The King's Royal Hussars (KRH) is an armoured

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 ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

formed in 1992. Based at

Tidworth Tidworth is a garrison town and civil parish in south-east Wiltshire, England, on the eastern edge of Salisbury Plain. Lying on both sides of the A338 about north of the A303 primary route, the town is approximately west of Andover, sout ...

it serves as one of the armoured regiments of the 12th Armoured Brigade Combat Team (ABCT).

History

The regiment was formed on 4 December 1992 by the amalgamation of two other regiments: * The Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) (an amalgamation of the 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) and 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)) and *

14th/20th King's Hussars The 14th/20th King's Hussars was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was created by the amalgamation of the 14th King's Hussars and the 20th Hussars in 1922 and, after service in the World War II, S ...

(an amalgamation of the 14th King's Hussars and

20th Hussars The 20th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. After service in the First World War it was amalgamated with the 14th King's Hussars to form the 14th/20th King's Hussars in 1922. History Early wars The regiment was originally ra ...

Deployments

The regiment was based at York Barracks in

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

at the time of amalgamation from where it deployed units to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

Operation Banner Operation Banner was the operational name for the British Armed Forces' operation in Northern Ireland from 1969 to 2007, as part of the Troubles. It was the longest continuous deployment in British military history. The British Army was initia ...

in June 1994 and to

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

in January 1996. The regiment deployed units to Bosnia and Herzegovina again in June 1997 and to both Bosnia and Herzegovina and

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

in autumn 1999. The regiment returned to Aliwal Barracks at

Tidworth Camp Tidworth Camp is a military installation at Tidworth in Wiltshire, England. It forms part of the Tidworth, Netheravon and Bulford (TidNBul) Garrison. History The Camp was established when the War Office acquired a 19th-century mansion – Te ...

in March 2000 from where it deployed units to Northern Ireland in October 2002; it also deployed 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 ...

1 in June 2003, Operation Telic 6 in May 2005 and Operation Telic 10 in June 2007. The regiment also deployed on

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 Assi ...

7 in September 2007 and Operation Herrick 16 in April 2012.

Organisation

Challenger 2 Tanks on Salisbury Plain MOD 45149118

The regiment currently serves in the armoured role, equipped with

Challenger 2 The FV4034 Challenger 2 (MoD designation "CR2") is a third generation British main battle tank (MBT) in service with the armies of the United Kingdom, Oman, and Ukraine. It was designed by Vickers Defence Systems (now Rheinmetall BAE Systems ...

tanks, and is based in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

. The regiment is organised into a total of five squadrons, each of which perpetuates the title of one of its antecedent regiments: * A Squadron (The Twentieth Hussar Squadron) * B Squadron (The Fourteenth Hussar Squadron) * C Squadron (The Eleventh Hussar Squadron) * D Squadron (The Tenth Hussar Squadron) * HQ Squadron C Squadron traditionally is the senior squadron of the King's Royal Hussars in perpetuation of the honour accorded to C Squadron the 11th Hussars in Egypt.Journal of The King's Royal Hussars 1992 As part of the

Future Soldier Future Soldier was a multi-nation military project launched by the United States and its allies in the late 1990s. Superiority to enemy ground forces will be achieved by equipping the average ground-based combat soldier with an integrated set ...

reforms, the regiment's reconnaissance troop will be equipped with

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * Ajax (play), ''Ajax'' (play), by the an ...

armoured fighting vehicles.

Traditions

Uniform

Crimson trousers

The regiment wears crimson trousers when in full dress, No. 1 dress or No. 2 dress, and (for officers and NCOs)

mess dress Mess dress uniform is the most formal (or semi-formal wear, semi-formal, depending on the country) type of evening-wear uniform used by military personnel, Police officer, police personnel, and other uniformed services members. It frequently ...

. They may also be worn in shirt sleeve order by officers, including those on secondment to the regiment from other units. This distinctive feature, which is unique in the British Army, derives from the honour accorded to the 11th Hussars by

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

, the future consort of Queen Victoria. The regiment, then based at Canterbury, formed the escort for the Prince from his arrival at Dover en route to his wedding in London. The Prince was so impressed with the bearing and turnout of the troops that he ordered that they should henceforth wear his livery as a mark of distinction.

Brown beret

The regiment wears a unique brown

beret A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...

. This practice began when the 11th Hussars were mechanized in 1928. It was found that the traditional

forage cap Forage cap is the designation given to various types of military undress, fatigue or working headwear. These vary widely in form, according to country or period. The coloured peaked cap worn by the modern British Army for parade and other dress occ ...

with a peak was inconvenient when peering through an armoured vehicle gunsight, so it was decided to adopt a beret. It is believed that the brown colour was selected by the then quartermaster's wife as a practical choice for working with oily vehicles, rather than horses. The beret was originally worn without a cap badge but with a broad crimson band. On almagamation with the 10th Hussars PWO (the senior regiment of the two), who had a red patch behind their cap badge, it was agreed in discussions between representatives of both regiments (10th and 11th) to retain the patch but the colour was changed to crimson to represent the crimson band. Since 2003 the

Royal Wessex Yeomanry The Royal Wessex Yeomanry (RWxY) is a reserve armoured regiment of the British Army consisting of five squadrons, with the regimental headquarters based at Bovington Camp, Dorset. The regiment is part of 3rd (UK) Division and provides battle c ...

has also worn the brown beret.

