Napoleon and the Egyptian Sphinx

Detail of cross belt's pouch with Battle Honour 'Egypt With The Sphinx)'.

Cross belts worn by Rifle regiments have a number of silver fittings that show the history of the Regiment. The symbol of the Sphinx is in recognition of the Regiment's antecedent regiment's role during the Napoleonic Wars in Egypt during 1801. The harp and shamrock show the regiment's Irish lineage. The Light Infantry Bugle is a symbol that marks the regiment's role as a Rifle Regiment, first granted in 1881 when the 83rd (County of Dublin) and the 86th (Royal County Down) Regiment of Foot were amalgamated to form the 1st and the 2nd Battalion The Royal Irish Rifles.