British Regiments in 1881
The units
listed below are shown in the order of precedence as of July 1881. Prior
to 1881, infantry regiment were known by the numbers in the column on the right.
Where infantry units are followed by two numbers, the numbers represent
regiments that were amalgamated to form the new unit. For example, the
Royal Dublin Fusiliers were formed from the 102nd Royal Madras Fusiliers and the
103rd Royal Bombay Fusiliers. This page also contains more information on
Cardwell's reforms.
Except for the 15th Hussars and the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards, every
regiment or corps in the British Army served in the Boer War. In the case
of some infantry regiments, only one of their two battalions was present.
This page is divided into
Cavalry, Corps, Guards,
Infantry and Support.
1st (King's) Dragoon Guards
2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)
3rd (The Prince of Wales's) Dragoon Guards
4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards
5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards
6th Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers)
7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards
1st (Royal) Dragoons
2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys)
3rd (The King's Own) Hussars
4th (The Queen's Own) Hussars
5th (Royal Irish) Lancers
6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons
7th (The Queen's Own) Hussars
8th (The King's Royal Irish) Hussars
9th (The Queen's Royal) Lancers
10th (The Prince of Wales's Own Royal) Hussars
11th (Prince Albert's Own) Hussars
12th (The Prince of Wales's Royal) Lancers
13th Hussars
14th (The King's) Hussars
15th (The King's) Hussars
16th (The Queen's) Lancers
17th (The Duke of Cambridge's Own) Lancers
18th (Victoria Mary, Prince of Wales's Own) Hussars
19th (Queen Alexandra's Own Royal) Hussars
20th Hussars
21st Lancers
Royal Regiment of Artillery
Corps of Royal Engineers
Grenadier Guards
Coldstream Guards
Scots Guards
Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)
Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)
Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)
Northumberland Fusiliers
Royal Warwickshire Regiment
Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
King's (Liverpool Regiment)
Norfolk Regiment
Lincolnshire Regiment
Devonshire Regiment
Suffolk Regiment
(Prince Albert's) Somerset Light Infantry
Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment)
East Yorkshire Regiment
Bedfordshire Regiment
Leicestershire Regiment
Royal Irish Regiment
Princess of Wales's Own (Yorkshire Regiment)
Lancashire Fusiliers
Royal Scots Fusiliers
Cheshire Regiment
Royal Welsh Fusiliers
South Wales Borderers
King's Own Scottish Borderers
Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)
Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
Gloucestershire Regiment
Worcestershire Regiment
East Lancashire Regiment
East Surrey Regiment
Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment)
Border Regiment
Royal Sussex Regiment
Hampshire Regiment
South Staffordshire Regiment
Dorsetshire Regiment
Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment)
Welsh Regiment
Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)
Oxfordshire Light Infantry
Essex Regiment
Sherwood Foresters (Derbyshire Regiment)
Loyal North Lancashire Regiment
Northamptonshire Regiment
(Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Berkshire Regiment
(Queen's Own) Royal West Kent Regiment
King's Own Light Infantry (South Yorkshire Regiment)
(King's) Shropshire Light Infantry
(Duke of Cambridge's Own) Middlesex Regiment
King's Royal Rifle Corps
(Duke of Edinburgh's) Wiltshire Regiment
Manchester Regiment
(Prince of Wales's) North Staffordshire Regiment
York and Lancaster Regiment
Durham Light Infantry
Highland Light Infantry
Seaforth Highlanders (Rossshire Buffs)
Gordon Highlanders
(Queen's Own) Cameron Highlanders
Royal Irish Rifles
(Princess Victoria's) Royal Irish Fusiliers
Connaught Rangers
(Princess Louise's) Sutherland and Argyll Highlanders
Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)
Royal Munster Fusiliers
Royal Dublin Fusiliers
(Prince Consort's Own) Rifle Brigade
West India Regiment |
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
19th
20th
21st
22nd
23rd
24th
25th
26th and 90th
27th and 108th
28th and 61st
29th and 36th
30th and 59th
31st and 70th
32nd and 46th
33rd and 76th
34th and 55th
35th and 107th
37th and 67th
38th and 80th
39th and 54th
40th and 82nd
41st and 69th
42nd and 73rd
43rd and 52nd
44th and 56th
45th and 95th
47th and 81st
48th and 58th
49th and 66th
50th and 97th
51st and 105th
53rd and 85th
57th and 77th
60th
62nd and 99th
63rd and 96th
64th and 98th
65th and 84th
68th and 106th
71st and 74th
72nd and 78th
75th and 92nd
79th
83rd and 86th
87th and 89th
88th and 94th
91st and 93rd
100th and 109th
101st and 104th
102nd and 103rd
[unnumbered since 1816] |
Commissariat and Transport Corps
Army Hospital Corps
Army Ordnance Corps
Corps of Military Mounted Police
Corps of Army Schoolmasters
Army Chaplain's Department
Army Pay Department
Army Veterinary Department
Army Nursing Service
The Crimean War (1854-56) and Indian Mutiny (1857) both highlighted the need
for reform in the British Army. Events in Europe and the victories of the
Prussians also provoked the British Government in action as they watch the
growing power of Bismarck.
In 1870, the Secretary of State for War, Edward Cardwell, started the
introduction of extensive reforms that bear his name. The reforms
completed in 1881, well after he left post in 1874. Cardwell's reforms
were implemented through a number of changes:
| 1870 |
-
the War Office Act reorganised
the War Office. The various sections of the War Department were
brought together
-
the Commander in Chief became
subordinate to the Secretary for War
-
the Army Enlistment Act fixed
the term of enlistment to 12 years, part on active service and part on
reserve. Before this, enlistment was for life
-
Overseas service was limited to
six years. This was to be followed by six years in the reserve
-
the Martini-Henry rifle became
the infantry's standard weapon
|
| 1871 |
-
Purchasing of Commissions was
abolished
-
Selection and promotion of
officers on merit
-
flogging in peacetime in the
Royal Navy was suspended
|
| 1872 |
-
Each regiment was to have two
linked battalions. One would serve overseas and one would serve at
home
-
Britain was divided into 69
districts, each with its own county regiment. The regiment was to
bear the county name
-
It was hoped to boost
recruitment by attaching regiments to local areas
|
| 1879 |
|
| 1881 |
- flogging was abolished in the army
- Regular and militia battalions were amalgamated into territorial
regiments with local names and local depots
|
| 
