A British Lieutenant's Intense Firsthand Account From The Battle Of Minden (1759)

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  • čas přidán 17. 07. 2020
  • / history_uncovered
    The Battle of Minden in 1759 was a pivotal conflict of the Seven Years' War. Lieutenant Hugh Montgomery of the British army gives his firsthand account of the battle in a letter to his mother written a few days after it was over. His account gives a vivid description of 18th century warfare and also his opinion of the leaders and the conduct of the battle.
    Music:
    Music: [The Return] by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com)
    Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License
    creativecommons.org/licenses/...

Komentáře • 71

  • @frankmorton1920
    @frankmorton1920 Před 2 lety +29

    It was at the battle of Minden that the British infantry won immortal glory and set the standards for the rest of the British Army.

  • @freebeerfordworkers
    @freebeerfordworkers Před 2 lety +24

    2.10 "The most disagreeable march I ever had" Bit of an understatement with 18lb cannons blasting at them front and flank!

    • @Albukhshi
      @Albukhshi Před rokem

      Even back then, British understatement was a thing...

  • @allangibson4354
    @allangibson4354 Před 2 lety +6

    Minden/Yorkshire Day ( 1st of August ) is still celebrated both by the "Minden Regiments" and the loyal people of Yorkshire. "They advanced through rose gardens to the battleground and decorated their tricorne hats and grenadier caps with the emblem of England. These regiments celebrate Minden Day still, and all wear roses in their caps on this anniversary in memory of their ancestors."

  • @the.pandamonium
    @the.pandamonium Před 3 lety +24

    Love these, please keep them coming. If there are any first hand accounts of the battle of agincourt that fit the concept for video like this id love to see it (or battle of crecy, poitiers etc.)

    • @martint5606
      @martint5606 Před 3 lety +2

      or the battles of Patay, Cocherel, Formigny, Orleans, Castillon... ;)

    • @the.pandamonium
      @the.pandamonium Před 3 lety

      @@martint5606 Yes

  • @wojtekkolo3003
    @wojtekkolo3003 Před 3 lety +4

    so many years of waiting and finally a new video :P thanks :)

  • @chickenassasintk
    @chickenassasintk Před 2 lety +1

    love this channel, its a mixture of this guys voice and speech and content

  • @micahistory
    @micahistory Před 3 lety

    You're back!

  • @paulhowden720
    @paulhowden720 Před 3 lety +8

    There is few British graves near the old Kingsley Bks Minden.

  • @Numba003
    @Numba003 Před 3 lety +16

    This is a cool video as always guy. I enjoy these firsthand accounts. Stay well out there everybody, and Jesus Christ be with you friends.😊

  • @golem5809
    @golem5809 Před 2 lety +1

    Amazing video and imagery, as always.
    And here we go again...reinstalling Empire Total War...(plus Mods of course^^)

  • @_ZimZam
    @_ZimZam Před 2 lety +1

    Awesome

  • @Albukhshi
    @Albukhshi Před 6 měsíci

    @ 4:50
    For those wondering what 13 files means: that's 52 men, plus officers. Prior to 1764, a file was strictly defined as 6 men--a holdover of a time when the British indeed deployed 6-deep. This meant that in a typical 3-rank deep formation, what we would think of as a file--3 men--would be called a "half-file".
    And no, this was not normal for Europe at the time: this was a uniquely British quirk for the time between ~1688 and the Seven Years War. This wasn't abolished until 1764, and the British joined the rest of humanity in how to define a file.
    Comparing the numbers to the total number of survivors, I'm wondering if Montgomery was skirting around his regiment having at least partly routed (he does say it retired). See, if you do the math, it works out that the regiment he was in had 178 surviving other ranks, not ~52. So it appears that most survivors had pretty much dropped out of the fight altogether.
    Of course, it could just be that a lot of them were involved in carrying the wounded (technically forbidden, but happened anyway), or that they became temporary hors de combat.
    Whatever the truth, Montgomery clearly doesn't hold the soldiers' actions against them, but is instead quite proud of himself and the rest of the regiment.

    • @knutclau705
      @knutclau705 Před 4 měsíci +1

      As an officer Montgomery would certainly have praised his regiments conduct and in perfectly gentlemanly understatement given an account of his compatriots behaviour, slighteing the cowardly froggies and slighting the hannoverian and hessian forces present (rule britannia), given his upbringing, his youth (lieutanant) and his age (18th cent.) he might be excused (as most veterans in any action at any time), also that battle participants of all ages were trying not to alarm their kin... Yet fighting a linear battle must have been a most unnerving experience, to say the least! I have done (peacetime) soldiering in the (west) german Bundeswehr and 20 odd years reenactment of the "powder and ball" period 16th -19th centuries, fought "mensur" as a german fraternity student, and did a modest bit of Martial Arts & HEMA battles... Scaling that up to the real thing as my grandfathers (and some british and american family members) had to go through, I cannot but admire the sheer guts of those men (and some women) who braved shot & shell (and PTBS!!!) 😮

  • @edwardjohn1614
    @edwardjohn1614 Před 2 lety +1

    *_Liked_* *_Subscribed_* 👍

  • @charlesmaximus9161
    @charlesmaximus9161 Před 2 lety

    There was another Hugh Montgomery involved in the "Boston Massacre" incident on King Street in Boston (now State Street) in 1770.

