The Mercian Regiment (Cheshire, Worcesters and Foresters, and Staffords) is an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

, which is recruited from five of the counties that formed the ancient kingdom of

Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , y ...

. Known as 'The Heart of England's Infantry', it was formed on 1 September 2007 by the amalgamation of three existing regiments. The Regiment has had fifteen operational deployments since its formation.

History

The regiment's formation was announced on 16 December 2004 by the then

Secretary of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in so ...

Geoff Hoon Geoffrey William Hoon (born 6 December 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashfield in Nottinghamshire from 1992 to 2010. He is a former Defence Secretary, Transport Secretary, Leader of ...

and General Sir Mike Jackson as part of the restructuring of the

British Army Infantry The Infantry of the British Army comprises 49 infantry battalions, from 19 regiments. Of these, 33 battalions are part of the Regular army and the remaining 16 a part of the Army Reserve. The British Army's Infantry takes on a variety of roles ...

- it consisted of three regular battalions, plus a territorial battalion, and was created through the merger of three single battalion regiments. The antecedent regiments were, The 1st Battalion,

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence of over 300 years. ...

, The 1st Battalion,

Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment (29th/45th Foot) (abbreviated as ''WFR'') was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The regiment served as the county regiment for Derbyshire, Nottingha ...

and the 1st Battalion,

Staffordshire Regiment The Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales') (or simply "Staffords" for short) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The regiment was formed in 1959 by the amalgamation of the South Staffordshire Re ...

. The reserve

West Midlands Regiment The West Midlands Regiment was a short-lived British Territorial Army regiment from 1999 until it was re-designated as 4th Battalion, Mercian Regiment, in 2007. History The regiment was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of three territorial in ...

, with elements of the

King's and Cheshire Regiment The King's and Cheshire Regiment was a regiment of the British Territorial Army, with headquarters in Warrington, Cheshire. History The regiment was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of the 5th/8th (Volunteer) Battalion of the King's Regiment a ...

and the

East of England Regiment The East of England Regiment (EER) was the infantry unit of the Territorial Army of the East Midlands and East Anglia from 1 July 1999 to 1 April 2006. Upon the re-organisation of the infantry in 2006, the regiment became 3rd Battalion, Royal Ang ...

formed the 4th Battalion, Mercian Regiment. The regiment originally had 3

regular army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a standin ...

battalions and one

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

battalion, though the 3rd Battalion was disbanded, as part of the restructuring of the British Army, in July 2014. It had been part of the

7th Armoured Brigade 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, s ...

based in

Bad Fallingbostel Bad Fallingbostel (Northern Low Saxon: ''Bad Fambossel'') is the district town (''Kreisstadt'') of the Heidekreis district in the German state of Lower Saxony. Since 1976 the town has had a state-recognised Kneipp spa and has held the title of ...

, Germany. The regiment further restructred in September 2022 when the 2nd Battalion merged with the 1st Battalion. This happened as a result of the Integrated Review. The regiment was deployed to Afghanistan (Herrick 6, Herrick 10, Herrick 12, Herrick 14, Herrick 15, Herrick 17 and Herrick 19) and to Iraq (Telic 11). In 2017 the regiment moved to the

King's Division The King's Division was a British Army command, training and administrative apparatus designated for infantry regiments in the North of England. History The King's Division was formed in 1968 with the union of the Lancastrian Brigade, Yorkshi ...

Structure

Regimental Headquarters

The regimental headquarters is situated at

DMS Whittington DMS Whittington, otherwise known as Defence Medical Services Whittington (formerly Whittington Barracks), is a military base in Whittington, Staffordshire, near Lichfield in England. It is home to the Staffordshire Regiment Museum, the Headquarte ...

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...

, with outstations in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

and

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

1st Battalion

The 1st Battalion has deployed on five operational tours since its formation in 2007, one to Iraq, two to Afghanistan, one to Ukraine, and one to Estonia. It is an

armoured infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force). As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is d ...

battalion, part of the 12th Armoured Brigade Combat Team based at

Bulford Camp Bulford Camp is a military camp on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. Established in 1897, the site continues in use as a large British Army base. The camp is close to the village of Bulford and is about northeast of the town of Amesbury. ...

