Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Richard Prescott (1725–1788) was a British

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," ...

, born in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Military career

He was appointed a major of the

33rd Regiment of Foot The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, forming part of the King's Division. In 1702, Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised to raise a new regiment, which he ...

, on 20 December 1756, transferred to the

72nd Regiment of Foot The 72nd Highlanders was a British Army Highland Infantry Regiment of the Line. Raised in 1778, it was originally numbered 78th, before being redesignated the 72nd in 1786. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 78th (Highlanders) ...

on 9 May 1758, and on 14 December 1761,

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

of the

17th Regiment of Foot 17 (seventeen) is the natural number following 16 and preceding 18. It is a prime number. Seventeen is the sum of the first four prime numbers. In mathematics 17 is the seventh prime number, which makes seventeen the fourth super-prime, as ...

, before in May 1762, transferring to the 50th Regiment of Foot, with which regiment he served in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

during 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– ...

. He afterward transferred to the

7th Regiment of Foot 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube (algebra), cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion ...

before he was brevetted

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

in the army on 25 June 1772, before he went to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

in 1773. On the reduction of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

by the Americans in 1775, Colonel Prescott, who had the local rank of

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

, attempted to descend to

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...

with the British troops and the military stores, but was obliged to surrender to the Americans on 17 November. In September 1776, he was exchanged for General John Sullivan. In November he became colonel of his regiment, and in December he was third in command of the expedition against

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

, where he remained in command of the British forces prior to the

Battle of Rhode Island The Battle of Rhode Island (also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill) took place on August 29, 1778. Continental Army and Militia forces under the command of Major General John Sullivan had been besieging the British forces in Newport, Rhode Is ...

. On Prescott Farm in Rhode Island, he was abducted from his quarters at night on 10 July 1777, by Lieutenant-Colonel William Barton and a force of 40 men including

Jack Sisson Jack Sisson (1821) was an enslaved African American who sided with the Patriots and served in the First Rhode Island Regiment during the American Revolutionary War. Sisson was one of the key figures in the July 1777 capture of British General Ric ...

. The Americans took him to Providence. Prescott was again exchanged, this time for General Charles Lee. Prescott resumed his command in

, but was almost immediately superseded by Sir Robert Pigot. He became a

major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, 29 August 1777, and

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, 26 November 1782. See "The Capture of Prescott by Lieutenant-Colonel William Barton", an address at the centennial celebration of the exploit, by Jeremiah Lewis Diman (Providence, 1877).

Notes

External links

Prescott Farm History in Rhode Island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prescott, Richard 1725 births 1788 deaths British Army generals British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War 33rd Regiment of Foot officers 72nd Highlanders officers Royal Leicestershire Regiment officers Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment officers Royal Fusiliers officers British Army personnel of the Seven Years' War

Military career

Notes

Further reading

External links