The Cavalry Staff Corps was a unit formed during the Napoleonic Wars to keep discipline in the British Army. Consisting of four troops of cavalry, the corps was first raised in 1813 during the Peninsula War to deal with an excess of criminality and desertion in Wellington's armies. It was disbanded after that campaign ended in 1814 but was reformed in 1815 during the Hundred Days campaign. The corps also served in the subsequent occupation of France. The unit was Britain's first standing military police force. A successor unit was raised for service in the Crimean War of 1853–1856 and a permanent military police was established in 1877.
Background
By 1813 the British Army had been engaged in the Peninsula War for more than five years. Owing to the lengthy campaign it had been noted to be suffering from higher levels of desertion and criminality. In a January 1813 letter to the Secretary of State for War and the ColoniesEarl Bathurst the Duke of York, commander in chief of the British Army, proposed the formation of a new corps to help keep discipline. This corps, known as the Cavalry Staff Corps, Staff Corps of Cavalry or Staff Dragoons, was formally constituted by the Prince Regent in April 1813. The unit is regarded as Britain's first standing military police force and is acknowledged as the forerunner to the Royal Military Police.
Formation and service in the Peninsula
One troop of the corps was raised in Great Britain, one in Ireland and two from the army in Spain. The men were selected for their good character from volunteers from several regiments. The British troop comprised 76 men from the 2nd and 7th Dragoon Guards, the 2nd Dragoons and the 7th Light Dragoons. The Irish troop was of 68 men from the 1st and 6th Dragoon Guards, the 6th Dragoons and the 13th Light Dragoons. The troops formed in Spain together consisted of four captains, four lieutenants, two cornets, six sergeants, six corporals and 120 privates, all volunteers from cavalry regiments already in the theatre. The Spanish units were placed under the command of a Major Commandant, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir George Scovell KCB of the 57th Foot. In consequence of the position the enlisted men selected received extra pay: sergeants got an extra shilling a day, corporals eight pence and privates six pence. The units were formed at Fresneda de la Sierra Tirón, initially on horses the men brought with them from their regiments until replacements could be sent from England. Scovell's orders stated that the unit was to be employed for duties similar to those carried out by the French Marechaussee and to carry out "the duties of the police of the army, and in others of a confidential nature". The unit also provided orderlies, which previously had to be supplied by the line cavalry regiments, patrolled the line of march, guarded supply depots and prevented soldiers from entering occupied towns and cities. Detachments of the corps were allocated to each division with the army in the peninsula. The unit ranked in precedence after the cavalry but before the Foot Guards. It was disbanded on 25 September 1814, following the end of the war with the signing of the Treaty of Paris.
Uniform
When first formed no official uniform was available and Staff Corps members instead wore a red scarf tied around their right shoulder as a distinguishing mark. It had originally been proposed that the corps should wear the uniform of the Royal Staff Corps but with bearskin hats, a feature that would make them easily distinguishable from line cavalry. However the corps was eventually issued its own unique uniform. The jackets were red – similar to those worn by the Dragoon Guards; whilst the plastron, girdle and overalls were similar to those worn by Light Dragoons. The corps wore the light cavalry shako with a unique all-red plume and all piping and cords were in white which was meant to reflect the non-combat nature of the force. The saddle roll was marked with SD and the troop letter. The enlisted men were armed with cavalry carbines.
Waterloo campaign
The Duke of Wellington reformed the corps during the Hundred Days. Three men were taken from each cavalry regiment under Wellington's command, British or otherwise, and combined into a unit of two troops. The men were granted additional pay of one franc per day. Scovell commanded the unit and was requested to bring former officers of the corps over from Britain. These officer's commissions were dated 10 August 1815. The two troops accompanied Wellington's army on the march to Paris and a further two troops were raised to serve during the occupation of France. The corps was disbanded on 24 December 1818.
Crimean War and legacy
During the Crimean War the concept of a mounted staff corps to maintain discipline was revived. The Mounted Staff Corps was formed in 1854 and served until October 1855. The men were recruited largely from the Irish Constabulary and were used to protect supplies being unloaded at dockyards, among other duties. The members of the corps wore a uniform reminiscent of the Cavalry Staff Corps: red tunics with hussar braid and blue facings; double striped black overalls and a plumed, police-style helmet. They were armed with the 1829 pattern light cavalry sword and Colt revolvers. Mounted police continued to be used on an ad-hoc basis from 1855 but were formally re-established in 1877 as the Military Mounted Police. This was supplemented by the Military Foot Police in 1882 and these two units are the direct antecedents of the modern Royal Military Police.
