The 6th King Edward's Own Cavalry was a

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

in the

Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Gover ...

(1842–1895) and the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

(1895–1921) until it was amalgamated with the 7th Hariana Lancers to form the 18th King Edward's Own Cavalry.

History

The 6th King Edward's Own Cavalry was raised at

Fatehgarh Fatehgarh is a cantonment town in Farrukhabad district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Located on the south bank of the Ganges River, it is the administrative headquarters of Farrukhabad District. Fatehgarh derives its name from an o ...

in 1842 by Lt W H Ryves as the 8th Regiment of Bengal Irregular Cavalry. Their first action was in 1843 during the Gwalior campaign in central India for which they earned the battle honour '' Punniar''. In 1845 they were involved in the

First Anglo-Sikh War The First Anglo-Sikh War was fought between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company in 1845 and 1846 around the Firozpur district of Punjab. It resulted in the defeat and partial subjugation of the Sikh empire and cession of Jammu ...

and participated in the ''

Battle of Moodkee The Battle of Mudki was fought on 18 December 1845, between the forces of the East India Company and part of the Sikh Khalsa Army, the army of then declining Sikh Empire of the Punjab region, Punjab. The British army won an untidy encounter bat ...

'', the '' Battle of Ferozeshah'' and the ''

Battle of Sobraon The Battle of Sobraon was fought on 10 February 1847, between the forces of the East India Company and the Sikh Khalsa Army, the army of the declining Sikh Empire of the Punjab region, Punjab. The Sikhs were completely defeated, making this the ...

''. They were next in action in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

during the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War where they were awarded the battle honours ''

Egypt 1882 Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

'' as a theatre honour and for the '' Battle of Tel-El-Kebir''. It was while on service in Egypt that

khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan (color), tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage rela ...

was worn by all ranks for the first time. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

they were part of the 2nd (Sialkot) Cavalry Brigade, 1st Indian Cavalry Division which arrived in France in November 1914. They were involved in the

First Battle of Ypres The First Battle of Ypres (, , – was a battle of the First World War, fought on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front around Ypres, in West Flanders, Belgium. The battle was part of the First Battle of Flanders, in which German A ...

and other actions on the Western Front but notably in the German Retreat to the Hindenburg Line and the Battle of Cambrai. The brigade formation was: * 17th (Duke of Cambridge's Own) Lancers * 6th King Edward's Own Cavalry * 19th Lancers (Fane's Horse) * Brigade Signal Troop They moved to Egypt in March 1918 and were transferred to 22nd Mounted Brigade. They took part in Allenby's campaign in Palestine. The regiment then spent the period 1919–20 in West Asia on occupation duties. It returned to India in October 1920, landing at

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

from where it took a train to

Ferozepore Firozpur, (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Punjabi, ɪroːzpʊr also known as Ferozepur, is a city on the banks of the Sutlej River in the Firozpur District of Punjab, India. After the Partition of India in 1947, it became a border town on the In ...

which it reached on 15 October 1920. In 1921, the regiment was amalgamated with the 7th Hariana Lancers to form the 6th/7th Cavalry. This was quickly changed in 1922 to 18th King Edward's Own Cavalry.

Regimental titles

The regiment underwent a number of changed in title until amalgamation in 1921: * 18428th Irregular Cavalry * 18616th Regiment of Bengal Cavalry * 18836th (The

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

's) Bengal Cavalry * 19016th (Prince of Wales's) Bengal Cavalry * 19036th Prince of Wales's Cavalry * 19066th

King Edward King Edward may refer to: Monarchs of England and the United Kingdom * Edward the Elder (–924) * Edward the Martyr (–978) * Edward the Confessor (–1066) * Edward I of England (1239–1307) * Edward II of England (1284–1327) * Edward III o ...

's Own Cavalry

Battle honours

The regiment was awarded the following

battle honours A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military ...

: : Punniar, Moodkee, Ferozeshah,

Sobraon Sobraon () is a village in Punjab, India. It is located west to Harike village in Tarn Taran district. The Sutlej river is to the south of this village. The village is located at 31°10'39N 74°51'10E with an altitude of 192 metres (633 feet). ...

, Tel-el-Kebir, Punjab Frontier Battle honours for the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

were awarded in 1926 to the successor regiment. These included: :

Somme 1916 __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media *Somme (book), ''Somm ...

, Morval, Cambrai 1917, France and Flanders 1914–18,

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 Juncti ...

Sharon Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name. In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, Palestine 1918 for the service of the 6th Cavalry.

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links