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59-599: The Light Dragoons (LD) is a cavalry regiment in the British Army . The regiment has a light cavalry role and specialises in mounted and dismounted reconnaissance . The Light Dragoons recruit mainly in Northern England, from County Durham , Northumberland , Tyne and Wear , South Yorkshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire . For this reason, the regiment is known as "England's Northern Cavalry". It

118-520: A mortar platoon of 55 soldiers. In April 2022, the first part of a force consisting of about 750 Danish soldiers, along with armoured vehicles, arrived in Latvia. Italy will provide an Italian Army mechanized Infantry company with Freccia and Dardo infantry fighting vehicles. Recently the Italian Army has reinforced its presence with 8 Ariete main battle tanks. Montenegro provides

177-762: A 269-soldier strong Belgian Land Component armoured infantry company from the Chasseurs Ardennais with support elements and HQ staff officers. Additionally the Danish Army will deploy a mechanized force by 2018 at the latest. Three brigade HQ support personnel from the Royal Danish Army and 1 strategic communications civilian from the Icelandic defence forces have also been stationed in Estonia. The British unit will be supported by

236-622: A battle group on Operation Herrick 10 in April 2009 and took part in Operation Panther's Claw in the summer of 2009. The regiment's last deployment to Afghanistan was on Operation Herrick 16 in April 2012. Here it provided the Brigade Reconnaissance Force, Formation Reconnaissance and mentoring teams for local forces. In 2014, soldiers from The Light Dragoons deployed to Bosnia on Operation Althea ; providing

295-534: A carbine besides". By the start of the eighteenth century, the cavalry establishment had been divided into household and line units. The household establishment consisted of four troops of Horse Guards and two of Horse Grenadier Guards, while the regular establishment was composed of nine regiments of Horse and eight of Dragoons. The "horse" regiments would in theory fight mounted as cavalry, while dragoons were originally mounted infantry - they would fight dismounted, but were provided with horses for swift movement. By

354-525: A defence conference in January of 2024 that Sweden will provide a Battalion to Latvia in 2025 as part of NATO's forward presence when Sweden joins NATO. The Battalion will be deployed in cooperation with Denmark with a changeover between a Danish and a Swedish battalion every 6 months. Initially the 71 Motorized battalion is earmarked for the Deployment. The Lithuania multinational battalion battle group

413-785: A horsed cavalry role to a motorised one, re-equipping with armoured cars previously used by the Royal Tank Corps. Other regiments followed suit; in April 1939, the Royal Armoured Corps was formed to encompass the eighteen mechanised cavalry regiments of the line alongside the eight battalions of the Royal Tank Regiment , but did not include the Household Cavalry. The remaining two regular cavalry regiments were based in Palestine, and following

472-482: A mixed battle group from the French Army 's 9th Light Armoured Marine Brigade consisting of a mechanized infantry company from the 2nd Marine Infantry Regiment equipped with VBCI infantry fighting vehicles , artillery from the 11th Marine Artillery Regiment equipped with CAESAR self-propelled howitzers, and combat engineers from the 6th Engineer Regiment , with a company of Leclerc main battle tanks from

531-851: A mobile reconnaissance capability for the EU forces ahead of the Bosnian elections. In 2015, the Light Dragoons subordinated to 4th Infantry Brigade and moved to a new home at Gaza Barracks in Catterick Garrison . In March 2017, A Squadron (The Empire) deployed to Poland on Op Cabrit as part of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence . They were followed by B Squadron (The Guards) in October 2017 and C Squadron (The Legion) in April 2020. The Light Dragoons deployed

590-623: A number more would convert to the armoured role during the Second World War . However, in the reorganisation of the reserve forces in the late 1930s, many Yeomanry regiments were reorganised as artillery units , and transferred into the Royal Artillery . The Royal Armoured Corps itself formed a number of armoured regiments, converted from territorial infantry battalions, and the Reconnaissance Corps (taken into

649-608: A platoon to Afghanistan in 2018 on Op Toral . In December 2020, The Light Dragoons deployed to Mali on Operation Newcombe , as part of the UK's contribution to the UN 's peacekeeping force. Here they formed the Long Range Reconnaissance Group, conducting patrols of up to 1500 km in length, in order to provide intelligence to the UN forces . The Light Dragoon's primary role is Formation Reconnaissance ;

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708-675: A reconnaissance squad. Poland provides an armored company with PT-91 Twardy main battle tanks. Slovenia will deploy an Infantry reconnaissance platoon, Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) team, Contribution to battlegroup headquarters, Support elements of the Slovenian Armed Forces . Slovakia deployed an armored infantry company consisting of 150 troops from 11th Mechanized Battalion starting in second half of 2018. The Slovak force contribution consists of: Since December 2020, Slovakia has changed capabilities from Mechanized to Artillery. SLOVCON consists of: Spain will dispatch

767-651: A regular unit of the same role, the armoured yeomanry unit is paired with the two regular armoured units (and a further armoured unit which is not cavalry). All except the Household Cavalry are part of the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps . The British Army , in the modern sense of the standing army under the Crown, was formed following the Restoration of King Charles II in 1661. At this point,

826-629: A reinforced armored infantry company consisting of around 350 troops from the 11th Mechanized Infantry Brigade "Extremadura". The Spanish contingent will include 6 Leopard 2E main battle tanks from the I/16th Tank Battalion "Mérida" of the 16th Armored Regiment "Castilla" and 15 Pizarro infantry fighting vehicles from the I/6th Mechanized Infantry Battalion "Cantabria" of the 6th Infantry Regiment "Saboya". The Swedish Prime minister announced during

885-601: A result, the Imperial Yeomanry was created in January 1900 as a volunteer cavalry corps. Some 34,000 men were sent to South Africa on one-year enlistments through 1900 and 1901, the majority coming initially from existing regiments of yeomanry. Many companies were raised and sponsored by yeomanry regiments—for example, the Leicestershire Yeomanry sponsored the 7th (Leicestershire) and the 65th (Leicestershire) Companies—and these regiments later took

944-613: A small detachment of 21 EOD engineers from the Albanian Land Force . Canada provides the core of the NATO battle group in Latvia with approximately 540 mechanized infantry and supporting troops. This contingent, Operation Reassurance , is provided by Canada's high-readiness brigade, a task which rotates annually amongst the three Regular Force brigades of the country. Reservists from more than 100 units across Canada have provided several augmentees to each rotation. In 2017,

1003-464: A tendency that continued until the 13th Light Dragoons became the 13th Hussars in 1861. The regiment was formed in 1992 at Haig Barracks in Hohne from the amalgamation of two regiments , the 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary's Own) and the 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars . All of the antecedent regiments had been regiments of " light dragoons " during the 18th and 19th centuries, including

1062-456: A varied job that primarily involves operating ahead of the main fighting force, often in enemy or unknown territory in order to find key information on the local area and any enemy within it. With this information the Light Dragoons are expected to inform the main fighting force behind them, strike opportune targets or interact with the local population to build relations, gather more intelligence and aid local planning and development. The regiment

1121-748: Is currently based in Catterick Garrison , North Yorkshire . The term 'Light Dragoons' has a much earlier history. The British Army experimented with light cavalry in the 1740s, prompted by the French creation of hussar regiments. However, it was not until the 1750s that the British converted some dragoon regiments into light cavalry, these regiments being officially designated 'Light Dragoons'. All British light cavalry regiments (numbered 7th and upwards) were titled Light Dragoons until 1806–1807, when four were re-classified as 'Hussars'. From 1816 more Light Dragoon regiments were reclassified as lancers or hussars ,

