[5] "Under the blessing of Divine Providence, His Majesty ascribes the successes which have attended the exertions of his troops in Egypt to that determined bravery which is inherent in Britons; but His Majesty desires it may be most solemnly and forcibly impressed on the consideration of every part of the army, that it has been a strict observance of order, discipline, and military system, which has given the full energy to the native valour of the troops, and has enabled them proudly to assert the superiority of the national military character, in situations uncommonly arduous, and under circumstances of peculiar difficulty."--_General Orders in 1801._ In the General Orders issued by Lieut.-General Sir John Hope (afterwards Lord Hopetoun), congratulating the army upon the successful result of the Battle of Corunna, on the 16th of January, 1809, it is stated:--"On no occasion has the undaunted valour of British troops ever been more manifest. At the termination of a severe and harassing march, rendered necessary by the superiority which the enemy had acquired, and which had materially impaired the efficiency of the troops, many disadvantages were to be encountered. These have all been surmounted by the conduct of the troops themselves; and the enemy has been taught, that whatever advantages of position or of numbers he may possess, there is inherent in the British officers and soldiers a bravery that knows not how to yield,--that no circumstances can appal,--and that will ensure victory, when it is to be obtained by the exertion of any human means." [Illustration: FIFTEENTH REGIMENT OF FOOT. QUEEN'S COLOUR.] [Illustration: REGIMENTAL COLOUR. FOR CANNONS MILITARY RECORDS _Madeley Litho: 3 Wellington St. Strand_] HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE FIFTEENTH, OR YORKSHIRE EAST RIDING REGIMENT OF FOOT. [Sidenote: 1685] Peace with foreign nations and tranquillity at home, accompanied by improvements in the domestic and commercial interests of the kingdom, followed the accession of KING JAMES II. to the throne, in February, 1685; but few months elapsed before JAMES DUKE OF MONMOUTH appeared as a competitor to the throne, and raised an army in the west of England. The King immediately augmented his regular forces; and among the corps then raised was the regiment which now bears the title of the FIFTEENTH REGIMENT OF FOOT. This corps was raised in Nottinghamshire and the adjoining counties, the general rendezvous being at Nottingham; and the several companies of which it was composed were raised by the following gentlemen:-- SIR WILLIAM CLIFTON, ---- COTTER, ---- BAKER, WILLIAM BARNES, WILLIAM DOBYNS, THOMAS FOWKE, JOHN STANHOPE, ---- WARREN, WILLIAM STOW, and ROGER KIRKBY. SIR WILLIAM CLIFTON was appointed colonel by commission dated the 22nd of June, 1685; Captain Cotter was appointed to be lieut.-colonel, and Captain Baker to be major.