\ll c•n flfi C:.uupbell, I it.•trtt•u,u11 <:t'OII-(t' 2S C.unpllt'll, ( '" IHlloll l.tin 1.1 C.unpht·ll, Johll L"• tannih.lh,ril '!.7 2H Char It'' lrll,n, 'iouth C.noliu.t 24 ''"!""·''' C(:\.-,, h'!.). 0 (%, 62). H C 10, fi.l) ('"""' l'o1111 , l.tkt· ( h.uupl.un CC:I.1. h2),

II 1'!., II, 15. ;,o, 'l:l Cumbcrl.utd, Dul.t· of I, l'l

fl.tllinl(. \1,,1ur IH dit·t 2S-~"l. 29 '" alw loud llrmqdchc· . lwutt·n.lllt ( .oH·IIHll Rohl'lt h tli,upllltt· 'lO, 'l I 1:!. II , II. IX ch,r.l't' ~h :..~l tin•" II. II. 12. I \.If. 15. J;, I h. li' dnn\.. 29:11.3 1,32 dlltll'\ 2:1-:?ti

E.t~:lt·. (,._·org< II ('()11tpnu·nt 12, I:! 1:1. I I 1:>. I fi-17. 27. A('l~. Iii) '"'""hot'' I I. 15, BC:I I, hi h~). ~--,

fitldlt'r, I h~:hl.lllcl 43 \If olio nnl'it food 2t>-27, 29 ,,., 11l'" di;·t For'"''· lit r)\Miu·t (,,.,,.,,,Jjoh ll '!.0. 21 Fort de Chat li t'\ [>7, .'>\) Fm 1 Deuoit !'i2. 54, ,-,.1 Fort DII<J11t'"H' ( l,llt'l Foil Pill ) l. ,-,, 17-

IH. 20, 21. 2 1. ·1:1. !>:1 Fon l.il-(onrc·r 2:~. 2!\, !'i:l. 55 Feu 1 1'-:ia)(;ll" 62 Fo~t-1'~11 (follll!'dv Fort 11ur]III'"H') 24, !'>+

,);), >7 Fort Ro1al, (:n.Hil'lmrpe 29. 32 Fott Sta11wi' 30 Fot L Titoralt· ro)\.1 I i, .i11, 6 1 F11.·rHh \nwtuHiian• 25. :10. 0 (36. !i:!) Ftl'rlCh 'oldtc" I, 21. C C:l9. 63) Ind. coliC'< till): 45

( .. tge, (~>lonl'l I hom," II , 14 <rral1o rt'J:IIlll'nt\, ( .ag<'\ ltght lnlanu'o

(.ht, ~-ll")(n I ho111.1' 21 (,r,mt, \1,1]111 J.IIIH'' lfl. li, 21,22-2.1 ( •l•lllt I tetltC'n,mt .Jnhn I H .. ~2 (.rant l.uclmlt In

l-l.l\.111.1. ,u·~t· of 2i . .!ll. 30. 32. E (,\7, 62) II, IH. ~,:._, i I

1-hghl.tndct, 19, 22. 1'1, 'i I Hm•c. B11g.tdwt (,;·m~:c· \u)(U\111\, tlw

l.ord 4 , 15-JG. 17, 29 llmH'. l it'lllt'rlalll Co loud \\'rlh.1rrr 'llllh'

58 flue I.. Dr Richard I h Humphre''· Pn,ate Rt< hat d 1 i

lnd1ans I. 5. h. 15. 20. 211:!1. f C:Ih, h:!h:l) . 42, 15, 63 •ua/111Ft('J)(h \mt'llllllo,uh \h.-nal.i 51 ( lwrnl.ee I I>, 19, 21. Y1 Delaware :; I.:;:; (,real Ltl.e' 5:?. 54 I fOCJIIOi' 6 '\lingo 5~. :;:, ~ha•mct· 17-18,21.21. :10. 17, :;:1 .. '>I, 5.'\

iufantnmeu. hean 1-!"i \If "''"li)(hl inhuunruc..·n

Janlc~town 5 JohllMIII, S.-rgea rli .John 12

Kt·un<:d). Captain Quu11011 II Kirl.wood. Rolwrr 9- 10, 1:1, 1.">. 21, 2 1. :?:>,

:.W-2H. 41 . 4fi, 49 , .unp~ igm C(~!l. 6:1), .-.o .. -, 1. !>:1, .Y•-'•7 r:1p111red bv lndi;m~ I I. 17 IH, :10. I I. 42, 43. ~fi-..17, .):\ cl.-,enion 29, 31, .14 rlrinl.ing 29-~0. ~ I dtUIC"~ 2:l-~-1. 2.) .ll Fon Piu 51-55 .111d '\ia)(<U a F.tll, 60 U,linin)( 17-IH. 21 u,l\clo; 8

Kmpe. CorporJ.I Thom.h IH Kno,,John II. 12. 13, 11-1'\, :!:i, :!7, 2~->­

.!'1. II, -1-1-4 '\, .iU. ti I

L.ll.t' (;<·orge 5 . 7. 16. 12. 12 l .ll.t· 'iuperim. 'inal..- hl.uul ~-,

'l.ight lnfamn' (.otp<; inrrudun·d i hght inlanrnmen 4. 7. 22. 27. C CI't. n:l).

44 1u also regimenL> Lmle Carpentet (.-\u,,l.ull.•l.ull.t ) 19. :?1 locll(tllg'> 23 Lo11g Sault rap•d' 46, lti l oudon,l.ord II , IH-1~1. :!0, 2'1 I oui,hur)( t'Xgt'di rinn II , 1:>, IH-1 11, 21,

27, f (3H. li~-{)3). 19

~lacDonnell. Captain Charl t•, G (:l'l, h:l) \larl.t•llar, ~ l .!j<H Pau ic I. 22 \lrMmdo, Wil liam 4:1 ~larphcrson, Pril'ate Allan 17 major, 40th Fom 11 madumen 6, 18, 19-20 \laniniqm· 112, 511 ~la~sachusctL< l'rm1ncial Lt)(ht

1nfantn-man G (39. 63) mt"dical 'enices I I. ·IH-:10 malnia<, colonaal (i ~Iiller. l'ri\'lHe James 2:t 2H. 2!1. :10-:1 I. $2 \lurra1·. Captam.Ja.mes I :1. '17 ~luna\, General +t mu'lc· 12~13 seP al1o fiddlt•J. llighl.uul

;-;co, B(3 1. 61-62>. E<:n. 62) ""'' France '> • .3-1 '\el,foundland 52. :;-1 ~LJohn\. Signal Ifill G (:l!l, h:l), :,:?,;, I

l\tagara Falls 3'1. 60 'lma Scotia, \nnapoli, Rm.tl n 'lm-a Scotia range~ 13, 14 num. Augustine II. 5()

Penll\\lvania 4, 50

l't•rr \, !-o.t•r )(<',lilt D.n icl :H-:12 l'rtt,hurgh I <If' ai\IJ fort l>ucpw~nc: Fun

!'Itt Ponti.tl. '>2. 54 . '\I. .'\i 1'1 rrt~:lr-. ( .rpl.llll I ll'lltl'n,ult lkun I'· 2+

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Page 67: Osprey - Warrior 088 - British Light Infanfryman of the Seven Years' War - North America 1757-63 (E-book)

lns1ghts 1nto the daily lives of history's fighting men and

women, past and present. detailing their motivation, training,

tactiCS, weaponry and expenences.

Maps

Full color artworl<

Illustrations Unnvaled detail

OSPREY PUBLISH NG

www .ospreypubl ish i ng.com

British Light In fan try man of the Seven Years' War North America 1757- 63

The British Light Infantryman

of the Seven Years' War was

a "chosen man," proficient

at scouting and skirmishing,

and more than a match for the

French and their ruthless Indian

allies. Shooting rapids in canoes

and whaleboats, traversing

swamps or jungles and

snowshoeing through endless

tracts of forest, British redcoats

earned a reputation for resilience

and resourcefulness as they

adapted to the wilderness

conditions of North America.

Their development was

a watershed in the history of

irregular warfare, and this book

provides a full examination of

their fighting methods, covering

training, tactics and campaigning

from Canada to the Caribbean.

ISBN 1-84176-733-6

II IIIII 9 781841 767338