HL Deb 08 May 1856 vol 142 cc182-205

LORD PANMURE rose to move that the thanks of the House be given to the Army, Navy, and Marines employed in the operations of the late war, and to the Embodied Militia; and said:—My Lords, I shall as briefly as I can, consistently with justice to the subject, bring before your Lordships the Motion which I have to make. The House has this day presented at the foot of the Throne its thanks to Her Majesty for the announcement of the return of peace; but, before we surrender ourselves to the enjoyment of that peace—before we hang up our swords on the wall, from which I trust it will be long ere we shall take them down again—there is a duty which remains for us to perform, and which I have the greatest satisfaction in inviting your Lordships to perform—namely, the duty of returning thanks to all branches of Her Majesty's service for their zeal, their courage, and their endurance during the period of war through, which we have just passed. In so doing I shall endeavour to avoid every controversial point which might tend in the least degree to detract from that unanimity which I am quite sure your Lordships all wish to evince on the present occasion.

My Lords, the first branch of Her Majesty's service to which I will allude is the Navy of this country. We have on this occasion no great triumphs to acknowledge, such as those of Trafalgar and the Nile; but, nevertheless, we have to acknowledge services on the part of the Navy which, though not brilliant were yet of the utmost importance, and such as must command the gratitude of this country. In the Baltic we have seen the Navy maintain in that inhospitable sea one of the most difficult blockades without the sacrifice of a single one of Her Majesty's ships, and almost, I might say, without injury to any individual in our service. The Navy has distinguished itself there by reducing one of the strongholds of the enemy. The Navy also blockaded with perfect success the strong fortresses and harbours on those coasts, and swept the Baltic Sea of every vessel belonging to the enemy, confining within Russian ports the vast Navy of the enemy. Such have been the deeds performed by our Navy in the Baltic, for which I shall move your Lordships to return thanks to that distinguished branch of the service. In the Black Sea, though there has been no brilliant action performed by the combined Navy, yet there has been an attack on the fortress of Sebastopol and on Kinburn, and these deeds, together with the manner in which the Navy twice swept the Sea of Azoff, and rendered the greatest assistance to Her Majesty's Army, deserve the gratitude of the country, and I am quite sure will receive it. But the services of the Navy have not been sufficiently known in one respect to which I shall take the liberty to direct your Lordships' attention. The assistance which the Navy rendered to the country in carrying on this war by furnishing the means of transport for the Army and stores ought, I think, to be more publicly known. The following is an account of the troops, horses, stores, &c., conveyed in British transports, ships-of-war, &c., during the years 1854 and 1855:

I.—TROOPS.
British, from Great Britain (including Militia) to Mediterranean, Foreign Legion, Transport Corps, &c 123,105
British, from Mediterranean to Black Sea 26,659
Total British 149,764
French, from France to Baltic and Mediterranean 52,919
Sardinians 19,301
Total troops to scat of war 221,984
Troops moved in Black Sea 170,634
Troops moved coastwise, &c, 43,185
Grand total troops conveyed 435,803
II.—HORSES.
British, from Great Britain 13,302
British, from Mediterranean 9,766
Total British 23,068
French 2,195
Sardinian 3,325
Total horses to seat of war 28,588
Horses moved in Black Sea 24,038
Horses moved coastwise 2,296
Grand total horses conveyed 54,922
III.—STORES.
Tons. Tons.
British, from Great Britain 281,004
British, from Mediterranean 35,735
Total British … 316,739
French … 18,881
Sardinian … 4,298
Grand total stores conveyed … 339,918
In carrying on the war, the services of the Navy have been rendered with the utmost effect whenever it was brought in contact with the enemy, or whenever it was called on to assist in the conveyance of troops and munitions of war; and I think, under these circumstances, I may fairly assume that your Lordships are ready to accord with one voice to that branch of Her Majesty's service your cordial approbation. I cannot close this enumeration of the services of the Navy with out saying how fully I concur in the tribute paid by my noble Friend (the Earl of Ellesmere) the other night to the memory of a gallant admiral in that service, now no more—I mean Admiral Boxer —by whose endeavours some system was first established in the small and narrow harbour at Balaklava—a system which, though afterwards worked out with great perfection, he, nevertheless, was the first to begin.

My Lords, I pass now to the nest branch of Her Majesty's service, one with which. I am not ashamed to say my sympathies and affections are more immediately concerned, having been connected with that service in my early days, and having ever since, consequently, felt for it the warmest and sincerest attachment. In moving your Lordships to accord your thanks on the present occasion to the Army, I have no fear but I shall secure your cordial concurrence. The Army of England was first embarked, as your Lordships are aware, in the year 1854, to take part in the war on the enemy's territory. In alluding to this event I cannot forget that the Army was led from England by one to whom we looked up as the great pupil of the illustrious Duke of Wellington, and as one who, better than any other man, knew almost the individuals of which the Army was composed, who commanded their respect, had earned their love, and who concentrated in his own person their fullest and most entire confidence. It did not please Providence to permit Lord Raglan to see the end of the triumphant career which he commenced. When that Army left this country, full of vigour, though small in numbers, none felt any doubt that the honour of the country was safe in its hands. No one felt any doubt that its banners would be always carried foremost in the fight, or that the credit and the name of England would be nobly maintained. My Lords, there were, however, some considerations which gave room for anxiety. That Army was called upon to fight in the same field and on the same side as the army of France. Old animosities and antipathies were to be wiped away; new rivalries of friendship were to be established; and I have no hesitation in saying that it was by the tact, the skill, and the chivalrous generosity which preferred the weal of another to the advantage of self by which Lord Raglan was actuated that the cordial union between the Armies of the two nations was brought about. He implanted this good feeling so deeply on the minds of his officers and soldiers, that when. new levies joined a similar inspiration seized them, and during the whole of Lord Raglan's career the cordial friendship which existed between the Armies of England and France was most remarkable. Nor did it exist only during his lifetime, for after his sun had gone down it left its genial influence behind it; and it is to his exertions that I attribute the cordiality which has up to this hour subsisted between the Armies of the two countries. It is not necessary for me to remind your Lordships of the career of that Army. When it first landed in the East it was not immediately called into action. The first foe which it had to encounter was that which it is most difficult, nay, impossible to overcome. It was disease When the Army lay at Varna and in its neighbourhood, it encountered that fell pestilence of the country which swept before it many gallant and ardent spirits ere they had time to prove their might in battle. But this had the effect of showing the people of England that the Army which had gone forth possessed not merely physical, but also that moral courage, which enabled it to endure privations as well as fight battles. On that account, the people felt the greatest confidence in the Army. When it was called into action, we cannot forget the victories of the Alma, of Inker-man, and of Balaklava, and that on no occasion during the whole war on which the Army of England was called upon to face the enemy in the field did it ever suffer the smallest reverse. My Lords, I need hardly recall to your recollection the circumstances of the siege of Sebastopol; that siege so long, so wearisome, and so full of hardship, in which the patience and endurance as well as the gallantry of the Army, were, for a longer period than is on record with regard to any other siege, constantly tried. Yet all the difficulties and dangers of that siege, all the privations to which the Army was exposed, never for a moment shook or impaired its discipline; and when that siege resulted in the surrender of the town, the Army was found ready to repair the disorganisation which such a siege must introduce into the ranks of any Army, to resume its drill, and to recomplete its formation; so that it is at the present moment one of the finest Armies that England ever possessed. I am tempted to read to your Lordships a portion of a despatch which has been already given to the public, which will prove that the Army is in a condition of which the nation may well be proud. Writing on the 19th of April, Sir W. Codrington says:— I have the satisfaction of assuring your Lordship of the steady, the good, the healthy appearance of the Army; of its very apparent efficiency in every branch; of the order, quietness, and regularity with which every regiment passed by; and it was a subject of pride to us all to feel that such was the appearance of the Army of England in the Crimea. That is the testimony of the Commander in Chief to the present state of the Army; and I must take this opportunity of stating that this efficiency is due, not to anything which has been done from home, but to the exertions of the officers who are present with the Army, and to the cordial co-operation of every one of them, from the highest to the lowest, with its Commander in Chief. This is not an inappropriate time for me to state to your Lordships something respecting the sanitary state of the Army. I am happy to be able to state that, although the Army is at a considerable distance from home, and is subjected to the risks of encampment in the field, the results of a comparison between its health and that of troops at home are truly remarkable. The last account of its sanitary condition is for the week ending April 21. The strength of the Army was then about 70,000 men. The admissions to the hospitals were 1.56 per cent in proportion to the strength; the deaths 0.02, and proportion of sick to well 3.72 per cent. I have had the curiosity to compare this with the sanitary state of that portion of the army which is at home in camp at Aldershot. I find that at Aldershot the assumed strength is 16,000. During the above period the admissions were 2.71 per cent; deaths 0.006, and the proportion of sick to well 3.59. It is very gratifying to find that, after all the Army has gone through, its sanitary condition is so good.

Another point to which I wish to refer is the casualties which have occurred during the war. Various exaggerated and unfounded reports have been circulated with reference to the losses which this country has sustained by the war. I have been induced to have prepared a statement which will show to your Lordships, as nearly as may be, and on very good grounds, what our losses really have been during the two years of war.

Officers. Men.
Killed in action from 19th Sept., 1854, to 28th Sept., 1855 158 1,775 = 1,933
Died of wounds during the same period 51 1,548 = 1,599
Died of cholera 35 4,244 = 4,279
Died of other diseases to 31st Dec., 1855 26 11,425 = 11,451
Died of wounds and disease from Jan. 1st, 1856, to March 31st, 1856 — 322 = 322
Total deaths 270 19,314 = 19,584
Discharged from the service since commencement of the war to 31st March, 1856:
Wounds 1,875
Disease 998
2,873
Add deaths as above 19,584
Total loss 22,457
If we compare this with the reported loss of the Russians, if we compare it with what may be presumed to have been the losses of our Allies, we ought to feel gratitude to Almighty God for having permitted the scourge of war to fall thus lightly upon this country. We are led, and, I think, upon good authority, to believe that the Russians have lost not much under 500,000 men during the war. I will not venture— for I have no authority to go upon—to say anything about the losses of our Allies, but I say again, notwithstanding our own losses, we ought to feel the utmost gratitude and satisfaction that the arrangements which were made for the care of our troops should have been the means of saving so many valuable lives.

