248 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS 
CONTRIBUTIONS TO REGIMENTAL HISTORY, 
[No. I.] 
BY BRIGADIER-GENERAL LEFROY. R.A., F.R.S. 
The present paper is the first of a series in which it is proposed to print 
in a more or less extended form the text of various manuscript journals and 
other similar documents illustrating the services of the Royal Artillery, 
which have been collected by the Regimental Institution or are deposited in 
the Regimental Library. These papers are not History, but are pieces 
justificatives , the documentary foundation for a Regimental History, and often 
preserve traits and details of much interest, while they record in an unpre¬ 
tending manner the good and gallant service of many an old soldier who has 
gone to his grave with no higher honor than that of having done his duty. 
It is believed that many more of such papers exist than have as yet come to 
light. We owe the preservation of a portion of the brigade orders of Major- 
General Phillips, R.A., in the first American war, to his friend and Brigade- 
Major Blomefield, afterwards Sir Thomas Blomefield, to whose son, the 
present baronet, the Regimental Institution is greatly indebted for their 
presentation among a number of professional papers collected by that 
distinguished officer. They include his own journals of the expedition to 
Denmark in 1807, in which he commanded the Artillery, and which will 
appear in the present series in due course. 
Phillips' brigade orders have been selected for the first paper of this series 
because they are of moderate length, they relate to a period of regimental 
history which is but little beyond living memory, whose traditions of service 
doubtless influenced the older soldiers of our own day, and whose material may 
be said to be still in use; and also because he was himself an officer of great 
distinction, filling a position but too rarely occupied by the artilleryman. 
It was towards the end of May 1776, with the opening navigation, that 
several regiments arrived in Canada from England and Ireland, together 
with a body of Brunswickers, making up the forces in the province to about 
13,000 men. The general rendezvous was at Three Rivers. Phillips who 
had the local rank of Major-General was not at that post when the American 
insurgents, or provincials as they were termed, made a daring attempt from 
Sorel on the 8th June, to surprise the king's troops, but was on the march 
from Quebec: the six light 6-prs. which General Erazer had landed con¬ 
tributed however mainly to their defeat. The army united at Three Rivers 
a day or two afterwards and pushed on to Sorel, which was reached on the 
14th June. Here a strong column was landed under Burgoyne on the south 
side with orders to follow the course of the Sorel to St John's. The rest of 
the army proceeded to Montreal, and finding that the rebels had abandoned 
the city and island, was immediately landed at La Prairie to join Burgoyne's 
column at St John's. Lieut.-General Burgoyne did not reach that place 
