Viscount Bury commenced his military service as ensign in the second foot guards in 1738; in 1741 he was captain-lieutenant in the royal dragoons; in 1743 he held the same rank in his former regiment; and on the 27th of May, 1745, he obtained the commission of captain and lieut.-colonel in the same corps. He was aide-de-camp to the Duke of Cumberland at the battle of Fontenoy; also attended His Royal Highness at the battle of Culloden,—was sent with the news of that victory to London, and was immediately afterwards appointed aide-de-camp to the King with the rank of colonel. The colonelcy of the twentieth foot was conferred on his lordship on the 1st of November, 1749. In 1754 he succeeded to the title of Earl of Albemarle; and obtained the colonelcy of the King's Own dragoons in the succeeding year. The rank of major-general was conferred on his lordship in 1756, and that of lieut.-general in 1759. In 1761 he was a member of the privy council and governor of the island of Jersey; and in 1762, he commanded the land forces employed in the reduction of the Havannah; in the performance of which service he acquired great reputation, and his conduct called forth the approbation of his sovereign and of the British nation. He was elected a Knight of the Garter in 1766; and died in 1772.
Charles, Lord Southampton.
Appointed 20th October, 1772.
Lord Charles Fitzroy, brother of Augustus-Henry, Duke of Grafton, choosing a military life, obtained the commission of ensign in the first foot guards on the 16th of March, 1752. In 1756 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, and in 1758 obtained the command of a company with the rank of lieut.-colonel. In 1762 he was promoted to the colonelcy of the 119th, or Prince's Own, regiment of foot, which was disbanded after the peace of Fontainbleau. The colonelcy of the fourteenth dragoons was conferred on his lordship on the 11th of September, 1765, and in 1772 he was promoted to the rank of major-general and removed to the King's Own dragoons. He was further promoted to the rank of lieut.-general in 1777; advanced to the peerage by the title of Lord Southampton in 1780; and promoted to the rank of general in 1793. He died on the 21st of March, 1797.
Francis Lascelles.
Appointed 23rd March, 1797.
This Officer was appointed on the 13th of December, 1761, captain in the seventeenth light dragoons, then commanded by captain-commandant Lord Aberdour. In June, 1764, he was appointed major of the eighth dragoons, and in May, 1768, obtained the lieut.-colonelcy of the regiment, from which he was removed on the 8th of May, 1780, to the lieut.-colonelcy of the King's Own dragoons. He was appointed major-general in 1782; colonel of the eighth dragoons in 1789; and lieut.-general on the 12th of October, 1793. After the decease of Lord Southampton the colonelcy of the King's Own dragoons was conferred on Lieut.-General Lascelles, who was also groom of the bed-chamber to King George III.; and was advanced to the rank of general in 1798. He was highly respected by the officers of the regiment, and was distinguished for easy dignity, manliness, and good sense. He died in 1799.
Sir Charles Grey, K.B.
Appointed 4th September, 1799.
Charles Grey, fourth son of Sir Henry Grey, Baronet, entered the army in the reign of King George II., and was promoted to the command of a company in the twentieth foot on the 31st of May, 1755. In 1758 his regiment proceeded to Germany, and he was appointed aide-de-camp to the Duke of Brunswick, in which capacity he served in 1759 at the glorious battle of Minden, where he was wounded. In 1761, he was appointed lieut.-colonel commandant of the ninety-eighth regiment, which was then newly-raised, and was disbanded after the peace of Fontainbleau, when he was placed on half-pay. In 1772 he was promoted to the rank of colonel, and appointed aide-de-camp to King George III., who conferred on him the colonelcy of the twenty-eighth foot in March, 1777, and promoted him to the rank of major-general in August following. In 1782 he obtained the dignity of a knight of the Bath; was promoted to the rank of lieut.-general, and appointed commander-in-chief in America; but the war was terminated before he had an opportunity of proceeding thither. In 1787 he was removed to the eighth dragoons; and in 1789 he obtained the colonelcy of the seventh or Princess Royal's dragoon guards.
In 1793 Sir Charles Grey was appointed to the command of an expedition to the West Indies; but while the armament was preparing the Duke of York raised the siege of Dunkirk, and the French menaced Ostend and Nieuport. The troops sailed for Flanders, and by his timely arrival Sir Charles Grey preserved the two fortresses from the power of the enemy. He subsequently proceeded to the West Indies, and the islands of Martinico, St. Lucia, and Guadaloupe were captured: and his services were recompensed with the government of Dumbarton, and the colonelcy of the twentieth, or Jamaica, regiment of light dragoons, by commission dated the 4th of November, 1795. After his return to England he was promoted to the rank of general, sworn of the privy-council, reappointed colonel of the eighth dragoons, and placed in command of the troops stationed in the southern district, to repel the projected French invasion. In 1799 he was appointed colonel of the Third, or King's Own dragoons. At length, being worn out with age and active service, he retired to his country seat to pass the remainder of his days in the bosom of his family. His services were not forgotten by his sovereign, who created him Baron Grey de Howick in 1801; and advanced him, in 1806, to the dignity of Viscount Howick and Earl Grey: he held also the government of the island of Guernsey. His decease occurred on the 14th of November, 1807, at his seat called Fallowden, near Alnwick, in Northumberland.