His Royal Highness desires you will recommend 1 captain, 1 lieutenant, and 1 ensign of the regiment under your command, who volunteer to serve in this corps of Riflemen, in order that His Royal Highness may select from the officers recommended from the regiments which furnish their quota on this occasion a sufficient number of officers for the Rifle Corps. These officers are to be considered as detached on duty from their respective regiments, and will share in all the promotion that occurs in them during their absence.
Eight drummers will be required to act as bugle-horns, and I request you will acquaint me, for the information of His Royal Highness, whether you have any in the — Regiment qualified to act as such, or of a capacity to be easily instructed.
I have, &c.
Harry Calvert.
A. G.
Thus we see that the Regiment was formed as a corps d’élite; and as regards the officers there was a double selection, eight of each rank of company officers being selected from the fourteen originally recommended.
The detachments so selected assembled at Horsham, in Sussex, in March 1800, and their first parade as ‘An Experimental Corps of Riflemen’ took place there on April 1 in that year; Lieutenant-Colonel the Honourable William Stewart being apparently in command.
The following is the Return of the state and strength of the Corps on this its first formation:
| Lieut.- Colonel | Captains | Lieut- enants | Ensigns | Sergeants | Drummers | Rank and file | |
| 1st Foot | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | |
| 21st ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| 23rd ” | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||||
| 25th ” | 1 | 2 | 32 | ||||
| 27th ” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | |
| 29th ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| 49th ” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | |
| 55th ” | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | |||
| 67th ” | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 69th ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| 71st ” | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | |||
| 72nd ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| 79th ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| 85th ” | 1 | 27 | |||||
| 92nd ” | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | ||
| Total | 1 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 27 | 12 | 443 |
| Wanting to complete | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||
| Establishment | 1 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 28 | 13 | 448 |
The Corps being now formed marched to a camp of exercise at Swinley in Windsor Forest in May, and proceeded actively with their training as Riflemen. They are mentioned with great approbation by Mr. W. H. Fremantle in a letter, dated July 15, 1800, to the Marquis of Buckingham, as being ‘good, and much more useful’ than some other regiments then in that camp.[13] The camp broke up at the end of July, and at the request of Lieutenant-Colonel Stewart three companies of the corps (Captains Travers’,[14] Hamilton’s, and Gardner’s) were ordered to embark, under his command, with the expedition against the north coast of Spain, under Lieutenant-General Sir James Pulteney, Bart., and Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren, K.B.
The expedition arrived before the harbour of Ferrol on August 25, and immediately commenced its disembarkation. This was effected without opposition in a small bay near Cape Prioriño; but on the troops proceeding to occupy a ridge of hills adjoining the bay, the Rifle Corps, which covered the advance, just as they gained the summit fell in with a party of the enemy which they drove back. In this skirmish Lieutenant-Colonel Stewart was dangerously wounded through the body. On the next morning, at daybreak, the position was attacked by a considerable body of the enemy, who were repulsed with much loss, and the English troops remained in complete possession of the heights. But in this action Captains Travers and Hamilton, and Lieutenant Edmonston, attached to the Rifle Corps, and eight rank and file were wounded. Sir James Pulteney being, however, of opinion that Ferrol could not be taken, or the ground he occupied be held, re-embarked the troops.[15] It was subsequently stated in the House of Lords that at the very moment he did so the proper officer was on his way with the keys of the place, to surrender it. And Mr. Ford affirms that ‘had the expedition sailed boldly up to the Ferrol, the Gallicians were only waiting to surrender, being, as usual, absolutely without means of defence.’ He attributes the failure to the combined indecision of the leaders.[16]