31st ( Huntingdonshire ) Regiment of Foot The 31st ( Huntingdonshire ) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1702 and amalgamated into The East Surrey Regiment in 1881 . Predecessor regiment . In 1694 , during the Nine Years ' War , Sir Richard Atkins was authorised to raise a regiment of foot for service in Ireland . Sir Richard Atkins ' s Regiment of Foot was duly formed . In 1694 the colonelcy of the unit changed and it became Colonel George Villier ' s Regiment of Foot . With the signing of the Treaty of Ryswick in 1697 the war came to an end . Villier ' s Regiment was duly disbanded in 1698 . Regiment of Marines . By 1702 England was again involved in a European conflict which became known as the War of the Spanish Succession . Villiers was commissioned to reform his regiment as marines . In February 1702 George Villier ' s Regiment of Marines ( or the 2nd Regiment of Marines ) was reraised . The unit took part in the capture and defence of Gibraltar in 1704 – 1705 . It subsequently took part in a number of actions in the Mediterreanean and Spain , including the capture of Barcelona and Majorca . The regiment ' s title changed with the name of its colonel : Alexander Luttrell in 1703 , Joshua Churchill in 1706 and Sir Henry Goring in 1711 . Conversion to infantry . With the signing of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 the war came to an end . The majority of the marine regiments were disbanded , with some retained and converted to line infantry . Gorings Marines were one of these and became Sir Henry Goring ' s Regiment of Foot , with precedence as 31st regiment of foot , although it continued to be known by the name of its colonel until 1751 . The unit saw action repelling the Jacobite rising of 1715 . They then spent twenty - six years manning garrisons in Ireland and England . War of the Austrian Succession . The regiment sailed to Flanders in 1739 , and in the following year took part in the Battle of Dettingen . It was at this engagement that the unit received the nickname " Young Buffs " . They were part of a force led into action by King George II who mistook them for the 3rd Regiment of Foot , who were known as ' " the Buffs " due to their buff facings and waistcoats , the sovereign called out , " Bravo , Buffs ! Bravo ! " . When one of his aides , an officer of the 3rd Regiment of Foot , corrected the monarch , he then cheered , " Bravo , Young Buffs ! Bravo ! " . It was subsequently at the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745 where it suffered heavy losses , returning to England later in the year . They were posted to Minorca in 1749 . 31st Regiment of Foot . On 1 July 1751 a royal warrant was issued declaring that in future regiments were no longer to be known by their colonel ' s name , but by the " " Number or Rank of the Regiment " " . Accordingly Lieutenant - General Henry Holmes ' s Regiment was renamed as the 31st Regiment of Foot . The 31st returned to Great Britain in 1752 , remaining there until 1765 . A second battalion was formed in 1756 , and was reconstituted as the 70th Regiment of Foot in 1758 . American Revolutionary War . From 1776 to 1781 the 31st Foot were in North America during the American War of Independence , losing a large number of prisoners at the Battle of Saratoga . In 1782 all regiments of the line without a royal title were given a county designation and the regiment became the 31st ( Huntingdonshire ) Regiment of Foot . Following the ending of that war the 31st formed part of the garrison of Quebec before returning to England in 1787 . French revolutionary and Napoleonic wars . The 31st took part in minor engagements in the West Indies , the Netherlands , Sicily and Egypt . In 1805 a 2nd battalion was again formed . In 1808 the 2nd Battalion landed in Portugal , and took part in the Peninsular War , including the Battle of Talavera in 1809 , Albuera in 1811 , Vittoria and Nivelle in 1813 , and Orthes in 1814 . The 31st was reduced to a single battalion regiment in 1814 when the two battalions merged in Sicily . First Anglo - Afghan War . Following years of garrison duty in various stations in Europe , in 1824 the 31st were ordered to India under Colonel Pearson and Major McGrego . Some 54 men of the regiment died on 1 March 1825 when their transport , the " Kent " , an East Indiaman caught fire in the Bay of Biscay . One woman and 20 children affiliated with the regiment also died . The remainder of the 20 officers , 344 soldiers , 43 women , and 66 children , belonging to the regiment that had embarked on the vessel were rescued . As the official record expresses it : " In the midst of dangers against which it seemed hopeless to struggle - at a time when no aid appeared , and passively to die was all that remained - each man displayed the manly resignation , the ready obedience , and the unfailing discipline characteristics of a good soldier . " With the outbreak of war with Afghanistan in 1839 , the regiment moved to the country and fought with Sir George Pollock ’ s avenging army at the Battle of Kabul in 1842 . First Anglo - Sikh War . War between the East India Company and the Sikh Empire broke out in 1845 . The 31st , who had returned to India from Afghanistan in 1840 , were part of the British force at the battles of Mudki , Ferozeshah , Aliwal and Sobraon . Crimean War . In 1855 the 31st sailed to the Crimea , and fought at the Siege of Sevastopol . China . The 31st next saw active service in China , moving there in 1860 during the Second Opium War and taking part in the capture of the Taku Forts . The regiment remained in China until 1863 , and was involved in suppressing the Taiping Rebellion . For the regiment ' s remaining separate existence it was based at various garrisons in the United Kingdom , Gibraltar and Malta . Amalgamation . On 1 July 1881 the Childers reforms came into effect , and the 31st Foot was paired with the 70th ( Surrey ) Regiment of Foot to form the East Surrey Regiment . The 70th had originally been formed as the 31st ' s 2nd Battalion in 1756 . Following a number of amalgamations since 1959 , the lineage of the 31st Foot is continued today by the Princess of Wales ' s Royal Regiment . Battle honours . The 31st Foot were granted the following battle honour s : Two further honours were granted to the successor East Surrey Regiment for the services of the 31st Foot . In 1882 the battle honour " Dettingen " was allowed and in 1909 " Gibraltar 1704 – 1705 " was awarded .