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In the summer of 1778, Sir Henry Clinton formed the British Legion by amalgamating several independent Loyalist companies. He assigned Banastre Tarleton as lieutenant-colonel of the unit's cavalry, and gave the colonelcy -- i.e., the overall command -- to William Schaw Cathcart.¹

Cathcart was the son of the ninth Baron Cathcart (Scottish peerage), and both sides of his family had a history of serving in Britain's diplomatic corps. He was educated at Eton, and after graduating in 1771, he joined his father -- then Britain's ambassador to the Russian court -- in St. Petersburg. He returned home in 1773, then studied law at the universities of Dresden and Glasgow.²

He became an accredited advocate early in 1776, but never actually worked in that profession. Within months of his father's death, Cathcart purchased a cornetcy in the 7th dragoons (June 1777), obtained leave of his regiment, and sailed for America as a volunteer with the 16th Light Dragoons.³

He distinguished himself at the storming of Forts Clinton and Montgomery (Oct. 6, 1777) and was quickly promoted to first lieutenant (Nov. 14, 1777), then captain (Dec. 10, 1777) in the 17th light dragoons. Over the winter of 1777-1778, he was active in the endless round of border skirmishing between the British and rebel armies around Philadelphia.⁴

Cathcart was equally prominent in the social whirl of Philadelphia society. He formed a liaison with Elizabeth Elliot, daughter of Andrew Elliot, a rich and influential Loyalist who later served as lieutenant-governor of New York. They were married the following year (April 10, 1779), though that does not seem to have been Cathcart's original intention. According to a contemporary letter,

"[T]he story is that he took himself in merely to pass the time away in winter-quarters; and because Miss E. was a lively, pretty girl, he made violent love to her, wrote letters, &c. &c. Miss E. listened and believed -- 'For who can think such tender looks were meant but to deceive?' Whether his Lordship flew off afterwards, I know not: but Mr. E. laid the letters and the whole affair before Sir Henry [Clinton]. Sir H. advised Cathcart to marry: Cathcart wished to be excused till the end of the war: and the General informed him that after having gone so far, he must marry Miss E., or quit his family. A fine girl, a good fortune, to a Scotch Lord with a moderate one, were not to be despised. You know the Peers of Scotland, having no legislative privileges, are not of that consequence that the Lords of England or even those of Ireland are. And so his Lordship married Miss Eliot, and they will soon sail for England, it is said."⁵

Cathcart's new father in law had a more upbeat take on the situation. About a week before the wedding, Elliott commented in a letter that both parties "seem highly pleased" with their upcoming marriage. He corresponded with Cathcart throughout the war, and when his youngest daughter married years later, expressed a wish that her husband would make her "as happy as Betsy (Lady Cathcart) is."⁶

In addition to writing those no-doubt-extremely-interesting letters to Betsy Elliot -- too bad no one tucked them away in a shoebox -- Cathcart fought off the boredom of a garrison life by becoming involved with "Howe's Strolling Players," the amateur theatrical troupe which re-formed whenever the British went into winter garrison. Taking over an abandoned theater in the city, the group staged weekly performances throughout the early months of 1778, with officers filling most of the acting roles. Cathcart presence on stage is attested by a somewhat disapproving comment from a fellow officer who attended one of the performances:

"Monday 16th. March...a Play tonight the Inconstant & L[etcher] pretty well done...Ld. Cathcart play'd in both, with more propriety in speech than in some of the parts chosen -- ridiculous in a man of his rank & fashion to play the part of a Valet & suffer the ceremony of being kick'd..."⁷

Cathcart must have enjoyed theatrical pursuits, for he also played a major role in the Mischianza, the festival held as a farewell party for Sir William Howe in May, 1778. One of the events was a mock jousting tournament, and Cathcart led the field as chief of the "Knights of the Blended Rose" (i.e., the white knights), squiring Miss Auchmuty.⁸

