that monarch who "never said a foolish thing but never did a wise one," remarked to the Duke of York: "If ever you intend to man the fleete without being cheated by the Captains and Pursers, you may go to bed and resolve never to have it manned."1

As a matter of fact the naval and military officers of those times were no better or worse than each other or than other people in their station of life. It requires but a short study of contemporary literature to see that most of them had their price, and all were "on the make "-generally dishonestly. However this may have been, the attacks on the Marine regiments, instigated most likely by the idea that if replaced by seamen the standing forces of the Crown would be so many the weaker, appear to have been temporarily effective, for at the close of the century it was decided to disband them. This was accordingly done, though considerable difficulty seems to have been experienced by the Admiralty in raising enough money to pay them off, so much in arrears had their pay been allowed to get.

A MATCHLOCK AND A FIRELOCK OR FUSIL (17th Century).

From The British Nary Book. By Col. C. FIELD.

By permission of Messrs. Blackie & Son.

NOTES.

NOTE I.-THE ARMAMENT OF THE MARITIME REGIMENT OF FOOT.

Although the Order in Council of 28th October, 1664, expressly laid down that the 1200 men of the Regiment were all to be armed with "good Firelocks," i.e., "Flintlocks," as opposed to "Match-locks," there seem to have been great difficulties in carrying out these instructions in their entirety-probably owing to the fact that the "Fire-lock" was a comparatively new and expensive weapon which had, in those days, to be entirely manufactured by hand. But, as pointed out by Colonel Walton, in his "History of the British Standing Army," it was without doubt the full intention of the Government that the Marine Regiments should be armed with Fire-locks, although from time to time deficiencies in their supply had to be made 1 Pepys' Diary, March 18th, 1668.

up by the issue of muskets and even pikes, weapons that were fast becoming obsolete. The reason for this decision is obvious, and was the same that led to the establishment of a Regiment of Fusiliers, or "Fire-locks," as escort to the Artillery, viz.: the danger of smouldering matches in the neighbourhood of powder for the big guns whether ashore or afloat. This intention is again and again apparent in every order for the raising of new Marine formations or for the transfer of Regiments from the Line, to the Marines. It is curious, therefore, to find that the "Admiral's Battalion " should be exercising with pikes at a review as late as 1684. Possibly all the available "fire-locks" were in the hands of those Marines who were actually serving afloat at the time, or again, there is a bare possibility that the writer who describes the review may have meant that "The Colestream, my Lord Dumbarton's and the Admiral's Battalions successively exercised" the first with the Pike, the second with the Sword, and the third with the Musket.

NOTE II.-FRENCH MARINE REGIMENTS.

The quotation is from M. Loir's" La Marine Francaise." There were five regiments of Marines raised in France between 1627 and 1719. The following table, taken from "A List of the Forces of the Sovereigns of Europe," published by J. Millan, in 1761, gives a few particulars of these corps :

Switzerland-a perfectly land-locked country-seems a curious place from which to recruit Sea-soldiers." According to "L'Etat Militaire de France," published in Paris in 1767, the facings, numeration, and date of raising of these Regiments is a little different.

"

The facings of "La Marine" are here said to have been "Black Velvet," of the "Royal Vaisseaux,' Blue," of the "Royal Marine" and "Vermandois," "Green." The lace of the "Royal Marine" was Silver and of the other three Regiments, Gold.

On December 24th, 1669, Robert Montagu wrote to Lord Arlington from Paris that "They are as forward in raising troops here as they be (in) Holland. There is an order for raising 2 Regts. of Foot, the Regiments d'Anjou and Vermandois, both of 3,000 men apiece, besides a Company of 150 Chevaux Legers of M. d'Anjou, chosen out of the best of the old horse of other regiments, and a Company of 300 men, 200 whereof are to be gentlemen of quality, and 100 soldiers of fortune, that are to be called the Admiral's Guard, which are always to be upon the Admiral or ViceAdmiral, and out of these the King intends always to choose his Sea-Officers.

66

'Besides there is to be 3 Regiments of 3,000 men apiece, all seamen; 2 of the regiments the King will allow to serve in merchantmen, and 3,000 are always to be ready at home for his own service, and they shall relieve one another; one year they serve the King, and the other they have the liberty to serve in merchantmen, but all are listed as the King's soldiers."1

66

The "Vermandois was absorbed in the Army, 1671. Other Marine regiments came into being in 1685, which were known as Compagnies franches de la Marine" (1690)—“ Regiments pour le service des colonies d'Amerique' (1772)—“ Corps Royal d'Infanterie de Marine" (1774). During the Napoleonic period there was a Marine Artillery Corps and also the "Marins de la Garde," who took a distinguished part in the campaigns in Germany and the retreat from Moscow. But these men were actually seamen put into a military uniform and drilled as soldiers. At the Restoration the " Corps Royal d'Infanterie de Marine" was re-instituted. In 1831, they became the "Regiments de Marine,” and in 1838 the present “Corps d'Infanterie de Marine" was established. This has grown to considerable proportions and does not now embark for sea service, but has become a Colonial Army.