, England.

4th Battalion

The 4th Battalion is the regiment's

Armoured Infantry battalion. The battalion, whose HQ is based in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...

and

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a large market and historic minster town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester. Located north of the River Stour and east of the River Severn, in the 2011 census, it ha ...

, England, has 2 rifle companies, a support and an HQ company.

Regimental Distinctions

The regiment's cap badge is a double headed Mercian Eagle with

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

crown. This has been chosen because it forms a link to the regiment's recruiting area, which encompass a number of divergent counties that do not have modern traditional links, only under the ancient Kingdom of Mercia (unlike the other new regiments from Scotland, Wales and Yorkshire). It was originally intended to use the old

Mercian Brigade The Mercian Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1964. The Brigade administered the infantry regiments from the area of England between the Trent, Mersey and Severn rivers that roughly corresponded to the ancie ...

badge worn by the Cheshire Regiment, Staffordshire Regiment, Worcestershire Regiment and Sherwood Foresters from 1958 to 1968, rather than create an amalgamated badge that would require elements from all of the antecedents. In 2005, this badge was rejected by the Army Dress Committee on the grounds that it had been the badge of a

territorial A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

unit, The

Mercian Volunteers The Mercian Volunteers was a Territorial Army infantry regiment of the British Army, in existence from 1967 to 1988. Upon formation, it consisted of a singular battalion, however it later raised a second in 1975. Formation The regiment was form ...

, which was junior to the amalgamating regiments. Accordingly, a slightly modified design featuring two colours of metal was adopted. In 2012, following the announcement that the 3rd Battalion (ex-Staffordshire Regiment) was to be disbanded, a proposal was submitted to the Army to have the name of the Mercian Regiment changed to reflect its entire lineage and maintain the Staffords name. In July 2014, this proposal was approved, and the regiment was renamed as The Mercian Regiment (Cheshire, Worcesters and Foresters, and Staffords).

Mascot

Private Derby takes a march down the mall

"Derby", a

Swaledale Swaledale is one of the northernmost dales (valleys) in Yorkshire Dales National Park, located in northern England. It is the dale of the River Swale on the east side of the Pennines in North Yorkshire. Geographical overview Swaledale runs ...

ram, is the regimental mascot, a tradition inherited from the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment. The 30th iteration of the Mascot was known as Lance Corporal Derby XXX, before he died on 27 November 2015. His successor, known as Private Derby XXXI, was announced on 20 February 2016 but he died on 1 September 2017. In December 2017 Private Derby XXXII was presented to the Regiment by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire at Chatsworth House. Private Derby was received by Brigadier Williams, OBE, Colonel of the Regiment. Private Derby led the Tamworth Carnival in 2019. According to his handlers this was the longest March Private Derby has done to date. The regiment also maintains loose links through its Regimental Headquarters with the former mascot of the Staffordshire Regiment, Watchman, who now carries out his duties as part of the Staffordshire Regiment Association.

Dress

Various "Golden Threads", representing the traditions of predecessor units, are incorporated in the Mercian Regiment's uniform: *Arm badge: a gold wire

Stafford knot The Stafford knot, more commonly known as the Staffordshire knot, is a distinctive three-looped knot that is the traditional symbol of the English county of Staffordshire and of its county town, Stafford. It is a particular representation of the s ...

and glider badge with a backing of "Brown Holland" material on a black felt patch from the Staffordshire Regiment *Collar badge: oak leaves and acorn from the Cheshire Regiment combined with the motto ''Firm'' from the Worcestershire Regiment *

Facing colour A facing colour is a common tailoring technique for European military uniforms where the visible inside lining of a standard military jacket, coat or tunic is of a different colour to that of the garment itself.René Chartrand, William Younghusb ...

: buff, from the Cheshire Regiment. To be worn on full dress uniform, mess dress and as piping on No.1 dress shoulder straps. *Sword frog on the

Sam Browne Belt The Sam Browne is a leather belt with a supporting strap that passes over the right shoulder, worn by military and police officers. It is named after Sir Samuel J. Browne (1824–1901), the British Indian Army general who invented it. Origi ...

comes from the Worcestershire Regiment *Officer's rank badges will be coloured bronze/gun metal, from the

North Staffordshire Regiment The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was created on 21 April 1758 from the 2nd Battalio ...

