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122-915: The Westmeath Militia , later the Westmeath Rifles , was an Irish Militia regiment raised in County Westmeath in 1793. It saw action during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 , when it was involved in the Battle of the Big Cross . It later became a battalion of the Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) , but was amalgamated into another battalion in 1899. Although there are scattered references to town guards in 1584, no organised militia existed in Ireland before 1660. After that date, some militia forces were organised in

244-647: A Rifle green jacket with black facings. This was fundamentally the same as the Rifle Brigade, so only the insignia needed to change when it became a battalion of that corps. On the outbreak of the French Revolutionary War the English counties had drawn lots to determine the relative precedence of their militia regiments. In 1798 the new Irish militia regiments received their own table of precedence, in which County Westmeath came 6th. In 1833 King William IV drew

366-510: A French invasion during the Seven Years' War . Responsibility for raising and organising the force remained at county level, but funding was provided by central government. Officers were to be appointed from among the property-owning class. Men were to be chosen by ballot among the able-bodied men of the parish between the ages of 18 and 50, and would serve for three years (soon extended to five). If they wished not to serve, they could either provide

488-582: A continuation of the Cardwell Reforms a mobilisation scheme began to appear in the Army List from December 1875. This assigned places in an order of battle to Militia units serving Regular units in an 'Active Army' and a 'Garrison Army'. The Westmeath Militia was assigned to the Garrison Army manning a range of small forts and posts across Ireland. The Childers Reforms took Cardwell's reforms further, with

610-635: A landing at Fishguard in Wales in February 1797 ( Battle of Fishguard ) and a second invasion of Ireland in mid-1798. In Britain, the Royal Navy's response to the French campaign was heavily criticised; both fleets assigned to intercept the invasion fleet had failed, the only losses inflicted on the French coming from the small Cork squadron or Pellew's independent frigates. White was rewarded for his service on shore with

732-523: A large number of rebels, who were then dispersed by the arrival of reinforcements. The insurrection in County Antrim was over by 9 June. Meanwhile, the main body of the regiment was stationed at Clonakilty in West County Cork under the command of Lt-Col Sir Hugh O'Reilly. The regiment, 220 strong with its two 6-pounders, was ordered to march to Bandon, but approaching Ballynascarty on 19 June it

854-539: A major landing at Bantry Bay in December. The operation was launched during one of the stormiest winters of the 18th century, with the French fleet unprepared for such severe conditions. Patrolling British frigates observed the departure of the fleet and notified the British Channel Fleet , most of which was sheltering at Spithead for the winter. The French fleet was subject to confused orders as it left port and

976-770: A message from the Directory calling off the entire operation. De Galles knew that the British would be watching Brest harbour: their frigates were a constant presence as part of the Inshore Squadron of the blockade. In an effort to disguise his force's intentions, he first anchored in Camaret Bay and issued orders for his ships to pass through the Raz de Sein . The Raz was a dangerous narrow channel littered with rocks and sandbanks and subject to heavy surf during bad weather, but would also obscure

1098-537: A period of relatively calm weather. During the following days, the French ships that had gathered off the Shannon limped home, all badly damaged due to the increasingly rough seas and high winds. Several ships did not return to France at all, including the frigate Surveillante , which was scuttled in Bantry Bay on 2 January; many of those aboard, including General Julien Mermet and 600 cavalrymen, were rescued by boats from

1220-717: A result, La Crosse had only reached Ushant by 13 January, where he encountered the same fog that had enabled Révolution and Fraternité to reach safety. At 13:00, two ships emerged from the gloom to the east and Lacrosse turned away rather than risk his passengers in a pointless engagement. The ships persisted and were soon revealed to be the frigates Indefatigable under Captain Sir Edward Pellew, and Amazon under Captain Robert Carthew Reynolds , which had taken on supplies at Falmouth and then returned to their station off Brest. As Droits de l'Homme steered southwest,

1342-500: A role in coastal defence during the second and third Anglo-Dutch Wars between 1665 and 1674, and contributed to the defeat of the Duke of Monmouth in 1685. The militia's usefulness as a military force, never great, declined thereafter, until by the middle of the 18th century it required a major overhaul. This was achieved by the Militia Acts 1757–1762, passed as a response to the threat of

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1464-530: A sandbar near the town of Plozévet , the force of the waves rolling her onto her side. Amazon too was wrecked, although in a more sheltered position which enabled the frigate to remain upright. The only surviving ship was Indefatigable , which was able to round the Penmarck rocks and reach open water. While Reynolds fashioned rafts to bring his men safely to shore, the French officers on Droits de l'Homme were unable to launch their boats, their exposed position in

1586-565: A substitute or pay a £10 fine. There was considerable opposition to the reforms, both in Parliament and in the country at large. Riots occurred in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and elsewhere in 1757. These stemmed chiefly from an ill-informed fear that conscription and compulsory foreign service were being covertly introduced. In fact, the acts, which applied in England and Wales only, restricted service to

1708-485: A week the fleet had broken up, small squadrons and individual ships making their way back to Brest through storms, fog and British patrols. The British were largely unable to interfere with the French fleet before, during or after the attempted invasion. A few ships operating from Cork captured isolated French warships and transports, but the only significant British response came from Captain Sir Edward Pellew , who

1830-636: The Expédition d'Irlande ("Expedition to Ireland"), was an unsuccessful attempt by the French Republic to assist the outlawed Society of United Irishmen , a popular rebel Irish republican group, in their planned rebellion against British rule during the French Revolutionary Wars . The French intended to land a large expeditionary force in Ireland during the winter of 1796–1797 which would join with

1952-459: The Raz de Sein , situating temporary lightships in the channel to warn of hazards and giving instructions on the use of signal rockets during the passage. The fleet was so delayed in this work that darkness began to fall before preparations were complete and he abandoned the plan at approximately 16:00 and signalled for the fleet to leave via the main channel from the port, leading the way in his flagship,

2074-544: The Admiralty . He remained off Brest with the rest of the squadron, and sighted the main French fleet at 15:30 on 15 December, bringing his frigates inshore towards Camaret Bay to establish its size and purpose. At 15:30 on 16 December, the French sailed from the Bay, Pellew observing closely and despatching Revolutionnaire to assist in the search for Colpoys. Morard de Galles had spent most of 16 December preparing for passage through

2196-505: The Bay of Biscay . The following day he sighted the delayed French squadron under Villeneuve and gave chase, but Villeneuve was able to outrun Colpoys' pursuit in a gale, reaching Lorient ahead of the British, whose ships were badly damaged by the storm. Unable to continue operations, Colpoys was forced to retreat to Spithead for repairs. The response from the Channel Fleet under Lord Bridport

2318-805: The French Directory in person. During this period, the British government repealed some of the Penal Laws, in an attempt to quell unrest. The French First Republic had long planned an invasion of the British Isles , but their ambitions had been repeatedly thwarted by other factors, including other fronts of the Revolutionary Wars, the War in the Vendée and the parlous state of the French Navy . This latter problem

2440-901: The Jacobite rising of 1745 in Scotland, militias were raised in Argyll , the Isle of Skye and the northern counties. They are often confused with Loudon's Highlanders regiment and the Independent Highland Companies who also supported the Government. The Campbell of Argyll Militia also known as the Campbell militia , the Argyll militia , or the Argyllshire men , was an irregular militia unit formed in 1745 by John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll to oppose

2562-548: The Regular Army was fighting overseas, the coasts of England and Wales were defended by the embodied Militia , but Ireland had no equivalent force. The Parliament of Ireland passed a Militia Act, but this failed to create an effective force. However it opened the way for the paramilitary Irish Volunteers to fill the gap. The Volunteers were outside the control of either the parliament or the Dublin Castle administration . When

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2684-592: The Westmeath Rifles early in 1855, with six companies and regimental headquarters (HQ) at Castletowndelvin . By early March it was stationed at Athlone , moving to the Curragh outside Dublin during July. By the autumn it was at Cork , and in November it crossed to England and became part of the Portsmouth garrison. George Forbes, 7th Earl of Granard , was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel on 26 December 1855. During February 1856

2806-487: The lord-lieutenant of each county to appoint officers and raise men for the English Militia . Although the king commanded the forces, they were not centrally funded. The burden of supplying men and equipment fell on property owners, in proportion to their income from land or their property value. The militia could be called out for local police actions, to keep the peace, and in the event of a national emergency. It played

2928-733: The 'Localisation of the Forces' scheme introduced by the Cardwell Reforms of 1872, militia regiments were brigaded with their local linked regular regiments. For the Westmeath Militia this was in Sub-District No 67 (Counties of Meath , Westmeath and Longford , and King's and Queen's Counties ) in Dublin District of Irish Command : Although often referred to as brigades, the sub-districts were purely administrative organisations, but in

3050-468: The 6th Bn Rifle Brigade did not transfer and was disbanded on 31 July 1908. The following served as Colonel of the Regiment : Lieutenant-Colonels of the regiment (COs from 1852) included: The following served as Honorary Colonel of the regiment: Other notable officers included: The uniform of the Westmeath Militia was a red coat with yellow facings . When it became a rifle corps in 1855 it adopted

3172-595: The 9th Bn became CO of the amalgamated 6th Bn, and was followed in command by two more ex-9th Bn officers, E.W. Purdon, promoted 4 July 1900, retired 16 January 1901, and Gilbert L.J.J.G. Nugent, appointed 16 February 1901. The combined 6th Bn was embodied from 5 December 1899 to 3 December 1900 during the Second Boer War . When the militia was converted into the Special Reserve under the Haldane Reforms of 1908,

3294-633: The Atlantic to avoid the risk of being driven onto the rocky French Biscay shoreline during a storm. The only British ships within sight of Brest were a frigate squadron, consisting of HMS  Indefatigable , HMS  Amazon , HMS  Phoebe , HMS  Révolutionnaire and the lugger HMS Duke of York , under the command of Captain Sir Edward Pellew in Indefatigable . Pellew had noted French preparations on 11 December and immediately sent Phoebe to warn Colpoys and Amazon to Falmouth , to alert

3416-543: The Brest shipyards, while the troops set aside for the invasion of Cornwall proved unreliable, deserting in large numbers. A practice voyage of the Cornish invasion fleet ended in total failure, as the small ships intended for the operation proved unable to operate in open water. The plan was dropped and the reliable soldiers from the unit were merged into the Ireland expeditionary force and the rest returned to prison. Reinforcements from

3538-536: The British and Irish militia embodied for a whole generation, becoming regiments of full-time professional soldiers (though restricted to service in Britain or Ireland respectively), which the regular army increasingly saw as a prime source of recruits. They served in coast defences, manned garrisons, guarded prisoners of war, and carried out internal security duties. In Ireland the latter role assumed greater importance, with frequent armed clashes between militia detachments and

3660-458: The Cape Colony , was battered by the storm and passed right through the French fleet without realising the danger, anchoring in a disabled state at Crookhaven . For four more days Bouvet's ships were battered by the high winds, none able to approach the shore without severe risk of being destroyed on the rocky coast. Losing their anchors as the cables snapped, many ships were forced to run before

