Raising In 1823 and 1824 the size of the
British Army was increased by the raising of six
regiments of foot, numbered the 94th-99th. The raising of the 97th Regiment was authorised by a royal warrant dated 25 March 1824: the colonelcy was given to Major General Sir
James Lyon, with the headquarters to be established at
Gosport. It was the sixth regiment of foot to have borne the number "97", the others having been short-lived war-raised units that existed at various periods during the
Seven Years' War, the
American Revolutionary War and the
French Revolutionary and
Napoleonic Wars. On 30 March the headquarters of the regiment were moved to
Winchester, by which time recruiting parties were active throughout the
United Kingdom. By June 1824 the regiment had been brought up to full strength.
"Earl of Ulster's" The bulk of the regiment was recruited in Ireland, and it was initially regarded as an Irish unit. This led to it being given sky blue facings derived from the colour of the ribbon of the
Order of St Patrick. The colour of the facings led to the 97th gaining the nickname
The Celestials. The Irish connection was reinforced in September 1826 when the regiment was granted the additional title of "Earl of Ulster's". This was an additional title in the
Peerage of Ireland borne by
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany. The
Latin motto
Quo fas et gloria ducunt was granted to the regiment in the following month.
Service to 1854 Soon after its formation the 97th Foot was ordered to
Ceylon to relieve the
45th (Nottinghamshire Sherwood Foresters) Regiment of Foot. They arrived in 1825, and were to spend 11 years on the island. In November 1832, the regiment's
cricket team played the
Colombo Cricket Club at the Rifle Green in
Colombo, in the first recorded cricket match in
Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The regiment returned to the United Kingdom in 1836, arriving at
Portsmouth aboard in September. From 1836 to 1841 the regiment was stationed at various garrisons in England and Ireland. They moved to
Malta in 1847 before departing for
Halifax, Nova Scotia in the following year, relieving the
23rd (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot. The regiment returned to England in May 1853. By March 1854 it seemed inevitable that war would break out with the
Russian Empire, and the 97th Foot were ordered to "hold themselves in readiness" to proceed to the
Crimea. The regiment formed part of an expeditionary force that left
Southampton in May 1854. They found themselves diverted to
Greece, where they formed part of an Anglo-French occupation force suppressing the
Uprising in Epirus. In November 1854 they were selected as one of six infantry battalions to form reinforcements for the forces in the Crimea.
Crimean War The 97th Foot landed at
Balaklava on 20 November 1854. They took part in the
Siege of Sevastopol and the
Battle of the Great Redan. and was the subject of a posthumous
book. The regiment suffered heavy casualties, with two members subsequently being awarded the newly created
Victoria Cross in 1857: • Sergeant
John Coleman for actions at Sevastopol on 30 August 1855. • Brevet Major
Charles Henry Lumley for actions at the Redan on 8 September 1855. Following the end of the war, the 97th Regiment returned to England, arriving in July 1856.
Indian Mutiny The 97th Foot's time in England was to be short: in May 1857 a
rebellion broke out among native soldiers of the
East India Company. In July it was announced that the 97th were among six infantry battalions to be sent to India as reinforcements. The regiment arrived in
Bombay in November 1857. In April 1858 they joined the British forces that lifted the
Siege of Lucknow. The regiment subsequently took part in minor operations at Fort Nusrutpore, Chanda, Umeerpore and Sultanpore before the ending of the conflict in June 1858. They were stationed in
Jamaica from 1873 to 1875 and in
Bermuda from 1875 to 1877. In March 1872 the pairing was changed, when the 97th was linked with the
50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot. This ended the 97th's Irish connection, as it and the 50th were to share barracks at
Maidstone Barracks, in Kent (District no. 46). On 1 August 1881, under the
Childers Reforms, the 97th and 50th Regiments of Foot were merged as, respectively, the 2nd and 1st Battalions,
Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment). ==Battle Honours==