1800s

Other ranks' glengarry badge, 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment, c1874

63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot

This infantry unit was raised in 1758. It served with the British Army until the 1881 reforms, when it was merged with the 96th Regiment to form The Manchester Regiment.

96th Regiment of Foot

This infantry unit was raised in 1824. It served with the British Army until the 1881 reforms, when it was merged with the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment to form The Manchester Regiment.

Passing out parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, c1955

Sandhurst, officers and the role of history

The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst has trained the Army’s officers since 1802. For generations, its officer cadets have endeavoured to live up to the academy’s motto: ‘Serve to Lead’.

2nd Battalion 5th Gurkha Rifles at Ahnai Tangi in Waziristan, 14 January 1920

The North-West Frontier

Between 1849 and 1947, British and Indian soldiers undertook a series of punitive expeditions against the fiercely independent tribesmen of this wild and mountainous region.

Gold 20 years' good conduct medal, 13th Regiment of Foot, c1825

Regimental medals

Before campaign medals, gallantry decorations and good conduct awards were introduced in the 19th century, many regiments rewarded outstanding service with their own ‘unofficial’ medals.

Helmet plate, officer, 1st West India Regiment, c1880

The West India Regiments

Raised in the 1790s to defend Britain's Caribbean colonies, the West India Regiments fought as infantry in several campaigns. They remained a part of the British Army until disbandment in 1927.

A history of the National Army Museum in a dozen donations

Most of the objects held by the National Army Museum are in public ownership because of the generosity of individuals or organisations who have donated them.

Disinfecting plague houses with a flushing engine, 1897

The Bombay plague

In 1896, bubonic plague broke out in Bombay. The fightback against this deadly epidemic was fully documented by a British military officer in a remarkable series of photographs.

Shako plate, 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment, c1855

40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot

This infantry unit was formed in 1717. It continued in service until the 1881 British Army reforms, when it became part of The Prince of Wales’s Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment).

82nd Regiment of Foot (Prince of Wales’s Volunteers)

This infantry unit was raised in 1793. It continued in British Army service until the 1881 reforms, when it became part of The Prince of Wales’s Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment).

From 1808 to 1814, the British Army, aided by its Spanish and Portuguese allies, held off superior numbers of French troops before driving them out of Iberia. They then carried the war into France, playing an important part in Napoleon's first overthrow.

Capturing the Army

Today, the Army trains specialist photographers to capture its story. But the demand for images depicting soldiers' experiences is nothing new. Here we look at some of the earliest pioneers of military photography.