Blues and Royals

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons)
Cap Badge of the Blues and Royals
Active	23 March 1969-Present
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Army
Type	Household Cavalry
Role	Formation Reconnaissance/Ceremonial
Size	Three squadrons
Part of	Household Cavalry
Garrison/HQ	RHQ - London Regiment - Windsor/London
Motto	Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense (Shame on him who thinks this evil)
March	Quick - Quick March of the Blues and Royals Slow - Slow March of the Blues and Royals Trot Past - Keel Row
Commanders
Colonel-in-Chief	HM The Queen
Colonel of the Regiment	HRH The Princess Royal
Insignia
Tactical Recognition Flash
Sleeve Badge	Waterloo Eagle from Royal Dragoons

A Trooper of the Blues and Royals on mounted duty in Whitehall, London

The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) are a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.

The regiment was formed in 1969 from the merger of The Royal Horse Guards who were known as "The Blues" and The Royal Dragoons who were known as "The Royals".

Since then, the new regiment has served in Northern Ireland, Germany and Cyprus. During the Falklands War of 1982, the regiment provided the two armoured reconnaissance troops. The regiment also had a squadron on operational duty with the United Nations in Bosnia in 1994/1995.

As a result of the Options for Change Review in 1991, the Blues and Royals were amalgamated for operational purposes with the Life Guards to form the Household Cavalry Regiment. However they each maintain their regimental identity, with distinct uniforms and traditions, and their own colonel. The Blues and Royals currently have two reconnaissance squadrons in Windsor, which are part of the Household Cavalry Regiment and a mounted squadron in London as part of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment.

The Blues and Royals is one of two regiments of the Household Division that can trace its lineage back to the New Model Army, the other being the Coldstream Guards.

The Colonel-in-Chief is Her Majesty The Queen and the Colonel is HRH The Princess Royal. Both HRH Prince William of Wales and HRH Prince Harry of Wales joined the regiment as cornets in 2006.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on February 22, 2007 that Harry, who is third in line to the throne, will join his Blues and Royals regiment in Iraq as a “long-planned rotation of troops.” Britain’s Prince Harry was said to be “over the moon” about the British army’s decision to send him on a tour of duty to southern Iraq later this year.

The deployment was expected in May or June of this year. The 22-year-old prince will be the first member of the royal family to serve in a war-zone in 25 years. His uncle, Prince Andrew, served as a helicopter pilot in the 1982 Falklands war against Argentina.