Gurkhas

The regiment wear the crossed

kukri The kukri () or khukuri (, ) is a type of knife or short sword with a distinct recurve in its blade that originated in the Indian subcontinent. It serves multiple purposes as a melee weapon and also as a regular cutting/chopping tool throughout ...

of the

Gurkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with the endonym Gorkhali ( Nepali: गोर्खाली ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of North India. The Gurkha units consist of Nepali and ...

s as an arm badge. This relates back to 1945 when C Squadron,

assaulted the town of

Medicina Medicina ( Bolognese: ; Eastern Bolognese: ) is an Italian ''comune'' with c. 16,000 inhabitants in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, part of the region of Emilia-Romagna. Name The origins of its name (which in Italian means "medicine") are quit ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

alongside the 2nd Battalion,

6th Gurkha Rifles The 6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles was a rifle regiment of the British Indian Army, before being transferred to the British Army following India's independence. Originally raised in 1817 as part of the army of the British East India Compa ...

, inflicting heavy losses on the German defenders despite being outnumbered. In commemoration of this action the 14th/20th King's Hussars adopted the crossed kukri badge, a tradition maintained by the regiment.

The Emperor

During the

Battle of Vitoria At the Battle of Vitoria (21 June 1813), a United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, British, Kingdom of Portugal, Portuguese and Spanish Empire, Spanish army under the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Marquess of Wellington bro ...

in June 1813, the 14th Light Dragoons captured from a French baggage train, a silver

chamber pot A chamber pot is a portable toilet, meant for nocturnal use in the bedroom. It was common in many cultures before the advent of indoor plumbing and flushing toilets. Names and etymology "Chamber" is an older term for bedroom. The chamber pot ...

belonging to King

Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Bonaparte (born Giuseppe di Buonaparte, ; ; ; 7 January 176828 July 1844) was a French statesman, lawyer, diplomat and older brother of Napoleon Bonaparte. During the Napoleonic Wars, the latter made him King of Naples (1806–1808), an ...

which he had received from his brother,

Emperor Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. The regiment gained the regimental nickname of ''"The Emperor's Chambermaids"'' and retained the chamber pot as a

loving cup A loving cup is a large cup with two arching handles. It can describe a shared drinking container traditionally used at Christian lovefeasts, as well as at weddings and banquets, often made of silver. Loving cups are also given as trophy, trop ...

known as "The Emperor". The King's Royal Hussars, as the successor to the 14th Light Dragoons, still retain "The Emperor", and their officers drink from it on mess nights.

Regimental museum

" HorsePower: The Museum of the King's Royal Hussars" is the regiment's museum and forms part of Winchester's Military Museums in

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

Colonel-in-Chief

*1992–present: General

Princess Anne, The Princess Royal Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of King ...

Regimental Colonels

Colonels of the Regiment have been: *1992–1997: Maj-Gen. John Peter William Friedberger, CB, CBE (ex

Royal Hussars The Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed by the amalgamation of the 10th Royal Hussars and the 11th Hussars in 1969 and it amalgamated with the 14th/20th King's Hussars to form the King' ...

) *1997–2002: Brig. Euan Charles Wortham Morrison, OBE *2002–2007: Brig. Christopher Keith Price, CBE *2007–2012: Colonel David Woodd *2012–2017: General Sir Richard Shirreff, KCB CBE *2017–2022: General Sir

Adrian Bradshaw Adrian Bradshaw may refer to: *Adrian Bradshaw (British Army officer) General Sir Adrian John Bradshaw, (born 1958) is a former British Army officer who served as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe. He also served as Director Special For ...

, KCB OBE DL *2022–present: Brigadier J. Nicholas N. Orr

Commanding Officers

Commanding Officers have included: * 1992–1994: Lieutenant Colonel David J. B. Woodd * 1994–1996: Lt Col Alexander Richard David Shirreff * 1996–1998: Lt Col Adrian John Bradshaw * 1998–2001: Lt Col Jonathan J. Powe * 2001–2003: Lt Col Timothy C. Allen * 2003–2005: Lt Col S. Toby W. Bridge * 2005–2008: Lt Col J. Nicholas N. Orr * 2008–2010: Lt Col Giles R. M. Harrison * 2010–2013: Lt Col Alexander T. L. Potts * 2013–2015: Lt Col Justin J. Kingsford * 2015–2017: Lt Col James D. H. Porter * 2017–2020: Lt Col Angus M. A. Tilney MC * 2020–2022: Lt Col Will D. Hodgkinson MBE * 2022–Present: Lt Col Pete Perowne

Notable officers

Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster The title of Earl of Ulster has been created six times in the Peerage of Ireland and twice in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since 1928, the title has been held by the Duke of Gloucester and is used as a courtesy title by the Duke's el ...

*Jamie Snowden –

National Hunt National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches. In ...

racehorse trainer

Lineage

Alliances

* -

1st Hussars The 1st Hussars is an armoured Primary Reserve regiment of the Canadian Armed Forces, based in London and Sarnia, Ontario. Regimental seniority Despite "1st" in the title, the regiment is not the most senior armoured unit. With the militia re ...

* - 10th Light Horse * - 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry) * - 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse * - Queen Alexandra's Mounted Rifles * - The Guides Cavalry (Frontier Force) * - Zambia Armoured Car Regiment * - HMS ''Dauntless'' * - IX(B) Squadron * – 5e Régiment de Dragons

Affiliated Yeomanry

* The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (Prince of Wales's Own) * The Royal Gloucestershire Hussars * The Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry

Order of precedence

References

External links

Official siteBritish Army Locations from 1945
British Army Locations from 1945
The King's Royal Hussars Association
The King's Royal Hussars Association
Noahs Arc - The Club of the 14th/20th King's Hussars
Noahs Arc - The Club of the 14th/20th King's Hussars {{The British Army Cavalry regiments of the British Army Hussar regiments of the British Army Military units and formations established in 1992 Royal Armoured Corps