*Warrant officers' and NCO's rank badges: Black backing from Staffordshire Regiment. *Cap badge backing: A square

Lincoln green Lincoln Green is a mainly residential area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England around Lincoln Green Road, and is adjacent to and southwest of St James's University Hospital. It falls within the Burmantofts and Richmond Hill ward of the City o ...

cloth backing worn behind the cap badge on the beret, from the Sherwood Foresters *Lanyards: Originally, each battalion wore a distinctively coloured lanyard on No.2 dress: red cerise for the 1st battalion, Lincoln green for the 2nd, black for the 3rd and Mercian blue for the 4th. A regimental pattern with twists of cerise, buff and green was worn by those who were extra-regimentally employed: this multi-coloured lanyard is now worn by all in the regiment. *

Tactical Recognition Flash Tactical recognition flash (TRF) is the British military term for a coloured patch worn on the right arm of combat clothing by members of the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. A TRF serves to quickly identify the regiment or corps of t ...

es: The regiment's TRF is a 3 vertical striped diamond with cerise on the left, buff in the middle and Lincoln green on the right. Each Battalion also has their own, the 1st and 2nd Battalions use their antecedent regiment's flashes, buff and cerise for the 1st and cerise and Lincoln green for the 2nd. The 3rd battalion has a black diamond with the Stafford knot and the 4th Battalion has a blue diamond with the Mercian Eagle on it. *Regimental Side Hat: black with buff inner crease and green piping and peak. The cap badge is in silver and gold wire embroidery. *Pullover: Buff, worn by officers and WOs, from the Cheshire Regiment. *Stable Belt: Buff, from the Cheshire Regiment, with a bronze locket bearing the cap badge in brass.

Band

The Band of the Mercian Regiment is the regimental

military band A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the ti ...

of the Mercian Regiment. Based in

, the Band is composed of volunteer musicians that include many from civilian careers. The band undertakes a variety of performances international, national, and local parades/festivals and concerts. In recent years, the band has visited countries such as

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

, participated in events like the Buxton Military Tattoo and in 2014, became the first and only reserve band based outside of London to performs during the changing of the

Queen's Guard The King's Guard and King's Life Guard (called the Queen's Guard and the Queen's Life Guard when the reigning monarch is female) are the contingents of infantry and cavalry soldiers charged with guarding the official royal residences in the U ...

at both

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

and

St James's Palace St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster in London. Alt ...

. It also has taken part in the

Household Division Household Division is a term used principally in the Commonwealth of Nations to describe a country's most elite or historically senior military units, or those military units that provide ceremonial or protective functions associated directly wit ...

Beating Retreat Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle. History Originally it was known as watch setting and was initiated at sunset by the firing of a single ...

Horse Guards Parade Horse Guards Parade is a large parade ground off Whitehall in central London (at grid reference ). It is the site of the annual ceremonies of Trooping the Colour, which commemorates the monarch's official birthday, and the Beating Retreat. H ...

. One of its more notable directors was Captain Anthony Hodgetts, who after rising through the ranks of British Army Bands, served twelve years as Director of Music of the

Royal Army of Oman The Royal Army of Oman (Arabic: الجيش العماني, transliterated: ''al-Jaīsh al-'Umānī'') is the ground forces component of the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces. It was founded in 1907 as the Muscat Garrison. It has a current strength ...

. On the 1 June 2019, the Mercian Regiment Band led the Tamworth carnival though the town. According to the musicians this was the longest march the band had done to date. On the 10 October 2019, Mercian Band Bugler Msn Wykes performed the Last Post and Rouse at the

National Memorial Arboretum The National Memorial Arboretum is a British site of national remembrance at Alrewas, near Lichfield, Staffordshire. Its objective is to honour the fallen, recognise service and sacrifice, and foster pride in the British Armed Forces and civilian ...