After the Mischianza, Howe headed home to England, and the post of commander-in-chief of the British forces in the colonies passed to Sir Henry Clinton. When he formed his new staff, Clinton appointed Cathcart as one of his aides-de-camp (May 30, 1778).⁹

The British army abandoned Philadelphia soon afterwards and retired to New York. Cathcart was again mentioned in dispatches for his services at the battle of Monmouth Court House (June 28, 1778) which took place during the retreat.¹⁰

As soon as he settled down in New York, Sir Henry set about finishing a project he had already begun -- recruiting and reorganizing Loyalist forces. In his account of the war, he says:

"[B]efore I left Philadelphia, I began to form such a corps, under the title of the Volunteers of Ireland and the command of Lord Rawdon, whose zeal I knew would lead him to spare neither expense nor pains to complete its numbers and render it useful and respectable. The foundation of a legionary corps was also at the same time laid, for the reception of such other Europeans as might choose to join it, the command of which I gave to a Scottish nobleman, Lord Cathcart, with the same views and expectations that had influenced me with respect to Lord Rawdon's."¹¹

Cathcart gives himself more credit for the idea when he tells his own version of the formation of the Legion:

"I was employed in 1778 to incorporate certain independent Provincial Dragoons and infantry, and to raise recruits to form a corps of light troops; the scheme was my own, and it was to be called the British Legion. I was Colonel Commandant and appointed my own officers. The Provincial clothing was too Gaudy and the accoutremenets too Slight: I had to arrange for myself in these respects. Six weeks after the corps was established, the cavalry marched to the front under Colonel Tarleton, the infantry under Major Cochran."¹²

By early August, 1778, the core of the Legion had been pulled together, with Cathcart as its colonel. Being colonel of a regiment was primarily a ceremonial appointment -- as it remains today -- but it was Cathcart's first command so he took an active role when the newly formed unit was transferred to Kingsbridge, to work in concert with Simcoe's Queen's American Rangers. This produced an immediate conflict between Cathcart and John Graves Simcoe. Older and more experienced, Simcoe objected to being placed under Cathcart's command:

"Lieutenant Colonel Simcoe was much affected at Lord Cathcart's having the rank of Colonel of Provincials, and made, in consequence of it, application to the Commander in Chief; Sir Henry Clinton, though he waved for the present the giving Lieutenant Colonel Simcoe rank of Lord Cathcart, offered to him that of Colonel, which he respectfully (but as the event has proved most unfortunately) declined: every motive that he had to solicit this rank, by Lord Cathcart's being employed on other duties, was done away, and Lieutenant. Colonel Simcoe remained at Kingsbridge, in command of his corps, Lieutenant. Col. Emmerick's, and the cavalry of the Legion."¹³

Clinton solved the problem by transferring Cathcart and the Legion infantry to Greenwich, which satisfied Simcoe and left Tarleton on his own in command of the Legion cavalry. From this point onward, Cathcart's active involvement with the Legion cavalry fades, though he continued to hold formal command of it for another year.¹⁴

On April 13, 1779, Cathcart was promoted to major in the 38th regiment and soon afterwards received a brevet lieutenant-colonelcy in the regular army. On June 30, 1779, he temporarily took over the post of Quartermaster-General to the forces in America, continuing in that job until the end of March, 1780, when the permanent appointee arrived.¹⁵

The DNB says that Cathcart sailed with Sir Henry Clinton's expedition to Charleston as commander of the British Legion, and led it during the siege of Charleston. While true in theory, there are few -- in fact I can't find any -- contemporary indications that he actually served with the unit in the field. Major Cochrane had command of the Legion infantry, and Tarleton was busy making a name for himself at the head of its cavalry.¹⁶

I haven't been able to determine what role Cathcart actually played during this period. He was certainly with the army, for John Peebles mentions dining with him in late February. For part of the time, he still held the post of Quartermaster-General, which was certainly a full-time job if he hadn't passed the duties on to assistants when he left New York. On the other hand, he may have doing very little of anything, for he had been plagued by ill health for some time. As early as October, 1779, an acquaintance in New York described him as having had "a relapse of this feverish disorder & look[ing] very thin." His health continued to deteriorate, and in April, 1780, he formally turned over the Legion to Tarleton and returned to New York.¹⁷