1 Hist. MS. Com. (Duke of Buccleuch's MS.), Vol. I., p. 456.

NOTE III-A SUGGESTION FOR A MARINE CORPS SUBMITTED TO CHARLES II. BY SIR BERNARD GASGOINE.

The following extract from a letter written to Charles II. by Sir Bernard Gascoigne is of interest. Sir Bernard was an Italian by birth andeducation, though a member of an ancient British family. He was a professional soldier, who had served under the Duke of Tuscany and had also distinguished himself in the Civil War in England. The letter is undated, but from a reference to the Dutch at Chatham must have been written subsequent to 1667. This is curious, since it almost seems to suggest a corps closely resembling the Admiral's regiment already in existence. Its officers took their own companies to sea with them, and often took command of ships as naval officers :

"And because from the faithfulness of the seamen in time of rebellion can depend a very great benefit, being well affected, or a great ruine by being mutinous or of a contrary faction (as in the late rebellion experience did demonstrate to us), I judg a thing of a vast importance to raise some foote companies, under the name of Companies of the Sea (as they have done in France under the name of the Regiment de Marina), for the use of the sea, each company consisting in 150 soldiers, all mariners by profession, or at least young fellows, fitt to make a seaman, all unmarried if possible will be, which being kept in a constant pay are to be instructed in managing musketts and pikes.

"To every one of these Companies is to be chosen for a Captain, one valiant faithfull sea commander fit to command a Man-of-Warr, the same company one Lieutenant is to be chosen, a good foot officer, and likewise some sergeants for the same company, that have served in the foot, that this Lieutenant and Sergeants shall exercise the company when they are at leisure, in the management of the armes, and the good effect of all this will be that, whensoever His Majesty will send out a Man-of-Warr, the command of the same is to be given to one of these Captaines of the Marina, which having in his ship his owne company and his owne officers, whatsoever more pressed or voluntary marriners are upon the same, having 150 marriners of his owne faithfull to him he is sure to be able to hinder any rebellion, that the other marriners could raise, and be sure master at alle times of his owne ship, in case of civill warrs, and what I speake of one Man-of-Warr, I speake of all the others.

“And in my judgment I thinke it necessary at present to raise 20 such Companies of 150 marriners each one, which will amount to 3,000 in all, and that the same companies are to be commanded by the best, loyall and bravest sea-captaines of the kingdome.

"And to give a demonstration, that these twenty companies of seamen will very little or nothing encrease His Majesty's charges of the Navy, which he is att present obliged to doe, I say :

"That very seldome or never happens, that for divers occasions his Majesty has not twenty Men-of-Warr at sea, upon which he employing the twenty Captaines and the twenty Companies will by experience find, that the expence will amount to the same or to very little more than that the Navy att this present cost to his Majesty; and from the establishment of these twenty Companies, His Majesty must haue this important benefit, videlicet, to be certaine in case of tumult or rebellion that all the shipps of Warr that are at sea are truely and faithfully att his service, because being armed with honest loyall marriners and faithfull captaines, is not to be feared any rebellion amongst them, whatsoever the rest of the kingdome was in armes.

"The command of these twenty Companies are not to be given by favour or by money given to anybody, but to such Captaines, that by their personall valour and affection towards the present government doe deserve it, neither to be sold from one to one another, as they doe in the infantry, but to be given gratis by His Majesty on election."--Hist. MS. Commission, 15th Report, Appendix, Part II.

NOTE IV.-LETTER FROM CAPTAIN DARELL.

The following is a letter from Captain Darell to his "honoured Friend, Joseph Williamson, Esqre., Secretary to the Right Honble. my Lord Arlington," written as soon as he was able to use his wounded arm :

I

I

"SIR,--If I had my arme as much at libertie as I could wish you should not have prevented me with your letter by which you have very much obliged me. I shall studie on all occasions to deserve so great a favour. hope you will excuse me for my giving you so early an intelligence as those of Harwich who were spectators. shall not trouble you at present with reitterating unto you the passages that happened here being. I have acquainted my Lord Arlington with it. I shall be very careful in giving you notice of anything that shall happen in these parts, with this assurance (although by another hand for which I hope you will excuse me), that of all those that make profession of being your servant, none shall be with greater truth than myselfe. "Sir, Your most humble servant, "NATHL. DARELL,"

NOTE V.-BATTLE OF SOLE BAY.

