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[[Image:Wiltshir.gif|thumb|250px|right|Cap Badge]]
Also known as '''The Wiltshire Regiment'''.
*'''1758''' became the 62nd Regiment of Foot
*'''1782''' became the 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment
*'''1881''' amalgamated with the [[99th Regiment of Foot|99th Duke of Edinburgh's (Lanarkshire) Regiment of Foot ]] to become the 1st Battalion of the Duke of Edinburgh’s (Wiltshire) Regiment
*'''1921''' became The Wiltshire Regiment (Duke of Edinburgh’s).
*'''1959''' amalgamated into The Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment (Berkshire and Wiltshire)
The following year, in May, the Flank Companies marched to join a Force at [[Shimoga]], 150 miles away, to quell Mahratta disturbances in the Nugger Province in North-west [[Mysore]]. Their presence restored order and the 62nd's Companies returned to Bangalore. All was quiet in Bangalore till October 1832, when a native conspiracy might well have resulted in the death of all the Europeans. An insurrection had been planned whereby the native troops and population, assisted by the Pindaris, who were roving freebooter terrorists, mostly outlaws from various tribes, were to rise on the night of 28th October. Five hundred conspirators would be admitted through the gates of Bangalore Fort by native soldiers. They were to kill General Hawker in his quarters instantly, cut down the 62nd's sentries on the magazine and seize it. The code word for the gate to be opened was "Tipoo Sahib," the name of an Indian adventurer and usurper killed in Mysore by the British some thirty years before. Once the fort was captured, the Indian cavalry and artillerymen were to cut loose all the horses of the British 13th Light Dragoons, and kill the white gunners. The Pindaris would then be called in to carry out the general slaughter. Fortunately the plot was discovered by a Eurasian Drummer in the 48th Native Infantry; faithful to the European side of his ancestry, he revealed it. Guards were strengthened, the Indian ringleaders seized, and the 39th Foot and other reinforcements brought in from [[Poonamallee]]. Punishment was condign, four of the conspirators were blown from cannon, two were shot, and the remainder transported for life.
==== The March to [[Masulipatam ]] ====Early in 1833, after an influenza epidemic, the Regiment received orders to march from Bangalore to relieve the 45th Foot at [[Masulipatam]]. This lay 400 miles to the North-east on the coast, and was the most unhealthy station in the Madras Command, if not in the whole of India. Lieutenant-Colonel John Reed made strenuous efforts for the Regiment to be allowed to make the second half of the journey by sea from Madras. His reasons were that to go by land would entail a two months' march through districts infested with cholera and famine. All entreaties were in vain, and the 62nd set out on the 18th February about 500 strong, at the start of a most disastrous period lasting for two years. The route lay due east through Kolar towards Madras, and on 1st March a halt was made at [[Chittoor]], where cholera was raging and claimed its first victim. This was the wife of a Private Soldier, Mrs Steven Shipway, who died at Kolcherry, nine miles on, when the march was resumed northwards two days later. Some of the men fell sick at Kolcherry, and five were buried there that morning. together with a child belonging to the Regimental Surgeon, Doctor Radford. Twelve days later the Regiment reached [[Nellore]], cholera casualties having occurred all the way, both among the soldiers and the inhabitants living along the route. Large numbers of half-starved natives had been procured to carry the sick in blankets slung on sticks. Daily this had become more difficult, and the cattle drawing the baggage carts died from fatigue and want of forage, the countryside being scorched and bare from the long drought. Nellore lay to the northeast near the sea, and here the 62nd camped for five days in a large Tamarind plantation on the bank of the Pennair River. Additional medical aid was received from [[Madras]], the cholera abated, and was thought to have ceased when the march northwards was resumed. It soon returned. Five days later the Regiment reached the sea at Ramapatam, camping almost on the beach for a night before marching on along the shore to Cavador. On 9th April they reached Vellasor on the estuary of the Kistna. The cholera epidemic had lessened, and, crossing the river next day, they arrived at Masulipatam. The Regiment camped on a salt water marsh until the 45th Foot marched out on 16th April en route for [[Secunderabad]], when they occupied Masulipatam Fort. The 62nd had buried nearly a quarter of their number on the journey, and of those remaining, only 100 were fit for duty. On 21st May the usual hot and violent winds set in, and fifty men a day for three days were admitted to hospital, principally with apoplexy and sunstroke. Many more deaths occurred, only forty-four men being fit for duty, Garrison Guards were discontinued and Regimental Guards decreased. Shortly afterwards, when the Regiment had to parade for the reading of a Government Proclamation, only four weak Divisions could be mustered. The three Officers on parade were the Commanding Officer, his acting Adjutant, and a Subaltern who carried one of the Colours, the other being borne by a Sergeant. An immediate report was made, and the General Commanding in Madras ordered the Regiment to move to Vizagapatam, 200 miles northeast along the coast. This was countermanded by the [[Commander-in-Chief in India]], who ordered a Medical Committee of Investigation. Besides cholera, the 62nd were then afflicted with dysentery in a malignant form which killed within twelve hours. In August, when the Medical Committee assembled, the only men fit for duty in the whole Regiment were two Subalterns. The Committee recommended a sea trip for over 200 of the 62nd, and all those sufficiently recovered embarked in the 'Abberton', a chartered transport of 600 tons. The Commanding Officer and 154 others sailed on 27th August for a six weeks' cruise in the Bay of Bengal, visiting the Nicobar and Andaman islands. A large number of men convalescing from cholera and dysentery, and crowded on board a small ship with rudimentary sanitation, were not likely to regain their health by sailing through tropical seas in light marching order. Eleven men died at sea, and most of the remainder were readmitted to hospital on their return with dropsy and scurvy, from which many more died.
The following March Lieutenant-Colonel John Reed returned to England on two years' sick leave, but died early in 1836 from fever contracted at Masulipatam. Back in Masulipatam the depleted Regiment enjoyed better health in the early part of 1834, but the June rains brought on violent attacks of fever, ague and dysentery. The hospital was crowded, part of the barracks had to be turned into wards and deaths averaged seven a day. Another report was sent to the Commander-in-Chief in India, who was up in the [[Nilgiri Hills|Nilghiri Hills]] in Mysore. He at once ordered the 62nd to move to Moulmein in Burma, and Masulipatam ceased to be a European military station.
In December, 1844 the 62nd were relieved by the 39th Foot, and started their march to the [[Punjab]]. In February 1845 they reached [[Delhi]], and they arrived at [[Ferozepore]], in March. The 62nd's barracks were still in the process of building, as a British Regiment was not normally stationed there; the aggressive attitude of the Sikhs beyond the River Sutlej determining the change in policy. For two months the Regiment camped out, and when they moved into ten barrack blocks in May, there were still no doors to the buildings and no officers' quarters. By now the hot weather had come, and once again cholera struck the Regiment. They always seem fated to be in a part of India rife with the disease, and there was much of it in the Punjab during that month of June. In this Asiatic variety the victims turned black and suffered cramp in the limbs, but stood every chance of recovery if they survived the first forty-eight hours. The Regimental hospital was not ready till July, and the sick had to be accommodated in one belonging to the Native Infantry. In September there were 170 men in hospital, and, by the outbreak of the [[1st Sikh War]] in December, 126 men had died from cholera and apoplexy. Ferozepore was just South-East of the River Sutlej, which formed the boundary between that part of the Punjab ruled by the Sikhs and the territory governed by the British. The 62nd's barracks lay in a great sandy plain without a tree or a blade of grass. A mile away was the old city, with the Frontier Treasury and Military Headquarters.
The Sikh religion had much in common with that of the Hindus, but with no caste system. The Sikhs never cut their black hair or beards, wore a comb in their hair, a short sword or dagger, a steel bracelet and a pair of short drawers. Tall and strong, they had an intensive military enthusiasm, and called themselves the Khalsa, the chosen brotherhood of the elect. For the past six years the "Sikh" Punjab had seen a ceaseless struggle for power between the Army and the Government with much intrigue and strife. All Sikhs were, however, united in the expectation of a British attack. Late in 1845 they moved to invade British India from a variety of motives; forestalment and self-preservation were two of them, but the thirst of the soldiers for power, natural pugnacity, and a desire on the part of the Government to involve their own Army in something other than internal strife, were greater influences. On 21st November the Sikh Army, in great numbers and with a large train of artillery, left their capital of [[Lahore]] and marched South-East towards the Sutlej, fifty miles away. Their progress was marked by the firing of guns at each daily halt. Foreseeing trouble, the British Governor-General in India, Sir Henry Hardinge, had taken certain steps. At Ferozepore, Major-General Littler now commanded a Division, though it was only 6,000 strong. Farther East, 11,000 more troops had been assembled at Ludhiana and Ambala under the [[Commander-in-Chief in India]], [[Hugh Gough|General Sir Hugh Gough]], and the Governor-General himself. From now on, Light Cavalry Patrols were very active from Ferozepore, and, in early December, the 62nd started sleeping fully dressed with laced boots, and muskets by their cots. On 11th December the Sikhs commenced crossing the Sutlej about fourteen miles above Ferozepore to the North-east, and had some 12,000 men on the near bank by the next day. At midday on 12th December, the 62nd was ordered to occupy a position on the left bank facing North-east covering the cantonment and the city. Next day the Sikhs moved nearer with more and more men crossing the river, constant artillery salutes marking the arrival of each contingent. The 27th Native Infantry occupied the city, and the 63rd Native Infantry guarded the families and the sick in entrenchments in the cantonment.
