Royal Welsh

The Royal Welsh (R WELSH) (Welsh Y Cymry Brenhinol) is one of the new large infantry regiments of the British Army. Its formation was announced on 16 December 2004 by Geoff Hoon and General Sir Mike Jackson as part of the restructuring of the infantry and it was actually formed on St David's Day, 1 March 2006. The 2nd Battalion, The Royal Welsh (Royal Regiment of Wales), is to be scrapped as part of the Army 2020 defence review. A more recent news report stated that "it will in fact be the 1st Battalion which will disappear, being dissolved into the 2nd Battalion with the latter then being renamed as the 1st.". After the restructuring and reorganisation of the army in 2006, the Royal Welsh is one of three regiments to trace its lineage and draw its recruits primarily from Wales.

Formation
The Royal Welsh consists of two regular battalions, plus a TA battalion, and was created through the merger of two single battalion regiments. The former regiments formed part of the battalion title (in brackets):
 * 1st Battalion, The Royal Welsh (Royal Welch Fusiliers) (ex 1st Battalion, the Royal Welch Fusiliers (23rd Foot)) – a light infantry battalion based since August 2008 at Dale Barracks, Chester. This follows a two year tour in Cyprus. Under Army 2020, this will be the only Royal Welsh battalion in the regular army and its new role will be as an armoured infantry battalion, under 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade.
 * 2nd Battalion, The Royal Welsh (Royal Regiment of Wales) (ex 1st Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot)) – an armoured infantry battalion based at Lucknow barracks, Tidworth. The Battalion is set to be scrapped as part of the Army 2020 defence review.
 * 3rd Battalion, The Royal Welsh (TA) (ex Royal Welsh Regiment) -TA Battalion which incorporates the Regimental Band.

The Regiment's cap badge is a representation of the Prince of Wales's feathers (formerly the cap badge of the Royal Regiment of Wales), while the hackle of the Royal Welch Fusiliers is worn by all NCOs and Other Ranks. HM The Queen is the new regiment's Colonel-in-Chief.

The regiment includes a goat, presented by the monarch; this is not a mascot but a ranking soldier. Lance Corporal William Windsor retired on 20 May 2009; a replacement, Fusilier William Windsor, was appointed on 15 June 2009.

Regimental Band
The Regimental Band of the Royal Welsh is the last all-brass band within the British Army. Formed of 30 soldiers within the Third Battalion, the Territorial Army section, it is renowned for its versatility, and can provide: In October 2009, due to £54m of Ministry of Defence budget cuts affecting front line services including the war in Afghanistan, all bookings from end of October 2009 until April 2010 were cancelled. This covered the Autumn Rugby Union Internationals and Remembrance Day. Band members agreed to honour all charity appearances during this period, but without pay. These budget cuts have since been reversed and the band continues to perform.
 * Marching Band
 * Concert Band
 * Fanfare Team

Alliances

 * 🇨🇦 – Royal 22e Régiment
 * 🇨🇦 – The Ontario Regiment (RCAC)
 * 🇦🇺 – The Royal New South Wales Regiment
 * – 121 South African Infantry Battalion
 * – The Pretoria Regiment
 * 🇵🇰 – 4th Battalion, The Baloch Regiment
 * 🇵🇰 – 3rd Battalion, The Frontier Force Regiment
 * – 4th Battalion, The Royal Malay Regiment

Lineage

 * -style="text-align: center; background: #F08080;"
 * align="center" colspan="4"|Lineage
 * width="25%" rowspan="20" align="center" | The Royal Welsh
 * width="25%" colspan="3" align="center"| The Royal Welch Fusiliers
 * width="25%" rowspan="3" align="center"| The Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot)
 * width="25%" colspan="2" align="center"| The South Wales Borderers
 * width="25%" rowspan="2" align="center"| The Welch Regiment
 * width="25%" align="center"| The 41st (Welsh) Regiment of Foot
 * width="25%" align="center"| 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot
 * width="25%" rowspan="2" align="center"| The Welch Regiment
 * width="25%" align="center"| The 41st (Welsh) Regiment of Foot
 * width="25%" align="center"| 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot
 * width="25%" align="center"| 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot