n 1779, the Hon. East India Company petitioned His Majesty
for more troops to safeguard interests in India. Hon. John
Lindsay, brother of James, describes the outcome at the
Commencement of his Narrative:
'In the year 1777, being at that time a second lieutenant in the Royal
Regiment of Artillery, I was instructed to recruit with all despatch
for a new regiment, which the Right Hon. Lord MacLeod had received
orders to raise for the service of government…I served with this regiment
in various parts of Great Britain until the year 1779, when the Hon.
East India Company, finding themselves unable to maintain their possessions
in the East without the aid of government, petitioned his Majesty that
their settlements might be strengthened by a speedy reinforcement.
Accordingly, Lord MacLeod's regiment, which I had the honour, and also,
I may say, the misfortune to belong to, was embarked for this service…The
regiment, after a long and tedious voyage, (having, on their passage,
reduced some of the French settlements ion the coast of Africa,) arrived
at Madras in December, 1779, and landed
near one thousand men, whose appearance, as they were clothed in the
Highland uniform, struck the inhabitants with astonishment.' The sword
which James Lindsay carries is the traditional Scottish basket hilt.
His Highland uniform was very soon set aside, and replaced with materials
better suited to the climate.
Although Haidar Ali and his French allies were threatening
to invade British possessions, the arrival of nearly 1,000
men lulled the Government of Madras into a false sense of
security. The consequences were disastrous, especially for
the 73rd, who were among the small band. who faced some
75,000 of Haidar's troops at Pollilur,
near Conjeeveram (modern Kanchipuram).
Those British soldiers who survived their defeat and the
ensuing slaughter, were imprisoned, John Lindsay at Seringapatam.
His 'Journal of an Imprisonment in Seringapatam'
is a detailed and remarkably sanguine account of his experiences.
The Hon. John Lindsay was freed when peace was declared
at the Treaty of Mangalore in 1794, and rejoined his regiment.
His elder brother, Captain the Hon. James Lindsay, was with
the main body of the Regiment before Pollilur. When news
of Baillie's defeat reached Calcutta, Captain James had
accompanied General Sir Eyre Coote in his journey to Madras
and further action. The British victory came the following
year, when James fought at Porto Novo, under the General
who expressed his 'gratitude to Capt. Lindsay and the officers
under his command who gallantly led the precious remains
of the 73rd through the most perilous roads to glory.' However,
at the Battle of Cuddalore (June 1783) James was fatally
wounded. A surgeon was called, and it was suggested that
Lindsay should request his men to carry him off the field.
However, the Captain would not hear of it, because this
action would expose his men to enemy fire, 'a noble instance
of his attachment to them,' the narrative records. James
Lindsay and four other prisoners were taken to Cuddalore,
and he died a few days later. The Editor's Introduction
to both brothers' narratives, published in the family history,
'Lives of the Lindsays.' notes that James's narrative 'is
extracted from a 'Journal of the Invasion of the Carnatic
by Haidar Ali Khan, in the year 1780,' - sent by him to
his brother, Lord Balcarres, in 1782, the year before he
fell in storming the redoubts at Cuddalore, in the twenty-fifth
year of his age. ' His brother, John, languishing in Haidar's
prison, was only nineteen years of age when taken prisoner
at Pollilur.
General Sir Eyre Coote, in a grand tribute to his officer, Captain
James Lindsay, declared 'The brave young man who fell this day gave
great promise of talent and eminence in his profession. Being of a
generous open character, which captivated the soldiers, he received
their attachment by the gallantry with which he led them on every occasion.'
