Description
Physical description
Sphinx on a tablet enscribed 'Eygpt', below it a rose, all within a laurel-wreath surmounted by an Imperial (King's) crown, below all a scroll bearing the title "EAST LANCASHIRE". The Rose in gilding metal, the remainder in w/m. Slider to reverse.
History note
Badge of the pattern worn 1898 to 1958, save changes to the crown.
The ultimate predecessor Regiment was formed in 1689 as Viscount Castleton's Regiment of Foot became Saunderson's Foot in 1694 but was disbanded in 1698. It was "reformed" in 1702 as Saunderson's Regiment of Marines, shortly thereafter designated 1st Marines. They were to serve in this capacity in 1717-1718, 1747, 1761-1763 and 1795.
In 1747 the Regiment was ranked as 30th of Foot and was known formally by that number from 1751 until 1782 when it was re-designated as 30th (Cambridgeshire) Regiment of Foot. In the 1881 Cardwell reforms the Regiment merged with the 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot to become The East Lancashire Regiment of Foot.
The change of headdress in 1898 required a re-design of the badge, resulting in the sphinx from the 30th being placed with a Lancashire rose, deriving from neither parent Regiment but seemingly imported simply to underline the enforced adoption of the Lancashire county association. The 59th appears to have donated just a laurel wreath to the new badge.
In 1958 the Regiment merged with the South Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) to become the Lancashire Regiment, which became part of the Lancastrian Brigade, adopting that Brigade's badge. The Brigade was broken up in 1970, the Lancashire Regiment in the process merging with the Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) to form the Queen's Lancashire Regiment. It is possible that a Territorial Battalion of the Regiment may have worn a different badge, essentially the Prince of Wales's plumes.
In 2006 it was initially intended that the Queen's Lancashires were to become one of three battalions in the newly created Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border), formed from Lancastrian Brigade ancestors. Before the transfers could be finalised, the new Regiment was reduced to two battalions and these were formed by elements taken from all three of the battalions involved.
Inscription
Eygpt
East Lancashire