Dragoon guards
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Dragoon guards was, in some armies, particularly the British Army, the designation used to refer to heavy cavalry regiments from the 18th century onwards. Dragoon guards usually wore cuirasses and helmets and carried heavy sabres, and were similar to cuirassiers in other armies.
The British Army first used the designation in 1746, when the King's Own Regiment of Horse and the Princess of Wales's Own Regiment of Horse were redesignated the 1st and 2nd Dragoon Guards. Other regiments followed. By the early 19th century, the British Dragoon Guards regiments had abandoned their cuirasses (although they still wore helmets) and were essentially indistinguishable from Dragoon regiments. The Dragoon Guards regiments took precedence over all other Cavalry Regiments of the Line.
[edit] British Dragoon Guards Regiments
- 1st King's Dragoon Guards (1746, from The King's Own Regiment of Horse); amalgamated to form 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards (1959)
- 2nd Queen's Dragoon Guards (1746, from The Princess of Wales's Own Regiment of Horse); redesignated 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) (1872); redesignated The Queen's Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards) (1921); amalgamated to form 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards (1959)
- 3rd Dragoon Guards (1747, from 4th Regiment of Horse); redesignated 3rd (Prince of Wales's) Dragoon Guards (1765); amalgamated to form 3rd/6th Dragoon Guards (1922); redesignated 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) (1928); amalgamated with Royal Scots Greys (2nd Dragoons) to form Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) (1971)
- 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards (1788, from 1st Irish Horse); redesignated 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards (1921); amalgamated to form 4th/7th Dragoon Guards (1922); redesignated 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards (1936); amalgamated to form Royal Dragoon Guards (1992)
- 5th Dragoon Guards (1788, from 2nd Irish Horse); redesignated 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards (1804); redesignated 5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) (1920); amalgamated with The Inniskillings (6th Dragoons) to form 5th/6th Dragoons (1922); redesignated 5th Inniskilling Dragoon Guards (1927); redesignated 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards (1935); amalgamated to form Royal Dragoon Guards (1992)
- 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabiniers) (1788, from 3rd Irish Horse); redesignated The Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) (1920); amalgamated to form 3rd/6th Dragoon Guards (1922)
- 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards (1788, from 4th Irish Horse); redesignated 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's) (1921); amalgamated to form 4th/7th Dragoon Guards (1922)
The Dragoon Guards regiments converted to armoured cars and tanks in the 20th century. There are still three Dragoon Guards regiments in the British Army:
