The Royal Waggon Train
| Royal Waggon Train | |
|---|---|
| RWT | |
 |
|
| Active | 1793-1833 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | Logistics |
| March | William of The Waggon Train |
| Battle honours |
Peninsula Waterloo |
The Royal Waggon Train was the name originally given to the Supply and Transport branch of the British Armed Forces, which would eventually become the Royal Logistic Corps.
In 1793, Revolutionary French Forces invaded the Low Countries and declared war on Britain. Existing military plans relied on local men to provide supplies and transport for the British Army overseas, which proved to be inadequate. Therefore, the first uniformed Transport Corps, named the Royal Waggoners, was created on 7 March 1794. One year later, after British forces withdrew from the Low Countries, the Royal Waggoners were disbanded.
In 1799, Sir Ralph Abercromby led a British expedition into North Holland to break the French hold on the strategically important Scheldt estuary. Another Transport Corps, overseen by Waggon Master General Digby Hamilton, Lieutenant Colonel (later Colonel), was created to support this effort. Initially titled the Royal Waggon Corps, it was renamed the Royal Waggon Train, ranking as a "Mounted Corps" after the 29th Dragoons. Due to the success of Abercrombie's expedition, the Royal Wagon Train of five Squadrons was reinforced by a further seven Squadrons/troops and Hamilton was promoted to Major General.
The train was required because civilian transport was controlled by the Treasury rather than the military, which did not always suit the army's requirements. It was more sophisticated than the existing transport used by the Army Medical Department and was able to ferry many of the wounded, injured and sick to safety in large convoys. However, the convoys were limited by the technology of the age; wagons were prone to breakdown and often unable to cope with rough and torturous terrain of the battlefield and lines of communication. The animals pulling the wagons frequently died of starvation or exhaustion.
The Train was heavily involved in the Peninsular War, supporting Sir Arthur Wellesley's forces as they sailed from Ireland to retake the French naval base at Lisbon in 1808. After command of the British forces temporarily passed to Sir John Moore in the winter of 1809, the Train was again involved, shepherding the wounded and transporting supplies for British forces in the retreat at Corunna; a 300-mile (480 km) trek through treacherous conditions that ended in a triumphant battle against Napoleon’s forces. Moore did not survive the battle, but his tactics and planning allowed many of his forces to evacuate Spain and set sail for England.
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