Enlistment Act 1794
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An act to enable subjects of France to enlist as soldiers in regiments to serve on the continent of Europe, and in certain other places; and to enable his Majesty to grant commissions to subjects of France, to serve and receive pay as officers in such regiments, or as engineers under certain conditions |
|---|---|
| Citation | 34 Geo. 3 c. 43 |
| Introduced by | William Pitt the Younger |
| Territorial extent | Great Britain |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 9 May 1794 |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
The Enlistment Act 1794 (also known as the Emigrant Corps Bill or Act) allowed the British government to create regiments of émigrés from France. This specific legislation was needed to enlist men who were not British subjects in the British Army and to allow George III to commission foreigners as officers. The Act was a major break from the military conventions about enlisting soldiers from other states in the Eighteenth Century.[1] The Act expired with the Peace of Amiens.
Background and Need for the Act
Many of those who fled France in the wake of the French Revolution were soldiers and officers of the French Royal Army. With the outbreak of French Revolutionary Wars in 1792 émigré nobles set up units and formed Armée des émigrés. Soon after the France declaration of war on Britain in February 1793, émigré officers also offered to raise units for the British Army. The British government welcomed the additional manpower.[2]
The first unit to be raised was the Loyal Emigrant Regiment by Louis, duc de La Chastre.[3] To avoid political problems, the officers were commissioned by George III as Elector of Hanover and then they were transferred to British pay.[4] This arrangement was not practical for further offers, so new legislation was introduced to allow émigré units to be raised and maintained directly by Britain.
As the French officers of these units were Catholic, they needed exemptions from British laws against Catholics. Also, throughout the Eighteenth Century, many British MPs has been hostile to employing foreign troops within the British Army.[5]
Notes
- ^ Linch, Kevin (2012). "The Politics of Foreign Recruitment in Britain during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars". In Arielli, Nir; Collins, Bruce (eds.). Transnational Soldiers: Foreign Military Enlistment in the Modern Era. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 59–60. doi:10.1057/9781137296634_4. ISBN 9780230319684.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|doi-access=subscription(help) - ^ Linch, Kevin (2012). "The Politics of Foreign Recruitment in Britain during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars". In Arielli, Nir; Collins, Bruce (eds.). Transnational Soldiers: Foreign Military Enlistment in the Modern Era. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 57. doi:10.1057/9781137296634_4. ISBN 9780230319684.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|doi-access=subscription(help) - ^ Atkinson, C. T. (1943). "Foreign Regiments in The British Army, 1793-1802: Part II—The Continent, 1793-1802". Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research. 22 (85): 3. ISSN 0037-9700. JSTOR 44219955. Retrieved 2020-01-15.
- ^ Atkinson, C. T. (1944). "Foreign Regiments in The British Army, 1793-1802: Part VI—Notes on Each Corps or Regiment, Section II—Du Dressnay's to Maclean's Chasseurs". Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research. 22 (90): 244. ISSN 0037-9700. JSTOR 44228347. Retrieved 2020-01-15.
- ^ Clode, Charles Mathew (1869). The military forces of the crown: their administration and government. Vol. 2. London: J. Murray. pp. 432–436.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|url-access=free(help)
