After a progressive service in the subordinate commissions, this officer was appointed Lieut.-Colonel in the SEVENTEENTH regiment; he distinguished himself at the storming of the breach of Terra Nova at the Castle of Namur, on the 30th of August, 1695, when he was wounded. King William III. conferred the colonelcy of the regiment upon him, and he served under His Majesty until the treaty of Ryswick in 1697; and subsequently commanded his regiment in Ireland. The date of his decease has not been ascertained. HOLCROFT BLOOD. _Appointed 26th August, 1703._ This officer was the son of the celebrated Colonel Thomas Blood, who made a desperate effort to carry off the crown from the Tower of London in the reign of King Charles II., for which the Colonel was afterwards pardoned, in consequence of his previous services in the Royal cause. HOLCROFT BLOOD served on board the fleet, in the war with Holland, in 1672 and 1673; and he subsequently entered the French army as cadet in the guards of Louis XIV., where he made great proficiency in the study of fortifications. At the Revolution in 1688 he returned to England, and was appointed to a commission in Colonel Seymour's regiment, in which corps he rose to the rank of major. He served in Ireland, where he was employed as an engineer, and evinced ability at the sieges of Athlone and Limerick: he also distinguished himself at the siege of Namur in the Netherlands, in 1695; and was promoted to the lieut.-colonelcy of the SEVENTEENTH regiment. He accompanied the SEVENTEENTH to Holland in 1701, and in 1702 he served as a principal engineer at the sieges of Venloo and Ruremonde, where he displayed great ability. He particularly distinguished himself at the storming of Fort St. Michael, at Venloo, where "he showed the part of a brave officer, charging with the men sword in hand, and killing an officer of the enemy's grenadiers, who made a vigorous opposition with his party."[10] The talents and bravery of Colonel Blood procured him the favour of the great Duke of Marlborough, who obtained for him the colonelcy of the SEVENTEENTH regiment and the command of the British artillery on foreign service on the Continent, with the rank of brigadier-general. At the memorable battle of Blenheim in 1704, Brigadier-General Blood highly distinguished himself; and, by bringing nine field-pieces into action at a critical moment, greatly contributed to the gaining of that splendid victory: by a General Order issued in the evening of that day, all the trophies captured were placed under his care. Towards the close of the campaign he accompanied the Duke of Marlborough to the Moselle, and was engaged in the capture of several places in that quarter. He continued in the command of the British artillery on the Continent, and his services were associated with the forcing of the French lines at Helixem and Neer Hespen in 1705, and the splendid victory at Ramilies in 1706.