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In 1778 under an Act of Parliament, officers commanding
militia
regiments, with the consent of the Lords-Lieutenant, were permitted to
accept for service a number of volunteers which could either be
incorporated in the companies of the regiments or formed into distinct
companies. For the first time in the history of Great Britain distinct
companies of volunteers were allowed....
Various Acts of Parliament were passed between 1779 and 1794 to
augment the above. In 1797 with the advent of the Napoleonic war the
people of Kincardineshire were among the first of the counties to take
serious steps towards the embodiment of armed forces for internal
defence...
A grave financial crisis, in which the Bank of England was compelled
to suspend cash payments; a naval mutiny, an Ireland disaffected almost
to rebellion, determined enemies on the continent of Europe,
revolutionaries formenting trouble in England and Scotland, and an army
decimated by several years of continuous campaining - this was the
situation that presented itself to Pitt, who was in power. This
determined statesman pinned his faith to the people. He found a
patriotic populace ready to be trained in the use of arms...
Were your ancestors among those who volunteered? Check out the
following pages....
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Interesting
Fact
At their peak in 1803 there were nearly half a million volunteers in
arms across the United Kingdom
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