The Engineer corps of officers now consists of about four hundred of all grades, partly employed in building and repairing our defences, while the rest are more immediately attached to the Sappers and Miners, a body of some three or four thousand men, which now forms a constituent part of the Royal Engineers; indeed, the Sappers and Miners are now to be regarded as the main body of this arm of our service.
CHAPTER IV.
THE ROYAL WELSH.
England possesses many regiments that have a traditional as well as an individual existence. The memory of deeds of valour wrought by their predecessors is transmitted from generation to generation, and inspires the young soldier with the desire of equalling, if not surpassing, the heroism of those who have gone before. His regiment is the warrior’s family, and each man feels, as the inheritor of a noble fame ought to feel, that he must do nothing unworthy of the past renown gained in older days. Thus it happens that there are certain regiments which may always be counted on in the hour of danger, and one of these is the 23rd Royal Welsh Fusiliers. The Prince of Wales’s plume, with the motto “Ich Dien,” betokens their nationality; and their claim to the proud words, “Nec aspera terrent,” which they bear on their colours, has been justified by their gallant conduct in Egypt, and at Corunna, Martinique, Albuera, Badajoz, Salamanca, Vittoria, the Pyrenees, Nivelle, Orthès, Toulouse, Waterloo, Alma, Inkermann, and Sebastopol. All these names are emblazoned on their colours, and the successors of the heroes of the Peninsula and Waterloo proved in the Crimea that the regiment had not fallen from its high estate of honourable glory.
It will be interesting to our readers to glance briefly at the different engagements in which the Welsh Fusiliers distinguished themselves about the beginning of this century. They formed part of the expedition which sailed for Egypt in 1801, under the command of Sir Ralph Abercrombie, for the purpose of expelling the French from that country. The authorities at home knew as little about Egypt and the French forces there as the members of Lord Aberdeen’s cabinet did about the Crimea and the strength of the Russian army. Our men had no other guide than an old map, which proved to be very incorrect, and Sir Sidney Smith, a gallant sailor but an indifferent geographer, who knew nothing of the interior of the country. Moreover, it was supposed that the enemy amounted to only 15,000 men, whereas they really numbered 35,000 veteran troops. The idea of sending 12,000 men, chiefly young soldiers, to expel such a body of veterans from a country where they were strongly intrenched, may excite some surprise, but British soldiers may do anything when properly led. On the 8th of March our men landed with such regularity and order that every brigade, every regiment, and even every company, drew up on the exact spot they were intended to occupy. The sea was as smooth as glass, and the bullets of the enemy fell as thick as hailstones around the boats, but the landing force advanced and fell into their places with as much coolness as if they had been dressing for a review. The Welsh Fusiliers and three other regiments, including the gallant 42nd, landed in boats on the right, and were exposed to showers of grape and shell from the enemy’s batteries; but, nothing daunted, they quietly disembarked, formed in line, and, without even stopping to load, rushed up the hill to charge the enemy with the bayonet. Half way up they were met with a volley from the enemy, but, pushing on, they reached the summit before they could reload, rushed furiously upon them, and drove them from their position. The general was proud of this first success, and thanked his men for having displayed “an intrepidity scarcely to be paralleled.” On the 13th of March he was about to attack the right flank of the enemy, who anticipated his design, and descended from the heights to meet him; after considerable loss our men had to retire to their former position, where they remained till the 20th. On the evening of this day Sir Sidney Smith (the heroic defender of Acre) received a letter from an Arab chief, apprising him of the enemy’s intention to fall upon the English with all their forces the following morning, but unfortunately the commander-in-chief paid no attention to this warning. Next morning he discovered his mistake; the French commenced the action by a feigned attack on the British left, but concentrated their most vigorous efforts against the right, where the Welsh Fusiliers were stationed. Their superiority in numbers procured them a temporary success. Our right flank was turned, and the 28th Regiment, who were most exposed to their impetuous attack, could with difficulty retain their position, though supported by the 58th and the Welsh Fusiliers, when the 42nd advanced to their aid, and proved that France’s Invincibles were unworthy of their name by wrenching
⸺“the banner from her bravest host,
Baptised Invincible in Austria’s gore.”