The King’s Own Yorkshire Light
Infantry
The Kings Own
Yorkshire Light Infantry, until recently known as the King’s Own Light
Infantry _South Yorkshire Regiment)-Regimental District 51-consists of
the 51st and 105th Foot.
The 51st were raised in 1755 as
the 53rd, but the disbanding of two prior regiments gave the
present numerical rank. Two
years after their formation the 51st took part in the
expeditions made under Mordaunt against the French coast, and the
following year went to Germany. They
fought at Minden, being on the right of the British line, in their first
battle giving unmistakable earnest of their future fame, and before they
returned home took part in the engagements at Corbach and Warbourg.
Their next employment was at Minorca in 1771, where they very
greatly distinguished themselves at St. Philip.
The castle of this name, which commanded the harbour of Mahon,
had been long considered impregnable, but at the time of the siege the
upper works had been allowed to fall into decay.
Parts, however, were bomb proof and of massive strength. An engineer officer present during the siege vouches for the
following: - A shell falling without exploding upon one of the casemates
produced a shock sufficient to throw to the ground a bottle and some
glasses which were on a table in the building, without producing the
slightest perceptible flaw in the arch!
In 1781 the attacking force numbered at least sixteen hundred
men, with a hundred and fifty guns and mortars.
By November the place was closely invested on all sides, “and
the little garrison thus cut off from all supplies of fresh food.
The greater part of them had been long in the island, and were no
doubt predisposed to the attacks of the scurvy, which now appeared
amongst them, of exceptional virulence.
In January 1782, things were even worse, for an aggravated form
of typhus fever had also made its appearance.
Nothing could exceed the devotion of the men.
Scarcely a man could be persuaded to go into hospital if he could
in any way avoid it, and the severity of by far the greatest number of
cases was only discovered by men falling dead at their posts, or, when
missed from their guards, by being found dead in some spot where they
had gone to end their pain away from their comrades gaze.
Early in February, four hundred and ten men being on duty, it was
found that-sick and wounded included-only two hundred remained to
relieve them, nineteen hundred out of the original garrison of over two
thousand six hundred having actually died and been buried in the narrow
precincts of the place within the space of six months.
Only then was it determined to capitulate.
As they sorrowfully laid down their arms, having marched out with
the honours of war, ‘an involuntary shout burst from the enemy as they
passed, and many of the French officers were affected even to
tears.’” In
1794 they were ordered to Corisca, and were very actively concerned at
the sieges of San Fiorenze and Bastia.
When the General Sir D. Dundas, resolved on an assault, the 51st
were directed to proceed along the seashore.
Arduous thought he march was, it was at last completed; the
troops converged in front of the redoubt, and “without firing a shot,
swarmed into the redoubt from three points, and by their bayonets alone
swept the French and Corsicans down the slope, and within five minutes
the British colours were flying from the redoubt, and the commandant,
with a considerable portion of the garrison, were disarmed and taken.”
Then followed the siege and capture of Bastia, and, after a few
less important engagements, Corisca was formally transferred to the
British Crown. In 1797 they
were with Sir John Stuart in Portugal, and the following year went to
India. Before long, however, they were transferred to Ceylon, and in
1800 had some sharp fighting with the Candyans, in which “the
gallantry of Ensigns Grant and Smellie and of Captain Pollock was
conspicuous.” Returning
to England in 1807, they were present, two years later, at Corunna and
Walcheren. They then joined Wellesley and fought at Fuentes d’Onor and
Sabugal. “Salamanca”
and “Vittoria,” “Pyrenees” and “Nivelle” tell their own
tale; “Orthes” and the “Peninsula” complete the record of their
triumphs with the ‘conquering army.’
At Waterloo they were on the left of the British line, and
acquitted themselves as might be expected from their traditions in that
warring chaos from which was to arise a newborn Peace.
It was in vein that the terrible squadrons of cirassiers charged
down again and again on the firm squares.
The 51st had gauged the calibre of these dashing
horsemen on many a peninsular field and this 18th of June-
“But on the British heart were lost
The
terrors of the charging host;
For
not an eye the storm that viewed
Changed
its proud glance of fortitude,
Nor
was one forward footstep stayed
As
dropped the dying and the dead.
Fast
as their ranks the thunders tear,
Fast
they renewed each serried square;
And
on the wounded and the slain
Closed
their diminished files again,
Till
from their line scarce spear’s length three,
Emerging
from the smoke they see,
Helmet
and plume and panoply-
Then
waked their fire at once!
