The Wellington Regiment (City of Wellington's Own) | |
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Active | 1867–1964 |
Country | New Zealand |
Branch | New Zealand Army |
Type | Infantry |
Garrison/HQ | Wellington |
Motto(s) | Virtutis Fortuna Comes (Latin: "Fortune is the companion of virtue") |
Engagements | Second Boer War First World War Second World War |
Commanders | |
Colonel-in-Chief | Queen Elizabeth II (1953-1964) |
Insignia | |
Distinguishing Patch |
The Wellington Regiment (City of Wellington's Own) was a territorial infantry regiment of the New Zealand Army. The regiment traced its origins to the Wellington Veteran Volunteer Corps, a volunteer corps formed in 1867 and which would later amalgamate with other volunteer corps to form the 5th (Wellington) Regiment in 1911. During the First World War, the regiment was first sent to capture German Samoa in August 1914 and was later affiliated with the New Zealand Rifle Brigade which saw combat on the Western Front. After the war, the regiment was renamed the Wellington Regiment and remained in New Zealand for home defence during the Second World War. Men from the regiment, however, served with the 19th, 22nd, 25th and 36th Battalions of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. In 1964, the Wellington Regiment was amalgamated with the Hawke's Bay Regiment to become 7th Battalion (Wellington (City of Wellington's Own) and Hawke's Bay), Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment. The 7th Battalion was itself later amalgamated with the 5th Battalion and became 5th/7th Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment in 2012. The traditions of the Wellington Regiment are now continued by Wellington Company, 5/7 RNZIR.