On 12th December, the Governor-General and the Commander-in Chief set out from Ludhiana with 11,000 to 12,000 men. On the 14th the Sikh's main camp was at Attaree only seven miles from Ferozepore, with outposts close up to it. This portion of the Sikh Army was commanded by Sirdar Tej Singh, and made frequent demonstrations for the next three days. The 62nd made night sorties, but the Sikhs always retreated towards their heavy guns whereupon the British withdrew, being under orders not to stage a main attack. During this period Rajah Lal Singh, with 14,000 Regular Cavalry and masses of Irregulars, joined Tej Singh to the accompaniment of an eighty-gun salute. The combined Force numbered 60,000 men. The two Sikh Commanders by no means saw eye to eye. On the evening of the 16th, Lal Singh sent a message to Captain Peter Nicolson of the 28th Native Infantry, who was the British Political Agent in Ferozepore, saying that he was a friend of the British, and wished to prevent an attack to prove it. Nicolson replied that he should withdraw with his cavalry towards [[Moodkee]], to show his sincerity, knowing that the Commander-in-Chief's Forces were approaching that place. Lal Singh did so, but attacked the British at Moodkee on 18th December. On 17th and 18th, Tej Singh's troops did little except loot villages and fire salutes from Zamburaks, light guns discharged from the backs of camels. On the 17th Littler received news of General Gough's approach. The following evening the weather was cold, and Ashburnham was sitting with Nicolson in his tent, smoking a cheroot and sipping a night-cap of grog. A wounded Sikh was brought in by a vidette of the 3rd Light Dragoons, and a threat of hanging brought the first news of Lal Singh's repulse by the British that day at Moodkee.
At eight o'clock on the morning of 21st December Littler's Division marched. The 62nd, in full kit, red coats and stocks, numbered just under 600, including many convalescents from cholera and fever just out of hospital. By 12.30 p.m. they had covered the twelve miles without incident, and joined the other British force about five miles South-west of Ferozeshah. General Gough's total force was now about 18,000 with sixty-three guns, mostly of small calibre, and a preponderance of native troops. The exact position of the enemy was not discovered until three in the afternoon, when they were found strongly entrenched around [[Ferozeshah]] village. This Sikh force was the one commanded by Lal Singh; reinforced since fighting at [[Moodkee]], it now totalled over 30,000 men with more than 100 guns, many of large calibre. Tej Singh, with at least an equivalent force, was still encamped some ten miles away near the Sutlej. The village of [[Ferozeshah]] lay behind a high embankment, along which the Sikhs were positioned. In front of them the ground was flat and completely open for 300 yards, then came brushwood and jungle through which the British advanced to the attack at four in the afternoon.
==== Later events ====
The regiment was probably in transit in the Punjab in July 1879<ref>See ''India List'' for July 1879, ''s.v.'' Surg. P. J. O'Sullivan.</ref>.
