Seven Robinsons in the 49th Regiment

When Duncan Robinson was discharged from the 49th Regiment of Foot on July 31, 1786, he was sixty years old, of which he had spent thirty-two years and two months as a soldier. This in itself was not particularly unusual - the British ranks in the American Revolution consisted largely of career soldiers, men who joined the army not for a fixed duration, but with the expectation of serving until their health no longer allowed it. Robinson, a native of Perthshire in Scotland, had learned carpentry before enlisting in the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot, where he spent ten years; the then enlisted - perhaps after a gap - in the 49th Regiment in 1764.

The 49th Regiment was posted in Ireland in the early 1770s when tensions were rising in America, and was among the regiments that sailed for Boston early in 1775. The regiment disembarked in Boston on the morning of June 17, the day of the Battle of Bunker Hill. For the next three years the regiment saw service in the rebelling American colonies, in the major campaigns around New York City and Philadelphia. In late 1778 they were part of the expedition to the West Indies, where they spent two more years. Duncan Robertson's discharge testifies to the toll taken on his health, explaining that he was "worn out in the service," and "subject to severe rheumatisms" after spending seven years "in the West Indies, and American last War." In addition, he "received several Bruises in the Engineers Department when employ'd in making the Kings works." All of this "has prevented him from doing his duty during the Winter months" and "rendered him incapable of further service."

Robinson spent most of his career as a private soldier, being appointed corporal only in 1781, and finally sergeant in 1785, just a year before his discharge. This was not uncommon - many men spent long careers as private soldiers - but an officer wrote a recommendation for Robinson that included an interesting detail. Robinson "was always looked upon as a very proper soldier for promotion," wrote the officer, "but on account of his not learning to write prevented him frequently from being made a Non Commissioned Officer for which promotion he was justly entitled." Writing was an essential capability for corporals and sergeants, whose roles involved paperwork, but Duncan Robinson "frequently refused being appointed a Non Commissioned Officer himself, saying and giving for a reason, he would be obliged to no other soldier for writing his reports for him." By the age of sixty he was at least able to sign his discharge, in a scrawly hand.

The endorsement mentioned another important aspect of Robinson's meritorious character: "He brought into the service, and into the 49th Regiment three sons, and three Nephews, two of which were killed in America, Non Commissioned Officers and the other lost his Arm at White Plains."

The regiment's muster rolls largely confirm this. From 1775 through June 1778, besides Duncan Robinson, there was Corporal William Robinson, promoted to sergeant in November 1775, reduced - perhaps due to wounds - in December 1777, and discharged in April 1778. John Robinson was in the regiment's grenadier company throughout the entire war, and was appointed corporal in late 1780 or early 1781. Arthur Robinson and Daniel Robinson both served in the regiment's light infantry company; Daniel was killed on September 21, 1777, near Philadelphia; Arthur disappears from the rolls during the regiment's time in the West Indies, suggesting that he may have died there. Thomas Robinson was a private soldier before being appointed drummer in November 1777.

James Robinson was discharged from the 49th Regiment on the same day as Duncan Robinson, July 31, 1786. His discharge indicates that he started as a drummer at the age of thirteen in 1771, then joined a Loyalist regiment, the Queen's Rangers, when that corps was formed in America in 1776. At war's end in 1783 he returned to the 49th Regiment for the final three years of his career. Oddly, he does not appear on the muster rolls for either regiment during the war years, a nuance that can be explained in various ways. The fact that was a Perthshire native and was discharged on the same day as Duncan Robinson leaves little doubt that James was one of Robinson's sons.

It is not uncommon to find several soldiers with the same surname in a given regiment. Although the author of a popular military text wrote that men were liable to be "most desirous of enlisting into a corps, where they are certain of meeting many countrymen, and perhaps relations," and "nothing binds them more strongly to the Service, than having their friends and relations about them, employed in the same pursuits," muster rolls do not indicate whether soldiers were related to each other. Only in rare cases, like the endorsement to Duncan Robinson's discharge, can we be certain that some regiments included "friends and relations."

The information in this article comes from:

Muster rolls, 49th Regiment of Foot, WO 12/6032/2

Discharge of Duncan Robinson, WO 97/581/47

Discharge of James Robinson, WO 97/634/15

Bennett Cuthbertson, A System for the Compleat Interior Management and Œconomy of a Battalion of Infantry (Dublin, 1768)