View source for 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot

{{for|other units with the same regimental number|57th Regiment of Foot (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name= 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot
|image=57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot badge.jpeg
|caption=Badge of the 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot
|dates= 1755 to 1881
|country={{flag|Kingdom of Great Britain}} (1755–1800)<br>{{flag|United Kingdom}} (1801–1881)
|branch={{army|United Kingdom}}
|type=[[Infantry of the Line|Line Infantry]]
|role=[[Light Infantry]]
|size=One [[battalion]] (two battalions 1803–1815)
|garrison=[[Cavalry Barracks, Hounslow|Hounslow Barracks]]
|ceremonial_chief=
|ceremonial_chief_label=
|colonel_of_the_regiment=
|nickname= "The Steelbacks"<ref name="Burnham">{{cite book |last1=Burnham|first1=Robert|last2=McGuigan|first2=Ron|year=2010|title=The British Army against Napoleon|location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire|publisher=Frontline Books|isbn=978-1-84832-562-3|page=126}}</ref><br>[[Die hard (phrase)|"The Die Hards"]]
|motto= ''[[Honi soit qui mal y pense]]'' (Evil be to Him, who Evil Thinks)
|colors= Yellow facings, gold braided lace
|march= '''Quick:''' ''Sir [[Manley Power]]''<br />'''Slow:''' ''Caledonian''
|mascot=
|battles= [[American Revolutionary War]]<br>[[French Revolutionary Wars]]<br>[[Napoleonic Wars]]<br>[[Crimean War]]<br>[[Indian Rebellion of 1857|Indian Rebellion]]<br>[[New Zealand Wars]]<br>[[Anglo-Zulu War]]
|battle_honours=
|notable_commanders=
|anniversaries=
}}
The '''57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot''' was a [[regiment]] of [[line infantry]] in the [[British Army]], raised in 1755. Under the [[Childers Reforms]] it amalgamated with the [[77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot]] to form the [[Middlesex Regiment]] in 1881.
==History==
===Early wars===
[[File:Fort Montgomery 04.jpg|thumb|right|Ruins of [[Fort Montgomery (Hudson River)|Fort Montgomery]], stormed by the regiment in October 1777]]
The regiment was raised in [[Somerset]] and [[Gloucester]] by [[Colonel]] John [[Arabin]] as the 59th Regiment of Foot in 1755 for service in the [[Seven Years' War]].<ref name=regiments>{{cite web|url=http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/inf/057-757.htm |title=57th (the West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot |publisher=regiments.org |access-date=17 July 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061201151140/http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/inf/057-757.htm |archive-date=1 December 2006}}</ref> It was re-ranked as the '''57th Regiment of Foot''', following the disbandment of the existing [[Shirley's Regiment|50th]] and [[Pepperrell's Regiment|51st]] regiments, in 1756.<ref name=regiments/> The regiment, which originally operated as [[marines]], was deployed to [[Gibraltar]] in 1757, to [[Menorca]] in 1763 and to [[Ireland]] in 1767.<ref name=warre30>Warre, p. 30</ref>
It was dispatched to [[Charleston, South Carolina]] in February 1776 for service in the [[American Revolutionary War]].<ref name=warre30/> The regiment saw action at the [[Battle of Long Island]] in August 1776<ref name=warre30/> and stormed Fort Montgomery at the [[Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery]] in October 1777.<ref name=warre31>Warre, p. 31</ref> The regiment's light company then served under General [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lord Cornwallis]] and was taken prisoner at the [[Siege of Yorktown]] in October 1781.<ref name=warre32>Warre, p. 32</ref>
It adopted a county designation as the '''57th (the West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot''' in August 1782.<ref name=regiments/><ref name="handbook">Chant, p. 103</ref> After this it moved to [[Nova Scotia]] in October 1783 and returned to England in November 1790.<ref name=warre33>Warre, p. 33</ref>
===Napoleonic Wars===
[[File:GenSirWilliamInglis.jpg|thumb|left|Colonel [[William Inglis (British Army officer)|William Inglis]], struck down while commanding the 1st battalion at the [[Battle of Albuera]], May 1811]]
[[File:Lady Elizabeth Butler - steady the drums and fifes.jpg|thumb|The drummer boys of the 57th Regiment at the [[Battle of Albuera]], May 1811; "Steady the Drums and Fifes" by [[Elizabeth Thompson|Lady Elizabeth Butler]]]]
In 1793 the regiment embarked for the [[Low Countries]] for service in the [[Low Countries theatre of the War of the First Coalition|Flanders Campaign]] and re-enforced the garrison at [[Nieuwpoort, Belgium|Nieuwpoort]] for some months before returning home later in the year.<ref name=warre35>Warre, p. 35</ref> The regiment returned to Flanders in 1794 before returning home again in 1795.<ref name=warre44>Warre, p. 44</ref> It embarked for the [[West Indies]] in spring 1796 and took part in the capture of [[Saint Lucia]] in May 1796 before embarking for [[Trinidad]] in 1797 and returning home in 1803.<ref name=warre46>Warre, p. 46</ref> A second battalion was raised in 1803 to increase the strength of the regiment but spent most of the war in [[Jersey]].<ref name=regiments/> The 1st battalion embarked for the Mediterranean Sea in November 1805 and, after four years at [[Gibraltar]], landed in [[Portugal]] for service in the [[Peninsular War]] in July 1809.<ref name=warre47>Warre, p. 47</ref> The battalion fell back to the [[Lines of Torres Vedras]] in October 1810.<ref name=warre50>Warre, p. 50</ref>
The battalion earned the regiment its nickname of "the Die Hards" after their participation in the [[Battle of Albuera]], [[Battle of Albuera order of battle|(order of battle)]] one of the bloodiest battles of the war, in May 1811.<ref name=warre53>Warre, p. 53</ref> The commanding officer of the battalion, Colonel [[William Inglis (British Army officer)|William Inglis]], was struck down by a charge of [[canister shot]] which hit him in the neck and left breast. He refused to be carried to the rear for treatment, but lay in front of his men calling on them to hold their position and when the fight reached its fiercest cried, "Die hard the 57th, die hard!".<ref name="Inglis">{{cite web|url=http://www.national-army-museum.ac.uk/exhibitions/shortVisits/heroes/page7.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061001183450/http://www.national-army-museum.ac.uk/exhibitions/shortVisits/heroes/page7.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=2006-10-01|title=Lieutenant-Colonel William Inglis (1764-1835)|publisher=[[National Army Museum]]|year=2009|access-date=2009-01-12}}</ref> The casualties of the battalion were 422 out of the 570 men in the ranks and 20 out of the 30 officers.<ref name="handbook"/> The Allied commander of the Anglo-Portuguese force General [[William Beresford, 1st Viscount Beresford|William Beresford]] wrote in his dispatch, "our dead, particularly the 57th Regiment, were lying as they fought in the ranks, every wound in front".<ref name="dispatches">Gurwood, p. 576</ref>
The battalion also fought at the [[Battle of Vitoria]] in June 1813.<ref name=warre62>Warre, p. 62</ref> It then pursued the French Army into France and saw further action at the [[Battle of the Pyrenees]] in July 1813,<ref name=warre64>Warre, p. 64</ref> the [[Battle of Nivelle]] in November 1813<ref name=warre65>Warre, p. 65</ref> and the [[Battle of the Nive]] in December 1813.<ref name=warre66>Warre, p. 66</ref> The battalion embarked for [[North America]] in May 1814 for service in the [[War of 1812]]<ref name=warre67>Warre, p. 67</ref> but, without seeing any action, it embarked for home in spring 1815.<ref name=warre68>Warre, p. 68</ref>
===The Victorian era===
[[File:57th West Middlesex Regiment of Foot.jpg|thumb|[[Lieutenant-Colonel]] [[Henry Warre|H.J. Warre]] and an unidentified [[non-commissioned officer]] of the 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot, serving in the [[Crimean War]], photographed in 1855 by [[Roger Fenton]]]]
The regiment traveled to [[New South Wales]] in detachments as escorts to prisoners in 1824.<ref name=warre73>Warre, p. 73</ref> It moved on to [[India]] in 1830<ref name=warre76>Warre, p. 76</ref> and, while there, helped to suppress a rebellion in [[Mangalore]] in 1837.<ref name=warre82>Warre, p. 82</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/060416/1837-when-the-rebel-flag-fluttered-high.html|title=1837: When the rebel flag fluttered high|date=6 April 2016|publisher=Deccan Chronicle|access-date=14 January 2017}}</ref> The regiment did not embark for home until April 1846.<ref name=warre95>Warre, p. 95</ref> In September 1854 the regiment embarked for service in the [[Crimean War]]:<ref name=warre115>Warre, p. 115</ref> it fought at the [[Battle of Inkerman]] in November 1854<ref name=warre118>Warre, p. 118</ref> and the [[Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55)|Siege of Sevastapol]] in winter 1854.<ref name=warre121>Warre, p. 121</ref> It moved to [[Malta]] in June 1856<ref name=warre139>Warre, p. 139</ref> and then sailed for India to help suppress the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857|Indian Rebellion]] in May 1858.<ref name=warre145>Warre, p. 145</ref> It then sailed for [[Auckland]] in [[New Zealand]] in November 1860 for service in the [[New Zealand Wars]].<ref name=warre156>Warre, p. 156</ref> [[Ensign (rank)|Ensign]] [[John Thornton Down]] and [[Drummer (military)|Drummer]] [[Dudley Stagpoole]] were both awarded the [[Victoria Cross]] for their actions during a skirmish at Allen's Hill near [[Omata]] in October 1863 during the [[Second Taranaki War]].<ref name=warre179>Warre, p. 179</ref> The regiment returned to England in 1867<ref name=warre202>Warre, p. 202</ref> and then moved to [[Sri Lanka|Ceylon]] in 1873.<ref name=warre220>Warre, p. 220</ref> From Ceylon it sailed to [[South Africa]] in 1879 for service in the [[Anglo-Zulu War]].<ref name=regiments/>
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 57th was linked with the [[77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot]], and assigned to district no. 50 at [[Cavalry Barracks, Hounslow|Hounslow Barracks]].<ref name=training>{{cite web|url=http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/depot/1873.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060210172841/http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/depot/1873.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 February 2006|title=Training Depots|publisher=Regiments.org|access-date=16 October 2016}}</ref> On 1 July 1881 the [[Childers Reforms]] came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the [[Middlesex Regiment]].<ref name="handbook"/>
==Regimental marches==
The regiment's regimental marches were 'Sir [[Manley Power]]' (quick) and 'Caledonian' (slow).<ref name="handbook"/>
==Victoria Cross==
* Ensign John Thornton Down, New Zealand Wars (2 October 1863)
* [[Sergeant]] [[George Gardiner (VC)|George Gardiner]], [[Crimean War]] (22 March 1855)
* [[Private (rank)|Private]] [[Charles McCorrie]], Crimean War (23 June 1855)
* Drummer Dudley Stagpoole, New Zealand Land Wars (2 October 1863)
==Battle honours==
The regiment's battle honours were as follows:<ref name=regiments/>
* Peninsular War: [[Battle of Albuera|Albuhera]], [[Battle of Vitoria|Vittoria]], [[Battle of the Pyrenees|Pyrenees]], [[Battle of Nivelle|Nivelle]], [[Battle of the Nive|Nive]], [[Peninsular War|Peninsula]]
* Crimean War: [[Battle of Inkerman|Inkerman]], [[Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55)|Sevastapol]]
* Later wars: [[New Zealand Wars|New Zealand]], [[Anglo-Zulu War|South Africa (1879)]]
==Colonels of the Regiment==
Colonels of the Regiment were:<ref name=regiments/>
===59th Regiment of Foot===
*1755–1757 Col. John Arabin
===57th Regiment of Foot===
*1757–1767 Lt-Gen. Sir David Cunynghame
*1767–1780 Gen. Sir [[John Irwin (British Army officer)|John Irwin]]
*1780–1806 Gen. [[John Campbell, of Strachur|John Campbell (of Strachur)]]
====57th (the West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot====
*1806–1811 Gen. [[John Hely-Hutchinson, 2nd Earl of Donoughmore]]
*1811–1830 Gen. Sir [[Hew Whitefoord Dalrymple]], Bt.
*1830–1835 Lt-Gen. Sir [[William Inglis (British Army officer)|William Inglis]]
*1835–1843 Gen. Sir [[Frederick Adam]]
*1843–1856 F.M. Sir [[Henry Hardinge, 1st Viscount Hardinge]]
*1856–1865 Gen. Sir [[Frederick Love|James Frederick Love]]
*1865–1873 Gen. [[Charles Richard Fox]]
*1873–1875 Gen. [[Freeman Murray]]
*1875–1881 Gen. Sir Edward Alan Holdich
==See also==
*[[Edwin Bezar]] – last surviving member
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Sources==
*{{cite book |title=The Handbook of British Regiments |last=Chant |first=Christopher |year=1988 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=0-415-00241-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CNcNAAAAQAAJ&q=badajoz+manley+power&pg=PA103}}
*{{cite book |title=The dispatches of Field Marshal the Duke of Wellington, K. G. during his various campaigns in India, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, the Low Countries, and France: From 1799 to 1818, Volume 7 |last=Gurwood |first=John |year=1837 |publisher=J.Murray |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5n4BAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA576}}
*{{cite book |title=Historical records of the fifty-seventh, or, West Middlesex Regiment of Foot: compiled from official and private sources, from the date of its formation in 1755, to the present time, 1878|first=Lieutenant-General H. J. |last=Warre|year=1878|publisher=W. Mitchell & Co|url=https://archive.org/details/historicalrecor00regigoog}}
{{PWRR}}
{{Regiments of Foot}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}
[[Category:Infantry regiments of the British Army|57]]
[[Category:1755 establishments in Great Britain]]
[[Category:1881 disestablishments in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Regiments of the British Army in the Crimean War]]
[[Category:Regiments of the British Army in the American Revolutionary War]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1755]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1881]]
[[Category:Middlesex Regiment]]
[[Category:Military units and formations in Middlesex]]
[[Category:Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Peninsular War]]