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The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) (RHG/D) is a cavalry regiment
Cavalry regiments of the British Army

There are currently nine regular cavalry regiments of the British Army, with two tank regiments provided by the Royal Tank Regiment, traditionally classed alongside the cavalry, for a total of eleven regiments....
 of the British Army
British Army

The British Army is the Army branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707....
, part of the Household Cavalry
Household Cavalry

The term Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth of Nations to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country?s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings that provide functions associated directly with the Head of state....
.The Colonel-in-Chief
Colonel-in-Chief

In the British Army and other Commonwealth of Nations armies, the Colonel-in-Chief of a regiment is its patron. This position is distinct from that of Colonel ....
 is Her Majesty
Majesty

Majesty is an English language word derived ultimately from the Latin Maiestas, meaning Greatness....
 The Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known as the Commonwealth realms: Monarchy of the United Kingdom, Monarchy of Canada, Monarchy of Australia, Monarchy of New Zealand, Monarchy of Jamaica, Monarchy of Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Monarchy of the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Sain...
 and the Colonel
Colonel

Colonel is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country in the world. It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures....
 is HRH The Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal

The Princess Anne, Princess Royal is the only daughter of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. At the time of her birth, she was third in the History of the British line of succession#George VI to the thrones of Commonwealth realm; however, after additions to the Royal Family, and an evolution of the Commo...
. Both HRH Prince William of Wales
Prince William of Wales

Prince William of Wales is the elder son of Charles, Prince of Wales and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and grandson of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh....
 and HRH Prince Harry of Wales
Prince Harry of Wales

Prince Henry of Wales , commonly known as Prince Harry, is the younger son of Charles, Prince of Wales, and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom....
 joined the regiment as cornet
Cornet (military rank)

Cornet was originally the third and lowest grade of commissioned officer in a British Army cavalry troop, after Captain and lieutenant. A cornet is a new and junior officer....
s in 2006.

Formation
The regiment was formed in 1969 from the merger of The Royal Horse Guards
Royal Horse Guards

The Royal Horse Guards was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.Founded August 1650 in Newcastle Upon Tyne by Sir Arthur Hesselrigge on the orders of Oliver Cromwell as the Regiment of Cuirassiers, the regiment became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment during the reign of Charles...
, which was known as "The Blues" or "The Oxford Blues", and The Royal Dragoons
Royal Dragoons

The Royal Dragoons was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1661, and served until 1969, when it was amalgamated with the Royal Horse Guards to form The Blues and Royals....
, which was known as "The Royals".

Since then, the new regiment has served in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland

conventional_long_name = Northern Ireland|native_name= Tuaisceart ?ireannNorlin Airlann|motto =|image_map = Europe location N-IRL2.png...
, Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 and Cyprus
Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is an island country situated in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, east of Greece, west of Lebanon, Syria, and Israel, south of Turkey and north of Egypt....
.






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The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) (RHG/D) is a cavalry regiment
Cavalry regiments of the British Army

There are currently nine regular cavalry regiments of the British Army, with two tank regiments provided by the Royal Tank Regiment, traditionally classed alongside the cavalry, for a total of eleven regiments....
 of the British Army
British Army

The British Army is the Army branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707....
, part of the Household Cavalry
Household Cavalry

The term Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth of Nations to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country?s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings that provide functions associated directly with the Head of state....
.The Colonel-in-Chief
Colonel-in-Chief

In the British Army and other Commonwealth of Nations armies, the Colonel-in-Chief of a regiment is its patron. This position is distinct from that of Colonel ....
 is Her Majesty
Majesty

Majesty is an English language word derived ultimately from the Latin Maiestas, meaning Greatness....
 The Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known as the Commonwealth realms: Monarchy of the United Kingdom, Monarchy of Canada, Monarchy of Australia, Monarchy of New Zealand, Monarchy of Jamaica, Monarchy of Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Monarchy of the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Sain...
 and the Colonel
Colonel

Colonel is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country in the world. It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures....
 is HRH The Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal

The Princess Anne, Princess Royal is the only daughter of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. At the time of her birth, she was third in the History of the British line of succession#George VI to the thrones of Commonwealth realm; however, after additions to the Royal Family, and an evolution of the Commo...
. Both HRH Prince William of Wales
Prince William of Wales

Prince William of Wales is the elder son of Charles, Prince of Wales and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and grandson of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh....
 and HRH Prince Harry of Wales
Prince Harry of Wales

Prince Henry of Wales , commonly known as Prince Harry, is the younger son of Charles, Prince of Wales, and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom....
 joined the regiment as cornet
Cornet (military rank)

Cornet was originally the third and lowest grade of commissioned officer in a British Army cavalry troop, after Captain and lieutenant. A cornet is a new and junior officer....
s in 2006.

History


The Blues and Royals is one of two regiments of the Household Division
Household Division

Household Division is a term used principally in the Commonwealth of Nations to describe a country?s most elite or historically senior military units, or those military units that provide ceremonial or protective functions associated directly with the head of state....
 that can trace its lineage back to the New Model Army
New Model Army

The New Model Army was formed in 1645 by the roundhead in the English Civil War. It differed from other armies in the same conflict in that it was intended as an army liable for service anywhere in the country, rather than being tied to a single area or garrison....
, the other being the Coldstream Guards
Coldstream Guards

Her Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....
.

Formation


The regiment was formed in 1969 from the merger of The Royal Horse Guards
Royal Horse Guards

The Royal Horse Guards was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.Founded August 1650 in Newcastle Upon Tyne by Sir Arthur Hesselrigge on the orders of Oliver Cromwell as the Regiment of Cuirassiers, the regiment became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment during the reign of Charles...
, which was known as "The Blues" or "The Oxford Blues", and The Royal Dragoons
Royal Dragoons

The Royal Dragoons was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1661, and served until 1969, when it was amalgamated with the Royal Horse Guards to form The Blues and Royals....
, which was known as "The Royals".

Since then, the new regiment has served in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland

conventional_long_name = Northern Ireland|native_name= Tuaisceart ?ireannNorlin Airlann|motto =|image_map = Europe location N-IRL2.png...
, Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 and Cyprus
Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is an island country situated in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, east of Greece, west of Lebanon, Syria, and Israel, south of Turkey and north of Egypt....
. During the Falklands War
Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands....
 of 1982, the regiment provided the two armoured reconnaissance troops. The regiment also had a squadron on operational duty with the United Nations
United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, Social change, human rights and achieving world peace....
 in Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country on the Balkans peninsula of South Eastern Europe with an area of 51,129 square kilometres . Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the south, Bosnia and Herzegovina is Landlocked#Nearly landlocked, except for 26 kilometres of the Adriatic Sea coas...
 in 1994/1995.

Operational union

As a result of the Options for Change
Options for Change

Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in 1990, aimed at cutting defence spending following the end of the Cold War....
 Review in 1991, the Blues and Royals formed a union for operational purposes with the Life Guards as the Household Cavalry Regiment
Household Cavalry Regiment

The Household Cavalry Regiment is a Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army, and is one of two regiments that are formed from the Household Cavalry....
. However they each maintain their regimental identity, with distinct uniforms and traditions, and their own colonel. The Blues and Royals currently has two reconnaissance squadrons in Windsor
Windsor, Berkshire

Windsor is a suburban town and tourist destination in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is best known as the site of Windsor Castle....
, which are part of the Household Cavalry Regiment, and a mounted squadron in London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
 as part of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment
Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment

File:Conducting the mounted band.jpgThe Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment is a ceremonial Cavalry regiments of the British Army of the British Army....
.

Regimental uniforms


Regimental traditions


Battle honours


  • Tangier 1662-1680
    Tangier Garrison

    Tangier Garrison was a military installation in Tangier held by the English from 1661 to 6 February 1684 when it returned to being part of Morocco....
    , Dettigen, Warburg
    Warburg

    Warburg is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia on the river Diemel near the three-state point shared by Hessen, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia....
    , Beaumont
    Beaumont

    Beaumont can refer to:...
    , Willems
    Willems

    Willems is a surname, and may refer to:* Colton Willems , a golf player* Dirk Willems , an anabaptist martyr* Florent Joseph Marie Willems , a Belgian painter...
    , Fuentes d'Onor, Peninsula
    Peninsula

    A peninsula is a piece of Landform that is nearly surrounded by water but connected to mainland via an isthmus. Word origin: Latin paeninsula : paene, almost + insula, island....
    , Waterloo
    Battle of Waterloo

    In the Battle of Waterloo forces of the First French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte and Michel Ney were defeated by those of the Seventh Coalition, including a Prussian army under the command of Gebhard Leberecht von Bl?cher and an Anglo-Allied army under the command of the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington....
    , Balaclava
    Battle of Balaclava

