19th century miniature portrait of an Officer
Edwin Mainwaring 1801-1823
Edwin Mainwaring was my second cousin six times removed. He was the sixth and youngest son of Edward Mainwaring (1744 – 1803) and Elizabeth Judith Mainwaring nee Reeves (1768 – 1837).
Edwin was born on 20 January 1801 and baptised on 25 February 1801 in All Saints, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England.
Edwin’s father died when he was two years old. Edward had served as an officer during the first American war. Edwin’s half uncles, John Montagu Mainwaring and Jemmet Mainwaring were in the army and navy respectively.
Edwin’s brothers all entered the armed services: three were in the army and two in the Royal Navy.
On 13 April 1814, at the age of thirteen, Edwin Mainwaring was gazetted as an ensign in the 1st Regiment of Foot (Royal Scots); ensign was the lowest rank of commissioned officer in infantry regiments of the British Army. Edwin served in India with the second battalion and was made lieutenant without purchase on 24 June 1818.
The 2nd Battalion of the Royal Regiment was in India from 1813. In April 1813 the right wing of the regiment served on a field force in the southern Mahratta country for a year. In November 1814 the battalion was stationed at Hyderabad when, in November 1814, they joined a field force at Ellichapore commanded by Brigadier-General John Doveton to act against the Pindaris who were ravaging central India. The Pindaris were irregular military plunderers and foragers, mostly horsemen armed with spears and swords. They accompanied initially the Mughal Army, and later the Maratha Army, and acted as reconnaissance units. Later they became a force in their own right. They were unpaid and their compensation was entirely the booty they plundered during wars and raids. Fighting against these mounted gangs lasted until late 1817 when the problem was deemed to have been dealt with.
The Regiment was then involved in the Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1819), the final and decisive conflict between the British East India Company under the command of Governor General Hastings and the Maratha Confederacy.
The Regiment fought in
Battle of Nagpore, 16 Dec 1817
The Siege of Nagpore City, Dec 1817
Maheidpore, 22 Dec 1817
Operations in Candeish, April 1818
Siege of Mulleygaum, May – June 1818
Asseerghur, 18 Mar – 9 April 1819
In a general order, dated Madras, 28th April, 1819, the conduct of the five companies of the regiment was spoken of in the following terms:—
“The conduct of the detachment of His Majesty’s Royal Scots under the command of Captain Wetherall, and of His Majesty’s 30th Foot, under Major Dalrymple, during the siege of Asseer, has been most exemplary, and such as to reflect the most distinguished credit on their several commanding officers, as well as on the whole of the officers and men composing those detachments.”
After the capture of Asseeghur fortress the services of the five companies of the Royal Scots were no longer required with the Hyderabad division. On 11 April they commenced their march for the Deccan and reached Wallajahbad, forty-seven miles from Madras, on 24 July; the march of 104 days was 750 miles. The battalion remained at Wallajahbad until the 21st of December, when it marched for Trichinopoly, where it arrived on 11 January, 1820. The 2nd battalion remained at Trichinopoly until June, 1824, when it marched to Madras
Edward [Edwin] Mainwaring (age 22) lieutenant of HM Royal Regiment died and was buried on 10 February 1823 in Trichinopoly, Madras.
A friend wrote to me recently drawing my attention to the current sale of a miniature portrait of Edwin Mainwaring by Hale Fine Art of Bath, Somerset, through Antiques Atlas.com.
The uniform matches a portrait of Captain Wetherall from 1818. Like Edwin Mainwaring, Wetherall also served in the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Scots.
Wetherall’s uniform is described as :
“The Royal Scots, as they were titled from 1812 to 1821, had two types of dress coat. The previous short-tailed, more practical jacket worn in 1815 transformed into the long-tailed coatee. The blue lapels were folded back and decorated with rows of closely placed gold lace with gilt buttons at the extremities. They were no longer placed in pairs. The collar had a single gold loop and was three inches high, covering the black stock. The shirt collar protruded well above the stock, or cravat, and the ruffle was reduced to a small showing at the throat. This gold laced coatee was worn for dress occasions. Full dress was worn for formal evening wear, at levées, balls and court appearances. For that the regiment had the even more expensive embroidered coatee. He has a single gold bullion epaulette which indicates that he is below the rank of major. Flank company officers had wings on both shoulders.”
Related posts and further reading
Jemmett Mainwaring and the start of a Mainwaring naval tradition – part 1 concerning Edwin’s half-uncle Jemmett 1763-1800
W is for the wrath of Wellington concerning Edwin’s other half-uncle John Montagu 1761-1842
Wetherall, Major Joseph Compiler (1832) An Historical Account of His Majesty’s First, or the Royal Regiment of Foot: General George, Duke of Gordon GCB, Colonel from page 124
Cannon, Richard (1846). Historical Record of the First, or Royal Regiment of Foot: Containing an Account of the Origin of the Regiment in the Reign of King James VI of Subsequent Services to 1846 from page 202
Luscombe, S., & Griffin, C. (n.d.). 1st or Royal Regiment of Foot (Royal Scots). The British Empire. Retrieved December 26, 2024, from https://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/1stroyalregiment.htm
Wikitree: Edwin Mainwaring (1801 – 1823)
This post first published at https://anneyoungau.wordpress.com/2024/12/26/portrait-of-edwin-mainwaring-1801-1823/