3782-709: The Catholic population). It would subsequently be disarmed itself however in 1685 during the Monmouth Rebellion by Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell . As a result of the ad-hoc nature of its formation the legal position of the pre-existing Militia in Ireland was only finally formalised when the Parliament of Ireland passed an act , the Militia Act (Ireland) 1715 (2 Geo. 1. c. 9 (I)), in 1716 raising regiments of militia in each county and county corporate . Membership

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3904-613: The Cromwellian period with the raising of two regiments of Militia in Dublin in May 1659. In 1666 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War the establishment of a national militia was begun. This started as a proposal from Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery to James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond the then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland . Orrey was Lord President of Munster and the establishment of militia

4026-521: The Directory, which understood that by attacking Ireland they would be striking at the least defensible part of the British Isles . Support for the British government was weakest there and the United Irishmen optimistically claimed to be able to raise an irregular army of as many as 250,000 waiting to join the French once they had landed, with the additional attraction that a successful establishment of an Irish Republic would prove an ideological coup for

4148-571: The French Republic. Finally and most significantly, a large expeditionary force in Ireland could provide an ideal springboard for an invasion of Britain, especially in combination with a plan then under development to land 2,000 uniformed criminals in Cornwall , who would distract the British Army during the invasion of Ireland and could potentially provide a beachhead for future operations. With

4270-479: The French captains as to their location. When dawn broke on 17 December, most of the French fleet was scattered across the approaches to Brest. The largest intact group was that under Vice-admiral François Joseph Bouvet , which had come through the Raz de Sein with nine ships of the line, six frigates and one transport. The other ships, including Fraternité , which also carried General Hoche, were alone or in small groups;

4392-571: The French example, combined with the imposition of the Penal Laws which discriminated against the Catholic majority and a large Presbyterian minority, prompted the creation of the Society of United Irishmen , a broad non-sectarian coalition of groups seeking to create an Irish Republic. Initially a non-violent political movement, the United Irishmen were forced to operate as a secret society after membership

4514-441: The French landing. On 24 December the wind slackened and a council of war was convened among the expedition's senior officers. Together they resolved to force a landing despite the weather, identifying a nearby creek as the safest point and giving orders for the operation to go ahead at first light on 25 December. During the night the weather deteriorated once more, and by morning the waves were so violent that they were breaking over

4636-642: The French were encouraged to launch a second attempt in 1798, successfully landing 2,000 men in August but failing to influence the Irish Rebellion and again losing significant numbers of men and ships. Following the French Revolution which began in 1789, the cause of republicanism was taken up in many countries, including the Kingdom of Ireland , at that time ruled by the Kingdom of Great Britain . Opposition to British rule had existed in Ireland for centuries, but

4758-441: The Mediterranean Fleet were also delayed: seven ships from the expedition under Contre-amiral Joseph de Richery had to shelter from the British blockade squadron in Rochefort , only arriving in Brest on 8 December, while a second squadron under Contre-amiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve did not arrive until after the expeditionary force had departed. Throughout late 1796, progress on the expedition faltered. Hoche publicly blamed

4880-437: The Regular Army. In 1805 the militia establishment was raised to allow for this. When the militia were augmented again in 1807, Westmeath had to hold ballots in all its parishes to obtain enough men. An 'Interchange Act' was passed in July 1811 permitting British and Irish militia units to volunteer for service across the Irish Sea. By the end of July 34 out of 38 Irish militia regiments had volunteered for this service, including

5002-445: The Shannon, but as the fleet broke up she became separated. With provisions running low and landings still impossible, Captain Jean-Baptiste Raymond de Lacrosse determined to return to France independently. Progress was slow as Droits de l'Homme was overloaded with 1,300 men, including 800 soldiers under General Jean Humbert . She was further delayed when she encountered and captured a small British privateer named Cumberland . As

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5124-424: The United Irishmen and drive the British out of Ireland. The French anticipated that this would be a major blow to British morale, prestige and military effectiveness, and was also intended to possibly be the first stage of an eventual invasion of Great Britain itself. To this end, the Directory gathered a force of approximately 15,000 soldiers at Brest under General Lazare Hoche during late 1796, in readiness for

5246-399: The Westmeaths, and a reported 130 rebels killed. Legends have grown up about a rebel leader known as Tadhg an Asna who was said to have led the attack on the guns where he was killed. The rebels seem to have expected the militiamen to join them, but this did not happen. There was no other uprising in the province of Munster . With the diminishing threat of invasion after 1799, the strength of

5368-460: The Westmeaths. The Earl of Westmeath was with his regiment when it was stationed at Dover . The voyage back to Ireland in 1813 took 11 days, from Spithead to Queenstown . The war ended in 1814 with the abdication of Napoleon in April. Militia recruiting was halted and the regiments could be progressively disembodied. The Earl of Westmeath died on 30 December 1814 and his son, George, 8th Earl of Westmeath (created Marquess of Westmeath in 1822),

5490-553: The act called for lists to be drawn up of eligible men in each locality and with enlistees been drawn by ballot. The result of this was to cause widespread discontent in Ireland resulting in riots and close to 230 deaths over an eight week period. The list of Militia regiments as raised after the passing of the Militia Act (Ireland) 1793. The regimental numbers were assigned by ballot on the 8th of August 1794. French expedition to Ireland (1796) British victory The French expedition to Ireland , known in French as

5612-421: The army, the militia had no cavalry or, until 1853, artillery. The militia was constitutionally separate from the army, but from the 1790s militiamen were encouraged to volunteer for the army, and did so in large numbers. During the French Revolutionary Wars the militia expanded to a total strength of 82,000 men in February 1799, reducing to 66,000 through an act of Parliament of that year designed to reinforce

5734-425: The army. During the period to 1815, 110,000 men transferred to line regiments as against 36,000 prior to 1802. The militia continued to serve as a coastal defence force, as well as guarding dockyards and prisoners of war, and performing other duties including riot control during the Luddite unrest of 1811–1813. It was disembodied in 1815 but balloting continued until 1831. An incomplete list includes: In

5856-441: The attempted invasion continued to be inadequate, Colpoys arriving at Spithead on 31 December with only six of his ships still in formation. Only a handful of ships based at Cork under Rear-Admiral Robert Kingsmill , principally HMS  Polyphemus under Captain George Lumsdaine and a frigate squadron, interfered with the French fleet: Polyphemus seized the transport Justine on 30 December and HMS  Jason captured

5978-424: The bay with both hands. Postponing the uprising, Tone continued to rally support in Europe, raising a fleet in the Netherlands for an attempted invasion that ended in destruction at the Battle of Camperdown . In May 1798, a British crackdown arrested the leaders of the United Irishmen in Ireland and provoked the Irish Rebellion . By the time the French had managed to gather a small force and reach Ireland in August,

6100-400: The bows of many ships. Anchors dragged and a number of vessels were blown right out of the Bay and into the Atlantic, unable to return against the wind. In the storm, the largest ship of the line, the Indomptable , collided with the frigate Résolue and both suffered severe damage. HMS Monarch , flagship of Vice-Admiral Sir George Elphinstone returning from the successful Invasion of

6222-415: The captains forced open their secret orders to discover their destination, in the absence of instructions from any commanding officers. One ship had been lost; the 74-gun ship of the line Séduisant had driven onto the Grand Stevenent rock during the night and sank with the loss of 680 lives. She too had fired numerous rockets and signal guns in an effort to attract attention, succeeding only in compounding

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6344-403: The command of its colonel. The Earl of Westmeath had studied tactics as a member of the Volunteers, and he drilled his regiment hard. He personally read the Articles of War to his men after Sunday services, stressing the penalties for 'profane cursing and swearing'. But he also took care of his men: finding the price of provisions to be high, he bought good quality sheep and the mutton was sold to

6466-424: The confusion in the fleet. Pellew, unable now to affect the large French force, sailed for Falmouth to telegraph his report to the Admiralty and replenish his supplies. By 19 December, Bouvet had gathered 33 ships together and set a course for Mizen Head in southern Ireland, the designated rendezvous point where he was instructed by his sealed orders to wait five days for further instructions from France. One of

6588-614: The country of regular troops, provided the stimulus that brought the defaulters into line. By 1778 all English and Welsh counties had embodied their militias. Training of the disembodied militia took place over a period of several weeks each year, outside which officers and men would be largely free to pursue their civilian lives. When embodied, regiments would normally be quartered in public houses or barracks where available. Camps were also an option, and these were often sizeable affairs which brought troops together in large numbers for strategic and training purposes. Although overseas service

6710-429: The crucible of the Scottish Enlightenment . The Militia Act 1797 empowered the Lord Lieutenants of Scotland to raise and command militia regiments in each of the "Counties, Stewartries, Cities, and Places" under their jurisdiction. At first the Act was opposed due to some believing the militia ballot would be used to enable the Crown to remove men from Scotland. The earliest history of the Militia in Ireland dates to

6832-427: The departure point from the Solent , the wind was blowing from the west and his remaining eight ships were rendered immobile until 3 January. In the absence of Morard de Galles and Hoche, Bouvet and his army counterpart, General Emmanuel de Grouchy , gave orders on 21 December for the fleet to anchor in preparation for landings the following day. Local maritime pilots , believing the fleet to be British, rowed out to

6954-405: The disembodied Westmeath Militia on 22 August 1850. The Militia of the United Kingdom was revived by the Militia Act of 1852 , enacted during a period of international tension. As before, units were raised and administered on a county basis, and filled by voluntary enlistment (although conscription by means of the Militia Ballot might be used if the counties failed to meet their quotas). Training

7076-436: The end of the War in the Vendée and peace with Spain, substantial French forces were made available for the operation, to be led by General Hoche and scheduled for the end of October 1796. Hoche was a successful military commander, who had defeated the Vendée Royalists and been subsequently engaged in planning the Cornish invasion. A body of veteran soldiers and the entire French Atlantic Fleet were placed at his disposal, based in

7198-431: The fog, de Galles separated from his small squadron near the rendezvous on 21 December, only to discover a British frigate immediately ahead. Retreating from the threat, Fraternité was chased far into the Atlantic before she could escape the unidentified pursuer. On the return journey de Galle found the winds against him, and it took eight days to regain Mizen Head. Phoebe did not find Colpoys until 19 December, deep in

7320-438: The frigate Fraternité . It was so dark by the time the signal was made that most ships failed to see it, Fraternité and the corvette Atalante attempting to notify them by rocket signal. These signals were confusing and many ships failed to understand, sailing for the Raz de Sein rather than the main channel. Pellew added to the problem by weaving ahead of the fleet shining blue lights and firing rockets, further confusing

7442-399: The guns, but were fired upon by a 100-strong party of the Caithness Legion who had been marching to replace the Westmeath militia at Bandon, and had advanced towards the sound of the firing. Another rebel group appeared in the rear, but were dispersed by the guns with numerous casualties. The Battle of the Big Cross , as it became known, resulted in the loss of one sergeant and one private of

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7564-404: The heavy surf destroying every attempt to reach shore and drowning hundreds of men. Losses on board the wreck mounted as the storm continued, breaking open the stern of the ship and flooding the interior. On the morning of 15 January a group of prisoners from Cumberland reached the shore in a small boat, but subsequent attempts failed and it was not until 17 January that the sea calmed enough for

7686-452: The invasion threat receded they diminished in numbers but remained a political force. On the outbreak of the French Revolutionary War In 1793, the Irish administration passed an effective Militia Act that created an official Irish Militia , while the paramilitary volunteers were essentially banned. The new Act was based on existing English precedents, with the men conscripted by ballot to fill county quotas (paid substitutes were permitted) and

7808-498: The large second-rate HMS  Prince swung out of control and collided with the 80-gun HMS  Sans Pareil . At almost the same time, another second-rate, HMS  Formidable , was driven into the 100-gun first-rate HMS Ville de Paris by strong winds while the 98-gun HMS  Atlas grounded. All five ships were required to enter dock for extensive repairs, denying Bridport his strongest vessels and delaying his departure further. When he eventually reached St Helens ,

7930-426: The late 17th century, while the Kingdom of Scotland was still an independent country sharing a monarch with England, there were calls for the resurrection of the country's militia, with the understated aim of protecting the rights of Scots in Great Britain. A historical account of the debate which followed on Fletcher's work is given in John Robertson's 1985 The Scottish Enlightenment and the Militia Issue . During

8052-398: The latter towing the dismasted Résolue . On 13 January most of the remainder returned, including Nestor , Tourville , Éole and Cassard with their attendant frigates, while the frigate Bravoure arrived at Lorient alone. Losses had continued as the French neared Brest, the disarmed Suffren recaptured by HMS  Daedalus off Ushant and burnt on 8 January, while Atalante

8174-405: The line, 13 frigates and 14 other vessels, including several large transports created by removing the cannons from old frigates to maximise cargo space. Each ship of the line carried 600 soldiers, the frigates 250 and the transports approximately 400. Included were cavalry units, field artillery and substantial military stores with which to arm the thousands of anticipated Irish volunteers. Hoche

8296-461: The lots to determine an order of precedence for the whole of the United Kingdom. Those regiments raised before 1783 took the first 69 places, followed by the 60 regiments (including those in Ireland) raised for the French Revolutionary War: the Westmeath Militia took 114th place, and this remained unchanged when the list was updated in 1855. Irish Militia Following the restoration of Charles II in 1660, Parliament passed several acts empowering

8418-420: The major Atlantic seaport of Brest . The number of soldiers earmarked for the invasion is uncertain; the French Directory suggested 25,000 men would be required, the Irish delegates insisting that 15,000 would be sufficient. Estimates of the number of soldiers eventually embarked range between 13,500 and 20,000. By August the plan was already behind schedule: severe shortages of stores and wages slowed work at

8540-535: The men at 3 1 ⁄ 2 d a pound , instead of the market price of 6 d a pound. As an early arrival, the regiment was the first to get huts constructed in its section of the lines by Loughlinstown Groves. The huts meant that the camp could be occupied throughout the year. Anxiety about a possible French invasion grew during the autumn of 1796 and preparations were made for field operations. A large French expeditionary force appeared in Bantry Bay on 21 December and troops from all over Ireland were marched towards

8662-555: The message and continued to the second rendezvous off the River Shannon , but they were few and scattered and in the continuing storms no landing was possible. With provisions running low, these ships also turned and sailed for Brest, as the weather worsened once more. As their expeditionary force sailed home, Morard de Galles and Hoche arrived in Bantry Bay on 30 December, discovering that the fleet had gone. With their own provisions almost exhausted, Fraternité and Révolution were forced to return to France as well. The British response to

8784-437: The militia could be gradually reduced. The last regiments had been disembodied by the end of April 1816. After Waterloo there was a long peace. Although officers continued to be commissioned into the militia and ballots might still be held, the regiments were rarely assembled for training and the permanent staffs of militia regiments were progressively reduced. Fulke Greville-Nugent , formerly 1st Life Guards , became colonel of

8906-582: The militia could be reduced. At the beginning of 1800 the surplus men were encouraged to volunteer for regiments of the line . In March 1800 the light battalions were reformed, the Westmeath Militia being warned to make sure that its light company comprised men who had served before. A composite corps of pioneers under the Quartermaster-General was also formed by detachments from the regiments. Each detachment comprised one subaltern , one sergeant, one corporal and 20 picked men, who received extra pay for

9028-614: The militia regiments becoming numbered battalions of their linked regiments. However, there were more Irish militia regiments than were required by the Irish regular regiments, so the Royal Longford and Westmeath Rifles were split from the Leinster Regiment (as the 100th and 109th became) and instead were assigned to the Rifle Brigade , which had no county affiliation but recruited nationally. This large regiment now consisted of: Formally,

9150-477: The naval command and specifically Vice-amiral Villaret de Joyeuse for the delay, whom he accused of being more interested in the planning of a proposed invasion of India. In October, Villaret was replaced by Vice-amiral Morard de Galles and the India plans were cancelled, while Hoche was placed in direct command of discipline within the fleet. By the second week of December the fleet was ready, consisting of 17 ships of

9272-427: The night, punctuated by short breaks in which the more mobile British ships repaired their battle damage out of range of Lacrosse's guns. At 04:20 on 14 January, lookouts on all three ships sighted waves breaking immediately eastwards. Desperate to escape the heavy surf, Indefatigable turned north and Amazon turned south, while the battered Droits de l'Homme was unable to make any manoeuvre and drove straight onto

9394-436: The officers having to meet certain property qualifications. County Westmeath's quota was 350 men in six companies, and the regiment was raised at the county town of Mullingar . George Nugent, 7th Earl of Westmeath , was appointed Colonel on 25 April 1793, with Sir Hugh O'Reilly (created 1st Baronet in 1795), as Lieutenant-Colonel with seniority from the following day. The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars saw

9516-558: The officers were former Regulars. Around a third of the recruits and many young officers went on to join the Regular Army. By the mid-1860s the regimental HQ of the Westmeath Rifles had returned to Mullingar. Colonel Greville took the surname Nugent-Greville in 1866 and was created Lord Greville in 1869. The Militia Reserve introduced in 1867 consisted of present and former militiamen who undertook to serve overseas in case of war. Under

9638-537: The permanent staffs of non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and drummers under the regimental adjutant . However, the Peace of Amiens was short-lived and preparations to re-embody the militia begun in November 1802. Early in 1803 the regiments were ordered to begin re-enrolling former militiamen and new volunteers as well as using the ballot. The proclamation to embody the militia was issued on 15 March and carried out on 25 March. Anti-invasion preparations were now put in hand and

9760-504: The rebellion was almost over and the inadequate French army, led by Jean Humbert, surrendered in September at the Battle of Ballinamuck . A subsequent invasion attempt the following month also ended in failure, when the invasion squadron was intercepted and defeated at the Battle of Tory Island . Wolfe Tone was captured at the action off Tory Island and committed suicide in prison. His death, combined with military defeat and reprisals against

9882-417: The reconstituted militia regiments underwent training, although most were not considered well enough trained to go into camp during the summer of 1804. The light battalions had been reformed in September 1803 but were discontinued in 1806. Over the following years the regiments carried out garrison duties at various towns across Ireland, attended summer training camps. They also provided volunteers to transfer to

10004-446: The regiment became the 9th (Westmeath Militia) Battalion, Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) on 1 July 1881 The Rifle Brigade Depot was at Peninsula Barracks , Winchester , but the militia battalions retained their own headquarters. On 1 April 1899 the 9th (Westmeath Militia) Bn merged with 6th (Royal Longford Militia) Bn to form the 6th (Royal Longford and Westmeath Militia) Battalion, Rifle Brigade . Lieutenant-Col Malone of

10126-551: The regiment moved to Chichester . The war ended with the Treaty of Paris on 30 March, and the militia were stood down at the end of May. The militia now settled into a routine of annual training (though there was no training for the Irish Militia from 1866 to 1870 at the time of the Fenian crisis). The militia regiments now had a large cadre of permanent staff (about 30) and a number of

10248-461: The regular army by encouraging militia volunteers through the offer of bounties for enlistment. In 1802 peace with France led to the disembodying of the militia, which was embodied again in 1803, when hostilities resumed. Britain's increasing overseas troop commitments during the Napoleonic Wars resulted in growing pressure on recruitment for the militia, both for home defence and as a feeder for

10370-577: The regular seamen and in April the Spithead Mutiny broke out, paralysing the Channel Fleet . The French, still recovering from their losses in the winter campaign, were unable to respond. In Ireland, the failure of the French expeditionary force was the source of great frustration: Wolfe Tone, who was aboard Indomptable throughout the voyage, reported that he felt that he could have touched either side of

10492-534: The reign of King Charles II but it was not until 1715 that the Irish Militia came under statutory authority. During the 18th Century there were various Volunteer Associations and unofficial militia units controlled by the landowners, concerned mainly with internal security. During the War of American Independence , the threat of invasion by the Americans' allies, France and Spain, appeared to be serious. While most of

10614-521: The remaining French fleet while others scrambled ashore to become prisoners of war . On 5 January, Polyphemus outran and captured the frigate Tartu , of 44 guns and 625 men (including troops), after four hours of intermittent combat. The Royal Navy later took her into service as HMS Uranie . Polyphemus also captured another transport, but the weather being bad and night falling, she did not take possession. Captain Lumsdaine of Polyphemus reported that

10736-671: The rising. Following the merger of Scotland into the new Kingdom of Great Britain, the British Militia Act 1757 did not apply in Scotland. There the traditional system continued, so that militia regiments existed in some places and not in others. This was resented by some, and the Militia Club, soon to become the Poker Club , was formed in Edinburgh to promote the raising of a Scottish militia. This and several other Edinburgh clubs became

10858-532: The route back to France. When Unicorn and Doris reappeared the following morning, they were operating as scouts for Bridport's fleet, which had finally left port at the start of the new year and had encountered the frigates during the night. Escaping pursuit in a fog, Révolution and Fraternité sailed directly for France and arrived at Rochefort on 13 January. The majority of the remaining French ships had reached Brest on 11 January, including Constitution , Trajan , Pluton , Wattignies and Pégase ,

10980-457: The self-styled 'Defenders' in the 1790s. By the end of August 1794 the Westmeath Militia was garrisoning Wexford . In 1795 the new Lord Lieutenant of Ireland , the Earl of Camden , introduced summer camps to give the militia field training in larger formations. The largest was at Loughlinstown near Dublin . This opened on 1 June and the Westmeath Militia was one of the first regiments to join, under

11102-580: The ships and were seized, providing the French with guides to the best landing sites. During the night of 21 December, the weather suddenly and significantly worsened, Atlantic gales bringing blizzards that hid the shoreline and forced the fleet to anchor or risk being wrecked. They remained in the Bay for four days in the coldest winter recorded since 1708. The inexperienced French sailors, lacking any winter clothing, were unable to operate their ships. On shore, local militia forces were marshaled by local landowner Richard White , taking positions in anticipation of

11224-535: The ships still missing was the Fraternité . Despite the disappearance of its commanders the French fleet continued to Bantry Bay , sailing through both high winds and thick fog, which delayed its arrival until 21 December. While Bouvet sailed for Ireland, Fraternité crossed the Western Approaches in search of the fleet, accompanied by Nestor , Romaine and Cocarde . Unwittingly passing Bouvet's fleet in

11346-567: The size, strength and direction of the French fleet from the British squadron offshore, which French scouts claimed consisted of 30 ships. Despite the French reports, the principal British blockade squadron was absent from the approaches to Brest during the night of 15 December. Most of the fleet had retired to one of the British Channel Ports to avoid the winter storms, while the remaining squadron under Rear-Admiral John Colpoys had been forced to retreat 40 nautical miles (74 km) into

11468-434: The small naval vessel Arrogante to approach the wreck and remove the remaining 290 survivors. The French attempt to invade Ireland had ended in total failure. With the exception of a handful of prisoners of war, not one French soldier had successfully landed in Ireland, despite some ships remaining off the coast for almost two weeks. Twelve ships had been lost and over two thousand soldiers and sailors drowned. The invasion

11590-517: The territory of Great Britain. However some militia regiments did volunteer for service in Ireland during the Rebellion of 1798 . Local opposition to the acts resulted in some counties being slow to implement them. Six counties – Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire, Sussex and Worcestershire – were in default for many years, also defaulting on a large part of the fines imposed on them in consequence. The American Revolution , which drained

11712-622: The threatened area: the Westmeath was sent from Limerick . However, the French fleet was scattered by winter storms, several ships being wrecked, and none of the French troops succeeded in landing; there was no sign of a rising by the United Irishmen . The invasion was called off on 29 December, and the troop concentration was dispersed in early 1797. Early in 1797 the light companies of the militia were detached to join composite battalions drawn from several militia regiments. The Westmeath contingent

11834-462: The title Baron Bantry . At sea, Colpoys was replaced in command of the blockade of Brest by Rear-Admiral Sir Roger Curtis , and extensive deployments to the Bay of Biscay were made in February and March to prevent any further French operations. In addition, reinforcements were also sent to the fleet off Cádiz under Vice-Admiral Sir John Jervis , who had won the Battle of Cape St Vincent on 14 February. These extended deployments were unpopular with

11956-421: The transport Suffren shortly afterwards, although she was later recaptured by the French frigate Tartu . The first French ships to return to Brest arrived on 1 January, including Bouvet's flagship Immortalité accompanied by Indomptable , Redoutable , Patriote , Mucius , Fougueux and some smaller ships. They had avoided any contact with British warships and had been able to make good speed in

12078-429: The transport Ville de Lorient , Druid escorting the prize back to Cork. The following day Unicorn and Doris encountered some of the force that had attempted to land at the Shannon. Outnumbered, the frigates retreated westwards and encountered the battered Révolution and Fraternité , which withdrew before them. This prevented Morard de Galles and Hoche from belatedly joining their squadron and took them away from

12200-663: The transport was leaky and making distress signals, but that he was unable to assist. He thought it highly likely that she had sunk. This may have been the transport Fille-Unique , which sank in the Bay of Biscay on 6 January, although the fate of the 300 soldiers aboard is unknown. On 7 January, the British frigates HMS  Unicorn under Captain Sir Thomas Williams , HMS  Doris under Captain Charles Jones and HMS  Druid under Captain Richard King , captured

12322-484: The wind and scatter into the Western Approaches. Others were destroyed: an American ship named Ellis , passing close to Crookhaven on 29 December, encountered a vessel wallowing in the waves, dismasted and with the deck strewn with bodies. The American captain, Harvey, reported that he approached the ship but was unable to assist her due to the storm and as he watched, the ship was driven ashore and destroyed. This

12444-447: The winds increased once more and the sea became choppy, preventing Lacrosse from opening the gunports on his lower deck without severe risk of flooding and snapping his topmasts, which reduced his ship's stability. Realising his opponent's difficulties, Pellew closed with the larger ship and began a heavy fire. At 18:45, Amazon came within range and the frigates combined to repeatedly rake the French ship. The combat continued throughout

12566-553: The work. The Westmeath contingent served in the '1st Division'. By the end of 1801 peace negotiations with the French were progressing and recruiting and re-enlistment for the Irish Militia was stopped in October. The men received the new clothing they were due on 25 December, but the Treaty of Amiens was signed in March 1802 and the regiments were disembodied over the next two months, leaving only

12688-697: Was a major cause for concern: the Navy had suffered heavily from the removal of its officer corps during the Revolution and then endured a series of military setbacks, culminating in the tactical defeat at the Glorious First of June in 1794 and the disastrous Croisière du Grand Hiver in 1795. After securing peace on several fronts in 1795, the new French Directory decided that Britain was one of their most dangerous remaining opponents, and they determined to defeat it through invasion. The applications from Tone intrigued

12810-472: Was abandoned, Hoche and his remaining men were returned to the army for service in Germany, and the general died nine months later from natural causes. The French Navy, although criticised for failing to land the expeditionary force, was also praised for successfully reaching Ireland and returning without encountering the main body of the British fleet. This achievement encouraged further invasion attempts, including

12932-410: Was able to drive the French ship of the line Droits de l'Homme ashore in the action of 13 January 1797 with the loss of over 1,000 lives. In total, the French lost 12 ships captured or wrecked and thousands of soldiers and sailors drowned, without a single man reaching Ireland except as prisoners of war . Both navies were criticised by their governments for their behaviour during the campaign, but

13054-649: Was appointed Colonel of the Westmeath Militia on 7 January 1815. He had previously been in the Coldstream Guards and had served in the Egyptian campaign. Napoleon escaped from Elba in 1815 and the Irish Militia were called out again on 26 June as the bulk of the regular army crossed to the Continent for the short Waterloo campaign and occupation duties in its aftermath. There were some disturbances in Ireland during this period, but these had died down by February 1816 and

13176-467: Was attached to 2nd Light Battalion, stationed at Bandon . The militia regiments were each issued with two light six-pounder 'battalion guns', with the gun detachments trained by the Royal Artillery . When the militiamen of 1793 reached the end of their four-year enlistment in 1797, most of the Irish regiments were able to maintain their numbers through re-enlistments (for a bounty). The Westmeath Militia

13298-399: Was attacked at a crossroads by a body of 3–400 rebels, mainly armed with pikes, coming down the hillside on the left of the column. The militia hurriedly formed up and drove them off with musket fire just in time. O'Reilly had to restrain his men from pursuit, because he could see that the rebels had retired up the hill, and were being reinforced by other groups. A rebel party attempted to seize

13420-450: Was augmented in July 1797 and its establishment was raised to 460 all ranks. However, all the parishes in Westmeath had to ballot to raise the additional men, and this led to considerable disturbances: a mob disrupted the balloting at Five Mile House. Here the magistrate had assembled a group of his neighbours, who opened fire on the stone-throwing rioters, killing nine and wounding many more. Order

13542-428: Was excluded from the militia's duties, embodied regiments were usually required to serve away from their home counties, and were frequently moved from one station to another. This was intended to reduce the risk of the men sympathising with the populace if they were required to quell civil unrest. Pay and conditions were similar to those of the regular army, with the additional benefit of money for family dependants. Unlike

13664-502: Was for 56 days on enlistment, then for 21–28 days per year, during which the men received full army pay. Under the Act, Militia units could be embodied by Royal Proclamation for full-time home defence service in three circumstances: The outbreak of the Crimean War in 1854 and the despatch of an expeditionary force led to the militia being called out for home defence. The regiment was reformed as

13786-564: Was made illegal in 1793 at the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars . Deciding that their only hope of creating the Irish Republic lay in armed revolt, the United Irishmen began secretly organising and arming their forces. In search of external aid, two of their leaders, Lord Edward FitzGerald and Arthur O'Connor travelled to Basel to meet with French General Lazare Hoche . Their efforts were supported by Protestant Dublin lawyer Theobald Wolfe Tone , who travelled to Paris to appeal to

13908-535: Was not the only ship to discover Révolution ; the long-delayed Fraternité encountered the ships and observed the destruction of the Scévola , which was burnt once she had been abandoned. Bouvet had been driven offshore in his flagship Immortalité during the storm, and when the wind fell during 29 December he decided to abandon the operation. Signalling to the ships within view, he ordered his remaining squadron to sail southeast towards Brest. Some ships failed to receive

14030-466: Was outrun and captured by HMS Phoebe on 10 January. On 12 January, the storeship Allègre was captured by the brig HMS  Spitfire . By 13 January, all of the French fleet had been accounted for except the small brig Mutine , which was blown all the way to Santa Cruz and was captured there in July, and the 74-gun Droits de l'Homme . Droits de l'Homme had been among the ships under Bouvet in Bantry Bay and then with those that carried on to

14152-513: Was restored before the military arrived, after which the balloting was carried out and the Westmeath Militia got their additional men. The Irish Rebellion of 1798 broke out in May, and there were scattered engagements in different parts of the country. The 2nd Light Battalion (including the Light Company of the Wicklows) was present at the Battle of Antrim on 7 June when a small garrison held off

14274-440: Was restricted to Protestants between the ages of sixteen and sixty. In 1793, during the Napoleonic Wars , the Irish militia were reorganized by the Militia Act (Ireland) 1793 (33 Geo. 3. c. 22 (I)) to form thirty-eight county and city regiments. While officers of the reorganized force were all Protestants, membership of the other ranks was now opened up to members of all denominations, including Roman Catholics. The provisions of

14396-433: Was scattered across the approaches to Brest: one ship was wrecked with heavy loss of life and the others widely dispersed. Separated, most of the French fleet managed to reach Bantry Bay late in December, but its commanders were driven miles off course and without them the fleet was unsure of what action to take, with amphibious landings impossible due to the weather conditions, which were the worst recorded since 1708. Within

14518-474: Was similarly ineffective. News of the French departure from Brest did not arrive in Plymouth , the most westerly of the British fleet ports, until 20 December. Many of Bridport's ships, based at Spithead, were not ready for sea and it was several days before enough vessels were manned and equipped for service. The order to leave port was issued on 25 December, but the fleet was almost immediately thrown into chaos when

14640-449: Was still dissatisfied, announcing to the Directory on 8 December that he would rather lead his men in any other operation than the planned attack on Ireland. He was supported by Morard de Galles, who admitted that his men were so inexperienced at sea that encounters with the enemy should be avoided wherever possible. Despite the misgivings of the expedition's commanders, the fleet left Brest as scheduled on 15 December 1796, one day ahead of

14762-528: Was the 44-gun frigate Impatiente , of which only seven men survived from her complement of 550 crew and passengers. Harvey also recounted coming across the Révolution and frigate Scévola . Captain Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley was in the process of removing the crew and passengers from Scévola before she foundered, the heavy weather having reduced the 40-gun razee frigate to a sinking condition. Ellis

14884-440: Was the most advanced there, this was partially driven by fears of a Dutch attack on Kinsale. Ormonde however in general wasn't hugely enthusiastic about the militia given the large number of Cromwellian settlers within it. As a result the militia was established on an ad-hoc basis and was only called out three times during the period in 1666, 1672 (renewal of war with Dutch) and 1678 ( Popish Plot - where they were used to disarm

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