Quartermaster Henry Edward KAUNTZE — 11th Hussars
Birth & early life
Born in Dublin on the 9th of March 1808, the son of Private Edward Kauntze of the 11th Light Dragoons and his wife, Elizabeth. His full baptismal name was Henry Edward Kauntze.
[PB: This may not be so. According to a Kauntz(e) family website, Edward's wife's name at this time was Sarah Ann. Their children were George, Fred(ri)k, Matilda, Henry, Sophia and Charlotte. Elizabeth Kauntze (see below) was his second wife. See http://www.werbeka.com/kauntz/c21.htm (accessed 25.5.2013).
Certainly his mother's name is given as "Ann" on the Passenger list for the Indiaman "Atlas" departing Gravesend 7th of February 1819, on which Henry is shown with his father, brothers and sisters.
Elizabeth is also shown as a passenger, at that time the wife of Sergeant Richard Kilner, 11th Hussars, travelling to India with their two young children.]
Edward Kauntze, 11th Light Dragoons [father]
His father, Edward Kauntze, was born in Hanover, Germany, and had enlisted into the 11th on the 25th of May 1802.
The first muster shows him as a "Substitute for Yearman." (This was Private Thomas Yearman, who is shown on the same day as "Discharged, found another man.")
A total of five men, all with German-sounding names, enlisted into the regiment on the 25th or 26th of May 1802, and all were shown as "Substitutes" for men already serving in the 11th and who were all discharged for the same reason.
There is no indication if any of these men had served in a military capacity before, although one had exchanged with a man already in post as a trumpeter.
Edward Kauntze is later shown as a "Musician by trade". The Troop he joined (Captain Sleigh's) was then at Dunstable.
On the 25th of December 1805, Edward Kauntze deserted from Woodbridge, Kent, and would appear to have gone to Guernsey and married, as his eldest son, George Ernest, was born there in 1806.
He "gave himself up" to the regiment on the 8th of March 1807.
Promoted from Private to Corporal in March 1812 and to Sergeant in April 1814, he did not serve in the Peninsula campaign, but he is shown as joining the regiment in France, from the Depot, on the 18th of November 1815.
A daughter was born in France in 1816, and another [Charlotte] at the Cape (this would have been when his wife was sailing to join him in India) in 1819.
[PB: It would seem that in fact the whole family went to India together in 1819. For more information about Charlotte, and photographs, see a Kauntz family website http://www.werbeka.com/kauntz/c21.htm (accessed 25.5.2013), which states "Charlotte (m. Carey), born Apr. 29th, 1819 onboard of the "Atlas", on the way to Calcutta, India, married Aug. 16th, 1842 in Bengal, India to William Henry Carey died June 10th, 1886 in Argyll House, Simla, Himachal Pradesh, India."]
Elizabeth Kauntze, wife of Bandmaster Edward Kauntze, died at Meerut, India, on the 3rd of March 1822, aged 41.
Edward Kauntze soon followed her. He died at the age of 39 on the 5th of June 1822 and was buried the following day.
Both burials were in the Cantonment Cemetery in Meerut. No cause of death is shown, but some 200 of all ranks of the regiment had died from one disease or another during the previous two years.
In his will he left the sum of £2/4/6d. to his eldest son, George Ernest [see below].
Service
Henry Kauntze enlisted into the 11th Light Dragoons at Meerut, India, on the 14th of July 1822, at the age of 14 years and 3 months. His Regimental number was 359.
Served with the regiment at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1826.
[PB: His extraordinary record prior to the Crimea was summarised in Harts, 1854 (image below).]
Lieut. Kauntze was present with the 11th Lt. Drs. at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1825-6 (medal and one clasp); served with the 3rd Lt. Drs. throughout the campaign of 1842 in Affghanistan (medal), and was present at the forcing of the Khyber Pass, capture of Mamoo Khail, storming the heights of Jugdulluck, actions of Teren and Huftkotul, and occupation of Cabool. He served also the Sutlej campaign of 1845-6. and was present at the battles of Moodkee (wounded), Ferozeshah (wounded), and Sobraon (severely wounded); medal and two clasps. Served in the Punjaub campaign of 1848-9, and was present at the affair of Ramnuggur, the pasage of the Chenab at Wuzeerabad on the 1st Dec. 1848 with the force under Sir Joseph Thackwell, action of Sadoolapore, and battles of Chillianwallah and Goojerat (Medal and two clasps).
[CHECK SPELLINGS]
From Private to Corporal: 1st of October 1830.
Marriage
On the 25th of July 1832, Henry Kauntze married Rebecca Stevens at Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India.
[PB: Rebecca Stevens [wife]. According to the 1851 Census for Pockthorpe Barracks at Norwich, she was born in Bengal, East Indies.
Since her age in 1851 is given as 32, or in 1861 10 years younger than her husband, this would seem to imply she was born around 1818 or 1819 and hence would have been about 13 or 14 years of age in 1832. Her age is given as 20 in the 1841 Census — which generally rounds adults to the nearest 5 years.]
The ceremony was conducted by the Revd S.C. Proby and the witnesses were Hannah Trotter and HK's brother, George Ernest, who at that time was Band Sergeant of the 11th Light Dragoons (more on GEK below).
[PB: note that HK's first child was given the name "Trotter"].
Known children from the marriage of Henry Kauntze and Rebecca Stevens
Harriet St. John, born at Preston on the 15th of July 1840; registered as Harriet Sophia Kauntze, September Quarter 1840, Steyning. [? calls her "Harrietta Sophia (born 1841)]
Henry Trotter, born at Fulford, 29th of December 1842.
William George, born at Coventry, 27th of January 1847.
Rebecca Charlotte, born at Hounslow, 7th of July 1849; registered June Quarter 1849, Brentford.
Ernest Edwin [?], born at Nottingham, 7th of February 1852; registered as Ernest Edward Kauntze, March Quarter 1852, Nottingham. [? refers to him as "Ernest Edward (born 1853)]
Thomas Alexander, born at Newbridge, 25th of June 1853. [? refers to her as "Thomas Alexander (born 1854)"]
Eva Emily, born at Hounslow, 25th of September 1858; registered March Quarter, Brentford
Corporal to Sergeant: 3rd of January 1835.
Appointed to Paymaster Sergeant: 1 November 1835.
1841 Census
Hounslow Barracks, Heston, Brentford.
Henry Kauntze, 30, soldier, born Ireland.
Rebecca Kauntze, 20 [not born in Middlesex, but not shown as born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign Parts either].
H.S. [presumably Harriet, also called Harietta] Kauntze, 1 [not born in Middlesex, but not shown as born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign Parts either].
Appointed to Troop Sergeant Major: 1st of March 1848.
Birth registered
Rebecca Charlotte Kauntze, April-June Quarter 1849, Brentford.
Rebecca Charlotte Kauntze, baptised in the Chapel of the Garrison at Hounslow, 11th June 1849, Henry & Rebecca Kauntze [parents], Hounslow Barracks, Sergeant Major 11th Hussars.
1851 Census: Pockthorpe Cavalry Barracks, Norwich: Rebecca Kauntze and children.
(Click on image to enlarge)
1851 Census
Pockthorpe Cavalry Barracks, Norwich.
Henry Kauntze, soldier, married, 42, Troop Sgt Major, born Dublin.
Rebecca Kauntze, Sgt Maj's wife, 32, born Bengal, East Indies.
Harriet S. Kauntze, Sgt Maj's child, 10, born Brighton, Sussex.
William Kauntze, Sgt Maj's child, 4, born Coventry, Warwicks.
Henry T. Kauntze, Sgt Maj's child, 8, born Fulford, York.
Rebecca C. Kauntze, Sgt Maj's child, 1, born Hounslow, Middx.
[Source: Rebecca Kauntze and children: https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=uki1851&indiv=try&h=5140676 (accessed 27.4.2018.]
Commissioned as Quartermaster in the 11th Hussars: 1 April 1853.
Quarter-Master Henry Kauntze, 11th Hussars, in Hart's New Army List, 1854.
(Click on image to enlarge)
Lieut. Kauntze was present with the 11th Lt. Drs. at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1825-6 (medal and one clasp); served with the 3rd Lt. Drs. throughout the campaign of 1842 in Affghanistan (medal), and was present at the forcing of the Khyber Pass, capture of Mamoo Khail, storming the heights of Jugdulluck, actions of Teren and Huftkotul, and occupation of Cabool. He served also the Sutlej campaign of 1845-6. and was present at the battles of Moodkee (wounded), Ferozeshah (wounded), and Sobraon (severely wounded); medal and two clasps. Served in the Punjaub campaign of 1848-9, and was present at the affair of Ramnuggur, the pasage of the Chenab at Wuzeerabad on the 1st Dec. 1848 with the force under Sir Joseph Thackwell, action of Sadoolapore, and battles of Chillianwallah and Goojerat (Medal and two clasps).
[CHECK SPELLINGS]
Served in the Crimea 1854 — 22nd of August 1855, including the battles of the Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman and the Siege of Sebastopol.
[PB: Henry Kauntze's son William, then about 9 years old, wrote to him in the Crimea. In a letter home (dated 5 Jan 1855), the Vet John Gloag wrote to his own son George:
"Billy Kauntze sometimes writes to his Papa and he writes very well — I hope you will not allow Billy Kauntze to write better than you."
