The Berwick Regiment in Emigration
under the command of
Count O'Mahony
July 18, 1791 - december 1, 1792
In 1789, there were three Irish infantry regiments in France: Dillon, Berwick and Walsh.
With the reorganization of the army, and by an order of January 1st, 1791, the existing regiments were no longer named by their ancient name but were now
designated by the number of their rank of creation ; the regiment of Berwick became the "88th Line Infantry Regiment".
Each regiment was composed of two battalions. A decree of the 30th of June substituted for the flags of the regiments new flags bearing,
with the number of the regiment, this inscription: "Discipline, Obedience to the Law".
The flag of the 1st battalion of each regiment was white with a band in national colors, and at the top three horizontal bands in national colors.
The flag of the second battalion was in the colors assigned to the regiment (
1).
New flags of the 2 batalions 88th line infantry, ex Berwick.
The lilies will be removed in 1793.
In the course of May 1791, the emigrants scattered on the frontiers received an invitation to go to Koblenz
where the Comte d'Artois had settled, or at Worms residence of the Prince de Condé.
The comte d'Artois
He was in 1787 one of the witnesses to the marriage contract of Viscount de Pontbellanger, who was at one time his aide-de-camp.
The viscount is an ancestor of the O'Mahony by mariage of Count Maurice O'Mahony with Marthe d'Amphernet de Pontbellanger in 1881.
The colonel-proprietor of the regiment, the duke of Fitz-James, had emigrated from the first hour and the colonel-commander of the regiment, the Count O'Mahony,
camp marshal,
had settled in Mannheim with his family "for a long time already", as the Comte d'Espinchal (
2) wrote
on the 4th of July in his
Journal d'émigration.
Also Henri Leclercq (
3) points out in his book on the Constituent Assembly, that
Barthélemy remained in constant correspondence with his officers. Thus he alerted the Comte d'Artois to receive at Ettenheim individual deserters
from the regiment, and organized the passage abroad of almost all his officers and a part of the regiment.
On July 16, 1791, the Prince de Condé wrote in his Diary of Emigration:
On Saturday the 16th, I was riding in the
morning, and I went to see the officers of the troops on horseback at the quarter which I had assigned to them, to Horcheim; I sent a gentleman
during the day to divert
and to send to Etteinheim the Berwick deserters who came to me in force.
In a letter adressed to the comte d'Artois on july 17, the prince de Condé specifies that this gentleman is the count O'Mahony.
And for the date of july 18 in his diary :
I was informed that more than two hundred soldiers
of Berwick, en route from Landau to Wissenbourg, where this regiment was sent, had come out of the column with their arms, had torn a piece of their shirt
to put on their hat, had shouted "Long live the King and the Princes", and came to join me without the rest of the regiment having opposed it:
I sent officers on all the roads by which they could reach me,
to direct them to Ettenheim, the only place in Germany accepting to give asylum to French soldiers
faithful to their King and their honor.
And for the date of friday july 22 :
On Friday, the 22nd, we had lunch at ten o'clock, and we went immediately to Coblentz; I was going to spend the night at Schalbach; I received an estaffette
who informed me that nearly all the rest of the Berwick regiment had passed, and that it had been well received where I had sent it.
Henri Leclercq estimates the passage of the Rhine to be July 21, "with thirty-one other officers and one hundred and twenty-five men"
and states that:
« The royalist newspapers celebrated this desertion as equal to a victory, the princes glorified those who brought them
the same tribute of fidelity that their fathers had brought to James II - annoying omen - and "Monsieur" wrote on their
flags a motto of his constitution. »
The prince de Condé (Louis-Joseph de Bourbon), king's cousin,
settled at Worms, commanding the army of his name
mainly composed of the Légion Mirabeau and Berwick regiment.
Here is the story that René Bittard des Portes (
4) tells in his
Histoire de l'armée de Condé :
« At Landau, the Berwick regiment, which owes its origin to the Jacobite emigration, shows its aversion to new ideas.
When the rumor spreads to the barracks that the corps of officers almost entirely, led by the colonel of Mahony, will emigrate, the soldiers shout
"Live our officers, we do not leave them." Three hundred men in arms, that is to say more than half of the regiment, come to form before
the colonel's quarters, and when the latter, together with about thirty of his officers, rode on his horse and declared that he was going to Germany to join
the King's brothers, the acclamations redouble. Then Officers and soldiers leave the small town, french at that time, to Worms ».
