Home of the Infantry Regiments of Berkshire and Wiltshire

The Regimental Colours

 

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Past Colours Laid Up.
 

The word ‘Colours’ is often used to describe not only the Colours of infantry battalions but also the Standards of the Household Cavalry and Dragoon Guards and the Guidons of Dragoons, Hussars and Lancers. Rifle Regiments do not carry Colours. All three types of Colours are direct descendants of the banners of the knights and barons whose followers made up the armies of Crecy and Agincourt. Originally the distinguishing marks of the leaders, they gradually became the means of identifying the units themselves. Thus they came to be regarded as symbolic of the spirit of those who fought under them, and the practice of consecrating them grew up.

 

During the 17th century Colours were carried by each company, but by the beginning of the 18th century they had been reduced to three in each infantry regiment. These were carried in battle by the three divisions of the regiment – musketeers on the flanks and pike men in the centre. With the abolition of the pike in 1707 the colours were reduced to two the Queen's Colour and the Regimental Colour, which are carried by most Infantry regiments to this day.

 

In earlier days the colours were trooped through the ranks of their respective regiments prior to an engagement, so that they could be recognised as a rallying point during the course of the battle. Although the Colours are no longer carried in battle as the tangible incentive in the attack or as a rallying point in defence, they constitute the sacred symbol of the Regiments honour and devotion to duty and depict, in the Battle Honours emblazoned on them, the courage, sacrifice and steadfastness of our forbears. 

 

A stand of colours normally comprises:

A Queen's Colour, usually with the design of the Union Flag with a gold circle in the centre, within which the regiments’s name (and sometimes initials or number) are inscribed;
 

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Queen's Colour.
 

A Regimental Colour, usually a plain flag in the colour of the regiment's "facings" (traditionally the colour of the lining of the redcoat jacket) or the Cross of St George, with the regiment's insignia in the centre.
 

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Regimental Colour.
 

Now, however, for the soldiers of Berkshire and Wiltshire things have changed, for traditionally Rifle Regiments do not carry Colours and as such the privilege of carrying them on parades throughout the counties will no longer be available. Those of our predecessor regiments are now only to be seen where they have been laid up.

 

Here we will show examples of our former Regiments colours, where and when they were presented and when and where they were laid up (where known). It each case we list the battle honours awarded with the ones carried on the colours shown in BOLD TYPE.

 

They are shown in the order of precedence, followed by the order of amalgamation.

 

Royal Berkshire Regiment (49th/66th)
 

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Royal Berkshire Regiment.

 

Battle honours
Royal Berkshire Regiment
(49th, 66th)

Battle Honour (Bold type carried on colours) Participating Unit
St Lucia 1778 49th
Egmont-op-Zee 49th
Copenhagen 49th
Douro 2nd/66th
Talavera 2nd/66th
Albuhera 2nd/66th
Queenstown 49th
Vittoria 2nd/66th
Pyrenees 2nd/66th
Nivelle 2nd/66th
Nive 2nd/66th
Orthes 2nd/66th
Peninsula 2nd/66th
Alma 49th
Inkerman 49th
Sevastopol 49th
Kandahar 1880 66th
Afghanistan 1879 -80 66th
Egypt 1882 1st
Tofrek 1st
Suakin 1885 1st
South Africa 1899-1902 2nd

First World War

Mons 1st
Retreat from Mons 1st
Marne 1st
Asine 1914, 1918 1st and 2nd
Ypres, 1914, 18 1st, 1st/4th ,2nd/4th
Langemarck 1914, 17 1st, 2nd, 1st/4th
Gheluvelt 1st
Nonne Bosschen 1st
Neuve Chapelle 2nd
Aubers 2nd
Festubert 1915 1st
Loos 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th
Somme 1916, 1918 1st, 2nd, 1st/4th, 2nd/4th, 5th, 6th, 8th
Albert 1916 1918 1st, 2nd, 5th 8th
Bazentin 2nd/4th, 6th 8th
Delville Wood 1st
Poziers 1st/4th
Flers-Corcelette 8th
Morval 8th
Thiepval 8th
Le Transloy 8th
Ancre Heights 1st/4th
Ancre 1916 – 18 1916 – 1st 1918 - 5th
Arras 1917-18 1917 – 1st , 5th 1918 – 2nd
Scarpe 1917 -18 1917 – 5th 1918 – 2nd
Arleux 1st, 5th
Pilckem 2nd , 6th
Polygon Wood 1st/4th
Broodseinde 1st/4th
Poelcappelle 1st/4th
Passchendale 6th
Cambrai 1917, 18 1917 – 1st, 2nd/4th ,5th 1918 – 1st
St Quentin 1st , 2/4th
Bapaume 1918 1st, 5th
Rosieres 2nd
Avre 8th
Villers-Bretonneux 2nd
Lys 2nd/4th
Hazebrouck 2nd/4th
Bethune 2nd/4th
Amiens 8th
Hindenburg Line 8th
Havrincourt 1st
Epehy 5th, 8th
Canal du Nord 1st
St Quentin Canal 8th
Selle 1st, 1st/4th, 5th, 8th
Valenciennes 2nd/4th
Sambre 8th
France and Flanders 1914 - 18 1st, 2nd, 1st/4th, 2nd/4th, 5th, 6th, 8th
Piave 1st/4th
Vittorio Veneto 1st/4th
Italy 1917-18 1st/4th
Doiran 1917-1918 7th
Macedonia, 1915 1918. 7th