. He then also performed the Last Post and Rouse at the War memorial in St Editha's Church Tamworth, Tamworth being the historical capital of

Regimental Museums

The Mercian Regiment supports four museums that hold collections of the Mercian Regiment and its antecedent regiments: * The Museum of the Mercian Regiment (WFR Collection) in

. * The Staffordshire Regiment Museum in

Whittington, Staffordshire Whittington is a village and civil parish which lies approximately 3 miles south east of Lichfield, in the Lichfield district of Staffordshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,591, increasing to 2,603 at the 2011 C ...

. * The Cheshire Military Museum in

. * The Mercian Regiment Museum (Worcester) in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

Regimental Colonels

*2007-2008: Maj Gen. C. G. S. Hughes CBE *2008–2013: Brig. Andrew Sharpe OBE *2013–2018: Brig. Andrew P. Williams OBE *2018–Present Lieutenant General Ian J. Cave CB

Lineage

Alliances

All of the previous alliances of the three individual regiments were carried over into the Mercian Regiment. * -

Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force The Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force (ABDF) is the armed forces of Antigua and Barbuda. The ABDF has responsibility for several different roles: internal security, prevention of drug smuggling, the protection and support of fishing rights, pr ...

. Allied regiment. * - 8/7th The Royal Victoria Regiment. Allied regiment. * – 4th Battalion, Royal 22^e Régiment. Allied regiment. * -

The Grey and Simcoe Foresters The Grey and Simcoe Foresters is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Forces. Within the Canadian Army, it is part of the 4th Canadian Division's (formerly known as Land Force Central Area) 31 Canadian Brigade Group. Due to the re ...

. Allied regiment. * - The

Cape Breton Highlanders , colors = Facing colour yellow , colors_label = Colours , march = Quick – "Highland Laddie" , mascot = , battles = First World ...

. Allied regiment. * -

The Jamaica Regiment The Jamaica Regiment is the main formation of land troops in the Jamaica Defence Force. It is a non-mechanised infantry regiment consisting of five battalions, three regular infantry battalions, one territorial infantry battalion, and a Combat S ...

. Allied regiment. * - 13th Battalion, The Punjab Regiment. Allied regiment. * - 7th Battalion, The Baloch Regiment. Allied regiment. * - 5th Battalion (Napiers),

Rajputana Rifles The Rajputana Rifles is the oldest rifle regiment of the Indian Army. It was originally a part of the British Indian Army, when six previously existing regiments were amalgamated to form six battalions of the 6th Rajputana Rifles. In 1945, the ...

. Affiliated regiment. * -

14th Prince of Wales's Own Scinde Horse The Scinde Horse is an armoured regiment in the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. The regiment, known before independence as the 14th Prince of Wales's Own Scinde Horse was a regular cavalry regiment of the Bombay Army, and later the British Ind ...

Affiliated regiment. * -

Madras Engineer Group Madras Engineer Group (MEG), informally known as the Madras Sappers, is an engineer group of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The Madras Sappers draw their origin from the erstwhile Madras Presidency army of the British Raj. This ...

. Affiliated regiment. * - N Battery (The Eagle Troop). Affiliated regiment. * - HMS ''Albion''. Other affiliation. * - The Worshipful Company of Bowyers. Other affiliation. * -

Régiment de marche du Tchad The ''Régiment de marche du Tchad'' (RMT, " ''Ad hoc'' Regiment of Chad") is a mechanised unit of the French Army, belonging to the ''Troupes de Marine''. It is part of the 2nd Armoured Brigade. Formerly garrisoned north of Noyon it was moved ...

. Bond of friendship.

Freedoms

The regiment has received the

Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving one ...

of several locations throughout its history; these include: * 01 September 2007: Dudley Metropolitan Borough. * 01 September 2007:

. * 01 September 2007:

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in th ...

. * 01 September 2007:

Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is withi ...

. Originally granted to the Cheshire Regiment on 16 October 1969. * 01 September 2007:

. * 01 September 2007:

. Originally granted to the Worcestershire Regiment on 15 April 1950. * 12 September 2007:

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

. * 14 September 2007: Tamworth. * 4 October 2007: Erewash. Originally granted to the Worcestershire Regiment in 1951, then to the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment in 1970. * 15 October 2007:

. Originally granted to the Sherwood Foresters Regiment on 22 October 1945, then to the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment on 28 February 1970. * 12 December 2007: Chesterfield. Originally granted to the Sherwood Foresters Regiment in 1946, then to the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment in 1970. * 18 December 2007: High Peak. * 18 December 2007:

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market to ...