In a letter sent on august 3, 1814 to the editor of the
Journal des débats, the administrator-general of the British institutions and colleges
in the kingdom recalls that the regiment assembled on the place of arms and left the city in the presence of the other four regiments of the garrison,
"flying drum, floating flags and lit mice".
According to Miles Byrne (
5), in his "Memoirs",
the entire regiment left Landau, but on the way Captain Harty,
commanding the company of grenadiers, declared that he did not want to desert the country that had received him, harangued the regiment and returned
to Landau where
he was celebrated as a hero. He states that Harty left Colonel O'Mahony alone with three officers who followed him across the Rhine, which seems
contrary to any other testimonies and denotes a clear bias of the author, who had not yet left his native Ireland at that time
and must have received his information from the person concerned. It will be noted here that if, on the side of the Princes, there was a great stir in
the action of Colonel O'Mahony,
in the hope of making emulators in other regiments, the same was done, for the same reasons, on the revolutionary side, of that of Captain Harty
(later general), each of course exaggerating the importance!
We shall assume it was the 18th of July, and from that day the regiment was divided in two:
the Berwick Regiment in the service of the Princes with Barthélemy O'Mahony colonel commander, and the 88th Infantry in the service of the
Nation, with Charles-Alexis O'Connor colonel commander, appointed October 21, 1791 due to "vacancy by the resignation of Mr. O'Mahony".
This regiment was sent to Nancy.
The prince de Condé writes to colonel O'Mahony :
«
The Princes reserve to give to the regiment the testimonies of their satisfaction on its constant
fidelity to the king, on the distinguished conduct he has held since the beginning of the revolution and on the example that this regiment has been the first to give
in this moment.
»
The regiment writes to Monsieur and to the Comte d'Artois (king's brothers) on july 23 :
« The officers, low-ranking officers (NCO), grenadiers, and soldiers of the Irish regiment of Berwick, filled with the sentiments of honor and fidelity
which are hereditary in them, beg Messeigneurs to put at the feet of the King the devotion which they make of their life for the support to the royal cause,
and the oath to use their arms with confidence in the most perilous occasions. »
Monsieur and the Comte d'Artois, replied, one from Schoenbornslust July 28 and the other from Koblenz July 29, to the said officers,
low-ranking officers, grenadiers and soldiers of the regiment, to thank them and order that was added to its flags the legend "Semper and ubique
fidelis 1691-1791 Toujours et partout fidèle." (Always and everywhere faithful).
On July 26, the Princes had decided that the regiment, still commanded by Colonel O'Mahony, will have the same formation, the same pay, the same masses,
the same administration as in France, and will be worn out for 1,500 men (
Les corps de troupe de l'émigration française
by Viscount Grouvel).
Speaking fo the comte de Provence (Monsieur), the viscount de Vormeuil (
6) will tell :
« He told me he had a moment hoped that I could have driven my old regiment with me,
as did Count O'Mahony, Colonel of the Berwick Regiment, who crossed the frontier at the head of his regiment,
and came to join the princes. But Mr. O'Mahony commanded loyal and devoted foreigners; the regiment of which he was the leader
had not suffered the unfortunate influence exercised with so much art on the French infantry; so I could not, despite all the care,
get a result like this. »
One could read in the Journal de la Cour et de la Ville dated saturday july 30, 1791 :
« All the officers of the Berwick Regiment, accompanied by one hundred and thirty-two of their soldiers, bored of the uncertainty where
the military were, since the time of the Revolution, have gone to ask for service to M. de Bouille, who himself has gone to the service
of the King of Sweden. »
We can see that, depending on the authors, the number of soldiers having followed their officers varies. Nevertheless we can make our own opinion thanks to
François Grouvel (
7) who gives the status of the regiment on august 11, 1791, that is to say :
- état-major (staff), 9 officers : 2 colonels, 2 lieutenants-colonels, 2 adjudants-major, adjudant, chaplain, assistant surgeon;
- companies : 10 captains, 11 lieutenants, 11 second-lieutenants, 12 sergeants-majors, 18 sergeants, 12 corporals-fourriers, 36 corporals, 12 cadets,
1 volonteer, 2 drums et un fife, 50 grenadiers et fusiliers.
total, 185 men.