Second World War

Dyle 1st
St Omer-La Bassee 1st
Dunkirk 1940 1st, 4th
Normandy Landing 5th
Rhine 5th
North West Europe 1940, 44,45 1st, 5th
Pursuit to Messina 10th
Sicily 1943 10th
Monte Camino 10th
Calabritto 10th
Garigliano Crossing 10th
Damiano 10th
Anzio 10th
Carroceto 10th
Italy 1943 – 1945 10th
Donbaik 1st
Kohima 1st
Mao Songsang 1st
Shwebo 2nd
Kyaukmyaung Bridgehead 2nd
Mandalay 2nd
Fort Dufferin 2nd
Rangoon Road 2nd
Toungoo 2nd
Burma 1942-1945 1st, 2nd

 

49th (Hertfordshire) Regiment
1st Battalion
(dates of presentation of colours where known)

Date of presentation  
1743 Trelawney’s Regiment – No trace
1769 No Trace
1772 No Trace
1781 The periods between presentations seem short, especially that between 1769 and 1772. Heavy usage in the American War of Independence and St Lucia may account for this.
1816 1816 - A report dated 1815 when the Regiment was stationed in Weymouth stated ‘Colours worn out from being torn from the staffs at Fort George to prevent them from falling into the hands of the enemy’ This refers to the capture of Fort George by the Americans in May 1813. They were replaced on the 17th August 1816 when the regiment was based in Dublin. (We have no records of what became of the old colours.)
1844 Colours presented at Winchester on the 27th August. The colours were consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester and presented by Lady Pakenham. (disposal of old colours not known)
1861 or 2. No record of presentation, but they were laid up in St Lawrence’s Church, Friar Street, Reading on the 7th May 1891.
1889 First stand of Royal Colours were presented by HRH the Duke of Edinburgh. 1st April in Malta. (The Regiment was re-designated as a ‘Royal’ Regiment as a result of the action at Tofrek in the Sudan in 1885). In 1905 the condition of the colours was so bad that it was thought they would have to be replaced. This was avoided due to a repair carried out by Mrs Field the wife of the quartermaster.
1908 Presented on the Curragh parade ground near Dublin on the 14th August by Lieutenant-General, the Hon, Sir N.G. Lyttelton, GCB (Commander-in-Chief, Ireland.) They were eventually laid up in June 1960 at St Mary’s Church, Wallingford.
1956 Her Majesty the Queen presented new colours at Windsor Castle on the 21st July 1956.
1959 The final stand of colours were laid up at Windsor Castle on the 22nd May 1959 prior to amalgamation with the Wiltshire Regiment. .

 

66th (Berkshire) Regiment
2nd Battalion
Date of presentation

1758 Presented on formation of the regiment but they were reported as being ‘bad’ in 1773. (These colours were eventually laid up in St Vincent)
1785 It is believed the Regiment was presented with new colours during its posting in St Vincent. On hearing that the 66th was under orders for Gibraltar, the St Vincent Government formally requested that the old colours might be deposited in the court house at Kingstown. On the 8th January 1793 the colours that had been carried for upwards of 30 years were deposited in the court house. The St Vincent authorities replied -

‘We receive these colours as a mark of attention from the Regiment to the Colony, and will preserve them as a memorial of their good conduct and discipline’

These colours are no longer there.
1803 New colours presented to the newly formed 2nd/66th These were lost at Albuhera and what was left of the battalion served as the left wing of the first provisional battalion and the colours they served under during this period were those of the 2nd/31st As a result of the loss new colours were provided and were sent to Lisbon in 1812. As they were not required due to the remnants of the battalion serving as a provisional battalion the colours were returned to England. When the battalion returned to England in 1814, these new colours were sent to Plymouth to meet it. The Regiment actually landed at Portsmouth, and somehow the colours went astray, and never reached them. A new set was made up, after which the missing set which had never been carried turned up. This caused a dilemma for Major-General Nicolls who as Colonel of the 66th was responsible for paying for both sets. One of these sets eventually passed into the possession of Miss Louisa Nicolls a relative of the General, and eventually presented to the Royal United Service Institution on the 8th March 1876. They were later passed into the custody of the Regiment and are now at the Regimental Museum in Salisbury. (We do not know what became of the second set).
1851 New colours presented to the 66th at the Jesuit Barracks, Quebec July 1851, presented by Lieutenant Colonel Grubbe the officer commanding the battalion, without the usual preliminary consecration. (The old colours were sent back to the Regiment's depot which at that time was located in Guernsey and later laid up in St Mary’s Church, Reading on the 27th February 1877.)
1872 New Colours presented to the 66th in the Sind District, India 1872 (These were lost at the battle of Maiwand in Afghanistan, 27th July 1880) presented by His Excellency the Rt Hon Lord Northbrook, Viceroy and Governor of India.
1881 New colours presented to the 2nd Battalion Berkshire Regiment to replace those lost at Maiwand, when the battalion was the 66th, by Queen Victoria at Parkhurst 18th August. They were carried until 1948 when the battalion merged with the 1st Battalion. These colours were kept by the 1st Battalion and eventually laid up at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. Their current whereabouts are not known.

 

3rd (Militia) Battalion
Date of presentation

1855 Colours presented on 31st July near Vastern Road, Reading next to the Thames River. They were presented by the Countess of Abingdon. (It is not known what happened to the previous set of colours)
1898 1898 Presented with new colours at Windsor Seebook. Carried until 1908 when they became the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion. They were disbanded in 1919. They were keep in the officers' mess at Brock Barracks until June 1960 when they were laid up in the town hall in Abingdon

 

4th Battalion
Date of presentation

1908 The 4th (Territorial) Battalion were presented with their first set of colours on the 3rd August 1909 at Beaulieu, Hampshire.
1967 These colours were laid up in St Laurence’s Church, Reading in 1967.

