The character and credit of the British Army must chiefly depend upon the zeal and ardour, by which all who enter into its service are animated, and consequently it is of the highest importance that any measure calculated to excite the spirit of emulation, by which alone great and gallant actions are achieved, should be adopted.
Nothing can more fully tend to the accomplishment of this desirable object, than a full display of the noble deeds with which the Military History of our country abounds. To hold forth these bright examples to the imitation of the youthful soldier, and thus to incite him to emulate the meritorious conduct of those who have preceded him in their honourable career, are among the motives that have given rise to the present publication.
The operations of the British Troops are, indeed, announced in the "London Gazette," from whence they are transferred into the public prints: the achievements of our armies are thus made known at the time of their occurrence, and receive the tribute of praise and admiration to which they are entitled. On extraordinary occasions, the Houses of Parliament have been in the habit of conferring on the Commanders, and the Officers and Troops acting under their orders, expressions of approbation and of thanks for their skill and bravery, and these testimonials, confirmed by the high honour of their Sovereign's Approbation, constitute the reward which the soldier most highly prizes.
It has not, however, until late years, been the practice (which appears to have long prevailed in some of the Continental armies) for British Regiments to keep regular records of their services and achievements. Hence some difficulty has been experienced in obtaining, particularly from the old Regiments, an authentic account of their origin and subsequent services.
This defect will now be remedied, in consequence of His Majesty having been pleased to command, that every Regiment shall in future keep a full and ample record of its services at home and abroad.
From the materials thus collected, the country will henceforth derive information as to the difficulties and privations which chequer the career of those who embrace the military profession. In Great Britain, where so large a number of persons are devoted to the active concerns of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and where these pursuits have, for so long a period, been undisturbed by the presence of war, which few other countries have escaped, comparatively little is known of the vicissitudes of active service, and of the casualties of climate, to which, even during peace, the British Troops are exposed in every part of the globe, with little or no interval of repose.
In their tranquil enjoyment of the blessings which the country derives from the industry and the enterprise of the agriculturist and the trader, its happy inhabitants may be supposed not often to reflect on the perilous duties of the soldier and the sailor—on their sufferings—and on the sacrifice of valuable life, by which so many national benefits are obtained and preserved.
The conduct of the British Troops, their valour, and endurance, have shone conspicuously under great and trying difficulties; and their character has been established in Continental warfare by the irresistible spirit with which they have effected debarkations in spite of the most formidable opposition, and by the gallantry and steadiness with which they have maintained their advantages against superior numbers.
In the official Reports made by the respective Commanders, ample justice has generally been done to the gallant exertions of the Corps employed; but the details of their services, and of acts of individual bravery, can only be fully given in the Annals of the various Regiments.
These Records are now preparing for publication, under His Majesty's special authority, by Mr. Richard Cannon, Principal Clerk of the Adjutant-General's Office; and while the perusal of them cannot fail to be useful and interesting to military men of every rank, it is considered that they will also afford entertainment and information to the general reader, particularly to those who may have served in the Army, or who have relatives in the Service.
There exists in the breasts of most of those who have served, or are serving, in the Army, an Esprit de Corps—an attachment to every thing belonging to their Regiment; to such persons a narrative of the services of their own Corps cannot fail to prove interesting. Authentic accounts of the actions of the great—the valiant—the loyal, have always been of paramount interest with a brave and civilized people. Great Britain has produced a race of heroes who, in moments of danger and terror, have stood, "firm as the rocks of their native shore;" and when half the World has been arrayed against them, they have fought the battles of their Country with unshaken fortitude. It is presumed that a record of achievements in war—victories so complete and surprising, gained by our countrymen—our brothers—our fellow-citizens in arms—a record which revives the memory of the brave, and brings their gallant deeds before us, will certainly prove acceptable to the public.
Biographical memoirs of the Colonels and other distinguished Officers, will be introduced in the Records of their respective Regiments, and the Honorary Distinctions which have, from time to time, been conferred upon each Regiment, as testifying the value and importance of its services, will be faithfully set forth.
As a convenient mode of Publication, the Record of each Regiment will be printed in a distinct number, so that when the whole shall be completed, the Parts may be bound up in numerical succession.
CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF
THE FORMATION OF THE REGIMENT
IN 1715,
AND OF
ITS SUBSEQUENT SERVICES
TO
1842.
ILLUSTRATED WITH A PLATE OF THE UNIFORM.
LONDON:
JOHN W. PARKER, WEST STRAND.
M.DCCC.XLII.
LONDON:
HARRISON AND CO., PRINTERS,
ST. MARTIN'S LANE.