I cannot pass away from the deeds of the Army before Sebastopol without repairing an omission in the earlier part of my speech with reference to the Navy; and it is not too late. Your Lordships are all aware of the important services which were rendered by the Naval Brigade in the trenches before Sebastopol; and I am sure you will join with me in testifying your high appreciation of them.

I do not mention on this occasion the names of any officers who are now living, because I find that it is not usual in general Votes of Thanks to the Army, and, if I were to do so, I should run up a catalogue, including the names of almost every officer in the Army. But we cannot forget those who have fallen in this war, and it is but fitting, I think, that we should pay our tribute of gratitude to them. We cannot forget the names of such men as Cathcart, Goldie, Strangways, Adams, Campbell—and Torrens, who, though he did not die in battle, yet sank under wounds which he had received on the field. We cannot, we never shall, forget the names of such, distinguished men, whose remains lie on the field where they earned their glory. It is most gratifying to me to be able to say that steps have been taken by my noble Friend near me to guard and preserve inviolate the cemetery where they lie. Promises have been made, which I am certain will be performed, that every respect will be paid to their remains by the nation, who is happily now no longer our enemy.

My Lords, I now pass to another portion of the British Army for which I claim the thanks of your Lordships—I mean the Foreign Levies which have entered our service during the war. These now amount to full 15,000 men, active, well trained, and well organised soldiers; ready to enter into active service had the war continued. The British German Legion, under the able guidance of Baron von Stutterheim, musters at home and abroad a force of 9,000 men; the Swiss Legion amounts to 3,138 men, and the Italian Legion to 3,662, in all 15,790 men. Some of these are now quartered at Scutari, two regiments of the Swiss are at Smyrna—all men anxious and eager for the field, and most disappointed that they have not had an opportunity of distinguishing themselves. I trust that when the time comes to dispense with the services of these men we shall not forget the zeal which they have shown in rallying round the standard of England, so that by our treatment of them we shall make our good name respected throughout Europe, and should again occasion arise—as I trust it never may—we may be able again to invite their services, with the full expectation of our call being cheerfully responded to by them. The only other portion of the British Army to which I shall advert is more intimately connected with Turkey. I mean the Turkish Contingent. This force, as your Lordships are aware, was handed over to the service of this country by a special convention entered into with us. It was commanded by officers of the British Army—and when I say the British Army, I include both the Queen's and the Indian Armies. It was placed under the command of General Vivian, of whom I must say that he has so organised and formed it that, had it been called into active service in the course of the present spring, it would have been perfectly ready to take a part in any operation—perfect in its transport service, and in all its arrangements for service in the field.

I pass now, my Lords, to the last branch of the service to which I shall refer, and I have not the least doubt that I shall have your as cordial assent in proposing to your Lordships to thank the Militia for its zeal in Her Majesty's service, as I have received to the thanks to those branches of the service I have already named. I promised not to introduce any controversial point. I will not say whether the Militia was originally placed on the most advantageous footing for the country; but this I will say, that all the assistance which the zeal and the energy of the gentlemen of England could afford has been cheerfully and promptly afforded to Her Majesty's service. There is a remarkable fact connected with this war to which it is right I should draw your Lordships' attention. In all former wars this country has been compelled to have recourse to pressing in the Navy, and the ballot for the Militia. On this occasion we have mustered a more numerously manned fleet and a larger body of troops than in any former war, and no compulsion, either of the pressgang or of the ballot, has been resorted to. It is a proud thing for this country to be able to say that we have sent on the seas a gallant and brave fleet—that we have assembled in the field so numerous and well appointed an Army—and yet that every man in that Fleet and in that Army was a volunteer. The Militia, upon this voluntary system, has now mustered 63,603 men in its ranks; it has given to the regular army, since November, 1854, no fewer than 33,000 men; and it has not only done that, but it has exhibited an earnest desire to serve Her Majesty in foreign parts, and no fewer than eleven regiments of Militia, mustering very nearly 6,000 men, are now serving the Queen in the Mediterranean garrisons. In addition to these, Her Majesty's Government have been obliged reluctantly to decline the proffered services of twenty-two English regiments, four Scotch regiments, and twelve Irish regiments; and I am quite confident that it was only the knowledge that the offer could not be accepted, which prevented every Militia regiment in the United Kingdom from expressing their desire to serve Her Majesty, not only in Gibraltar, Malta, the Ionian Isles, but in any of our colonial possessions; nay, I know that some of them were most desirous to serve in the field with the regular Army. I am gratified to be able to state that Her Majesty has been graciously pleased to allow those Militia regiments who have been serving abroad to bear on their colours the word "Mediterranean," as a memento to posterity of their patriotic zeal. I cannot express all that I feel with reference to the services of the Militia during the present war. They have exhibited an example which proves to all countries that the gentlemen of England, however apparently devoted to the arts of civil life during peace, are ready to give their services to the Crown, in a military capacity, the moment war breaks upon the land, and we have the gratification of knowing that these gentlemen have shown such a zeal, such a desire to perfect themselves in their new profession, that they have made themselves in a very short time equal to officers of the regular Army, and many of the regiments of Militia have become, in a very short time, equal to regiments of the line. I have stated in this House already that in the garrison of Gibraltar it was a Militia officer who commanded a brigade in the field, and who received from General Fer-gusson the highest encomium for the military talents which he exhibited, and which have only been, drawn from him by this war. I trust that this Militia force, now that the war has closed, will not be allowed to subside nor to lose its present efficiency.