Royal Berkshire Regiment Service (Kitchener) Battalions

These were raised in 1914/15 and once trained went to the Western Front and other areas of operations where they remained until the cessation of hostilities. Their contribution was such that the authorities deemed that the battalions should be presented with a King's Colour. In most cases they were presented with the colour which was immediately laid up as the Battalion in question no longer existed.

 

5th (Service )Battalion

The King's Colour was presented by HRH the Prince of Wales at Erre (France) during a driving snowstorm on the 14th February 1919. They were laid up in St Laurence’s Church, Friar Street, Reading. They are still there today.

 

6th (Service)Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at the Depot, Reading on the 31st August 1920 by Major-General Sir H B Walker, KCB, KCMG, DSO. Later they were laid up at St Giles Church, Southampton Street, Reading. This colour has since gone missing.

 

7th (Service)Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at the Depot, Reading on the 31st August 1920 by Major-General Sir H B Walker, KCB. KCMG, DSO. Later they were laid up at in St Georges Church, Reading. This colour has since gone missing.

 

8th (Service) Battalion.

The Kings Colour was presented at Bartry (France) in January 1919 by Lieutenant-General Sir R H K Butler, KCB, KCMG, General Officer Commanding III Corps. They were laid up at St Giles Church, Southampton Street, Reading. This colour has since gone missing.

 

The Royal Berkshire Regiment were one of the very few to present colours to the Labour Battalions.

 

10th (Labour) Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at Brock Barracks in August 1920 by Major- General Sir H B Walker KCB, KCMG, DSO. It was received by Major Pike MC and later laid up in Reading (This colour is now missing).

 

11th (Labour) Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at Brock Barracks in August 1920 by Major- General Sir H B Walker, KCB, KCMG, DSO. It was received by Captain Holtham and later laid up in Reading (This colour is now missing).

 

12th (Labour) Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at Brock Barracks in August 1920 by Major-General Sir H B Walker KCB, KCMG, DSO. It was received by Brigadier General Bodie and later laid up in Reading (This colour is now missing).

 

13th (Labour) Battalion

The King's Colour was presented at Brock Barracks in August 1920 by Major-General Sir H B Walker KCB, KCMG, DSO. It was received by Brigadier-General Bodie and later laid up in Reading (This colour is now missing).

 

Wiltshire Regiment (62nd/99th)

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Witlshire Regiment.

 

Battle Honours
Wiltshire (Duke of Edinburgh’s) Regiment
(62nd, 99th)

Battle Honour (Bold type carried on colours) Participating Unit
Louisburg 62nd
Nive 2nd/62nd
Peninsula 2nd/ 62nd
Ferozeshah 62nd
Sobraon 62nd
Sevastopol 62nd
New Zealand 99th
Pekin 1860 99th
South Africa 1879 99th
South Africa 1899 - 1902 2nd
FIRST WORLD WAR
Mons 1st
Le Cateau 1st
Retreat from Mons 1st
Marne 1914 1st
Aisne 1914 – 18 1st, 2nd
La Bassee 1914 2nd
Messines 1914-17 1st , 6th
Armentieres 1914 1st
Ypres 1914,17 1st , 2nd
Langemarck 1914 N/K
None Bosschen N/K
Neuve Chapelle 1st , 2nd
Aubers N/K
Festubert 1915 2nd
Loos 1st , 2nd , 6th
Somme 1916-18 1st , 2nd, 6th
Albert 1916 – 18 N/K
Bazentin N/K
Pozieres N/K
Le transloy N/K
Ancre heights N/K
Ancre 1916 N/K
Arras 1917 2nd
Scarpe 1917 N/K
Pilckem N/K
Menin road N/K
Polygon wood N/K
Broodseinde N/K
Poelcapelle N/K
Passchendale N/K
St Quentin 2nd
Lys 1st
Bailleul N/K
Kemmell 1st
Scherpenberg N/K
Bapaume 1918 1st
Hindenburg line 1st , 2nd
Epehy 7th
Canal du Nord N/K
St Quintin canal N/K
Beaurevoir 1st
Cambrai 1918 N/K
Selle N/K
Sambre 1st
France and Flanders 1914-18 1st, 2nd, 6th, 7th
Doiran 1917 7th
Macedonia 1915 – 18 7th
Sulva 5th
Sari bair 5th
Gallipoli 1915-16 5th
Gaza 1st/4th
Nebi samwil 1st/4th
Jerusalem 1st/4th
Megiddo 1st/4th
Sharon 1st/4th
Palestine 1917-18 1st/4th
Tigris1916 5th
Kut al amara 1917 5th
Baghdad 5th
Mesopotamia 1916-18 5th
SECOND WORLD WAR
Defence of Arras 2nd
Ypres-Comines Canal 2nd
Oden 4th, 5th
Caen 4th,5th
Hill 112 4th, 5th
Bourgeubus Ridge 4th,5th
Maltot 4th,5th
Mont Pincon 4th,5th
La Variniere 4th,5th
Seine 1944 4th,5th
Nederrijn 4th,5th
Roer 4th,5th
Rhineland 4th,5th
Cleve 4th,5th
Goch 4th,5th
Xanten 4th,5th
Rhine 4th,5th
Bremen 2nd, 4th, 5th
North West Europe 1940, 44,45 2nd,4th,5th
Solarino 2nd
Simeto Bridgehead 2nd
Sicily 1943 2nd
Garigliano Crossing 2nd
Minturno 2nd
Anzio 2nd
Rome 2nd
Advance to Tiber 2nd
Italy 1943 – 44 2nd
Middle East 1942 2nd
North Arakan 1st
Point 551 1st
Mayu Tunnels 1st
Ngakyedauk Pass 1st
Burma 1943 - 44 1st

62nd – 1st Battalion
(Date of presentation where known)

1st Stand 1758-1770

An Army inspection report of 1769 states that these colours were presented in 1757, when the 62nd were still the 2nd/4th. These colours are now laid up in the King's Own (4th Foot) memorial chapel at Lancaster.
 

2nd Stand – 1770 - 1780

Presented in Ireland and were carried in the American War of Independence. Carried at the battle of Saratoga in 1777, and hidden to prevent capture by the Americans when the British Force, under General Burgoyne, had to capitulate. The remands of the King's Colour are in the Regimental Museum (As in 1959 – check today).
 

3rd Stand – 1781 – 1805

Presented in 1781 at Lincoln they were carried in the West Indies in operations against the French at San Domingo in 1794.
 

NB (i) in 1801 there came the act of union with Ireland; St Patrick’s Cross was added to the Union flag and therefore to the Colours, and shamrocks joined the wreath of roses and thistles.
 

(ii) In 1804 there was a 2nd Battalion of the 62nd Foot who were presented with Colours at Devizes, and carried them in the Peninsula War in north-west Spain and in France, in 1813 and 1814, for which service they were granted a laurel wreath on their colours, as were all such regiments. They won the Battle Honours ‘Peninsula’ and ‘Nive’, which were subsequently borne on the Colours of the 1st/62nd, when eventually awarded in 1829 and 1844 respectively.
 

The 2nd/62nd was initially formed in 1799 and was later disbanded in 1802. We have no record of colours being presented during this time. They were reformed at Devizes in 1804 to meet the new threat from Napoleon and new colours were presented. We have no record of when or where. They were disbanded in 1817 and no trace of their colours remains.
 

4th Stand 1805 – 1842

The 62nd were presented with new colours in Ireland, subsequently carried in the campaigns in Egypt, Sicily and Italy between 1806 and 1813, and later in action in America in 1814. In 1842 the Regiment was going by boat on the River Ganges from Calcutta to Dinapore. The Colours were in the commanding officer's boat (Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Reed) when a storm blew up, the boat capsized and the Colours were lost. They were recovered from the river, badly damaged, seven months later, by a party from the Regiment. They are now in Salisbury Cathedral.
 

5th Stand 1844 – 1847

Presented in Dinapore by the Commanding Officer's wife, Mrs Thomas Reed, to replace those lost in the Ganges. They were carried through the 1st Sikh War of 1845-46, including the battles of Ferozeshah and Sobraon. In 1847 the Regiment were completing the last stage of their journey to Calcutta prior to embarking for England. They were again on the river Ganges. Lieutenant- Colonel Short was temporarily in command. A fire broke out in the straw roof of his boat and the colours were destroyed, only a few miles from where the previous set was lost in 1842. Part of a Queen's Colour, now in the Regimental Museum, is all that is known to survive.
 

6th Stand 1848 – 1865

Presented on the 6th April 1848 by Lady Augusta FitzClarence, wife of the District Commander, Major-General Lord Frederick FitzClarance, at Winchester, on the Regiment's return from India. They were carried throughout the Crimean War, and were laid up in All Saints Church, Aldershot on the 19th May 1865. After hanging for 98 years, the remnants of the colours were removed in May 1962 and returned to Wiltshire. Arrangments were made for them to be placed in Salisbury Cathedral.
 

7th Stand 1865 – 1939

Presented by Lieutenant-General Sir W T Knollys, Comptroller of the Prince of Wale’s Household and Colonel of the Regiment, in Aldershot. Colours ceased to be carried in action after the Zulu War of 1879, but this stand accompanied the 1st Battalion all over the world for 74 years. During the Second World War they were lodged in Fort St George, Madras. They were brought home in 1946, and laid up in St James Church, Devizes.
 

8th Stand 1939 - 1959

Presented by H.E. The Viceroy of India, The Marquis of Linlithgow, in Bangalore. Carried on the parade in Krefeld, Germany with the 2nd Battalion’s Colours, on the 1st January 1949 when the 1st and 2nd Battalions were amalgamated. The new 1st (Amalgamated) Battalion then kept both stands of colours, which were laid up together in Salisbury Cathedral on the 4th May 1959.
 

99th – 2nd Battalion

1st Stand 1824 or 1825 – 1841

The 99th were raised in Glasgow in 1824 with the first stand of colours being presented there. Carried by the Regiment in Mauritius for thirteen years and then in Ireland. Laid up in St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh but later returned to the regiment and they are now in the Regimental Museum at Salisbury.
 

2nd Stand – 1841 – 1871

Presented at Chatham on the 20th October 1841 by Miss Douglas, daughter of Lieutenant-General Sir Howard Douglas, GCB, GCMG, Colonel of the Regiment. The Colours were given by Lieutenant-General Sir Hugh Gough, the late Colonel of the Regiment. At the same time embroidered Colour belts were presented by the commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant, having been given by his wife. They were received by Ensigns Montgomerie, R de Winton, G de Winton and Blackburn. The Regiment had just started sailing to Australia by detachments, serving as convict guards on the voyage. The Colours remained in Australia and Tasmania with the regiment till 1856 and were carried in action in China in 1860.
 

