1st Batt.
The service companies of the first battalion embarked from Gibraltar for the West Indies, on the 17th February, 1846, and arrived at Barbadoes on the 21st March. The depôt companies, which proceeded from Glasgow to Dublin in 1841, remained in Ireland.
On the 28th July, 1846, General the Right Honourable Sir George Murray, G.C.B. died, and Her Majesty was pleased to confer the colonelcy of the First or Royal Regiment of Foot on General the Right Honourable Sir James Kempt, G.C.B., from the Second, or Queen's Royal Regiment of Foot.
The head-quarters of the first battalion are at Trinidad: the depôt companies at Newbridge: the second battalion is at Edinburgh, at the close of the year 1846, at which period this record is concluded.
1846.
The foregoing account proves the antiquity of the First, or Royal Regiment of Foot, and gives a statement of its services for a period of more than 200 years, during which it has acquired laurels under the great Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, and under the French Marshals, Turenne, the Prince of Condé, Luxembourg, and De Crequi: it has since formed a part of the British army which has fought and conquered under King William III., Marlborough, Abercromby, Moore, and Wellington, the most celebrated warriors and consummate generals of their periods; thus establishing a fame and distinction which, it is presumed, few, if any, other military bodies in Europe can claim. The career of the Royal Regiment has not evinced a feverish and uncertain valour, sometimes emitting sudden flashes which startle and surprise, and at others betraying weakness and pusillanimity, but it has proved uniform and invincible; and whether employed against the barbarous tribes of Asia, Africa, and America, or the disciplined legions of Europe, the officers and men of the Royal Regiment have, on all occasions, displayed the native energy, firmness, and contempt of danger peculiar to Britons; and by their victories in every quarter of the globe, they have established a reputation for future ages to emulate.
Posterity, looking back at the splendid achievements of the British arms in various parts of the world, will naturally inquire what regiments won honour and fame in the several fields of glory where British valour was sternly proved. To this it may be answered that, in the seventeenth century, when Gustavus Adolphus stood forth the champion of the Protestant princes of Germany, this regiment fought and conquered in that glorious cause; and it claims the honour of having fought at the battle of Leipsic, famous in the history of Sweden, and at Roucroy, celebrated in the annals of France.
In the succeeding century, when the balance of power in Europe was destroyed by the union of France and Spain, and Louis XIV. sought to dictate laws to Christendom, this regiment was one of the first which appeared at the scene of conflict, and it shared in the victories of Blenheim, Ramilies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet, also in the honour of capturing the fortresses which that ambitious monarch had erected as bulwarks to his kingdom; and thus purchased peace for Europe.
When Bonaparte, whose hatred and jealousy of England were unalterable, sought to become more than the dictator of Europe, this regiment met the legions of the usurper, and fought and triumphed in battles, which are inscribed on its colours as monuments to stimulate to deeds of valour the men of future generations, who shall enrol themselves under the banners of the Royal Regiment. Besides these leading features of its career, in which the national character and influence have been elevated, this regiment has evinced equally brilliant qualities in actions which, though less important in their bearing on the affairs of Europe, have attested the intrinsic merit of the corps, and have purchased numerous advantages to the commerce, power, stability, and happiness of Britain.