There is nothing recorded of when he left the Crimea for England but he must have returned to the Crimea again because a Memorandum from the Horse Guards, dated the 16th January 1856, shows:
Quartermaster Kauntze, 7 Broomfield Place Grand Canal, Portobello, Dublin:
"Your passage to Scutari has been arranged at an early date, and you should accordingly be prepared to embark at the shortest notice."
A later memo states:
"Please be aboard the "Cape of Good Hope" (steamer) from Deptford, 9th of February 1856, before noon."
Hart's New Army List, 1859.
(Click on image to enlarge)
1861 Census
Hulme Cavalry Barracks, Lancashire.
Henry Kauntze [note illegible], 53, Full pay, born Ireland.
Rebecca Kauntze, 43, born India, British Subject.
H.S. Kauntze, 20, daughter, born Brighton, Sussex.
H.T. Kauntze, 18, son, born York, Rorkshire.
W. Kauntze, 13, son, born Coventry, Warwickshire.
R.C. Kauntze, 11, daughter, born Hounslow, Midddlesex.
T.A. Kauntze, 6, son, born Ireland.
E. Kauntze, 3, daughter, born Hounslow, Middlesex.
Campaign service
Quartermaster Kauntze served with the regiment at the Siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1826 (Medal and Clasp), and also the Eastern campaign of 1854 up to the 22nd of August 1855, including the battles of the Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman and the Siege of Sebastopol. (Medal and Clasps and the Turkish Medal.)
Medals
Entitled to the Army of India Medal with the clasp for Bhurtpore, the Crimean medal with clasps for Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman and Sebastopol and the Turkish Medal.
He was also awarded the Long Service & Good Conduct medal on the 22nd of February 1851, with a gratuity of £15.
He was presented with his Crimean medal by Queen Victoria at a ceremony on the Horse Guards Parade on the 18th of May 1855.
Commemorations
Death & burial
Died (while still serving) at Fulford Barracks, York, on the 13th of October 1865, aged 57 years, having served 43 years in the Regiment.
Death registered
Henry Edward Kauntze, December Quarter 1865, York.
He died from "Jaundice and inflammation of the lungs (5 days)", and was buried in Grave No. 4987 in the Public Cemetery, York, on the 17th of October 1865.
[1984] Mr. F.W. Hulme, of York, has provided the information that the cemetery is semi-abandoned and his grave area very overgrown with creepers, grass, blackberry tendrils, and trees.
A long search has failed to find any standing stone for him, many of those that remain being laid flat or broken.
Mr. Hulme also provided a newspaper report of his funeral.
[EJB: Later note] Thanks to the further efforts of Mr. Hulme, his stone has now been found.
The stone is not very tall and has partly sunk into the ground, where it is almost hidden by the bole and roots of a small sycamore tree.
It was necessary to clear away part of this and remove earth before any inscription could be read. At the top of the stone it reads:
"In memory of Quartermaster Henry Edward Kauntze, 11th Hussars, who died at York, October 13th 1865, aged 54."
The lower inscription is only partly visible, and reads:
"Rebecca, his wife... 10, Shakespeare Street, Manchester, 28th December 1879, aged 59."
However, to remove any further parts of the tree would most probably damage the stone.
Extract from the Yorkshire Gazette for the 21 October 1865:
"Military Funeral at York"
"On Tuesday morning last the body of Henry Kauntze, Quartermaster of the 11th Hussars, was interred at the York Cemetery with all the honours due to the position held by the deceased at the time of his death.
The career of the deceased has been a very interesting and eventful one.
He was born, cradled, and educated in the army, and at the age of fourteen years entered into the active duties of military life as a private.
From this lowly position, by means of steady and soldier-like Conduct: he passed through the various grades of promotion until he obtained his commission as Quartermaster in 1853.
In 1826, when only 18 years of age, the deceased was present at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore, under the command of Lord Combermere, for which he received a medal and clasp.
He was also present throughout the whole of the Crimean War and was present at the affair of Bulganak, the battle of the Alma and the march and taking of the baggage belonging to Prince Mentchikoff's staff at MacKenzie's farm.
He was also present at the battle of Balaclava and Inkerman and on returning with the regiment from its head-quarters in the Crimea, landed at Portsmouth in July of 1856.
He was attacked with illness at the York Barracks and died there on the morning of the 13th inst. at the age of fifty-seven, and after a period of honourable service to his country extending over forty-three years.
To witness the imposing spectacle which is furnished by a military funeral, several hundreds of persons had collected in the neighbourhood of the barracks, and waited there in the midst of heavy showers the appearance of the mournful procession.
This was made up in something like the following order: A firing party with arms reversed, consisting of an officer, a sergeant, a corporal and about forty privates.
