Military unit
The
103rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Bombay Fusiliers)
was a
regiment
raised in 1662. It transferred to the command of the
Honourable East India Company
in 1668 and to the command of the
British Army
in 1862. Under the
Childers Reforms
it amalgamated with the
102nd Regiment of Foot (Royal Madras Fusiliers)
to form the
Royal Dublin Fusiliers
in 1881.
History
[
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]
Formation
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]
The regiment was originally raised in England as independent companies of European soldiers to garrison
Bombay
in February 1662.
[1]
It embarked for
India
later that year and was transferred to the
Honourable East India Company
as
The Bombay Regiment
in March 1668.
[1]
In 1688 it was renamed
The Bombay (European) Regiment
? "European" indicating it was composed of white soldiers, not Indian
sepoys
.
[1]
The regiment saw action at the
Battle of Plassey
in June 1757 during the
Seven Years' War
.
[2]
It also fought at the
Battle of Buxar
in October 1764 during the Oude Campaign.
[2]
It next saw action at the
siege of Seringapatam
in February 1792 during the
Third Anglo-Mysore War
.
[2]
It fought at the
Battle of Seedaseer
in March 1799 and the
siege of Seringapatam
in April 1799 during the
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War
.
[2]
Early nineteenth century
[
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The regiment fought at the
Battle of Khadki
in November 1817 during the
Third Anglo-Maratha War
.
[3]
It then embarked for the
Arabian Peninsula
in October 1820 and saw action in operations against
Omani
pirates at
Jalan Bani Bu Ali
in March 1821.
[2]
The Victorian era
[
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The regiment took part in the Conquest of
Aden
in 1839 and was then renumbered as the
1st Bombay (European) Regiment
later in the year (on the creation of the
2nd Bombay (European) Regiment
), and designated the
1st Bombay (European) Fusiliers
in 1844.
[1]
It took part in the
siege of Multan
in April 1848 and the
Battle of Gujrat
in February 1849 during the
Second Anglo-Sikh War
.
[2]
It also fought at various skirmishes during the
Indian Rebellion
.
[2]
After the Crown took control of the
Presidency armies
in the aftermath of the Mutiny, the regiment became the
1st Bombay Fusiliers
in November 1859 and then the
1st Royal Bombay Fusiliers
in May 1861.
[1]
It was then renumbered as the
103rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Bombay Fusiliers)
on transfer to the
British Army
in September 1862.
[1]
[Note 1]
The regiment arrived in England in February 1871.
[2]
As part of the
Cardwell Reforms
of the 1870s, where single-battalion regiments were linked together to share a single depot and recruiting district in the United Kingdom, the 103rd was linked with the
102nd Regiment of Foot (Royal Madras Fusiliers)
, and assigned to district no. 66 at
Naas Barracks
in
County Kildare
.
[5]
On 1 July 1881 the
Childers Reforms
came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the 102nd Regiment of Foot (Royal Madras Fusiliers) to form the
Royal Dublin Fusiliers
.
[1]
Battle honours
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The regiment received the following battle honours granted by the Honourable East India Company:
[3]
Distinctions
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In 1844 the regiment was granted a number of honorary distinctions recording its past service. The awards were made by the
Governor-General of India
on 6 November 1844 in the following terms: "With the approval of the Right Honourable the Governor-General of India in Council, the Honourable the Governor in Council is pleased to direct, that the honorary distinctions specified below be borne upon the Colours and appointments of the 1st Bombay European Regiment, Fusiliers":
[6]
- The
Royal Tiger
, superscribed
Plassey
and
Buxar
, for services in the Presidency of Bengal, during 1757 and 1764-1765, especially at the battles of
Plassey
and
Buxar
and the sieges of
Chandernagore
,
Chunar
, and
Allahabad
.
- The
Elephant
superscribed
Carnatic
and
Mysore
, for services on the Coromandel Coast, in the Carnatic and Mysore, during the years 1747-8-9; 1754-5, 1760, 1764 and 1788, especially as having shared in the defence of
Cuddalore
(Fort St David), 16 June 1748, the operations under
Admiral Boscawen
, and the siege of Davi Cottah, the latter part of this and the beginning of the following year; the action with the French Army under Monsieur Maisin, between the Sugar Loaf and French Rocks on 16 August 1754, the sieges of
Pondicherry
and Mihie 1760-1; the sieges of Madura and
Palamcottah
in 1764; the storming of the
Bednore Ghauts and Capture of Bednore
in 1783, and the expedition in the first campaign against
Seringapatam
in 1790-1-2.
- Guzerat
for service at several different periods; especially throughout the whole of General Goddard's Campaign, with the Bengal Brigade in 1780, and the storming of
Ahmedabad
, 15 January 1780.
Regimental colonels
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Colonels of the Regiment were:
[1]
- 1862?1873: Lt-Gen. Joseph Hale
- 1873?1881: Gen. Sir
William Wyllie
, GCB
Notes
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- ^
"Her Majesty's Government have expressed an anxious desire to preserve the proud recollections of distinguished service which belong especially to the older Regiments of each Presidency, and to incorporate with Her Majesty's Army, Corps which have so greatly contributed to the acquisition and maintenance of Her Majesty's Dominions in the East. Her Majesty having graciously determined to mark Her estimation of the services of Her Indian Armies, by conferring the designation of "Royal" upon three of the European Regiments, and by selecting for this honour one Regiment from each Presidency...has much gratification in announcing that the following Regiments will henceforward bear the honourable designation of "Royal" Regiments...The 1st Bombay Fusiliers. The...older Regiments in the several Presidencies will thus be converted into Regiments of Her Majesty's General Army, and will be numbered and designated as follows...The 103rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Bombay Fusiliers).
[4]
References
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Sources
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- Mainwaring, Arthur (1911).
Crown and Company. The Historical Records of the 2nd Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, formerly the 1st Bombay European Regiment, 1662-1911
. London: Arthur L Humphreys.
- Sumner, Ian (2001).
British Colours & Standards 1747?1881 (2) Infantry
. Oxford: Osprey Publishing.
ISBN
978-1-84176-201-2
.
Further reading
[
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Regimental titles in
italics
indicate they were disbanded or renumbered before 1881.
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