In Search of The Lamb

Introduction

• The Queen's Royal Regiment, founded in 1661 as the First Tangier Regiment of Foot, wore a Lamb as a cap badge. The earliest illustration of this is in 1715 on the Carlisle Figures, two wooden 'cut outs' of soldiers of the Grenadier Company of the Regiment where a Lamb (or sheep!) is depicted on their caps.
• The Lamb over the centuries has taken on various forms:

  Catherine of Braganza by Benedetto Gennari, c. 1680. From Goodwood House by courtesy of the Trustees.

  • A Lamb (or sheep) 'proper' ie with no embellishments.
  • A Lamb on a scroll bar,
  • A Paschal Lamb ie depicted showing it carrying the flag of the Cross of St  George held by the right foreleg.
  • A Lamb or Paschal Lamb on a torse a sort of scrolled hereldic bar,
    • Queen's
    • West Surrey
    • Royal West Surrey
      The final depiction of the cap badge was a Paschal Lamb holding the Cross and flag of St George on a scrolled bar, and with no Regimental Title.
      
  • Over the years several individuals have written articles about the Lamb to explain where and when it was adopted as a cap badge. The most comprehensive articles were by the late Brigadier Allen Block in 1965/66 and a rusume of his articles are included on this website. These were published in The Queen's Royal Surrey Regimental Journals.
  • Following that is an article by Philip J Haythornthwaite this, while covering much the same ground as Brigadier Block, gives more details about the subsequent variations to the cap badge, particularly during the 19^th century, and with further details of the Militia/Volunteer Battalions.
    
• During the course of various researches a number of 'red herrings' have come to the fore(?) and one 'The Rowe Connection' is also on the website. Details of the sources known as the Rowe Connection is also depicted in articles on the website.
  
• A summary of all this research follows which takes the reader into Brigadier Blocks research (1965/66); Philip Haythornthwaite's article; a precis about the Rowe Connection and the RUSI Banner, and extracts from letters in The Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment Newsletter.

 

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