Richd Baily Asst: Qutr. Mastr. Genl., his signature on the "Embarkation Return of 447 German
Recruits and 60 Drafts for Regiments in Canada" dated Portsmouth, England, 2 June 1776
Nationality: English
Born: c1733
Age: unknown
Regimental commission dates:
Captain
1 March 1776
Location during the Northern Campaign of 1777: Assistant Quarter Master General in England
Retired: 23 April 1783
Died: unknown
Richard Baily was a longtime army veteran, but not from serving in the 62nd Regiment of Foot. On 26 January 1758, then Serjeant Richard Baily, of the 23rd, or Royal Welsh Fuziliers, was promoted to the rank of 2nd lieutenant. On 22 July, Baily secured the additional duty of regimental quarter-master, and was promoted to 1st lieutenant on 6 October 1762. Baily had the honour of fighting with his regiment in the 1759 Battle of Minden, which ended in a substantial and famed British victory. While Baily's commissioned rank was placed on half-pay following the reduction of the British army after the Seven Years War, he remained as the regiment's quarter-master. He returned to commissioned service with the Royal Welsh Fuziliers, and on 25 December 1770 returned as a 1st lieutenant. As such, Baily served with his regiment in Boston during the beginnings of the Revolution and the war, and may have participated in the fighting during the British retreat from the Lexington and Concord expedition, as well as the deadly Battle of Bunker Hill. On 2 December 1775, he was recalled home to serve as an Assistant Quarter Master General.
On 1 March 1776 (St David's Day, ironically, considering his former regiment), Baily was promoted to captain in the 62nd Regiment and was entrusted to the command of the regiment's junior additional company. This duty kept him at home, where he was supposed to recruit men for the regiment. This was perhaps ironic since, of all the officers of the 62nd Regiment at the time, he had the most fighting experience.
According to various issues of The Parliamentary Register, or History of the Proceedings and Debates of the House of Commons (London), Baily received 182.10.0 on 20 March 1778 for 365 days pay, covering 11 March 1777 to 10 March 1778 inclusive for “superintending the embarkation of parties, horses, stores, &c. for the armies in North America.” On 20 April 1780, Baily was paid 241.1.2 “for expenses in superintending the embarkation of parties, camp equipage, &c. from 11th March 1779 to 10th March 1780.” He was again paid 182.10.0 “for superintending the embarkation of parties, stores, &c. for the armies serving abroad [from 11 March 1780] to 10th March 1781.” Clearly, these additional duties kept him otherwise employed, and he may not have served much with his company, if at all.
After the 62nd Regiment's repatriation to England in 1781, Baily was listed as being on General Edward Mathew's leave, due to his continued duties as a "Deputy Commissary" and he remained on leave from the regiment during its extensive reorganization period. Baily was breveted to the rank of major in the army on 12 June 1782, and resigned his regimental commission in 1783.
Despite his own consistent surname spelling, Baily was often listed as “Bailey” in period records.