Then came the band, under the leadership of Mr. H. [?], followed by the body, the coffin being covered with a black pall and borne by six soldiers, whilst the pall-bearers consisted of staff-officers of the regiment.
The top of the coffin bore the sword and head-dress of the deceased.
Following the body was the horse of the deceased, led by a couple of soldiers, each holding in his hand a wand bound with black and white ribbons, the trappings of the horse were similarly dressed, and the boots of the deceased were slung across the charger's saddle.
The mourners, amongst whom were several sons of the deceased, followed in a mourning carriage, and the whole procession was brought up by the remainder of the regiment, who wearing their cloaks, marched in sombre files of twos.
From the Barracks to the Cemetery that Band played the Dead March in "Saul".
At the latter place the body was met by the Revd. H.V. Palmer (who, it may be added here, spent some hours with and spiritually consoled the deceased before and up to the time of his death) who went through the usual service in a most impressive manner.
This also characterised his performance of the remainder of the funeral service at the grave-side, where he delivered the following brief and very special address for the occasion: "This, my brethren, is the place appointed for all living.
Around us the high and mighty rest with the lowly and weak. The rich and poor mingle in the common earth. Here are the departed remains of the infant, whose pilgrimage lasted but a few days or hours — of youth, whose faculties and powers had just begun to develop — of man, in the prime of life, most usefully occupied in the affairs of the world — of the aged patriarch, whose years extended beyond the ordinary limits of life's brief span; but who must come at last to the same end appointed for all living.
At such a season as this, when surrounded by the emblems of sorrow, and the memory of the departed is so fresh in our minds, we are more disposed, perhaps, to take a deep and serious consideration of our own passing days and of the certainty that the same mortality awaits us all.
It is appointed unto all men once to die, and after death, the judgement.
The character of the deceased can scarcely fail to be of interest to all who knew him.
With lively sorrow we may trace in our own minds the lights and shades of that character, may dwell with calm feelings of pleasure on the virtues that adorned it, and pass with a tender hand over the weakness, imperfections and passions that are now hushed in repose.
The career of our departed brother, for whom we have met to perform this last act that friendship and affection can suggest, is very remarkable.
It does not frequently happen that one is born in a regiment, should spend his whole life with it, and pass away from mortality, surrounded, as it were, by the affairs of an active military duty.
It is not for me, a stranger, to expatiate upon that career.
A man's life is best read and interpreted by itself.
It is certain however, that he could not have attained to the responsible and important position that he held so long amongst you, without the exercise of so many good qualities.
I am well informed, than in a situation which exposes a man to more than ordinary temptation, he has maintained untarnished and uncorrupted the confidence placed in him by the beloved Sovereign of our realm, and those officers under whose command he served.
That is a far nobler and more praise-worthy result than to have amassed a magnificent fortune by any questionable means.
If it be so, our friend and brother will live long in your recollection.
which is far better than to be the subject of more imaginary virtues carved in cold marble. Let us not suppose for a moment that such conduct has not its true weight in heaven. You who now mourn over the loss of a husband or parent, put your trust in God.
He has promised to be the stay of the widow and father to the fatherless.
May the present bereavement be the means of loosening the ties of the world and lead you to your heart's affections more on the things of eternity.
A few short years of active life and careful occupation will bring even the youngest one here to the same narrow confines of earth.
Then if we happily sleep in Jesus, we shall wake with him in glory, where pain and sorrow shall have passed away for ever, and God himself will wipe away all tears..."
The sacredness at the graveside during the ceremony was protected from the crowds of people who were present, by the regiment, who formed a circle around it, and as the touching address fell upon the ears of the whole of the mourners, it was listened to with the profoundest attention and with that mournful respect which was due to one who had for so long been one of themselves.
Immediately after the usual ceremony, three volleys were fired over the grave, and then the mourners having taken a last view of the narrow tenement of their late comrade, the regiment reformed, and to a lively march which was played by the band, returned to barracks."
Further information
1871 Census
Oldham Road, Middleton, St Leonard.
Henry T Kauntze [son], 28, unmarried, Bank Manager, born York.
Harrietta S Kauntze [daughter], 30, sister, unmarried, born Brighton.
One servant is also shown.
Marriages registered
Rebecca Charlotte Kauntze [daughter] married [who?], December Quarter 1875, Chorlton.
Henry Trotter Kauntze [son] married Hannah Booth, September Quarter 1876, Oldham.
Death registered
Rebecca Kauntze [wife], 59, December Quarter 1879, Chorlton.
1881 Census
10, Shakespeare Street, Ardwick, Manchester.
H.L. Kauntze [daughter], 40, unmarried, annuitant, born Brighton.
Eva E Kauntze [daughter], 23, sister, unmarried, teacher, born Hounslow.
