Sir David Dundas, 1st Baronet
Encyclopedia
General
Sir David Dundas, 1st Baronet, GCB
(1735 – 18 February 1820) was a British general
who served as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
from 1809 to 1811.
in 1755. He exchanged to the 56th Foot as Lieutenant in 1756, serving with this regiment during the Seven Years War and took part in combined operations against French ports St. Malo, Cherbourg, Battle of Saint Cast
in 1758 and the Battle of Warburg
in 1760. He was then in Cuba in 1762. In 1778 he was appointed Quartermaster-General in Ireland
, a post which he was to retain until 1789. At some point he transferred to the 22nd Foot before becoming Colonel of the 14th Foot in February 1781.
and wrote many manuals on the subject, the first being Principles of Military Movements published in 1788.
But Dundas was a conservative military thinker. He chose to ignore the light infantry
tactics that generals such as Lord Cornwallis
or Willam Howe
used in the American War of Independence. Instead Dundas, after witnessing Prussian army manouvres in Silesia in 1784, favoured the army model that Frederick the Great had created. Its use of drilled battalions of line infantry
marching in formation was a stark contrast to the light brigades that fought in small independent groups and with cover.
Dundas, like many at Horse Guards
, failed to learn anything from the fighting in the Americas. Battle-hardened regiments returning from America returned to outmoded training manuals and anachronistic drills. It was not until the formation of an "Experimental Corps of Riflemen", in 1800 that 'the wheel was reinvented'. This change led to light infantry successes in the Peninsular Campaign under the Duke of Wellington
.
was appointed 2nd in command at the siege of Toulon
under O’Hara
& Lord Mulgrave
from September 1793, where he commanded an abortive attack on the Arenes Heights on 30 November with 2,350 men. Dundas became commanding officer under Lord Hood
after O’Hara’s capture in this action. He lost Fort Mulgrave & Mount Faron after a 3-day bombardment on 17 December 1793. Dundas commanded the initial expedition to Corsica
in 1794, landing 7 February and capturing the Mortella Tower. He captured the Port of San Fiorenzo and Bastia
, an important first step ultimately leading to the capture of the island and establishment of a short-lived Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
by forces under Hood and Admiral Lord Nelson.
Dundas was forced to resign by Hood on the 10th March 1794 and transferred to serve in the Flanders Campaign
under the Duke of York. Appointed commander of the 2nd Cavalry brigade after the death of John Mansel at Beaumont on 26 April 1794, he distinguished himself at Willems on 10 May 1794, and was attached to Otto’s column at Tourcoing17th/18 May. Dundas replaced Laurie at the head of his brigade during the retreat to Antwerp, where he saw more action at Tuyle. He commanded the Right wing under Harcourt
in December 1794, and led the defence at the action at Geldermalsen
on 5 January 1795. He was made commander of the British forces (mainly cavalry) left behind at Bremen
from April to September 1795.
From 23 December 1795 to 16 May 1801 he was Colonel
of the 7th Light Dragoons. He was promoted Lieutenant-General on 21 January 1797.
in 1797 Dundas refused the post of Commander-in-Chief in Ireland due to an unwillingness to leave England. Instead he was appointed Quartermaster-General to the Forces
then General on the Staff, to 1803 in which role he authored the army’s official drillbook for Foot & Horse.
Dundas commanded the 3rd Division under York in the Helder Campaign 1799, seeing action at Den Helder on 27 August, Zype on 10 September, Bergen on 19th, Egmont-op-Zee (Alkmaar) on 2 October and Castricum on 6 October. He was Colonel of 2nd Dragoons (Scots Greys) from 16 May 1801 to 27 January 1813, promoted General on 24 April 1802 and made commander in Kent and Sussex from 1803. Dundas was appointed Knight of the Bath in 1804 and went into semi-retirement in 1805.
He chaired the hearing against Le Marchant in charges of calumny from 23 January 1807, was a member of the Court Martial that tried Whitelocke
for the failure of the Buenos Aires expedition
on 28 January 1808 and was a member of the Board of Enquiry of the Convention of Cintra in 1808. He was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the 95th Foot on 31 August 1809 and was Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
from 1809 to 1811, during the Duke of York
’s period of disgrace. He was also a Privy councillor from 1809 and Colonel of the 1st Dragoon Guards from 27th January 1813.
He was created a baronet
on 22 May 1815.
Dundas was Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
from 1804 until his death in 1820. He died there on 18 February 1820.
Burne describes him as “A level-headed officer”, but “cautious”, while Bunbury writes "“He...was an aged man...a brave, careful, and well-skilled soldier...Dundas was a tall, spare man, crabbed and austere, dry in his looks and demeanour...there were peculiarities in his habits and style which excited some ridicule amongst young officers. But though it appeared a little out of fashion, there was ‘much care and valour in that Scotchman’”.
