BATTLE HONOURS FOR SERVICES IN FLANDERS, 1793-1799

Lincelles—Nieuport—Villers-en-Couches—Beaumont—Willems—Tournay—Egmont-op-Zee.

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These seven names record engagements between the allied forces of Prussia, Austria, and Great Britain, with the French at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War in 1793 and 1794. Our army, which was composed of British, Hanoverians, and Hessians, was under the command of the Duke of York. His Royal Highness, who was but eight-and-twenty, had studied his profession in Berlin, and was a thorough partisan of the red-tape and pipe-clay system of the Prussian army. He possessed undeniable courage, with but little experience; and as all his movements were controlled, on the one hand, by the Cabinet at home, and on the other by the Austrian Commander-in-Chief, it is a matter for small wonder that the results of the campaign were something less than negative. At the opening of the operations the British troops at the disposal of the Duke consisted of three cavalry brigades, composed of the Blues; the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th Dragoon Guards; the Royal Scots Greys and Inniskilling Dragoons, with the 7th, 11th, 15th, and 16th Light Dragoons. His infantry was made up of three battalions of the Guards, the 14th (West Yorks), 37th (Hampshire), and 53rd (Shropshire) Regiments—the three latter brigaded under Sir Ralph Abercromby, an officer of very considerable experience.

In 1794 it became necessary to strengthen the army very largely, and by the month of July of that year the Duke of York had under his command some 26,000 British troops, distributed as under:

There is ample evidence to show that all these regiments were actually under fire during the campaign in Flanders, yet of the twenty-two infantry regiments employed, only ten bear on their colours any record of the share they took in the operations undertaken against revolutionary France. All regiments that served under Wellington in Spain and Portugal bear the word "Peninsula" on their colours and appointments; all which served under Cornwallis in India, the honour "Mysore"; all which landed in the Crimea bear the honour "Sevastopol"; whilst the distinction "South Africa" was conferred on every battalion of Volunteers which sent a company to guard Boer prisoners. Surely, then, the regiments which fought and bled under the Duke of York have a claim to some recognition of their services.

Lincelles, August 18, 1793.

This battle honour is peculiar to the three senior regiments of the Brigade of Guards—

Grenadier Guards.
Coldstream Guards.
Scots Guards.

—and commemorates one of the many actions fought in Flanders at the outset of the Revolutionary War with France. The Brigade, under Lord Lake, had just arrived at Menin, en route to the Siege of Dunkirk. When the sound of firing was heard, and information reached the Duke of York that the Prince of Orange had met with a sharp rebuff at the hands of the French, he immediately ordered the Brigade of Guards to march to the assistance of the Prince. Although the men had but just arrived from a long, hot, and tiring march, Lake at once marched to the sound of the guns, covering the six miles in a little over the hour; but on reaching Lincelles, which was supposed to be in possession of the Duke of Orange, he was met with a "whiff of grape-shot." The Guards, with their usual dash, at once stormed the French redoubts, which they carried at the point of the bayonet, capturing twelve guns, one stand of colours, and close on 100 prisoners. The action was one of those isolated affairs which had no bearing on the campaign, but merely serve to show the superior stamina and discipline of the Brigade of Guards. Taking into consideration the strength of the force engaged, the casualties were undoubtedly heavy.

Present at Lincelles.

Casualties at Lincelles, August 18, 1793.

Nieuport, October, 1793.

This battle honour is borne by the Shropshire Light Infantry, and commemorates the gallant defence of this town by the old 53rd Foot, when besieged for ten days by a force of 12,000 French troops, under Vandamme, who later became one of Napoleon's most famous Marshals. With the 53rd were associated some artillery, a half-company of the Black Watch, and two Hessian battalions—all told, some 1,300 men; but the honours of the defence rested with a regiment which throughout its career has ever borne the highest reputation for steady gallantry.

Casualties.

Villers-en-Couches, April 24, 1794.

This is one of the four honours which the 15th Hussars has alone the privilege of wearing. It records the gallantry of the regiment practically under the eyes of the Austrian Emperor, when two squadrons of the 15th charged side by side with the Austrian Leopold Hussars, overthrowing a vastly superior body of the French, taking three guns, and sabring, it is claimed, some 1,200 of the enemy. The eight officers of the regiment were awarded the coveted distinction of the Maria Theresa Order.

Casualties at Villers-en-Couches.

Beaumont, April 26, 1794.

This honour, which was not conferred until the year 1909, is borne by the

Royal Horse Guards.
1st Royal Dragoons.
1st King's Dragoon Guards.
7th Hussars.
3rd Dragoon Guards.
11th Hussars.
5th Dragoon Guards.
16th Lancers.

