Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own)

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The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) was a regiment of the British Army. The purpose of the regiment's formation was to work as skirmishers. The riflemen were trained to work in open order and be able to think for themselves. They were to operate in pairs and make best use of natural cover from which to harass the enemy with accurately aimed shots as opposed to releasing a mass volley, which was the orthodoxy of the day. The riflemen of the 95th were dressed in distinctive dark green uniforms, as opposed to the bright red coats of the British Line Infantry regiments. On top of this, the unit's operation was markedly different from the line infantry. Flogging was abolished, they held regular shooting and sporting competitions, and were rewarded for their achievements. Officers would regularly dine with their men and in so doing would become familiar with each man in their respective companies, again a discipline unheard of at the time.

The performance of the regiment can be demonstrated by the story of Rifleman Thomas Plunkett of the 1st Battalion, 95th Rifles. Plunkett, armed with a Baker rifle, shot the French General Colbert at a range of between 400 and 800 yards during the Peninsula War. He then shot a second Frenchman who rode to the general's aid, proving that his was not just a lucky shot. By comparison, a standard issue Brown Bess musket could not be relied upon to hit a man-sized target at over 60 yards.

[edit] Formation

In 1800 an "Experimental Corps of Riflemen", the 95th Regiment of Foot were raised by Colonel Coote Manningham and Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon William Stewart, drawn from officers and other ranks from drafts of a variety of British regiments. The Corps differed quite a bit from the main infantry of the British Army. The Riflemen wore dark green jackets rather than the red more customary to the British Army of that time; pantaloons, which were close-fitting breeches, rather than wool breeches; black facings rather than white; a green plume on their shako which the light infantry also wore, as-well as other accoutrements unique to the Rifles. The "Rifles" were armed with the formidable, but slow loading Baker rifle which was more accurate and of longer range than the musket. Due to the smaller nature of the Baker Rifle compared to the musket the Rifles were issued with a 21-inch sword-bayonet.

Baker Rifle

The Rifles were trained to think for themselves, not to blindly follow orders and were the sharpshooters, skirmishers and scouts of the British Army and went into battle not in line, but in skirmishing formations ahead of the main infantry, who were bunched into close formations, to snipe at their opponents and taking cover in the process, which was unusual for it was mostly, at that time, deemed to be dishonourable to deliberately aim at an individual, and conventional tactics favoured the volley from a close formation and the bayonet. The Rifles used buglers rather than drummers who were used by the main infantry and did not carry Colours owing to the Rifles more fast-moving nature.

The 95th became the Rifle Brigade in 1816.

[edit] Military Operations

Their first venture abroad didn't take long when, on 25 August, 3 companies, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel William Stewart, spearheaded a British amphibious landing at Ferrol, Spain where the Rifles helped to dislodge the Spanish defenders on the heights and with the Rifles acting in a valiant manner despite the expedition being abandoned on 26 August. In 1801, detachments of the Corps took part in the British victory at the Battle of Copenhagen as marksmen aboard Royal Navy ships which were under the command of the legendary Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson. In 1802 the Corps was brought into the line of the British Army as the 95th Regiment of Foot, the 95th Rifles. In 1803 the 95th moved to Shorncliffe, Kent where it underwent training, along with the Light Infantry regiments the 43rd and 52nd Regiments of Foot, under the tutelage of Colonel Coote-Manningham and Sir John Moore, the latter, like the 95th, would gain fame during the Peninsular War.

[edit] 2nd Battalion

In 1805 a 2nd Battalion was raised at Canterbury, Kent and later in the year the 1st/95th deployed to Germany as part of a British expedition, under the command of Lord Cathcart, designed to liberate Hanover from occupation by France, with the 95th subsequently forming the advanced guard on the way to Bremen. In February 1806 the 95th formed the rearguard for the withdrawal to Cuxhaven and subsequently returned home to the UK. In October, 5 companies of the 1st/95th and 3 companies of the 2nd/95th departed for Spanish-controlled South America, Spain then being allied with France, as part of a second invasion force, a force designed as reinforcements for the first invasion against Buenos Aires, launched earlier in 1806 by Sir Home Popham without the Government's knowledge though the first invasion had failed with Brigadier-General Sir Samuel Auchmuty, commander of the second invasion force, being unaware of the failure.

The 2nd/95th, as part of Auchmuty's force, took part in the siege and subsequent storming of Montevideo, in what is now Uruguay, and which eventually saw Montevideo captured on the 3rd February 1807 after a siege that had begun in January. The 95th subsequently saw action at Colonia against a Spanish force that had crossed from Buenos Aires where the Rifles held off the force until it could be repulsed, with the 95th gaining much praise from Auchmuty for their part in the defeat of the Spanish force. The 95th subsequently saw action in June at San Pedro where they, the 40th and light companies, fought against the Spanish force that had crossed from Buenos Aires and defeated them. Lieutenant-General John Whitelocke, the newly-arrived overall commander, subsequently launched an ill-advised and mis-managed assault on Buenos Aires in which the companies of both battalions of the 95th were involved as part of the Light Brigade, commanded by Robert Craufurd. During the assault on Buenos Aires on 5 July, the 95th and the rest of the British force suffered heavy casualties in bitter fighting to capture the city. The Light Brigade had suffered so heavily that they had to take refuge in a church and surrendered soon after. Whitelocke eventually surrendered his force. After Whitelocke negotiated the withdrawal of British forces, the men were released and they returned home later that year. In the aftermath of the disastrous expedition, Popham and Whitelocke were court-martialled, with Popham reprimanded and Whitelocke dismissed from the Army.

[edit] The Baltic 1807 - 1808

Copenhagen on fire

The remaining companies of the 95th were involved in the expedition to Denmark that year. They took part in the Battle of Copenhagen in 1807 as part of Arthur Wellesley's brigade. The expedition, commanded by Lord Cathcart, was intended to capture the Danish Fleet to prevent it falling into the hands of France. The expedition proved to be a thorough success with the Danish Fleet being captured at which point the British withdrew. In 1808 the 1st/95th took part in an expedition to another Scandinavian country, Sweden, an expedition that was commanded by Sir John Moore and designed to help Sweden during their war with Russia. However, once they reached Gothenburg in May, the troops remained aboard the anchored ships for 2 months due to a misunderstanding between the British and Swedish governments and returned home to the UK before being redirected to Portugal to take part in the Peninsula War, a war designed to help Portugal and Spain in their fight against the French, and where the 95th Rifles would gain their fame.

[edit] Peninsular

In August the 2nd/95th was part of the expedition commanded by Sir Arthur Wellesley to Portugal and covered the landings at Mondego Bay. On 15 August they had the distinction of firing the first shots of the Peninsular War during a skirmish at Obidos against the French, but also unfortunately suffered the first British officer fatality of the war, a Lieutenant Ralph Bunbury. On the 17th August the 95th, as part of 6th Brigade which included the 5th/60th Foot, took part in the Battle of Roliça, the first pitched battle of the war, which saw the 95th distinguish themselves greatly.

An example of the ability of the Rifles was at the Battle of Nivelle in 1813 when a company of the 95th Rifles under the command of Captain Daniel Cadoux held off an entire French division inflicting 231 casualties and suffering 14 killed including Cadoux.

Prince Albert

The 95th, having seen distinguished service in the Napoleonic Wars, became The Rifle Brigade on 23 February 1816. Following this, the number was reassigned in 1823 to the newly formed county regiment of the 95th (Derbyshire) Regiment of Foot. It was granted the title The Prince Consort's Own Rifle Brigade in honour of HRH Prince Albert, The Prince Consort, the Rifle Brigade's former Colonel-in-Chief.

[edit] Crimean War

The Rifle Brigade crossing the Alma

When the Crimean War broke out in 1853 the Rifle Brigade sent two battalions which fought at the Alma , where one of the battalions lead the advance acroos the river Alma, Inkerman and at the Siege of Sevastopol . The regiment won eight Victoria Crosses during the Crimean War, more than any other regiment.