“Dundas was perhaps not as graceful nor as polished as some of his contemporaries, but he was as sound as oak and utterly reliable”.
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General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Sir David Dundas, 1st Baronet, GCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(1735 – 18 February 1820) was a British general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
who served as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
The Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, or just the Commander-in-Chief , was the professional head of the British Army from 1660 until 1904, when the office was replaced by the Chief of the General Staff, soon to become Chief of the Imperial General Staff . From 1870, the C-in-C was subordinate to...
from 1809 to 1811.
Military service
Dundas came from an impoverished Scottish background and reputedly walked from Edinburgh to London to enroll as a “fireworker” in the Royal ArtilleryRoyal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
in 1755. He exchanged to the 56th Foot as Lieutenant in 1756, serving with this regiment during the Seven Years War and took part in combined operations against French ports St. Malo, Cherbourg, Battle of Saint Cast
Battle of Saint Cast
The Battle of Saint Cast was a military engagement during the Seven Years War on the French coast between British Naval and Land expeditionary forces and French coastal defence forces....
in 1758 and the Battle of Warburg
Battle of Warburg
The Battle of Warburg was a battle fought on 31 July 1760 during the Seven Years' War. The Battle was a victory for the Hanoverians and the British against the French. British general John Manners, Marquess of Granby achieved some fame for charging at the head of the British cavalry and losing his...
in 1760. He was then in Cuba in 1762. In 1778 he was appointed Quartermaster-General in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, a post which he was to retain until 1789. At some point he transferred to the 22nd Foot before becoming Colonel of the 14th Foot in February 1781.
Army improvements
In the 1780s Dundas became an advocate of officer training in the British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
and wrote many manuals on the subject, the first being Principles of Military Movements published in 1788.
But Dundas was a conservative military thinker. He chose to ignore the light infantry
Light infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
tactics that generals such as Lord Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
or Willam Howe
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB, PC was a British army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British forces during the American War of Independence...
used in the American War of Independence. Instead Dundas, after witnessing Prussian army manouvres in Silesia in 1784, favoured the army model that Frederick the Great had created. Its use of drilled battalions of line infantry
Line infantry
Line infantry is a type of infantry which composed the basis of European land armies from the middle of the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century....
marching in formation was a stark contrast to the light brigades that fought in small independent groups and with cover.
Dundas, like many at Horse Guards
Horse Guards
Horse Guards or horse guards can refer to:* A Household Cavalry regiment:** Troops of the Horse Guards Regiment of the British Army from 1658-1788** The Royal Horse Guards, which is now part of the Blues and Royals...
, failed to learn anything from the fighting in the Americas. Battle-hardened regiments returning from America returned to outmoded training manuals and anachronistic drills. It was not until the formation of an "Experimental Corps of Riflemen", in 1800 that 'the wheel was reinvented'. This change led to light infantry successes in the Peninsular Campaign under the Duke of Wellington
Duke of Wellington
The Dukedom of Wellington, derived from Wellington in Somerset, is a hereditary title in the senior rank of the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first holder of the title was Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington , the noted Irish-born career British Army officer and statesman, and...
.
Later career
He was promoted Major-General on the 24 April 1790 and as Britain became involved in the French Revolutionary WarsFrench Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
was appointed 2nd in command at the siege of Toulon
Siege of Toulon
The Siege of Toulon was an early Republican victory over a Royalist rebellion in the Southern French city of Toulon. It is also often known as the Fall of Toulon.-Context:...
under O’Hara
Charles O'Hara
General Charles O'Hara was a British military officer who served in the Seven Years War, American War of Independence, and French Revolutionary War, and later served as Governor of Gibraltar...
& Lord Mulgrave
Henry Phipps, 1st Earl of Mulgrave
Henry Phipps, 1st Earl of Mulgrave GCB, PC , styled The Honourable Henry Phipps until 1792 and known as The Lord Mulgrave from 1792 to 1812, was a British soldier and politician...
from September 1793, where he commanded an abortive attack on the Arenes Heights on 30 November with 2,350 men. Dundas became commanding officer under Lord Hood
Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport
|-...
after O’Hara’s capture in this action. He lost Fort Mulgrave & Mount Faron after a 3-day bombardment on 17 December 1793. Dundas commanded the initial expedition to Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
in 1794, landing 7 February and capturing the Mortella Tower. He captured the Port of San Fiorenzo and Bastia
Bastia
Bastia is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It is also the second-largest city in Corsica after Ajaccio and the capital of the department....
, an important first step ultimately leading to the capture of the island and establishment of a short-lived Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
The Anglo-Corsican Kingdom was a short-lived self-declared independent state on the island of Corsica during the mid-1790s.-Background and history of the kingdom:During the time of the French Revolution, Corsica had been a part of France for just two decades...
by forces under Hood and Admiral Lord Nelson.
