Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 5.djvu/451

 APPENDIX. 429 a letter addressed to you by Lieutenant-General the Earl of Lucan, and submitting to me observations upon its contents. Upon the receipt of that despatch, I felt that the public service, and the general discipline of the army, must be greatly prejudiced by any misunderstanding between your lordship as the general commanding her Majesty's forces in the field and the Lieutenant-General commanding the Division of Cavalry ; but desiring to be fortified in all matters of this nature by the opinion of the General Com- manding-in-Chief, I submitted, without delay, your lord- ship's despatch, and the letter of the Earl of Lucan, for the consideration of General the Viscount Hardinge. I have now the honour of inclosing, for your lordship's guidance, an extract from the reply which I have this day (26th January) received from Lord Hardinge, and which has been submitted to and approved by the Queen. I have, therefore, to instruct your lordship to communi- cate this decision to the Earl of Lucan, and to inform his lordship that he should resign the command of the Cavalry Division, and return to England. In performing this painful duty, I purposely abstain from any comments upon the correspondence submitted to me ; but I must observe that, apart from any consideration of the merits of the question raised by Lord Lucan, the posi- tion in which he has now placed himself towards your lordship renders his withdrawal from the army under your command in all respects advisable. — I have, &c. (Signed) NEWCASTLE. Field-Marshal the Lord Raglan, G.C.B., fcc. &c. kc.