  • @TheFrenchGrunt
    @TheFrenchGrunt Před 3 lety +1

    Any chance of going back to the earlier video formats? Felt like they had something niche about them, whereas these are kind've saturated

  • @richardkluesek4301
    @richardkluesek4301 Před 3 lety +4

    Barry Lyndon was there !

  • @coling3957
    @coling3957 Před 2 lety +1

    Lord Sackville was court-martialled and cashiered from the army.. he would have disappeared from history but for the fact accepted a legacy and inheritance that required him to accept name of Germain. for which he is known from 1770. he entered politics and became a minister in Lord North's govt responsible for the American colonies.. his political career peaking in same disastrous fashion as his army one had.. Sackville's second in command at Minden was General Granby, who pleaded with Sackville to order the cavalry attack. Granby was an immensely popular commander and secured pensions for army veterans, there are pubs in his name in England to this day originally owned by veterans who commemorated him. in the 1990's the British army called their venture against Iraq "Operation Granby" ...

    • @frankmorton1920
      @frankmorton1920 Před 2 lety

      I served in 1st Battalion Kings Own Scottish Borderers which was then one of those immortal infantry battalions that fought at Minden. The regiment fought on every continent and in every corner of god's known earth

    • @billythedog-309
      @billythedog-309 Před 2 lety +1

      The Marquis of Granby was so keen to overcome the cavalry's disgrace at Minden that at the next encounter, Warburg, he led a charge before receiving orders and with such dispatch that his wig fell off giving rise to the phrase 'to charge bald-headed' and his name was subsequently adopted by many pubs throughout England.

    • @coling3957
      @coling3957 Před 2 lety +1

      @@billythedog-309 the pubs were named after him by veterans he'd campaigned for pensions for. i suppose Sergeants etc could afford them.. his name as almost forgotten in UK until the Gulf War .. and the news had to explain where the operation's name came from for the British contingent.

  • @carausiuscaesar5672
    @carausiuscaesar5672 Před 2 lety

    In 1758 Britain also bagged Louisbourg in Cape Breton Nova Scotia Canada.General Wolfe led from the front jumping into the waters of Kennington Cove.

    • @Heisenberg882
      @Heisenberg882 Před rokem

      and they were also defeated by a french force 6 times smaller at Carillon

    • @doug6500
      @doug6500 Před rokem +1

      @@Heisenberg882 Lol...
      It was on the Plains of Abraham when the British finally got the French to face them in a stand up fight. No barricades, no forts, no entrenched positions... a stand up fight, muzzle to muzzle, bayonet to bayonet.
      Guess what... the British won.

  • @Tippet76
    @Tippet76 Před 2 lety

    Definitely the only guy I've ever heard of to be hit by two cannon balls, never mind the only one to just walk it off.

  • @cheydinal5401
    @cheydinal5401 Před 3 lety +2

    That's right next to my home town, BTW

    • @ShadySheev
      @ShadySheev Před 2 lety

      Same here. Born in Minden, raised in Espelkamp :-)

  • @bangdragons8958
    @bangdragons8958 Před 3 lety +11

    try someone with an accent according to the ethnicity of who wrotethe letter. thats the only improvement i can think of

    • @pdubya4690
      @pdubya4690 Před 2 lety +3

      The accent would be a Suffolk one.

    • @johntillman6068
      @johntillman6068 Před 2 lety +1

      @@pdubya4690 Its East Suffolk association wasn't until 1782. That LT Montgomery's given name was Hugh, he might have come from Montgomeryshire, Wales, but there were many Scottish Montgomerys as well. So, without knowing his family history, his accent can only be guessed at. An early version of today's RP might have to suffice.

    • @Albukhshi
      @Albukhshi Před 2 lety

      @@johntillman6068
      Only RP simply didn't exist at the time. The pronunciation guides suggest an accent that no longer exists today, for men of means (like Montgomery). The best reconstruction I found is here:
      czcams.com/video/_gJE8rEdjM4/video.html

  • @k.i.a6433
    @k.i.a6433 Před 2 lety

    Wow that letter was on a soldiers pocket, and had aunts and uncles!!

  • @cuanmccarogher4926
    @cuanmccarogher4926 Před 2 lety

    Don’t mention the Sackvilles!