Marriages registered
Harriette Sophia Kauntze [daughter] married Stanhope Perkins, June Quarter 1885, Oldham.
Eva Emily Kauntze [daughter] married Bertram Quance, March Quarter 1887, Haslingden.
1891 Census
99, Windsor Road, Oldham.
Henry T Kauntze [son], 48, Bank Manager, born York.
Hannah Kauntze, 38, born Oldham.
Edward W Kauntze, 9, born Oldham.
Charles Kauntze, 7, born Oldham.
Three servants also shown.
1901 Census
99, Windsor Road, Oldham.
Henry T Kauntze [son], 58, Bank Manager, born York.
Hannah Kauntze, 48,
Two servants are also shown.
__________
Healy Terrace [Oldham?]
Harriette Perkins [daughter], widow, 60, living on own means, born Brighton.
Deaths registered
Harriette Perkins [daughter], aged 67, June Quarter 1910, Edmonton.
Hannah Kauntze [daughter-in-law], 74, March Quarter 1927, Bucklow.
Eva E Quance [daughter], aged 72, June Quarter 1930, Sheffield.
George Ernest Kauntze [brother]
George Ernest Kauntze, Henry's brother, was also commissioned into the 3rd Light Dragoons in 1835, later serving in the 42nd Highlanders, and finally became a Major in the 7th Dragoon Guards before retiring from the Army in 1868.
Born c. 1806.
According to an 1873 obituary in the Delhi Gazette (full text below), details to be verified, and other sources:
"He was present with the 11th Light Dragoons ... at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1825-26, for which he received a medal and clasp." He was also present in the Afghanistan, Sutlej and Punniar campaigns.
[PB: He married Mary Ann Crutchell at Cawnpore on the 13th of July 1830, when he was aged 24 and the Bandmaster of the 11th Light Dragoons.]
A child of this marriage [PB: presumably GEK's], George, was buried in the Cantonment Cemetery at Meerut on the 4th of August 1836, aged 2 years.
Among a number of daughters [to be named, if possible] born into the family was a son, Edward Henry Ernest, born on the 19th of December 1831 and baptised [where?] on the 16th of January 1832. Edward Henry Kauntze became a Colonel in the Bengal Army and died at Tunbridge Wells, Kent, on 16 January 1916. His wife, Louisa Ann, died at Rusthall, Kent, on the 2nd of January 1904. There are M.I.'s [memorial inscriptions?] to both in Rusthall Church, Kent.
On the 25th of July 1832 George Ernest was a witness to the marriage of his brother Henry and Rebecca Stevens at Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India.
He exchanged from the 11th to the 3rd Light Dragoons, with which regiment he served throughout the campaign of 1842 in Afghanistan.
He returned with his regiment (the 3rd Dragoons) to England in 1853 and in 1855 he obtained a captaincy in the 55th Foot.
On the breaking out of the Mutiny he embarked for India with the 7th Dragoon Guards, which regiment arrived at Kurachee on the 7th of January 1858, being stationed at Sealkote."
As a Cornet, G.E. Kauntze was severely wounded in "Great Victory of the Sikhs" at Sabraon, Punjab, 10 February 1846 (Hampshire Telegraph, 4 April 1846, and several other sources).
In October 1846 a correction was published in the Cork Examiner that "The names of the Cornet appointed to the 3rd Light Dragoons, on April 1, 1846, are George E.F. Kauntze, not George Kountze, as previously stated."
According to Freeman's Journal (31st of January 1848), the War Office announced on the 28 January 1848 the promotion of Cornet Kauntze, 3rd Light Dragoons, to Lieutenant, by purchase.
Adjutant, 3rd Light Dragoons: 2nd of June 1848.]
From the Army and Navy Gazette, 7th of June 1873:
"The Delhi Gazette, in announcing the death of Major Kauntze (brother of the late Quartermaster Henry Kauntze of the 11th Hussars) says:
'Another veteran has passed away from the world's stage.
On April the 28th, Major George Edward Francis Kauntze died at Benares of cholera, at the age of 68. [The India Office records at the British Library confirm that he died of "Cholera", aged 67, and was buried on the 29th by the Revd, W. W. Nichols, Chaplain.]
The deceased entered the Army on the lowest rung of the ladder, but was soon brought into notice by his steadiness and courage.
He was present with the 11th Light Dragoons as Sergeant-Major [sic] at the siege and capture of Bhurtpore in 1825-26, for which he received a medal and clasp.
He exchanged from the 11th to the 3rd Light Dragoons, with which regiment he served throughout the campaign of 1842 in Afghanistan.
He returned with his regiment (the 3rd Dragoons) to England in 1853 and in 1855 he obtained a captaincy in the 55th Foot.
On the breaking out of the Mutiny he embarked for India with the 7th Dragoon Guards, which regiment arrived at Kurachee on the 7th of January 1858, being stationed at Sealkote.
After gaining his majority the deceased left the army by the sale of his commission, and taking up his residence at Benares.
He was one of the keenest sportsmen of the age, and up to the time of his death used to go out for days at a time, shooting.
From Muttra to Moradabad he has been heard to say he had paced every foot of the ground in search of deer and other game.'"
[PB: In December 2014 I chanced upon an interesting article in a Kauntz/Kauntze family journal that sheds some light on Henry Kauntze's antecedents and background in military music. The information about Edward's military career mainly derives from Harry Kauntz [http://www.werbeka.com/kauntz/ekauntze.htm], which is itself copied more or less verbatim from the EJBA — there is a brief acknowledgment. Did HK and EJB correspond at some time?]
Edward [father] and George Kauntze [uncertain relationship]
by Sally Edwards
Charlotte Kauntze is my great-great-grandmother and was married to William Henry Carey. One of their sons was William Carey and one of his daughters was Elsie Mary Carey, my maternal grandmother. William Carey married Rebecca Kauntze, Charlotte's niece.
This information is about the Kauntze family who came from Hanover, Germany, and is taken from two sources, Bernhard Kauntz and Harry Kauntz, with both of whom I have been in contact.
Edward was born in Hanover, Germany, in about 1783 and was a musician with the 11th Hussars.
He had enlisted into the 11th Light Dragoons on the 25th of May 1802. The first muster shows him as a "Substitute for Yearman." (This was Private Thomas Yearman, who is shown on the same day as "Discharged, found another man". A total of five men, all with German-sounding names, enlisted into the regiment on the 25th or 26th of May 1802, and all were shown as "Substitutes" for men already serving in the 11th and who were all discharged for the same reason. There is no indication if any of these men had served in a military capacity before, although one had exchanged with a man already in post as a trumpeter.
Edward Kauntze is later shown as a "Musician by trade." The Troop he joined (Captain Sleigh's) was then at Dunstable. On the 25th of December 1805, he deserted from Woodbridge, Kent, and would appear to have gone to Guernsey and married, as his eldest son, George Ernest, was born there in 1806. He "gave himself up" to the regiment on the 8th of March 1807.
He was promoted from Private to Corporal in March of 1812 and to Sergeant in April of 1814.
He did not serve in the Peninsula campaign, but he is shown as joining the regiment in France, from the Depot, on the 18th of November 1815. A daughter, Mathilda Sarah, was born in France in 1816.
Sergeant Edward Kauntz sailed to India with the 11th Light Dragoons leaving Gravesend for Calcutta on Feb 7, 1819 aboard the Indiaman 'Atlas'.
From the ship's log his name is together with his wife (named as Anne) and children George (13), Henry (9), Matilda (7), Sophia (18mths). Charlotte, born April 29, 1819 was born on board at the Cape, but sadly, on the same journey a son Frederick died at sea on 24 June, 1819.
Charlotte's mother, Sarah Anne, died in India and in 1820 and her father remarried a widow, Elizabeth Kilner in 1821. Elizabeth had also travelled to India on the 'Atlas' in 1819, as did the Kauntze family. Her first husband, Richard, was a Sergeant with the 11th Dragoons.
Charlotte and her siblings were orphaned in 1822 when her father and stepmother died between March and June of that year:
"Elizabeth Kauntze, wife of Bandmaster Edward Kauntze, died at Meerut, India, on the 3rd of March 1822, aged 41 and Edward Kauntze (Bandmaster of the 11th Dragoons) soon followed her, dying on the 5th of June 1822 at the age of 39 years and being buried on the following day. Both burials were in the Cantonment Cemetery in Meerut. No cause of death is shown, but some 200 of all ranks of the regiment had died from one disease or another during the previous two years" (kauntz-online)
Now comes the bit of speculation and perhaps another family member can confirm or deny this information! All this information is collated by Harry Kauntze, 2008.
Edward Kauntze is highly likely to be a close relative of the earlier George Kauntze (born c1760s). It was common practice to employ German musicians in British bands at that time but the fact that they are both from Hanover with the same name suggests a familial tie.
George first appears in records in 1794 as a member of the Coldstream Guards Band: "Name: Counts, alias Kauntza, alias Kauntze" (Source: personal communications with Coldstream Guards Web Forum).
These phonetic aliases give us an insight into how he pronounced his name, and if he was illiterate, then the origin of "Kauntze" may have been down to the interpretation of his name by an English clerk when George signed on with the regiment.
The Coldstream Guards Band/ Duke of York's German Band/ Duke of York's Band was the first modern British military band, due to the modernising influences of the influx of continental (mainly German) musicians. The band's formation on 16th May 1785 was due to officers of the Coldstream Guards petitioning their Colonel in Chief; Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (The 'Grand Old Duke of York', Hanoverian prince and second son of George III of England) for a professional band to replace the existing contingent of civilian irregulars (Source: The History of British Military Bands, Volume Two: Guards & Infantry). They had proved unreliable and this set in motion a chain of events that probably brought the first Kauntze to England.
The Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards had some form of band as early as 1742 which consisted of a Corps of Drums, and a band of eight musicians. However, after the peace of 1762 the formation of military bands began in earnest in the British Army.
By 1768 the Coldstream Guards had what was described as 'a fine Band of Musik', comprised of civilians who were hired by the month and paid for by the officers who, not unnaturally, regarded the bands as their personal property. The hired musicians however had several disadvantages.
An inherent conflict between musical and military roles was exposed in 1783, when Lord Cathcart, an officer of the Regiment asked the Band to play during an aquatic excursion to Greenwich; the musicians refused to comply with his request on the grounds that the performance was 'incompatible with their several respectable and private engagements'.
This was too much for the officers of the Regiment who petitioned their Colonel-in-Chief, the Duke of York, who was at the time in Hanover, for his agreement to their having a band of musicians that they could use on all occasions. Accordingly, a band was enlisted in Hanover by His Royal Highness, and sent to England. It consisted of twelve performers including the leader, Music-Major C.F.Eley.
The instrumentation was: two oboes, four clarinets, two bassoons, one trumpet, two horns, and one serpent.
The band came into existence on 16 May, 1785 and on May 20, 1785 The Times reported:
"This day the new musical band belonging to the Coldstream Regiment of Guards will mount guard for the first time on the parade at St. James's Park.
They are young lads from Germany, with a captain who is their master of music, making in the whole eleven in number. They have enlisted for eight years and are under the martial law as a private man; their pay is nine shillings per week per man, and one guinea per week to the captain.
In all probability we shall never again hear a regimental band equal to that which is dismissed, they have for many years been a high treat to those persons who have attended the courtyard at St. James's, and we sincerely hope, after so long and faithful service, they will at least be entitled to half pay during the remainder of their lives."
It is likely that George Kauntze was recruited at the band's inception as a Clarinetist. It appears that he took up residence at 34 Charles Street, Westminster, off Horse Guards Road (in present day King Charles Street); an area that most of the band members lived. George Kauntze must have been an accomplished musician to have been invited to join this prestigious group. He was probably known to Eley, either from an academy or from a regiment where he was already an attested Hanoverian military musician. George's link to Eley may be the best way of tracing back his German roots.
This very short, very rare report from The Daily Universal Register (1787) the newspaper that became 'The Times', and gives us probably the first named piece of music the band played at Guardmount ever to be put in print: "28th July,1787: The Duke of York's German Band, at the relief of the Guard at St. James's, perform several pieces of music from Gli Scliava per Amore".
It would seem in the 'New Band's' very early days they were known as 'The Duke of York's German Band', later shortened to 'The Duke of York's Band'. The band was something of a sensation at the time, being reported in The Daily Universal Register and this would have paid well and have elevated the careers of all those involved.
This passage, taken from an article on Vauxhall Gardens written in January 1950 makes mention of the band when known as 'the Duke of York's Band'. It also throws up the prospect that the band could have been twice as large as the generally accepted strength of the period: "On royal birthdays there were Grand Galas, with illuminations, masquerades and special decorations.
On these occasions the price of admission was raised from one shilling to half-a-crown or three shillings. There was always plenty of 'curious show and gay exhibition'.
But besides the music performed by the vocalists and instrumentalists already described the proprietors provided their patrons with a first-class 'attraction' in the shape of the Duke of York's band, playing between the acts in full uniform. This band has its place in musical history. Frederick, Duke of York, spent seven years in Austria and Prussia studying tactics, regimental discipline and soldiering in all its forms. Some of the military ideas which he brought back with him in 1787 were new to this country.
While he was in Germany he engaged a band of twenty-four players. Flute, trumpets, trombone and serpent were added to the two oboes, two clarinets, two horns and two bassoons usual in English military bands of the period. Three negroes with tambourines and Turkish bells were an innovation which was not permanently adopted by English military bands.
W.T.Parke gives an anecdote explaining the origin of this new kind of military band, which may or may not have a foundation in fact. (See Musical Memoirs, Vol.II, pp.239-240.) What is certain is that it became very popular, and drew large crowds to hear its performances in St. James's Park under its band-master, C.F.Eley, so that the proprietors of Vauxhall were providing their patrons with something really new and exciting in these performances of 'martial music'."
