| 92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot | |
|---|---|
 Colours of the 92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot | |
| Active | 1794–1881 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Great Britain (1794–1800) United Kingdom (1801–1881) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | HighlandInfantry Regiment |
| Size | One battalion (two battalions 1803–1814) |
| Garrison/HQ | Castlehill Barracks,Aberdeen |
| Nickname | The Gay Gordons[1] |
| Engagements | Napoleonic Wars Crimean War Indian Rebellion Battle of Majuba Hill |
The92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was aBritish Armyinfantryregiment, raised in 1794. Under theChilders Reforms it amalgamated with the75th (Stirlingshire) Regiment of Foot to form theGordon Highlanders in 1881.
The regiment was raised inAberdeenshire by GeneralGeorge Gordon, 5th Duke of Gordon, as the100th (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, in response to the threat posed by theFrench Revolution, on 10 February 1794.[2] It embarked forGibraltar in September 1794[3] and then moved on toCorsica in June 1795.[4] From Corsica a detachment was sent toElba in August 1796[5] and the whole regiment returned to Gibraltar in September 1796.[6] The regiment returned to England in March 1798[7] but was then deployed to Ireland in May 1798 to help suppress theIrish Rebellion.[8] The regiment was re-ranked as the92nd (Highland) Regiment of Foot in October 1798.[2]
The regiment embarked forHolland in August 1799 and saw action at theBattle of Alkmaar in October 1799 during theAnglo-Russian invasion of Holland, an intervention which was aimed to overthrow theBatavian Republic, aFrench client republic.[9] It returned home later that month.[10] The regiment embarked forMenorca in June 1800[11] and then sailed on toAbu Qir inEgypt in March 1801 to take part in theEgyptian Campaign.[12] It saw action at theBattle of Mandora on 13 March 1801.[13] This was a preliminary action before theBattle of Alexandria eight days later on 21 March. That morning, the regiment had been ordered to return to Abukir, having now only 150 effective men, because of illness and casualties sustained. However, on hearing the sound of firing, the regiment saw the commander-in-chief,Sir Ralph Abercromby, passing on his horse and called out to be allowed to return to the line of battle, to which he gave his assent.[14] The regiment sailed for home in October 1801.[15]
A secondbattalion was raised in November 1803 but it solely served as a reinforcement pool and never left the United Kingdom. The 1st Battalion embarked forCopenhagen in August 1807[16] and took part in theBattle of Køge[17] and then theBattle of Copenhagen later that month during theGunboat War.[18]
The regiment embarked forPortugal in July 1808 for service in thePeninsular War.[19] It served under Lieutenant-GeneralSir John Moore at theBattle of Corunna in January 1809 and subsequent evacuation.[20] The regiment was renamed as the92nd Regiment of Foot in 1809.[2] It then took part in the disastrousWalcheren Campaign in autumn 1809.[21]
The regiment returned to Portugal in September 1810 to resume its service under GeneralViscount Wellesley in the Peninsular War.[21] It saw action at theBattle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811,[22] theSecond Siege of Badajoz in June 1811[23] and theBattle of Arroyo dos Molinos in October 1811[24] as well as theBattle of Almaraz in May 1812[25] and theBattle of Vitoria in June 1813.[26] It then pursued the French Army into France and fought at theBattle of the Pyrenees in July 1813,[27] theBattle of Nivelle in November 1813[28] and theBattle of the Nive in December 1813[29] as well as theBattle of Orthez in February 1814[30] and theBattle of Toulouse in April 1814.[31]
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The regiment embarked for the continent again in May 1815 for service in theHundred Days campaign. The regiment had a key role in theBattle of Quatre Bras on 16 June 1815 as one of the regiments defending the disputed crossroads and which later halted a French attack with abayonet charge.[32] Two days later the regiment was in action again at theBattle of Waterloo. At an early stage, Napoleon's troops attacked the left of the Allied line, and the regiment was ordered to charge the leading French column.[33] The regiment did so and the French column then broke in disorder. The horses of theScots Greys passed through the regiment to get to the scattering French troops and press the advantage.[34] At this point some members of the regiment clung to thestirrups of the passing Greys so that they could reach the French troops.[35] Corporal Dickson of "F" Troop of the Scots Greys, reported: "They were all Gordons, and as we passed through them they shouted 'Go at them the Greys! Scotland for ever!' My blood thrilled at this and I clutched my sabre tighter. Many of them grasped our stirrups and in the fiercest excitement, dashed with us into the fight."[36] After the battle, the regiment marched toParis[37] and then embarked for home in December 1815.[38] After arriving inEdinburgh on 7 September 1816, it was cheered by a large crowd.[34]
The regiment embarked forJamaica in April 1819;[39] many of the troops died fromyellow fever, before the regiment returned home in 1827.[40] The regiment embarked for Gibraltar in 1834 and went on toBarbados in 1841[41] before returning home again in 1844.[42] It was deployed to theIonian Islands in 1851[43] and to Gibraltar in 1853 from where it was dispatched to take part in theSiege of Sevastopol during theCrimean War but saw no serious action.[44] The regiment embarked for India in January 1858 to help suppress theIndian Rebellion and were engaged in several skirmishes with remaining rebel forces.[44] The regiment recovered its original designation being renamed the92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot in July 1861.[2] The regiment embarked for home in January 1863.[44]
The regiment returned to India in 1868.[45] In December 1878, the regiment was ordered toAfghanistan where it was engaged in various security operations following the outbreak of theSecond Anglo-Afghan War. In October 1879, it took part in theBattle of Charasiab, where the regiment captured three hills, thereby turning the enemy's flank. MajorGeorge White received theVictoria Cross for his part in this action.[46] A further Victoria Cross was won by LieutenantWilliam Dick-Cunyngham at theSiege of the Sherpur Cantonment on 13 December 1879.[47] At the end of August 1880, the regiment formed part of the force which marched under GeneralFrederick Roberts fromKabul toKandahar, and at theBattle of Kandahar on 1 September 1880, formed part of the 1st Brigade, which led the advance in sweeping the enemy out of the closely wooded enclosures along the western slopes of the hill on which the village of Gundi Mullah Sahibdad stood.[48]
Instead of returning to the United Kingdom in 1881, the regiment was diverted toNatal to serve in theFirst Boer War. The regiment participated in the disastrousBattle of Majuba Hill on 27 February 1881. After capturing the hilltop in order to dominate the Boer line, the force of 350 British soldiers of the58th and 92nd Regiments including a number ofRoyal Navy gunners, found themselves exposed to heavy and accurate fire early on the following day. This was followed by an assault by 2,000 Boers; despite a desperate last stand, the survivors were swept from the summit.[48]
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 92nd was linked with the93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, and assigned to district no. 56 atCastlehill Barracks inAberdeen.[49] On 1 July 1881 theChilders Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the75th (Stirlingshire) Regiment of Foot to form theGordon Highlanders.[2] TheRegimental Colours of the 92nd were laid-up inSt Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, some two years later by theDuke of Cambridge, where they remain to the present day.[48]
Battle honours won by the regiment were:[2]
Colonels of the Regiment were:[2]
