James Grant, Laird of Ballindalloch (1720–1806) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer who served as a major general during the

American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. He served as Governor of

East Florida East Florida ( es, Florida Oriental) was a colony of Great Britain from 1763 to 1783 and a province of Spanish Florida from 1783 to 1821. Great Britain gained control of the long-established Spanish colony of ''La Florida'' in 1763 as part of ...

from 1763 to 1771, and between 1773 and 1802 he had seats in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

Early career

Grant was born on the family estate of

Ballindalloch Ballindalloch ( gd, Baile na Dalach) is a small village on the River Spey in Scotland. It is known for its Scotch whisky, whisky distilleries and for Ballindalloch Castle. In Ballindalloch itself, there are two distilleries, Cragganmore distille ...

in Banffshire in the Northeast of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. He began his military career by purchasing a commission as captain in the

Royal Scots The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment), once known as the Royal Regiment of Foot, was the oldest and most senior infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, having been raised in 1633 during the reign of Charles I of Scotland. The regimen ...

on 24 October 1744. The regiment was shipped to

the Continent Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...

and Grant fought with them in the

Battle of Fontenoy The Battle of Fontenoy was a major engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession, fought on 11 May 1745 near Tournai in modern Belgium. A French army of 50,000 under Marshal Saxe defeated a Pragmatic Army of roughly the same size, led by th ...

during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...

French and Indian War

By 1757, Grant was a major of the

77th Regiment of Foot The 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot (The Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line regiment of the British Army, raised in 1787. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the Duke of Cam ...

(Montgomerie's Highlanders), fighting in the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

in the British Thirteen Colonies. In 1758, he led part of the regiment in an expedition led by General John Forbes. On this expedition, he became acquainted with others who would also play larger parts in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

Francis Marion Brigadier-General Francis Marion ( 1732 – February 27, 1795), also known as the Swamp Fox, was an American military officer, planter and politician who served during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. During the Ameri ...

, and

Hugh Mercer Hugh Mercer (16 January 1726 – 12 January 1777) was a Scottish-born American military officer and physician who participated in the Seven Years' War and Revolutionary War. Born in Pitsligo, Scotland, he studied medicine in his home country ...

, among others. He also gained a contempt for the colonial or

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

troops that would colour his later views. In September, Grant was assigned to lead an advance party of around 800 men to determine the French strength at

Fort Duquesne Fort Duquesne (, ; originally called ''Fort Du Quesne'') was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. It was later taken over by the British, and later the Americans, and developed a ...

(the future site of Pittsburgh). The force was made up mainly of militia, but he took along a number of officers from the regulars since he had little respect for the colonial troops. He decided to split his force, hoping to encourage a French attack that he could surprise and overwhelm. Having no wilderness experience, he was ambushed himself by Indians and French on 14 September 1758. At this engagement, the

Battle of Fort Duquesne The Battle of Fort Duquesne was British assault on the eponymous French fort (later the site of Pittsburgh) that was repulsed with heavy losses on 14 September 1758, during the French and Indian War. The attack on Fort Duquesne was part of a l ...

, the British force was repelled with 342 men killed, wounded or captured. The prisoners consisted of Major Grant and 18 of his men. He was paroled soon after and tried to blame his defeat on the failure of the colonial militia to follow orders. In 1761, Grant commanded an expedition against the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

during the

Anglo-Cherokee War The Anglo-Cherokee War (1758–1761; in the Cherokee language: the ''"war with those in the red coats"'' or ''"War with the English"''), was also known from the Anglo-European perspective as the Cherokee War, the Cherokee Uprising, or the Cherok ...

. After being briefly stationed at

Fort Ticonderoga Fort Ticonderoga (), formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century star fort built by the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain, in northern New York, in the United States. It was constructed by Canadian-born French mi ...

, his regiment was moved to the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

Theatre of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. They fought at the

Siege of Havana The siege of Havana was a successful British siege against Spanish-ruled Havana that lasted from March to August 1762, as part of the Seven Years' War. After Spain abandoned its former policy of neutrality by signing the family compact with Fr ...

, held by Spanish forces in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, which ended in the surrender of the city to the British. When the war was over, the regiment was disbanded in America in 1763.

Governor of Florida

With the

Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France: Treaties 1200s and 1300s * Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade * Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France * Trea ...

, Britain gained control of Florida from the Spanish. They divided it into two colonies, and James Grant was named governor of

in 1764. He moved to the capital of East Florida at St. Augustine and resided in the Governor's House. He ended Indian raids with the Treaty of Fort Picolata, an attempt to maintain peaceful relations between American Indian groups and Florida colonists and to entice future immigrants to his colony. During the Anglo-Cherokee War of 1759–1761, Grant had become familiar with systems of gift exchange and reciprocity used by Southeast Indian groups, which he sought to implement in Florida. Grant also established the Florida-Georgia border. Grant's ventures were ultimately profitable, but numerous efforts failed to produce results. He encouraged new agriculture, setting up trade in the commodities of cotton,

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...