Other eye-witnesses present at Vauxhall Gardens at this time state: "a noble company of musicians, in number about thirty, most splendidly dressed, and known by the name of the Duke of York's band, performed in a very superior style'.
Either way it would seem it was the size of the band, together with its new instrumentation, that seems to have got it engaged at Vauxhall as one of the attractions there.
Music-Master Eley, is remembered today for his slow march, 'Duke of York'.
Composition of the Coldstream Guard band members of 1794:
Clarinets: C.F.Eley, John Rice, George Kauntze, John Gatfrid Hagemann.
Oboes: Elrington, Thomas Cornish.
Horn: William Jackson.
Trumpet: Henry Tamplin.
Trombone: John Zwingman.
Serpent: Rudolph Sickel.
Bassoons: Johann Caspar Weyrauch .
'Janissary' percussionist: James Frazier *
As well as performing, George composed/adapted military movements:
(1) Kauntze's Collection of Original & Selected Music...English, Scotch, Irish & German Composers. c.1790, London.
(2) Duchess of York's Waltz, 1790.
(3) Tink a Tink, 1790.
(4) Croppies Lie Down, 1790
(5) Troop of the West Lowland Fencibles. Composed, and adapted for the piano forte, harp, two flutes or clarinet,by George Kauntze, late of His Highness the Duke of York's Band, 1796.
George had left the band by 1796 and set up as a 'music seller and composer'. The Coldstream Guards record states: COLDSTREAM GUARDS BAND MEMBER 1794: GEORGE KAUNTZE.
Name: Counts, alias Kauntza, alias Kauntze.
Title: Member of the Band of the 2nd Regiment of Guards.
Occupation :Violoncello /Clarinet/Music. music seller and publisher from 9, opposite Admiralty buildings in Whitehall, London c1795-1800, 376, Strand c 1800-01; 2, James Street 1802H.
Trading: alone c1795-1800; as Kauntze and Hyatt c1800-02; as Kauntze and Co. 1802.
George Kauntze's name appears in an advert in the Times (13th Nov. 1797) when advertising for a managing clerk. 'Replies to M.J & Mr Kauntze, Music-seller. Whitehall.'
George Kauntze, widower, married Frances Patin a spinster of St. Marylebone on May 8th, 1813 in the Parish of St George, Hanover Square, London. He would have been about 53 years old.
NOW! Given that Edward Kauntze was born in Hanover in 1783, and George was enlisted into the band of the Coldstream Guards in Hanover 1785, is George his father, and did he leave a wife and young baby to come to England? Or did they come to England with him? A mystery for someone to solve!
To add to the possibility of George being the head of this military family, Edward Kauntze had a son, George Edward Kauntz, who was a Band Sergeant in the 11th Light Dragoons (Hussars) in 1832 and was commissioned into the 3rd Light Dragoons in 1835, later serving in the 42nd Highlanders and finally as a Major in the 7th Dragoon Guards before retiring from the Army in 1868. He, in turn, had a son, Edward Henry Ernest Kauntz who was a Colonel in the Bengal Army.
Note also the names follow a pattern: George, Edward, George, Edward.
[Source: "Carey Family Newsletter 16", 2010 pp.8-11, published online at http://www.wmcarey.edu/carey/careyfamilyassn/carey-newsletter-2010.pdf (accessed 10.12.2014).]
* Note added by PB: On "Janissary" percussion, above, see e.g. http://www.drums1812.org/HTML/Instruments_turkish.html:
"It was both extremely fashionable and common for regimental bands of the period to contain a percussion section comprising of instruments of Middle Eastern origins. This practice had spread through Europe from the Ottoman Empire during the eighteenth century, though it developed into a craze in Britain after the campaign in Egypt in 1801, following which anything deemed 'Janissary' (a famous Turkish military unit) or 'Mameluke' (the ruling caste of Turkish-controlled Egypt) became the rage in military fashion. Janissary percussion sections typically consisted of a bass drum, cymbals, a triangle, a tambourine, small kettledrums, and often a form of bell tree known as a 'Jingling Johnny' or 'Chapeau Chinois.'
Originally these instruments had been played by Arabs hired for the purpose, though from an early period British bands appear to have employed men of African descent (perhaps more readily available in Britain?), and it became a considerable mark of status for a regiment to have a Black bass drummer or cymbalist. These musicians were also clothed in a fusion of British military and outlandish 'Arab' garments, approximating the parochial view of the Middle East held by most Europeans. Janissary musicians were prized by their regiments, and renowned for their spectacular dress and showmanship. However, it must be remembered that the practice was essentially exploitative, and the use of Blacks as musicians in the army was ultimately banned by Queen Victoria in 1844."
References & acknowledgements
Additional Census information for 1841-1901, and registrations of births, marriages and deaths kindly provided by Chris Poole.