Old Battle Flags

Site Issues 2006 Archive Room
#1

If any viewers know a website or have some pics on the old battle flags, i would love to hear from you.

#2

Define battle flags. Do you mean pennants on vehicles of colours?

#3

I take it your talking about standard bearers in the military?

This book may intrest you?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1855324318/michaelwelchs-21/202-8724972-2702235

#4

A moth-eaten rag, on a worm-eaten pole,
It does not look likely to stir a man’s sole,
'Tis the deeds that were done 'neath the moth-eaten rag,
When the pole was a staff, and the rag was a flag.

Sir Edward Hamley on seeing some old Colours of the 32nd Foot in Monmouth Church

If you want pictures try the following

http://images.google.co.uk/images?hl=en&q=regimental%20colours&sa=N&tab=wi

Old ones might be a bit harder to come by.

If you are near Warrington, the church there holds pretty much every flag of the Lancs Regiments. Some are nothing more than mesh now.

Also Brecon church holds the standards of the 2nd Bn, 24th Foot or Royal Regiment of Wales, now sealed in plastic and preservitive, never to be held or unfurled in the wind again.

The staff of the 2nd Bns colours is also there recaptured from a zulu chief who was using it as a walking stick. The colours long since destroyed, they were torn from the staff and removed from the battle of Ishandwana by two officers who wore them around their waists. The officers were killed in the attempt but the colours were recovered.

It has been awhile since I was last there so I may be wrong, here are some urls.

from http://www.answers.com/topic/the-south-wales-borderers

The 2nd Battalion lost both its Colours at Isandhlwana though, however, parts of the Colours – the crown, the pike and a colour case – were retrieved and trooped when the battalion was presented with new Colours in 1880.

The Colour Party of the 1st/24th Foot prior to presenting the Queen’s Colour recovered from the Tugela River after the Battle of Isandlwana to HM Queen Vicftoria. The Queen’s Colour is on the left. The soldiers on the far right and fourth from the right fought at Rorke’s Drift.

What do you want to know about the colours?

I may know a few more sites to help if you can tell me what you want to know.

#5

Yes that is what i was aiming for just the military flag bearers.

Thank You

#6

Try http://www.regiments.org/nations/index.htm it gives specific info on the regiments including their colours.

#7

Thanks 1000ydstare,

That website really helped quite alot, and yes finding the older battle flags is very difficult.

#8

Why do you want this info? School project or similar?

May have other sites and info to help.

#9

Heres a pic of some battle flags from my collection.

[img=http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/6640/flags19kj.th.jpg]

#10

No its not for a school project , i just have found an interest in them… :smiley: