The Musketeer Regiment Prinz Carl was a regiment of Hessian troops that served Great Britain during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. It was raised in 1702 by Colonel C. F. E. von Wartensleben and became a regiment of the princes of the Landgraviate family. It became 1st Battalion of the 3rd Hessian Infantry Regiment in 1821, and was disbanded in 1832."Regimenter: Prinz Carl" ''Hessische Truppen in Amerika.''
Retrieved 2021-05-08.

American Revolutionary War

According to German military records, the regiment was raised in

Bad Hersfeld The festival and spa town of Bad Hersfeld (''Bad'' is "spa" in German; the Old High German name of the city was ''Herolfisfeld'') is the district seat of the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany, roughly 50 km southeast ...

Hesse-Kassel The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (), spelled Hesse-Cassel during its entire existence, also known as the Hessian Palatinate (), was a state of the Holy Roman Empire. The state was created in 1567 when the Landgraviate of Hesse was divided upon t ...

(or Hesse-Cassel),

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. On January 21, 1776, the regiment marched from Hersfeld, embarking in Carlstadt at Bremerlehe on March, 23. They sailed for America on April 17, 1776, and landed at

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

on August 15. They fought in the

Battle of White Plains The Battle of White Plains took place during the New York and New Jersey campaign of the American Revolutionary War on October 28, 1776, near White Plains, New York. Following the retreat of George Washington's Continental Army northward from N ...

on October 28, 1776, and participated in the capture of

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

July 29 to August 31, 1778, as well as other minor actions. On November 12, 1783, the regiment sailed from New York for Bremerlehe, returning to the garrison at Hersfeld on May 28, 1784. Some of the men were sent to Whippingham on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

to convalesce: many died there and are buried at the parish church. Although the official history of the unit does not give precise details of its movements, there are indications of other operations: According to a Sep. 23, 1777 letter from Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton, to Gen. Sir William Howe, the regiment participated in an incursion into

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

from the 12th to the 16th of September, 1777. Also, a report of a Hessian deserter from 28 August 1782, found in George Washington's papers, indicates this regiment, along with "the Regt. of Wesebach & Angenella together with Fanning's Corps., & 7th British Reg., came lately from

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

& are now on Long Island, very weak in number and very sickly.Source: George Washington Papers at the Library of Congress, 1741-1799: Series 6. Military Papers. 1755-1798 British Deserters, Names and Interrogations, April 15-December 12, 1782, Image 13 of 32, available at http://memory.loc.gov/mss/mgw/mgw6a/117/1500/1510.jpg" In this report, "7th British Regt. is likely the " 7th Regiment of Foot (Royal Fuzileers)" under Lt. Gen. Richard Prescott, who had been ordered to Savannah on 22 December 1781. "Fanning's Corps." is probably the

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

King's American Regiment The King's American Regiment, also known as the "Associated Refugees", were a Loyalist regiment during the American Revolutionary War. The King's American Regiment was raised on Staten Island in the Province of New York in December 1776 by Colon ...

" "Angenella" is probably the "Grenadier Regt. von d'Angelelli." And, the "Regt. of Wesebach" likely refers to the Hessian "Regt. von Wissenbach", although von Knoblauch had taken command by that time. The British forces evacuated Savannah on July 11, 1782.

Officers

;Leibkompanie ;Kompanie 2 *(1775–80) Generalmajor Martin Konrad Schmitt *(1780–84) Generalmajor Ephraim v. Gose ;Kompanie 3 *(1775) Obrist (Colonel) Ephraim v. Gose *(1776–84) Obrist George Emanuel v. Lengerke ;Kompanie 4 *(1775–84) Obristleutnant Johann Wilhelm Schreiber (promoted to Obrist) ;Kompanie 5 *(1775–84) Major Wilhelm v. Loewenstein (promoted to Obristleutnant, then Obrist) Source:

References

{{reflist German units in British service in the American Revolutionary War Infantry regiments of Germany