| 86th (Royal County Down) Regiment of Foot | |
|---|---|
 Regimental colours | |
| Active | 1793–1881 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Great Britain (1793–1800) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1881) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | One battalion (two battalions 1813–1814) |
| Garrison/HQ | Victoria Barracks, Belfast |
| Engagements | French Revolutionary Wars Second Anglo-Maratha War Napoleonic Wars Indian Rebellion |
The86th (Royal County Down) Regiment of Foot was aninfantry regiment of theBritish Army, raised in 1793. Under theChilders Reforms it amalgamated with the83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot to form theRoyal Irish Rifles in 1881.
The regiment was raised inShropshire by Major-GeneralSir Cornelius Cuyler asSir Cornelius Cuyler's Shropshire Volunteers, in response to the threat posed by theFrench Revolution, on 30 October 1793.[1] It was absorbed into the British Army the following year as the86th (Shropshire Volunteers).[1] Serving asmarines, the regiment embarked on ships in January 1795.[2] The men took part in theBattle of Hyères Islands in July 1795.[3] It absorbed the remnants of the disbanded118th Regiment of Foot (Fingall's Regiment), which had been raised the previous year for service as marines, in October 1795.[1]
The regiment embarked for theCape of Good Hope arriving there in September 1796 with orders to consolidate the position in the colony following the surrender of Dutch Forces earlier that month.[4] The regiment was dispatched toMaddras inIndia in February 1799 arriving there in May 1799.[4] It then transferred toBombay in July 1799.[4] From there three companies were deployed toCeylon in late 1800.[4]
The regiment embarked forEgypt in April 1801 for service in theEgyptian Campaign.[3] The regiment landed atSuez and following a long march across northern Egypt[5] and the surrender ofCairo by the French Army in June 1801, the regiment occupied thecitadel at Cairo.[6] The regiment returned to Bombay in spring 1802[7] and then provided storming parties for two unsuccessful assaults at theSiege of Bharatpur in January 1805 during theSecond Anglo-Maratha War.[8] Twenty-five soldiers from the regiment were killed in the disastrous operation.[9] The regiment returned to Bombay in March 1806 and immediately embarked forGoa.[10] The regiment became the86th (Leinster) Regiment of Foot in October 1809.[11]
The regiment took part in theinvasion of Isle Bonaparte in July 1810[12] and, following theinvasion of Isle de France, was sent to occupy the colony in March 1811[13] before returning to Madras in February 1812.[13] Having become the86th (Royal County Down) Regiment of Foot in May 1812,[14] the regiment moved toHyderabad in January 1816,[15] where it served in theThird Anglo-Maratha War.[16] The regiment sailed forTrincomalee,British Ceylon in September 1818 where it took part in suppressing theGreat Rebellion of 1817–1818[17] before embarking for Europe in April 1819.[18]
The regiment embarked for theWest Indies in October 1826.[19] It was initially based inTrinidad[19] but moved toBarbados in January 1828,[19]Antigua in January 1830[19] andDemerara and Berbice in February 1833.[20] It embarked for home in March 1837.[21] It returned to India in 1842 and saw action in Central India during theIndian Rebellion.[3] It formed part of the force led by Major-GeneralSir Hugh Rose which besieged and capturedJhansi Fort in April 1858: fourVictoria Crosses were awarded to members of the regiment for this operation.[22][23][24] It returned home in August 1859 and was deployed toGibraltar in 1864 and then went on toMauritius in 1867 before returning to the Cape of Good Hope in 1870.[3] It returned home in 1875 and then embarked forBermuda in 1880.[3]
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 86th was linked with the83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and assigned to district no. 63 atVictoria Barracks, Belfast.[25] On 1 July 1881 theChilders Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot to form theRoyal Irish Rifles.[1]
Battle honours won by the regiment were:[1]
Colonels of the Regiment were:[1]