Dundas was forced to resign by Hood on the 10th March 1794 and transferred to serve in the Flanders Campaign
Flanders Campaign
This feature refers to the conflict that took place during the Wars of the French Revolution 1792–1801.For the Low Countries campaigns of the War of the Grand Alliance 1688–97 see Nine Years' War...
under the Duke of York. Appointed commander of the 2nd Cavalry brigade after the death of John Mansel at Beaumont on 26 April 1794, he distinguished himself at Willems on 10 May 1794, and was attached to Otto’s column at Tourcoing17th/18 May. Dundas replaced Laurie at the head of his brigade during the retreat to Antwerp, where he saw more action at Tuyle. He commanded the Right wing under Harcourt
William Harcourt, 3rd Earl Harcourt
Field Marshal William Harcourt, 3rd Earl Harcourt, of Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire, GCB was a British nobleman and soldier. He was the younger son of Simon Harcourt, 1st Earl Harcourt.-Seven Years War:...
in December 1794, and led the defence at the action at Geldermalsen
Geldermalsen
Geldermalsen is a municipality and a town in the western Netherlands. The municipality of Geldermalsen was formed on the 1st of January 1978 when former municipalities Beesd, Buurmalsen, Deil and Geldermalsen were joined. The new municipality with approximately 10.173 hectares is one of the...
on 5 January 1795. He was made commander of the British forces (mainly cavalry) left behind at Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
from April to September 1795.
From 23 December 1795 to 16 May 1801 he was Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
of the 7th Light Dragoons. He was promoted Lieutenant-General on 21 January 1797.
in 1797 Dundas refused the post of Commander-in-Chief in Ireland due to an unwillingness to leave England. Instead he was appointed Quartermaster-General to the Forces
Quartermaster-General to the Forces
In the United Kingdom, the Quartermaster-General to the Forces is a senior general in the British Army.From 1904 the Quartermaster-General to the Forces was the Third Military Member of the Army Board.-Responsibilities:...
then General on the Staff, to 1803 in which role he authored the army’s official drillbook for Foot & Horse.
Dundas commanded the 3rd Division under York in the Helder Campaign 1799, seeing action at Den Helder on 27 August, Zype on 10 September, Bergen on 19th, Egmont-op-Zee (Alkmaar) on 2 October and Castricum on 6 October. He was Colonel of 2nd Dragoons (Scots Greys) from 16 May 1801 to 27 January 1813, promoted General on 24 April 1802 and made commander in Kent and Sussex from 1803. Dundas was appointed Knight of the Bath in 1804 and went into semi-retirement in 1805.
He chaired the hearing against Le Marchant in charges of calumny from 23 January 1807, was a member of the Court Martial that tried Whitelocke
John Whitelocke
-Military career:Whitelocke entered the army in 1778 and served in Jamaica and in San Domingo. In 1805 he was made a lieutenant-general and inspector-general of recruiting, and in 1807 he was appointed to command an expedition to seize Buenos Aires from the Spanish Empire, which was in disarray due...
for the failure of the Buenos Aires expedition
British invasions of the Río de la Plata
The British invasions of the Río de la Plata were a series of unsuccessful British attempts to seize control of the Spanish colonies located around the La Plata Basin in South America . The invasions took place between 1806 and 1807, as part of the Napoleonic Wars, when Spain was an ally of...
on 28 January 1808 and was a member of the Board of Enquiry of the Convention of Cintra in 1808. He was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the 95th Foot on 31 August 1809 and was Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
The Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, or just the Commander-in-Chief , was the professional head of the British Army from 1660 until 1904, when the office was replaced by the Chief of the General Staff, soon to become Chief of the Imperial General Staff . From 1870, the C-in-C was subordinate to...
from 1809 to 1811, during the Duke of York
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
The Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany was a member of the Hanoverian and British Royal Family, the second eldest child, and second son, of King George III...
’s period of disgrace. He was also a Privy councillor from 1809 and Colonel of the 1st Dragoon Guards from 27th January 1813.
He was created a baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
on 22 May 1815.
Dundas was Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
Royal Hospital Chelsea
The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for British soldiers who are unfit for further duty due to injury or old age, located in the Chelsea region of central London, now the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is a true hospital in the original sense of the word,...
from 1804 until his death in 1820. He died there on 18 February 1820.
Assessment
In the army Dundas was nicknamed “Old Pivot” for his Prussian-style drill books.Burne describes him as “A level-headed officer”, but “cautious”, while Bunbury writes "“He...was an aged man...a brave, careful, and well-skilled soldier...Dundas was a tall, spare man, crabbed and austere, dry in his looks and demeanour...there were peculiarities in his habits and style which excited some ridicule amongst young officers. But though it appeared a little out of fashion, there was ‘much care and valour in that Scotchman’”.
“Dundas was perhaps not as graceful nor as polished as some of his contemporaries, but he was as sound as oak and utterly reliable”.
External links
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