During the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars the British Army underwent major and radical changes and by 1815 was a very different and much more professional body than had existed in 1793. Much of this change was due to the efforts of the Duke of York during his time as Commander-in-Chief. While his performance as an active field commander in 1793-4 was nothing to write home about (though not as bad as portrayed), his experience in Flanders made him acutely aware of the shortcomings of British Army administration. On taking over as Commander in Chief at Horse Guards, he rapidly set up the first staff organisations - The Quartermaster General's Department and the Adjutant General's Department, and began moves to regulate the promotion system. This reorganisation extended down to regimental and battalion level, with the appointment of both officers and NCOs to perform battalion administration.
The Government provided funds at rates determined by Parliament to support the officers and men of a regiment. This amount was determined by the number of men on the books, but there was an upper limit to the numbers (the establishment). The establishment was divided between Headquarters (HQ, ie the staff) and the Companies (Co). The basic officer establishment of a British regiment in late Napoleonic times (ie the numbers for which the Government provided funds) was:
| Lieutenant-Colonel (Except that Guards regiments were commanded by full colonels) |
1 | HQ - command and administration of the battalion |
| Majors | 2 | HQ - administration at battalion and command at 1/2 battalion level |
| Adjutant | 1 | HQ - counting and keeping track of the soldiers! Usually filled by one of the senior lieutenants. |
| Quartermaster | 1 | HQ - marching and billeting arrangements, liaison with Commissariat and Ordnance for supplies. Usually a senior lieutenant. Ex-rankers made good quartermasters. |
| Captains | 10 | Command at company level |
| Lieutenants | Maximum of 20, proportions vary | subsidiary command, Company level |
| Ensigns (2nd Lieutenants in Rifles) | subsidiary command, company level, command, colour party (not in Rifles) |
I have found no book which covers the changes in the NCO establishment during the period 1793-1815. Almost certainly the staff NCO positions would have been created during this time. The honourable rank of colour sergeant was also introduced, as a way of recognising good sergeants who didn't want to make the jump to officer. This was a move promoted by Wellington because he knew (from experience) that the army was overstocked with young officers and chronically short of good sergeants and a step on the path to "career NCOs". The NCO establishment was:
| ?Staff Sergeant = ?Regimental Sergeant Major | 1 | HQ - ?discipline battalion wide |
| Staff Sergeant Paymaster | 1 | HQ - pay and deductions | Sergeant Armourer | 1 | HQ - ?weapons and ammunition, ?supply and maintenance |
| Colour Sergeant | Honorary | Company - A promotion of honour for outstanding sergeants, providing recognition and extra pay. Introduced in 1813. |
| Sergeant | 20 | 2 per company, responsible for discipline |
| Corporal pioneer | 1 | HQ - in charge of the battalions sappers and miners (as they became known) |
| Corporal | 30 | 3 per company |
All the officer ranks at battalion level could be purchased, PROVIDED THERE WAS AN APPROPRIATE VACANCY - this meant an officer who was retiring (for whatever reason) or had been cashiered or the formation of a new regiment. In the case of an officer retiring, he kept the funds as his "pension", in the case of an officer cashiered, I believe the funds went into the regimental kitty, and I believe the same happened with a new regiment (or battalion). (This would be where the 95th got the funds for their regimental library.) The vacancy provision meant that officers who were buying their promotions tended to skip around the regiments, but men like Harry Smith and John Colborne got themselves into front line regiments and stayed there. Officers of equivalent rank could also swap regiments (with the Commanding Officer's permissions), eg someone who wanted a comfortable life could swap out of a regiment posted to the front or the West Indies in exchange for an officer who needed the chance of free promotion.
The commission of an officer who died in possession of his commission went to the next senior officer in line. In the case of an ensign who died on the battlefield, a ranker who had performed a "feat" could be promoted. There were also "gentlemen volunteers" who couldn't afford to buy an ensigncy but served in the ranks waiting for a "free" promotion.
The administration of this system was dependant upon the probity of the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the battalion/regiment and was a subject of much abuse which the Duke of York attempted to clamp down on. (Into uncertainty - The Mary Anne Clarke scandal may have been a set up to discredit him over this.)
The Rifles were different to other regiments in a number of ways. One of the most obvious is that they had no field colours (though they paraded with camp colours at their home barracks [Kincaid]). Because of this there was no colour party, and hence the junior subalterns were called 2nd lieutenants rather than ensigns. Another (less obvious) difference is in the way they were organised in the field. Other regiments maintained their ten companies at all times, even if there were only 20-30 men per company. The Rifles maintained their companies at or near 100 men, and dropped the number of companies in a battalion. When this happened (as after the retreat from Talavera when the 1st battalion consolidated its ten companies into 8) the "rump" officers returned to battalion HQ in England to form the cadre for a new company. I'm not sure whether the numbers of regimental officers were maintained at "establishment" levels. If they weren't it would explain why promotion in the Rifles seemed to be very slow, even during the Peninsular War.
At this stage there was no platoon structure, though rifle and light companies (at least) split into four "sections" for forward patrol duties [Kincaid].
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