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List of British units in the American Revolutionary War

 
Wikipedia: List of British units in the American Revolutionary War
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This is a list of British units in the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) who fought against the American rebels and their French and Spanish allies in the North American colonies, including battles in Florida and the West Indies. In addition to the regular army it includes German auxiliary units (known collectively as Hessians), and militia and provincial units formed from Loyalists, West Indians, and Canadians.

No battle honours were ever awarded to British regiments who fought in America as it was seen by the British to be a civil war. Four battle honours were, however, awarded for actions against the French and Spanish in the West Indies and other theatres.

Only three British Army regiments (23rd Dragoons and the 73rd and 78th Foot) raised during the period of the war, many of whom were intended for North America, survived the post-war reduction in the Army. The 23rd Dragoons aka 19th Light Dragoons served in India; the 73rd (renumbered 71st in 1786) later became part of the Highland Light Infantry while the 78th (renumbered 72nd in 1786) became part of the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-Shire Buffs) in 1881.

Note: An Infantry Unit not listed is the 2nd Regiment of Foot aka Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey); however the 1st Battalion -along with the Honourable Artillery Company-suppressed the Gordon Riots in London 1780. Neither did the 11th Regiment of Foot {Devonshire} nor the 12th Regiment of Foot {Suffolk}; nor the 25th Regiment of Foot aka King's Own Scottish Borderers at Sussex; nor the 32nd Regiment of Foot at Cornwall; the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot at Herefordshire; nor the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot at East Middlesex nor 41st (Welsh) Regiment of Foot nor 51st (2nd Yorkshire West Riding) Regiment of Foot nor the 81st Regiment of Foot (Aberdeenshire Highland Regiment) take part in the American Revolution. The 86th Regiment of Foot (Rutland Regiment), the 87th Regiment of Foot, and the 90th Regiment of Foot (Yorkshire Volunteers) were stationed in the West Indies. The 72nd Highlanders; 83rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Glasgow Volunteers) and the 95th (Yorkshire) Regiment of Foot did take part in defeating a French invasion of Jersey in 1781 (the Battle of Jersey).

Contents

British Regular Army

Artillery

Cavalry

Infantry

Foot Guards

Brigade of Guards (raised from drafts of 1st Regiment of Foot Guards, Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, and 3rd Regiment of Foot Guards)

  • 1st Battalion
  • 2nd Battalion

Line Infantry

H.M. Marine Forces

  • 1st Battalion
  • 2nd Battalion

American Establishment

Provincial Units

  • American Legion (Loyalist)
  • American Volunteers
  • Armed Boat Company
  • Black Company of Pioneers (also known as the Black Pioneers)
  • British Legion (placed on American establishment in 1781 as 5th American Regiment)
  • Bucks County Dragoons (absorbed by British Legion in 1780)
  • Butler's Rangers
  • Caledonian Volunteers (formed part of the British Legion in 1778)
  • Campbell's Dragoon (South Carolina Dragoons)
  • Canadian Companies
  • DeLancey's Brigade
  • Detroit Volunteers claims descent from Roger's Rangers-later became 1st Battalion 119th Field Artillery Regiment, Michigan National Guard USA.
  • Diemar's Troop of Black Hussars (also known as Diemar's Hussars)
  • Duke of Cumberland's Regiment
  • Duchess County Company
  • Emmerich's Chasseurs
  • Fenwick's Dragoons (South Carolina Dragoons)
  • Forshner's Independent Company
  • Georgia Light Dragoons
  • Georgia Loyalists
  • Governor Wentworth's Volunteers
  • Guides and Pioneers
  • Harkimer's Batteau Company
  • Hierlihy's Corps
  • James Island Light Dragoons
  • King's American Dragoons
  • King's Rangers
  • King's American Regiment (placed on American establishment in 1781 as 4th American Regiment)
  • King's (Carolina) Rangers
  • King's Orange Rangers
  • King's Royal Regiment of New York
  • Kinloch's Light Dragoons (formed part of the British Legion in 1778)
  • Locke's Independent Company
  • Loyal American Rangers
  • Loyal American Regiment
  • Loyal Foresters
  • Loyal New Englanders
  • Loyal Rangers
  • Loyal Rhode Islanders
  • Maryland Loyalists Battalion
  • Nassau Blues
  • Newfoundland Regiment (placed on British establishment in 1782)
  • New Hampshire Volunteers
  • New Jersey Volunteers (Skinner's Greens)
  • Newport Artillery Company (Rhode Island) 1741
  • New York Volunteers (placed on American establishment as 3rd American Regiment in 1779)
  • North Carolina Highlanders
  • North Carolina Independent Company
  • North Carolina Independent Dragoons
  • Pennsylvania Loyalists
  • Philadelphia Light Dragoons (formed part of the British Legion in 1778)
  • Prince of Wales's American Volunteers
  • Provincial Light Infantry
  • Queen's Rangers (placed on American establishment in 1779 as 1st American Regiment);claims descent from Roger's Rangers
  • Roman Catholic Volunteers
  • Royal American Reformers
  • Royal Fencible Americans
  • Royal Garrison Battalion (placed on British establishment in 178
  • Royal Georgia Volunteers
  • Royal Highland Emigrants (placed on British establishment in 1779 as 84th Foot)
  • Royal Nova Scotia Volunteer Regiment
  • Saint John's Volunteers
  • Starkloff's Dragoons (South Carolina Dragoons)
  • South Carolina Rangers
  • South Carolina Royalists
  • Stewart's Troop of Light Dragoons
  • Van Alstine's Batteau Company
  • Volunteers of Ireland (placed on American establishment in 1779 as 2nd American Regiment)
  • Volunteers of New England
  • West Florida Royal Foresters
  • West Jersey Volunteers

Militia

  • Charleston Militia
  • Charleston Volunteer Battalion
  • Collett's Independent Company
  • Detroit Militia
  • East Florida Militia
  • Georgia Artillery
  • Georgia Militia
  • German Independent Company
  • Independent Troop of Black Dragoons (also known as Black Pioneer Troop)
  • Loyal Commissariat Volunteers
  • Loyal Ordnance Volunteers
  • Loyal Volunteers of the City of New York
  • Massachusetts Militia
  • Massachusetts Volunteers
  • McDonald's Company of Volunteers
  • Minorca Volunteer Company
  • New Jersey Militia
  • New York City Militia
  • New York Independent Highland Volunteers
  • New York Marine Artillery Company
  • New York Militia
  • New York Rangers
  • North Carolina Militia
  • North Carolina Volunteers
  • Nova Scotia Militia
  • Nova Scotia Volunteer Militia Regiment
  • Quebec City Militia
  • Quebec Militia
  • Saint John's County Volunteers (South Carolina)
  • South Carolina Militia
  • South Carolina Volunteers
  • Westchester Chasseurs
  • West Florida Militia

Local Volunteer Corps

  • Adams Company of Rangers
  • Bay Fusiliers
  • Brant's Volunteers
  • Bucks County Volunteers
  • Detroit Volunteers
  • Dunlop's Corps
  • East Florida Rangers
  • East Florida Volunteers
  • Georgia Light Dragoons
  • Georgia Rangers
  • Georgia Rifle Dragoons
  • King's Loyal Americans
  • Mackay's Corps
  • McAlpin's Corps of Royalists
  • Mosquito Shore Volunteers
  • Natchez Volunteers
  • Negro Volunteers
  • Newfoundland Volunteers
  • Queen's Loyal Rangers
  • Queen's Loyal Virginia Regiment (absorbed by Queen's Rangers in 1776)
  • Queen's Royal Rangers
  • Rattan and Black River Volunteers
  • Royal Bateaux Volunteers
  • Royal Ethiopian Regiment
  • Virginia Light Horse
  • Virginia Volunteers
  • Volunteers of Augusta
  • West Florida Provincials
  • West Florida Refugees