THE TWELFTH,
OR
THE PRINCE OF WALES'S ROYAL
LANCERS,
BEAR ON THEIR GUIDONS AND APPOINTMENTS
THE
"SPHINX," WITH THE WORD "EGYPT;"
"PENINSULA;" AND "WATERLOO;"
TO COMMEMORATE THEIR DISTINGUISHED CONDUCT IN
EGYPT IN 1801;
UNDER FIELD MARSHAL
HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON,
IN SPAIN AND THE SOUTH OF FRANCE, FROM 1811 TO 1814;
AND AT THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO, ON THE
18TH OF JUNE, 1815.
| Year | Page | |
| 1715 | Formation of the Regiment | 9 |
| —— | Names of Officer | 10 |
| —— | Rebellion of the Earl of Mar | 11 |
| 1718 | The Regiment embarks for Ireland | — |
| 1751 | Description of the Uniform and Guidons | 13 |
| 1768 | Styled the Prince of Wales's Regiment | 15 |
| —— | Constituted a corps of Light Dragoons | 16 |
| 1784 | Uniform changed from Scarlet to Blue | — |
| 1793 | Embarks for the Mediterranean | 17 |
| —— | Capture of the Island of Corsica | 18 |
| 1794 | Stationed in Italy—Approbation of Pope Pius VI. | — |
| 1795 | Embarks for England | 20 |
| 1796 | Proceeds to Portugal | — |
| 1800 | Embarks for the Mediterranean | 21 |
| 1801 | Lands in Egypt | 22 |
| —— | Battle of Alexandria | — |
| —— | Capture of a French Convoy in the Lybian Desert | 25 |
| —— | ———— Cairo and Alexandria | 27 |
| 1802 | Returns to England | 28 |
| —— | Embarks for Ireland | 29 |
| 1805 | Returns to England | — |
| 1809 | Expedition to Walcheren | — |
| —— | Returns to England | 30 |
| 1811 | Embarks for Portugal | — |
| —— | Blockade of Ciudad Rodrigo | — |
| 1812 | Covering the Siege of Ciudad Rodrigo | 31 |
| —— | —————————Badajoz | — |
| —— | Skirmish at Usagre—Action at Llerena | 32 |
| —— | Action at Castrejon | 34 |
| —— | Battle of Salamanca | 35 |
| —— | Covering the Siege of Burgos-Castle | 37 |
| —— | Skirmishes at Monasterio | — |
| —— | Covering the Retreat at Burgos | — |
| 1813 | Battle of Vittoria | 39 |
| —— | Skirmishes at Villa Franca and Tolosa | 40 |
| —— | Covering the Siege of St. Sebastian | 41 |
| —— | Passage of the Bidassoa | 42 |
| —— | Battle of the Nivelle | — |
| 1814 | Passage of the Adour—Blockade of Bayonne | 43 |
| —— | Marches to Bordeaux—Skirmish at Etoliers | 44 |
| —— | Returns to England | — |
| 1815 | Embarks for Flanders | 46 |
| —— | Battle of Quatre Bras | 47 |
| —— | Battle of Waterloo | 48 |
| —— | Names of the Officers who received Medals | 58 |
| —— | Advances to Paris | — |
| —— | Forms part of the Army of Occupation in France | 59 |
| —— | Constituted a corps of "Lancers" | — |
| 1817 | Rewarded with the title of the Twelfth, or Prince of Wales's, Royal Lancers | — |
| 1818 | Returns to England | 60 |
| 1820 | Embarks for Ireland | 61 |
| 1824 | Returns to England | — |
| 1826 | Embarks for Portugal | 63 |
| 1828 | Returns to England | 64 |
| 1829 | Proceeds to Scotland | — |
| 1830 | Embarks for Ireland | — |
| —— | Resumes wearing Scarlet Clothing | — |
| 1833 | Returns to England | — |
| 1837 | Reviewed by the Queen, Victoria | 65 |
| 1838 | Her Majesty's Coronation | 66 |
| 1839 | His Royal Highness the Prince George of Cambridge attached to the Regiment | — |
| 1840 | Embarks for Ireland | 67 |
| 1842 | Resumes wearing Blue Clothing | — |
| —— | The Conclusion | 68 |
| 1715 | Phineas Bowles | 69 |
| 1719 | Phineas Bowles | 70 |
| 1740 | Alexander Rose | — |
| 1743 | Samuel Walter Whitshed | — |
| 1746 | Thomas Bligh | 71 |
| 1747 | Sir John Mordaunt, K.B. | 72 |
| 1749 | Honorable James Cholmondeley | 73 |
| 1749 | Lord George Sackville | 74 |
| 1750 | Sir John Whitefoord, Baronet | 75 |
| 1763 | Edward Harvey | 76 |
| 1764 | Benjamin Carpenter | 77 |
| 1770 | William Augustus Pitt | — |
| 1775 | Honorable William Keppel | 78 |
| 1782 | Honorable George Lane Parker | 79 |
| 1791 | Sir James Steuart, Baronet | 79 |
| 1815 | Sir William Payne, Baronet | 81 |
| 1825 | Sir Colquhoun Grant, K.C.B., K.C.H. | 82 |
| 1827 | Sir R. H. Vivian, Baronet, now Lord Vivian, K.C.B., G.C.H. | 84 |
| 1837 | Sir H. J. Cumming, K.C.H. | — |
