The Regiment Infantry Prins Johan Willem Friso is a line
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
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 ...
of the
Royal Netherlands Army. Named after
Johan Willem Friso of Orange-Nassau
John William Friso ( nl, Johan Willem Friso; 14 August 1687 – 14 July 1711) became the (titular) Prince of Orange in 1702. He was the Stadtholder of Friesland and Groningen in the Dutch Republic until his death by accidental drowning in the ...
, it is the oldest and most senior regiment in the current order of battle. The regiment currently serves in the
mechanized infantry
Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force).
As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is di ...
role as 44 Armoured Infantry Battalion (44 Painfbat) as part of
43 Gemechaniseerde (Mechanized) Brigade.
Naming
The regiment was formed during the 1950s, in a major reorganisation of the Royal Netherlands Army (Koninklijke Landmacht) after the end of WW II.
Before 1950 the army consisted of numbered regiment; in 1950 these regiments were changed into named regiments.
The Regiment Infantry Johan Willem Friso was created on 1 juli 1950 as a continuation of the former 1st Regiment Infantry (1 RI) and 9th Regiment Infantry (9 RI). Both 1 RI and 9 RI had always been stationed in the North of the Netherlands: 1 RI in Assen (province of Drenthe) and 9 RI in Leeuwarden (province of Friesland). Therefore, it was decided to name the new regiment after the former Stadhouder of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe: Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange (born 14 August 1687 – died 14 July 1711).
In November 2020, the title of "Prince" was added to the name of the regiment, thereby becoming the Regiment Infanterie Prins Johan Willem Friso.
Battle honours displayed on the colours
*
Tiendaagse Veldtocht 1831
*Citadel van Antwerpen 1832
*
Java en Sumatra 1946-1949
*Noord-Kandahar en Uruzgan 2006
Each member of the 44th armoured infantry battalion (which is part of the regiment) carries a blue lanyard on their uniform in commemoration of their involvement in the UNIFIL peacekeeping operation in Lebanon from 1979 to 1985.
See also
*
Friesland Battalion The Friesland Battalion ( nl, Bataljon "Friesland", fy, Bataljon "Fryslân"), officially the ''1e Bataljon 9e Regiment Infanterie'' (1-9 R.I.) was a battalion made up of '' oorlogsvrijwilligers'' from Friesland that participated in the Dutch "poli ...
References
Johan Willem Friso
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