1180-668: Is now equipped with Jackal armoured fighting vehicles . The Light Dragoons is paired with the Queen's Own Yeomanry , an Army Reserve light cavalry regiment . The Light Dragoons divides into the following structure: The Newcastle Discovery Museum includes the regimental museum of the Light Dragoons and the Northumberland Hussars . Colonels-in-Chief have been: Colonels of the Regiment have been: Commanding Officers have included: Cavalry regiments of

1239-973: Is under the command of the Mechanised Infantry Brigade Iron Wolf of the Lithuanian Land Forces and based in Rukla . The battalion has a headquarters company, three to four combat companies and various support units. The battle group is led by Germany. Each rotation lasts six months. Additionally, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the German Armed Forces have expanded their presence in Lithuania. In December 2023 German Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius and Lithuanian Minister of Defence Arvydas Anušauskas agreed on plans to permanently station

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1298-503: The 1st Regiment of Life Guards and 2nd Regiment of Life Guards ; together with the Royal Regiment of Horse Guards they formed the Household Cavalry. The same year, the remaining four Horse regiments were retitled as the 4th through 7th Dragoon Guards. Some thirty-four regiments of fencible cavalry — regiments raised for home service only—were raised in 1794 and 1795, in response to an invasion scare; all had disbanded by

1357-464: The 2016 Warsaw summit to forward deploy four multinational battalion battle groups to areas most likely to be attacked. The numbers involved, although a notable supplement to the armed forces of the country being defended, are limited so that they avoid seeming to threaten Russia . The chief value of the force is that it is impossible to invade Poland or the Baltic States without battling

1416-502: The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , NATO members agreed to establish four more multinational battalion battle groups in Bulgaria , Hungary , Romania , and Slovakia led by Italy , Hungary , France , Czech Republic respectively at 2022 Madrid Summit . The troops serving in the multinational battalion battle groups rotate every six months and train and operate with their host nations' militaries. The Belgian Army contributes

1475-944: The 7th Armoured Brigade's 1st Chasseurs Regiment attached for the deployment. The United Kingdom under Operation Cabrit deployed 800 personnel from the British Army 's 20th Armoured Brigade Combat Team : The British Army 's 5th Battalion, The Rifles battlegroup, rotated back to the United Kingdom in November 2017 and was replaced by a battlegroup formed around the 1st Battalion, Royal Welsh . During 2022 between March and June Exercise Spring Storm took place which brought AgustaWestland Apache AH.1's and AgustaWestland Wildcat AH.1's to Estonia and other Eastern European countries . As part of Aviation Task Force 3 under Operation Peleda , Chinook HC.5/6s from No. 27 Squadron RAF were deployed to Amari Air Base between 8 July and September 2022. They were supported by

1534-548: The Joint Helicopter Support Squadron , Tactical Supply Wing RAF and 244 Signal Squadron (Air Support) (of 30 Signal Regiment). Chinook HC.5/6s from No. 18 Squadron RAF deployed to Amari from January to February 2023. The Latvian multinational battalion battle group is based at Camp Adazi , near the Latvian capital of Riga , and contains approximately 1,500 personnel. Albania will send

1593-520: The Napoleonic Wars . B Squadron (The Guards) was the first squadron of the newly formed regiment to undertake a tour of duty; sent to Bosnia and Herzegovina in May 1993 on peacekeeping duties . They were followed by C Squadron (The Legion) in November 1993 and later by A and D squadrons in 1994. In total the regiment performed 13 operational tours of Bosnia, leading them to be described in 2001 by

1652-721: The Special Reserve , rather than the Territorials, and were no longer considered Yeomanry. The last major use of conventional cavalry by the Army was in the First World War . However, the anticipated war of manoeuvre on the Western Front never took place, and the cavalry forces were never employed in their intended role; instead, many saw intermittent service as dismounted infantry. This was especially true of

