This is a reproduction of an 8th (King's) Regiment of Foot button. The button face features a “pie-crust” border and an incised “K’s” just above a numeral “8” in the centre.
- Diameter: approx. 2.5cm
- Lead-free pewter
The 8th (King's) Regiment of Foot, also referred to in short as the 8th Foot and the King's, was an infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1685 and retitled the King's (Liverpool Regiment) on 1 July 1881. In April 1813, two companies of the 8th, elements of the Canadian militia, along with Native American allies, attempted to repulse an American attack on York (present-day Toronto). As the Americans landed on the shoreline, the grenadier company engaged them in a bayonet charge, killing 46 men, including their commanding officer, Captain Neal McNeale. Nevertheless, the Americans overwhelmed the area, but they incurred 250 casualties, notably General Zebulon Pike, when retreating British regulars detonated Fort York's Grand Magazine.
This button comes backed onto a postcard featuring artwork by artist J.C.H. (John Clifton Henry) Forster (1910–1993) from the City of Toronto Museums Collections.