My Lords, while returning your thanks to the Army, Navy, and Militia for its services during the present war, it would not be becoming in your Lordships to forget how much we are indebted to our Allies who have been united with us in the prosecution of this war. To the army of France we owe much, for from them, I believe, we have learnt something in regard to the mode of conducting war. We owe them much for the cordial manner in which they have at all times united with our troops, and for the good feeling which has always existed between the soldiers of all ranks in both Armies. Much of this is due to the conduct and ability of those officers who have acted as Commissioners with each Army. Too much praise cannot be given to the French Commissioners who were attached to our head-quarters, for their efforts to maintain these excellent relations, and I deeply regret that one of them. Colonel Dieu, is not alive to receive from this country that meed of praise. Our own Commissioners, Sir Hugh Rose and his brother Commissioner, serving with the French Army, no less merit that approbation which I am sure your Lordships will cordially join with me in testifying to them. The Sardinian Army also has played a very distinguished part in the Allied forces, and has earned for itself the highest glory by its conduct in the Crimea. In the combat at the bridge of Traktir, they made a most successful resistance against overwhelming numbers, and by this time they have returned— the greatest part of them—to their own country, gratified at having acted with the French and English Armies, and carrying with them, as a memento of that co-operation, the English battery of four guns, to the fire of which General Marmora attributed some portion of that day's victory, and which General Codrington, with that readiness which distinguishes him to mark bravery and loyalty, begged General Marmora to accept in memory of the day. With regard to our Allies the Turks, for whom we took up arms and along with whom we have fought, the history of the war shows that upon every occasion when they have come in contact with the troops of the enemy in the field they have beaten them, and have won for themselves imperishable honour. We have seen enough to be convinced that there is no nation in Europe which can furnish more efficient troops, if properly formed and properly led, than the Ottoman Empire. It is upon the leading and organisation of troops that success will always depend, and it is because the troops are properly organised and led by British blood of the first families in the land that they have always succeeded in whatever they have undertaken and wherever duty called them. My Lords, I have now concluded the observations which I have to make upon this most interesting subject; but before I sit down I would earnestly entreat your Lordships, now that peace is restored, not hastily to part either with that imposing Navy which has been collected after two years of war, or to part with that fine and noble Army which we have now on foot. We cannot forget that at the commencement of this war, to use the mildest language, we found the greatest inconvenience from the want of instruction under which our officers were labouring, and from their being unaccustomed to move our troops in anything like masses. You have now an Army formed in masses; let me advise you to keep it. You have now an Army formed in divisions and brigades; let me advise and entreat your Lordships not to lose sight of that formation, but to instruct your officers and men in the movement of these bodies, and to keep them accustomed to them. Above all, I entreat Parliament, now that peace has been restored, not to rush back to that false and mischievous economy which has been practised in former times, and for which I do not blame any one Government more than another, for all have been equally to blame, but by which very large expenses were ultimately incurred, because thereby cur naval and military establishments were allowed to fall into decay and inefficiency. We have learned a lesson from the late war, and I trust that that lesson will not be forgotten. A fair and proper economy ought of course to be observed, but I hope we shall not be in a hurry to revert to that false economy which, in truth, when an Army has to be raised to a war standing, is the cause of much additional and unnecessary outlay. If at the beginning of this war our Army had been as efficiently organised as it is at the present moment, we could have increased it at much less expense and with much more rapidity. I hope, therefore, that the country will not give way to the pleasures of a false economy, but will maintain the Army in such a state of organisation and discipline as shall enable us at any moment (should occasion arise) to place it on a war footing in the most speedy and efficient manner, without having as we have had within the last two years, almost to create a new Army for the occasion. The noble Lord concluded, by moving to resolve— That the Thanks of this House be given to the Officers of the Navy, Army, and Royal Marines who have taken Part in the Operations of the late War, for the meritorious and eminent Services which they have rendered to The Queen and the Country during the Course of the War: That this House doth highly approve and acknowledge the Services of the Petty and Noncommissioned Officers and Men of the Navy, Army, and Royal Marines who have taken Part in the Operations of the late War, and that the same he communicated to them by the Commanders of the several Ships and Corps, who are respectively desired to thank those under their Commands for their exemplary and gallant Behaviour.

THE EARL OF DERBY

My Lords, whatever differences of opinion may have interfered with our unanimity upon a late occasion, when we were asked to adopt an Address to Her Majesty on the subject of the peace—whatever doubts may have been entertained with respect to the merits of that peace, or the results which have been achieved by the efforts of our Army and Navy—I am sure that I express the universal opinion of your Lordships when I say that on all sides of the House there can be but one feeling of concurrence in the Motion which has just been made by the noble Lord opposite, and of approval of the manner in which he has introduced it. If I presume for a single moment to intrude upon your notice, in the presence of many much more competent than I am to do justice to the exertions and services both of the Army and of the Navy, it is only because the position which I have the honour to hold in this House makes me desirous of testifying, in the fullest and most significant manner, that among your Lordships there can be no difference of opinion upon the present occasion, hut that all alike concur in giving their tribute of praise and gratitude—however feeble or inadequate to the occasion that tribute may be, or however below the merits of those to whom it is paid—to our own gallant forces by land and sea, to the Militia of the United Kingdom, and to those brave men who have been associated with us in the hour of trial and of victory, and our alliance and close friendship with whom, I trust, will not terminate with the war in which we have fought and won together.

