The 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in Scotland in 1741. It served in North America during the Seven Years' War and American Revolutionary War and also fought during the Napoleonic Wars and the Crimean War. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 81st Regiment of Foot (Loyal Lincoln Volunteers) to form the Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) in 1881.
History
Formation and early service
thumb|left|150px|Colonel [[John Mordaunt (British Army officer)|Sir John Mordaunt, founder of the regiment, by Allan Ramsay]]
thumb|right|150px|Soldier of 47th regiment, 1742<!--Not an error: the future 47th had white facings-->
The regiment was raised in Scotland by Colonel Sir John Mordaunt as Sir John Mordaunt's Regiment of Foot in 1741. In 1743, Peregrine Lascelles was appointed Colonel and until May 1745, the regiment was employed building a military road near Loch Lomond, part of a new route from Dumbarton to Inverary.
In July, Charles Stuart landed in Scotland to launch the 1745 Rising and two companies of Lascelles garrisoned Edinburgh Castle. The remaining eight companies fought at the Battle of Prestonpans in September, when the government army was swept aside in less than 20 minutes; most of the regiment was taken prisoner, except for Lascelles who fought his way out.
Lascelles, together with Sir John Cope, commander at Prestonpans, and his deputy Thomas Fowke, were tried by a court-martial in 1746; all three were exonerated, but Cope never held a senior command again.
As part of the reforms enacted by the Duke of Cumberland, the regiment was designated the 58th Regiment of Foot in 1747, before being re-numbered 47th Regiment of Foot in 1751.
During the Seven Years' War, it was part of the force under James Wolfe that captured Louisbourg in 1758, allegedly earning the nickname "Wolfe's Own". It was also present at the 1759 Battle of the Plains of Abraham, the Battle of Sainte-Foy and the subsequent siege of Quebec in April to May 1760. It then took part in the final and decisive campaign between July and September 1760 when Montreal fell. The regiment returned to Britain when the war ended in 1763.
On the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War in 1773, the 47th was posted to New Jersey. In 1806, the 1st battalion was sent to garrison the former Dutch settlement of the Cape of Good Hope, On 1 July 1881 the Childers Reforms came into effect and the regiment amalgamated with the 81st Regiment of Foot (Loyal Lincoln Volunteers) to form the Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire).
Colonels
Colonels of the regiment were: