| 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1787–1881 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Great Britain (1787–1800) United Kingdom (1801–1881) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Onebattalion |
| Garrison/HQ | Hamilton Barracks |
| Engagements | Third Anglo-Mysore War Fourth Anglo-Mysore War First Anglo-Maratha War Second Anglo-Maratha War Napoleonic Wars Eighth Xhosa War Indian Rebellion |
The74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot was aBritish Armyline infantryregiment, raised in 1787. Under theChilders Reforms it amalgamated with the71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot to form theHighland Light Infantry in 1881.
The regiment was raised inGlasgow by Major-GeneralSir Archibald Campbell for service inIndia as the74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot in October 1787.[1] In accordance with the Declaratory Act 1788 the cost of raising the regiment was recharged toEast India Company on the basis that the act required that expenses "should be defrayed out of the revenues" arising there.[2] The regiment embarked for India in February 1789[3] and took part in thesiege of Bangalore in February 1791[4] and thesiege of Seringapatam in February 1792 during theThird Anglo-Mysore War.[5]
The regiment also saw action at theBattle of Mallavelly in March 1799 and went on to form part of the storming party at thesiege of Seringapatam in April 1799 during theFourth Anglo-Mysore War.[6] It subsequently saw action at skirmishes in spring 1803 during theFirst Anglo-Maratha War[7] and went on to fight at theBattle of Assaye in April 1803 during theSecond Anglo-Maratha War: at Assaye the regiment suffered terrible losses under a hail of cannon fire.[8] From a strength of about 500, the 74th lost ten officers killed and seven wounded, and 124 other ranks killed and 270 wounded.[9] The regiment went to fight at theBattle of Argaon in November 1803[10] and theCapture of Gawilghur in December 1803.[10] It returned to England in February 1806[11] and then lost its Highland status due to recruiting difficulties, becoming the74th Regiment of Foot in April 1809.[12]
The regiment embarked forPortugal in January 1810 for service in thePeninsular War.[13] It saw action at theBattle of Bussaco in September 1810,[14] theBattle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811[15] and theBattle of El Bodón in September 1811,[16] before further combat at thesiege of Ciudad Rodrigo in January 1812,[17] thesiege of Badajoz in March 1812[18] and theBattle of Salamanca in July 1812.[19] It also fought at thesiege of Burgos in September 1812[20] and theBattle of Vitoria in June 1813.[21] It then pursued the French army into France and saw action at theBattle of the Pyrenees in July 1813,[22] theBattle of Nivelle in November 1813[23] and theBattle of the Nive in December 1813.[24] After that it fought at theBattle of Orthez in February 1814[25] and theBattle of Toulouse in April 1814[26] before embarking forIreland in June 1814.[27]
The regiment embarked from Ireland forHalifax, Nova Scotia in May 1818: on arrival units were detached for service inSt. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador andSaint John, New Brunswick.[28] The regiment moved on toBermuda in August 1828 and then returned home in December 1829.[29] The regiment embarked forBarbados in September 1834 and, after arrival there, moved on toGrenada in December 1834.[30] The regiment transferred toAntigua in November 1835: it was then split into two formations which were deployed toDominica and toSaint Lucia in February 1837.[30] The regiment moved on toQuebec inCanada in May 1841[31] before embarking for home and landing atDeal in March 1845.[32] Later that year it reverted to its earlier name as the74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot.[12] The commanding officer, Colonel Eyre Crabbe, was able to assure theCommander-in-Chief of the Forces, theDuke of Wellington, "that throughout the varied services and changes of so many years, a strong national feeling, and a connection with Scotland by recruiting, had been constantly maintained."[33]
The regiment then sailed to theCape Colony in 1851 to take part in theEighth Xhosa War.[34] In 1852 a detachment from the regiment departedSimon's Town aboard the troopshipHMSBirkenhead bound forPort Elizabeth. At two o'clock in the morning on 28 February 1852, the ship struck rocks at Danger Point, just offGansbaai. The troops assembled on deck, and allowed thewomen and children to board the lifeboats first, but then stood firm as the ship sank when told by officers that jumping overboard and swimming to thelifeboats would mostly likely upset those boats and endanger the civilian passengers. 357 men drowned.[35] The regiment's commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Seton, together with one of his ensigns and forty-eight of his other ranks, were among those that perished.[36]
The regiment embarked for India in 1854 and helped to suppress theIndian Rebellion in 1857 before returning home in 1864.[34] It was deployed toGibraltar in 1868, toMalta in 1872 and to theStraits Settlements in 1876.[34] It went on toHong Kong in 1878 before returning to the Straits Settlements in 1879 and returning home in 1880.[34]
As part of theCardwell Reforms of the 1870s, where single-battalion regiments were linked together to share a single depot and recruiting district in the United Kingdom, the 74th was linked with the26th (Cameronian) Regiment of Foot, and assigned to district no. 59 atHamilton Barracks.[37] On 1 July 1881 theChilders Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot to become the 2nd battalion,Highland Light Infantry.[12]
Battle honours won by the regiment were:[12]
Colonels of the Regiment were:[12]