Captain Carleton, in his Memoirs, states that he was present at this action on board the London, and relates the following dreadful story: "I must not omit one very remarkable occurrence which happened in this ship (the Katherine).1 There was a gentleman aboard her, a volunteer, of a very fine estate, generally known by the name of Hodge Vaughan. This person received, in the beginning of the fight, a considerable wound, which the great confusion during the battle would not give them leave to inquire into, so he was carried out of the way, and disposed of in the hold. They had some hogs aboard, which the sailor, under whose care they were, neglected to feed; these hogs, hungry as they were, found out and fell upon the wounded person, and, between dead and alive, eat him up to his very skull, which, after the fight was over, and the ship retaken as before, was all that could be found of him."

It seems more than possible that the victim of this dreadful affair was Captain Roger Vaughan, of the Admiral's regiment. This officer may well have been a man of "a very fine estate," as he had been Governor of Chepstow Castle, and at the time of his death was a gentleman of His Royal Highness's Bedchamber. Captain Carleton does not say his name was Hodge, but that is what he was generally known by-it may well have been a nickname. Although Captain Vaughan's Company was distributed in detachments in the Antelope, Triumph, and Ruby, he himself was killed on board the Katherine, as Major Darell, his brother officer, writes on May, 28th, "Roger Vaughan lies dead on board the Katherine."

NOTE VI. KING JAMES II.'s IRISH MARINES AND THEIR FRENCH REPRESENTATIVES OF TO-DAY.

It is not generally known that King James II., after King William and the Duke of Marlborough had brought their campaign in Ireland to a victorious conclusion, raised-among other troops-a regiment of Marines, which, strange to say, is to-day represented by the 88th Regiment of the French line. From the remnant of his Irish troops which had followed him into exile in France, he, with the assistance of the French Government, formed a little army consisting of four cavalry, eight infantry regiments, a Royal Bodyguard, and three "Free Companies." The first infantry regiment was "The Royal Regiment of Foot Guards"; the second, "The Queen's Regiment of Foot Guards"; while third on the list came "The Marines," commanded by Henry Fitz-James, Duke of Albemarle, generally referred to as "The Lord Grand Prior." The "Marines were, apparently, Marines in name only, since King James had no ships upon which to embark them, and they were generally known as the Regiment of "Albemarle." The Lieut.-Colonel was Nicholas Fitz-Gerald; the Major, Edmond O'Madden. There were 12 Captains, 24 Lieutenants, 24 Sub-Lieutenants, 14 Ensigns, and the regiment was 1,200 strong. It was divided into two battalions, each consisting of six companies of 100 men. The other infantry regiments were of equal strength, and the whole force was reviewed by King James at Vannes in 1692, and subsequently by Louis XIV. of France at Brest. It is rather curious that, though the Irish troops had worn grey in the Irish campaign, they now insisted in being clad in red, the distinctive British colour. The regimental organization as settled by King James did not fit in with the French system, and it was eventually decided that each battalion should consist of sixteen companies of fifty men apiece, with three officers, eight N.C.O.s, one trumpeter, and one drummer. Thus the battalion contained forty-eight commissioned and 128 non-commissioned officers and thirty-two musicians, who were required to be shoemakers and tailors as well as forming the regimental band. The "

Marines," or "Albemarle's," fought with great distinction-as did the rest of the Irish Brigade-in France, Spain, Savoy, and Piedmont, till they had suffered such severe losses that in 1698 it became necessary to reduce the establishment and reorganize the whole force. The cavalry formed a single regiment only. The infantry, which, including an earlier Irish Brigade in the French service, amounted to twenty-six strong battalions, was reduced to eight regiments of 700 men each. In the new organization there was only one Guard regiment, which now stood fourth on the list, the "Marines " becoming the fifth regiment, and being still known as Albemarle's." After the death of the Duke of Albemarle, in 1702, it was known successively as Fitzgerald's" and "O'Donnell's." In the same year the Brigade lost one of its regiments, "Burke's "—originally "The Regiment of Athlone," which was allowed to join the Spanish Army. In 1715 the "Marines' were incorporated with the Lee and Clare regiments and lost their special identity, the combined regiment being generally known as Clare's," " and which

66

66

1 The Katherine was the only ship lost by the English, but her crew rose against their captors, regained possession of her, and brought her back to the British Fleet. Hodge, Yokel. Pet form of Roger."-Etymological Dictionary of Modern English.

