7th Light Dragoons

General Sir Henry Clinton KB

Henry Clinton was a famous general who commanded the British forces in North America for 4 years during the American War of Independence. Opinion is divided as to whether he conducted the war well or not. He had bad relationships with many of the generals and admirals he worked with and was still Commander-in-Chief when the younger Lord Cornwallis surrendered to the colonists at Yorktown in 1782. He was the son of Admiral George Clinton who was appointed governor of New York in 1743. Henry went with him and served in an independent company, then as a captain in Louisbourg. He returned to the UK in 1749 to be an officer in the Guards and later served under Prince Ferdinand in the Seven Years War.
He was patronised by the Duke of Newcastle who was the brother-in-law of his uncle. When Henry's father died he had trouble securing back pay owed to his father, and selling their American property, which was eventually confiscated. He married Harriet Carter in 1767 and had 5 children, 2 of which became generals. She died in 1772. He held the post of Groom of the Bedchamber to the Duke of Gloucester for many years from 1764 and was second in command to the elder Lord Cornwallis in Gibraltar in 1769.
Clinton was sent out to America in 1775 and worked with Howe, Burgoyne and Gage in Boston when it was besieged by the colonists. He commanded with success at Breed's Hill but managed to get on the wrong side of Howe, who was appointed Commander-in-Chief, by making suggestions as to how to conduct the war. He was involved in the first failed attack on Charleston but had a victory in the Battle of Long Island. In 1777 he briefly returned to the UK where he was invested with the Order of the Bath. On his return he was too late to save Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga, but he captured two forts in the highlands of the Hudson River. He was in command of New York at the time that Howe resigned as Command-in-Chief.
Clinton replaced Howe in May 1778 at which time France had come into the war on the side of the colonists. Clinton was required to maintain the strongholds that he had and not make territorial gains. But he disobeyed the government and marched on New York. He fought a major battle at Monmouth Courthouse in June 1778 and in December had success at Savannah and St Lucia in the West Indies. He besieged Charleston in 1780 and forced its surrender. After Yorktown surrendered to the colonists in 1782 Clinton's command came to an end.
He was Colonel of the 12th Foot from 21st Nov 1766 until 20th April 1779 when he was appointed Colonel of the 7th Dragoons. He was their Colonel when they converted to Light Dragoons in 1784 and remained there until his death on 23rd Dec 1795. He was also MP for Boroughbridge from 1772 to 1774, for Newark from 1774 to 1784 and Launceston from 1790 to 1794.

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