Historical record of the Eighty-Sixth, or the Royal County Down Regiment of Foot / Containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1793, and of its subsequent services to 1842.

by Richard Cannon

This officer was appointed cornet in the royal regiment of horse-guards, in May, 1755; captain in the seventh dragoons, in February, 1758, and in April, 1760, he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the twenty-first dragoons, or royal foresters. He served in Germany under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, and, at the peace in 1763, when the royal foresters were disbanded, he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the second dragoon guards. On the breaking out of the American war, in 1775, he was appointed colonel of the nineteenth light dragoons,—then newly raised; in 1777, he was promoted to the rank of major-general, and, in 1782, to that of lieutenant-general; in 1783 his regiment was disbanded. The colonelcy of the Eighty-sixth foot was conferred on Lieutenant-General Manners in 1794; in 1795 he was removed to the twenty-sixth light dragoons, and in 1799 he was promoted to the rank of general.

On the 23rd of May, 1800, as General Manners was riding, accompanied by two other gentlemen, in a post-chaise, to Cambridge, he was stopped by two highwaymen, who demanded his money, when he shot one dead on the spot, and the other rode off. In September of the same year, he was residing at Southend, for the benefit of his health, and, having a presentiment of his approaching death, he set off for London, alone, to obtain medical advice, but he was taken ill on the road, and died at an inn, at Billericay, in Essex, on the 11th September, 1800.

William Grinfield.

Appointed 25th March, 1795.

William Grinfield was appointed ensign in the third foot guards, in 1760; he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and captain in 1767, to that of captain and lieutenant-colonel in 1776, and in 1782 he was promoted to the rank of colonel in the army. In 1786 he obtained the commission of second major in his regiment. He commanded the first battalion of the third foot guards, under His Royal Highness the Duke of York, in Flanders, and evinced great personal bravery and ability on several occasions, particularly at the siege of Valenciennes, and at the re-capture of the post of Lincelles on the 18th of August, 1793, for which he received the thanks of the Duke of York in general orders. He had been appointed lieutenant-colonel of the third foot guards a few days before this action occurred, and in October of the same year he was promoted to the rank of major-general. In 1795 he was rewarded with the colonelcy of the Eighty-sixth foot; in 1798 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general, and at that eventful period he was called upon to transfer his services to the West Indies, with the important appointment of commander of the forces in the Windward and Leeward islands. On the renewal of hostilities with France in 1803, he commanded an expedition against St. Lucie, and, having captured the fort of Morne Fortuné by storm on the 22nd of June, the island submitted. He landed on the island of Tobago on the 30th of June, and, by a spirited advance upon Scarborough, forced the French General, Berthier, to surrender. He captured the islands of Demerara and Essequibo, from the Dutch, on the 19th of September, and Berbice, in a few days afterwards. On the 25th of September he was promoted to the rank of general. He died at Barbadoes on the 19th of October, 1803, of the yellow fever, surviving his lady only three days. It is recorded, that a short time before he left England for the West Indies, Mrs. Grinfield’s brother died, leaving them £20,000; the general, finding two cousins of the deceased were left unprovided for, observed to his lady, that, as themselves possessed an ample fortune, he purposed making provision for the unfortunate relatives; she readily assenting, he sent for them, and divided the whole legacy between them.

Sir James Henry Craig, KB.

Appointed 5th January, 1804.

James Henry Craig obtained a commission of ensign in the thirtieth foot on the 1st of June, 1763, and he served with his regiment several years at the fortress of Gibraltar. In March, 1771, he was promoted captain in the forty-seventh foot, with which corps he served in the American war. The forty-seventh were at Boston when hostilities commenced; they took part in the actions at Concord and Bunker’s Hill in 1775, and in 1776 they served in Canada. In December, 1777, Captain Craig was promoted major in the eighty-second regiment, then serving in America, and in 1781 he obtained the lieutenant-colonelcy of that corps, from which he was removed, in 1783, to the sixteenth foot. In 1790 he was promoted to the rank of colonel, in 1794 to that of major-general, and in 1795 his services were rewarded with the colonelcy of the forty-sixth foot. In 1801 he was advanced to the rank of lieutenant-general, and was removed to the Eighty-sixth regiment in 1804. On the 25th of March, 1805, he was appointed commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean, with the local rank of general; he was also honoured with the dignity of a Knight of the Bath, and nominated governor of Blackness Castle; in 1806 he was removed to the twenty-second regiment. The services of General Sir James Craig were afterwards transferred to British North America, of which country he was appointed governor, with the local rank of general in Upper and Lower Canada, dated the 21st of August, 1807. In 1809 he was removed to the colonelcy of the seventy-eighth highland regiment, or Ross-shire buffs. On the 1st of January, 1812, he was promoted to the rank of general in the army, which he only held a few days, his decease occurring on the 12th of the same month.

Sir Charles Ross, Bart.