New South Wales Corps
The New South Wales Corps (aka The Rum Corps ) was a company incorporated in England in 1789 standing regiment of the Royal Marines, which was mainly used in Australia.
History
The regiment was to relieve the task of the Marines who had accompanied the First Fleet to Australia. Led by Major Francis Grose regiment consisted of three companies and due to the isolation and remoteness from the mother country and the general unpopularity of this item was recruited this regiment mainly of officers on half-pay, troublemakers, occupant of military prisons and a few who in their happiness wanted to try the new colony. First Regiment members met in 1790 to protect the Second Fleet in. Major Grose met in 1792 in order to take over the command of the regiment and the post of Governor of New South Wales. Later, a fourth company was added, consisting of Marines, the Right like under Captain George Johnston, Governor Phillips hand, wanted to serve in New South Wales.
The official guide in New South Wales
When Governor Phillip in December 1792 returned to England to recover Major Grose was the sole responsibility of the colony. He changed immediately, the strategy of the colony. He led a military laws and jurisdiction and at the same time strengthened the powers of the Corps. Introduced under Phillip self-government of the colony abolished Grose. After the bad harvest of 1793 he cut the food rations of the convicts, but not the Corp members and thus began another basic rule Phillips, who had demanded equal rations for all except power.
In order to promote agriculture and to make the colony independent of food supplies from England, Grose ended the collective land management and distributed the land instead generously to officers of the Corps, which he with convicts supplied beyond, who worked on the farms. Food and clothing of these workers was provided from government stocks were sold and the income generated by the officers of the government.
Due to health problems Grose returned in December 1794 returned to England, and Captain William Paterson took on a transitional basis, until the arrival of Governor Hunter in September 1795 whose heading. Paterson had received these items with the help of Sir Joseph Banks, as he was interested in science and lead expeditions in order and Banks should collect exhibits for Banks and the Royal Society. Paterson was an honest man but with little assertiveness and even if he has tried to introduce some reforms, but he was not able to prevent the officers of the Corps were always powerful and wealthy.
The Rum Corps and the illegal trade
The system introduced by Phillips ban on trade in rum was eased by Grose. The colony had, like many others, no own currency and so it turned out that rum became more popular as an unofficial payment. The officers of the Corps took advantage of their position and their wealth and bought the most coming of Bengal rum ado, then worthwhile to replace it with dry goods and other items of daily use. This brought the New South Wales Corps nicknamed Rum Corps a. In 1793 stills were imported and the onset Rumdestillation worsened as a result of the lack of grain on.
Governor John Hunter made several attempts to be guarded by troops imported rum and so to prevent the officers from buying this, but this failed due to the reasons already mentioned. Attempts to suppress the entire import failed due to the lack of cooperation of other governments and the fact that the officers chartered a Danish ship and thus organized their own imports from India. Hunter opened a public store with goods from England, so as to maintain competition and stabilize prices but Hunter was not a good businessman and the deliveries were too irregular. He called on the authorities in England to exert more control, and wanted to introduce a Rumsteuer. He issued a decree according to which the number of convicts employed in each of the officers was limited, however, he lacked also the means to enforce them. Hunter was heavily criticized by the officers and circulated a variety of leaflets and pamphlets that should bring him into disrepute. John Macarthur wrote a letter in which he accused Hunter to be ineffective and to act even with rum. Prior to these accusations he had to defend himself in front of the Colonial Office and was subsequently relieved of his duties due to inability shortly. Back in England he fought for reforms and the dismissal of the New South Wales Corps, but was unsuccessful.
1799 came Paterson, now Lieutenant Colonel, from England with the order back to stop the machinations of the Corps Officers. In 1800, he accused Major Johnston, another former deputy Hunters to have a Sergeant his pay partially paid in rum. Johnston denied these allegations and asked that the trial be held in England. The English courts decided that colonial affairs were not part of their duties and the case in Sydney was to negotiate because there all the witnesses were to be found. Furthermore, they decided that there but just a regular court-martial can not be convened and against Johnston for this reason should not be proceeded. Governor King, who realized that every officer who was involved with the exception Patersons in the rum trade, Johnston did not interfere in the sequence.
