1701
1702
The regiment remained in Jersey and Guernsey until 1702, when the accession of Philip Duke of Anjou (grandson of Louis XIV.) to the throne of Spain, to the prejudice of the House of Austria, had involved Europe in another war. This violation of existing treaties was followed by the Courts of France and Spain acknowledging the Pretender as King of Great Britain. Queen Anne declared war against France and Spain, and in the summer of 1702 three companies of the Royal Fusiliers were called from Jersey and Guernsey to take part in an expedition, under the Duke of Ormond, against the city of Cadiz; their colonel, Major-General Sir Charles O'Hara, was also employed in this enterprise. The fleet arrived off the coast of Andalusia in Spain, and a landing was effected in the middle of August, within a short distance from Cadiz. The wind being high, about thirty boats crowded with soldiers were overturned by the surge, and above twenty men of the Royal Fusiliers were drowned. The towns of Rota, and Port St. Mary's with Fort St. Catherine, were captured; but the fortress of Cadiz was found too strong, and the garrison too numerous to be reduced by the small expedition sent against it. The wealthy and flourishing town of Port St. Mary's was found deserted by the inhabitants, the houses well furnished, and much valuable merchandise in the warehouses. Strict discipline not being preserved, the town was plundered, and a great quantity of property was removed on board the fleet. Several officers were charged with participating in the plunder, and Sir Charles O'Hara was implicated and brought to trial, but was acquitted. The capture of Cadiz being found impracticable, the troops re-embarked, and sailed for England; but while at sea, information was received of the arrival of a valuable Spanish fleet under a French convoy, at the harbour of Vigo, and the expedition immediately proceeded thither. A landing was effected on the south side of the river, above Vigo; a strong fort and a battery were captured; the British fleet forced an entrance, and the French and Spanish shipping were all captured or destroyed. The fleet afterwards returned to England; and the Duke of Ormond received the thanks of parliament for his success in this enterprize. The three companies of the Fusiliers were landed and placed in garrison at Tilbury, excepting fifty men, who were sent to the West Indies to complete Brigadier-General Gustavus Hamilton's regiment.
1703
1704
1705
The war being continued, the Royal Fusiliers were employed during the summer of 1703 as marines on board the fleet: they afterwards landed, and were placed in garrison at Portsmouth, from whence a detachment was sent to the Isle of Wight in August, 1704. In 1705 the regiment was stationed at Plymouth.
1706
In the meantime several regiments had been sent to Portugal; an armament under the Earl of Peterborough had captured Barcelona, and Catalonia and Valencia had declared in favour of Archduke Charles of Austria, who was acknowledged as sovereign of Spain by Great Britain, Holland, &c. The house of Bourbon assembled a well-appointed army and a powerful fleet to retake Barcelona, which was besieged by King Philip in April, 1706. King Charles remained in the city, that his presence might inspire confidence in the garrison, which was weak and ill provided with the means of defence. Succours were sent from England, and the Royal Fusiliers were embarked for this service. On the approach of the British squadron the French fleet retired. The Royal Fusiliers landed at Barcelona on the 8th of May, and immediately marched to the breach to repel an expected attack by storm, which did not, however, take place. The arrival of the British fleet with reinforcements decided the fate of the town; and the army of King Philip raised the siege and retired, leaving its battering train and magazines behind.
From Barcelona the Royal Fusiliers marched a distance of forty-seven miles, to Gironne, a fortified town of Catalonia, situated at the base of a steep mountain, with the river Tar running through the town. Here the regiment passed in comfortable quarters among the Spaniards the remainder of the year 1706 and the early part of 1707. Provisions and wine were abundant, and the regiment was preserved in a state of efficiency.
1707
While the Royal Fusiliers were at Gironne, the allied British, Portuguese, and Dutch army, was overpowered on the plains of Almanza on the 25th of April, 1707. Soon after this disaster the Royal Fusiliers traversed the country from Gironne to Lerida (anciently called Ilerda), a place celebrated in history for the beauty of its situation, the fertility of the adjacent country, and for having been the capital of the country of the Ilergetes long before the first invasion of Spain by the Romans. At this pleasant city, situated on the declivity of a hill on the west bank of the Segra, the Royal Fusiliers remained a short time, expecting the approach of the victorious French and Spanish forces. The officers and soldiers could view the ground where Scipio defeated Hanno, the Carthaginian general, and where Julius Cæsar conquered the lieutenants of Pompey; but no hope of victory could be entertained by the Royal Fusiliers in the approaching contest, the disparity of numbers being too great.