Charles Tudor, 16th Light Dragoons, Calls but is not Heard

The fact that Charles Tudor spent more time sitting in an American prison than did with his regiment in America didn't prevent him from having a long and prosperous military career. Maybe it even helped him out, giving him favor in the eyes of his superiors. But even before the war began he'd shown promise. The Shropshire native was 21 years old when he joined the 16th Light Dragoons in 1771, and by the time the regiment arrived in America in October 1776 he was already a corporal. In preparation for service in America, the 16th Light Dragoons was augmented significantly in size. The peacetime establishment for the cavalry regiment had been only 18 private men in each of the regiment's six troops. Suddenly that was increased to over 60, the difference made up partly by recruiting and partly by drafting men from other cavalry regiments. Another change was that about half of these men were to serve dismounted, operating as foot soldiers even though they were troopers in a cavalry regiment, scouting, screening and skirmishing in front and on the flanks.

The 16th Light Dragoons arrived in America in October of 1776, part of a large reinforcement for General William Howe's army. One transport carrying about twenty men of the regiment was captured by Massachusetts privateers, but the remainder disembarked in New York City and soon joined the British army's campaign that drove the Americans out of northeastern New Jersey. Several more troopers were captured in the New Brunswick area in December.

Somewhere during this time Charles Tudor was appointed serjeant in the dismounted portion of the regiment. The muster rolls show his appointment as occurring on 25 January 1777, but this is certainly an administrative date. He was already a serjeant on 3 January 1777, when the dismounted men of the 16th Light Dragoons were protecting the left flank of a British column that was advancing from Princeton, New Jersey to join a larger British force that was some miles away. The dismounted dragoons detected another column of troops in the distance and alerted the officers commanding the column. When it was determined to be a large force of the enemy, the British troops maneuvered for advantageous positions. As directed by Lt. Simon Wilmot, Sjt. Tudor went along the line of dragoons and told each one not to fire until the enemy "were on the points of their Bayonets," and even then only when ordered. 

After various movements, the dragoons, divided into four sections of about 18 men each, posted themselves along a fence where they exchanged fire with the enemy. When their opponents began to retreat, the dragoons prepared to charge with their bayonets, the favored tactic of British infantry when opposed to the relatively inexperienced, undisciplined American troops. Suddenly Lt. Wilmot saw that the section to his right, the one holding their flank, was retreating. He called to Cornet Evatt, commanding the section, to stop, but to no avail. He told Sjt. Tudor to call to Evatt, to stop the unordered retreat, but the noise of battle drowned out the serjeant's calls. The other sections of dragoons, now in danger of being outflanked, also proceeded to retreat. When Lt. Wilmot caught up with Cornet Evatt, he told the cornet that he'd have him brought before a court martial for disobedience and cowardice. But the action intensified, and Wilmot and several other dragoons were wounded. In the general British retreat that followed, the wounded men were left behind and became prisoners of war. Although it isn't clear whether Tudor was wounded or not, he was among the prisoners.

The prisoners taken at Princeton were sent to Connecticut, where they were parceled out among several towns. Serjeant Tudor and ten others were held in East Windsor. There he remained until an exchange was made in July 1778 which allowed several hundred British captives to return to their regiments. He resumed his duties as a serjeant. In October of 1778, the court martial of Cornet Evatt finally took place, now that his accuser, Lt. Wilmot and several other witness were free from internment. Serjeant Tudor testified at the trial, carefully describing his own role that day without either incriminating or exonerating the defendant. Because there was no evidence that Cornet Evatt had heard the orders from Lt. Wilmot, nor that he had behaved in a cowardly manner, he was acquitted.

In December 1778, the fortunes of war intervened once again. The 16th Light Dragoons were drafted, that is, the private men who were fit for service were transferred into other corps. Many went to the 17th Light Dragoons, some to the 17th Regiment of Foot, and some to Loyalist regiments. Men who were no longer fit for service were discharged, either in America or after returning to Great Britain. But the officers and non-commissioned officers, and a few of the private men, returned to Great Britain to recruit the regiment anew. Tudor was among these select few.