Associated

  • Associated Loyalists
  • Hatfield's Company of Partisans
  • Hazard's Corps of Refugees
  • James Stewart's Corps of Refugees
  • King's Militia Volunteers
  • Loyal American Association
  • Loyal Associated Refugees
  • Loyal Irish Volunteers
  • Loyal Newport Associators
  • Loyal Refugee Volunteers
  • Maryland Royal Retaliators
  • North Carolina Provincials
  • Pepperell's Corps
  • Robins Company of Partisans
  • Royal North British Volunteers
  • Sharp's Refugee Marines
  • Uzal Ward's Company of Volunteers

West Indian Forces

  • Barbados Militia
  • Barbadian Rangers
  • Black Carolina Corps
  • Grenada Militia
  • Jamaica Corps of Foot
  • Independent Companies (Jamaica)
  • Jamaica Legion (absorbed by Jamaica Volunteers in 1780)
  • Jamaica Light Dragoons
  • Jamaica Militia
  • Jamaica Rangers
  • Jamaica Volunteers
  • Turks Island Company

German Auxiliaries

Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst

  • Rauschenplatt's Princess of Anhalt-Zerbst's Regiment (2 battalions, 1 infantry in Quebec (1778), and 1 "Pandour" in New York (1780))
  • Nuppenau's Jäger Company
  • Company of Artillery

Margrave of Ansbach-Bayreuth

  • 1st Regiment Anspach-Bayreuth (later Regiment von Volt; 1st Anspach Battalion)
  • 2nd Regiment Anspach-Bayreuth (later Regiment Seybothen; 2nd Anspach Battalion)
  • Anspach Jäger Company

Duchy of Brunswick

  • Dragoon Regiment Prinz Lüdwig Ernst
  • Grenadier Battalion Breymann
  • Light Infantry Battalion von Barner
  • Musketeer Regiment Riedesel
  • Musketeer Regiment Specht
  • Regiment Prinz Friedrich
  • Regiment von Rhetz
  • von Geyso's Jäger Company

Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel)

  • Combined Regiment von Loos
  • Fusilier Regiment von Dittfurth
  • Fusilier Regiment Erbprinz (later Musketeer Regiment (1780))
  • Fusilier Regiment von Knyphausen
  • Fusilier Regiment von Lossburg
  • Grenadier Regiment von Rall (later von Woellwarth (1777); von Trümbach (1779); d'Angelelli (1781))
    • 1st Battalion Grenadiers von Linsing
    • 2nd Battalion Grenadiers von Block (later von Lengerke)
    • 3rd Battalion Grenadiers von Minnigerode (later von Loewenstein)
    • 4th Battalion Grenadiers von Koehler (later von Graff; von Platte)
  • Garrison Regiment von Bünau
  • Garrison Regiment von Huyne (later von Benning)
  • Garrison Regiment von Stein (later von Seitz; von Porbeck)
  • Garrison Regiment von Wissenbach (later von Knoblauch)
  • Jäger Corps
  • Leib Infantry Regiment
  • Musketeer Regiment von Donop
  • Musketeer Regiment von Trümbach (later Von Bose (1779))
  • Musketeer Regiment von Mirbach (later Jung von Lossburg (1780))
  • Musketeer Regiment Prinz Carl
  • Musketeer Regiment von Wutginau (later Landgraf (1777))

County of Hesse-Hanau

  • Janecke's Frei Corps of Light Infantry
  • Musketeer Regiment Erb Prinz
  • von Creuzbourg's Jäger Corps
  • Pausch's Company of Artillery

Principality of Waldeck

  • 3rd Waldeck Regiment

See also

References


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Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "List of British units in the American Revolutionary War".  Read more