The Havercake Lads —
Halifax's 33rd Regiment of Foot
"Dear friends, if ever you wonder why a simple oatcake holds such pride of place in Halifax hearts, let me tell you about the men who carried them into battle — and into legend." — Harry Facks
Dukes' flags
Who Were the Havercake Lads?
The 33rd Regiment of Foot was one of Britain's most celebrated military units — and Halifax was their home.
Raised in 1702, the regiment recruited heavily from the West Riding of Yorkshire, and the men they attracted became known across the country by a nickname that told you everything about where they came from: the Havercake Lads.
A havercake — from the Old Norse hafr (oat) — is a thin, crisp Yorkshire oatcake, baked on a griddle and dried to a satisfying crunch. For centuries it was the staple food of working Yorkshire families. Cheap, filling, and unmistakably northern.
When the regiment's recruiters walked the streets of Halifax, Brighouse, and the Calder Valley looking for men, they carried havercakes impaled on their swords — a simple, brilliant offer to hungry young men: follow the oatcake, follow the flag.
It worked. Generations of Halifax men answered the call.
The Duke of Wellington's Regiment memorial — Halifax
A Yorkshire Oatcake — The Havercake
The havercake that gave the regiment its name was no fancy delicacy. It was honest Yorkshire food:
Ingredients:
- Oatmeal (the key ingredient)
- Water
- Pinch of salt
- Sometimes a touch of butter
The Making:
- Mixed to a specific consistency
- Cooked on special stones or griddles
- Flipped at just the right moment
- Dried to proper crispness
Simple, sustaining, and deeply Yorkshire. The kind of food that built the men who built the Empire.
A havercake - oatmeal biscuit
Havercake: Yorkshire’s Oatcake, the Backstone, and the Old Bread Creel
Yorkshire women were long praised for baking plain, wholesome bread, and people who travelled south—where domestic ovens were said to be less common—often missed the old-style breads of home. One of those everyday staples was the havercake: a thin oatcake baked on a backstone (a flat baking stone) and stored in a household bread creel.
This was a time when many homes had a backstone or bake-stone set over the fire. On baking days, flake after flake of havercake was produced as the batter was used up. The process required skill: the cake had to be turned quickly without tearing, and this nimblesome accounts for an old Yorkshire saying about being “as nimble as a cat on a backstone.”
It also explains the word itself, suggesting “havercake” comes from a German root meaning oats (“haver”) combined with cake—evidence, the writer says, of older speech patterns lingering in the Yorkshire hills and dales.
To show how long backstones had been part of everyday life, an old inventory taken after the death of Abraham Hellewell of Walshaw, in Wadsworth, described as a clothier-manufacturer. Dated 4 July 1674, the inventory lists household items including a backstone and kneading kit.
Finally, the writer reflects on change. In larger towns, havercake and the backstone were said to be gradually replaced by wheaten bread and modern ovens. But in the kitchens of older country homesteads, a well-filled creel of havercake remained a familiar sight—part of the same domestic world as home-cured bacon hanging nearby.
From Halifax to Waterloo
The 33rd Regiment's battle honours read like a history of the British Army:
- American War of Independence
- India — Seringapatam (1799)
- The Peninsula War
- Waterloo (1815)
It was at Waterloo that the regiment's most famous connection was cemented. Their commanding officer — a man who had led the 33rd in India — was Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington. The Iron Duke himself had commanded Halifax's own regiment.
In 1853, in honour of that connection, the regiment was renamed The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding) — the Dukes — a name Halifax still holds with pride.
Wellesley Barracks, Halifax — home of the Havercake Lads, now Halifax High School
The Wellesley Barracks
In 1873, as part of the Cardwell Reforms that localised British military forces, a permanent depot was established in Halifax for the 33rd and the 76th Regiment (the Immortals).
Construction was completed in 1877 in the striking Fortress Gothic Revival style — a building that looked like it meant business. On 1 September that year, the Depot Companies of both regiments marched in.
In 1881, the 76th Regiment was merged to become the 2nd Battalion of the Duke of Wellington's — uniting Halifax's two great regiments under one cap badge.
The barracks stood for over a century before finding a new life as Halifax High School — where history meets the modern day.
👉 Read the full story of Wellesley Barracks
The Dukes' Chapel — Halifax Minster
The spiritual home of the regiment is the War Memorial Chapel in Halifax Minster (Parish Church) — a place of quiet reflection dedicated to the men of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment who gave their lives in service.
The chapel contains the regiment's colours, memorials, and the names of the fallen. If you've never visited, it's one of the most moving corners of Halifax.
The Dukes' Chapel, Halifax Minster — memorial to the men of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment
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