There had been rumours after the fight at Villers-en-Couches that General Mansel's brigade of cavalry, consisting of the Blues, Royals, and 3rd Dragoon Guards, had not supported the 15th with sufficient promptitude in the affair on April 22.[9] It was Minden and Warburg over again. So when, on April 25, at Beaumont, General Otto, the Austrian officer in command of the allied cavalry, led his division against 20,000 unbroken French infantry, British Dragoons and Austrian Hussars cheerfully essayed what seemed a mad undertaking. The total loss of the allied cavalry amounted to 15 officers and 284 men killed and wounded, amongst the former being General Mansel, who commanded the British heavies, two of his sons figuring amongst the wounded. Forty-one guns and 750 prisoners were taken, whilst the French casualties, it is said, numbered over 7,000, 1,200 being killed by the sabre alone.

Casualties at the Action of Beaumont, April 26, 1794.

Willems, May 10, 1794.

In the month of January, 1910, an Army Order was published authorizing the following regiments to assume this battle honour:

Royal Horse Guards.
1st Royal Dragoons.
2nd Queen's Bays.
Scots Greys.
3rd Dragoon Guards.
6th Inniskilling Dragoons.
6th Carabiniers.
11th Hussars.
15th Hussars.
16th Lancers.

As at Beaumont a fortnight earlier, so here at Willems, our cavalry showed themselves able to break the French infantry formation, even when not pounded by artillery. Thirteen guns and 450 prisoners were the trophies of the day, and fully 2,000 of the enemy fell under the sabres of the British horse.

Casualties at the Action of Willems, May 10, 1794.

An honour borne by the

West Yorkshire.
Hampshire.
Shropshire Light Infantry.

Just four days previously to the fight, the allied army, under Field-Marshal Otto, had received a handsome beating at the hands of the French. It is true we were hopelessly outnumbered, being able to oppose but 18,000 to 64,000. Though beaten, we were not disgraced. Fox's brigade, consisting of the three regiments above, losing 520 of all ranks, whilst in the retirement the 7th and 15th Hussars showed persistent gallantry. Nevertheless, it was a defeat, for nineteen guns were left in the hands of the victors. We were soon to learn that the failure on the part of the Archduke Charles to support Otto and the Duke of York was a deliberate design to discredit the British, and was due to jealousy of the Royal Duke, who, if not a brilliant strategist, was at any rate a brave commander, and ever solicitous for the comfort of his men.

On May 19 the Allies were concentrated in the immediate neighbourhood of Tournay. The French were attempting to press home their success of the preceding day. In the early morning of the 22nd Pichegru, who had hastened to assume command, attacked in four columns. After some hours his superior numbers told, and the Allies were gradually forced back. Then, late in the day, four brigades were moved up to recapture the position of Pont-À-chin, which practically commanded the Valley of the Scheldt. Fox's brigade, having lost very heavily on the 18th, had been held in reserve, and now numbered barely 600 men. At last, even they were pushed forward into the fight, and, though entirely unsupported, these three fine regiments, nobly responding to the Brigadier's call, dashed forward, sweeping the French out of their hard-won vantage-ground and capturing seven guns. This timely action turned the fortunes of the day, and by nightfall the French had been beaten back, with a loss of 6,000 men. So ended Tournay.

Casualties at the Battle of Tournay, May 22, 1794.

Egmont-op-Zee, October 2, 1799.

In 1799 a fresh attempt was made to wrest Holland from the French, and Sir Ralph Abercromby was despatched to the Low Countries at the head of a division to co-operate with the Russians. His force consisted of a Brigade of Guards (one battalion from each of the three regiments, with a composite battalion of the grenadier companies of the whole Brigade) and two brigades of infantry, under Generals Coote and John Moore. On April 17 a landing was effected at Grote Keten, in face of the determined opposition of a brigade of French troops, our total loss being 27 officers and 440 men killed and wounded. Before the end of the month Abercromby had been reinforced by seven more battalions, and by September 20 the British forces had been brought up to a total of 30,000, with H.R.H. the Duke of York once more in chief command, the whole being distributed as follows:

After an indecisive action on September 19, the Duke of York attacked the French on October 2 at Egmont-op-Zee, inflicting on them a severe defeat. The brunt of the fighting fell on the Fourth and Sixth Brigades, under Sir John Moore and Lord Cavan, Sir Ralph Abercromby being present and exercising supreme command. Our losses were very heavy, amounting to no less than 1,348 of all ranks killed and wounded.

The following regiments alone have been authorized to bear the honour "Egmont-op-Zee":

15th Hussars.
Royal Scots.
Lancashire Fusiliers.
King's Own Scottish Borderers.
Berkshire.
Manchester.
Cameron Highlanders.
Gordon Highlanders.

But the casualty rolls published in the Duke of York's despatch show that many other regiments were engaged.

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