Victorian Regimental Helmet Of The Welsh Regiment

VICTORIAN ERA REGULATION HELMET OF THE WELSH REGIMENT Sold by T. McBride & Sons, 17 Charles Street, London, SW, in dark blue felt on cork body, with a large fire-gilt plaque with the regimental motto and gold mounts gilt brass including quote point, lion's head bumps and leather chin scales with its original leather and silk lining and manufacturer's commercial label. In very good condition retaining its original shape, the gilding still very fresh and no holes visible on the exterior. A small tear in the felt on the back of the helmet and loss of a segment of the green lining leather on the back of the visor. Medium size (unmarked). The regiment was created in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 41st (Welch) Regiment of Foot and the 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Welsh Regiment. The 1st Battalion traveled to Egypt in 1886. The battalion took part in the Battle of Suakin in December 1888 during the Mahdist War under the command of the force commander, Colonel Herbert Kitchener, who wrote in his dispatches: The half-battalion of the Welsh Regiment is made up of seasoned soldiers and everything I asked them to do, they did well. Their snipers at Gemaizah Fortress and the rest of the half-battalion on the left fired section volleys, driving the Dervishes from their right position and inflicting heavy casualties on them when in the open. The battalion significantly did not lose a man. The 1st Battalion went to Malta in 1889 while the 2nd Battalion went to India in 1892; the 1st Battalion moved to Pembroke Dock in December 1893 where almost all of the regiment's artifacts, plaques and silverware were lost in a major fire in 1895. The 1st Battalion was sent to South Africa in November 1899 for the Second Boer War: it fought at the Battle of Paardeberg in February 1900, where it suffered heavy losses, and again at the Battle of Driefontein in March 1900. A 3rd Militia Battalion was incorporated in December 1899 and embarked for South Africa in February 1900 to serve in the same war. In 1908 the Volunteers and Militia were reorganized nationally, the former becoming the Territorial Force and the latter the Special Reserve; the regiment now had a reserve battalion and four territorial battalions.