5th Regiment of Foot
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The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution and became part of the English establishment in 1689. In 1751, it became the 5th Regiment of Foot, with the regional title 'Northumberland' added in 1782; in 1836, it was designated a Fusilier unit and became the 5th (Northumberland Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot. Due to the increasing tensions that later resulted in the American Revolutionary War, the regiment was shipped to Boston, Massachusetts in May 1774. Elements of the unit were involved in the Battle of Lexington and Concord in April 1775 and the Battle of Bunker Hill in June. After being evacuated to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1776 the 5th took part in the expedition to New York, including the battles of Long Island and White Plains, and capture of Fort Washington and Fort Lee, New Jersey. They subsequently joined Howe's 1777 campaign against Philadelphia; at Brandywine Creek, they broke the Continental Army's center and captured five cannon. Despite this success, in 1778 the British army withdrew and the regiment was involved in fighting at Monmouth Court House.