In 1874, three years after their replacement, these colours were presented to the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh at Ballanter railway station in Scotland by the commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel J Hart Dunne, in the presence of the Queen’s Guard formed by the 99th, prior to the Duke and Duchess’s departure for London. The colours were hung on the Grand Staircase at Clarence House until the Duke's death in 1900, and were laid up in St James Church, Devizes in 1901.
 

3rd Stand 1871 – 1926

Presented by H.R.H. The Duke of Edinburgh, KG in the Guards' Enclosure at Aldershot on the 7th August 1871, thus fulfilling a promise he had made at the Cape of Good Hope two years previously. These Colours were carried in action for the last time in the Zulu War of 1879. During the Boer War they were lodged at the Regimental Depot at Devizes. They were brought home from India in 1926 after 55 years with the Battalion and laid up in Salisbury Cathedral.
 

4th Stand – 1926-1959

Presented by Field Marshal Lord Birdwood, GCB, GCSI, GCMG, GBE, CIE, DSO, Commander-in-Chief of the British Indian Army, at Kamptee. The Colonel of the Regiment, Major-General F C Beatson was present. These colours remained with those of the old 1st Battalion on amalgamation in 1949, and were laid up with them in Salisbury Cathedral on the 4th May 1959.
 

4th Battalion

In 1925 the battalion was officially recognised a Battalion of the Line, although it ceased to have a ‘Rifle Battalion’ connection in 1908. They were presented with their Colours at Lighton Camp, Westbury on the 3rd August 1927, by their Honorary Colonel Lord Radnor, a Brigadier-General and Lord Lieutenant of the County. These colours were laid up in 1967 when the battalion was merged into the Wessex Regiment.
 

3rd (Militia) Bn

A stand of colours were made by the Ladies of the County and presented in 1853.
 

Presented 15th July 1913 by Field Marshall Lord Methuen. This was the first set of Militia Colours to bear the battle honours of the Regular Battalions. After the Battalion's disbandment in 1919 the colours were laid up in the officers' mess of Le Marchant Barracks, Devizes, remaining there for thirteen nine years. On the 23rd November 1958 they were laid up in St James Church, Devizes. In 2006 they were returned to the Regimental Museum in Salisbury. The colours were last carried on parade in 1941 on the occasion of a guard of honour provided by the Regimental Depot for Field Marshal The Lord Birdwood.
 

5th (Service) Battalion

A King's Colour was presented in 1919 and later laid up in St James Church, Devizes.
 

6th (Service) Battalion

A King's Colour was presented in 1919 and later laid up in St James Church, Devizes.
 

7th (Service) Battalion

A King's Colour was presented in 1919 and later laid up in St James Church, Devizes.
 

Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment
(Berkshire and Wiltshire)

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DERR.
 

Battle Honours
Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment
(49th, 62nd, 66th, 99th)