, timber, and

cochineal The cochineal ( , ; ''Dactylopius coccus'') is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessility (motility), sessile parasitism, parasite native to tropical and subtropical Sout ...

. He personally gained and developed several plantations as grants. Then, in 1771, illness forced him to return to Scotland. Grant was succeeded as Governor by General

Patrick Tonyn Patrick Tonyn (1725–1804) was a British General who served as the last British governor of East Florida, from 1774 to 1783. His governorship lasted the span of the American Revolution. East Florida was a Loyalist colony during the war. Ear ...

, brother-in-law of English merchant and planter

Francis Levett Francis Levett was an English trader, who worked as factor at Livorno, Italy, for the Levant Company until he lit out for East Florida in 1769 where his brother-in-law Patrick Tonyn of the British Army had been appointed governor of the Englis ...

. Grant appointed Dr. David Yeats, the Secretary of the East Florida Colony, also as agent to manage his plantations in his absence. Yeats' letters to Grant concerning the properties have long interested Florida colonial historians. Yeats named his son Grant David Yeats after Grant. Grant D. Yeats (1773–1836) became a noted English physician, author and mayor of

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

. Back home in Scotland, Grant was elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

in 1773 as an MP for Tain Burghs. In the period leading up to the

, he became one of the most outspoken of the anti-American members in Parliament. In a speech early in 1775, he remarked that the colonists "...could not fight...", and declared that he could "go from one end of America to other and geld all the males."

American War of Independence

By the summer of 1775, Grant returned to active service with the rank of colonel. He was ordered to return to North America. He arrived in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Massachusetts, on 30 July. In the aftermath of the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...

, he urged

General Gage General Thomas Gage (10 March 1718/192 April 1787) was a British Army general officer and colonial official best known for his many years of service in North America, including his role as British commander-in-chief in the early days of t ...

to move the British troops to New York City, so that they would have room to manoeuvre. His advice was ignored at the time. Grant was a supernumerary until December when he was made colonel and commander of the 55th Regiment of Foot. He would hold that command until 1791. His prediction that Boston was an untenable position was proved correct the following spring. On 17 March 1776, he accompanied the general withdrawal of British troops to Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. By the summer of 1776,

General William Howe William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, Order of the Bath, KB Privy Council of Great Britain, PC (10 August 172912 July 1814) was a British Army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief, North America#Commanders-in-Chief, America 1775–1783, C ...

had replaced Gage as commander, and took Grant's advice about securing New York. Grant was given the provisional rank of major-general and played several key parts in Howe's movements. Fortunately for the Americans, Howe refused some advice from Grant, who proposed burning Boston,

Marblehead, Massachusetts Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, along the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsula that extends ...

; New York City, and Philadelphia.

Battle for New York

As the British tried to gain control of the major port city in the

New York Campaign The New York and New Jersey campaign in 1776 and the winter months of 1777 was a series of American Revolutionary War battles for control of the Port of New York and the state of New Jersey, fought between British forces under General Sir Willia ...

, Grant had become Howe's primary planning officer. He developed two plans, each designed to both gain control of territory and to deal a serious or fatal blow to the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

. These resulted in the

Battle of Brooklyn The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn, New Yor ...

, and

Battle of White Plains The Battle of White Plains was a battle in the New York and New Jersey campaign of the American Revolutionary War, fought on October 28, 1776 near White Plains, New York. Following the retreat of George Washington's Continental Army northward f ...

. Both of these were British victories, as was the overall campaign, but General

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

avoided the death blow to his troops each time. In the Battle of Long Island on 26 and 27 August, Major General Grant led the division that landed on the left wing. He was to engage the American right and divert attention from Howe's flanking manoeuvre with the main body. An advance unit of his troops engaged the Americans at the Red Lion Inn, which was the first engagement of the battle. Grant completed his mission, and strongly defeated the American General William Alexander's division. After the event, Grant was unfairly criticised by some for allowing the escape of most of this force. He had almost 7,000 men in ten regiments opposing Alexander's 1,600 Continentals, but there were factors at play other than troop strength. First, Grant stopped his advance according to the British plan, awaiting Howe's attack on the American rear, rather than attacking the Americans who were dug in on the Brooklyn heights. Second, he was running low on ammunition. Boats and logistic support were busy ferrying and supplying the

Hessian A Hessian is an inhabitant of the German state of Hesse. Hessian may also refer to: Named from the toponym *Hessian (soldier), eighteenth-century German regiments in service with the British Empire **Hessian (boot), a style of boot **Hessian f ...

units on the right and the main body that was landing at

Gravesend, Brooklyn Gravesend is a neighborhood in the south-central section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, on the southwestern edge of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It is bounded by the Belt Parkway to the south, Bay Parkway to the west, ...

. Grant quick-marched his battalion to the Battle of White Plains, but he arrived too late. In 1777, Grant devised the battle plans for the

Battle of Brandywine Creek The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Ame ...

Philadelphia and the West Indies

Grant was unsuccessful in trapping

Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemasonry, freemason and military officer who fought in the Ameri ...

, at the

Battle of Barren Hill A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, on 20 May 1778. Lafayette held the position along the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...

with 2,200 troops and five guns. His front was picketed by 150 light infantry and 50

Oneida Indians The Oneida people (autonym: Onʌyoteˀa·ká·, Onyota'a:ka, ''the People of the Upright Stone, or standing stone'', ''Thwahrù·nęʼ'' in Tuscarora) are a Native American tribe and First Nations band. They are one of the five founding nat ...

under

Allen McLane Allan McLane (August 8, 1746 – May 22, 1829) was an officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He was appointed as the first United States Marshal of Delaware in 1789, and as Customs Collector of the Port of Wilmingt ...

and his left was held by James Potter and 600 Pennsylvania militia. The bulk of his command was formed by a veteran brigade under

Enoch Poor Enoch Poor (June 21, 1736 (Old Style) – September 8, 1780) was a brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He was a ship builder and merchant from Exeter, New Hampshire. Biography Poor was born and raised ...

Sir William Howe William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB PC (10 August 172912 July 1814) was a British Army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British land forces in the Colonies during the American War of Independence. Howe was one of three bro ...

sent Grant with 6,000 men and 15 guns to circle wide to the right and come in behind Lafayette's force, while he attacked in front with 4,000 soldiers. Charles Grey with 2,000 British and Hessian grenadiers was ordered to strike the American left flank. The manoeuvre began auspiciously when Potter's militia dispersed in the face of Grant's column. However, the capture of two of Grey's soldiers warned Lafayette of his danger. Meanwhile, Grant halted his troops to wait for Grey to appear and this allowed the Americans to begin moving back to Matson's Ford. When Grant finally lurched forward again, Lafayette sent some of Poor's troops forward in a feint. Grant was fooled and stopped his advance a second time. By the time he realised what was happening, most of the Americans had slipped out of his grasp via a road that the British were not aware of. Grant nevertheless unleashed his cavalry in pursuit, but they took the wrong route and only arrived in time to see the last of Lafayette's men crossing at Matson's. Finally, Grant was shipped off to the West Indies. On 27 October 1778 he led a successful expeditionary force to capture the French West Indian island of

St. Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...

. A superior French garrison, surrendered on 28 December, at the Battle of La Vigie. On 1 April 1779, Lord Germain instructed Grant to establish small garrisons throughout the West Indies. Grant had the moral courage to defy Germain and refused to carry out this order. In his letters of 8 and 17 July, he pointed out to the Secretary of State for America that naval superiority was paramount and that the small detachments on every island would not be wise. Instead, he deployed the West Indies garrisons to cover the major naval bases. He posted the 15th, 28th, and 55th Foot and 1,500 gunners at

Saint Kitts Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis cons ...

. The 27th,

35th Military units *35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force *35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I *35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 July 1 ...

, and 49th Foot and 1,600 gunners defended

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...

. Meanwhile, the royal dockyard at

Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...

was held by an 800-man garrison of the 40th and

60th Foot The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...

. Grant also reinforced the fleet with 925 soldiers. He embarked for England on 1 August 1779, but his dispositions provided the basis for the British successes in the Caribbean during the final years of the war.

Later career

In 1780, he was defeated in parliamentary elections. In 1782, he was appointed a lieutenant general. In 1787, he was re-elected to Parliament, this time for

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later ...

. He held the seat until 1802. In 1789, he was appointed governor of

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

, and commanding general of the army in Scotland. In 1791, he was transferred from the 55th as Colonel to the

11th Foot The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1958 ...

. In 1796, he was appointed a full General and retired from active military services. In 1802, he retired to his estate on the Avon and Spey rivers as the Laird of

, after relinquishing his seat in Parliament. In 1805, he retired from the British army. He died at 86 on 13 April 1806. His estate went to his grandnephew, George Macpherson. His papers are at the

National Archives of Scotland The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...

and have been copied for the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

.''Adventures in British America Papers Found in Scottish Castle Shed Light on Revolutionary War Era'', JAMES HUTSON
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