1711-568: The 1st Battalion RCR, based out of Petawawa , Ontario. In January 2019, Canada's French-speaking mechanized brigade from Quebec, ( 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group ), took on the task. The commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sauvé, and most of the soldiers were from the 2nd Battalion of the Royal 22 Régiment (2R22 R) or the armoured 12 Régiment blindé du Canada (12 RBC). In accordance with this rotation cycle, they were replaced in July 2019 by

1770-486: The 2nd Battalion PPCLI from the 1st Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group. In January 2020, a battle group led by Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) , of the 1st Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, rotated in to Latvia, and was replaced by a battle group led by the 2nd Battalion RCR. In January 2021, a battle group led by the Royal Canadian Dragoons , of 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, relieved

1829-604: The 2nd Battalion RCR. On 15 December 2023 the Canadian Defence Minister announced several measures to strengthen Canada’s military presence in Latvia as part of the planned increase from about 1,000 Canadian personnel to 2,200 by 2026. These include: On 15 February 2024, the Canadian Defence Minister announced that the Canadian Armed Forces members in Latvia will receive air defence capabilities consisting of: The Czech Republic provides

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1888-655: The British Army There are 13 cavalry Regiments of the British Army each with its own unique cap badge, regimental traditions, and history. Of the currently nine regular cavalry regiments, two serve as armoured regiments , three as armoured cavalry regiments, three as light cavalry , and one as a mounted ceremonial regiment. There are also four yeomanry regiments of the Army Reserve , of these, three serve as light cavalry and one as an armoured regiment . Each yeomanry light cavalry unit has been paired with

1947-467: The Chief of Defence Staff, General Sir Charles Guthrie as "the best regiment in the army at present: consistently the best officered, best recruited and all round most effective". For all of those initial tours the Light Dragoons deployed on Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) . In July 2003, The Light Dragoons sent units to Iraq on Operation Telic 2, followed by Operation Telic 6 in May 2005. Here

2006-474: The Regiment assisted with post-conflict stabilisation, training the police force, and fighting in the counter-insurgency operations. In October 2006, elements of the regiment were deployed on a tour of duty in Helmand Province , Afghanistan on Operation Herrick 5 with 3 Commando Brigade . This was followed by Operation Herrick 6 in April 2007 with 12 Mechanised Brigade . The regiment deployed as

2065-512: The Royal Armoured Corps in 1944) several mechanised reconnaissance units, all of which were classed with the cavalry. Other war-formed units included twelve Territorial Army battalions of the Royal Tank Regiment , converted from infantry in 1938 and 1939, and six new line cavalry regiments, the 22nd through 27th. These were arbitrarily termed as hussars, lancers or dragoons, but with no meaning; none would survive past 1948. After

2124-723: The Territorial Army, all in the light reconnaissance role, with five regiments of the Royal Artillery , eight of the Royal Engineers and eleven of the Royal Signals titled as "Yeomanry" and retaining lineages from a yeomanry regiment. The 31 British cavalry regiments created by the Childers Reforms in 1881 were amalgamated into eight regiments by 2015. The table below gives an overview of this process. There are currently 9 regiments of cavalry in

2183-551: The War, this is not entirely accurate. All of the yeomanry units raised second- and third-line regiments from new recruits, and on the outbreak of war some seventeen Cavalry Reserve Regiments were formed. Few of these units saw active service, instead serving to train and equip men for the front-line regiments, or as reserve units for home defence. The Tank Corps —the forerunner of the Royal Tank Regiment—was formed in 1917, but

2242-471: The battle honours of their sponsored companies when they returned from overseas service. All Imperial Yeomanry battalions were equipped as mounted infantry , using infantry organisation and terminology (note "battalion" and "company", rather than "regiment" and "squadron"); this proved highly useful in South Africa, where fast-moving infantry was invaluable for a fluid war spread over enormous areas. As

2301-589: The contingent was provided by 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in Western Canada, which handed over to 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in Eastern Canada in 2018. The 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR), based in CFB Gagetown , rotated in to relieve the 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI). In June 2018, the 2nd Battalion RCR was replaced by

2360-435: The distinction was made between the light cavalry (Light Dragoon regiments) and the heavy cavalry (Dragoon and Dragoon Guard regiments). Henceforth, all newly raised regiments of cavalry would be denoted Light Dragoons. By 1783, the 7th to 14th Dragoons had become the 7th to 14th Light Dragoons, changing from heavy to light roles. The various troops of Horse Guards and Horse Grenadier Guards were regimented in 1788, forming

2419-566: The end of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1802. At the same time, a large number of troops of volunteer cavalry were raised on a county level, consisting of local gentry and yeoman farmers; from the latter they took the description yeomanry . These troops formed into yeomanry regiments, organised broadly by county, around 1800; their history thereafter is complex, with many disbanding, reforming, and changing title intermittently. However, most remained in existence throughout

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2478-488: The establishment by another five line regiments, along with amalgamating the regiments of the Household Cavalry . The Yeomanry had been reduced even further in the post-war years; most regiments were amalgamated in the 1950s and then reduced to cadres in the late 1960s, with a sizable fraction being converted to infantry, artillery, or support roles. By the end of the Cold War, there were five regiments of "pure" Yeomanry in

2537-507: The first contingent of volunteers returned, and the lessons of the war were absorbed by the Army, it was decided to convert the Yeomanry into mounted infantry along the same lines. The new Yeomanry regiments, appropriately retitled as "Imperial Yeomanry", comprised four companies of mounted infantry with carbines, and a machine-gun section; by 1903, an additional nineteen regiments of Imperial Yeomanry had been raised, with several perpetuating

2596-703: The forces of the Honourable East India Company . The outbreak of the South African War in 1899 caused some sharp setbacks for the British forces, leading to a high demand for additional troops to be despatched, especially light cavalry. However, it was not possible to embody the Yeomanry for overseas service; they were raised to be only liable for service in the British Isles, to resist invasion or for internal security. As

2655-495: The heavy cavalry, with nine regiments of hussars and five of lancers in the light cavalry. By this point, the distinction between heavy and light cavalry regiments had effectively vanished, as both fought in the same manner and were equipped in the same way—with the exception of the lancers, who retained their lances . In 1862 the army received a further four regiments of cavalry, the European light cavalry regiments formerly part of

2714-507: The lineages of volunteer units in South Africa or of previously disbanded Yeomanry regiments. In 1908, the reserve forces underwent significant reforms; the Yeomanry and the infantry Volunteers were consolidated into the Territorial Force . The Yeomanry dropped its designation of "Imperial Yeomanry", and most regiments converted back from the mounted infantry role to become lancers, hussars or dragoons. Four regiments were assigned to

2773-468: The middle of the century, the term had come simply to mean light cavalry . Regiments were, at this time, known by semi-permanent nicknames or by the names of their colonels; in 1751, in an attempt to reduce confusion, regiments were assigned numbers in order of their seniority. The cavalry regiments of the line were numbered in three separate sequences; 1st through 4th Horse, then 1st through 3rd Dragoon Guards, then 1st through 14th Dragoons. "Dragoon Guards"

2832-432: The nineteenth century, seeing occasional service quelling riots and helping to maintain public order. By the turn of the century, in 1801, the Household Cavalry establishment consisted of three regiments of guards, while the line cavalry had some twenty-seven regiments of dragoons and dragoon guards. The heavy cavalry consisted of twelve regiments, the 1st to 7th Dragoon Guards and the 1st to 6th Dragoons—the missing regiment

2891-645: The outbreak of war retained their horses until 1940 (the Royal Dragoons ) and 1941 (the Royal Scots Greys ). Following mechanisation, the few remaining distinctions of unit type became meaningless; cavalry regiments moved between the heavy and light armoured roles regardless of their names. Seven regiments of the Yeomanry, previously affiliated with the Royal Tank Regiment, were taken into the Royal Armoured Corps on its formation, and

