Appointed 23rd February, 1785.
Richard Burton commenced his military service in the reign of King George II.; and, having attained the rank of Major in the Royal Dragoons on the 1st of May, 1759, proceeded with his regiment to Germany in the spring of the following year. In the battles, skirmishes, fatigues, and privations of the three subsequent campaigns, Major Burton had his share; as well as in the honours acquired by the British cavalry. After his return to England he was permitted to take the surname of Philipson. On the 25th of January, 1771, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal Dragoons; and, in 1775, he was appointed Colonel in the army and Aide-de-camp to King George III. On the breaking out of the American war, several new regiments were raised, and Colonel Philipson was promoted to the rank of Major-General, and appointed Colonel of the Twentieth Light Dragoons (a corps formed of the light troops of several other regiments), on the 25th of April, 1779; from which he was removed, on the 23rd of February, 1785, to the Third Dragoon Guards. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General on the 28th of September, 1787; was Member of Parliament for Eye, in Suffolk; and died on the 19th of August, 1792.
Sir William Fawcett, K.B.,
Appointed 22nd August, 1792.
William Fawcett, who descended from the ancient family of Fawcetts, of Shipden Hall, near Halifax, having, from his early youth, a strong predilection for a military life, his friends procured him an Ensign's commission in General Oglethorp's regiment, which was stationed in Georgia; but, a British force having been sent to Flanders in 1742, he resigned his commission, proceeded to the Continent, and, serving as a volunteer, was at the battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy, where his gallantry attracted admiration; and he was appointed Ensign in a regiment raised by Colonel Johnstone, with which he served until the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, in 1748, when it was disbanded.
Being now unemployed, he engaged in the service of a mercantile establishment in the city of London; but, finding his propensity to a military life invincible, he subsequently purchased an Ensign's commission in the Foot Guards, and, by a strict attention to his duties, procured the favour of his Royal Highness William Duke of Cumberland, who gave him the Adjutantcy of the second battalion of the Third Foot Guards, which he held, together with a Lieutenantcy, which gave him the rank of Captain. Neglecting no opportunity of qualifying himself for the highest posts in his profession, he studied the German and French languages, acquired a knowledge of Prussian and French tactics; and, in 1757, published a translation of the 'Memoirs upon the Art of War, by Marshal Count de Saxe,' and 'The Regulations for the Prussian Cavalry;' and, in 1759, 'The Regulations for the Prussian Infantry,' and 'The Prussian Tactics.' These works met with great attention; and a new edition in 1760 was also well received.
In the early part of the Seven Years' War, Captain Fawcett served in Germany as Aide-de-camp to Lieutenant-General Grenville Elliott, where he acquired a practical knowledge of the military art; and his ardour, intrepidity, and attention to the duties of his situation were such, that, on the decease of Lieutenant-General Grenville Elliott, Captain Fawcett was recommended for the appointment of Aide-de-camp to Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, and he had also the offer of the same appointment to the Marquis of Granby: he chose the latter, and was sent to England with the despatches which gave the account of the victory at Warbourg; on which occasion, King George II. was highly gratified at having the particulars of this engagement related to him in the German language by Captain Fawcett. He was advanced to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the army on the 25th of November, 1760; and, continuing to serve in Germany, was appointed Military Secretary to the Marquis of Granby. It is recorded that, in Lieutenant-Colonel Fawcett's character, strength and softness were happily blended together, and to coolness, intrepidity, and extensive military knowledge, he added all the requisite talents of a man of business, and the most persevering assiduity. He was highly esteemed by every officer on the staff of the army, and was the intimate and confidential friend of the Marquis of Granby. He remained on service until the peace in 1763, when he returned to England; and his knowledge of the German language, with the information he possessed from his late office, was the occasion of his being employed by King George III. as Commissary to settle the claims made by the Allies against Great Britain for the expenses of the war.
In November, 1767, he obtained a company in the Third Foot Guards; and, in 1772, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the army, and appointed Deputy Adjutant-General to the Forces.
At the commencement of the American war, Colonel Fawcett was sent to Germany to negotiate with the states of Hesse, Hanover, and Brunswick, for a body of troops to serve in North America, Gibraltar, and the East Indies. He was appointed Governor of Gravesend and Tilbury Fort on the 2nd of October, 1776. In 1777 he was promoted to the rank of Major-General; in the following year he was appointed Colonel of the Fifteenth Regiment of Foot; and, in 1781, he was appointed Adjutant-General to the Forces. The rank of Lieutenant-General was conferred upon this valuable servant of the Crown in 1782; in 1786 his Majesty honoured him with the riband of the Order of the Bath; and, in 1792, gave him the Colonelcy of The Third, or Prince of Wales' Dragoon Guards.
In May, 1796, Sir William Fawcett was promoted to the rank of General; and, in July following, he was appointed Governor of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea. The office of Adjutant-General requiring greater exertions than his age would admit of, he obtained his Majesty's permission to resign, and, on retiring from his post, the King honoured him with distinguished marks of his Royal favour and approbation. In 1799 the Duke of York proceeded to Holland, when Sir William Fawcett was appointed by his Majesty to be General on the Staff of the Army, and to perform the duties of Commander-in-Chief during his Royal Highness's absence.