Welch Regiment The Welsh Regiment ( or " The Welsh " ) was an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1969 . History . The Origins of the Regiment : The Welsh Regiment had its origins in two regiments , the 41st and 69th Regiments of Foot , the first of which has long standing links with the Royal Hospital Chelsea . The 41st was raised in March 1719 as a Regiment of Invalids , namely Out - Pensioners of the Royal Hospital , to release active units for service overseas in the wars against the French . Known as Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Fieldings Regiment of Foot ( or the Invalids ) , between 1719 and 1787 it carried out garrison duties in Portsmouth , Plymouth and the Channel Islands . In 1757 a second battalion was raised for the 24th Foot , and placed at the disposal of the Admiralty for service as marines with the fleet . In 1758 this Battalion was redesignated as the 69th Foot and , in 1782 , linked to South Lincolnshire for recruiting purposes . In 1787 the Invalid character of the 41st was abandoned and the Regiment re - formed as a marching regiment of line fit for worldwide service . Between that date and 1881 the two Regiments pursued roles independent of one another , but drew closer when a common depot was established at Fort Hubberstone in 1871 . Both campaigned and saw service in many parts of the world - achieving magnificent records of service - ultimately to be linked under the title ' The Welsh ' . A chronological history of both Regiments follows : 1719 - When units were needed for garrison duties at home in order to release active units for service overseas in the wars against the French , a number of the more active out - pensioners of the Royal Hospital at Chelsea , who were fit for light duties at home , were enrolled and formed Colonel Edmund Fielding ' s Regiment of Invalids . 1751 - The Regiment of Invalids became 41st Regiment of Foot ( or Invalids ) . 1756 - A Second Battalion of the 24th Regiment , to become eventually The South Wales Borderers , was raised and in 1758 became the 69th Regiment of Foot . The 41st and 69th followed separate careers until 1881 when they became respectively the 1st and 2nd Battalions of The Welch Regiment . 1761 - The 69th first distinguished itself at the Capture of Belle Île . Belleisle is the Regiment ' s oldest Battle Honour although for some reason it was not actually awarded until 1951 . 1762 - A year later the 69th took part in an equally successful operation in the West Indies against the French - held island of Martinique . 1782 - During the Napoleonic Wars in the latter part of the 18th and early part of the 19th centuries Infantry Regiments sometimes served on board ships of the Royal Navy and performed many of the duties carried out by the Royal Marines . In this year the 69th took part in the Battle of the Saintes . For their share in this victory the 69th was included in a Vote of Thanks passed by both Houses of Parliament , and was awarded a Naval Crown , superscribed ' 12 April 1782 ' to be carried on the Regimental Colour . This battle honour is unique . In the same year the 69th became the South Lincolnshire Regiment and for this reason The Welch Regiment played ' The Lincolnshire Poacher ' as one of its Regimental Marches . The 69th continued its service afloat and served , amongst other ships , in HMS Agamemnon under the personal command of Lord Nelson , then a Captain . A little later , when Nelson commanded HMS Captain , he came across a detachment of the 69th serving aboard his ship , greeting them as ' My Old Agamemnons ' a nickname that prevailed for many years . Lt Arthur Wellesley , later The Duke of Wellington , joined the 41st Regiment of Foot on 23 January 1788 and served with the Regiment until 25 June 1789 when he transferred to the 12th Light Dragoons . 1796 - The 69th moved once more to the West Indies when two detachments served on HMS Britannia and HMS Captain both of which were present at the Battle of Cape St Vincent ( 1797 ) . These detachments greatly distinguished themselves , particularly that under the command of Lieutenant Charles Pierson in HMS Captain ( still commanded by Nelson ) , which played a leading part in the capture and boarding of the Spanish ship San Josef . The Welch Regiment is intensely proud of the unique Battle Honour of St . Vincent and in 1951 was given permission to associate it with the Battle Honour of the Naval Crown . 1797 - The battle of St Vincent marked the end of the 69th ' s service afloat and in 1799 it took part in an expedition to Holland and in 1800 returned to the West Indies . Following this and after a spell at home the 69th moved East and commenced a tour of India that covered a period of twenty years . Having taken part in a series of operations in this time it earned the Battle Honour India . Twice between 1805 and 1825 the 69th sailed on seaborne expeditions from India . 1799 - The 41st moved to Canada and carried out garrison duties there until war broke against the United States in 1812 . 1803 - A second Battalion of the 69th ( 2 / 69th ) was raised and was in garrison in Belgium when Napoleon escaped from Elba . 1810 - the 69th ' s first expedition was against the French - held island of Bourbon , as Réunion was then called , and Mauritius . Both were attacked from the sea and captured . The second was against Dutch - owned Java , but occupied by the French . The expedition was successful although the fighting was severe and casualties considerable . In the meantime the final phases of the Napoleonic Wars were being played out in Europe . 1812 - The war against the United States lasted two years and was fought mainly on the Canadian border . The 41st played a leading part in the successful actions at the Siege of Detroit , the Battle of Queenston Heights , the Battle of Lundy ' s Lane , and Miami for which Battle Honours were awarded . " The Battle Honours Detroit and Miami are unique to The Welch regiment . " 1815 - In June Napoleon moved up to the Belgian Frontier to attack the Allied Army commanded by the Duke of Wellington , who some years earlier had served as a Lieutenant in the 41st . The 2 / 69th fought at Quatre Bras on 16 June where , owing to mistaken orders , it was caught unprepared and badly mauled by French cavalry . The Battle of Waterloo was fought on the 18 June . At the end of the campaign the 2 / 69th was disbanded . 1822 - The 41st moved to India . 1824 - The Regiment took part in an arduous campaign against the Ava Kingdom , to become known as Burma and now Myanmar ( Interestingly , in 1945 the 69th camped on the ' maidan ' made by the 41st during the Ava campaign . ) . 1831 - On the 25 February on the recommendation of Colonel Sir Edmund Williams , then in command , royal approval was given to the ' 41st Regiment being in future styled the 41st or THE WELCH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY ' . Later in the same year the 41st was permitted to bear on its Colours the Prince of Wales ' s Plume and Motto - ' GWELL ANGAU NA CHYWYLIDD ' ( Rather death than dishonor ) . So began the Regiment ' s association with Wales which has been maintained with great pride ever since . 1842 - The 41st took part in the First Afghan War which broke out in this year and was engaged in the fighting at Kandahar , the Battle of Ghazni and finally Kabul the Afghan capital ; following which the Regiment returned to England . 1854 - The Crimean War broke out in which Britain , France and Turkey fought against the Russians who were seeking supremacy in the region . The 41st fought throughout the campaign gaining Battale Honours at Alma , Inkerman and Sebastopol . The 41st was most heavily engaged at Inkerman , the last occasion on which the Colours were carried in Battle . It was a ' Little ' Inkerman fought on 26 October 1854 that Sergeant Ambrose Madden won the Victoria Cross , the first to be awarded to a member of the Regiment . Inkerman ' the soldier ' s battle ' was fought on 5 November in thick mist , through which the Russians advanced in overwhelming numbers . The battle was fought out hand - to - hand in small groups and the Russian attack was finally broken . Captain Hugh Rowlands was awarded the Victoria Cross for his gallantry in this battle . In another engagement Ensign John Stirling , carrying the Reimental Colour , was shot dead . The Colour was sized by a Russian but recovered by Sergeant Major Daniel Ford for which he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his courage . This episode is commemorated in the silver centerpiece of the 41st which was made from some of the silver that was salvaged from the Officer ' s Mess that was burned down at Pembroke Dock in 1905 . Until its amalgamation the Battle of Inkerman was commemorated annually in the Regiment on 5 November . 1870 - the 69th saw no further active service in the 19th Century and having served in Canada was at home in 1881 . 1881 - The Crimean War was the last occasion on which either the 41st or 69th fought under their original tiles ; in this year they became respectively the 1ST AND 2ND BATTALIONS THE WELCH REGIMENT . 1881 to 1913 . 