besieged and captured Montevideo. In 1807, the regiment was part of the force, now under John Whitelocke, that tried to capture Buenos Aires, but this failed abysmally. The British force (including the regiment), was forced to surrender, and did not return home until January 1808. The regiment was sent to India shortly after returning home. It took part in the attack on the Pindarees in 1817 during the Third Anglo-Maratha War. Disease ravaged the regiment during its residency. While in India, the British Army nominally re-classified the regiment as lancers, and added "lancers" as a subtitle to its regimental designation in 1822. The regiment did not learn of its new status until 1823, when, during a stopover at Saint Helena on its journey back to Britain, a copy of the Army List was obtained. Although the weapon's use had endured in parts of continental Europe, the lance had not been in British service for more than a century. Its reintroduction by the Duke of York, Commander-in-Chief of the British Army, owed much to the performance of Napoleon Bonaparte's Polish Uhlans. The lancer regiments adopted their own version of the Uhlan uniform, including the czapka-style headdress. In 1826, Lord Bingham (later the 3rd Earl of Lucan) became the regiment's commanding officer when he bought its lieutenant-colonelcy for the reputed sum of £25,000 pounds. During his tenure, Bingham invested heavily in the regiment, purchasing uniforms and horses, giving rise to the regimental nickname "Bingham's Dandies". Crimean War The regiment landed at Calamita Bay near Eupatoria in September 1854 for service in the Crimean War and saw action, as part of the light brigade under the command of Major General the Earl of Cardigan, at the Battle of Alma in September 1854. The regiment, commanded by Captain William Morris, was in the first line of cavalry on the left flank during the Charge of the Light Brigade at the Battle of Balaclava in October 1854. The brigade drove through the Russian artillery before smashing straight into the Russian cavalry and pushing them back; it was unable to consolidate its position, however, having insufficient forces and had to withdraw to its starting position, coming under further attack as it did so. The regiment lost 7 officers and 67 men in the debacle. The regiment went on to take part in the Siege of Sevastopol in winter 1854. After the inception of the Victoria Cross