[3] Although the siege of Louisbourg was the regiment's first battle, it was more than a century before the War Office recognized the part they played.

By acting as marines, they had been on the Royal Navy's books and thus the records verifying their part in the battle were held by the Admiralty.

[5] On 23 February 1760, a French force of approximately 600 men conducted an amphibious assault and laid siege to the castle.

[6] Under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel John Jennings, the four under-strength companies, approximately 200 men in all, withstood three assaults on the castle.

By the time the French made their third attack, the defenders had expended all their ammunition and were left with rocks and bayonets.

After meeting with the French commander, Jennings and his men were allowed to surrender the castle, give their parole, retaining their arms and colours.

[7] Although the regiment surrendered the castle, the French squadron which had landed the force was destroyed by the Royal Navy in an action near the Mull of Galloway.

In 1763, the regiment was reunited and deployed to the West Indies where it remained until it was sent to Canada join General William Howe's forces.

[12] Initially dispatched to Canada, the regiment took part in the Canadian campaign during the American Revolutionary War.

[13] The regiment's companies were reunited to support the British drive to clear the Americans from the rest of Canada, including the Battle of Valcour Island in October 1776.

[14] Following its participation in the Canadian campaign of 1776, the regiment was assigned to serve as part of Major-General John Burgoyne's forces.

In 1782, now under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Campbell, the regiment was given, for the first time, the county title "Wiltshire".

[16] The 1st battalion participated in a raid under General John Stuart resulting in the destruction of the magazines at Ischia and Procida.

The Commanding Officer, Lieutenant-Colonel David Ximenes, married Eliza Mary Evans, the daughter of Royal Navy Captain Fitzherbert Evans of the Bermuda Naval Yard (which alternated seasonally with the Halifax Naval Yard as main base for the North America Station), at St. George's on the 5 August 1816.

After two relatively quiet years in India, the regiment participated in putting down the abortive Bangalore Mutiny.

[22] From March until December 1845, the regiment garrisoned the area as tensions between British-controlled India and Sikhs escalated.

There the British-Company forces, under the command of General Hugh Gough, were successful in a hard-fought battle where the regiment suffered heavy casualties, including 18 out of 23 officers and 281 out of 580 other ranks.

In the end, Gough's version was supported by Parliament, the Duke of Wellington, and the army staff at Horse Guards.

There they served in General Robert Dick's Division, participating in the main bayonet assault against the Sikh defences once Gough's forces ran out of artillery ammunition.

In that time, the regiment was garrisoned at various stations in India, in addition to performing ceremonial duties for visiting dignitaries.

In January 1854, with war brewing in the Black Sea, the regiment was put on notice for service in Crimea.

[16] A year later, the regiment returned to Ireland and engaged the Fenians in an action at Kilmallock while defending some police barracks in March 1867.