Hello!

This is one of my PhD research questions so I am obliged to comment!

Although purchasing commissions were very common in the 18th century in particular, what would also happen is a system of recommendations would be used whereby regimental commanders would look at the gaps in the ranks due to injury, peacetime demobbing etc, and then they would consider the lists of officers they had. If they felt the more junior officers were up to the task, they would pass their name up the chain, as far as the Prime Minister in some cases! These requests would then be either confirmed or amended, and ta dah, you have a promotion!

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As far as I can see in my research, the commanding officer was usually considered a valid recommendation and amendments were uncommon. However, there is one example in MS. 9618 (see below) whereby two ensigns are turned down for promotion due to an investigation into their activities. One had been siphoning off money that was meant for be recruitment, the other stole 90 Pounds from the regimental agent. And people say the army was corrupt....

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(it was, but that is for another question.)

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I am basing this answer on primary research conducted with the following volumes in the National Library of Ireland:

Copy of the typescript calendar, made by the Public Record Office, Belfast, of the State Papers, Ireland, in the Public Record Office, London, S. P. 63 MS. 9610-9618

Short answer:

Yes. Merit, notable acts of courage or service to the army, service on staffs, seniority, etc. could all lead to unpurchased promotions.

Long answer:

Yes! The 1871 Cardwell Reforms abolished the purchase of commissions so the a British army sensibly entered the 20th century with a promotion system built on merit, seniority, and social connections/status. Before 1871, getting an unpurchased promotion all depended on the officer's branch of service and/or how lucky he is (and how unlucky his colleagues were). This answer will dwell mostly in the Napoleonic Wars and the other wars of the French Revolution, but it broadly applies to much of the 18th and 19th century.

The Royal Artillery and the Royal Engineers didn't use the purchase system. Their officers earned their commissions after completing a rigorous course of professional instruction at the Royal Military Academy in Woolwich. From then on, they usually got their promotions through seniority, with some considerations for merit. In broad strokes, it was similar to how the Royal Navy promoted officers.

The regiments of foot, cavalry regiment, foot guards, and horse guards all used the purchase system for commissions and promotions, with each category of regiment being more expensive than the last. Generally speaking, officers couldn't simply buy into the highest ranks, they usually had to serve time at lower grades and gradually purchase their way up. Outgoing officers sold their commissions to the rising men, which gave them something to retire on. It's important to note the purchase system did not apply to general officers and only affected regimental rank, a distinction that will become important in a minute.

Robert Burnham and Ron McGuigan explain how the purchase system worked during the Napoleonic Wars:

Once an officer held a rank in the regiment, it was his for the rest of his life unless he was cashiered and forced out of the army. An officer, especially one who was older, could sell his commission to a junior officer and use this money to retire on, or he could go on half pay. A lieutenant colonel in a light dragoon regiment was authorized to sell his commission for £4982 while a lieutenant colonel in a line infantry regiment could sell his for £3500. This was the equivalent to almost 12 times the annual pay of the light dragoon lieutenant colonel and 11 times the annual pay for that of an infantry lieutenant colonel.

The commission was supposed to be offered to the senior officer in the regiment who was junior to that rank. For example if a lieutenant colonel decided to sell his commission, regulations stated that he had to offer it to the most senior major in the regiment. If that officer could not afford to buy it, then it was offered to the next senior major. If no one in the regiment was able to buy it, the officer selling the commission could offer it to any other major in the army who was looking to purchase his next rank. Although army regulations prohibited the selling of a commission for a higher price than what was authorized, it was not unheard of for an officer to sell it for a much higher price through his regimental agent.

In regular infantry and cavalry units, officers could be promoted without purchasing a commission.

Burnham and McGuigan again:

Another way an officer could be promoted within a regiment was by appointment. With the expansion of the army after war broke out in 1803, there were many vacancies to be filled and many officers were promoted without having to purchase it.

As they note, promotion by appointment mostly happened during wartime. In peacetime, it might only happen if a battalion or regiment had lost officers to disease, shipwreck, etc. From this comes the rather macabe toast to “bloody wars and sickly seasons" in the officers' mess.

However, junior officers could also have army rank, brevet rank, or local rank. Officers couldn't purchase promotions to these ranks, since these ranks weren't technically related to commission.

Let's consider a hypothetical officer during the Peninsular War in around 1809: Simon Willis.

Willis holds a commission as a captain in the 50th (West Kent) Regiment of Foot. He commands the 1st Battalion's 3rd Company. His regimental rank is that of captain and he draws a captain's pay - of course, since Captain Willis is a gentleman, he will supplement his meager pay with a small income from his estates in England.

However, Captain Willis' witty repartee and the smartness of his company catches the eye of the division commander. Captain Willis is invited to serve on the division's staff. Since he now has more responsibility, Willis is given the army rank of major. His regimental rank is still that of a captain, but he is now called "Major Willis" and given a major's pay.

After spending some time on the staff, Willis returns to his old job commanding a company of the 50th Foot. He's still technically a captain, but he's still addressed as "Major Willis" as a courteousy. But it's only a formality, since Willis now draws a captain's pay and only has a captain's responsibilities.

During one sharp fight with the French, Willis saves the battalion's colors and rescues a brother officer from the clutches of some French dragoons. Since medals aren't common in this period, Willis is honored in another way. He is promoted to the brevet rank of major He'll be called "Major Willis" and might be given additional responsibilities to match his higher rank. He's still technically a captain, drawing captain's pay, of course. In that sense, brevet rank was very much like army rank.

Even if he hadn't gotten a brevet for bravery, Willis could have gotten a brevet in another way. Beginning in the 1790s until the early 1800s, the army would periodically (usually once a year) give out brevets to long-serving or otherwise distinguished captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels. Since the army needed officers in wartime, but there was a limited number of commission for purchase, brevetting officers was a good solution to get these officers. Brevetted officers exercised the authority of their higher rank, so in that sense, it was a very real promotion.

There's also local rank, which was usually given to higher-ranking officers serving on campaigns overseas. For example, many of Wellington's division commanders in the Peninsula had the local rank of lieutenant general, but only had the army rank of colonel.

The promotion system for general officers worked more or less in the same way as that for junior officers, with a few differences. Officers couldn't purchase promotions to general. It was unusual for an officer to be promoted a colonel or general officer through "normal" means (i.e. by appointment), so virtually all senior officers got their higher rank through the general brevets.