The Light Dragoons (LD) is a

cavalry regiment Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating a ...

in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

. The regiment has a

light cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was primarily ...

role and specialises in mounted and dismounted reconnaissance. The Light Dragoons recruit mainly in Northern England, from the counties of

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newcas ...

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. ...

and the

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire t ...

. For this reason, the regiment is known as "England’s Northern Cavalry". It is currently based in

Catterick Garrison Catterick Garrison is a major garrison and military town south of Richmond, North Yorkshire, England. It is the largest British Army garrison in the world, with a population of around 13,000 in 2017 and covering over 2,400 acres (about 10 ...

North Yorkshire.

Background

The term 'Light Dragoons' has a much earlier history. The British army experimented with light cavalry in the 1740s, prompted by the French creation of hussar regiments. However, it was not until the 1750s that the British converted some dragoon regiments into light cavalry, these regiments being officially designated 'Light Dragoons'. All British light cavalry regiments (numbered 7th and upwards) were titled Light Dragoons until 1806-1807, when four were re-classified as 'Hussars'. From 1816 more Light Dragoon regiments were reclassified as lancers or hussars, a tendency that continued throughout the 19th century.

History

Early history

The regiment was formed in 1992 at Haig Barracks in

Hohne Hohne is a municipality in the state of Lower Saxony in Germany, east of the county town of Celle. It includes the three former parishes of Hohne, Helmerkamp and Spechtshorn. It should not be confused with the British Army camp of Hohne (German: ' ...

from the amalgamation of two

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

s, the

13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary's Own) The 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed by the amalgamation of the 13th Hussars and the 18th Royal Hussars in 1922 and, after service in the Second World War, it amalgamated with t ...

and the

15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars The 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed by the amalgamation of the 15th The King's Hussars and the 19th Royal Hussars in 1922 and, after service in the Second World War, it was am ...

. All of the antecedent regiments had been regiments of "light

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

s" during the 18th and 19th centuries, including the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

. B Squadron (The Guards) was the first squadron of the newly formed regiment to do a tour of duty; sent to

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and ...

in May 1993 on peacekeeping duties. They were followed by C Squadron (The Legion) in November 1993 and later by A and D squadrons in 1994. In total the regiment did 13 operational tours of Bosnia, leading them to be described in 2001 by the Chief of Defence Staff, General Sir Charles Guthrie as "the best regiment in the army at present: consistently the best officered, best recruited and all round most effective". For all of those initial tours the Light Dragoons deployed on

Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) The Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked), abbreviated CVR(T), is a family of armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs) developed in the 1960s and is in service with the British Army and others throughout the world. They are small, highly mobile, ai ...

. In July 2003, The Light Dragoons sent units to Iraq on

Operation Telic Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

2, followed by Operation Telic 6 in May 2005. Here the Regiment assisted with post conflict stabilisation, training the police force, and fighting in the counter-insurgency operations. In October 2006, elements of the regiment were deployed on a tour of duty in

Helmand Province Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 13 ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

Operation Herrick Operation Herrick was the codename under which all British operations in the War in Afghanistan were conducted from 2002 to the end of combat operations in 2014. It consisted of the British contribution to the NATO-led International Security Ass ...

5 with

3 Commando Brigade 3 Commando Brigade (3 Cdo Bde), previously called the 3rd Special Service Brigade, is a commando formation of the British Armed Forces. It is composed of the Royal Marine Commandos, alongside commando qualified sailors, soldiers and airmen from ...

. This was followed by Operation Herrick 6 in April 2007 with 12 Mechanised Brigade. The regiment deployed as a battle group on Operation Herrick 10 in April 2009 and took part in

Operation Panther's Claw Operation Panchai Palang, or Panther's Claw, was a British-led military operation of the War in Afghanistan in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan. It aimed to secure various canal and river crossings to establish a permanent Internation ...

in the summer of 2009. The regiment's last deployment to Afghanistan was on Operation Herrick 16 in April 2012. Here it provided the Brigade Reconnaissance Force, Formation Reconnaissance and mentoring teams for local forces. In 2014, soldiers from The Light Dragoons deployed to

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...

Operation Althea Operation Althea, formally the European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR), is a military deployment in Bosnia and Herzegovina to oversee the military implementation of the Dayton Agreement. It is the successor to NATO's SFOR and IFOR. T ...

; providing a mobile reconnaissance capability for the EU forces ahead of the Bosnian elections.

Deployments since 2015

In 2015, The Light Dragoons subordinated to 4th Infantry Brigade and moved to a new home at Gaza Barracks in

. In March 2017, A Squadron (The Empire) deployed to Poland on Op Cabrit as part of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence. They were followed by B Squadron (The Guards) in October 2017 and C Squadron (The Legion) in April 2020. The Light Dragoons deployed a platoon to

in 2018 on Op Toral. In December 2020, The Light Dragoons deployed to

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...

Operation Newcombe Operation Newcombe was the code name for two separate and concurrent British non-combat military operations in Mali. One operation involved logistical and airlift support for the French-led Operation Barkhane (previously Operation Serval), whil ...

, as part of the UK's contribution to the UN's peacekeeping force. Here they formed the Long Range Reconnaissance Group, conducting patrols of up to 1500 km in length, in order to provide intelligence to the UN forces. Light Dragoons on patrol in Mali

Operational Role

The Light Dragoon’s primary role is Formation Reconnaissance; a varied job that primarily involves operating ahead of the main fighting force, often in enemy or unknown territory in order to find key information on the local area and any enemy within it. With this information the Light Dragoons are expected to inform the main fighting force behind them, strike opportune targets or interact with the local population to build relations, gather more intelligence and aid local planning and development. RM Jackal Vehicles in Afghanistan MOD 45150586

RM Jackal Vehicles in Afghanistan MOD 45150586

The regiment is now equipped with Jackal armoured fighting vehicles. The Light Dragoons is paired with the

Queen's Own Yeomanry The Queen's Own Yeomanry (QOY) is one of the Army Reserve light armoured reconnaissance regiments. History The Queens Own Yeomanry was initially formed on 1 April 1971 as the 2nd Armoured Car Regiment from five of the yeomanry units across the No ...

, an

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

light cavalry regiment. The Light Dragoons is broken into the following structure: * Regimental Headquarters based at Fenham Barracks * Light Cavalry Regiment ** Headquarters Squadron -

Coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological nich ...

and Panther CLV equipped ** A Squadron (The Empire)- Jackal equipped ** B Squadron (The Guards)- Jackal equipped ** C Squadron (The Legion)- Jackal equipped

Regimental museum

The Newcastle

Discovery Museum The Discovery Museum is a science museum and local history museum situated in Blandford Square in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It displays many exhibits of local history, including the ship, '' Turbinia''. It is managed by Tyne & Wear Archives ...

includes the regimental museum of the Light Dragoons and the Northumberland Hussars.

Colonels-in-chief

Colonels-in-Chief have been: * The Princess of Wales (1992–1996) *

The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth ...

(1997–2002) *

King Abdullah II of Jordan Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein ( ar, عبدالله الثاني بن الحسين , translit=ʿAbd Allāh aṯ-ṯānī ibn al-Ḥusayn; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of t ...

(2003–)

Regimental Colonels

Colonels of the Regiment have been: *1992–1995: Col. Robert John William ffrench Blake (late

13th/18th Royal Hussars The 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed by the amalgamation of the 13th Hussars and the 18th Royal Hussars in 1922 and, after service in the Second World War, it amalgamated with ...

) *1995–2000: Brig. Charles Anthony Gilbert Wells, CBE *2000–c.2010: Lt-Gen. Sir Roderick Alexander Cordy-Simpson, KBE, CB *c.2010-2013: Maj-Gen. Andrew Stewart *2013–2020 Maj-Gen. David Rutherford-Jones CB *2020- Brig. Angus Watson MBE

Commanding Officers

Commanding Officers have included:Regiments and Commanding Officers, 1960–
* 1992–1993:

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 colon ...

Andrew Richard Evelyn De Cardonnel Stewart * 1993–1996: Lt Col Robert I. Webb-Bowen * 1996–1997: Lt Col Timothy J. Checketts * 1997–1999: Lt Col David John Rutherford-Jones * 1999–2002: Lt Col Simon R. Levey * 2002–2004: Lt Col David R. Amos * 2004–2006: Lt Col Robin C. Matthews * 2006–2009: Lt Col H. Angus Watson * 2009–2011: Lt Col Angus G. C. Fair * 2011–2013: Lt Col Samuel J. Plant * 2013–2016: Lt Col James M. Senior * 2016–2019: Lt Col Benjamin M. J. Cossens * 2019–2021: Lt Col Thomas R. M. Robinson * 2021–Present: Lt Col Jonathan Harris

Lineage

Alliances

* –

The Royal Canadian Hussars (Montreal) The Royal Canadian Hussars (Montreal) (abbreviated as RCH) is an armoured reconnaissance regiment of the Primary Reserve in the Canadian Armed Forces. It is one of the oldest cavalry regiments in North America, tracing a direct history to the Mont ...

* –

The South Alberta Light Horse , colours = , march = "A Southerly Wind and a Cloudy Sky" , mascot = Heine the Pony , battles = North-West RebellionFirst World WarSecond World WarAfgha ...

* –

1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers The 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers is an active Australian Army Reserve Cavalry regiment. The regiment has its headquarters at Lancer Barracks in Parramatta, a suburb in Western Sydney, New South Wales. Lancer Barracks is the oldest Mili ...

* –

1st Horse (Skinner's Horse) The 1st Horse (Skinner's Horse) is a regiment of the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. It traces its origins as a cavalry regiment from the times of the East India Company, followed by its service in the British Indian Army and finally, af ...

* – 6th Lancers * – 19th Lancers * – 2nd Royal Armoured Regiment * – HMS ''Northumberland'' * – 4e Chasseurs d'Afrique and nowadays 4e régiment de chasseurs / 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade

Affiliated yeomanry

* The

Order of precedence

Notes

References

*Light Dragoons: The Making of a Regiment By Allan Mallinson . Pen and Sword books . 362 pages . 2006.

External links

Official websiteThe Light Dragoons Regimental AssociationBritish Army Locations from 1945
{{The British Army Cavalry regiments of the British Army Royal Armoured Corps Dragoons Light Dragoons Military units and formations established in 1992 Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) 1992 establishments in the United Kingdom