  • @oriffel
    @oriffel Před 3 lety

    neat

  • @markwoodford1733
    @markwoodford1733 Před 2 lety

    Balls bounding

  • @KAMiKAZE-T.V.
    @KAMiKAZE-T.V. Před 2 lety

    Please collab with voices of the past

  • @carausiuscaesar5672
    @carausiuscaesar5672 Před 2 lety

    “Ran Away”-feets do yo stuff!

  • @alrafter1593
    @alrafter1593 Před 2 lety

    Addressing his mother as dear Madam?

  • @justsomeguy4099
    @justsomeguy4099 Před 2 lety

    Its "Cavalry" not "Calvary".
    Great videos though.

  • @paulbrowne3033
    @paulbrowne3033 Před 2 lety +1

    Any information on the Irish Regiments fighting for the French? They had given Coldstream Guards a beating in previous battles between France and England ceasing that regiment's colours!

    • @michellearmstrong7903
      @michellearmstrong7903 Před 2 lety +2

      Irish fought for all the despots of europe

    • @paulbrowne3033
      @paulbrowne3033 Před 2 lety

      No they didn't fight for the Hanoverians who fought against America independence, thankfully with French help including Irish Regiments as part of the French army that was achieved ironically many Americans who supported the "Patriotic Cause" were Presbyterians from the North of IRELAND, you seem to be from there or Scotland. On a broader front many exiles from Ireland and Scotland fought with distinction all over Europe including the defence of Vienna against the Ottomans eg Leslies from Scotland, topically Field Marshall de Lacy from Limerick who annexed the Crimea from the Tattars who scourged Eastern Europe for centuries on behalf of the Empress Anna the one aspect common to all these exiles is take note "no alligance to the Union Jack" not something in the distant past since Ireland is a Republic and Scotland may or may not be independent soon so past history may have a bearing on the near future, British military history is only one dimension on these Islands there is another narrative educate yourself and less of the narrow sarcasm!PS German Hanoverians as opposed to the Native Scottish Stewarts!

    • @tombristowe846
      @tombristowe846 Před 2 lety

      Do you mean "seizing" them by any chance ?

    • @ToTaLePiCpEaNuT
      @ToTaLePiCpEaNuT Před 2 lety +1

      @@paulbrowne3033 The Irish have always and I mean always fought in the British army. Irish catholic’s were arguably the backbone of the British army until the First World War. The British couldn’t have filled the ranks during the Napoleonic war without Irish and at one stage in India 30% of all soldiers stationed there were Irish catholics.
      The Scottish were also disproportionately represented in the British army, strangely when English often didn’t even make up 50% of the British army.

    • @Swift-mr5zi
      @Swift-mr5zi Před 2 lety +1

      @@ToTaLePiCpEaNuT As someone who is aware of these facts I also find it funny when people assume the British empire was dominated by England, 50% of the east India company staff at one point were Scottish as well

  • @Aurel.1809
    @Aurel.1809 Před rokem

    I live in minden

  • @DeFraans
    @DeFraans Před 3 lety

    Your way of talking reminds me of Rick and Morty

  • @Psychol-Snooper
    @Psychol-Snooper Před 3 lety +3

    So much sarcasm.

  • @Falukorvification
    @Falukorvification Před 3 lety

    The music is too loud in comparison to your voice. Upload a version with lower music and get more views.

  • @christisking1576
    @christisking1576 Před 3 lety +9

    Today's young men will complain when they can't find Starbucks on their phone.

    • @FieldMarshalYT
      @FieldMarshalYT Před 3 lety +10

      Said the guy making sweeping generalizations behind his computer screen.

    • @Anglisc1682
      @Anglisc1682 Před 3 lety +4

      @@FieldMarshalYT Yes he's generalising, but is he wrong?

    • @FieldMarshalYT
      @FieldMarshalYT Před 3 lety +5

      @@Anglisc1682 Yes.

    • @FieldMarshalYT
      @FieldMarshalYT Před 3 lety +3

      @@Anglisc1682 Because it's a baseless and shitty generalization.

    • @sweaspurdoddd5466
      @sweaspurdoddd5466 Před 2 lety +2

      @@Anglisc1682 yes, it's an idiotic Boomer assumption and hyperbole.

  • @stevenkanzler2319
    @stevenkanzler2319 Před 2 lety

    They’re pronounced DOOKOTS not duckets

    • @PhilipKerry
      @PhilipKerry Před 2 lety +1

      We English pronounced it as Duckets ......

  • @iceberggibson199
    @iceberggibson199 Před rokem

    This dudes voice man…too robotic

  • @user-hn1zg9he7i
    @user-hn1zg9he7i Před 7 měsíci

    The 25th Regiment of Foot was not an English regiment but a Scottish Regiment.