Royal Dragoon Guards

The Royal Dragoon Guards (RDG) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed in 1992 by the amalgamation of two other regiments: The 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards and the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. The Regiment currently serves in the armoured role, equipped with the Challenger 2 main battle tank and Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (tracked) Scimitar and is based in Catterick, North Yorkshire. Today the RDG is an operationally experienced regiment; it has served in Iraq (Operation Telic 5 and 11), and in 2010 became the first complete armoured regiment to deploy to Afghanistan during Operation Herrick 12.

The Regiment recruits soldiers from the North of England and Ireland, but predominantly from Yorkshire.

Operational deployments
The Royal Dragoon Guards has served in a variety of roles and theatres since its formation. Historically Dragoons were flexible soldiers, who fought on and alongside their mounts; this is something the Regiment has been called upon many times to do.


 * General Service Medal 1962 BAR.svgNorthern Ireland

In February 1996, 3 Squadrons of the regiment deployed to Northern Ireland as part of Operation Banner, the UK military support to the civil authorities in the province. 2 Squadrons were employed as Infantry in Belfast and the third acted as a prison guard force at the infamous Maze Prison.

In the winter of 1997, A Squadron, RDG, deployed with their Challenger 1s tanks to Barice in Bosnia (Op Lodestar) with the 9th/12th Lancers Battle group. They were subsequently moved Mrkonjić Grad and were employed, primarily in Land Rovers, to monitor former wartime factions and inspect cantonment sites.
 * Balkans

In early 2001 the Regiment deployed as part of Operation Frescoe (Zulu) to Cumbria and Yorkshire, with specialist Royal Navy teams, to provide emergency fire and rescue cover when the fire brigade was carrying out a program of industrial action.
 * UK


 * Iraq Medal BAR.svgIraq

The regimental Battle Group deployed to Iraq in 2004 (Operation Telic 5) and assumed control of the area south of Basra City to the border with Kuwait. The main tasks were to mentor the newly formed Iraqi Police Force and provide security for the first presidential elections in the country since the US led invasion in 2003.

The regiment deployed again to Iraq towards the end of the United Kingdom's combat operations in 2007 (Op Telic 11), this time its Main Battle Tanks and Warrior armoured fighting vehicles were called upon to support Iraqi led efforts to re-impose control in Basra (Operation Charge of the Knights). During this Operation Sergeant CP Richards was awarded the Military Cross for outstanding leadership and gallantry in the face of the enemy. As commander of the lead tank, working for Left Flank Company Group, Scots Guards Battle Group, he deployed on a joint arrest operation with Iraqi Security Forces in Al Quiblah, Basra. He fought his way through 5 improvised explosive device detonations, showing courageous restraint to minimise any civilian casualties, onto the target.

During this deployment, squadrons from the regiment assisted the Iraqi Border Agency to provide security on the Border with Iran and mentored Iraqi Army Units.


 * OSM for Afghanistan BAR.svg Afghanistan

The regiment deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2010 (Operation Herrick 12) to assist in bringing stability to Central Helmand and to provide security for the countries second Presidential Elections. Squadrons from the Regiment provided protected mobility support in the Mastiff (also known as Cougar), Viking (Bv 206), Ridgeback and Warthog armoured vehicles and held ground in Nad Ali District Centre following Op Moshtorak. Tasks of these squadrons included: providing route security, assisting in reconstruction work and clearing insurgents from southern Nad Ali. The regiment had four men killed in action during the tour. Acting corporal Mathew Stenton, one of those killed, was posthumously awarded the Military Cross for bravery. As a Viking commander he moved his vehicle forward to engage insurgents to assist in the evacuation of a friendly casualty, his citation reads: “A/Cpl Stenton’s gallantry was of the very highest order and he made the supreme act of self-sacrifice to save a comrade’s life”


 * The present

The regiment is starting to come back finishing its tour of Afghanistan, some are still out there but are to return shortly towards the end of April 2013

Squadrons and organisation
The five Squadrons of The Royal Dragoon Guards take their history and traditions from the four antecedent Regiments that make up the current Regiment. They are known as:
 * Headquarters Squadron - "The Prince of Wales' Squadron"
 * A Squadron - "The Blue Horse" From the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards
 * B Squadron - "The Black Horse" From the 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's)
 * C Squadron - "The Black Dragoons" From The Inniskillings(6th Dragoons)
 * D Squadron - "The Green Horse" From The 5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales's)

The Prince of Wales’ Squadron takes its title from the Colonel in Chief of the RDG, HRH The Prince of Wales. This Squadron provides the command, logistics and reconnaissance support for the Regiment or Battle group, both in barracks and when deployed. To achieve this they are structured to contain:
 * Command troop, equipped with CVR(T) Sultan command vehicles and a pair of Challenger 2s for the Commanding Officer and Second in Command.
 * Reconnaissance troop, equipped with CVR(T) Scimitar reconnaissance vehicles and manned with the best soldiers selected from across the Regiment.
 * A Quartermasters and Quartermasters technical department to provide for the immediate logistic requirements of the Regiment.
 * A Light Aid detachment of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers to carry out repair of the Regiments vehicles and weaponry.

A, B and D Squadrons were all equipped with Challenger 2 tanks. These are organized into 3 troops, each of 4 tanks commanded by a junior officer, and a 2 tank headquarters troop for the squadron leader (major) and second in command (captain). Their role in conventional war, as the prime manoeuvre and armoured punch in a brigade, is to destroy enemy armour and, working closely with armoured infantry, to seize and hold ground. In Hybrid Warfare they have proved flexible, deploying in armour where necessary, in a variety of vehicles, or on foot as the situation has demanded:

C Squadron is equipped with CVR(T) Scimitar light armoured vehicles, it is organized in the same manner as the tank squadrons in the Regiment. Its role is to support infantry in complex terrain (such as woods or built up areas), provide rear area security and to raid.

Regimental traditions
Because of its lineage through the 5th Royal Inniskillings and the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards—the 4th had been known as the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards and the 7th also had Irish ancestry—the RDG retains strong links to Northern Ireland.

Dettingen Day

At the Battle of Dettingen, 27 June 1743, Cornet Richardson of Ligonier’s Horse, later the 7th Dragoon Guards, received 37 wounds whilst defending the Regimental Standard. The Regiment remembers the day with dinner in the Messes and a families weekend.

Oates’ Sunday

Captain L E G Oates, of the 6th Inniskilling Dragoons, became a legend of self-sacrifice when, as a member of Scott’s ill fated Antarctic Expedition of 1912, he chose to sacrifice himself rather than impede the progress of his comrades. The annual commemoration of Oates’ brave action takes place on the Sunday closest to St Patrick’s Day – the date of his birthday. It takes the form of a formal parade and church service, where the story of Oates is retold to inspire members of the Regiment.

St Patrick's Day – 17 March

St Patrick's Day is celebrated by the RDG in respect to the Irish traditions it possesses. The Day is a regimental holiday and starts with the Officers and Senior Non Commissioned Officers waking the men with bag pipes and ‘gunfire’ (tea laced with whiskey). A Regimental Lunch of Irish Stew is served and every member of the Regiment is presented with shamrock. This latter tradition has been maintained every year regardless of which theatre the Regiment is serving in.

The Regimental Flash

Flashes in Regimental colours were linked to regiments who were involved in the Second World War. The 4/7 DG first wore their flash in 1939 in Northern France in support of the British Expeditionary Force, one of the first armoured units to fight in the desperate but gallant withdrawal to Dunkirk and it is believed to be the first regiment to wear a Tactical Recognition Flash. The worsted material recognition flash came about following an order to remove badges of recognition from battle-dress to conceal regimental identity. The design was copied from the painted diamond flash in Regimental colours on the steel helmets. The order was later rescinded so back on went the collar-dogs and numerals but the cloth badge remained. The 13/18H later followed suit in 1940 with a blue and white flash.

The 4/7 DG Regimental flash was worn by all ranks from Warrant Officer Class 2 and below on BD/SDs upon the left arm 1" below the shoulder seam. (Or 1/8" below the formation badge when one was worn on BDs). The flash is still worn today by the Regiment on Service Dress.

Battle honours
The regiment and its predecessors have been awarded the following 79 battle honours:

Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, Malplaquet, Dettingen, Warburg, Beaumont, Willems, Salamanca, Vittoria, Toulouse, Peninsula, Waterloo, South Africa 1846-47, Balaclava, Sevastapol, Tel el-Kebir, Egypt 1882, Defence of Ladysmith, South Africa 1899–1902.

The Great War – Mons le Cateau, Retreat from Mons, Marne 1914, Aisne 1914, La Bassee 1914, Messines 1914, Armentieres 1914, Ypres 1914, Ypres 1915, Givenchy 1914, St Julien, Frezenberg, Bellewaarde, Somme 1916, 1918, Bazentin, Flers-Courcelette, Morval, Arras 1917, Scarpe 1917, Cambrai 1917 1918, St Auentin, Rosieres, Avre, Lys, Hazebrouck, Amiens, Albert 1918, Hindenburg Line, St Quentin Canal, Beaurevoir, Pursuit to Mons, France and Flanders 1914 – 18.

The Second World War – Dyle, Withdrawal to Escaut, St Omer – La Bassee, Dunkirk 1940, Normandy Landings, Odon, Mont Pincon, St Pierre la Vielle, Lisieux, Risle Crossing, Seine 1944, Nederrijn, Lower Maas, Geilenkirchen, Roer, Rhineland, Cleve, Rhine, Ibbenburen, Bremen, North West Europe 1940, 1944 – 45.

The Hook 1952, Korea 1951 – 52.

Royal Dragoon Guards Museum
The Royal Dragoon Guards Museum is located in the heart of York, North Yorkshire, near the Jorvik Viking Centre. Exhibits present the regiment's history from the late 17th century to present day activities. Displays include uniforms, prints, paintings, weapons and regimental artefacts. There is also a regimental gift shop. The museum is located in the same building as the Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire Museum at 3a Tower Street - 53.95624°N, -1.0809°W.

Other information
The regiment was based in Paderborn, Germany when it was formed in 1992, and was part of 20th Armoured Brigade. In 1996 it returned to the United Kingdom, being based at Tidworth. It returned to Germany in 2000, being based in York Barracks Münster as part of 4th Armoured Brigade (later 4 Mechanized Brigade).


 * Colonel-in-Chief: HRH Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales
 * Deputy Colonel-in-Chief: Katharine
 * Freedoms: City of York, Enniskillen

Future
Following the 2012 announcement of Army 2020 structures the RDG will adopt an 'Armoured Cavalry' role equipped initially with Scimitar 2 - the latest iteration of the CVR(T) platform - and latterly with the Future Rapid Effects System (FRES) when that is adopted. The Regiment will remain based in Catterick - as announced by the Secretary of State for Defence in March 2013.

Alliances

 * 🇦🇺 - 3rd/9th Light Horse (South Australian Mounted Rifles)
 * 🇦🇺 - 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse
 * 🇨🇦 - The British Columbia Dragoons
 * 🇨🇦 - The Fort Garry Horse
 * 🇮🇳 - 9th Horse (The Deccan Horse)
 * 🇳🇿 - Queen Alexandra's Mounted Rifles
 * 🇵🇰 - 15th Lancers (Baloch)
 * - HMS Superb
 * - HMS Daring
 * 🇧🇪 - Régiment des Guides
 * 🇫🇷 - 12e Régiment de Cuirassiers

Affiliated Yeomanry

 * The Cheshire Yeomanry (Earl of Chester's)
 * The North Irish Horse
 * The Yorkshire Yeomanry