    The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Anglo-French-Turkish campaign to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russia's principal naval base on the Black Sea....
    , Sevastopol
    Sevastopol

    Sevastopol is a port in Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . The city, formerly the home of the Soviet Union Black Sea Fleet, is now a Ukrainian naval base mutually used by the Ukrainian Navy and Russian Navy....
    , Tel el Kebir, Egypt 1882, Relief of Ladysmith
    Relief of Ladysmith

    The Relief of Ladysmith, also known as The Battle of Tugela Heights, consisted of a series of military actions lasting from February 14 through February 27, 1900 in which General Sir Redvers Buller's British army forced Louis Botha's Boer army to lift the Siege of Ladysmith during the Second Boer War....
    , South Africa 1899-1902


  • The Great War: Mons
    Mons

    Mons is a Walloon Region city and Municipalities in Belgium located in the Belgium Provinces of Belgium of Hainaut , of which it is the capital....
    , Le Cateau
    Battle of Le Cateau

    The Battle of Le Cateau occurred on 26 August 1914, after the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, France and Belgium retreated from the Battle of Mons and set up defensive positions in a fighting withdrawal against the German advance at Le Cateau-Cambr?sis on 26 August....
    , Retreat from Mons, Marne 1914, Aisne 1914, Messines
    Messines

    Messines may refer to:* the village of Mesen in Belgium, where the Battle of Messines was fought during World War I,* the village of Messines, Quebec....
     1914, Armentieres
    Armentières

    Armenti?res is a Communes of the Nord d?partement in the Nord Departments of France in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais r?gion in France in northern France....
     1914, Ypres
    Ypres

    Ypres , Ieper , or Ypern is a Belgium Municipalities in Belgium located in the Flemish Region Provinces of Belgium of West Flanders....
     1914, Langemarck
    Langemarck

    Langemark is a town in the Belgium province of West Flanders, part of the municipality of Langemark-Poelkapelle. Written as Langemarck on French and British maps, the village is known in military history as the scene of the first gas attacks by the German army, which marked the beginning of the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915....
     1914, Gheluvelt, Nonne Bosschen, St Julien, Ypres
    Ypres

    Ypres , Ieper , or Ypern is a Belgium Municipalities in Belgium located in the Flemish Region Provinces of Belgium of West Flanders....
     1915, Frezenberg, Loos
    Battle of Loos

    The Battle of Loos was one of the major United Kingdom offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. It marked the first time the British used Poison gas in World War I during the war, and is also famous for the fact that it witnessed the first large-scale use of new army or "Kitchener's Army" units....
    , Arras 1917, Scarpe 1917, Ypres 1917, Broodseinde, Poelcappelle, Passchendaele
    Passchendaele

    The Battle of Passchendaele, or Third Battle of Ypres was one of the major battles of World War I. The battle consisted of a series of operations starting in June 1917 and petering out in November 1917 in which Entente troops under British command attacked the German Empire Army ....
    , Somme 1918
    Battle of the Somme (1918)

    The battle of the Somme in 1918can refer to*The First battle of the Somme in 1918, as a result of the German Operation Michael*Second Battle of the Somme , the Allied counteroffensive...
    , St Quentin, Avre
    Avre

    Avre may refer to:*Avre , a river in northwestern France, tributary of the Eure*Avre , a river in northern France, tributary of the Somme*Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers, a military vehicle of the British Army...
    , Amiens
    Amiens

    Amiens is a city and Communes of France in northern France, north of Paris. It is the capital of the Somme Departments of France in Picardie....
    , Hindenburg Line
    Hindenburg Line

    The Hindenburg Line was a vast system of defenses in northeastern France during World War I. It was constructed by the Germanys during the winter of 1916–17....
    , Beaurevoir
    Beaurevoir

    Beaurevoir is a Communes of France in the Departments of France of Aisne in Picardie in northern France....
    , Cambrai 1918, Sambre
    Sambre

    The Sambre is a river in northern France and southern Belgium, left tributary of the Meuse River. The ancient Romans called the river Sabis....
    , Pursuit to Mons, France and Flanders 1914-1918


  • The Second World War: Mont Pincon, Souleuvre, Noireau Crossing, Amiens 1944, Brussels
    Brussels

    Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium....
    , Neerpelt
    Neerpelt

    Neerpelt is a municipality located in the Belgium province of Limburg . On January 1 2006 Neerpelt had a total population of 16,117. The total area is 42.78 km? which gives a population density of 377 inhabitants per km?....
    , Nederrijn
    Nederrijn

    Nederrijn is the name of the Netherlands part of River Rhine from the confluence at the town of Angeren of the cut-off Rhine bend of Oude Rijn and the Pannerdens Kanaal ....
    , Lingen
    Lingen

    Lingen is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany. In 2008 the population was 52.353 in addition about 5,000 secondary residents. Lingen, specifically "Lingen " , is located on the river Ems in the southern part of the Emsland county and district respectively, which is bordering to North Rhine-Westphalia in the south and to the Netherlands in the w...
    , Veghel
    Veghel

    Veghel is a municipality and a town in the southern Netherlands.Since 1994 Veghel and the neighbouring village of Erp have formed a single municipality....
    , Nijmegen
    Nijmegen

    Nijmegen is a municipality and a city in the east of the Netherlands, near the Germany border. It is considered to be the oldest city in the Netherlands and celebrated its 2000th year of existence in 2005....
    , Rhine
    Rhine

    File:Swiss Grand Canyon.jpgThe Rhine is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe, at , with an average discharge of more than ....
    , Bentheim
    Bentheim

    County of Bentheim is a districts of Germany in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by the Netherlands provinces of Overijssel and Drenthe, the district of Emsland, and the districts of Steinfurt and Borken in North Rhine-Westphalia....
    , North West Europe 1944-1945, Baghdad 1941, Iraq 1941, Palmyra
    Palmyra

    Palmyra was in ancient times an important city of central Syria, located in an oasis 215 km northeast of Damascus and 120 km southwest of the Euphrates....
    , Syria 1941, Msus, Gazala, Knightbridge, Defence of Alamein Line, El Alamein
    El Alamein

    El Alamein is a town in northern Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea coast in Matruh Governorate. It is west of Alexandria and northwest of Cairo....
    , El Agheila
    El Agheila

    El Agheila is a coastal city at the bottom of the Gulf of Sidra in far western Cyrenaica, Libya. It is currently known as Al-?Uqaylah, and was the capital of the former Districts of Libya of the same name, then it was in Ajdabiya District, but as of 2007 El Agheila is within the enlarged Al Wahat District....
    , Advance on Tripoli, North Africa 1941-1943, Sicily 1943, Arezzo
    Arezzo

    Arezzo or Arretium is a city in central Italy, capital of Province of Arezzo, located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about 80 km south-east of Florence, at an elevation of 296 meters above sea level....
    , Advance to Florence
    Florence

    Florence is the Capital city of the Italy Regions of Italy of Tuscany and of the provinces of Italy Province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of 364,779 ....
    , Gothic Line
    Gothic Line

    The Gothic Line, also known as Linea Gotica, formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence in the final stages of World War II along the summits of the Apennine Mountains during the fighting retreat of Nazi Germany's forces in Italy against the Allied Armies in Italy commanded by General Sir Harold Alexander,...
    , Italy 1943-1944


  • Falkland Islands 1982, Iraq 2003
    Iraq 2003

    Iraq 2003 is an X-Presidents episode on Saturday Night Lives TV Funhouse. It originally aired March 18, 2003. Tom Kenny guest starred as the voice of Spongebob Squarepants....
    1


  • 1 - Awarded jointly to The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals, as the Household Cavalry Regiment.


Alliances

  • - The Royal Canadian Dragoons
    The Royal Canadian Dragoons

    The Royal Canadian Dragoons is an armoured regiment of the Canadian Army. It is one of three armoured regiments in the Regular Force and forms part of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps....
  • - The Governor General's Horse Guards
    The Governor General's Horse Guards

    The Governor General's Horse Guards is an armoured warfare reconnaissance regiment in the Primary Reserve of the Canadian Army, part of Land Force Central Area's 32 Canadian Brigade Group....


Affiliated Yeomanry

  • The Kent and Sharpshooters Yeomanry
    Kent and Sharpshooters Yeomanry

    The Kent and Sharpshooters Yeomanry is a unit of the Territorial Army that was formed in 1961 as the Kent and County of London Yeomanry by the amalgamation of two yeomanry regiments, the Kent Yeomanry and the 3rd/4th County of London Yeomanry....


Order of Precedence


External links