He continued to serve, and his diligence rewarded him. On 24 July 1789 he was appointed Quartermaster in regiment, not unusual for a long-serving serjeant. On 24 December 1794 he became the regiment's Adjutant. With over twenty years in the army, he could have retired and received a pension, but he chose to serve, and on 29 April 1795 received his first commission when he became a Cornet in the regiment. This entry-level officer rank was usually the domain of young men in their late teens, but Tudor, in his forties, performed well enough to be promoted to Lieutenant two years later.

In 1799, after twenty-eight years in the 16th Light Dragoons, Tudor took another promotion that sent him to a different corps; he became a Captain in the newly-formed Royal Waggon Train. In December 1803 he was promoted again, this time to Major. After seven more years, on 25 July 1810 he was made aide de camp to the King, a post that made him a brevet Lieutenant-Colonel 25 July 1810. Now sixty years old, his long service and dedication had gotten him much farther than most.

When he was sixty-four years old, in 1814, Charles Tudor obtained the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Royal Waggon Train. Later that year he finally left active service and went onto the half-pay list. His advancement, however, was still not quite done. On 12 August 1819 he received a brevet colonelcy, and in November of that year was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel in 1st Royal Veteran Battalion, a fitting appointment for this officer who was as much a veteran as could be.

Charles Tudor died in London in November 1830 at the age of eighty.

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Thomas and Mrs. Crouch, 16th Light Dragoons

Thomas Crouch was dead. His wife was angry. His serjeant stood accused.

It was an apt accusation. After Serjeant William Nunny had dropped a pair of saddle bags on Crouch's head, Crouch never spoke another word and was soon pronounced dead. But there was more to the story, enough that Serjeant Nunny asked for a court martial to clear his name.

Thomas Crouch had joined the 16th Light Dragoons in January 1776 as that corps was gearing up for service in America. The 16th, like the 17th Light Dragoons already in Boston, had been authorized a substantial increase in size including a dismounted contingent; it appears, however, that Crouch became a true cavalry trooper, serving with the mounted dragoons. The regiment arrived in New York late in 1776 and served in the campaign in New Jersey that extended into the following year. The second half of 1777 saw them on the campaign to Philadelphia; with the rest of the army that took that city, they settled in the area for the winter. We don't know whether Crouch was already married when he enlisted, but he certainly was by the time the regiment went into winter quarters.

In the evening of 4 December the 16th Light Dragoons received orders to be in readiness at their Philadelphia barracks for an impending expedition into the country. A while later, Mrs. Crouch and some soldiers brought her "excessively drunk" husband into the barracks. He was too drunk to stand, so they laid him on a blanket in a dark corner of the room. She asked Corporal Richard Evans to look after him and persuade him to remain in the barracks. She left, and the Corporal Evans, attempting to rouse Crouch, noticed "an uncommon noise in his throat." This did not alarm Evans enough to take any action, however, and he soon fell asleep.

At about 9PM Serjeant Nunny came into the barracks with orders for the dragoons to repair to the stables and prepare to march. The serjeant left; the barracks sprang to life, but Thomas Crouch did not. A man attempted to rouse him, but gave up and attended to his own preparations. Soon the serjeant returned carrying his carbine and a pair of saddle bags. Taking stock of the men, he learned that all of the men had saddled their horses except for Crouch. Asking where Crouch was, he was directed by Corporal Evans to the corner. Believing Crouch to be in a drunken stupor, the serjeant kicked him a few times on the back side. When he got no response he tried using the butt of his carbine. Still nothing, so he lifted his saddle bags as high as his own head, then dropped them onto Crouch's head. This, too, failed to stir the listless dragoon. Nunny knelt and tried to sit Crouch up, saw that he was wearing a neck stock, and removed that constricting garment. He tried to stand Crouch up, but it proved impossible. Out of ideas, Serjeant Nunny decided to turn out the rest of his troop and deal with Crouch later. On his way to the stable he stopped by Mrs. Crouch's lodgings and informed her of the situation.

Private Henry Lord remained behind to look after some of the horses. He noticed blood on Crouch's blanket and discerned that he was bleeding from the mouth or nostrils. He left the barracks to saddle his horse at the stables, and on his way back he, too, called on Mrs. Crouch. She and some other women went promptly to the barracks; seeing her husband's alarming condition, she asked Henry Lord to summon the regimental surgeon. The surgeon deferred Lord to the surgeon's mate, and the surgeon's mate informed Lord that he was ill and could not attend to Crouch until morning. When Mrs. Crouch received that news, she implored Lord to keep an eye on her husband while she repair to an out-room, and inform her immediately of any changes to his condition.

While private Lord kept watch on Crouch, the regiment's quarter-master came in. About eight hours had passed since the serjeant had tried to rouse Crouch; the quarter-master suggested they move the ailing trooper closer to the fire - it was, after all, December - but as they prepared to do so they realized that his countenance had changed for the worse. They called for Mrs. Crouch, but by the time she came in her husband Thomas was dead.

The next day Mrs. Crouch, with the assistance of a corporal from the regiment, prepared the body for burial. They stripped the clothes off, and did not see any evidence of wounds or bruises other than a sore on one cheek. Mrs. Crouch did not ask for a surgeon to examine the body. They placed the deceased Thomas Crouch in a coffin for burial.

When the 16th Light Dragoons returned from their march, Serjeant Nunny got word that Mrs. Crouch considered him an accessory to her husband's death. He asked his Captain to investigate the matter, and heard no more of it for a while. Philadelphia was evacuated the following spring, and the 16th Light Dragoons marched across New Jersey with the rest of the British army to take quarters around New York. And Mrs. Crouch continued her accusations.

In September 1778 Serjeant Nunny again called for a trial to clear his name. The case was heard by a general court martial in November. Several dragoons testified, and while all agreed that the kicks and the carbine probably caused no injury, there was concern about the saddle bags. It was clear, however, that Crouch had been extremely drunk, and it was possible that the constriction of his neck stock had been the cause of his demise. The officers on the court inquired as to whether Serjeant Nunny was known for being ill tempered or treating the men harshly; on the contrary, character witnesses proclaimed him to be "the mildest non-commissioned officer" to drill the men, "of a passive disposition" with a character that was "universally good."

Serjeant William Nunny was acquitted of any responsibility for the death of private Thomas Crouch. Unaccoutably, Mrs. Crouch, whose first name is not given in the trial records, did not testify. Her fate is unknown.

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Pensioner: Alexander Sheppard, 16th Light Dragoons

Our previous installment dealt with a soldier of the 4th Regiment who stole a horse and was chased by a trooper of the 16th Light Dragoons, Alexander Sheppard. We are fortunate to have details on Sheppard's long career as a horse soldier.

Sheppard was born in about 1736 in Manchester, England, and pursued the trade of a calendar man. This was one of many skills in the highly-developed British textile industry, involving using a hot press to make a smooth finish on cloth. At the age of 26, however, he changed careers and joined the army; September 1776 found him disembarking in America with the 16th (Queen's) Light Dragoons. His experience as a sentry on the night after the Battle of Germantown is described in the previous installment; note that he was 42 years old when he successfully chased down a British light infantryman. When the British army evacuated Philadelphia in June 1778, Sheppard and his regiment returned to New York.

The following year, the 16th Light Dragoons were ordered back to Great Britain. In typical fashion, all of the men who were still fit for foreign service were drafted into other regiments serving in America. 94 men were drafted into the only other British regular cavalry regiment in America, the 17th Light Dragoons; Alexander Sheppard was among them. Soon after, he was in the detachment of the regiment sent on the expedition to Charleston, South Carolina.

We don't know the circumstances, but some time in 1780 Sheppard was injured in such a way as to lose the use of his right hand. On the muster rolls prepared on 4 February 1781, he is listed as having been "Invalided gone to England." Once there, his infirmity along with his long service earned him an out-pension, granted on 10 April 1781 at the age of 45 after 19 years as a soldier.

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Died in America: John Wilkins, 4th Regiment of Foot

John Wilkins was a seasoned soldier in the 4th (King's Own) Regiment of Foot. He was a private soldier in the regiment when it arrived in Boston in 1774, and at the end of 1776 was among those selected for the regiment's light infantry company. This company was formed of experienced troops who were limber, quick and well suited for rapid movement and open-order skirmishing. The 4th's light company was among those that fought on the opening day of hostilities on 19 April 1775, and then suffered terribly in the abortive flanking movement at Bunker Hill the following June. Brought up to strength by transferring experienced soldiers from the regiment's eight battalion companies, the lights became part of the 1st Battalion of Light Infantry, a corps that was in the forefront of the spectacularly successful campaign around New York and into New Jersey in the fall of 1776. Although repeatedly victorious, the companies in the battalion had suffered numerous casualties in their roll at the vanguard of the army. They were replenished again at the end of 1776, with John Wilkins among the replacements.

The battalion remained active throughout 1777, first during campaigning in New Jersey and then during the aggressive campaign to Philadelphia in August and September. The battalion almost met with disaster when their encampment was suprised by an overwhelming American force at Germantown outside of Philadelphia on 4 October 1777. The American attack fell into confusion and the arrival of substantial British reinforcements turned the tide, prevent a rout of the light infantry. The 4th's light company suffered three men killed and several wounded in the fight. It was on the night after this famous action that John Wilkins was shot and killed, but the circumstances were quite different than we might expect from finding him listed as "died" on the regiment's muster rolls.

At midnight on the night of 4-5 October, trooper Alexander Sheppard of the 16th (Queen's) Light Dragoons was posted sentry over the troops horses that were tied on a picket line in Germantown. About a half hour later one of the horses got loose, and Sheppard quickly went to secure it. As he was doing so, someone came towards him in the darkness and said, "You bougre, are you sentry over those horses?"

Sheppard replied that he was. The stranger then said, "If I can get to you, I'll give you a good licking."

Sheppard told the man to go about his business, as he had nothing to say to him. Sheppard then secured the horse, took it to the line and tied it up. As he was doing so, the man who'd accosted him untied the leftmost horse in the line and made off with it. After Sheppard tied up the loose horse he went along the line to see that the rest were secure. When he found that the end horse was missing, he saw the stranger running off with it and called to him. The stranger responded, "Kiss my arse, you bougre," and continued leading the horse away.

Sheppard guessed that the man was a rebel prisoner who had gotten loose and wanted the horse to speed his escape. He quickly woke the corporal of the guard, Roger Thorne; Thorne suggested that the thief was "the foolish man called Billy the Ram," apparently referring to a colorful local character who bore this common sobriquet. Sheppard said that Billy the Ram would not have used such language, and told Thorne to get a carbine or pistol and follow him after the fleeing stranger.

Sheppard then gave chase, calling for the horse thief to stop. The thief continued to respond with abusive language. They ran along the road out of town and up a hill, then turned into an orchard were Sheppard managed to catch the thief and began to struggle with him. As they struggled, Corporal Thorne arrived, having himself grabbed one of his pistols and given chase. Thorne had a particular interest in recovering the horse; some time before, when he was a Lance Corporal (a private soldier doing a corporal's duty) he had been tried by a regimental court martial because a horse had gotten loose from some sentries that he commanded. This time he was determined not to be humiliated. Rather than join the struggle between Sheppard and the thief, he told Sheppard to back off and then shot the thief in the chest from about six feet away.

The thief staggered backwards and began saying "I ask you pardon," then fell. Having more interest in recovering a lost horse than in assisting an escaped rebel prisoner turned horse thief, Thorne and Sheppard left him there. Thorne went to report the incident to the serjeant-major of the regiment, but the serjeant-major had not stayed in his usual lodgings that night and Thorne could not find him. Instead Thorne gave his report first thing in the morning. In the mean time, Sheppard had gone back to the orchard during the night and seen that the thief had died.

The dead man was not an escaped prisoner, nor was it Billy the Ram. It was John Wilkins, private soldier in the light infantry company of the 4th Regiment of Foot. On Monday, 6 October, Corporal Thorne was tried by a general court martial for the murder of a fellow soldier.

At the trial, Alexander Sheppard gave his account of the events. The court asked if he could see Wilkins' uniform, but Sheppard testified that it was too dark. The serjeant-major explained that both Sheppard and Thorne had been sober when paraded for guard on the evening of 4 October, and also that the following morning several people told him that Thorne had been trying to find him the night before. He also noted that Thorne was not prone to quarrels or disputes, and so he was particularly surprised to hear that he had been involved in the shooting. An officer of the regiment testified that Thorne had been in the regiment for four years and was "a sober quiet man, and of an unexceptionable character"; he noted that the Major of the regiment would also have testified to Thorne's good character but was unable to attend the trial.

There was no indication in the trial of what might have caused John Wilkins' unusual behavior. The court judged that Corporal Roger Thorne had acted in accordance with his duty, and acquitted him.

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