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Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: Neil Harvie on Friday 06 November 15 06:42 GMT (UK)
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I have an ancestor and possible Waterloo veteran who, according to muster lists, seems to have been in the Wiltshire militia in 1801 when he would have been about only 15-16 years old. Does this sound possible? In 1812 he volunteered from the Wiltshire Militia to join the Third Battalion of the 95th Rifle Regiment which fought at Waterloo. My ancestor died in Wiltshire in 1842 aged 57. Any ideas? (Neil Thomas, South Australia)
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British Drummer boys as young as 12 - but parents permission had to be given - what kind of parent would sign their child to that life ??
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12-year-old Drummer Ross of the 93rd Highlanders signalled the arrival of his regiment to the besieged garrison, by climbing the spire ...
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Remember that the militia were not regular Army, but volunteer, part-time, forces.
Unless called up to supplement the Regular Army, they continued in their everyday jobs, and reported for regular training and an annual 2 week camp.
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You'll have to wait for one of the experts to see this. Don't take this as gospel but I believe military age was between 16 and 60. Whether this was from 1793 or 1802 or whatever I don't know. The important thing was you had to belong to something or else join the Regular Army. Most joined the Militia, Yeomanry or one of the supplementary units. Government did not want Regular levee en masse. There was plenty of work for the Militia and Yeomanry in UK. Ireland was virtually under military occupation.
There would have been uniforms everywhere. In the period TV films of Jane Austen's books, there are always some uniforms, not nearly enough. Jane's younger brother was an officer in the Oxfordshire Militia.
This is the only image I could find.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Wiltshire+Militia&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMIp5vW5cL7yAIVi1UUCh1ceADM&biw=800&bih=499#tbm=isch&q=Wiltshire+Militia+1800&imgrc=LIbUZTYiYc6uDM%3A.
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In this period most Militiamen were not volunteers but selected by ballot from lists of men aged 18 to 45. Selected men could however pay for a substitute. Substitutes and Boys were therefore the only volunteers. These were Regular Militia who always seem to serve away from their local county. They later introduced Local Militia who appear to be volunteers and only served in their own county.
You can check local record offices for the Milia lists, and the National Archives for muster books.
Ken