There was an additional factor in his choice to relinquish command. Sir Henry Clinton had made a practice of placing regular army officers in charge of Provincial units and granting them acting ranks superior to those they held in the regular army. These posts had gone mainly to young officers and the practice was causing considerable resentment in some quarters. In November, 1779, Lord George Germain wrote to Sir Henry that, "His Majesty thinks proper to order that no officer shall at the same time hold commissions in the regulars and in the provincials but that they do make their option in which corps they will serve, resigning the one or the other of their commissions." Clinton arranged a few specific exceptions to this directive -- Tarleton among them -- but most officers were forced to make a choice. Cathcart chose to retain his post with the 38th Regiment rather than the Legion.¹⁸

In New York, Cathcart commanded the 38th during the actions at Springfield and Elizabeth Town (June, 1780), but his health continued to deteriorate. In the autumn of 1780, he and his wife returned to England.¹⁹

Once back in his native climes, his health must have improved, for he soon embarked on an active, multi-facetted career. In February, 1781, he was given a captaincy and lieutenant-colonelcy in the Coldstream guards. In October, 1789, he transferred to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the 29th regiment, and in 1792, he became that regiment's colonel. In parallel with the steady advancement of his military service, Cathcart took a seat in the House of Lords in 1788, and by 1790 was elected chairman of committees.

Promoted to brigadier-general in November, 1793, he was given command of a brigade assigned to the army being formed under the Earl of Moira (Lord Rawdon's new title) for service against the French on the Continent. That force eventually sailed to the Netherlands to reinforce the Duke of York, and Cathcart remained on the continent until the end of 1795, earning distinction throughout the campaign in the Low Countries.

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He returned home to a series of appointments and recognitions from the King, including a seat on the privy council (September, 1798) and a promotion to lieutenant-general (1801). One of his offices held the unlikely title of "Gold Stick," and provided fodder for a caricature by Gillray.²⁰

Around this time, his wife, the former Miss Elliot, was appointed lady-in-waiting to the Queen, whereupon satirist Peter Pindar seized on her American background and presence at court to poke fun at George III:

Cathcart served as commander-in-chief in Ireland from 1803 to 1805, then was appointed to the post once held by his father, as British ambassador to the Russian court. Before he could take up the post, the war with France heated up and he led a British force to Hanover instead. By 1807, the situation had changed again, and Cathcart was withdrawn to London, then sent to the Baltic, where he conquered the city of Copenhagen. As a reward for his service throughout the campaign, he was created a Viscount in the British Peerage.

After this, he resumed the post of commander-in-chief in Scotland, which he had held since before leaving for the Baltic. He remained in his homeland until 1812, when he was promoted to full general and again named ambassador to Russia. This time, he actually made it to St. Petersburg, and he continued to hold the post for eight years. Much of that time was spent working behind the scenes to bolster the European alliance formed against Napoleon. He entered Paris with the allies and took part in the Congress of Vienna. In recognition of his efforts, he was created Earl Cathcart in July, 1814.

He remained as ambassador to Russia until 1820, then returned to England. He served for a time as governor of Hull, and remained active in politics, as a Tory, until the passing of the Reform Bill. After that, he retired to Scotland, where he lived out the remainder of his life. He died June 16, 1843, at the age of eighty-eight.²²

Notes:

¹ Robert D. Bass, The Green Dragoon; The Lives of Banastre Tarleton and Mary Robinson (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1957), p48. [ back ]

² Sir Leslie Stephen and Sir Sidney Lee, ed., The Dictionary of National Biography, 22 vols. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1882), 3:1196. [ back ]

³ DNB, 3:1197. [ back ]

⁴ DNB, 3:1197. A List of All the Officers of the Army: Viz. the General and Field Officers; the Officers of the Several Troops, Regiments, Independent Companies and Garrisons ... in Great Britain (War Office, 1778, 1779). [ back ]