Governor Phillip King sat Hunters continued efforts to weaken the rum trade by the officers. He issued an alcohol tax, allowing only the importation of 500 gallons of rum; the Transit Board requested all existing ships as a penalty in disregard of the regulation. By King in 1804 opened a brewery, he made the private trade attractive. At the same time he established the value of Indian copper and put him with a Spanish coin equal to eight, which he introduced as currency. This currency was well received by all and it required significant efforts to establish these coins on the one in the colony and on the other, to preserve the value of the coins adequately. King acted not always effective, but was nevertheless a serious opponent of the Corps, so he was also, like his predecessor, Hunter, target defamatory pamphlets and attacks. As a result, the King requested since May 1803 for a transfer. His successor, William Bligh met but only 1806.
Even when the economy was a little better now and she had also spread, as Bligh had yet to receive a clear mandate to stop the rum trade of the Corps, and especially of John Macarthur. This led to the Rum Rebellion and ultimately to the dismissal of the New South Wales Corps.
Governor Lachlan Macquarie was better to control the rum trade - able. He succeeded because of the introduction and maintenance of a licensing system. Nevertheless, he was also forced to pay for the implementation of public projects with rum, because still lacked an accepted currency. The construction of the hospital in Sydney could only be financed because the donors had been given a monopoly on the importation of rum in return. This public-private cooperation has led to a dramatic increase in Rumpreise and was extremely unpopular among the population, so that under remained similar collaborations in the following several years.
1813 succeeded Macquarie permanent coinage in the colony to introduce; he bought Spanish pesos from South America and let out dancing in the middle. In this way, the Holey Dollar was worth 5s. The centerpiece, however, was used as a 15p coin. Legalized in 1819, the British government, the commercial distillation of spirits and black market was a criminal offense.
The Battle of Vinegar Hill
The military conduct of the majority of members of the New South Wales Corps was better than might have been expected. 1802 Governor King praised her by saying: ". The utmost order and regularity Has Uniformly prevailed amongst the non-commissioned officers and private" ( German "among the non-commissioned officers and enlisted grades, there was a large order and discipline ").
The corps was in New South Wales only once in combat and that at the Battle of Vinegar Hill (named after an Irish rebellion ). On the evening of March 4, 1804 revolted with pikes and muskets 266 armed rebels on a government farm at Castle Hill, in the intention of plundering Parramatta. Major Johnston led 29 soldiers of the New South Wales Corps in a night march to Parramatta and pursued the fleeing rebels to Windsor the next day with 50 militias. When the rebels were caught, Johnston took the leader caught and his troops crushed the rebellion quickly. For his efforts he was subsequently praised by Governor King high.
102nd Regiment
1809, after the Rum Rebellion, the New South Wales Corps was renamed and removed in the 102nd Regiment. Some of the officers and long-serving soldiers were integrated into Macquarie's 73rd Regiment; about 100 veterans and invalids were divided for garrison duty (despite little use, there was the unit until 1823); some of the officers it was allow to sit down to rest and to cultivate land; the majority of the troops were sent back to England. Colonel Paterson, formerly Captain Paterson, died during the trip home in South Africa.
In England the bulk of the troops were assigned to veterans or garrison battalions, with most officers were assigned to the 8th Royal Veteran Battalion. The regiment was reorganized and provided with recruits and then did at various locations outside the United Kingdom of service (such as the War of 1812, where they took others, the urban Maine). On March 24, 1818 most of the regiment was disbanded and only a small troop of 150 men received in July 1826, the occasion, the NSW Corps as a garrison unit to reform. They were under the command of Colonel Dumaresq. Was dissolved finally the Corps on April 1, 1833.
During its existence, the Corps received several nicknames, which hung in the context of their deployment in New South Wales together: Botany Bay Rangers, Rum Puncheon Corps, Condemned Regiment and Rum Corps.