Harry Smith when serving in the Light Division, tells us that 2 officers in 1/95th, both call Stewart, were killed riding the same horse and only a short time apart. I thought this was worth looking into. He says it took place in March 1811 during the pursuit of Massena out of Portugal. There were 3 officers with the surname Stewart in 1/95th at that time.
Cpt Hon James H K Stewart, commander of No:1 Coy 1/95th, he survived the war and seems to have been away on staff postings most of the time. So not him.
Maj John [Jack] Stewart, commanding the left wing of the Battalion in the 2nd Brigade, was severely wounded at Casal Nova 14 March 1811 and died 2 days later. As a field officer he would have been mounted in combat.
Lt James Stewart, Adjutant 1/95th [and possibly acting Brigade Major in the 1st Brigade], was killed in action at Freixadas 28 March 1811, 2 weeks later. As the Adjutant, again, he would have been mounted in combat.
So could they have been riding the same horse? I think they could. Because at the time it was customary to auction off a dead Officer’s possessions with in the Regiment and send the money home to his family. So Lt Stewart may well have bought Maj Stewart’s horse that way and been riding it when he was killed. It would be interesting to know if the horse was then auctioned off a second time and if anyone dared buy it?
Paul