The Régiment de la Reine (''Queen's Regiment'') was a

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

infantry regiment active in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is principally known for its role in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (175 ...

, when it served in the North American theatre.

Early history

The Régiment de la Reine traced its origin to the Mazarin Français Regiment, which in 1661 was named Régiment de la reine mère (''Regiment of the Queen Mother'') by

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

as part of a general reorganisation of the French Army. Following the death of Louis' mother

Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 un ...

in 1666, the regiment was renamed as the Régiment de la Reine.

Seven Years War

During the Seven Years' War, a battalion of the regiment took part in several battles including Fort Saint Frédéric on Lake George (September 1755), and the taking of Fort Bull and Fort William-Henry. Their greatest victory came at

Fort Carillon Fort Carillon, presently known as Fort Ticonderoga, was constructed by Pierre de Rigaud de Vaudreuil, Governor of French Canada, to protect Lake Champlain from a British invasion. Situated on the lake some south of Fort Saint Frédéric, it ...

in 1758 against the forces of General Abercromby. They were then sent to Isle aux Noix in July of that same year, and were absent from the

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...

the following year. However, they did take part at the

Battle of Sainte-Foy The Battle of Sainte-Foy (french: Bataille de Sainte-Foy) sometimes called the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille du Quebec), was fought on April 28, 1760 near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Y ...

in 1760, where the British under General Murray were defeated.Germain, Jean-Claude ''Nous étions le Nouveau Monde'', Hurtibise, p142 2009 At the subsequent siege of Quebec they were unable to subdue the British and had to retreat to Montreal in May. They could not fend off the British three pronged attack against Montréal in September and surrendered there.

Subsequent history

In 1791 the regiment became the 41st Regiment of Line Infantry when the former titles of the Royal Army were abolished. With the restoration of the Monarchy in 1815 the 2nd Regiment of Line Infantry was renamed as the ''Régiment de la Reine'' but in the course of a general restructuring of the army in 1816 this traditional title was finally discarded.

Uniform

Throughout most of the 18th century the regiment's coat was white (originally the grey-white of non-dyed wool), with a blue waistcoat underneath, without turnbacks or a collar, and with pewter buttons.

Facings A facing colour is a common tailoring technique for European military uniforms where the visible inside lining of a standard military jacket, coat or tunic is of a different colour to that of the garment itself.René Chartrand, William Younghusb ...

were red (on the cuffs only). Canadian troops wore the same, except with a red waistcoat. Both fusiliers and grenadiers wore black tricorns laced white. As part of the reorganisations of 1791 the regimental facings were changed to sky-blueTerry Crowdy, page 35 "French Revolutionary Infantry 1789-1802",

Régiment de la reine dragons

A mounted regiment the Régiment de la reine dragons (Queen's Dragoons), was raised in 1673, named like its infantry counterpart in honour of the queen consort Marie-Thérèse of Spain. In 1791 it became the 6th Dragoon Regiment.

References