On august 15, 1791 the duc de Berry (13 years old) wrote from Torino to the comte d'Artois :
« With what pleasure we have read, my little dad, the letter of the good Berwick Regiment, and your answer, as well as that of
Monsieur! Oh ! why am I not there ? I would like to see these good soldiers, and fight with them! I would tell them, like our good Henry:
Comrades, if in the heat of battle you lose your flags, join my white plume, which will always be
on the path of honor .
This thought boils my blood in my veins, my dear father. Let's walk
to give freedom back to our unfortunate King. Thirty-two officers of the Vexin regiment arrived at Nice, filled with zeal and
courage; I do not miss that either, and am ready to fight well. »
The event at Varennes (June 21) having made emigration more frequent, and a great number of officers and gentlemen filling the neighboring towns of Koblenz
and Worms, it was agreed in the council that the princes should proceed with their organization.
August 25 was chosen to publicize this organization. Here is what Gouvion-Saint-Cyr says :
(
8) :
« Already for six months, was formed in the states of the Bishop of Strasbourg, a corps, on foot and horseback, composed of
deserters under the orders of Viscount Mirabeau [brother of the famous politician]. To that corps was also addes companies composed of
volunteers from high or low thirds.
At the same time Prince Louis de Rohan, nephew of the cardinal, was authorized to raise a regiment entirely composed of Germans.
Finally, the Berwick Regiment, which almost entirely had left the service of France, was also staying in
same country. [This regiment was the nucleus of a foreign legion formed by the care of Prince Hohenlohe-Barthenstein, according to M. de Champrobert in Le Comte
d'Artois and Emigration].
« The organization completed, a natural consequence was to give a kind of service to these new corps.
The bishop of Worms having put some villages of his states at the disposal of the prince, the companies were assembled there:
in turn they came to guard Worms and pushed
every morning mock reconnaissance on the roads of Alsace (we were in peace), and the year 1791 ended so.
This assembly, insignificant as it was, having displeased the French government, its ambassador to the Elector of Trier had orders to make claims,
and the Prince received an injunction to leave Worms; he set out on the 9th of January, 1792, and went to Oberkirch in the states of the bishop of Strasburg.
This resolution of the sovereigns of Germany having naturally produced an unfortunate sensation, they sought to mitigate it,
presenting
this movement as a project of an attempt on Strasbourg, whose betrayal was supposed to open the doors (...).
When one considers that at that time the prince had not under his orders much more than six hundred gentlemen, twelve hundred men
the legion Mirabeau, two hundred crown knights, two hundred Rohan, six hundred Berwick, we see that any attempt was reasonably impossible,
that Strasbourg delivered could not be preserved and that this noise spread on purpose, was obviously devoid of any foundation.
« However this march executed in full peace and along the Rhine which separated the travelers from the French army, was considered as
a campaign, and counted as such, either for advancement, retirement, or
decoration, and in the certificates issued by the prince, one always reads : "et nous a suivi à Oberkirch" (anf followed us to Oberkirch).
« Soon after, the same motive that had forced the prince to leave Worms for Oberkirch, forced him to leave this city for Epenheim
(probably Ettenheim) where he arrived on February 20th.
The legion Mirabeau was even obliged to leave the states of the bishop of Strasburg, and took his cantonments in those of the Prince de Hohenlohe; the
Berwick's regiment went to Neuwied to pass under the orders of the princes. »
The author of a letter dated Staubing-on-the Danube, August 17, 1791, tells:
I met a Frenchman on my road, a character infatuated with aristocracy, and who bitterly regrets your old regime, where he has figured.
"A great storm," he told me, "is ready to burst upon France, the wind will blow more than one side to overthrow the current order of this kingdom."
I told him that, on my way from Strasbourg to ..., I had not found any trace of the formidable preparations that must precede such threats (...).
"You are in error," he replied, "I do not speak of the four hundred men, deserted with arms and baggage, and officers of the Berwick Irish regiment,
but you will soon hear more fearsome etc. " [Excerpt published in the National Gazette or The Moniteur Universel of August 28, 1791.
- Third year of Liberty.]
On the 28th of August, the Princes granted the corporals, appointed, grenadiers, fusiliers, drums, and musicians of the regiment 15 sols a day,
both for bread and for lodging, wood and straw; the second officers kept their current pay with a surplus value to pay the ration of bread.
