With the Guards in Flanders

Captain Roger Morris, a young British officer in the Coldstream Guards, served in France, Belgium and Holland during the Duke of York’s campaign against the armies of Revolutionary France. During the period from May 1793 until March 1795, he kept a diary in which he described the various actions, commanders and incidents, noting failures and poor leadership, and commenting on some of the wider events. Morris also traveled extensively on horseback throughout the region when he was not campaigning, often visiting local churches to view or play the organs!

The author, Roger Morris was born in 1764 and after attending Oxford University, joined the Coldstream Guards in October 1782 as an ensign. He served as a captain in the French Revolutionary Wars between 1793 and 1795. Four years after his return to England, he was back on the continent, again with the Duke of York, and was killed at the Battle of Bergen in September 1799.

The editor, Peter Harrington is curator of the Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection at Brown University Library. A native of England, he has lived in the United States since 1981. His main area of research is artists and images of war, and he has written and lectured extensively on this subject.