Historical Record of the Thirty-first, or, the Huntingdonshire Regiment of Foot;: containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1702, and of its subsequent services to 1850 — John Shaqi
Historical Record of the Thirty-first, or, the Huntingdonshire Regiment of Foot;: containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1702, and of its subsequent services to 1850Cannon, Richard
History
Historical Record of the Thirty-first, or, the Huntingdonshire Regiment of Foot;: containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1702, and of its subsequent services to 1850
Cannon, Richard
Great Britain. Army -- History; Great Britain. Army. Regiment of Foot, 31st
From Martinique the _grenadiers_, under Prince Edward (afterwards
Duke of Kent), the _light_ infantry, under Major-General Dundas,
and three other regiments, embarked on the 30th of March for _St.
Lucia_, where they arrived on the 1st of April, and the conquest of
that island was effected in three days; His Royal Highness Prince
Edward, with his brigade of grenadiers, and Major-General Dundas,
with his brigade of light infantry, taking possession of St. Lucia
on the 4th of April. The flank companies of the THIRTY-FIRST
regiment were afterwards employed in the reduction of the island of
_Guadaloupe_. A determined resistance was made by the enemy; but
the island was captured by the 20th of April.
France did not view with indifference the loss of these valuable
possessions, and in June a French armament arrived at _Guadaloupe_
for the recovery of that island. The light company, under
Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Andrew Ross, highly distinguished itself
on the night of the 13th of June, in attacking the enemy near
_Point-à-Petre_. General Sir Charles Grey stated in his despatch:--
“Brevet Major Ross,[22] of the THIRTY-FIRST regiment, who was
with the light infantry, behaved with great gallantry and good
conduct on this occasion, as he has done on every other.”
The light company also participated in a night attack on Fort
_Fleur d’Epée_ between the 25th and 26th of June; on the day
following, Brigadier-General Symes, with the grenadiers and light
infantry, attacked the enemy, who was driven to Morne Mascot, where
he again made resistance, but being charged with the bayonet, he
fled into Fort Fleur d’Epée.
Lieut.-Colonel Ross, of the THIRTY-FIRST, commanded the second
battalion of light infantry on these occasions.
Lieut.-Colonel Colin Graham, of the twenty-first Royal North
British Fusiliers, was appointed to the command of the troops
in Basse Terre, and he defended _Berville_ camp with the
utmost gallantry until the 6th of October, when he was forced
to surrender,--his force having become reduced by excessive
exertion, and the unhealthiness of the climate, to one hundred and
twenty-five rank and file fit for duty.
The troops at Guadaloupe suffered severely from the climate, and
the arduous duties they had to perform, and could only muster 389
soldiers fit for duty on the 1st of September.[23]
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