Battle Honour (Bold type carried on colours) Participating Unit
Louisburg 62nd
St Lucia 1778 49th
Egmont-op-Zee 49th
Copenhagen 49th
Douro 2nd/66th
Talavera 2nd/66th
Albuhera 2nd/66th
Queenstown 49th
Vittoria 2nd/66th
Pyrenees 2nd/66th
Nivelle 2nd/66th
Nive 2nd/66th 2nd/ 62nd
Orthes 2nd/66th
Peninsula 2nd/66th 2nd/62nd
New Zealand 99th
Ferozeshah 62nd
Sobraon 62nd
Alma 49th
Inkerman 49th
Sevastopol 49th 62nd
Pekin 1860 99th
Kandahar 1880 66th
Afghanistan 1879 -80 66th
Egypt 1882 Berks
Tofrek Berks
Suakin 1885 Berks
South Africa 1879, 1899-1902 Berks/Wilts
First World War
Mons Berks/Wilts
Le Cateau Wilts
Retreat from Mons Berks/Wilts
Marne 1914 Berks/Wilts
Asine 1914, 1918 Berks/Wilts
La Bassee 1914 Wilts
Messines 1914, 1917, 1918 Berks/Wilts
Armentieres 1914 Wilts
Ypres 1914, 1917 Berks/Wilts
Langemarck 1914, 1917 Berks/Wilts
Gheluvelt Berks
Nonne Bosschen Berks/Wilts
Neuve Chapelle Berks
Aubers Berks
Festubert 1915 Berks
Loos Berks/Wilts
Somme 1916, 1918 Berks/Wilts
Albert 1916 1918 Berks/Wilts
Bazentin Berks/Wilts
Delville Wood Berks
Pozieres Wilts
Flers-Corcelette Berks
Morval Berks
Thiepval Berks
Le Transloy Berks/Wilts
Ancre Heights Wilts
Ancre 1916 – 18 Berks/Wilts
Arras 1917-18 Berks/Wilts
Scarpe 1917 -18 Berks/Wilts
Arleux Berks
Pilckem Berks/Wilts
Menin road Wilts
polygon wood Berks/Wilts
Broodseinde Berks/Wilts
Poelcapelle Berks/Wilts
Passchendale Berks/Wilts
Cambrai 1917, 18 Berks
St Quentin Berks/Wilts
Bapaume 1918 Berks/Wilts
Rosieres Berks
Avre Berks
Villers-Bretonneux Berks
Lys Berks/Wilts
Hazebrouck Berks
Bailleul Wilts
Kemmel Wilts
Bethune Berks
Scherpenberg Wilts
Amiens Berks/Wilts
Hindenburg Line Berks/Wilts
Havrincourt Berks
Epehy Berks/Wilts
Canal du Nord Berks/Wilts
St Quentin Canal Berks/Wilts
Beaurevoir Wilts
Selle Berks/Wilts
Valenciennes Berks
Sambre Berks/Wilts
France and Flanders 1914 - 18 Berks/Wilts
Piave Berks
Vittorio Veneto Berks
Italy 1917-18 Berks
Doiran 1917-1918 Wilts
Macedonia, 1915 1918. Berks/Wilts
Sulva Wilts
Sari bair Wilts
Gallipoli 1915-16 Wilts
Gaza Wilts
Nebi samwil Wilts
Jerusalem Wilts
Megiddo Wilts
Sharon Wilts
Palestine 1917-18 Wilts
Tigris1916 Wilts
Kut al amara 1917 Wilts
Baghdad Wilts
Mesopotamia 1916-18 Wilts
Second World War
Dyle Berks
Defence of Arras Wilts
St Omer-La Bassee Berks
Ypres-Comines Canal Wilts
Dunkirk 1940 Berks
Normandy Landing Berks
Oden Wilts
Caen Wilts
Hill 112 Wilts
Bourgeubus Ridge Wilts
Maltot Wilts
Mont Pincon Wilts
La Variniere Wilts
Seine 1944 Wilts
Nederrijn Wilts
Roer Wilts
Rhineland Wilts
Cleve Wilts
Goch Wilts
Xanten Wilts
Rhine Berks
Bremen Wilts
North West Europe 1940, 44,45 Berks/Wilts
Solarino Wilts
Simeto Bridgehead Wilts
Pursuit to Messina Berks
Sicily 1943 Berks
Monte Camino Berks
Calabritto Berks
Garigliano Crossing Berks/Wilts
Minturno Wilts
Anzio Berks/Wilts
Carroceto Berks
Rome Wilts
Advance to Tiber Wilts
Italy 1943 – 45 Berks/Wilts
Middle East 1942 Berks/Wilts
Donbaik Berks
North Arakan Wilts
Point 551 Wilts
Mayu Tunnels Wilts
Ngakyedauk Pass Wilts
Kohima Berks
Mao Songsang Berks
Shwebo Berks
Kyaukmyaung Bridgehead Berks
Mandalay Berks
Fort Dufferin Berks
Rangoon Road Berks
Toungoo Berks
Burma 1942-1945 Berks/Wilts

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment
(49th, 62nd, 66th, 99th)

1959 The first stand of colours were presented by the Duke of Edinburgh on the 9th June 1959 at Parkhurst on the Isle of Wight. These were carried until 1984 when they were replaced and laid up in Salisbury Cathedral.
1984 The second stand was presented at Canterbury on the 8th June 1984 and carried until 1994 when the Regiment merged with the Gloucestershire Regiment. The second stand is laid up in the Regimental Museum at Salisbury.

Royal Gloucestershire Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

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RGBW.
 

Battle Honours
Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment
(28th,49th,61st, 62nd ,66th, 99th )
(Those shown in bold type are carried on the colours)

Battle Honour (Bold type carried on colours) Participating Unit
Ramillies 28th
Louisburg 28th 62nd
Guadaloupe 1759 61st
Quebec 1759 28th
Martinque 1762 28th
St Lucia 1778 28th 49th
Egmont-op-Zee 49th
Copenhagen 49th
Maida 61st
Corunna 28th
Douro 2nd/66th
Talavera 61st 2nd/66th
Busaco 61st
Barrosa 28th
Albuhera 28th 2nd/66th
Queenstown 49th
Salamanca 61st
Vittoria 28th
Pyrenees 28th 61st
Nivelle 28th 61st
Nive 28th 61st 2nd/62nd
Orthes 28th 61st
Toulouse 28th 61st
Peninsula 28th 61st 62nd 2nd/66th
Waterloo 28th
New Zealand 99th
Ferozeshah 62nd
Sobraon 62nd
Chillanwallah 61st
Goojerat 61st
Punjaub 61st
Alma 28th 49th
Inkerman 28th 49th
Sevastopol 28th 49th 62nd
Delhi 61st
Pekin 1860 99th
Kandahar 1880 66th
Afghanistan 1879 -80 66th
Egypt 1882 49th
Tofrek Berks
Suakin 1885 Berks
Defence of Ladysmith Glos
Relief of Kimberly Glos
Paardeberg Glos
South Africa 1879, 1899-1902 Glos/Berks/Wilts
First World War
Mons Glos/Berks/Wilts
Retreat from Mons Glos/Berks/Wilts
Le Cateau Wilts
Marne 1914 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Asine 1914, 1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
La Bassee 1914 Wilts
Messines 1914, 1917, 1918 Glos/Wilts
Armentieres 1914 Wilts
Ypres 1914, 1915, 1917 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Langemarck 1914, 1917 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Gheluvelt Glos/Berks
Nonne Bosschen Glos/Berks/Wilts
Givenchy 1914 Glos
Neuve Chapelle Berks/Wilts
Gravenstafel Glos
St Julian Glos
Frezenberg Glos
Bellewaarde Glos
Aubers Glos/Berks/Wilts
Festubert 1915 Berks/Wilts
Loos Glos/Berks/Wilts
Somme 1916, 1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Albert 1916 1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Bazentin Glos/Berks/Wilts
Delville Wood Glos/Berks
Poziers Glos/Berks/Wilts
Guillemomnt Glos
Flers-Corcelette Glos/Berks
Morval Glos/Berks
Thiepval Berks
Le Transloy Berks/Wilts
Ancre Heights Glos/Berks/Wilts
Ancre 1916 – 18 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Arras 1917-18 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Vimy 1917 Glos
Scarpe 1917 -18 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Messines 1917,1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Arleux Berks
Pilckem Glos/Berks/Wilts
Menin road Glos/Wilts
Polygon wood Glos/Berks/Wilts
Broodseinde Glos/Berks/Wilts
Poelcapelle Glos/Berks/Wilts
Passchendale Glos/Berks/Wilts
Cambrai 1917, 18 Glos/Berks
St Quentin Glos/Berks/Wilts
Bapaume 1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Rosieres Glos/Berks
Avre Glos/Berks
Villers-Bretonneux Berks
Lys Glos/Berks/Wilts
Estaires Glos
Hazebrouck Glos/Berks
Bailleul Glos/Wilts
Kemmel Glos/Wilts
Bethune Glos/Berks
Scherpenberg Wilts
Amiens Berks
Drocourt Queant Glos
Hindenburg Line Glos/Berks/Wilts
Havrincourt Berks
Epehy Glos/Berks/Wilts
Canal du Nord Glos/Berks/Wilts
St Quentin Canal Glos/Berks/Wilts
Beaurevoir Glos/Wilts
Selle Glos/Berks/Wilts
Valenciennes Glos/Berks
Sambre Glos/Berks/Wilts
France and Flanders 1914 - 18 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Piave Glos/Berks
Vittorio Veneto Glos/Berks
Italy 1917-18 Glos/Berks
Struma Glos
Doiran 1917-1918 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Macedonia, 1915 1918. Glos/Berks/Wilts
Sulva Glos/Wilts
Sari Bair Glos/Wilts
Scimitar Hill Glos
Gallipoli 1915-16 Glos//Wilts
Egypt 1916 Glos
Gaza Wilts
Nebi Samwil Wilts
Jerusalem Wilts
Megiddo Wilts
Sharon Wilts
Palestine 1917-18 Glos
Tigris1916 Glos/Wilts
Kut al Amara 1917 Glos/Wilts
Baghdad Glos/Wilts
Mesopotamia 1916-18 Glos/Wilts
Persia 1918 Glos
Second World War
Dyle Berks
Defence of Escaut Glos
Defence of Arras Wilts
St Omer-La Bassee Glos/Berks
Wormboudt Glos
Cassel Glos
Ypres-Comines Canal Wilts
Dunkirk 1940 Berks
Normandy Landing Berks
Villers Bocage Glos
Oden Wilts
Caen Wilts
Hill 112 Wilts
Bourgeubus Ridge Wilts
Maltot Wilts
Mont Pincon Glos/Wilts
La Variniere Wilts
Falaise Glos
Risle Crossing Glos
Seine 1944 Wilts
La Havre Glos
Nederrijn Wilts
Roer Wilts
Zetten Glos
Rhineland Wilts
Cleve Wilts
Goch Wilts
Xanten Wilts
Rhine Berks
Bremen Wilts
North West Europe 1940, 44,45 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Solarino Wilts
Simeto Bridgehead Wilts
Pursuit to Messina Berks
Sicily 1943 Berks/Wilts
Monte Camino Berks
Calabritto Berks
Carigliano Crossing Berks/Wilts
Minturno Wilts
Damiano Berks
Anzio Berks/Wilts
Carroceto Berks
Rome Wilts
Advance to Tiber Wilts
Italy 1943 – 45 Berks/Wilts
Middle East 1942 Wilts
Taukyan Glos
Paungde Glos
Monywa 1942 Glos
Donbaik Berks
North Arakan Glos/Wilts
Point 551 Wilts
Mayu Tunnels Glos/Wilts
Ngakyedauk Pass Wilts
Kohima Berks
Mao Songsang Berks
Pinwe Glos
Shweli Glos
Shwebo Berks
Kyaukmyaung Bridgehead Berks
Mandalay Berks
Fort Dufferin Berks
Rangoon Road Berks
Myitson Glos
Toungoo Berks
Burma 1942-1945 Glos/Berks/Wilts
Korean War
Hill 327 Glos
Imjin Glos
Korea 1950 - 1951 Glos

1st Bn, Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

1994 The colours were presented at Windsor Castle on the 8th June 1994 by Field Marshal HRH The Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, KG, KT, OM, GBE, AC, QSO, Colonel-in-Chief. On the same occasion, there was a re- presentation of the United States Presidential Unit Citation by General G R Sullivan, Chief of Staff United States Army.
2007 When the Regiment was merged into The Rifles in 2007, colours were no longer carried. The 1st Battalion Colours were laid up in Gloucester.

2nd (Volunteer) Bn, Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

1998 The 2nd (Volunteer) Battalion were presented with new colours at Windsor Castle on the 5th June 1998 by the Duke of Edinburgh, after the merger of the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Wessex Regiment. They carried the same Battle Honours as the 1st Battalion.
2007 The colours were laid up in the Regimental Museum at Salisbury in 2007 when the Regiment merged into the Rifles.