Down
where the eagle banners sent,
Dow
reeling steeds and riders went,
Corselets
were pierced and pennons rent.”
They were engaged at Cambray,
which was their last warlike achievement for many years.
In 1837 they went to Australia, and nine years later to India.
While here they were engaged in the Burmese War of 1852, and
gained-not without hard fighting-the distinction of “Pegu.”
Some of the 51st were on board the Sesostris, which so
ably assisted the operations in the Rangoon River.
In the attack on the golden Pagoda, the 51st were in
the right column, which were the first to land, and four companies under
Major Fraser, with some sappers and miners, formed the storming party.
Heavy firing met them as they forced their way through the
surrounding woods, and up the ladders against the stockade.
Captain Blundell, of the leading company, fell mortally wounded,
nor did he fall alone; but the dash of the attack was irresistible, and
the White House of Guadama was in our hands.
Greatly, too, did the regiment, or rather the detachment present
with Sir John Cheape in his operations against Myat-Htoon, distinguish
themselves. “Lieutenant
Trevor, of the Engineers, with Corporal Livingstone and Private Preston,
of H.M. 51st Foot, first entered the enemy’s breastwork,
the two former each shooting down one of the enemy opposing their
entrance. The lead devolved
on Sergeant Preston, of H.M. 51st”
The following May they took Bassein, on
which occasion, reported the General Commanding (General Godwin) ,
“the enemy appeared so completely surprised and paralysed by our
approach that nearly all the men of H.M. 51st Foot got on
shore under the Pagoda before a shot was fired.”
But shots were fired soon, and as the gallant 51st
stormed the Pagoda and Mud Fort, Major Errington fell wounded, and with
him fell Captains Darroch and Rice and Lieutenant Carter.
The 51st were engaged in the defence of Mataban, which
was subjected to an unexpected, but not very formidable, attack by the
Burmese. The regiment came
home in 1856, returning to India two years later, and during the
following nine years were engaged in the Punjab, and the disturbances in
the Hayara district. After
a short at home, 1872 saw them again in India, and five years later
taking part in the Jowaki expedition.
The Afghan War of 1878-80 completes-with the exception, too
recent for mention here, of the records of the Burmese Expeditionary
Force-the annals of the 51st.
In the quasi-official account by Shadbolt, the doings of the 51st
are set out with a minuteness, which the signally valuable nature of the
service they rendered amply warrants.
In November 1878, the 51st K.O.L.I., as part of the 4th
Brigade, 1st Division, Peshawur Valley Field Force, advanced
into the Khyber Pass, and the same day were engaged in the front attack
on Ali Musjid. Marching
from Jamrud, the regiment, under the command of Colonel Madden, came
within range of the enemy’s guns about 1.30 p.m. and two hours later
went into action, six companies occupying various advanced positions on
the surrounding heights, and remaining engaged until darkness closed in.
The casualties of the regiment during the day were, one man
killed and two wounded. Early
the following morning, three companies, under Lieutenant-Colonel Ball
Acton, crossed the river to support the projected assault of the 3rd
Brigade on a ridge to the enemy’s right.
It was, however, discovered that the fort had been abandoned in
the night, and Lieutenant-Colonel Acton’s companies shortly afterwards
entered it. In the meantime
two companies of the regiment, under Lieutenants Seppings and Bennett,
took possession of the enemy’s camp by the river, capturing some
twenty prisoners, two guns, and a quantity of ammunition.
The regiment remained at Ali Musjid on the
further advance of the main body of the division.
From the 24th to the 29th of November there
was constant firing into the camp at night by the Afridis, considerable
numbers of who assembled on the adjacent ridges.
On the night of the 25th November a daring attempt was
made by some two or three hundred of these tribesman to rush a small
picket, consisting of one sergeant and fifteen rank and file, under
Lieutenant Johnson, placed on a hill to the left roughly handled.
Of the picket, Sergeant Binge was severely, and four men were
slightly wounded. In consequences of the unsettled state of the tribes, the 51st
were constantly on duty, for some time getting only one night’s rest
out of four or five.
On the 19th December 1878, three
companies, under Lieutenant-Colonel Acton, left Ali Musjid on the first
expedition into the Bazar Valley, and during the succeeding fortnight
were engaged with the rest of General Maude’s force in destroying the
villages and towers of the hostile Zatra Khel.
While leading the column during its retirement from the valley on
the 22nd December, the companies were engaged in some sharp
skirmishing with the enemy on the surrounding heights.
In the second expedition into the Bazar Valley, at the latter end
of January, 1879, the regiment was again represented two hundred men
under Major Burnaby marching from Ali Musjid on the 25th of
that month, and after being engaged in the various operations of the
expeditionary force, returning on the 4th February.
In the meantime shots continued to be fired at night into the
camp at Ali Musjid, severely wounding, on the 19th December,
two sentries. On
the 8th March, 1879, the 51st K.O.L.I. were
transferred to the 3rd brigade, 1st division, and
on the 17th of the same month marched towards Jalalalbad,
where they arrived on the 24th.
Three companies under Lieutenant-Colonel Acton took part, en
route, in an expedition sent out from Basawal to Maidanak on the night
of the 19th to punish a section of the Shinwari tribe who had
attacked a survey party under Captain Leach, R.E.; and on the 1st
of April a company under Captain Kenneth accompanied the ill-fated
expedition into the Lughman Valley, in which the greater part of a
squadron of the 10th Hussars was swept away in the Kabul
river and drowned.
After being encamped a month at Jalalabad,
the regiment advanced to Safed Sang, where they arrived on the 27th
April, and remained until after the conclusion of peace.
On the 8th May they formed part of the guard of honour,
which received H.H. Yakub Khan.
Commencing the return march towards India
on the 5th June 1879, the 51st L.L. after
re-crossing the frontier, made their way to Cherat.
The excessive fatigue and hardship endured on the March resulted
in many casualties, no less than thirty five deaths occurring in the
month of June, and nine more in July.
In his report on the services of officers of the First Division
Peshawur Valley F.F. the Lieutenant General commanding referred to the
51st as “a regiment excellent in its discipline, and
excellent in the soldier like spirit it has shown throughout.”
On the renewal of hostilities in the autumn
of 1879, the 51st K.O.L.I. were again ordered up for active
service, and as part of Brigadier-General Arbuthnot’s Brigade of
Major-General Bright’s Division, marched to Jelalalabad, where they
arrived on the 23rd October 1879.
Four companies of the regiment escorted the
ex-Amir Yakub Khan from that city to Basawal, starting on the 4th
and returning on the 8th December 1879.
In the middle of December the regiment
advanced to Safed Sang, and on the 17th of that month, in
response to a request for reinforcements from Brigadier-General C.
Gough, who was then at Jagdalak, three companies under
Lieutenant-Colonel Ball Acton marched for Peiwar.
Finding, on arrival, that Colonel Norman, commanding at that
post, was also on route to open communication with the advanced brigade,
and had bivouacked five miles further on the road, Colonel Acton
detached twenty-five men top the Peiwar Kotal, and the following morning
continued his advance. After
marching four miles, he came upon the enemy assembled in considerable
force, and turning up a nullah to their right, drove them from the
position they had taken up. Communications were then opened with Colonel Norman’s
force, and subsequently with that of General Gough after which the
Peiwar party returned. On
the 28th one company of the regiment quitted Peiwar for
Jagdalak, and was replaced by another company.
The following day a mixed force under Colonel Acton, including
two companies of the 51st, also marched for Jagdalak, and
when within sight of its destination again came into contact with a
dispersed and large body of the enemy.
In the encounter one man of the regiment was wounded.
In the middle of January 1880, the
headquarters of the regiment marched from Safed Sang to Peiwar, were
they where rejoined by one of the companies from Jagadalak, and shortly
afterwards received a welcome addition in the shape of a draft of 215
men who had recently arrived from England.
During this month they were placed, by redistribution, in the 1st
brigade, 2nd division, Kabul F.F. and ion that force being
broken up in March became a unit of the Gandamak moveable column.
In the attack on Ali Musjid, in November
1878, the 51st were in the fourth brigade under Sir Samuel
Browne, and wee sharply engaged, and had to regret the loss under
exceptionally sad circumstances of Lieutenant Thurlow.
He and Lieutenant Reid, also of the 51st, were riding
some three miles distant from their cantonments when some forty Afghans
attacked them. Thurlow was
killed and Reid’s pony bolted, but directly he could master it the
latter returned to attempt to bring off his friend’s body. Unable to do this himself-he was again shot at and narrowly
missed- he returned to camp and brought out a detachment, “by which
the body of the deceased officer was recovered and saved from
mutilation.” For his
gallantry on this occasion Reid received the Victoria Cross.
A few days a large body of marauders
attacked afterwards a convoy, commanded by Lieutenant Pollock, while
proceeding to Jagdalak Kotal. The
party was immediately reinforced by the company under command of Captain
Nugent, with Lieutenant Reid, and the enemy were dispersed with
considerable loss, eleven camels which had been driven off by them being
recovered. On the 9th
of April the companies at Jagdalak rejoined headquarters.
In the second week of April the regiment
took part with the moveable column in the expedition into the Hissarak
Valley, and were engaged in several sharp skirmishes with the enemy.
On the night of the 12th, Serggeant McCarthy, a
gallant and popular soldier, was shot while turning out his piquet; and
in the course of the various operations return of the expeditionary
force of the regiment was moved up to Jagadalak.
On the 31st May, 1880, the 51st King’s
Own Light infantry marched with the moveable column to Safed Sang, en
route for the Lughman Valley, and for several days took part in carrying
out the retributive measures with which that district was visited.
On the 11th June, part of the rear guard, commanded by
Major Burnaby, while re-crossing the Kabul River, was hotly fired on,
Major Burnaby receiving a contusion of the face by a spent bullet.
The hard work and exposure to which the column was subjected were
excessive, and during the return march many men fell out from the ranks
from exhaustion. On the 4th
July, headquarters and four companies assembled at Peiwar, another
company arriving next day, after a slight skirmish en route.
The last expedition during the war, in
which the regiment took part, was one led by Colonel Ball Acton against
the Ghilzai villages, Arab Khel and Jokan, which were destroyed in the
first week in July, as punishment for various raids committed by the
tribes on convoys.
On the 9th August 1880, the 51st
Kings Own Light Infantry commenced its return march to India, and after
arriving at Peshawur on the 23rd of the month, proceeded to
Lawrencepur, and eventually to Bareilly.
The casualties of the regiment during the
second campaign were, two officers and men killed, fourteen wounded, and
151 invalided, of whom twenty-two died.
The 1-5th-the 2nd
battalion of the Yorkshire Light Infantry-dates, as at present
constituted, from 1839, when it was raised as the Second Madras European
Light Regiment. The
precursors of the regiment were the second Madras European Light
Infantry, and as such did good service for many years in various
engagements, which occupied our army.
From 1839 to 1860 the 105th served in India and Burmah,
and since then have served at Aden, making their first visit to England
in 1874. It is from the 105th
that the motto Cede Nullis is derived, but whence it comes is uncertain,
no time apparently being known when it was not in use.
Its first appearance in the Army List, however, is, according to
Colonel Archer, in 1841. Extracted
from 'Her
Majesty’s Army
'
CHARLES WARD (Private)
2nd Battalion Yorkshire Light Infantry
At Lindley, on june 26th 1900, where so many of our
brave men fell, about 500 of the enemy succeeded in getting to close
quarters with a picket, which was attacked from three sides.
Both the officers were wounded, and every man, with the exception
of six, was placed hors-de-combat.
A reinforcement to save the post was absolutely necessary, but
the message to that effect would have to be taken to the signalling
station. Ward volunteered
to do this, but , as it meant almost certain death to any attempting it,
his gallant offer was at first refused.
He, however, insisted on being allowed to go, and with 150 yards
of open ground to cross, swept by the heavy rifle-fire of the Boers,
succeeded in reaching the signallers. His message delivered, he resolved to return again, risking
his life with the object of encouraging his few remaining comrades to
maintain their defence, by assuring them that the much needed help was
asked for and would soon be at hand.
He contrived to reach the hard-pressed post again, but not before
being severely wounded.
Charles Ward, son of Mr. George Ward, was
born at Leeds, July 10th 1877, being educated at Primrose
Hill School in that city. On
April 29th 1879, he enlisted into the 1st
Battalion Torkshire Light Infantry-the old 51st of Peninsula
and Waterloo fame-with, which, under Colonel G.P.F. Byng, he served for
two years, joining the 2nd Battalion at Wynberg, Cape Colony.
Owing to his severe wound he has only two clasps to his medal,
Cape Colony and Free State. When
he gained the Victoria Cross his Company and Commanding Officers were
Captain Wittycombe and Lieut. –Colonel Barter, C.B., with
Major-General A.H. Paget, C.V.O., as Chief.
So highly was Ward’s conduct appreciated that the citizens of
Leeds, on his discharge from the service, presented him with a
testimonial and £600, together with a commemorative medal in gold by
Mr. William Owen.
