Military Impressment in the 18th Century

February 2008’s highlighted document was an extract from a Minute Book of the Aberdeenshire Commissioners for Military Impressment, 1756-7 (reference AS/Amil/10/2/1). The extract describes the frightening ordeal of William Henery of the parish of Towie, when he was apprehended for recruitment early in 1757.

Previous pages of the volume explain that William Henery had the misfortune to have fallen out with his neighbours several years before, and they conspired to have him impressed into the army by the Constables for his parish. However, he had been released mainly on the grounds that he was employed as a farmer, and that the farm he shared with his brother would fail, leaving his brother destitute if he was recruited into the army.

However, as the extract shows, he was apprehended by the Constables again, and held against his will until the day of the meeting from which this extract is taken. Ultimately the Commissioners found that a hardship had taken place and ordered his release from custody and the obligation to serve in the army.

General Background

 In 1756, the Seven Years War started between Great Britain and France. In that same year an Act was passed through Parliament to allow a quick recruitment campaign to be started throughout the country for raising the necessary number of troops to fight the war in Europe.

The Act appointed various bodies in the counties and cities of the land to administer and oversee the recruitment process within their subdivided districts, and in Aberdeenshire, this consisted of the Justices of the Peace and the Commissioners of Supply (collectors of tax throughout the County).

The main business of these newly formed Commissions under the Act was to recruit able-bodied unemployed men of 17-45 years of age from within the County boundary that had no form of monetary support or maintenance. As such the business recorded in the minutes generally relates to arrangements for handing men over to Army officers, and hearing petitions from men against their impressment. The detail they go into can make them useful for family historians.

The business of finding the recruits, however, was delegated to Parish Officers or Constables who had powers to search their areas for potential candidates, and apprehend them to be brought before the Impressment Commissioners of their subdivided District for final assessment as to their eligibility for service in the army. Images from the Garioch Militia Enrolment Book for 1802/3 are shown above and to the right. As an extra inducement for their trouble in apprehending these men, the Act allowed for the Officers to be given 20 shillings (£1) for each man recruited. Understandably, there was also potential for this process to be abused.

[Originally published as our Document of the Month in February 2008]