1881 - As the result of General Order 41 of 1 May the eighty - two single Battalion Regiments in the Army were amalgamated by pairs . Reducing these single Battalion Infantry regiments to forty - one resulted in the formation of two Battalion Regiments with new titles . Linking the 69th ( South Lincolnshire ) Regiment with the 41st Regiment may seem strange but the two had been linked for drafts for some time . There were strange anomalies in pairing and it was not an easy time for the Army as a whole . This policy may have seemed a logical step for Ministers but some ' married ' pairs felt otherwise . The new depot for both battalions was established at Cardiff forging links with the city that are still extant . At the time of the amalgamation 1st Battalion was deployed in South Africa and the 2nd Battalion in Sheffield , England ; they were not to meet for some time so there were no ceremonial parades or other events to ' consummate ' the pairing . This was not to happen for another eleven years . 1886 - The 1st Battalion moved to Egypt where they were issued with the new khaki drill uniform consigning their redcoats they had worn from their inception to ceremonial occasions only . 1888 - on 20 December the 1st Battalion took part in the Battle of Suakin under the leadership of the force commander colonel ( later Herbert Kitchener , 1st Earl Kitchener ) , who wrote in his dispatches ; The half - Battalion of The Welch Regiment are seasoned soldiers and whatever I asked of them to do they did well . Their marksmen at Gemaizah Fort and the remainder of the half - Battalion on the left fired section volleys driving the Dervishes from their right position and inflicting severe punishment upon them when in the open . Significantly the Battalion did not lose a man . 1892 - Following the tour in Egypt the 1st Battalion moved to Malta and there for the first time they met with the 2nd Battalion on its way by troopship to India . It was recorded at the time that ' much cordiality ' followed before the 2nd Battalion went on its way . 1894 - The 1st Battalion returned home to Pembroke Dock where on St . David ' s Day in 1895 the Officers ' Mess was totally destroyed and almost all the Regiment ' s artifacts , plate and silver was lost . 1899 - When the Second Boer War broke out the 1st Battalion was in Aldershot and was immediately mobilized and dispatched to South Africa where it landed at Port Elizabeth on 26 November . The 1st Battalion were first engaged in the Relief of Kimberley , where a British Force was besieged and was again in action on the 10 February at Battle of Paardeberg , where they lost heavily , and again at the Battle of Driefontein on the 10 March . The war became very fluid and developed into a prolonged struggle between the light , irregular and very mobile Boers and the more heavily laden and orthodox British Army . The 1st Battalion provided a company in the 6th Mounted Infantry Battalion , recorded as an initially motley unit provided with a mixed and indifferent stable of horses , and reinforcements from South Wales included soldiers from the Volunteer Battalions in South Wales to become the 1st , 2nd and 3rd Volunteer Service Companies . The 3rd Militia Battalion of the Regiment was also embodied and served as a separate unit and with great with distinction from 1900 - 1902 . For service throughout the campaign The Welsh Regiment was awarded the Battle Honours of Relief of Kinberley , Paardeburg as well as the theatre Honour South Africa 1899 - 1902 ' . One historian has commented about this period : Despite the jingoism and victory bells at home , Britain had little to be proud of . It had taken 450 , 000 troops ( including 256 , 000 regulars ) two and half years to defeat the ' rabble ' of some 87 , 000 Boer farmers . The war had cost £20 million and 20 , 721 British soldiers lives ( of whom 13 , 310 died of disease ) . The Boers lost an estimated 4 , 000 killed . 1902 - Meanwhile , the 2nd Battalion were still serving peacefully in India and in this year were involved in the Delhi Durbar , organized by Lord Curzon the Viceroy , which was one of the most lavish and spectacular military events ever staged in India , to celebrate the Coronation of Edward VII as King - Emperor following the death of Queen Victoria on 23 January 1901 . 1904 - The lst Battalion returned home to barracks at Gravesend , Kent in July . 1910 - The 1st Battalion were now in India and the 2nd Battalion at Pembroke Dock . From 23 August to 13 September this year the 2nd Battalion were chosen to undertake ceremonial guard duties at Buckingham and St . James ' s palaces in relief of the Guards Brigade who undertook field training at that time . 1913 - Just prior to the outset of the First World War the 2nd Battalion were undergoing a field training exercise with Aldershot Command at Bordon , whilst the 1st Battalion continued to serve quietly in India 1914 to 1918 . When war broke out on 4 August 1914 The Welsh Regiment consisted of 1st and 2nd Battalions , respectively , in India and at home . Regimental Headquarters with 3rd ( Special Reserve ) and 7th ( Cyclist ) Battalions at Cardiff , 4th Battalion at Llanelli , 5th Battalion at Pontypridd and the 6th Battalion at Swansea . Service Battalions were formed and the total number of Battalions of The Welsh Regiment rose to thirty four . Fighting in the First World War was world - wide but the main theatre of war was in France and Belgium where the greatest strengths were deployed and the most important battles were fought and the heaviest casualties sustained . In a war of such magnitude covering so many theatres upon so vast a scale it is impossible to give detailed accounts of battles fought by The Welsh Regiment in this short history . But there are names that will live forever in the annals of The Welsh Regiment and Wales . On the 14 September 1914 at Chézy sur Aisne Lance Corporal William Charles Fuller won the Regiment ' s first Victoria Cross of the war when , under withering and sustained rifle and machine gun fire , he advanced one hundred yards to rescue Captain Mark Haggard who was mortally wounded ; Captain Haggard ' s dying words of encouragement to his men ' STICK IT THE WELSH ' are immortalized above the clock over the door of the main Barrack block at Maindy Barracks , Cardiff . Captain Edgar Kinghorn Myles and Private Hubert William Lewis each won Victoria Crosses in 1916 at the Siege of Kut , and Evzonoi , Macedonia respectively . Of the thirty four Battalions of The Welch Regiment , nineteen served actively overseas at a cost of nearly 8000 officers and men killed or died of wounds or illness . So wide - flung was the extent of the First World War that it was finally decided that each Regiment should be awarded 10 Principal Battle Honours to be borne on the Colours and that , in addition , further Honours to which it was entitled would be shown on the Army List . Of these latter Honours the Regiment earned sixty one . The Principal Battle Honours carried on the Colours of the Regiment ' s Battalions are : Aisne 1914 , 1918 ; Ypres 1914 , 1915 , 1917 ; Gheluvelt ; Loos ; Somme 1916 , 1918 ; Pilckem ; Cambrai 1917 , 1918 ; Macedonia 1915 - 1918 ; Gallipoli ; Gaza . 1918 to 1938 . 1918 - Once the war ended the Service Battalions were disbanded and the 3rd ( Special reserve ) Battalion was disembodied . The Territorial Army Battalions were re - formed and the 7th ( Cyclist ) Battalion was absorbed into the 6th Battalion . 1919 - The 1st Battalion returned to India until 1924 where it fought in Waziristan . 1927 - The 2nd Battalion had remained at home until moving to China to become part of the Shanghai Defence Force . 1938 - The Territorial Army was again mobilized and in Wales the 2 / 5th and 15th Battalions were raised . The 6th Battalion became an Anti - aircraft Searchlight Battalion and was lost to the Infantry at that time . 1939 to 1945 . 1939 - The 1st Battalion moved to Palestine to play its part in operations connected with the 1936 – 39 Arab revolt in Palestine . At the outbreak of war on 3 September The Welch Regiment comprised the 1st Battalion in Palestine and the 2nd Battalion in India . In South Wales the Regimental Headquarters and Depot was in Cardiff with four TA battalions situated 4th and 15th in Carmarthen and 1 / 5th and 2 / 5th in Glamorgan . In this World War the numbers of Infantry Battalions raised by the Regiment was eleven only out of which only the 1st , 2nd , 4th and 1 / 5th saw active service overseas . Around 1400 officers and men of the Regiment were killed or died from wounds or sickness . The 1st Battalion first saw action in the Western Desert 1941 - The 1st Battalion landed on Crete in February but was overwhelmed by the enemy in fighting at Suda Bay ; Canea ; and Sphakia Beach . Eventually the Battalion reformed in Egypt joining the 4th Indian Division and moved again to the Western Desert . 1942 - After heavy fighting in the area of Benghazi the Battalion was again overrun when the Afrika Corps swept through Cyrenaica , Libya . 1943 - Following a period in Egypt and the Sudan the 1 ` st Battalion was re - organized as 34 ( Welch ) Beach Brick and in March landed with 50th Division in the Invasion of Sicily in July . Returning to Egypt it became the 37 ( Welch ) Beach Brick until May 1944 . 