I need hardly say that I concur, as all your Lordships must, in the tribute of praise which has been paid by the noble Lord to the soldier-like qualities, the high bearing, and the distinguished services of the gallant and lamented Commander of our Forces; and I am sure that all who knew him, and all who had the happiness of being in any way connected with him, will feel that the eulogium of the noble Lord does not surpass, but rather falls short of—as most eulogiums must do —the merits of that great man. I concur entirely with the noble Lord not only in attributing to Lord Raglan much of the credit which has been gained, much of the efficiency of the troops under his command, much also of the good understanding which subsisted between the various portions of the allied Armies during his lifetime, but also in believing that his memory and example have since his lamented death exercised no unimportant influence over the temper and discipline of the service.

My Lords, no words of mine—no words that can be uttered—can do justice to the services of that noble Army, whose devoted gallantry in the field, whose unflinching courage in the hour of battle, and, above all, whose patient heroism in the midst of disease, famine, and privations of every description,—keeping alive under all difficulties and discouragements not only the strictest discipline, but the most fearless valour and the most unhesitating devotion to duty,—reflect more credit upon them than any army ever gained before.

Although, as the noble Lord has observed, the sister service has not enjoyed the same opportunities of distinguishing itself by brilliant actions, yet in every direction in which its efforts have been made available it has brought to the common cause great zeal, great energy, and great courage. If it has not gained any conquests over hostile fleets it is because no hostile fleet has dared to face it; but, wherever its services have been demanded, it has shown that the officers and men of the present day are not inferior to their predecessors in those qualities which at all times have distinguished—and I hope will continue to distinguish—the British Navy. The noble Lord most properly abstained from mentioning the name of any individual in either service who is yet living to receive in his own person the tokens of the gratitude of his country; but there was one omission which for some time I apprehended he was going to make, for it was not till near the conclusion of his speech that he referred to the valuable services of the Naval Brigade—services which it is impossible too highly to appreciate—services which, though not rendered on their own element or in the exercise of their own profession, excited the admiration of the whole Army, displaying, as they did, a courage almost reckless and exertions almost superhuman. But when the noble Lord alluded to those officers of the Army whose loss the country had to deplore, and whose names are to be cherished in our memory, there is one officer of the naval service whose name might have been not unworthily introduced, although I may think it invidious to select from among those who are still living, the name of that gallant Admiral who has happily returned to reap the fruits of the gratitude and admiration of his country, yet I may be allowed to say that it would not have been inappropriate to remember that, while he enjoys in his own person the honour and the glory that have fallen to his lot, his feelings of pride and satisfaction must be dashed by some melancholy recollections, and in the private bereavement of that gallant Admiral the country will not forget that it has lost the services of an able and distinguished officer, who, if he had been spared, we might have fondly hoped, would have trod in the steps of his father and have earned for himself a high place among the naval heroes of England. I regret also that the noble Lord, in enumerating the services of the various branches of the Army and Navy, omitted to refer—though I am sure inadvertently—to the efforts of a corps which deserves, as it will receive, the thanks and gratitude of the country. I did not hear a single word from him with respect to the Royal Marines, and yet there is no body of men whose services were more valuable or more cheerfully rendered during the late war, especially when they occupied a most exposed position upon the heights of Balaklava. Nor can there be any doubt that had the war continued we should have found the Turkish Contingent and the Foreign Legions most efficient and useful auxiliaries. I avoid all reference to the policy of the original formation of those legions; but with regard to their present position and future services, I am quite certain that whatever objections may have been taken to the manner in which they were originally raised, there can be but one opinion among your Lordships, that, the war having now closed, those foreign troops ought to be dealt with liberally and generously. They have come forward to assist you in your hour of difficulty; many of them will have exposed themselves to consequences and have placed themselves in a position most inconvenient and unpleasant; their relations with their own countries have been to a great extent disturbed by their enlisting in your service. How you may be able best to dispose of them is not for me to say, but I am quite sure that the country will wish and expect you to deal with them in a handsome and generous manner.

One word with respect to another body to whom our attention is called by the Motion of the noble Lord. I mean those country gentlemen of England who, sacrificing their own private and domestic ease and comfort, have exposed themselves to all the inconveniencies and privations attending active service, and those men who, enlisted only for casual and very temporary service within their own immediate neighbourhoods, have cheerfully responded to successive demands to undertake permanent duty, willingly withdrawing themselves from their ordinary occupations to enter upon a military life—who, when their services were still further called for, joyfully left their homes and their country to perform garrison duty abroad—a duty which they discharged with remarkable success—thereby enabling you to send Her Majesty's regular troops to the immediate seat of war, thus adding materially to the efficiency and number of your Army in the Crimea—and who, I venture to say, would only have been too happy, if Her Majesty had thought fit to accept the tender of their further services, and permitted them to share the perils and glories of war by the side of the regular troops, would only have been too happy to render their services. I trust that now the war has closed—now that you have proved the efficiency of the Militia—now that through its instrumentality no fewer than 100,000 men have been raised, of whom 30,000 have already been draughted into the regular Army—now that you must be satisfied that, had the war continued, a large proportion of the remaining 70,000 would have permanently joined Her Majesty's forces—I trust that your Lordships will not be in haste to dispense with a service which has been so valuable au assistant to the regular force. I know that in a time of peace you cannot keep the militia regiments permanently embodied, nor do I think it desirable that you should do so; but I trust that we shall not again fall into the error, which has been committed on former occasions, of suffering the skeletons of those regiments to crumble to pieces—of allowing the staff and organisation of those regiments to fall into disuse and inefficiency—and of neglecting to retain such a nucleus of each regiment as, called out every year, or at all events once in two years, for a limited period of service, may, in the first place, keep alive the skeleton of the militia system, to be filled up and completed when occasion should occur; and, in the next, to maintain among the men that military feeling and those habits of discipline which must enable them in the hour of peril to render good service to their Sovereign and their country.

My Lords, I entirely concur in the concluding observation of the noble Lord both in regard to the Militia and the regular Army, that nothing can be such false economy as hastily to do away with your present establishments. Reduction, and that, too, on a large scale, must undoubtedly take place; but, in the meantime, however you diminish numbers, keep up the efficiency of your system—keep your improved organisation complete, and retain your men, not merely as an agglomeration of men and regiments, as at the commencement of the war, but as an army which, though not numerous, is regularly embodied into divisions and brigades, habituated to act in concert; so that whenever we shall be again at war, numbers may he all that we shall require—and numbers, you may depend upon it, the spirit of the country will always supply. In this way you may in peace constantly preserve the perfect miniature of an organised and effective war establishment. I shall not venture further to intrude on your Lordships' attention. I need hardly say that I cordially concur in the Vote of Thanks moved by the noble Lord—a Vote in which I am sure not this House only but the whole country to a man will heartily join.

THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE

My Lords, I beg to give my most cordial assent to the Motion which has been submitted to your Lordships. It would ill become me, as a member of the Army, to add one word to what has fallen from both sides of this House as to its recent conduct; but I may, perhaps, be permitted to observe that, having witnessed some of the glorious achievements of the late campaigns, as well as the hardships to which both the officers and men of the army were exposed, I can state that those hardships were borne with a cheerfulness and a patient endurance which reflected the highest credit on every one subjected to them. My Lords, it required all the energy of mind and body possessed by all grades of the service to contend against the difficulties and privations experienced in the months of November and December, 1854; and I am convinced, that not only those who survived that portion of the campaign, but the relatives and friends of those who fell, will feel grateful to your Lordships for the handsome and liberal manner in which their bravery and fortitude have been acknowledged. One more tribute I am anxious to pay, and it is chiefly to do so that I have risen on this occasion. Allusion has been made to the services of the Navy, and I may observe that, although it so happened that the portion of the fleet sent to the Black Sea bad not those opportunities of distinguishing itself which were afforded to the Army, yet this circumstance arose, as has been already explained, from no fault of our officers and seamen, but simply because their enemy did not choose to meet them. Whenever a chance of acquiring distinction offered itself, the Navy evinced only too eager an alacrity to seize it, and, having myself seen the fleet go into action before Sebastopol on the 17th of October, I am sure that all who were engaged in that, operation merit the best thanks of this House. And further, having been likewise an eye-witness of the assistance rendered by the sister service to the Army, I can assure your Lordships that without that cordial co-operation the country never could have arrived at the result which has now been so happily attained. From the Admirals down to the humblest seamen on board the fleet, every person worked earnestly and zealously to relieve the wants of the Army—wants which, as is well known, were great and urgent; and if no other advantage should flow from the war than that good feeling and perfect harmony between the two services which recent events have so much tended to strengthen, I should regard the result as a most fortunate one. On the part of the Army, then, I gladly avail myself of this opportunity to express its gratitude for the invaluable co-operation it received from the officers and men of the Navy. There is another body to which I wish to refer—I mean the Militia, which I am delighted to find has not been omitted from this Vote of Thanks. Although that force did not actually share in the operations of the war, it has come to my knowledge that many Militia regiments would have willingly gone out to join the Army in a body; and there can be no doubt that by those regiments, volunteering as they did to serve on the Mediterranean stations, they were of the greatest use to Her Majesty's Government and the country, inasmuch as they enabled the regular troops then quartered at those stations to proceed to the seat of the struggle at a moment when their assistance was most essential. I therefore heartily unite in the expression of our acknowledgments to the Militia for their valuable services to the country; and, having myself seen many of the regiments, I may be allowed, in conclusion, to remark that, but for the difference in their uniform, I should hardly have been able to distinguish them, in many instances, from regiments of the line.

