Roll's Regiment
| Roll's Regiment | |
|---|---|
Illustration of the regiment in Egypt | |
| Active | 1794–1815 |
| Allegiance | Great Britain United Kingdom |
| Type | Line infantry |
| Size | One regiment of two battalions |
| Colours | Red coats with royal blue facings (sky blue after 1801) |
| Engagements | French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars |
| Commanders | |
| Colonel of the Regiment | Francis de Rottenburg |
Roll's Regiment (also known as de Roll's Regiment or von Roll's Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1794 for service in the War of the First Coalition, the regiment consisted of Swiss, French and German soldiers.
The regiment's first colonel was Louis de Roll, a former officer of the French Royal Army's Swiss Guards. It served in various garrisons in the Mediterranean and saw action in Tuscany before being reduced to a single battalion. The regiment landed in French-occupied Egypt in 1801 and distinguished itself in action at the Battle of Alexandria. It received drafts of French and Polish prisoners of war to replace its losses and in 1810 participated in the British invasion of the French-controlled Septinsular Republic. The regiment then served in Sicily, guarding Ferdinand IV of Naples.
During the Peninsular War, the regiment participated in the capture of Fort St Felipe (near Tortosa) and the 1813 siege of Tarragona. It was disbanded at Corfu in 1815 following the end of the Napoleonic Wars.