British Army Cavalry Regiments
History
The cavalry regiments of the British Army began to be established following the restoration of Charles II. Horse regiments fought as mounted cavalry whereas dragoons were originally mounted infantry. Originally named after their colonel, and so changing name with each new commanding officer, in 1751 the regiments were numbered according to seniority. At first there was a distinction between the light cavalry (Light Dragoon regiments) and the heavy cavalry (Dragoon and Dragoon Guard regiments). At the beginning of the 19th century light dragoon regiments began to be called hussars or lancers. By 1861 the heavy cavalry consisted of three regiments of dragoons and seven of dragoon guards. The light cavalry consisted of ten regiments of hussars and five of lancers. In 1862 the three European Light Cavalry regiments from the Bengal Army were transferred to the British Army. The titles of the cavalry units are generally those in use in 1861.
Listed below are the British Army Cavalry Regiments that served in British India and for which there are separate detailed articles.
| Terminology: |
| Dragoon |
| Hussar |
| Lancer |
| Troop |
Heavy Cavalry
- 1st Dragoon Guards
- 2nd Dragoon Guards
- 3rd (Prince of Wales') Dragoon Guards
- 4th Dragoon Guards
- 6th Dragoon Guards
- 7th Dragoon Guards
Light Cavalry
- 3rd (The King's Own) Hussars
- 4th (Queen's Own) Hussars
- 5th (or Royal Irish) Lancers
- 7th (Queen's Own) Hussars
- 8th (The King's Royal Irish) Hussars
- 9th (The Queen's Royal) Lancers
- 10th (The Prince of Wales's Own) Royal Hussars
- 11th (Prince Albert's Own) Hussars
- 12th (Prince of Wales's Royal) Lancers
- 13th Hussars
- 14th (King's) Hussars
- 15th (The King's) Hussars
- 16th (The Queen's) Lancers
- 17th Lancers
- 18th Hussars
- 19th Lancers❉
- 19th Hussars☆
- 20th Hussars☆
- 21st Hussars☆
- 22nd Light Dragoons❉
- 24th Light Dragoons❉
- 25th Light Dragoons❉
❉ disbanded by 1821
☆ former Bengal Army regiments
External links
- Cavalry regiments of the British Army Wikipedia
- British Regiments in India Where & When rampaisgenealogy, now an archived website.
Historical books online
- Cavalry uniforms; including other mounted troops of Britain and the Commonwealth in colour by Robert and Christopher Wilkinson-Latham 1969 Archive.org Books to Borrow/Lending Library. Also includes some Indian Army uniforms.
- The British Cavalry by Philip Warner 1984 Archive.org Books to Borrow/Lending Library.
