Churchill wrote:Hi Guy's,
Totally agree with Joe and Graf on this one.
Fascinating and colourful period the 1660 -1721 era is, but also a headache to research.
For the British regiments, no numbering of regiments until 1751, and so all known by their colonel's surname.
Colonel's pay for the upkeep of their regiment and therefore have the right to carry a flag of his livery i.e. family crest/ coat of arms, and possibly a change of their facing colour of his regiment.
If the colonel is K.I.A. the regiment passes to someone else, who again uses their surname in the naming of the regiment, some uniform colour change, change of colonel's flag.
I'm amazed that with the great victories of the early eighteenth century in Germany and Flanders that nothing remains.
No uniforms, flag's even captured one's remain with us today.
In January 1705, 34 standards and 128 colours taken at Blenheim were paraded from the Tower of London to Westminster Hall.
For the first time since Agincourt in 1415 England had won a decisive victory over the French and it is said that the entire population of London had turned out to celebrate as London had never witnessed an occasion to equal it.
These trophies were later transferred to St.Paul's Cathedral where they were allowed to moulder away.
An investigation in 1835 of the trophies taken at the battle sadly noted that "not a rag nor a staff remained".
Unlike the French and Dutch, we sadly don't seem to have kept many records of the period.
Cheers,
Ray.
When you say no flags have come down to us I seem to remember but am unable to find the source at this precise moment of the story of the English regiment, possibly Kirke's Lambs, marching towards Sedgemoor(? again from memory but certainly within England) and ensign falling ill. He fell out of the regiment taking the Colour with him and stayed with a local family. The regiment moved on and the ensign died, leaving the Colour with the family who kept it for generations. I wrote this up for the BMSS Journal and one of their members added an illustration - which from memory hadthe Paschal Lamb on the Colours - but then it would if it was Kirke's Regiment.
I kept a copy of this Journal - I have it somewhere and if I can find it will post it.