"Regiments of the British West Indies and Bermuda" Topic
5 Posts
All members in good standing are free to post here. Opinions expressed here are solely those of the posters, and have not been cleared with nor are they endorsed by The Miniatures Page.
For more information, see the TMP FAQ.
Back to the Napoleonic Media Message Board Back to the 18th Century Media Message Board
Areas of Interest18th Century Napoleonic
Featured Hobby News Article
Featured Link
Featured Showcase ArticleThe Acolyte Vampires return - based, now, and ready for the game table.
Featured Book Review
|
Tango01 | 22 Sep 2015 9:19 p.m. PST |
"The British Government was forced to defend it's colonies in the West Indies from their foundation from other European Powers. In the 1790's four-fifths of British overseas investment went to the development of it's colonies in the area. For this the government received approximately £31.50 GBP million in taxes and duties. This was further increased by revenue raised from associated trade and commercial activity. In the late 18th century the British government calculated that a garrison of 20,000 soldiers was needed to defend it's Caribbean possessions. This raised a problem for in 1793 the entire British army totaled fewer than 40,000 men. Furthermore the West Indies was not the healthiest of places for European soldiers to be stationed. Men died of typhoid during the passage from Britain and of malaria and yellow fever, known as "Yellow Jack" while stationed in the Caribbean. The other killer was "New" Rum. The sugar producing machinery and distilling equipment had a high lead content which contaminated the rum. The rum was also improperly distilled and was therefore more of a "moonshine", containing deadly fusel-oil alcohols which are poisonous. This situation was not helped by the soldier's belief that drinking rum prevented them circuming to yellow fever. The over-consumption resulted in many soldiers suffering from diseases associated with alcoholism – encephalities, liver cirrhosis, liver necrosis, nephritis, anemia, peripheral neuritis, and gout – though not always correctly diagnosed by the army surgeons at the time…" See here link Amicalement Armand |
Green Tiger | 23 Sep 2015 5:59 a.m. PST |
|
Tango01 | 23 Sep 2015 10:46 a.m. PST |
A votre service mon ami!. (smile)… Amicalement Armand |
PhilinYuma | 26 Sep 2015 10:53 a.m. PST |
Very interesting, Tango! I know this Caribbean site quite well, but had never looked at the British regiments shown. It is of interest to me that these regiments were not part of the British military establishment, per se, and that the colour shown is not a standard British colour incorporating the new British flag with the St Patrick's saltire, reflecting the Union of 1800, but an English flag, bearing only the cross of St George. If you look in the cooking section of this site, you will find the best recipe for Caribbean jerk chicken that I have ever tried! Cheers, Phil |
Tango01 | 26 Sep 2015 11:02 a.m. PST |
Glad you enjoyed it my friend!. (smile) Thanks for the cooking data! (smile) Amicalement Armand |
|