Lieutenant John GARBUTT 84th Regiment of Foot
Died Ipswich Suffolk 10 April 1810 aged 20
Commemorated on a plaque which is on the outer wall of Kirkbymoorside Church, Yorkshire.
Extract from Bill of Mortality -
In barracks at Ipswich, Co Suffolk, aged 20 John Garbutt Esq., a Lieutenant in the 2nd Btn. 84th Regiment of Foot. Son of Mr John G of Kirkbymoorside Co York, from whence he was just returned, having been there on sick leave of absence, in consequence of illness contracted on the expedition to Walcheren and was attacked with a relapse of the disease only a few days previous to his death. He was much respected by the officers of the regiment and his remains where interred in St Matthews Churchyard with military honours.
Napoleonic Wars
Starting on 30 July 1809, a
British armed force of 39,000 men landed on Walcheren, the
Walcheren Campaign, with a view to assisting the
Austrians in their war against
Napoleon, and attacking the
French fleet moored at
Flushing(Vlissingen). The expedition turned into a disaster – although Flushing surrendered the Austrians had already been decisively defeated at the
Battle of Wagram in early July and were suing for peace. Meanwhile, the French fleet had moved to
Antwerp, and the British lost over 4,000 men to a disease called "Walcheren Fever", thought to be a combination of
malaria and
typhus, as well as to enemy action. The French suffered some 4000 dead, wounded and captured. With the strategic reasons for the campaign gone and the worsening conditions, the British force was withdrawn in December.