The Wessex Regiment

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Wessex Regiment

 

The Wessex  Regiment

1st Battalion Wessex Regiment (Rifle Volunteers) colours were presented at Knook Camp, Heytesbury, near Warminster, June 1973, by General Sir Basil Eugster. Laid up in the Hythe Mess of the Combined Arms Training Centre at Warminster on 17 May 1998. [As of 2009 consideration was being given to see if a removal to a church in or near Devizes would be appropriate as the mess in question is not being used on a regular basis].

 

2nd Battalion Wessex Regiment colours were presented at the Royal Marine Barracks, Eastney, Portsmouth by Brigadier The Duke of Wellington on the morning of Saturday the 30 June 1979. That afternoon, the Regiment  paraded their Colours in the Guildhall Square, Portsmouth. 

 

The Rifles

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The Rifles.
 

Rifle regiments traditionally do not carry colours; this goes back to their formation, when they were used as skirmishers and sharpshooters. While individual units may have had banners or pennants to distinguish themselves from other units, regiments as a whole never needed a full stand of colours. Battle honours are instead inscribed on cap badges or cross belt plates. Due to the large number of honours brought forward by the formation of The Rifles in 2007 from four previously merged regiments with substantial battle honours a selected number were chosen to represent all the forming Regiments on the cross-belt plate. These are listed below, showing the Battle or Campaign honour, the participating unit and the designation of the unit that brought it forward to The Rifles.

 

Rifles Battle honours carried on the cross belt plate
(These were selected from a total of 913)

Battle Honour Units engaged

We will show the original unit engaged and its modern title in italics at the time of the merger in 2007

Gibraltar

13th (Somerset LI) Light Infantry

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

Dettingen

13th (Somerset LI) Light Infantry

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

Plassey

39th (Dorset) – Devon and Dorset Regiment

Minden

51(Kings own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

Quebec

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

Martinique

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

Marabout

54 (Dorset) – Devon and Dorset Regiment

Peninsula

11th (Devon) Devon and Dorset Regiment

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

39th (Dorset) Devon and Dorset Regiment

43rd Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

51st (Kings own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

52 (Oxfordshire LI) Royal Green Jackets

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

62nd (Wiltshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

66th (Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

68th (Durham LI) Light Infantry

95th (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

Waterloo
Afghanistan
(includes campaigns 1842 1880 & 1919)

32nd (Somerset LI - 1839) Light Infantry

51st (Kings own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

95th (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

59th (Kings own Shropshire LI) Light Infantry

66th (Berkshire) – Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Durham Light Infantry (1919) Light Infantry

Jellalabad

13th (Somerset LI) Light Infantry

Ferozeshah

62nd (Wiltshire) - Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Delhi

28th (Gloucestershire) - Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

42nd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

Lucknow

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

53rd (Kings Shropshire LI) Light Infantry

New Zealand
(Includes campaigns 1863 & 1845)

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI - 1863) Royal Green Jackets

68th (Durham LI - 1863) Light Infantry

99th (Wiltshire - 1845) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Pekin

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

99th (Wiltshire) - Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

South Africa
(includes campaigns 1879 & 1899 – 1902)

11th (Devonshire – 1899) Devon and Dorset Regiment

13th (Somerset LI - 1899 & 1879) Light Infantry

28th (Gloucestershire – 1899) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI – 1899) Light Infantry

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI – 1851 & 1899) Royal Green Jackets

54th (Dorset - 1899) Devon and Dorset Regiment

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps -1851, 1879 & 1899) Royal Green Jackets

66th (Royal Berkshire – 1899) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Kings Own Yorkshire LI – 1899) Light Infantry

Kings Shropshire LI – 1899) Light Infantry

99th (Wiltshire Regiment – 1879 &1899) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

68th Durham LI – 1899) Light Infantry

95th (Rifle Brigade – 1851 &1899) Royal Green Jackets

Inkerman

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

68th (Durham LI) Light Infantry

95th (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

Nonne Boschen

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

62nd (Wiltshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Ypres
(Includes campaigns 1914 -1915 – 1917 – 1918)

All units took part in this battle honour

Somme dates

All units took part in this battle honour

Vittorio Vento

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

43rd (Oxfordshire and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

51st (Kings Own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

Megiddo

13th (Somerset LI) Light Infantry

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

39th (Dorset) Devon and Dorset Regiment

62nd (Wiltshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Calais

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

95th (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

El Alamein

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

68th (Durham LI) Light Infantry

RB (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

Kohima

39th (Dorset) Devon and Dorset Regiment

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

68th (Durham LI) Light Infantry

Pegasus Bridge

43rd (Oxfordshire and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

Normandy

39th (Dorset) Devon and Dorset Regiment

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

53rd (Kings Shropshire LI) Light Infantry

Italy 1943 - 45

11th (Devon’s) Devon and Dorset Regiment

13th (Somerset LI) Light Infantry

32nd (Duke of Cornwall’s LI) Light Infantry

39th (Dorset) Devon and Dorset Regiment

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

51st (Kings Own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

60th (Kings Royal Rifle Corps) Royal Green Jackets

62nd (Wiltshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

68th (Durham LI) Light Infantry

RB (Rifle Brigade) Royal Green Jackets

Anzio

43rd (Oxford and Bucks LI) Royal Green Jackets

49th (Royal Berkshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

51st (Kings Own Yorkshire LI) Light Infantry

53rd (Kings Shropshire LI) Light Infantry

62nd (Wiltshire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Imjin

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

Korea

28th (Gloucestershire) Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment

53rd (Kings Shropshire LI) Light Infantry

Iraq 2003

Light Infantry