⁵ Winthrop Sargent, The Life and Career of Major André; (Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1861), footnote p147, quoting a "MS. letter of the time." Sir Henry's reference to Cathcart "quit[ting] his family," refers, of course, to his military "family" -- aides-de-camp, etc. A biographical account of Andrew Elliot can be found in Eugene Devereux, "Andrew Elliot," Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 11 (1887): 129-150. [ back ]

⁶ Andrew Elliott to Sir Gilbert Elliott, in Devereux, p146. [ back ]

⁷ John Peebles, The Diary of a Scottish Grenadier, 1776-1782, ed. Ira D. Gruber (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1998), p169. According to John W. Jackson, With the British Army in Philadelphia 1777-1778 (San Rafael, CA and London: Presidio Press, 1979), p201, the second play was "Lethe," a farce, not "Letcher" as Gruber interpolated. [ back ]

⁸ Jackson, p243. [ back ]

⁹ Gen. Sir Henry Clinton's Orders, for May 30, 1778, Collections of the New-York Historical Society for the Year 1883 (New York: Printed for the Society, 1884), pp587-588. [ back ]

¹⁰ DNB, 3:1197. [ back ]

¹¹ Sir Henry Clinton, The American Rebellion. Sir Henry Clinton's Narrative of his Campaigns, 1775-82, ed. William B. Willcox (New Haven: Yale University Press; 1954), p111. [ back ]

¹² Devereaux, p139. He doesn't identify the source document, but it reads like the "memorial" of an officer seeking promotion. [ back ]

¹³ John Graves Simcoe, Military Journal, p80. [ back ]

¹⁴ Bass, p48-49. [ back ]

¹⁵ DNB, 3:1197. Mark M. Boatner III, Encyclopedia of the American Revolution (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1994), p189. R. Arthur Bowler, Logistics and the Failure of the British Army in America, 1775-1783 (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1975), p22. The date of his appointment as Quartermaster-General is given variously. The June date comes from "Memorandums relative to the QMG's Department," in Historical Manuscripts Commission, Report on American Manuscripts in the Royal Institute of Great Britain, 4 vols. (London: Printed for His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1901-9), 2:285. The editors of James Robertson's letters say he was appointed to the QMG post in July. See James Robertson, The Twilight of British Rule in Revolutionary America: The New York Letter Book of General James Robertson, 1780-1783, eds. Milton M. Klein and Ronald W. Howard (Cooperstown, NY: The New York State Historical Association, 1983), p102n9. [ back ]

¹⁶ DNB, 3:1197. When Henry Lee filed a report with Congress on Clinton's forces leaving New York (Dec. 26, 1779), he listed "Lord Cathcart's Legion" among those that embarked, but after that Cathcart's name is seldom or never mentioned. See letter from Lieut. Col. H. Lee, Forwarded to Congress, printed in Walter Clark, ed., The State Records of North Carolina, 26 vols. (Goldsboro, North Carolina: Nash Brothers, 1886-1907), 14:239-240. [ back ]

¹⁷ Peebles, p302 and p342. [ back ]

¹⁸ Letter of 4 November, 1779, from Lord George Germain to Sir Henry Clinton. Printed in K. G. Davies, ed., Documents of the American Revolution, 1770-1783, 21 vols. (Dublin: Irish University Press, c1977-1982), 17:251-252. [ back ]

¹⁹ DNB, 3:1197. The DNB says he left New York in October, but Peebles' journal entry for Sept. 5th, 1780, reads: "The fleet for England sailed yesterday under Convoy of the Renown &ca. Genls: Tryon, Mathew & Pattison Lord Cathcart & a good many more officers gone home. Peebles, p404. [ back ]

²⁰ DNB, 3:1197. [ back ]

²¹ Sargent, footnote on pg 147. DNB, 3:1197. [ back ]

²² DNB, 3:1197-1198. [ back ]