====First World War====
1/4th Battalion Wiltshire Regiment was in India 1914 – 1917 and saw service in Palestine 1917 – 1918.<ref>
[http://www.thewardrobe.org.uk/shop/books---regimental/a-journal-of-the-1-4th-battalion-wiltshire-regiment-1914-1918/view ''A Journal of the 1/4th Battalion Wiltshire Regiment 1914 – 1918''] The Wardrobe: Home of the Infantry Regiments of Berkshire and Wiltshire</ref>
==Books==
*''The Springers. The First Battalion Duke of Edinburgh's Wiltshire Regiment, illustrated with a short extract from the records of the Regiment, Quetta, Baluchistan, 1899. Photographs by Fred Bremner'' Published by Fred Bremner, 1899
:Available at the [http://libraries.wiltshire.gov.uk/02_Catalogue/02_005_TitleInformation.aspx?rcn=BRN0591113&addrcn=BRN0591113 Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre / Wiltshire Studies Library]
:This is a photographic album produced by the photographer [[Fred Bremner]], one of four known photographic albums of British Army Regiments in the North-West of India which he published in Quetta and Lahore in the early 1900s. As an indication, that for the 1st Battalion [[22nd Regiment of Foot|Cheshire Regiment]] consists of a brief History of 20 pages followed by 38 full page printed photographs.<ref>
www.iberlibro.com. Page no longer available.</ref>
==Regimental Journal==
''The Journal of the Wiltshire Regiment'', vol. 1. no. 1-vol. 6. no. 3. June 1928-June 1939. Not published between June 1939 and June 1949 New series. vol. 1. no. 1-vol. 5. no. 21. June 1949-July 1959. Available at the [[British Library]]
== External Links ==
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/62nd_Regiment_of_Foot 62nd Regiment of Foot] Wikipedia<br>*[httpshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/62nd_(Wiltshire)_Regiment_of_Foot The Wiltshire Regiment] Wikipedia<br>*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Duke_of_Edinburgh%27s_Royal_Regiment_(Berkshire_and_Wiltshire) Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment] Wikipedia<br>*[http://www.thewardrobe.org.uk/wiltshireregiment.php home The Wardrobe : The Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire ) Museum]-The Story of the Infantry of Berkshire and Wiltshire. Covers the [[49th Regiment of Foot| 49th]], 62nd, [[66th Regimentof Foot |66th]] and [[99th Regiment of Foot|99th Regiments of Foot]]**[http://www.thewardrobe.org.uk/research/regimental-timeline Regimental Time Line]. Extensive details of deployments.<br>**[http://enwww.thewardrobe.org.uk/research/the-collection/search/category:9 Photographic search facilty].Many photos may be viewed online<br>*[http://web.archive.org/web/20080113060357/www.wikipediaregiments.org/wikiregiments/uk/inf/62nd_062-758.htm 62nd (Wiltshire)_Regiment_of_Foot The Wiltshire Regimentof Foot] including [http://web.archive.org/web/20071218192423/www.regiments.org/deploy/uk/reg-inf/062-1.htm deployments] WikipediaRegiments.org, an archived site<br>*[http://enwww.wikipediabritisharmedforces.org/wikii_regiments/wilts_index.htm The Wiltshire Regiment] from British Armed Forces & National Service. Includes brief details of deployments from 1881*[http://www.angelfire.com/mp/memorials/wiltsrmr.htm Wiltshire Regiment Memorial at Quetta: deaths 1895 to 1900] from [http://www.angelfire.com/mp/memorials/memindz1.htm Soldiers Memorials]*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/9164665@N04/580874919/ Christian cemetery Quetta: gravestone of Florence Harford] died 12 September 1900 of enteric fever, wife of Lt-Col HC Harford, 1st Wilts Regt*[https://www.flickr.com/photos/46212770@N08/sets/72157645014864191/with/14352410605/ Photograph Collection: John White MM 1/4th Battalion Wiltshire Regiment] In India WW1. Includes Chaubattia/ [[Ranikhet]]. flickr.com ===Historical books online===*[http://books.google.com.au/books?id=5IUcAAAAMAAJ&pg=PR1 ''My Indian Journal''] by Colonel Walter Campbell 1864 Google Books. The author went to India with the regiment in 1830 and returned to England to c 1834**[http://books.google.com.au/books?id=MwoFAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA3 ''The Old Forest Ranger, or, Wild Sports of India on the Neilgherry Hills, in the Jungles and on the Plains''] by Major Walter Campbell 1853 Google Books*[http://books.google.com.au/The_Duke_of_Edinburgh%27s_Royal_Regiment_(Berkshire_and_Wiltshire) Duke books?id=rBNPAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA46 An account of the sickness and mortality of the 62nd Regiment in Masulipatam in 1833] , page 46 ''The EdinburghMedical and Surgical Journal Volume 68's Royal ' 1847. Google Books*[http://books.google.com.au/books?id=JAfxAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA142 Page 142] of the following report refers to the 62nd Regimentin [[Moulmein]] in 1834, and previously in [[Masulipatam]]: [http://books.google.com.au/books?id=JAfxAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA137 "Second Report of a Committee of the Statistical Society of London, appointed to collect and enquire into Vital Statistics, upon the Sickness and Mortality among the European and Native Troops serving in the Madras Presidency"] Wikipedia, page 137 ''Journal of the Royal Statistical Society of London , Volume 4 1841'' ==Notes=={{Reflist|colwidth=30em}} {{#widget:Google PlusOne|size=small|count=true}}
[[Category:British Army Infantry Regiments]]