1944 - In May the 1st Battalion became an effective Infantry unit again and in July landed in Italy with the 56th ( London ) Division and took part in heavy fighting on the Gothic Line and in the Croce area . Having mobilized in 1939 the 4th and 15th Battalions had been retained at home where the 15th rendered valuable service training reinforcements for units overseas . The 4th was in Northern Ireland when in June it was ordered to join the Normandy Campaign . From the start the Battalion was involved in fierce fighting around Caen , the Falaise Gap , the Ardennes and the Reichwald where it sustained very heavy casualties . Meanwhile the 1 / 5th and 2 / 5th , mobilized at the same time as the 4th and 15th Battalions , were retained at home where the 2 / 5ht also trained and prepared drafts for overseas although it remained at home throughout the War as a Home Defence Battalion . The 1 / 5th Battalion moved to Europe in late June and fought in North West Europe distinguishing itself at ' s - Hertogenbosch , the Falaise Gap , the Ardennes and the Reichwald Forest . Some of the hardest fighting took place around the Falaise Gap where on 16 August 1944 , near Balfour . Lieutenant Tasker Watkins won the Victoria Cross for supreme personal bravery and inspired leadership . 1944 - While this fighting was going on in Europe the 2nd Battalion had been retained in India but in October moved to Burma as part of the 19th Indian Division where it joined the 14th Army . In November the Battalion crossed the Chindwin River at Sittang , captured Pinlebu and saw some very hard fighting on the Swebo Plain . 1945 - In March the 1st Battalion joined 1st ( Guards ) Brigade in 6th Armoured Division and remained with it until the end of the war . The 2nd Battalion saw its bitterest fighting along the Taungoo - Mawchi Road where for a hundred miles , with deep jungle on either side , the Japanese defended vigorously all the way . The Second World War ended in Europe on the 8 May and in South East Asia on 14 August . The deployment of the active Battalions of the Regiment at this time was : 1st Battalion at Tarvisio , North East Italy ; 2nd Battalion at Taungoo , Burma ; and the 4th and 5th Battalions in Hamburg , Germany . 1946 to 1959 . 1946 - 4th and 5th Battalions ceased to be operational following occupation duties in Dusseldorf and the Ruhr respectively . 1947 - The 4th and 5th Battalions were re - formed as TA Battalions on St . David ' s Day . The 1st Battalion returned home and was garrisoned at Malvern , Worcester with the 2nd Battalion that had returned from Burma . 1948 - In February the 1st Battalion moved to Brecon and assumed the role of Welsh Brigade Training Centre . On 14 June as a result of Infantry reductions the 2nd Battalion amalgamated with the 1st bringing to an end nearly two hundred years of active service on both land and sea . 1950 - In the Spring the 1st Battalion relinquished its training role and re - formed as an active Infantry Battalion and moved to Colchester where it undertook an intense period od training prior to moving to the Korean Peninsula where the Korean War had just started . The Battalion sailed from Southampton on 10 October and disembarked Pusan on 12 November . Joining the 29th British Infantry Brigade in the 1st Commonwealth Division and at once relieved lst Battalion The Gloucestershire Regiment . During the Korean War the Battalion won no less that three Distinguished Service Orders , three Military Cross es and many Mention in Despatches . It also gained the Battle Honour ' Korea 1951 - 52 ' that remains the only Battled Honour won by any Welsh Regiment since the end of the Second World War . 1952 - On 9 November the Battalion moved to Hong Kong and became part of 27th Infantry Brigade and was stationed in the New Territories . 1954 - The Battalion returned home in November and took up residence again in Pembroke Dock ( Llanion Barracks ) where it had once before been stationed in 1895 . 1956 - The Battalion moved to Luneburg , North West Germany on 6 June becoming part of the 10th Infantry Brigade . 1957 - In September the Battalion underwent intensive training at Malvern , Worcestershire in preparation for a tour of duty in Cyprus . The Battalion sailed for Cyprus on 31 October arriving in Lefka on the north east coast of the island on 10 November . 1958 - Following distinguished service in the Cyprus campaign the Battalion moved to North Africa and established its Headquarters in Benghazi with company detachments at Derna , Marj and Al Adm . 1959 - The Battalion returned to Maindy Barracks , Cardiff where it remained until moving to Berlin in 1960 . 