The 49th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) (Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot was a line

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, raised in 1743. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment) in 1881.

History

Early wars

The regiment was raised in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

by Colonel Edward Trelawney as Edward Trelawney's Regiment of Foot in 1743 from eight independent local companies. The regiment was ranked as the 63rd Regiment of Foot in 1747 and re-ranked as the 49th Regiment of Foot in 1751. The regiment landed in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

in 1764 and remained there until embarking for

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

in 1772. The regiment moved to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

in June 1775 for service in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. It fought at the

Battle of Long Island The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at and near the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn ...

in August 1776, the Battle of White Plains in October 1776 and the

Battle of Fort Washington The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in New York on November 16, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain. It was a British victory that gained the surrender of the remnant of the garrison of ...

in November 1776. It went on to take part in the Philadelphia campaign, seeing action at the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Am ...

in September 1777, the Battle of Paoli later that month and the

Battle of Germantown The Battle of Germantown was a major engagement in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War. It was fought on October 4, 1777, at Germantown, Pennsylvania, between the British Army led by Sir William Howe, and the American ...

in October 1777. It was following the British attack on the Americans at Brandywine, where the light company of the regiment took no prisoners and the Americans demanded vengeance, that the regiment decided to insert identifying red feathers in their

shako A shako (, , or ) is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor, and sometimes tapered at the top. It is usually adorned with an ornamental plate or Cap badge, badge on the front, metallic or otherwise; and often has a feather, hackle ...

helmets to prevent anyone else suffering on their account. It then sailed for the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

in summer 1778 and took part in the British victory at the Battle of St. Lucia in December 1778 before returning to Ireland in 1780. In 1782, the regiment received a county distinction becoming the 49th (the Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot.

French Revolutionary Wars and the War of 1812

In 1793 the members of the regiment were re-designated as

marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...

for service in the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...

. In that capacity the regiment was sent to garrison

Dominica Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. It is part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of t ...

in 1794. After returning to England in 1796, the regiment was sent to

Ostend Ostend ( ; ; ; ) is a coastal city and municipality in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the la ...

in 1798 to take part in the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland in August 1799 and saw action at the Battle of Alkmaar in October 1799. It also served under Admiral Hyde Parker at the Battle of Copenhagen in April 1801. After losing its marine designation, the regiment was deployed to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in 1802. The regiment served under Major-General Sir Isaac Brock at the

Battle of Queenston Heights The Battle of Queenston Heights was the first major engagement of the War of 1812. The battle took place on 13 October 1812 at Queenston in Upper Canada (now Ontario) and was a decisive British victory. United States regulars and New York (state ...

in October 1812 during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. The regiment returned home in 1815 to undertake Royal guarding duties at Weymouth. The regiment's new scarlet coats and white breeches so impressed Princess Charlotte of Wales that she asked to be associated with the regiment. The regiment accordingly became the 49th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) (or the Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot in 1816. Sergeant James FitzGibbon was amongst those soldiers who landed with the regiment in 1802. FitzGibbon became a member of the

Family Compact The Family Compact was a small closed group of men who exercised most of the political, economic and judicial power in Upper Canada (today's Ontario) from the 1810s to the 1840s. It was the Upper Canadian equivalent of the Château Clique in L ...

, who essentially owned and operated the Upper Canadian economy and society through business, marriage, or political ties. He was present during the Rebellions of 1837-1838, fighting against political reformers at the

Battle of Montgomery's Tavern The Battle of Montgomery's Tavern was an engagement which took place on December 7, 1837 during the Upper Canada Rebellion. The abortive revolutionary insurrection, inspired by William Lyon Mackenzie, was crushed by United Kingdom of Great Brita ...

alongside future first

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

Sir John A. Macdonald.

The Victorian era

The regiment was sent to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 1840 for service in the

First Opium War The First Opium War ( zh, t=第一次鴉片戰爭, p=Dìyīcì yāpiàn zhànzhēng), also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1 ...

. It fought at the Capture of Chusan in July 1840, the Battle of Canton in March 1841 and the Battle of Amoy in August 1841 as well as the occupation of

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

in summer 1842. It then returned home in 1843. The regiment departed for service in the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

in early 1854 and fought at the

Battle of Alma The Battle of the Alma (short for Battle of the Alma River) took place during the Crimean War between an allied expeditionary force (made up of French, British, and Ottoman forces) and Russian forces defending the Crimean Peninsula on 20Septe ...

in September 1854, the Battle of Inkerman in November 1854 and the Siege of Sevastopol in winter 1854. It then returned home in 1856. As part of the

Cardwell Reforms The Cardwell Reforms were a series of reforms of the British Army undertaken by Secretary of State for War Edward Cardwell between 1868 and 1874 with the support of Liberal prime minister William Ewart Gladstone. Gladstone paid little attentio ...

of the 1870s, where single-battalion regiments were linked together to share a single depot and recruiting district in the United Kingdom, the 49th was linked with the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot, and assigned to district no. 41 at Brock Barracks in

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. On 1 July 1881 the Childers Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment).

Battle honours

Battle honours awarded to the regiment were: *Egmont-op-Zee, Copenhagen, Queenstown, China, *''Crimean War'':

Alma Alma or ALMA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Alma'' (film), a 2009 Spanish short animated film * ''Alma'', an upcoming film by Sally Potter * ''Alma'' (Oswald de Andrade novel), 1922 * ''Alma'' (Le Clézio novel), 2017 * ''Alma'' ( ...

Inkerman Inkerman (; ; ) is a city in the Crimean peninsula. It is '' de facto'' within the federal city of Sevastopol within the Russian Federation, but ''de jure'' within the Autonomous Republic of Crimea within Ukraine. It lies 5 kilometres (3 miles ...

Sevastopol Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...

*St. Lucia 1778 ''(awarded to successor regiment, 1909)''

Victoria Crosses

Victoria Crosses awarded to men of the regiment were: * Lieutenant

John Augustus Conolly Lieutenant Colonel John Augustus Conolly Victoria Cross, VC (30 May 1829 – 23 December 1888), born in Celbridge, County Kildare, Ireland, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the ...

, Crimea War (26 October 1854) * Corporal James Owens, Crimea War (30 October 1854) * Sergeant George Walters, Crimea War (5 November 1854)

Colonels of the Regiment

Colonels of the regiment were:

49th Regiment of Foot - (1751)

*1743–1754: Col. Edward Trelawney *1754–1761: Lt-Gen. George Walsh *1761–1764: Lt-Gen. John Stanwix *1764–1768: Maj-Gen David Graeme *1768–1820: Gen

Sir Alexander Maitland, 1st Baronet Sir Alexander Maitland, 1st Baronet (21 March 1728 – 15 February 1820) was a general in the British ArmyHaydn's ''Book of Dignities'' (1851p. 319 and the first of the Maitland baronets of Clifton.Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debre ...

The 49th (Princess of Wales's Hertfordshire) Regiment - (1816)

*1820–1829: Lt-Gen. Sir Miles Nightingall, KCB *1829–1846: Gen. Sir

Gordon Drummond General Sir Gordon Drummond, GCB (27 September 1772 – 10 October 1854) was a Canadian-born British Army officer and the first official to command the military and the civil government of Canada. As Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, Drum ...

, GCB *1846–1861: Gen. Sir Edward Bowater, KCH *1861–1871: Gen. Sir Edmund Finucane Morris, KCB *1871–1874: Gen. Thomas James Galloway *1874–1881: Gen. Sir Charles Henry Ellice, GCB

References

External links

The Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire) Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:49th (Princess Charlotte Of Wales's)(Hertfordshire) Regiment Of Foot 1743 establishments in the British Empire 1881 disestablishments in the British Empire Military units and formations established in 1743 Military units and formations disestablished in 1881 Infantry regiments of the British Army Regiments of the British Army in the American Revolutionary War British military units and formations of the War of 1812 United Kingdom in the War of 1812 Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796–1817)