retreat by the field artillery. It was in the celebrated Thirty Years War that his artillery showed the advan tages which it could win when handled properly. The artillery of the Imperialists was as cumbrous as that of their Swedish adversaries was mobile. Tilly s guns were chiefly 24-pounders, each requiring twenty transport horses and twelve horses for the waggons, while the service of the guns was primitive and defective, and they could hardly even be moved during the course of an action. The first battle of Leipsic was fought the 7th September 1G31, between the allied Swedes and Saxons under Gustavus Adolphus and the Imperialists under Tilly. The Imperialist artillery was badly disposed on a range of hills in rear of their position, so that any forward movement would effectually mask the fire of the guns. Gustavus, on the other hand, advanced his guns more, and covered his front with 100 guns, which he was able to use with considerable effect. The next action in which the use of the artillery is remark able was the passage of the Lech, a tributary of the Danube. Tilly had taken up a position on the right bank of the river between Augsburg and Rain, and awaited attack. On the night of the 3d April 1632 the Swedish army threw up earth-works, upon which were mounted seventy-two pieces of artillery. Gustavus, taking advantage of the re-entering bend of the river, brought such a con verging fire upon the Imperialists that he forced them to retire and gained the passage of the stream. At the battle of Liitzen, 6th November 1632, Wallenstein had taken advantage of certain eminences and rising ground in his position to post his guns in batteries of from four to fourteen pieces, while Gustavus placed powerful batteries on the wings and centre of his line. The battle closed the glorious career of this great warrior, who was struck down in the hour of victory. During his life he had done much to forward the science of artillery. He had increased its mobility and rapidity of fire, and raised the proportion of guns to over six per 1000 men ; and though he may be said to have been the originator of the battalion system, with its attendant evils of dispersion of guns, he
checked this evil by keeping in hand a considerable reserve.Further progress was made in construction and organisation during the latter part of the century. In England the laboratory at Woolwich was established in 1 672, and a great reorganisation of the artillery took place in 1682 under the master-general, Lord Dartmouth. About that time we read, that at the Hounslow camp " brass 3-pounders, tinder gentlemen of the ordnance, were escorted to their places by the grenadiers of the various regiments," an example of the tactical system of " battalion guns " already spoken of. The train of artillery with which James II. pre pared to meet the invasion of 1688 was a considerable one ; details of it will be found at page 53 of Duncan s History of the Royal Artillery. William III. (1689) introduced foreign artillery, and undertook the reorganisation of the personnel. He formed the first regimental establishment. Howitzers, mortars, and hand-grenades were introduced during this period, being used principally by the Dutch and English. In France the improvements under Louis XIV. seem to have been made chiefly in siege artillery. Heavy guns of position were much used, and there appears to have been a disposition to regard batteries of this kind, covered by epaulcments, as in field fortifications, as the natural role of artillery. Louis XIV., however, was the first to give a permanent foundation to the new arm. In 1671 he raised a regiment of royal fusiliers as artillerymen, composed of gunners and workmen. Schools of instruction were established, and the arm recognised as a special branch. Improvements were also effected in the matériel. The calibres were reduced in number and made uniform, and those then adopted have remained unaltered up to the present day, some having been rifled. Carriages were improved. " Siege and field carriages had heavy bracket- trails, but were provided with limbers having a straight pintail on the top, like an old service siege limber."[1] Platform waggons were used to transport guns ; wrought-iron field carriages and mortar carriages were used ; and the carriage for coast batteries was little dissimilar to the standing gun-carriage of the present day.
England it saw the Royal Regiment of Artillery permanently established, and rapid strides made on the Continent in every branch of the arm. The Duke of Marlborough was appointed master-general of the ordnance on the accession. of Queen Anne, in 1702, and in the same year war was declared with Germany and the States-General. We have but scanty record of the handling of his artillery by this great general ; but at Blenheim it is said a strong battery, posted on the allied right wing, greatly assisted by its enfilade fire ; and at Malplaquet, Marlborough deployed forty guns in the centre of his position. The artillery trains were considerably increased. In 1706 forty-six guns and sixty mortars formed the artillery of a force of 11,000 men, the mortars being used mounted upon travel ling carriages. The history of the " lloyal Regiment of Artillery" commences from the 26th May 1716, when the artillery which had so long existed was formed into two permanent companies of Royal Artillery. In 1727 the organisation was expanded into four complete companies, commanded by a colonel, lieut.-colonel, and a major, and in 1740 two more companies were added. A company consisted of 5 officers, 4 fire-workers, 18 non-commissioned officers and bombardiers, 30 gunners and cadet gunners, 48 matrosses and cadet matrosses, and 2 drummers. Albert Borgard was the first colonel. By birth a Dane, he served first in the Danish army and afterwards in the Prussian service, and subsequently entered that of England, lie was adjutant of the short-lived regiment formed by William III., and died in 1751 at the age of 92. In 1741 the Royal Military Academy was instituted at Woolwich for the instruction of cadets, and of officers and men of the artillery. The cadets were accommodated in buildings at the Warren, and it was not till 1806 that the new academy was opened at the foot of Shooter s Hill. In 1748 a company of Royal Artil lery went to the East Indies and took part in the siege of Pondicherry, subsequently forming the nucleus of the Indian artilleries. In 1755 four additional companies were raised for service in the East Indies, and in 1757 the regiment had increased to twenty-four companies. A Royal Irish Artillery corps was also formed, which gradually increased from a small nucleus to a strength of twenty companies, and was amalgamated with the lloyal Artillery in 1801. About this period (the middle of 18th century) the guns in use consisted of 24-pounders, 12-pounders, 6-pounders, and 3-poundcrs. The guns were divided into brigades, corresponding to the present batteries, of four, five, and six guns respectively, and began to be separated into " heavy" and "light " brigades. Each field gun was drawn by four horses, the two leaders being ridden by artillerymen, and had 100 rounds of shot and 30 rounds of grape. Three companies of the Royal Artillery took part in the battle of Minden in 1759, and were handled with great success ; and even in those days the English artillery won praise from foreign critics. Decker says,[2] " The English artillery was distinguished by its lightness, its elegance, and the good quality of its materials. In the
battle of Marburg (1760), although the English artillery