[edit] First World War

The Rifle Brigade fielded 28 battalions in the First World War, from its original compliment of 4 regular and 2 reserve, seeing service primarily on the Western Front but also in Macedonia. The regiment lost 11,575 killed in the course of the war. They were awarded many battle honours, 10 Victoria Crosses and many other decorations.

The 8th Battalion of the Rifle Brigade was part of the 41st Brigade of the 14th (Light) Division of XV Corps. They were mainly made up of volunteers from the outbreak of WW1.

The battalion saw action including Ypres salient and the Somme.

Notably the action they were in at Hooge, Belgium (30/31 July 1915) saw the first use of flamethrowers by the Germans, Sidney Clayton Woodroffe was awarded the VC for his actions in this battle.

They also participated in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette (15 September 1916) during the Somme Offensive which saw the first ever use of tanks by the British.

[edit] Second World War

"Churchill Crocodile tank in support of the Rifle Brigade during the first attack on the village. Many of the houses in Sint Joost were destroyed by these flamethrowing tanks."

The Rifle Brigade raised seventeen battalions to fight in the Second World War . In 1937 the regiment formed the first motor battalions, a role that would allow The Rifle Brigade the freedom of movement that fitted their traditions of speed and initiative. One battalion of the regiment was captured at Calais, along with two battalions of the KRRC, during the Battle of France in 1940, but not before they had fought a gallant rear guard action. The 2nd Rifle Brigade fought with distinction in the Western Desert Campaign , especially in the 'Snipe' action during the Battle of El Alamein , where the 2nd Rifle Brigade destroyed fifty-one enemy tanks in a battle that lasted sixteen hours and Lieut.Col. Turner received the Victoria Cross . Four battalions of the regiment fought in the Italian Campaign, the 1st returning to England in December 1943 to prepare for the invasion of North West Europe. The other three were formed into 61st Infantry Brigade, but continued their accustomed role of co-operating with armour when conditions allowed. Their brilliant capture of the hills of Perugia involved four successive night attacks. The 1st and 8th Battalions landed in Normandy in June 1944 and fought their way through France, Belgium and Holland to end the war in the vicinity of Hamburg.

[edit] Amalgamations

In 1958 the 1st battalion was the last surviving battalion that traced its lineage back to the 95th. It was renamed the 3rd Green Jackets Regiment of the Green Jackets Brigade. When the brigade was amalgamated into the Royal Green Jackets Regiment in 1966, it became its 3rd Battalion. In 1970 it was reduced to company strength before being reconstituted at Shoeburyness in 1972. In 1992 the 1st battalion were disbanded and the 2nd and 3rd batallions were renumbered as the 1st and 2nd respectively. On 1st February 2007 the 2nd battalion were ceremonially rebadged at Kiwi Barracks in Bulford, Wiltshire to become the 4th Battalion of the newly formed regiment - The Rifles.

[edit] See also

• Robert Craufurd Commander of the Light Division (43rd, 52nd and the 95th) during the Peninsular War
• Richard Sharpe - fictional hero Bernard Cornwell's "Sharpe" novels, that prominently feature the 95th.
• British Army

[edit] References

• The Long, Long Trail - The Rifle Brigade
• Regiments.org - The Rifle Brigade
• Royalgreenjackets.co.uk - The Rifle Brigade
• Urban, Mark (2003). Rifles: Six Years with Wellington's Legendary Sharpshooters. Faber & Faber. ISBN 0-571-21681-1. 

[edit] External links

• 95th (Rifle) Regiment of Foot - Battle Re-enactment and Living History
• 1st Battalion, 95th (Rifle) Regiment of Foot (1/95) - 95th Rifles Living History Society An affiliate of the Napoleonic Association, UK
• 2nd Battalion, 95th (Rifle) Regiment of Foot (2/95) - Living History and Battle Re-enactment
• History of The Rifle Brigade