74th Regiment of (Highland) Foot
Encyclopedia
The 74th Regiment of Foot was a British Army
line infantry
regiment
raised to fight in the American Revolution
. In December 1777, John Campbell of Barbreck received letters of service from King George III to raise a regiment of infantry in the county of Argyll for service in the regular army. Campbell had held a commission in the old 78th, or Fraser's Highlanders
during the French and Indian War
.
Most regimental officers were commissioned in 1777, but the first muster of the regiment was not held until April 1778. It was inspected at Glasgow in May 1778 and sailed for Halifax, Nova Scotia
, in August 1778.
). The regiment, together with a detachment of the 82nd Regiment of Foot
, began construction of a post to be called Fort George
, which they held through July and early August against attacks by an American expeditionary force
from Massachusetts under Commodore Dudley Saltonstall
and General Solomon Lovell
. On 13 August, a relief force of British ships arrived from New York under the command of Commodore Sir George Collier
, and the Americans gave up their siege and withdrew.
The regiment remained at Fort George until January 1784, when the fort was evacuated and the troops returned to Halifax. There they were reunited with the regiment's flank companies; these had served with General Sir Henry Clinton
in South Carolina
in 1779 and 1780. The Light Company had also served in Virginia in 1781, ending as part of Lord Cornwallis
' army that had surrendered at Yorktown
in October 1781 and remaining as prisoners until the end of the war in 1783, when they had returned to New York. The regiment, now complete, returned to Great Britain in 1784, landing at Portsmouth
and marching from there to Stirling
, where it was disbanded on 24 May 1784.
A set of bagpipes
, believed to have been played at the mustering of the regiment in 1778 by one Piper MacCorquodale are in the collection of the National Museums of Scotland.
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
line infantry
Line infantry
Line infantry is a type of infantry which composed the basis of European land armies from the middle of the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century....
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
raised to fight in the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
. In December 1777, John Campbell of Barbreck received letters of service from King George III to raise a regiment of infantry in the county of Argyll for service in the regular army. Campbell had held a commission in the old 78th, or Fraser's Highlanders
78th Fraser Highlanders
The 78th Regiment, Regiment of Foot otherwise known as the 78th Fraser Highlanders was a British infantry regiment of the line unit raised in Scotland in 1757, to fight in the French and Indian War.-History:...
during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
.
Most regimental officers were commissioned in 1777, but the first muster of the regiment was not held until April 1778. It was inspected at Glasgow in May 1778 and sailed for Halifax, Nova Scotia
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, in August 1778.
Service history
The regiment's flank companies (the grenadier and light infantry companies) joined the main British army in New York in the spring of 1779, while the remainder of the regiment moved to Bagaduce in Massachusetts (now the town of Castine, MaineCastine, Maine
Castine is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States and was once the capital of Acadia . The population was 1,343 at the 2000 census. Castine is the home of Maine Maritime Academy, a four-year institution that graduates officers and engineers for the United States Merchant Marine and marine...
). The regiment, together with a detachment of the 82nd Regiment of Foot
82nd Regiment of Foot (1778)
For other regiments with the same number, see 82nd Regiment of Foot The 82nd Regiment of Foot was a British regiment raised for service in the American Revolutionary War....
, began construction of a post to be called Fort George
Fort George (Castine, Maine)
Fort George was an earthworks fort built by the British during the American Revolutionary War to provide safety for British ships and loyalists in the area. The roughly 3-acre remains of the fort are located on the Bagaduce Peninsula in the town of Castine, Maine.The British dug a defensive canal...
, which they held through July and early August against attacks by an American expeditionary force
Penobscot Expedition
The Penobscot Expedition was the largest American naval expedition of the American Revolutionary War and the United States' worst naval defeat until Pearl Harbor...
from Massachusetts under Commodore Dudley Saltonstall
Dudley Saltonstall
Dudley Saltonstall was an American naval commander during the American Revolutionary War. He is best known as the commander of the naval forces of the 1779 Penobscot Expedition, which ended in complete disaster, with all ships lost...
and General Solomon Lovell
Solomon Lovell
Solomon Lovell was a brigadier general in the militia of the state of Massachusetts during the American Revolutionary War. He is best known for leading the land forces during the 1779 Penobscot Expedition, a disastrous attempt by Massachusetts to dislodge a British force from a settlement on a...
. On 13 August, a relief force of British ships arrived from New York under the command of Commodore Sir George Collier
George Collier
Sir George Collier was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the Seven Years War, the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary Wars. As commander of the frigate HMS Rainbow, he was one of the most successful British naval commanders during the opening stages of war...
, and the Americans gave up their siege and withdrew.
The regiment remained at Fort George until January 1784, when the fort was evacuated and the troops returned to Halifax. There they were reunited with the regiment's flank companies; these had served with General Sir Henry Clinton
Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)
General Sir Henry Clinton KB was a British army officer and politician, best known for his service as a general during the American War of Independence. First arriving in Boston in May 1775, from 1778 to 1782 he was the British Commander-in-Chief in North America...
in South Carolina
Siege of Charleston
The Siege of Charleston was one of the major battles which took place towards the end of the American Revolutionary War, after the British began to shift their strategic focus towards the American Southern Colonies. After about six weeks of siege, Continental Army Major General Benjamin Lincoln...
in 1779 and 1780. The Light Company had also served in Virginia in 1781, ending as part of Lord Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
' army that had surrendered at Yorktown
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
in October 1781 and remaining as prisoners until the end of the war in 1783, when they had returned to New York. The regiment, now complete, returned to Great Britain in 1784, landing at Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and marching from there to Stirling
Stirling
Stirling is a city and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling council area. The city is clustered around a large fortress and medieval old-town beside the River Forth...
, where it was disbanded on 24 May 1784.
A set of bagpipes
Bagpipes
Bagpipes are a class of musical instrument, aerophones, using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. Though the Scottish Great Highland Bagpipe and Irish uilleann pipes have the greatest international visibility, bagpipes of many different types come from...
, believed to have been played at the mustering of the regiment in 1778 by one Piper MacCorquodale are in the collection of the National Museums of Scotland.