2950-632: The regular Army, and a further 4 Yeomanry regiments in the Army Reserve . In British terminology, a cavalry or armoured "regiment" is a battalion -sized unit. Armoured regiments are equipped with Challenger 2 main battle tanks (being replaced by Challenger 3 ): Regular: Reserve: Armoured cavalry regiments are equipped with Warrior armoured fighting vehicles (being replaced by Ajax); they have no paired reserve units: Light cavalry regiments are equipped with Jackal vehicles: Regular: Reserve: Enhanced Forward Presence Following Russia 's invasion of Crimea , NATO's member states agreed at

3009-438: The small standing forces included the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Troops of Horse Guards and the Royal Regiment of Horse ; some of these had been raised in exile and some as part of the New Model Army . The horsemen of the period were equipped as cuirassiers , with armour on the head and the body; the regulations of Charles II, in 1663, provided for them to be armed with "a sword and a case of pistols ... each Trooper of our Guards to have

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3068-402: The soldiers and firing on the flags of the involved NATO states , giving cause for war. It is believed that the prospect of war with all those countries will deter aggression. The original four multinational battalion battle groups are based in Estonia , Latvia , Lithuania , and Poland , and led by the United Kingdom , Canada , Germany , and the United States respectively. Following

3127-440: The traditions and honours of both "parents" to be perpetuated. Before the Second World War , cavalry recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 2 inches tall, but could not exceed 5 feet 9 inches. They initially enlisted for six years with the colours and a further six years with the reserve. In October 1928, a new era began as the 11th Hussars became the first regular cavalry regiment to "mechanise", to change from

3186-410: The war, the regular cavalry was quickly reduced to its pre-war establishment, and reduced further by the 1957 Defence White Paper ; as a result of this, seven regular cavalry regiments were lost through amalgamation, leaving two household, sixteen line regiments. The subsequent round of cuts, in 1969–71, saw a further three line regiments disappear, and the 1990 Options for Change defence review reduced

3245-413: The yeomanry regiments; indeed, the 74th (Yeomanry) Division was composed entirely of yeomanry regiments serving as infantry, and in 1918 many regiments began to be formally converted to infantry units. However, mounted cavalry did play a major role in the Sinai and Palestine theatre , most notably at the Battle of Beersheba . While it generally appears that no new regiments of cavalry were raised during

3304-465: Was a new title, and did not denote a Guards' role; it was adopted by the three senior horse regiments in 1746, when George II reduced them to the status of dragoons in order to save money. The first "light horse" regiment was raised in 1745, for service in the Second Jacobite rising , and proved so successful that light troops were added to most cavalry regiments in 1755. In 1759, five complete regiments (the 15th to 19th) of Light Dragoons were formed, and

3363-439: Was not considered as "cavalry" until the 1940s. Following the War, and the subsequent reduction in the strength of the Army, it was apparent that future warfare would involve much less of a role for cavalry. As such, the regular force was reduced from 31 regiments of cavalry to 22. Unlike previous reductions, however, this was carried out by the amalgamation of regiments rather than the disbanding of junior regiments; this allowed

3422-431: Was the 17th Light Dragoons . In 1806, the 10th Light Dragoons became the 10th Hussars , taking a title made popular by Continental cavalry; the 5th, 15th and 18th followed in 1807. In 1816 three more regiments changed their title to "Lancers", and in 1818 two more dragoon regiments became light dragoons. By 1861, the last light dragoons retitled as hussars, leaving three regiments of dragoons and seven of dragoon guards in

3481-422: Was the 5th Dragoons , disbanded for mutiny in 1799 without renumbering younger regiments—while the light cavalry consisted of the 7th through 29th Light Dragoons and two regiments of German cavalry on the British establishment. Many of the light cavalry regiments were disbanded after the Napoleonic Wars ; at their peak in 1794, there had been some 33 regiments of light dragoons, but by 1822 the most junior regiment

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