von Scheither recruits

Here's something tantalizing from AMREV-HESSIANS: the von Scheither recruits. When the British Army realized they were headed towards war in the American Colonies, they hired Colonel Georg Heinrich Albrecht von Scheither of Hanover to recruit 2000 Germans to beef up existing British Regiments.

Forty soldiers were recruited for the Royal Welsh Fusiliers 23rd Foot, including a John Dirlam, who served in Blakeney Company and was reported captured. Bob Mertz found him on a War Office index provided by Don Hagist: WO 12/3960 Dates 18-10-1776, 31-12-1776 and 30-06-1777. WO12 is a collection of muster rolls for the regiment.


And Bob Dirlam reported viewing original documents in Kew at The National Archives of the United Kingdom (WO 43/405). WO43 is a “Liste Des Recrués Anglois embarqués á Stade pour Spithead en Irlande ce 14me de Mai 1776” which records the name, age, place of birth, height, and religion of some 400 of the men recruited by von Scheither, including the forty assigned to the 23rd Regiment. Stade is a port city on the Elbe River, where the recruits were inventoried before heading to the naval base at Southampton, on route to America.

British Regiments consisted of ten companies: eight line companies, whose soldiers stood shoulder to should in lines; on the left flank a light infantry company trained as skirmishers; and on the right flank, a grenadier company. Grenadiers were typically the biggest men, wore mitered caps, carried swords and muskets, and got the toughest assignments. "The Diary of Lieutenant Frederick Mackenzie" and Serjeant Roger Lamb's "Original and Authentic Journal of Occurrences During the Late American War" are the only published first hand accounts from the 23rd Foot. Then Capt. William Blakeney commanded the 23rd's Grenadier Company at Bunker Hill, where the company led the repeated and eventually successful assaults on the fortifications there. Like most of the company, Blakeney was injured.

Dirlam arrived the following summer, joining the 23rd Foot fought in the Battles of Long Island (27 August 1776), Harlem Heights (16 September), White Plains (28 October), and Fort Washington (16 November), and then garrisoned for the winter in New York.

In the spring they were part of an 1800 man force, commanded by General William Tryon and sent to Danbury, Connecticut, to destroy the Continental Army supply depot there. They reached Danbury (26 April 1777), quickly drove off the 150 men defending the place, and destroyed large quantities of preserved food, supplies and medicine. Surprised at reports of Connecticut Militia camped nearby in the rain, they set fire to buildings belonging to known patriots and marched quickly toward their ships. Militia and Continental Army continued to arrive and conducted a two day campaign of harrassment and delay that included several hours that is called the "Battle of Ridgefield."


Once in New York, they were joined by General Howe's troops returning from a half-hearted effort to trap and destroy the Continental Army in New Jersey. Howe decided next to capture Philadelphia. It took several weeks for the combined army of 17,000 soldiers to resupply and pack itself onto the 265 ships gathered to move it. So that 30 June 1777 date, reported by Mertz and Hagist, was the muster roll made as part of preparation for the Philadelphia Campaign. And the very next muster, on 24 February 1778 records Dirlam's capture.

UPDATE: I spent some time on the idea of a Connecticut/Snow connection with no result. Now I'm interested in a different connection to Blandford. Now I'm wondering if he was taken prisoner into New York state. See my post Three Mysteries.