Lord Charles Hay

He spent some time waiting for a ship to be able to return to England, and on arriving there, demanded a court-martial to investigate the facts.

He took part as a volunteer in the armies of Prince Eugene of Savoy during the Rhine campaigns of 1734 in the War of the Polish Succession.

He took part in the European campaigns of the War of the Austrian Succession, and was a virtual, if not actual, lieutenant-colonel of the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards at the Battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy.

[1][2] His political career came to an end after a period in November 1746, when he was apparently "confined raving mad" and to have "been tied in his bed some time".

[4][1][2][3] With the outbreak of the Seven Years' War he was further promoted, to major-general, on 22 February 1757 and was second in command of the force sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia under General Peregrine Hopson.

Colonel John Forbes overheard him criticising the conduct of the campaign, commenting while their troops exercised in a sham attack that "by God, difficult as it may be, I shall find a method of letting the mother country know what is doing here, that we are taken up in building sham forts and making approaches to them, when we should be employed in real attacks.

"[2] He was also said to have commented that "the general was keeping the courage of his majesty's troops at bay, and expending the nation's wealth in making sham sieges and planting cabbages when he ought to have been fighting.

"[2] The implication was that Hay had gone mad, or suffered a breakdown, and he was closely confined for seven months while awaiting passage back to England.

[2] He volunteered for service aboard the 74-gun HMS Dublin, which had arrived in Halifax in May 1758 under the command of Captain George Brydges Rodney, carrying Major-General Jeffery Amherst.

Hay observed the successful siege and capture of Louisbourg from the Dublin, before his return to England aboard HMS Shannon.

This was agreed to, with Hay charged with endeavouring "to bring into contempt the conduct and authority of the commanders of the fleet and land forces in America," and with behaving "in a manner evidently tending to excite mutiny and sedition amongst the troops.