The corps continues to recruit, in the country of Liege mainly, the engagement of each soldier being raised to 108 livres against 40 to the legion
of Mirabeau. There are still 1,304 men missing for the count, says Inspector Viomenil, at Alzey, September 19, 1791, since he presented 196 men
to his review; it would take a total sum of 70,000 livres to pay the regiment and put it in order.
Monsieur seeks in vain to obtain from the Prince of Neuwied, that he accepts to receive the Berwick regiment, which had just given up the service of France. Thus it is possible to read in La Gazette Nationale ou Le Moniteur Universel
of September 21st, this extract of a letter dated from Neuwied September 8th, 1791:
« Monsieur, brother of S.M.T.C., having wished that M. le prince de Neuwied wanted to receive in his estates the
regiment of Berwick, irish, which left the service of France, had obtained from that prince a favourable answer.
« The magistrate of Neuwied and the burghers considered that the introduction of a foreign regiment in their country could, under various points
of view, harm their tranquility and their interests.
« Full of confidence for a prince who has just succeeded the best and most loved father, to a great man whom he has missed
a larger theater to obtain the title of benefactor of the human race, they presented their motives to the reigning prince,
who welcomed them with kindness, and consequently withdrew the permission he had granted.
« The inhabitants of Neuwied have principles of universal philanthropy that do not allow them to take any part, directly or indirectly,
in the divisions that agitate
other states. Prayers addressed to the Supreme Being for the restoration of peace and concord are the only ones
means that Providence put in their hands
to contribute to the happiness of humanity.
« Hospitality is in their eyes a sacred duty, and this duty is dear to their co-oelig ur; but it only extends to individuals
isolated, unarmed, and free of party spirit.
« Hospitality is in their eyes a sacred duty, and this duty is dear to their hearts; but it only extends to individuals
isolated, unarmed, and free of party spirit. »
Meanwhile, the regiment is stationed at Oberkirch, where its officers and soldiers molest all that wears the national cockade, insult and beat the Alsatian
bourgeoisie suspected to belong to the national guard (October 17, 1791)
Captain Egan is in charge of the depot of recruits established at Satvelot with 50 junior recruiting officers who hire
about 120 men a month for 48 pounds per man; this intensive recruitment led to a protest by the imperial authorities, who sentenced two regimental officers
to jail in Ostend for blatant hiring.
At the beginning of the year 1792, Berwick is counted for 500 men [January 25, a situation report
of the corps presents the following staff: Staff including colonel proprietor (Duke FitzJames), colonel
Commander (Count O'Mahony), 2 Lieutenant Colonels (Moore and Mac Dermott) (18 companies including 2 Grenadiers).
The duc d'Enghien (
9) tells in his
Mémoires et voyages :
« The inhabitants of Worms soon feared that this military apparatus would cause the anger of the French nation;
they showed their fears to the elector of Mainz. The maneuvers were forbidden, and the French remained a few months still.
But (french) General Kellermann having arrived at Landau, and the troops reinforcing on this side, anxieties appeared again.
New deputation was sent to the Elector who finally consented to ask for our removal, and who, in fact, was not sorry
to get rid of proscribed guests who could lure the enemy home.
Cardinal de Rohan then offered us an asylum in his bailiwicks, and we set out for Ettenheim on January 2, 1792.
« The road for the gentlemen was not easy to make. It was in the most rigorous season of the year, and the persecutions they experienced were endless.
In the palatinate, on the bishopric of Speyer, even on the imperial lands, the innkeepers had orders not to receive them. If we gave them the cottage
for one night only, it was by making them
all pay for the weight of gold. They could not travel more than three together, without weapons, without any military mark, otherwise everything was closed to them.
In spite of these cruel vexations, caused by the fear that one had of an invasion on this side entirely devoid of troops, and also by the still doubtful way of thinking of the great powers, the whole body arrived in the bailiwick of Ettenheim.
The cantonments were detestable, the villages too small, and too few (...).
« We were received marvelously by the Cardinal and lodged at his house. We had found on our arrival in the first bailiwick, the legion Mirabeau, of which my grandfather had passed the review, and the regiment of Berwick; in the second bailiwick the legion of Bussy or the knights of the crown.
The legion of Mirabeau was at that time twelve hundred men. The Berwick regiment of three hundred to four hundred, but many desertions, considering the smallness of the territory of the cardinal. The hires
Austrians came to take the soldiers to the door of their barracks. As for the Knights of the Crown, they were about two hundred. »
The cardinal de Rohan, bishop of Strasbourg, the famous heroe of the "Queen's necklace",
retired in 1791 on the other side of the Rhine, at Ettenheim, small principality depending of his bishopric,
where he raised troops for the prince de Condé and he distinguished himself by his charity and his hospitality
Meanwhile, the news coming to Paris shows the difficulty of following the movements accurately.
One can read, for example, these Nouvelles de Coblentz of January 30, 1792 published in the Rédaction du Journal de Paris, n° 41 of January 31
« The affairs of our emigrants will take a new face. The Legion of Mirabeau was sold to Prince Hohenloë, and the
Berwick Regiment to the Prince of Neuwied! »
Or this excerpt from a letter dated Worms, March 3, published in the Courrier du Bas-Rhin dated samedi march,17 :
« The legion of Mirabeau went to the country of Hohenlohe. It is asserted that the Berwick Regiment did not land at Neuwied;
that he will land at Anderncak, and pass into the Austrian Netherlands, where he is to be incorporated into different regiments.
»
Thee Prince de Condé wrote this interesting reflection on Tuesday the 14th:
« It may not be one of the least extraordinary things
in the history of those times as unfortunate as interesting, that the extreme occupation in the Empire
of this handful of the world called the Legion Mirabeau, and the marked obstinacy followed, by the Emperor himself, to dissolve it,
while no one spoke of the regiment
of Berwick, who, however, was a corps just like this Legion; it's something I've never
be able to conceive and that the time will likely clear up. »
In April, complaints were lodged against the regiment, and the German princes intervening for its removal,
Berwick is sent to Neuwied, where he "was wonderfully"; the depot of emigrant soldiers operating at Ath continues to supply the corps with recruits,
passing through an auxiliary depot at Henry-Chapelle.
On April 20, France declared war on the emperors of Austria and Prussia.
On April 24th, the Count of Espinchal writes:
« the Princes see at the same time the regiment of Berwick, 500 men strong, part of which is the former body of that name,
with all his officers, the duke of FitzJames, peer of France and colonel proprietor at their head, with his two sons and
the commander of FitzJames, his brother, and like him camps marshal. This regiment is very well kept and ready to enter the field.
He will train the Irish brigade with the beginning of the Dillon and Walsh regiments.
»
François Grouvel indicates that on May 15, at the review of General Viscount de la Tour du Pin, passed to the castle of Frederickstein,
Berwick has 607 men, including 11 staff officers, 18 captains, 18 lieutenants, 15 second lieutenants, 7 officers in command, and 538 subalterns
and soldiers. This force is divided into two battalions each of a grenadier company and eight riflemen.
Staff :
M. le duc de Fitzjames, colonel proprietor;
M. le comte O'Mahony, colonel commandant;
M. O'Moore, 1st lieutenant-colonel;
M. Macdermott, 2nd lieutenant-colonel;
M. Charles O'Connor, 1st adjudant-major;
M. Bryan O'Toole, 2nd adjudant-major;
M. Thomas Kelly, quartier-maître;
MM. Joseph Arnold et Peter Landers, flag bearers;
M. l'abbé Cauvan, chaplain;
M. Georges Couturier, surgeon-major.
Il précise dans son rapport :
« The outfit is uniform and military, and therefore good & hellip; the regiment is perfectly composed of officers who all,
since the lieutenant-colonel, serve very well and live in the greatest union; they all have the greatest desire to give evidence
their attachment to the King and Princes. The corps of the subalterns is very beautiful as well as the majority of the recruits. We can relate to it
to the chiefs for the instruction of the regiment, all are capable, well educated, and full of zeal. The regiment is perfectly placed under
weapons and in accordance with the ordinance; the shape and length of the pad is also consistent. »
In spite of all the necessary good will, the finances of the regiment are becoming more and more indebted and the debts amount to nearly 60,000 livres, as of June 17.
Le 11 juillet le régiment reçoit ordre de se rendre à Bingen [que le Prince avait choisi comme quartier général à la déclaration de guerre] et de se pourvoir d'effets de campement ; il part donc, le 15, de Frederkstein par eau, à l'effectif de 640 hommes, sur 2 bateaux pour les officiers, 6 et plus pour les bas-officiers et soldats.
From May 5 to July 15, 110 men were recruited. The regiment is encamped at Kempten where it received its effects of encampment.
On August 2, Berwick leaves Bingen for Simmern, Kirchberg, Gonzerath, Morbach, Thomm and arrives at Pellingen camp under Trier on August 8.
Crews are transported on 5 carts with 2 horses and carrying 5 quintals each.
The regiment, which became the head of the Irish brigade, this last forming the 3rd brigade of the 2nd division of the infantry of the first line,
is then sent to the camps of Grevenmacher and Stadtbredimus at the end of August.
It then enters France and we find it at the beginning of September in Hettange where the Princes' army met;
it took part in the diversion effected on the 5th of September by the Marshal de Castries, on the right bank of the Moselle, district of Distroff-Haute
and Basse Yütz, with the musketeers and the artillery of the colonies, assigned to the brigade.
When the princes leave for Verdun and Champagne, the Irish brigade follows the cavalry, leaving however a detachment in front of Thionville.
The regiment was found at Dun on September 16, at Somme-Peat on the 28th, "with an army badly lodged, badly sheltered, badly supplied".
The following day, September 29th, the general order of retreat is given and the army must go to Liège on three routes. The Comte d'Espinchal tells:
« We do not know what to attribute such a hasty retreat. We are lost in reasoning and conjecture. We are sure
a letter from our unfortunate King arrived, asking that the armies withdraw, his liberty and that of the royal family being at this price.
Others say that Dumouriez guaranteed on his head of the King's life. The politicians claim that England (...) has stopped
operations by its preponderant influence in the Berlin cabinet and over all on the Duke of Brunswick… »
On October 5, Berwick participated in the small skirmish of Stonne, searching the woods where were hiding patriotic detachments.
The regiment then retired, on October 11 by Montigny-sur-Chiers and Woekrange, on the 12th. Grenadiers of the Irish brigade
made up a special column that seems to have joined his formations only in Arlon. The Comte d'Espinchal tells:
« October 5- Monsieur de Caraman had ordered the brigade to ride at 5 o'clock in the morning. But the weather is so
awful that our trumpets only sound after five o'clock, so that we are only walking at six o'clock. We have barely
walked a quarter of a "lieue" on the pavement that we hear near us, in front, a few gunshots and three or four cannon shots. There is no doubt that the patriots placed at the edge of the wood attack the column which is running. (…) The patriots
having disappeared and having returned into the woods, Berwick's regiment, the hussars and the hunters were sent to search them.
They killed a few men and made about 30 prisoners. »
Then we find the regiment at Perlé-Gremelange-Martellange, Senonchamp, Bastogne, Mierchamps-Beaulieu-Erneville-Hives, Marche, Baillonville, Ochain-Pair. At Huy, on November 6th, there are 75 officers and 256 officers and soldiers. At the end of November, the regiment is at Scherberg, near Aachen.
On november 23, the Princes'army is disbanded, as this letter from the Princes to inform the troops:
« Gentlemen, since the origin of our misfortunes, no situation has unfortunately affected us more than the one in which we find ourselves. The powers, of which we must not forget, the benefits or the efforts for our cause, require, for the present moment, our separation and our disarmament. It is not to the whole body of the nobility, it is not to faithful troops, it is not to the French finally who sacrificed everything to the honor, to their attachment to Religion, to their love for their King, that we will do the injustice of recommending courage in adversity. Ours does not succumb to the weight of misfortune. Nothing will shake our fidelity to the sacred principles of which we have undertaken the defense. Nothing will ever weaken the feelings which unite us to you, and if we go away for some time, it will only be to solicit new means to render us useful to the King and the Country.
We will use everything to achieve it. The agents that we will leave in the various states where you have withdrawn will give us a faithful account of
your situation, inform us of our steps and give you the help we can get. Your patience and your courage will end up
Overcoming all obstacles and the esteem of the whole world will be the reward of noble and sustained conduct. As for us, gentlemen, devoted to working
Unceasingly to prepare this happy moment, all our care will aim to provide you with a fate worthy of your sacrifices. Our unique ambition
will always live for you or die with you.
In Liège on November 23, 1792.
Louis-Charles Xavier
Charles-Philippe: »
We can easily imagine what consternation has plunged them this desperate letter! The effect must have been the same in all
the places where took refuge all the corps. There were then for the gentlemen no resources other than their armament and equipment which were given to them.
