This territorial regiment is built up
of two formerly East India Company's battalions - the Madras Fusiliers and
the Bombay Fusiliers, which in 1862 were amalgamated with the Imperial
Army as the 102nd and 103rd of the Line. Its military history is
that of the upgrowth of our Indian Empire, and since it became
territorialised it has not had the fortune to have been on active service;
none the less, its past history is in every way brilliant, as its
battle-roll evidences, for it contains the names of "Arcot",
"Condore", "Wyndewash", "Sholinghur", "Nundy
Droog", "Amboyna", "Ternate", "Banda"
,"Pondicherry", "Mahidpoor", "Guzerat",
"Seringapatam", "Kirkee", "Beni-Boo-Ally",
"Aden", "Punjaub", "Mooltan", "Goojerat", "Ava", "Pegu", and "Lucknow".
The "Madras European Regiment"
ranked second in the Eastern Army, and its formation as a regular
battalion, under Stringer Lawrence, dates as far back as 1748, from which
date to 1758 it took part in 72 battles against the enemy, both native and
French. In 1760 it was increased to three battalions, organised as
which it again took part in eighteen more battles, and the capture of ten
forts; again increased by a fourth battalion in 1774, when it fought at
Guzerat and seventeen other actions; and in 1791 it received the
"Royal Tiger" as a badge. By 1841 its battle-roll had been
increased by seventeen more engagements, and the motto of "Spectamur
agendo2 was granted the regiment for its arduous and continued
service. Its title changed in the course of years from the
"Madras European Regiment" to the "1st Madras European
Fusiliers". the "Royal Madras Fusiliers", and finally to
that at present authorised. It saw active service in Burmah in 1852
- 55 (for which "Pegu" appears on the colours), and in the
Mutiny, when it was present at Allahabad, Futehpore (where it was the only
regiment armed with the Enfield rifle), Aoung, Pundo-Nuddee, Cawnpore,
Oonao, Basaarat Gunge, Alambagh, "Lucknow", and many other
"affairs"; for which the last mentioned name closes the present
list of honours. The 2nd battalion of the regiment was formed for
the protection of Bombay, part of the dower of the Queen of Charles II, at
which time it wore scarlet with emerald green facings. Its earliest
important service was in 1733, when it took part in some operations near
Thull; but in 1757 it saw more serious work at Chandernagore, Plassey,
Buxar, Medura, and Palamcottah, and saw further fighting in the Malwan
expedition in 1765; in 1767 against the Chaub Arabs, in 1768 against Hyder
Ali, in 1779 against the Nawab of Surat, and other expeditions from that
date to 1848, when it was present at Gujerat, at the time when the Punjaub
was added to our empire. The badge of the "Royal Tiger",
already referred to, belongs to both regiments; but the 2nd battalion gave
the superscription "Plassey", and "Buxar", while to
the same regiment is due the elephant, superscribed with "Carnatic"
and "Mysore". It also bears the arms of the city of
Dublin, by "permission of the Municipal Council".
The grenade, crowned, is worn on the
button, and on the collar with the tiger and elephant; the grenade on the
head dress plate bears, in addition, the arms of Dublin and the regimental
motto "Spectamur agendo". The shamrock appears surrounding
the arms, and also with the harp, on the waist belt.
The Militia battalions attached to this
regiment are the Kildare, the Royal Dublin City, and the Dublin County,
with headquarters at Naas and Dublin. The nickname of the 1st
battalion is the "Lambs"; that of the 2nd the "Old
Toughs", from their long and arduous service in India; but the
"102nd" was known during the Mutiny as the "Blue
Caps".
The regimental pet of the 1st battalion
about the year 870 was a tiger cub named "Plassey", one of a
pair captured by Captain Thackwell of the 5th Lancers, and presented by
him to the "Madras Fusiliers". Though quite tame, and even
on friendly terms with two other pets (an antelope and a dog), and making
the voyage home in company also with two young leopards, the fact that he
was living unchained in the garrison at Dover so alarmed some of the
inhabitants that he was reluctantly sent to the Zoological Gardens, where
he died, retaining his amiability and his fondness for the dog to the very
last.
