STRUCTURE OF THE REGIMENT

In the eighteen century most regiments were made up of a single battalion. So it was with the 10th Regiment of Foot. The battalion consisted of about 475 officers and men in 10 companies and was commanded by a Colonel. The Colonel was often absent from his command and this was true of the 10th Foot during it's service in North America. In actuality the battalion was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Smith. The commanding officer was assisted by a staff made up of a Major, an Adjutant, a Quartermaster a Surgeon and a Chaplain.

There were eight Battalion or "hat" companies. These were the typical men of the British Army recognized by their white cross belts, long red coats and black tricorned "cocked hats." The facing colour denoted the regiment which for the 10th Foot was yellow. The man on the right is Serjeant James O'Halloran, the regimental serjeant-major.

The remaining companies were called "flank" companies. These were special companies with distinctive uniforms, accoutrements and often arms. The Grenadier Company formed on the right flank which was the place of honour on the regimental line. Grenadiers were 6 feet, or more, in height and wore tall bearskin caps, white cross belts and long red coats.. Pictured on the left is Grenadier officer Lieut Harry Wellsman carrying a short musket called a fusee.

The Light Infantry Company formed on the left flank of the line. These were agile, swift footed men who acted in a capacity similar to modern rangers. They wore short coats with black belts and wore small leather caps. The soldier on the left is private Lincoln Clark III. Today he serves as Captain of his company.

Each company was commanded by a Captain and two additional officers. Flank companies had two Lieutenants (pronounced Lef-ten-ants) in the junior or subaltern positions while the Battalion companies had one Lieutenant and one Ensign. The full strength of a Battalion company was 40 officers and men although companies rarely had more that 25 to 27 men falling in.

Each regiment had a band of music. They served several purposes not the least of which was to assist the troops to marching in cadence. Drummers were assigned to each company and they played different beats (that every soldier had to learn to recognize) to instruct the troops of the different events of the day.

The tune in the background is the "10th Regiment Song of 1767" based on a traditional aire "Corporal Casey." According to regimental lore the words to this song was written on the ship that took the 10th Foot to Quebec in June of 1767 on its nine weeks journey from Cork, Ireland. The words to this song are available by clicking on the above link.

Certain photographs courtesy of Col Vincent J-R Kehoe from "A Military Guide - The 10th Regimentof Foot of 1775."