Full Description
The Royal Dragoon Guards have a long and distinguished history dating from 1685.
Originally raised as regiments of horse and dragoons, they were subsequently designated as the 4th, 5th and 7th Dragoon Guards and the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons. They fought in all of Britain's major wars from the late 17th century onwards, charging at Blenheim with Marlborough's cavalry, at Waterloo with the Union Brigade, and at Balaklava with the Heavy Brigade. In the 19th century, they also saw service in India and Africa.
All four regiments served in France and Flanders during the First World War and one regiment fired the first British shot on the Western Front. They were then amalgamated into two regiments - the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards and the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards.
Both regiments were mechanised shortly before the Second World War, in which they played a leading role in the D-Day landings. In 1992, the two regiments amalgamated again to form the Royal Dragoon Guards. Recent conflicts have taken the regiment to Iraq and Afghanistan, continuing a record of operational service covering more than three centuries.
This regimental history of the Dragoons tells their story as it played out across the centuries, exploring their role in both major and minor conflicts of the last 300 years. The title examines the development of the regiment up to the present day and highlights key figures across its history. The text is supported throughout with photographs and illustrations.
Contents
Foreword
Introduction
CHAPTER ONE - REGIMENTAL LIFE
Roles Organisation Training Campaigning Home Service Music and Sport
CHAPTER TWO - KEEPING THE PEACE
India, 1857-1928 Palestine, 1938-48 Suez Canal Zone, 1951-53 South Arabia, 1964-66
Cyprus, 1966-88 Libya, 1967 Northern Ireland, 1972-99 Bosnia, 1997-98
CHAPTER THREE - SMALL WARS
Jacobite Rebellions, 1715 and 1745 Ireland, 1798 South Africa, 1845-47
Egypt and Sudan, 1882-85 South Africa, 1881-1902 Mesopotamia, 1920-21
CHAPTER FOUR - MAJOR WARS OF THE 17TH CENTURY
Williamite War in Ireland, 1688-91 War of the Grand Alliance, 1691-97
CHAPTER FIVE - MAJOR WARS OF THE 18TH CENTURY
War of the Spanish Succession, 1702-13 War of the Austrian Succession, 1742-48
Seven Years' War, 1756-63 French Revolutionary War, 1793-95
CHAPTER SIX - MAJOR WARS OF THE 19TH CENTURY
Napoleonic Wars, 1811-15 Crimean War, 1854-56
CHAPTER SEVEN - THE FIRST WORLD WAR, 1914-18
France and Flanders, 1914 France and Flanders, 1915 France and Flanders, 1916
France and Flanders, 1917 France and Flanders, 1918 Armistice
CHAPTER EIGHT - THE SECOND WORLD WAR, 1939-45
France and Belgium, 1939-40 The Long Wait, June 1940-June 1944
Normandy assault and bridgehead, 1944 Breakout from Normandy Advance to the frontiers
Winter campaign and final round
CHAPTER NINE - THE COLD WAR
Korean War, 1951-52 British Army of the Rhine End of the Cold War and amalgamation
CHAPTER TEN - 21ST-CENTURY OPERATIONS
Iraq, 2004-08 Afghanistan, 2010-13 The future
Appendices
Bibliography
Index