THE EARL OF CARDIGAN

said, that as an humble member of the Army, he must be allowed to express his participation in the satisfaction at the Vote of Thanks proposed by the Minister of War to the Army employed in the East. He was also anxious to pay his humble tribute to the memory of Lord Raglan, under whose command all the great victories of the Crimea had occurred. It was unfortunate that the noble General had not lived to reap the best reward of his great services—the restoration of peace to his country and to the world; and he must also deplore that that gallant General had not survived to receive at the hands of their Lordships that Vote of Thanks, to the larger share of which he was so well entitled. The present efficiency of the Army and is organisation, never before exceeded, were chiefly owing to Lord Raglan, who acquired the confidence and inspired the devotion of every soldier of every grade in the Army. He would refer to what had been so eloquently said by a right hon. Baronet, of great experience and eminent talent, in the other House of Parliament:— I, Sir, have had the advantage of being from early youth a friend of the late Lord Raglan, and I say that in valour, courtesy, firmness, and honour, he was a bright example of an English General. He had, upon the ground to which I have referred, great difficulties to contend against, but by his courtesy he won the esteem of two Marshals of France in a combined operation. His valour was proved when he led—a circumstance new in our annals—British troops side by side with French to the storming of a strong position, defended by brave soldiers, worthy of the adversaries against whom they had to contend. He had, I say, great difficulties to contend with, but, thanks to his courtesy, the Alliance remained unbroken. Although his conduct during some part of his command had been made the subject of adverse comment, I think that, taken all in all, we shall not for some time look upon his like again. He (the Earl of Cardigan) entirely concurred in that statement and that opinion; and he should only add the expression of feeling of a General Officer, who was now under inquiry in a public hall not far from that House, and who had been constantly on habits of intercourse with the late lamented Lord Raglan. That General Officer said:— The General worthy to command such troops in the hour of danger would be one whose high courage and firm will could keep the groups of men together, and give them still in the eyes of the enemy the semblance of a powerful force. In the British Army they believed that such a General was Lord Raglan; and the gallant officers and soldiers of the French Army, ever keen in their scrutiny of a General's capabilities, warmly shared in that opinion. After the fight of Inkerman, when for a time he was reduced to act on the defensive, Lord Raglan displayed the singular faculty he possessed of conveying to the minds of all who approached him the fixed determination of his own. Without dissembling facts, he would calmly withhold his assent from gloomy apprehensions, and would manfully call attention to the special business of the time, and, by a power not to be described in words, he threw upon those who conversed with him the energy of his own undaunted nature. Men went to him anxious and perturbed, but they came away firm and determined. He (the Earl of Cardigan) thought that, without any stretch of imagination, the House could see the great qualities of Lord Raglan as they had been called into play after the battle of Inkerman. The memory of that great General was respected and beloved by every soldier and every officer in the Army. Every one felt confidence in him; and he (the Earl of Cardigan) only hoped that, if the war had continued, equal confidence would have been felt in those who should have succeeded him. It was, therefore, that he (the Earl of Cardigan) said that every one would view with gratification and satisfaction the restoration of peace to this country and to Europe. The war, he was bound to say, had been, in his opinion, carried on with great vigour and effect by the Government; and he believed the peace, by which it had been now concluded, to be honourable, and likely to prove conducive to the permanent happiness of the country. Nor should it be forgotten how large a tribute of the national gratitude was due to the noble Lord the Foreign Secretary, who on this, as on all other occasions, had displayed firmness, energy, and talent. Participating in the sentiments of satisfaction which all Englishmen must experience when war was no longer necessary, he would merely observe, in conclusion, that the loss of Lord Raglan as Commander of the Army, and the thought of the manner in which the command had been frequently changed since the death of that distinguished officer, in no degree diminished the feelings of gratification inspired by the reflection that an honourable peace had been at length concluded.

EARL GRANVILLE

My Lords, I, in common with all other members of your Lordships' House, have listened with extreme satisfaction to the speech of the illustrious Duke who has addressed us, and I am sure that your Lordships will concur with me in the opinion that the discipline and well-being of the Army must have been, in no trivial degree, promoted by the opportunity afforded to the soldiers of observing the firmness and fortitude with which a personage of such exalted rank shared their dangers, privations, and hardships. Nor can I permit the debate to close without presenting, on behalf of the Government, my sincere thanks to the noble Earl opposite (the Earl of Derby) for the generous and very useful speech he has this evening delivered. It is most beneficial to the interests of the nation that, irrespectively of political differences, sentiments such as those that have fallen from the noble Earl should have been heard from the Opposition benches, The speech will prove of great value in promoting in both branches of the service the conviction that party considerations do not affect the members of the naval and military professions, who may rest confidently assured that if they serve their country faithfully they will command the support and sympathy of all the great political parties of this country. It is also a particularly graceful part of the speech of the noble Earl, in which he spoke in such handsome terms of the gallant foreigners who came forward to take part in what they deemed a just and necessary war; and the allusion comes with singular grace from the noble Earl, remembering the part he took on former occasions when the question of foreign contingents was under consideration. The remarks he has made this evening will, I have no doubt, be read with interest and approval throughout Europe. What the noble Earl has said respecting the system that should be pursued in reducing the numerical strength of the Army has my cordial concurrence. The principles the noble Earl has laid down are those which influence the Government in general, and my noble Friend the Minister for War in particular, whose views are not to encourage the country in a lavish expenditure on military establishments, nor to keep up a larger Army than the nation requires, but, at the same time, to take care that such an efficient organisation shall be maintained as will allow the power and resources of the Army to be developed at the smallest possible expense and at the shortest possible notice, if, unfortunately, war should again arise.

