British troops of the Seven Years War/French and Indian War: 15th Regiment of Foot

The 15th Regiment of Foot was raised in 1685 in Nottingham. It's first foray into the New World was during the 1740 campaign of Cartagena de Indias in modern Columbia. The regiment also served in Flanders and the '45 Jacobite Rebellion.  In 1758, the regiment was sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia to take part in the 1758 Louisbourg campaign. It then went on to take part in Quebec, 1759 and then Montreal in 1760. It then went to Martinique and Havana in 1762. The regiment then returned to Quebec in 1763 and Montreal in 1765. They finally sailed back to the UK in 1768.

Light infantry company

Ensign with the regimental colour of the 15th Regiment of Foot, 1757-1767

All regiments of infantry (or 'foot') in the British army of the 18th century had two colours. Each colour was carried by a junior officer called an ensign. The King's colour was blue with the red and white crosses of St. George and St. Andrew superimposed. This was the 'union flag' of Great Britain, carried after England and Scotland united in 1701. The second (or 'regimental') colour was same colour as a unit's facings (yellow for the 15th Foot), with a small depiction of the union flag in one corner. The regiment's name ('XV REGt.' here) was displayed in the centre, often within a wreath of roses (for England) and thistles (for Scotland). The 15th followed their colours from the siege of Louisbourg (1758), through Battle of the Plains of Abraham (1759) to the final surrender of New France at Montreal in 1760.