The regiment was raised in December 1673 by Sir Walter Vane, one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, a mercenary formation whose origins went back to 1586. During the 1672–1678 Franco-Dutch War, it took part in the Siege of Maastricht and the battles of Cassel and Saint-Denis. In June 1685, the Brigade was sent to England in 1685 to help James II suppress the Monmouth Rebellion and returned without seeing action; while there, the unit was designated the 6th Regiment of Foot.