Nineteenth Century Honours in India, Russia, China and South Africa

The rest of the Regiment’s nineteenth century battle honours were won outside of Western Europe. The first of these honours was won against the Russians during the Crimean War of 1854-55, the same campaign as the Charge of the Light Brigade. Next there was the Bays’ major battle honour of Lucknow (1858) during the Indian Mutiny of 1857. Here the Bays played a vital part in the relief of the besieged British-held city of Lucknow in north east India. After this came the battle honour of Taku Forts and Pekin 1860 in China, won by the KDG who took part in the destruction of the Summer Palace in Beijing in retribution for the dreadful treatment of allied prisoners by the Chinese. The KDG went on to achieve the next battle honour of South Africa 1879; this was for their part in the Zulu War in South Africa, in which the KDG took part in the successful British battle of Ulundi crushing the Zulus. At the end of this campaign Major Marter KDG tracked down and captured the Zulu King Cetshwayo. The last honour of the nineteenth Century was South Africa 1901-1902 which was the Second Anglo-Boer War in which both the KDG and Bays took part.