EARL GREY

said, that no one could agree to this Vote with greater pleasure than he should, and he should not have troubled the House with a single word but for something which fell from his noble Friend (Lord Panmure) in his concluding observations. He concurred with him in opinion that the reduction of the Army on the advent of peace should not be hasty, and that care should be taken to preserve the Army in a state of perfect organisation, and to provide for the instruction of officers and men in the duties of their profession. But though he agreed with his noble Friend to that extent, he was alarmed when his noble Friend added, that he hoped we should not fall into the mistake of former times of peace, by adopting a false economy with regard to the Army, although he said he did not blame any particular Government for that false economy. He (Earl Grey) differed from his noble Friend, and he would assert that the economy which had been adopted was not a false but a wise economy, which had contributed very much to the success of the present war. He was of opinion, and he had laboured for twenty years to impress on others that opinion, that our Army was not kept up in the manner in which it ought to be, and owing to the system of its administration, it was not prepared for the trials to which it was likely to be exposed, and failed when the day of trial came. He denied, however, that these difficulties arose from insufficient sums of money having been granted for the Army, and he would maintain that the grants made by Parliament from the time of Waterloo, down to the present war, were liberal and ample, if properly applied, to have kept the Army in a state of the highest efficiency. During that period the Government, pressed by the House of Commons, had exercised a wise economy in the expense of the Army and Navy, and to that much of our present success was attributable; for what was most remarkable in this war, and most contributed to convince Russia of our power, was the extraordinary resources which this country had accumulated during the period of peace, and had displayed when the time of war arrived. What could be more extraordinary than the rapidity with which ships, guns, and all the machinery of war had been produced by means of the resources which had grown up in those years during which we had followed the policy he had described? Did not every one believe that the large fleets, and the new species of means of warfare which had been created in a marvellously short space of time, had its effect upon the enemy? He had, himself, seen a floating battery, one of those extraordinary machines of war, cased in mail, and impervious to almost any shot, launched within three months after its keel had been laid down in a private establishment; and this was but one of several similar vessels which had been built by private firms in an equally short space; and gunboats in great numbers had been built with equally extraordinary rapidity. How was it that our private merchants had building yards and mechanical appliances which enabled them to create so powerful a force in so short a time? It was by the extraordinary development of industry, commerce, and manufactures during peace which had been fostered by the small demands which had been made by the State for military purposes. If anything could afford a striking proof of the wisdom of the policy which this country had pursued, it was the contrast between our position and that of Russia. The policy of Russia had been to keep up, at the expense of an immense pressure upon the resources of the people, an enormous military force. That force was a source of apprehension to many persons, but when the time of trial came it was found that it was not able to cope with those resources which nations that had acted upon a different policy had developed. If we were not misinformed, Russia was now convinced of her mistake, and saw that, to be really powerful, she must not press too heavily on the resources of her people in time of peace. That was the policy on which this country should act, and he protested against keeping up large military establishments. He would never consent to the policy of keeping up a large Army, ready at a short notice to take the offensive on the Continent. Nations were acted upon by much the same influences as individuals, and he believed that the possession of a too ready means of offence was likely to create a pertinacious spirit in a country. He thought, therefore, that we should only keep up an Army and Navy sufficient to keep off aggression; nor could he ever consent to keep up an establishment calculated for some supposed necessity for offensive operations out of the country. He should not have made these remarks but for the observations of his noble Friend.

Agreed to, Nemine Dissentiente.

Ordered, That The LORD CHANCELLOR do signify the said Resolutions, by Letter, to the Commissioners for executing the Office of Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom and to the Field Marshal Commanding in Chief of Her Majesty's Forces.

Then it was moved to resolve—- That the Thanks of this House be given to the Officers of the several Corps of Militia which have been embodied in Great Britain and Ireland during the Course of the War, for the zealous and meritorious Services which at Home and Abroad they have rendered to their Queen and Country: That this House doth highly approve and acknowledge the Services of the Non-commissioned Officers and Men of the several Corps of Militia which have been embodied in Great Britain or Ireland during the Course of the War, and that the same be communicated to them by the Commanding Officers of the several Corps, who are desired to thank them for their patriotic Conduct.

LORD PANMURE

said, that in moving that part of the Vote relating to the Militia, it might be a proper opportunity for him to state what the Government proposed to do as regarded that force when it was disembodied. It was proposed to add to the permanent staff, all the regimental quartermasters who at present held commissions, the effect of which would be to relieve the adjutant from the care of the stores, and give him more opportunity of attending to the arms and other duties of his department—a course which would tend to give greater efficiency to the staff. In the next place, as many of the subaltern officers had been put to considerable expense during the short period in which they had joined their regiments, it was proposed to allow them a gratuity of three months' pay. It was proposed to allow the surgeons and assistant surgeons, many of whom had lost their practice by being removed from their own localities, a year's pay, so as to give them an opportunity of recovering their practice. It was intended to allow to each man £1, the balance of the bounty of the current year, and which had not yet been received, on their being discharged. Directions to this effect were about to be sent to the Lord Lieutenants of counties and the colonels of militia regiments, but he thought it right to mention it to-night so that it might go forth to the public.

THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY

inquired what strength of non-commissioned officers it was purposed to retain with the staff; was it to be nearly the strength of that which existed when the regiments were embodied?

LORD PANMURE

said, that the number of non-commissioned officers to be attached to the permanent staff was under consideration, as the Government had not made up their minds on the subject.

Agreed to, Nemine Dissentiente.

Ordered, That the LORD CHANCELLOR do communicate the said Resolutions, by Letter, to the Secretary of State for the War Department, in order to be by him communicated to the Colonel or Commanding Officer of each respective Corps.