The fear of being caught forces them to flee. The emigrants who were in Liege flee to Dusseldorf, from there to Holland, which is neutral,
and England, where the government has established a relief committee.
Monsieur and the Comte d'Artois interceded with General Cleyfayt for the 4 regiments of Royal German, Saxony,
Bercheny and Berwick are taken in the service of Austria. But Berwick is very weak and in a critical situation,
from the point of view of numbers and from the point of view of finance: there is no good service to expect from it.
The corps, hitherto held in the pay of Austria, will be disbanded on December 1, 1792.
The Comte de Provence handed to Colonel O'Mahony, as to the other colonels of the Irish regiments (Walsh and Dillon)
a farewell flag with the motto « 1692 - 1792 'Semper et Ubique Fidelis'»(
10).
What seems to be a repliqua of the farewell banner
was handed in 1914 to the 16th Irish division by the Benedictines of Ypres.
It is now exhibited at the Artillery School, Curragh Camp, Co Kildare
-Joe Ryan Ravenscar, 2006
ici-
The comte O'Mahony will stay two more years in the region as Princes' commissionner in the electorates of Trier and Cologne
Dominique Barbier
(1) Journal des Etats généraux, convoqués par Louis XVI by Etienne
Le Hodey de Saultchevreuil, 1791, vol 35. (
back to the text)
(2) Ernest d'Hauterive published in 1912 at Perrin, the
Journal d'émigration du comte d'Espinchal.
Joseph-Thomas d'Espinchal (1748-1823)
was a close friend of the prince de Condé with whom he emigrated. Camps marshal, he participated in 1792 to the "coalition d'Auvergne"
supporting the comte d'Artois.(
back to the text)
(3) Dom Henri Leclercq d'Orlancourt (1869-1945), second-lieutenant before being
a benedictin in 1895, is the author of a number of books on the Church History and on the end of the monarchy.
We reffer here to the
L'oeuvre de la Constituante : july-december 1791, Letouzey et Ané,
1983. (
back to the text)
(4) René Bittard des Portes (1854-1910), doctor of law, attorney at the Paris Court of Appeal and Chief of Staff to the Secretary General at the Ministry of Justice,
is the author of a great number of books on law and history, and namely an
Histoire de l'armée de Condé pendant la Révolution : 1791-1801, d'après les archives de l'Etat,
les mémoires de l'émigration et des documents inédits, E. Dentu, 1896. (
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(5) Miles Byrne (1780-1862), irishman who came to France after the 1803 insurrection,
battalion commander in the Irish Legion created by Bonaparte in 1803, officer of the Legion of Honor, Chevalier de Saint-Louis, etc., author of
Memoirs,
written in english and published by his widow, Paris, Bossanges et Cie, 1863. (
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(6) The name of "viscount of Vormeuil" is a pseudonym borrowed by the count Pierre-Marie du Lau d'Allemans (1752-1818).
His son wrote in the book :
Le vicomte de Vormeuil ou Confidences d'un lieutenant-général à
son fils 1772-1852, Paris, comptoir des imprimeurs, 1852 what his father had told him. (
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(7) François Grouvel (1934-2009), cavalry colonel, is the author of a book :
Barthélemy comte O'Mahony, lieutenant général written in 2000 thanks
to the important documentary collectionhis father, author of a
Histoire des Corps de Troupe de l'Emigration Française, éditions de la Sabretache,
1957-64. Several
facts cited in this page are taken from his book. (
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(8) Laurent de Gouvion, marquis de Saint-Cyr (1764-1830),
entered the army in 1792 only and he made a dizzying ascent since he was general of division two years later.
He will be elevated to the dignity of marshal of the Empire in 1812 and will be minister and peer of France.
He left several publications including the
Mémoires sur les campagnes des
armées du Rhin et de Rhin-et-Moselle in the first volume of which is a
extrait d'un mémoire inédit sur l'organisation et les opérations du corps de Condé, par un officer de ce corps.
(
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(9) Louis-Antoine de Bourbon-Condé (1772-1804), unique son of Louis-Henri, duc de Bourbon at that time,
and grand-son of Louis-Joseph, prince de Condé, who raise the army
in which the Berwick regiment served. (
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(10) The description of that banner could be found in the O'Callaghan's
History of the Irish Brigade.
We now have a representation.
(
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