achieved a splendid record. Sixty years later, in 1775, "Clare's was again combined with " Berwick's," and the name disappeared. "Berwick's," in 1791, had two battalions, the 1st being quartered at Besançon, the 2nd in St. Domingo. The regiment was now in reality more French than Irish, and at this time was the 13th of the Line. At the present day it is the 88th Regiment, though it still bears the sub-title of "Le Regiment de Berwick." Upon its Colours it bears the names of the Battles of Sediman, 1798; Austerlitz, 1805; Wagram, 1809; and La Moskowa, 1812. It particularly distinguished itself at Wagram, where it stormed the Austrian entrenchments at the point of the bayonet and completely routed their defenders. The Colours of the old "Berwick " regiment were green with the St. George's Cross with a white edge, and a narrow red St. Andrew's cross below it-probably the Saltire of the Fitzgeralds, which appears in our Union Jack. In the centre was a golden harp with a crown on either arm of the cross. Other crowns appeared on each corner of the flag which bore the motto: "In hoc signo vinces.” NOTE VII.-PRINCE RUPERT'S MARINE REGIMENT.

On September 12th, 1672, it was announced that a "Marine Regiment," of which Prince Rupert was to be Colonel, was to be raised for service in the fleet. Commissions as Captains were issued to the following gentlemen: Richard Le Neve, Sir Roger Strickland, John Berry, Thomas Chamberlaine, Sir William Jennings, Sir William Reeves, John Narborough, and Napthali Ball, and, as Captain-Lieutenant, to James Story. As beyond this no trace of the regiment exists, it is probable that this was another attempt to create a corps of naval officers, for everyone of them served afloat, and most commanded ships. One, Sir Roger Strickland, became a most distinguished Admiral. Story, Strickland, and Reeves were specially mentioned by Prince Rupert for their conduct in the battle with the Dutch on May 28th, Sir William Reeves " brought up a Fireship, and layd himself to Leeward of Trump, and if the Captain of the Fireship had done his duty, Trump had certainly burnt."

NOTE VIII. THE DRUMS AND FIFES.

Drummers are a very old military institution. "Six Drumes were issued for the use of the "Admiral's Regiment" on its formation in 1664. A MS. written about this period, or probably a few years later, by one Ralph Smith, lays down that "All Captains must have drommes and ffifes and men to use the same, who should be faithful, secrette, and engenious, of able performance to use their instruments and office, and of sundrie languages, for often they bee sent to parley and to summon the enemy's fforts or townes, or divers other messages, which, of necessitie, requireth languages." The fifers, it may be noted, were formerly called "whifflers." The following warrant indicates that the Marine regiments at the end of the 17th Century had a rudimentary band: "1693-4, March 22nd. Warrant, under the hand and seal of John Mawgridge, Esqre., His Majesty's Drum Major Generall, 'To presse or cause to be impressed from time to time such numbers of Drums, Fifes, and Hoboyes as shall be necessary for His Majesty's service either by sea or land, whereby Captain William Prince, of their Majesties' first Mareen Regiment, commanded by the Rt. Hon. The Earl of Danby (afterwards the Marquis of Caermarthen), is appointed the lawfull deputy of the aforesaid Drum Major Generall, to impress two Drums and two Hoitboys (sic) for the service of his company in the aforesaid regiment'; the said Captain being, however, expressly forbidden by the warrant to impress the listed Drums to the Trained Bands, as by a special order from His Majestie one Drum is allowed to each Company thereof this time of Warr.'"-From Historical MS. Commission, 10th Report, Appendix, Part IV., p. 333.

NOTE IX.-DISCIPLINE AFLOAT IN 1665.

"Of discipline, there was probably none. for Mr. Hosier, writing from Gravesend, says, referring to the Loyall Katherine, “I desired the boatswain to call up the men (but he was sitting in his Cabbin and giving out pinte glasses of strong waters to the men, as I understood, for 12d. each), and he informed mee that hee could not find his men, there being such a dhrung of men. I then went to one of the Sergts and desired him to comnd his owne company of Soldrs to muster, which accordingly hee did.”—Edye's “History of the Royal Marines." NOTE X.--VALUE OF MARINES TO THE FLEET.

Sir William Coventry, writing from the Royal Charles, dated April 13th, 1665, says: "The old soldiers wch have been allotted to the fleet have done wonderful good service toward the manning them, the Com. manders being desirous to change those whoe goe under the name of Seamen for those Soldiers but of the new Raysed men they are all afraid." And again “Three merchant ships have come in poorly manned, but the old soldiers supply the defect of men; from the new raised ones the commanders pray to be delivered."-Edye's "History of the Royal Marines."

NOTE XI.-COMPLEMENTS OF MARINE OFFICERS EMBARKED IN 1695.

Elizabeth, 2 Captains, 3 Lieutenants; Royal Katherine, 1 Major, 2 Captains, 3 Lieutenants; London. 2 Captains, 5 Lieutenants; Vanguard, 2 Captains, 1 Captain-Lieutenant, 3 Lieutenants; Royal William, 2 Captains, 2 Lieutenants. Other ships in much the same proportion.