Kings Royal Rifles
On 8 July 755 a column of British Redcoats under General Braddock was ambushed on the Ohio River by the French. The dying General’s last words, “we shall learn better how to do it next time”, sum up the reaction at home to this defeat. The same year an Act of Parliament had provided for the raising of the 60th Royal American Regiment of American colonists, composed of Swiss and German Protestants, for service in North America. Later, it was increased to four, of which two were twice reduced and restored before 1788.See www.angloboerwar.com site for an in depth look at the regiment
The new regiment fought at Louisbourg in 178 and Quebec in 1779, campaigns that finally wrested Canada from France. Between 1879 and 1824 battalions of the regiment fought in The American War of Independence, the Peninsular War and in the West Indies.
The defeat of Napoleon was followed by over thirty years of peace during which the regiment changed its title, first to The Duke of York’s Own Rifle Corps and finally in 1830, to The Kings Royal Rifle Corps, throughout its life it was known familiarly as the 60th Rifles. After 1848 the regiment was engaged in many of the Imperial campaigns which characterized the nineteenth century. Battalions fought in the Sikh Wars, Zulu war in South Africa, where a detachment stood alongside one from the 43rd at the sinking of the Birkenhead. In the next thirty years the regiment saw active service in China, Canada, Afghanistan, India, Burma and South Africa.
In 1897 the troopship “Warren Hastings” carrying the 1st Battalion from Cape Town to Mauritius was wrecked on the island of Reunion. Discipline reminiscent of the Birkenhead was rewarded by the safe landing of the whole battalion and the ship’s bell and wheel are preserved in the regiment today.
Four battalions fought in the Boer War between 1899 and 1902.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions were with the Besieged force under the command of General Grimwood with Major Gore-Brown second in command. The 1st Battalion arrived in Natal in September and Ladysmith on 23rd October at 5 AM via Durban and Bombay. There were 32 officers + 667 men + 59 horses + 168 mules + 44 attendants. The 2nd Battalion had arrived two weeks earlier with 22 officers, 761 men, 7 horses, 213 mules and 37 attendants.
The 1st Battalion was at Glencoe when the war broke out, and fought at the battle of Glencoe or Talana Hill on 20th October 1899. The battalion did splendid work in that action, and their losses were very severe. Colonel Gunning and 4 other officers and 13 men killed, with 6 officers and 75 men wounded.
At the outset the regiment was in the thick of the fighting at Talana, Elandslaagte and Lombards Kop. Their casualties were 5 killed and 6 wounded at Dundee and 3 killed at the latter battle. The regiment, although officially allocated to Rifleman’s Post, King’s Post and Wagon Hill were also deployed in other areas as the need arose.
On 30th October, at Lombard’s Kop or Ladysmith, the battalion was with Grimwood. Like the rest of his force, they were hard pressed, their losses being 3 officers and 1 man killed, 1 officer and 32 men wounded, besides about 30 taken prisoners. In the appendices to the Report of the War Commission it is noted that, “this party was sent on in advance at the battle of Lombard’s Kop, but were left behind on the general retirement of the force, no order having apparently been given to them to retire”. The party endeavoured to retire, but it was too late; they were surrounded, and after a sharp fight surrendered.
From 8 November 1899 Wagon Hill was permanently garrisoned by three companies of the 1st Kings Royal Rifle Corps located in their Headquarters in the Crows Nest, a confinement built of rocks cleared from the general area and piled about a metre high around the perimeter.
In the great attack on Ladysmith on 6th January 1900, the 1st King’s Royal Rifles were in the thick of the fight. The usual garrison of Wagon Hill was three companies of the battalion but by 7 am a further five companies of the 1st and 2nd Battalions Kings Royal Rifles reached Wagon Hill, along the top of which a terrific fight was going on with the opposing lines within a stone’s throw of each other. Four companies were in the firing line, between Crow’s Nest and the Imperial Light Horse work, with four companies in reserve. Major Campbell saw that the party of Boers in front of the ILH work should be driven out. Major RS Bowen volunteered to do this and, taking eight men, made a gallant charge across the open. He himself was killed within ten yards of the Boer line and the whole of his party fell with him. All day long the fiercest fighting of the campaign surged about the crest and side of the hill until the final charge by the Devonshire Regiment, shortly after 5 pm, cleared the ground. The losses of the battalion on the 6th were about 10 killed and 20 wounded. Three officers and 5 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned in Sir George White’s despatch of 23rd March 1900.
Casualties to the end of the siege were:
1st Battalion 13 killed, 30 wounded, 2 died of wounds, and 32 died of disease.
2nd Battalion 11 killed, 34 wounded, 1 missing, 4 died of wounds and 53 died of disease.
The 3rd Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Corps sailed on the Servia on 4th November 1899, arrived at the Cape about the 24th, and was sent on to Durban. Along with the 2nd Scottish Rifles, 1st Durham Light Infantry, and 1st Rifle Brigade, they formed the 6th Brigade under Major General N G Lyttelton.
At Colenso the battalion was not in the thickest, being, along with the 2nd Scottish Rifles, escort to Captain Jones’s two 47 naval guns and four 12-pounder guns. They had almost no casualties.
Their first heavy fighting was on 24th January 1900. Leaving Spearman’s Hill at 10 am, they crossed the Tugela and advanced in widely extended order against the Twin Peaks north-east of Spionkop and are a part of the ridge which Spionkop is the highest point. The Peaks are about half a mile apart and the western one 2000 yards from Spionkop, 200 feet lower and were held by 200 Boers of the Carolina Commando. The right-half battalion attacking the right hill called Sugar-Loaf Hill, and the left-half battalion the other hill. Both hills and the nek between them were strongly held.
A mile and a half of flat open ground intervenes between the Drift and the foot of Twin Peaks and the right of the Regiment followed the river north. Neither the enemy nor their own artillery brought any guns to bear. The Boer rifle fire began at about 1500 yards range and the companies took shelter in a deep donga about 300 yards from the foot. The position was not as strong as it looked, most of the slope being dead to frontal fire from the top. The slope, though steep, had ledges at three or four points which were exposed to a cross-fire and it was in crossing these that most of the casualties occurred.
At 5.15 pm the Sugar-Loaf Hill was carried and the left peak a few minutes later, “the Boers only leaving as the men’s swords came over the crest-line”. Lieutenant Colonel Buchanan-Riddell was killed as he cheered his men in the final rush. Shortly afterwards the left hill was carried by Major Bewick-Copley’s command. About 6.30 the battalion received General Lyttelton’s order to retire, and by midnight had re-crossed the Tugela practically unmolested.
Buller had disapproved from the first of Lyttleton’s independent action and the 3rd Battalion KRRC had no sooner started their attack than he ordered their recall. It is not known how far the Battalion had got when the message reached them, but, anyhow, Colonel Buchanan Riddell exercised a wise discretion by putting it in his pocket, where it was found after his death. The order to retire was repeated after dark and, this time, there was nothing for it but to comply. Sadly, but in perfect order, the retirement was carried out and, by 2 am, all had re-crossed the river except for a few wounded who could not be found in the dark.
The fact that the hills were so very steep, and that the operation was very skilfully carried out, rendered the casualty list less heavy than was to have been expected. The battalion’s losses were approximately 17 killed and 61 wounded, almost precisely the same as that of the Cameronians.
General Lyttleton, addressing the Battalion the following day said:
“I have been a Rifleman for over thirty years and never, in the course of my experience, have I seen a finer bit of skirmishing and fighting. The men of the 60th, led as I knew they would be led, behaved as Riflemen should.”
The battalion took part in the storming of Vaalkrantz, where their losses were approximately 1 officer and 20 men wounded. They were also in the work between 13th and 27th February, and after the Tugela was crossed had some very heavy fighting. During the fourteen days’ fighting the losses of the King’s Royal Rifles, including those of officers and men in the Composite Battalion, were approximately 1 officer and 16 men killed, 5 officers and 84 men wounded.
Three officers and 25 men were mentioned in despatches for work in the relief operations, 3 men being recommended for the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
After the relief of Ladysmith the 3rd King’s Royal Rifles, like the other battalions of the 4th Brigade, were chiefly employed in guarding the railway line and fighting on either side of it after the forces of Lord Roberts and General Buller had joined hands.
In General Buller’s final despatch of 9th November 1900, 3 officers and 5 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned.
On 28th July 1900 Major General Cooper, with the 3rd King’s Royal Rifles and 1st Rifle Brigade, took over Heidelberg from Hart and in this district the home or headquarters of the battalion was long to remain. Garrison duty and column work occupied their energies to the close of the campaign. For about the last eight months of the war the battalion was garrison at Machadodorp. The 4th Bn KRRC arrived in South Africa in December 1901.
At midnight 31st December 1965 the Kings Royal Rifle Corps ceased to be part of the Regular Army’s order of battle and, with The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and The Rifle Brigade became, The Royal Green Jackets and on 1 February 2007 joined the Light Infantry, Devon and Dorset, and The Royal Berkshire, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire Regiments to form The Rifles, with five regular battalions and two Territorial ( TA ) battalions and three separate TA companies.