. * 20 February 2008: Newark. * 12 March 2008: Bassetlaw. * 12 March 2008:

. Originally granted to the Worcestershire Regiment in 1952, then to the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment in 1989. * 14 March 2008:

Dudley Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...

. * 26 March 2008:

. * 4 September 2008:

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its eas ...

. * 5 November 2008:

Crewe and Nantwich Crewe and Nantwich was, from 1974 to 2009, a local government district with borough status in Cheshire, England. It had a population (2001 census) of 111,007. It contained 69 civil parishes and one unparished area: the town of Crewe. It now ...

. * 2008: Ellesmere Port & Neston. * 16 February 2009:

Newcastle-under-Lyme Newcastle-under-Lyme ( RP: , ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. The 2011 census population of the town was 75,082, whilst the wider borough had a population of 1 ...

. * 17 February 2009:

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield. Walsall is th ...

. * 18 February 2009:

Sandwell Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ...

. * 19 February 2009:

Burton-on-Trent Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In 2011, it had a population of 72,299. Th ...

. * 21 February 2009:

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...

. * 25 March 2009:

Congleton Congleton is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The town is by the River Dane, south of Manchester and north of Stoke on Trent. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 26,482. Topon ...

. * 18 May 2009:

Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...

. * 26 November 2009:

Derbyshire Dales Derbyshire Dales ( ) is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 71,116. Much of it is in the Peak District, although most of its population lies along the River Derwent. The borough borders ...

. * 2009: Wirral. Originally granted to the Cheshire Regiment in 1996. * 26 January 2010:

Amber Valley Amber Valley is a local government district and borough in the east of Derbyshire, England, taking its name from the River Amber. It covers a semi-rural zone with four main towns whose economy was based on coal mining and remains to some exte ...

. * 22 September 2010:

Gedling Gedling is a village in the Gedling district, in Nottinghamshire, England, four miles northeast of Nottingham city centre. The population at the 2011 census of the ward was 6,817 and 111,787 for the district. Gedling was recorded in the Dome ...

. * 14 October 2010:

Cheshire East Cheshire East is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The local authority is Cheshire East Council. Towns within the area include Crewe, Macclesfield, Congleton, Sandbach, Wilmslow, H ...

. * 20 October 2010:

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...

. * 11 November 2010:

South Derbyshire South Derbyshire is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. The population of the local authority at the 2011 Census was 94,611. It contains a third of the National Forest, and the council offices are in Swadlincote. The district ...

. * 2010: Southwell. * 20 January 2011:

Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in th ...

. * 29 March 2011:

Wychavon Wychavon is a local government district in Worcestershire, England, with a population size of 132,500 according to the 2021 census. Its council is based in the town of Pershore, and the other towns in the district are Droitwich Spa and Evesh ...

. * 7 November 2012:

Cannock Chase Cannock Chase (), often referred to locally as The Chase, is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has been designated as the Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is managed by Forestry E ...

. * 21 May 2013:

Tameside The Metropolitan Borough of Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in England. It is named after the River Tame, which flows through the borough, and includes the towns of Ashton-under-Lyne, Audenshaw, Denton, Droylsden, ...

. * 2014:

Sandbach Sandbach (pronounced ) is the name of a historic market town and a civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. The civil parish contains four settlements: Sandbach itself as the largest, Elworth, Ettiley Heath a ...

. * 17 February 2015:

Crewe Crewe () is a railway town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The Crewe built-up area had a total population of 75,556 in 2011, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston ...

. * Unknown: Halton Originally granted to the Cheshire Regiment on 13 July 1989.

Order of precedence

References

External links

Official siteThe Mercian Regimental CharityThe Museum of the Mercian Regiment Staffordshire Regiment Museum
{{British Infantry Mercian Military units and formations established in 2007 Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Mercia 2007 establishments in the United Kingdom Staffordshire Regiment Cheshire Regiment Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment