| 71st Regiment of Foot | |
|---|---|
 Regimental colours | |
| Active | 19 December 1777 – 1 July 1881 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Great Britain (1777–1800) United Kingdom (1801–1881) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Role | Light infantry |
| Size | Onebattalion (two battalions 1778–1783, 1804–1815) |
| Garrison/HQ | Cameron Barracks,Inverness |
| Nickname | The Assaye Regiment[1] |
| Engagements | Second Anglo-Mysore War Third Anglo-Mysore War French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars Crimean War Indian Rebellion Ambela Campaign |
The71st Regiment of Foot was aHighlandregiment in theBritish Army, raised as the 73rd (Highland) Regiment of Foot in 1777. Under theChilders Reforms it amalgamated with the74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot to become the 1st Battalion,Highland Light Infantry in 1881.
The regiment was raised atElgin by Major-GeneralJohn Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod as the73rd (Highland) Regiment of Foot (McLeod's Highlanders) from Highland clans in December 1777.[4] A second battalion was formed in September 1778.[5] The 1st battalion embarked forIndia in January 1779[6] and, having landed some troops atGorée inSenegal on the way, reachedMadras in January 1780.[7] The flank companies were captured atConjeveram in September 1780 during theSecond Anglo-Mysore War.[8] The battalion went on to take part in theBattle of Porto Novo in July 1781,[9] theBattle of Pollilur in August 1781[10] and theBattle of Sholinghur in September 1781.[11] After that the battalion took part in thesiege of Cuddalore in June 1783.[12]
Meanwhile, the 2nd battalion, commanded by Lieutenant ColonelGeorge Mackenzie,[13] embarked for theMediterranean Sea and served asmarines at theBattle of Cape St. Vincent in January 1780 before being landed atGibraltar later that month and then taking part in theGreat Siege of Gibraltar; the battalion was disbanded in 1783.[2]
The regiment was redesignated as the71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot (MacLeod's Highlanders) in 1786[2] and saw action at thesiege of Seringapatam in February 1792 during theThird Anglo-Mysore War.[14]
Remaining in India, the regiment fought at thesiege of Pondicherry in August 1793[15] during theFrench Revolutionary Wars before transferring toCeylon in August 1795[15] and returning to Scotland in August 1798.[16]
A second battalion was again raised in October 1804 but remained in Scotland throughout the War.[2] The 1st battalion embarked for theCape of Good Hope in August 1805 and took part in theBattle of Blaauwberg in January 1806.[17] The battalion then sailed forSouth America and took part in the disastrousexpedition againstBuenos Aires underSir Home Popham. The battalion was taken prisoner and theRegimental Colours were captured.[18] New colours were presented to the regiment by Lieutenant-GeneralSir John Floyd in April 1808.[19]
The 1st battalion was reformed and embarked forPortugal in June 1808 for service in thePeninsular War.[20] Renamed the71st (Glasgow Highland) Regiment of Foot later that month,[2] it saw action at theBattle of Roliça in August 1808,[21] theBattle of Vimeiro later that month[22] andBattle of Corunna in January 1809[23] before being evacuated from the Peninsula.[24] In March 1809 it became a light infantry regiment,[25] and the regiment next took part in the disastrousWalcheren Campaign in autumn 1809[26] before returning home and being renamed the71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) in spring 1810.[2]
The regiment returned to the peninsula in September 1810[27] and saw action at theBattle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811,[28] theBattle of Arroyo dos Molinos in October 1811[29] and theBattle of Almaraz in May 1812[30] as well as theBattle of Vitoria in June 1813.[31] It then pursued the French Army into France and fought at theBattle of the Pyrenees in July 1813,[32] theBattle of Nivelle in November 1813[33] and theBattle of the Nive in December 1813[33] as well as theBattle of Orthez in February 1814[34] and theBattle of Toulouse in April 1814.[34] The battalion returned home in July 1814 and then embarked forOstend in April 1815: it saw action as part of the3rd Brigade at theBattle of Waterloo in June 1815.[35]
The regiment embarked forCanada in May 1824[36] and then moved on toBermuda in October 1831[37] before returning to England in September 1834.[38] It returned to Canada in April 1838[38] and then moved toAntigua in December 1844[39] before returning home in January 1847.[39] The regiment embarked forCorfu in 1853 and then landed in theCrimea for service in theCrimean War: it saw action at thesiege of Sevastopol in winter 1854.[40] The regiment went on to India to help suppress theIndian Rebellion in 1857 and remained there for theAmbela Campaign in 1863.[40] The regiment returned home in 1865 and then embarked for Gibraltar in 1868 before returning home again in 1880.[40]
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 71st was linked with the78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, and assigned to district no. 55 atCameron Barracks inInverness.[41] On 1 July 1881 theChilders Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot to form the 1st and 2nd Battalions,Highland Light Infantry.[2]
Battle honours awarded to the regiment were:[2]
Colonels of the regiment were:[2]