The 14th Light Horse Regiment was a

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially m ...

or light horse unit of the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

. The unit takes its lineage from units raised as part of the colonial forces of the state of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

in 1860 and served during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

and

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In 1930 it was amalgamated with the 2nd Light Horse Regiment to become the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry), a unit that continues to exist as part of the Australian Army today.

Lineage

The 14th Light Horse Regiment has a convoluted lineage,This unit was separate to the 2nd Battalion, Queensland Mounted Infantry which became the 14th Australian Light Horse Regiment in 1903 before subsequently being redesignated as the 3rd Light Horse Regiment in 1913 and then the 11th (Darling Downs) Light Horse (QMI) in 1918. Se
CMF Light Horse
having its origins in the 4th Battalion, Queensland Mounted Infantry (QMI), which was a unit of the colonial forces of the state of Queensland that was first raised in 1860. When the Second Boer War broke out, the QMI were sent to South Africa to fight alongside contingents from a number of Australian colonies and it was there that the unit won its first battle honour.The regiment was officially presented with this battle honour in 1908. After the Boer War the Australian colonial forces were amalgamated into the military forces of the newly constituted nation of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. As a part of this amalgamation the four battalions of the QMI were reformed as light horse regiments, and the 4th Battalion became the 27th Light Horse Regiment. In 1912, a system of compulsory military service was instituted in Australia, the result of which was the expansion of the Army. Consequently, most units of the QMI were redesignated, and the 27th Light Horse Regiment became the 27th Light Horse (North Queensland Light Horse) Regiment. With the outbreak of World War I, due to the provisions of the ''Defence Act 1903'' which did not allow for conscripts to be sent overseas to fight, it was decided to raise an all volunteer force for service overseas; this was designated the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). While the units of the AIF were deployed overseas to

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

and the Western Front, the original units of the QMI remained in Australia on home service.

Formation and operational history

The 14th Light Horse Regiment was raised in March 1916 as part of the AIF at Enoggera, Queensland, attached to the 3rd Division. It departed from

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

on the

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

''Beltana'' on 13 May 1916, bound for England where it was intended to be brought up to full strength to serve as the 3rd Division's light horse regiment. Before it could be brought up to full strength, however, the establishment was reduced to only one squadron per division and as such only 'A' Squadron was formed. Soon afterwards, however, the divisional establishments of the Australian Army were changed again, this time removing mounted troops from the order of battle altogether. As a result, it was decided to disband the regiment. In June 1918, the 14th Light Horse Regiment was reformed from the

Imperial Camel Corps The Imperial Camel Corps Brigade (ICCB) was a camel-mounted infantry brigade that the British Empire raised in December 1916 during the First World War for service in the Middle East. From a small beginning the unit eventually grew to a brigad ...

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

, under the command of

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

George Langley. This unit had been disbanded due to the unsuitability of the camels to the fighting in Palestine, however, it had performed very well in the previous campaigns in Egypt and the Sinai and had earned a number of battle honours, which the 14th subsequently inherited. Together with the 15th Light Horse Regiment and a French colonial regiment they formed the 5th Light Horse Brigade, attached to the

Australian Mounted Division The Australian Mounted Division originally formed as the Imperial Mounted Division in January 1917, was a mounted infantry, light horse and yeomanry division. The division was formed in Egypt, and along with the Anzac Mounted Division formed p ...

. The 5th Light Horse Brigade were involved in the fighting against the Turks around

Megiddo Megiddo may refer to: Places and sites in Israel * Tel Megiddo, site of an ancient city in Israel's Jezreel valley * Megiddo Airport, a domestic airport in Israel * Megiddo church (Israel) * Megiddo, Israel, a kibbutz in Israel * Megiddo Junction, ...

in September 1918, during which time they suffered eight men killed. Over the course of ten days the brigade advanced more than before entering

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

on 1 October 1918, after which they spent the next month performing garrison duties as the brigade prepared to take part in the advance towards

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

. Turkey surrendered on 30 October 1918, thus preventing the regiment from seeing any further action during the war. However, before they were to return to Australia they were used to quell the

Egyptian Revolution of 1919 The Egyptian Revolution of 1919 ( ''Thawra 1919'') was a countrywide revolution against the British occupation of Egypt and Sudan. It was carried out by Egyptians from different walks of life in the wake of the British-ordered exile of the r ...

. They finally embarked for the return voyage to Australia on 24 July 1919.

Perpetuation

After the war, in Australia the units of the QMI underwent another reorganisation when they were renumbered once again. In 1922, the 27th Light Horse (North Queensland Light Horse) Regiment became the 14th (North Queensland) Light Horse Regiment. The AIF was officially disbanded in April 1921 and in the subsequent re-organisation of the Australian Army it was decided that the associated

Citizens Military Force The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen ...

units would retain the AIF battle honours. Thus, when the 27th became the 14th in 1922 it was officially given the battle honours of its AIF counterpart. In 1927, the regiment's name was changed again to the 14th (West Moreton) Light Horse Regiment. In 1930, due to economic constraints caused by the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

the 14th was amalgamated with the 2nd (Moreton) Light Horse Regiment to become the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry). In September 1939, following the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the 2nd/14th was assigned to the 1st Australian Cavalry Brigade. In 1940, the 2nd/14th was delinked and the 14th Light Horse Regiment was re-raised as a machine-gun unit. It was assigned to the 4th Australian Cavalry Brigade. Two years later it was renamed as the 14th Motor Regiment, however, it was disbanded shortly afterwards in May 1942 when its personnel were transferred to the 2/4th Armoured Regiment.

Battle honours

*Boer War: South Africa 1899–1902; *World War I: Romani, Magdhaba–Rafah, Egypt 1915–1917, Gaza–Beersheba, El Mughar, Nebi Samwill, Jerusalem, Jaffa, Jericho, Jordan (Es Salt), Jordan (Amman), Megiddo, Nablus, Palestine 1917–1918.These battle honours were inherited from the Imperial Camel Corps from where the regiment drew its manpower upon being re-formed in 1918.

Notes

;Footnotes ;Citations

References