1960 to 1963 . The 1st Battalion was stationed in Berlin at Brooke Barracks in Spandau . This was at the height of the Cold War and in 1961 came the erection of the infamous Berlin Wall . The battalion incurred numerous duties within the defence parameters of the city such as the Ice Keller duties of an armoured escort to a 8 year old boy from his home on the Iron Curtain border to his school in Spandau and return . The Corps of Drums were trained to become a Mines and Explosives response team ( EOD ) to help the Royal Engineers in time of trouble . After the shooting of Peter Fechter , who was left to die on the wall , the allied forces arranged for a military ambulance to be stationed on Checkpoint Charlie in the American Zone . This was crewed by members of the Corps of Drums together with the RAMC staff and they would have to enter East Berlin and risk their lives to rescue any persons shot on the east side of the wall by the East German guards { VOPOS - Volkspolizei } and take them to an East Berlin hospital . Also the battalion contributed to the guarding of the famous Berlin Train , that operated through East Germany to Berlin . The year 1962 was significant in that it saw the end of National Service and the last National Servicemen left the Battalion in Berlin . This moment was recorded in the Regimental Journal ' The Men of Harlech ' in the following words ' For the first time for almost 25 years we are an all - Regular Battalion ' . This valedictory was less than generous to the men who had served , fought and died in the Regiment and all those involved could be mightily proud of the time they served in the Regiment and the often arduous duties they performed for Queen and Country in that time . 1963 to 1965 . The 1st Battalion became the Demonstration Battalion of The School of Infantry , stationed first at Netheravon and then Knook Camp in Heytesbury . In 1965 they became the first occupants of the newly built Battlesbury Barracks in Warminster . 1966 to 1968 . For their final overseas posting 1 Welch took over from 1SWB in Stanley Fort on Hong Kong Island . Here they carried out internal security duties , border patrols and ceremonial duties . Sgt Matchett was awarded a George Medal for rescuing two Police Officers who had been injured in a minefield . 1969 . The 1st Battalion The Welch Regiment amalgamated with The 1st Battalion The South Wales Borderers to form the 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Wales 24th / 41st on 11 June in Cardiff Castle . The newly appointed Colonel - in - Chief , HRH The Prince of Wales , presented new Colours to the Regiment and the traditions of both Regiments were handed to the Royal Regiment of Wales . Later that year in Caernarvon Castle The Prince of Wales wore the uniform of the Regiment at his Investiture . And so the curtain was brought down on a gallant Welsh Regiment that had served its country faithfully and with distinction since 1719 ; although its history and exploits will live on forever in the annals of this Nation ' s military past . Battle honours . The Regiment was awarded the following battle honours : From the above Battle Honours the following were actually borne on the Regimental and Queen ' s Colour : Belleisle , Martinique 1762 , St . Vincent 1797 , India , Bourbon , Java , Detroit , Queenstown , Miami , Niagara , Waterloo , Ava , Candahar 1842 , Ghuznee 1842 , Cahool 1842 , Alma , Inkerman , Sevastopol , Aisne 1914 - 18 , Ypres 1914 - 15 - 17 , Gheluvelt , Loos , Somme 1916 - 18 , Pilkem , Cambrai 1917 - 18 , Macedonia 1915 - 18 , Gallipoli 1915 , Gaza , Falaise , Lower Mass , Reichswald , Croce , Italy 1943 - 45 , ¹ Awarded for the services of the 69th Foot . ² Awarded in 1909 for the services of the 69th Foot , with the badge of a Naval Crown superscribed " 12th April 1782 " . References . ' History of the services of the 41st ( The Welch Regiment ) ' by Captain and Adjutant D . A . N . Lomax , ' The History of The Welch regiment . 1719 - 1918 ' author unknown , ' The History of The Welch Regiment 1919 - 1951 ' Based on the original work of CaptainJ . de Courcy and amplified and enlarged by Major General CEN Lomax CB CBE DSO MC ( Colonel The Welch regiment ) External links . 41st ( Welch ) Regiment of Foot , 41st ( Welch ) Regiment of Foot - National Army Museum , The Regimental Museum of the Royal Welsh ( Brecon ) , 41st - Regiment History , The Regiment , 1719 to now - 41st Regiment of Foot , Information Services - 17th Battalion The Welsh Regiment , Pembroke County War Memorial - Boer War Memorial , 4th ( Carmarthenshire ) Battalion The Welch Regiment TA , 5th Battalion The Welch Regiment , 6th ( Glamorgan ) Battalion The Welsh Regiment TF .