The Royal Garrison Regiment was an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

regiment of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

that formed in 1901 and disbanded in 1908. The regiment was originally formed from personnel of the Royal Reserve Regiments, a reserve force composed of veteran soldiers for home duties in the United Kingdom as a large part of the regular forces were sent to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

for service in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. The Reserve Regiments only served in the UK and were phased out in 1901, when the Royal Garrison Regiment was formed. The new units were sent to relieve regular infantry battalions in overseas garrisons; this would allow the regular battalions previously stationed there to be sent on active service in

. In 1901, four battalions were raised. The 1st, 3rd and 4th battalions were sent to

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, whilst the 2nd was sent to

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

. In 1904, all four were moved to South Africa for garrison duty there as the regular units returned to normal duties. A fifth battalion was raised in 1902, for service in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

; it garrisoned

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

from October 1902 until 1905, when it handed over its role to the Permanent Active Militia. It was the last British garrison to be based in Canada proper. All five battalions were disbanded in 1906-7, and the regiment was disbanded in August 1908. The cap badge worn by the regiment was the Royal Arms, as used by all British Army regiments and corps for which no unique badge has been authorised, including the General Service Corps, the English regiments of the Royal Reserve Regiments, and the Bermuda Militia Infantry.{{cite book, title=Put Out More Flags , url=https://archive.org/details/putoutmoreflags0000waug , url-access=registration , first=Evelyn, last= Waugh, year= 1977, publisher=Little, Brown and Company, isbn=978-0316926157

References

External links

War Office Records of Service for the regiment at the National Archives
Infantry regiments of the British Army