The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle Corps".

In 1800 the Experimental Corps of Riflemen was formed, eventually becoming the 95th (Rifle) Regiment of Foot in 1803. Riflemen were different, in many ways, to the soldiers that made up the bulk of the British Army.

1800: January – drafts from 13 regular and 33 Fencibles regiments form at Horsham Barracks as Experimental Corps of Riflemen. 1800: 11 October – Rifle Corps. 1803: January – 95th (Rifle) Regiment of Foot. 1805: 6 May – 2nd Battalion formed at Canterbury. 1809:

Oct 20, 2016 · In the year 1800 the 95th Rifles were formed dressed in the ‘Green Jackets, Black Belts’ unlike the ‘Red Jackets and White Belts’ of their Line Infantry counter parts, were seen as somewhat an oddity by other units.

The 95th Regiment of Foot or Rifle Corps was raised in 1800 and numbered 95th in 1803. As an active officer of the Rifle Corps or Rifles, Sharpe is mainly seen in the service uniform which gets modified when he is on campaign. The uniforms were …

The 95 th Rifles came to the forefront of popular history with the stories and television series of “Sharpe’s Rifles” by Bernard Cornwell. The renewed interest in the Rifles has coincided with the upcoming 200 th anniversary of Waterloo (2015) and the anniversary of the War of 1812.

From their raising in the spring of 1800 till August the same year they were trained in field exercises devised by Manningham. Later that month they saw their first action at Ferrol in Spain and, although a military failure, the Rifle Corps gained valuable experience in covering the amphibious landings.

On 15 August 1808, Lieutenant Ralph Bunbury of the 95th Rifles became the first British officer killed in the Peninsular War (1808-14). Apart from 2nd Battalion's brief involvement in the Walcheren expedition of 1809, both 1st and 2nd Battalions served on …

Many Rifles officers apparently corresponded from 1800 to 1806 - and beyond - with Baker about the performance of his rifle ‘in the field’ and their reports and several of their observations were later incorporated by Ezekiel Baker into the Baker rifle through small but important design-changes or improvements.

The British Infantry Rifle, or Baker Rifle, 1800-15. Before we get to the rifle it is worth noting that the principle weapon of the British infantry and all others throughout the Napoleonic Wars was that of the flintlock smoothbore musket. The British musket was know as the Brown Bess, most of which were obtained from the East India Company.