"I have, &c. (Signed) "JOHN MACDONALD, "Adjutant-General. "General Sir Henry Johnson, Bt., and G.C.B. "Colonel of the FIFTH FOOT." In September of this year (1834) the reserve companies marched from Templemore to Cork, where they remained ten months. [Sidenote: 1835] General Sir Henry Johnson, Bart., G.C.B., having died on the 18th of March, 1835, at a very advanced age, was succeeded in the Colonelcy of the regiment, on the 25th of the same month, by Lieutenant-General the Honourable Sir Charles Colville, G.C.B. and G.C.H., who with much distinction, and especially in the affair at El Bodon, commanded the brigade in which the FIFTH served during a considerable period of the Peninsular war. New colours having been received early this year to replace those accidentally consumed with the Line Wall House at Gibraltar, as before narrated, Major-General Sir Frederick Ponsonby, K.C.B., the Lieutenant-Governor, was requested to present them, but, a question having arisen relative to an additional banner[45] which the regiment had long carried, the subject was, after some discussion and correspondence, submitted to the decision of His Majesty, whose commands and pleasure on this head will be found in the following letter:-- "_Horse-Guards, 31st July, 1835._ "Sir, "I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, dated 4th April last, which I have laid before the General Commanding-in-Chief, and by his Lordship's command the same has been submitted to the King. "In reply to which, I am directed to acquaint you, that His Majesty considers it quite contrary to the established regulations, for any regiment to bear a _third Colour_, and on that ground he cannot consent to a flag or banner, which is stated to have been borne by the FIFTH REGIMENT since the year 1762, and which was accidentally destroyed by a fire at Gibraltar on the 24th of April, 1833, being replaced. "His Lordship has received the King's commands to direct it to be made known to the officers and men of the FIFTH REGIMENT, that His Majesty has the strongest reason to be satisfied with the general conduct of the regiment, and, although His Majesty feels that he cannot comply with the request made on this occasion, by authorizing the additional flag, or banner, being retained by the corps, which, it must be stated, has never been sanctioned either by the Royal warrant of the 19th of December, 1768, or by any subsequent grant, yet his Majesty is desirous of conferring a mark of distinction on the regiment, which shall tend to perpetuate the record of its services at _Wilhelmsthal_ in June, 1762: with this view his Majesty has commanded, that the regiment shall be distinguished by wearing grenadier caps, with the King's Cipher, _W. R._ IV., in the front, and the ancient badge of the regiment, _viz._ _St. George killing the Dragon_, on the back part.