Historical record of the Twenty-second, or the Cheshire Regiment of Foot: containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1689, and of its subsequent services to 1849Cannon, Richard
History
Historical record of the Twenty-second, or the Cheshire Regiment of Foot: containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1689, and of its subsequent services to 1849
Cannon, Richard
Great Britain. Army -- History; Great Britain. Army. Regiment of Foot, 22nd (Cheshire)
In the early part of the seventeenth century Gustavus Adolphus, King
of Sweden, reduced the strength of regiments to 1000 men. He caused
the gunpowder, which had heretofore been carried in flasks, or in
small wooden bandoliers, each containing a charge, to be made up
into cartridges, and carried in pouches; and he formed each regiment
into two wings of musketeers, and a centre division of pikemen. He
also adopted the practice of forming four regiments into a brigade;
and the number of colours was afterwards reduced to three in each
regiment. He formed his columns so compactly that his infantry could
resist the charge of the celebrated Polish horsemen and Austrian
cuirassiers; and his armies became the admiration of other nations.
His mode of formation was copied by the English, French, and other
European states; but so great was the prejudice in favour of ancient
customs, that all his improvements were not adopted until near a
century afterwards.
In 1664 King Charles II. raised a corps for sea-service, styled the
Admiral's regiment. In 1678 each company of 100 men usually consisted
of 30 pikemen, 60 musketeers, and 10 men armed with light firelocks.
In this year the King added a company of men armed with hand grenades
to each of the old British regiments, which was designated the
"grenadier company." Daggers were so contrived as to fit in the
muzzles of the muskets, and bayonets similar to those at present in
use were adopted about twenty years afterwards.
An Ordnance regiment was raised in 1685, by order of King James II.,
to guard the artillery, and was designated the Royal Fusiliers (now
7th Foot). This corps, and the companies of grenadiers, did not carry
pikes.
King William III. incorporated the Admiral's regiment in the second
Foot Guards, and raised two Marine regiments for sea-service.
During the war in this reign, each company of infantry (excepting
the fusiliers and grenadiers) consisted of 14 pikemen and 46
musketeers; the captains carried pikes; lieutenants, partisans;
ensigns, half-pikes; and serjeants, halberds. After the peace in 1697
the Marine regiments were disbanded, but were again formed on the
breaking out of the war in 1702.[2]
During the reign of Queen Anne the pikes were laid aside, and every
infantry soldier was armed with a musket, bayonet, and sword; the
grenadiers ceased, about the same period, to carry hand grenades;
and the regiments were directed to lay aside their third colour: the
corps of Royal Artillery was first added to the Army in this reign.
About the year 1745, the men of the battalion companies of infantry
ceased to carry swords; during the reign of George II. light
companies were added to infantry regiments; and in 1764 a Board of
General Officers recommended that the grenadiers should lay aside
their swords, as that weapon had never been used during the Seven
Years' War. Since that period the arms of the infantry soldier have
been limited to the musket and bayonet.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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