Digital museum showcasing the collection of worldwide legends over the years! 千古不朽博物館展示多年來收藏的世界傳奇故事!
British Army
The 49th Hertfordshire Regiment of Foot
Shoulder Belt Plate
英軍第49赫特福德郡步兵團
肩帶牌匾
Item number: M360
Year: AD 1843-1881
Material: Gilt and Brass
Size: 99.7 x 77.5 x 8.8 mm
Weight: 161.6 g
Provenance: Noonans 2024
This is a shoulder belt plate issued to the 49th Hertfordshire Regiment of Foot following the First Opium War. The plate is rectangular with curved edges, featuring a polished border and a densely stippled background for ornamentation. At its centre is a gilded regimental badge, crowned at the top, flanked on either side by laurel branches.
Flanking the laurel branches on either side and beneath are scrolls inscribed with the names of key battles in which the regiment participated: “EGMONT-OP-ZEE,” “COPENHAGEN,” and “QUEENSTOWN.” The first two commemorate engagements during the Second Coalition War against France, fought in the Netherlands (AD 1799) and Denmark (AD 1801). The third refers to a significant engagement during the War of AD 1812, where British and American forces clashed in Queenston, Ontario, Canada.
At the centre of the plate is a circular motif inscribed with the regiment’s honorary royal title since AD 1815: “PRINCESS CHARLOTTE OF WALES,” referring to the daughter of King George IV. Within the circular frame, the regiment’s designation, “49,” is prominently displayed, flanked on both sides by decorative wreaths of shamrocks. Above the numeral is the regiment’s home station in Britain: “HERTFORDSHIRE.”
At the bottom of the plate is an emblem featuring a Chinese dragon alongside a scroll bearing the inscription “CHINA.” This element symbolises the honours bestowed upon the regiment following the conclusion of the First Opium War. On May 18, AD 1842, the regiment launched an assault from the right flank during the capture of a Joss House at Chapoo, encountering fierce resistance from Green Standard Army troops and local militias. This engagement resulted in the regiment’s heaviest casualties sustained during the war.
The 49th Hertfordshire Regiment of Foot, was established in AD 1743. In AD 1881, the 49th (Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot and the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot were merged to form the Royal Berkshire Regiment, with the former becoming the 1st Battalion and the latter the 2nd Battalion. The Royal Berkshire Regiment subsequently took part in the Second Boer War, the First World War, and the Second World War, and was reorganised in AD 1959 into the Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment.