The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (the Duke of Albany's) to form the Queen's Own Highlanders in 1961.

The regiment was raised as the 79th Regiment of Foot (Cameronian Volunteers) on 17 August 1793 at Fort William by Sir Alan Cameron of Erracht, a cousin of Cameron of Lochiel. Initially mustered from among members of the Clan Cameron in Lochaber, the regiment eventually recruited from across the Highlands, and indeed, seldom elsewhere.

The regiment was deployed briefly to Ireland and southern England, then to Flanders in 1794 where it took part in an unsuccessful campaign under the command of the Duke of York during the French Revolutionary Wars. On its return to England, the 79th Foot was listed for disbandment, with the men being drafted into other units. In the end the regiment was reprieved, being instead posted to the West Indies in 1795; after a two-year tour the 79th returned to England again. The regiment was again in action against the French at the Battle of Alkmaar in October 1799 during the Helder Campaign. In 1800 the 79th was part of a force that took part in a failed assault on the Spanish coast at Ferrol.

The 79th Foot landed in Egypt as part of an expeditionary force to prevent French control of the land route to India and saw action at the Battle of Abukir in March 1801. After victories at Mandora and Alexandria later that month, the British forced the surrender of the French forces at Cairo. Along with other regiments that took part in the Egyptian campaign the 79th Foot were henceforth permitted to bear a sphinx superscribed EGYPT on its colours and badges. The 79th spent the next two years in Menorca. A second battalion was formed in 1804, which supplied drafts to the 1st Battalion and did not go abroad, it being disbanded in 1815.

Originally on the Irish establishment, the regiment became part of the British Army in 1804 and was renamed the 79th Regiment of Foot (Cameron Highlanders). The 1st Battalion took part in the Battle of Copenhagen in August 1807 during the Napoleonic Wars.

In July 1808, the 79th Foot was deployed to Portugal for service in the Peninsular War. The regiment took part in the Battle of Corunna in January 1809 and was subsequently evacuated to England. The regiment returned to Portugal in January 1810 and saw action at the Battle of Bussaco in September 1810, the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811 and the Siege of Badajoz in March 1812. It fought at the Battle of Salamanca in July 1812, and took part in the occupation of Madrid in August 1812 and the Siege of Burgos in September 1812. It also saw combat at the Battle of the Pyrenees in July 1813, the Battle of Nivelle in November 1813 and the Battle of the Nive in December 1813 before taking part in the Battle of Toulouse in April 1814.

Following the abdication of Napoleon in April 1814, the regiment moved to Cork, Ireland. However, with the return of Napoleon from exile, the 79th Foot travelled to Belgium in May 1815. The regiment took part in the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars at Quatre Bras and Waterloo in June 1815. Of the 675 men of the regiment who took part in these battles, 103 were killed and a further 353 wounded. The 79th were one of only four regiments specifically mentioned by the Duke of Wellington in his Waterloo dispatch.

The 79th Foot remained in France until 1818, followed by home service, broken by tours of Canada (1825–36), Gibraltar (1841–48) and again Canada (1848–51).