War Office 27 January 1776

Sir,

Enclosed I have the honour to send you some printed Copies of His Majesty's most gracious Pardon to Deserters from the Land Forces; and am to signify to you His Majesty's Pleasure, that all such who shall surrender themselves before the 10th April next, to any of your Regiment, be received and regularly attested for the same, provided it appears they were actually Deserters before the Publication of His Majesty's Pardon, and that they are able bodied Men, and fit for Service.

It is His Majesty's further Pleasure that for every Such Deserter so entertained for your Regiment, the Sum of Twenty Shillings be paid to the Regiment from which he deserted.

If such Deserters shall be totally unfit for Service, you are forth with to give them a Certificate of their having surrendered agre[e]- able to His Majesty's directions, which Certificate shall entitle them to the full benefit of this Pardon.

But, if it shall appear that the Desertion was committed since the publication of His Majesty's Pardon, then such Deserter, tho he may have surrendered himself to your Regiment, shall, nevertheless, be confined as a Deserter, and Notice thereof given to this Office, that the necessary Orders may be sent for conveying him to the Corps to which he belonged.

I am to desire that, for His Majesty's information, a Return may be made to me on the 11th of April of the number of Deserters who shall have surrendered to your Regiment or any Party thereof, specifying also the Corps to which they formerly belonged.

You will be pleased to cause the several particulars of this Letter to be communicated to every Officer of your Regiment on the Recruiting Duty.

I have the hon[o]r to be

Sir &c Barringt

R[igh]t Hon[ora]ble

General Henry Seymour

Conway, Colonel of the

Royal Reg[imen]t of Horse Guards

Like Letters of the same date, to the Colonels of the Regiments of Cavalry and Infantry, on the British Establishment, as under,

Cavalry

1st Regiment of Dragoon Guards ……………...........Mostyn' s

2d do ............................…………………………..Townshend's

3d do ............................……………………………….Manner's

1^st Regiment of Dragoons…………………………Pembroke' s

2d do ............................……………………………..Panmure’s

3d do ............................………………………………..Fitzroy's

4th do ............................……………………………Carpenter's

6th do /or InniskiIlen's/…………………………...........Harvey's

7th do ...........................……………………………….Howard's

10th do ..........................…………………………….Mordaunt's

11th do.........................………………………………Johnston's

15th do /or King's Light Dragoons/. ……………….……Elliot's

16th do /or Queen's Light Dragoons/ ……………..Burgoyne's

17th do /Light Dragoons/.........……………………….Preston's