The King's Own Royal Border Regiment was an

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 conscripted ...

of 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 Gurk ...

in existence from 1959 until 2006, and was part of the

King's Division The King's Division was a British Army command, training and administrative apparatus designated for infantry regiments in the North of England. History The King's Division was formed in 1968 with the union of the Lancastrian Brigade, Yorkshi ...

. It was formed at Barnard Castle on 1 October 1959 through the amalgamation of the King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) and the Border Regiment.

History

The regiment's earliest forebears were the 4th, or Kings Own Regiment of Foot, formed 13 July 1680 as the

2nd Tangier Regiment The 2nd Tangier Regiment was raised by the Charles FitzCharles, 1st Earl of Plymouth in 1680. Part of the Standing army of Charles II of England, King Charles II, the regiment's intended role was to help to garrison the English Tangier, Colony of ...

, also known as 'Charles Earl of Plymouth's Regiment of Foot for Tangiers', being the fourth regiment of foot in seniority in the British Army. The 34th (Cumberland) and 55th (Westmorland) Regiments of Foot were formed later in 1705 and 1755, respectively.Beckett, p. 29 In 1881 they amalgamated to form the Border Regiment. The 1 October 1959 amalgamated regiment preserved traditions of the previous three regiments (4th, 34th and 55th). Every 28 October, the regiment would celebrate "Arroyo Day" by parading the French drums and French drum major's mace captured during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

in 1811. They had been taken intact in the

Battle of Arroyo dos Molinos The Battle of Arroyo dos Molinos took place on 28 October 1811 during the Peninsular War. An allied force under General Rowland Hill trapped and defeated a French force under General Jean-Baptiste Girard, forcing the latter's dismissal by ...

from the French 34e Régiment de Ligne on 28 October 1811. The regiment saw a great deal of service in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

during

the troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

. The regiment was twice awarded the

Wilkinson Sword of Peace The Firmin Sword of Peace (previously known as the Wilkinson Sword of Peace) is an award given to units of the British Armed Forces for activities above and beyond the unit's normal role that improve relations with the community, either within the U ...

for work in both

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

and

Bosnia 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 He ...

. In 2004, as part of the restructuring of the infantry, it was announced that the King's Own Royal Border Regiment would amalgamate with the King's Regiment and the

Queen's Lancashire Regiment The Queen's Lancashire Regiment (30th, 40th, 47th, 59th, 81st and 82nd Regiments of Foot) (QLR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 25 March 1970 at Connaught Barracks in Dover through ...

to form the new Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border). The Regiment's final act was to serve in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

between 2005 and 2006. The new regiment was formed on 1 July 2006, with the Kings Own Royal Border Regiment forming the 3rd Battalion.

Territorials

Upon the regiment's creation the territorial battalions of both predecessor regiments were transferred, without a change in name. These were: *5th Battalion, King's Own Royal Regiment, at Lancaster *4th (Cumberland and Westmorland) Battalion, The Border Regiment, at

Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, south-east of Windermere and north of Lancaster. Historically in Westmorland, it lies within the dale of th ...

In 1967, when the TAVR was formed, both of the battalions lost a company to the

Lancastrian Volunteers The Lancastrian Volunteers was a short lived Territorial Army infantry regiment of the British Army, composed of companies from the North West affiliated regiments. History The regiment was formed in 1967, by the amalgamation of the 8 Territori ...

, and also retained the rest of the battalion within the regiment. However, this didn't last very long, as in 1969, the battalions were reduced to cadre– the KORR battalion formed a new company of 1st Battalion,

; whilst the Border Regiment battalion formed a company of the

Northumbrian Volunteers The Northumbrian Volunteers was a short-lived Territorial Army infantry regiment of the British Army, in existence from 1971 to 1975. History The regiment was formed on 1 April 1971, as the successor to Territorial Army infantry battalions of C ...

, in 1971.

4th (Volunteer) Battalion

In 1975, control of the territorial units was passed back to the affiliated regiments, and so the regiment formed 4th (Volunteer) Battalion, from companies of the Lancastrian Volunteers and Northumbrian Volunteers. *HQ Company, at Lancaster *A Company, at

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

, with platoon at

Workington Workington is a coastal town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England. The town was historically in Cumberland. At the 2011 census it had a population of 25,207. Loca ...

, ''from A Company, 1st Battalion, Lancastrian Volunteers'' *B Company, at Lancaster, with platoon at

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness. In 2023 the ...

, ''from E Company, 1st Battalion, Lancastrian Volunteers'' *C Company, at Kendal, ''from B Company, Northumbrian Volunteers'' 1984 saw the establishment of E (

Home Service Force The Home Service Force was a Home Guard type force established in the United Kingdom in 1982. Each HSF unit was placed with either a Regular Army or Territorial Army regiment or battalion for administrative purposes and given that formation’s ...

) Company, with a platoon stationed with each company, however this was disbanded along with the rest of the HSF in 1992. At the same time, the battalion was reduced down to a HQ Company, and 3 rifle companies and retained this structure until amalgamation in 1999. *HQ Company, at Lancaster *A Company, at Carlisle, with platoon at Workington *C Company, at Barrow-in-Furness *D Company, at Workington The battalion amalgamated with the 4th (Volunteer) Battalion, Queen's Lancashire Regiment, in 1999, to form the

Lancastrian and Cumbrian Volunteers The Lancastrian and Cumbrian Volunteers was a Territorial Army unit of the British Army. It was formed on 1 July 1999 following the Strategic Defence Review by the amalgamation of the 4th (Volunteer) Battalion, Queen's Lancashire Regiment and the ...

; HQ and C Companies amalgamated to form A (Tobruk) (King's Own Royal Border Regiment) Company, and A and D Companies amalgamated to form C (Sicily) (King's Own Royal Border Regiment) Company, of the new regiment. The Lancastrian and Cumbrian Volunteers later amalgamated with the two King's Companies of the King's and Cheshire Regiment, to form 4th Battalion, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, with the KORBR lineage being maintained by C Company.

Regimental museum

Archives of the regiment are preserved in Cumbria's Museum of Military Life at

Carlisle Castle Carlisle Castle is a medieval stone keep castle that stands within the English city of Carlisle near the ruins of Hadrian's Wall. First built during the reign of William II in 1093 and rebuilt in stone under Henry I in 1122, the castle is over ...

Colonels-in-Chief

*1977: Princess Alexandra;

Angus Ogilvy Sir Angus James Bruce Ogilvy (14 September 1928 – 26 December 2004) was a British businessman. He is best known as the husband of Princess Alexandra of Kent, a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. Ogilvy is also remembered for his role in a b ...

, LG, GCVO

Regimental Colonels

Regimental Colonels have been: *1959–1961: Maj-Gen.

Valentine Blomfield Major-General Valentine Blomfield (29 March 1898 – 11 January 1980) was a British Army officer. Military career Blomfield entered the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, from where he was commissioned into the Border Regiment on 7 April 1916. ...

, CB, DSO ''(from Border Regiment)'' *1961–1971: Lt-Gen. Richard Neville Anderson, CB, CBE, DSO *1971–1981: Gen. Sir William Norman Roy Scotter, KCB, OBE, MC *1981–1988: Maj-Gen. David Edwin Miller, CB, CBE, MC *1988–2004: Maj-Gen. Robert John Hodges, CB, OBE *2004–2006: Col. Michael Trevor Griffiths ''(to

The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) (LANCS) is an infantry regiment of the line within the British Army, part of the King's Division. Headquartered in Preston, it recruits throughout the North West of England. The Du ...

)'' *''2006: Regiment amalgamated with

The King's Regiment The King's Regiment, officially abbreviated as KINGS, was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 1 September 1958 by the amalgamation of the King's Regiment (Liverpool) which had been raised in 1685 ...

and

The Queen's Lancashire Regiment The Queen's Lancashire Regiment (30th, 40th, 47th, 59th, 81st and 82nd Regiments of Foot) (QLR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 25 March 1970 at Connaught Barracks in Dover through ...

to form

References

Sources

External links

King's Own Royal Border Regiment
at regiments.org
Get in Get Out and Get Away - Memoirs of a National Serviceman who served with the KORBR in the Cameroons

John Peel by The Kings Own Royal Border Regiment Band
* * {{Duke of Lancaster's Regiment King's Own Royal Border Regiment Infantry regiments of the British Army Organisations based in Cumbria History of Cumbria Military units and formations in Cumbria Military units and formations established in 1959 Military units and formations disestablished in 2006