| 2nd Dragoon Guards (The Queen's Bays) | |
|---|---|
 2nd Dragoon Guards (The Queen's Bays) | |
| Active | 1685–1959 |
| Country |  Kingdom of England (1685–1707) Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1800) United Kingdom (1801–1959) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Cavalry |
| Size | Regiment |
| Part of | Royal Armoured Corps |
| Nicknames | The Bays Rusty Buckles[1] |
| Mottos | Pro rege et patria (Latin "for King & Country") |
| March | Quick –Rusty Buckles Slow –The Queen's Bays |
The2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) was acavalry regiment of theBritish Army. It was first raised in 1685 by theEarl of Peterborough as theEarl of Peterborough's Regiment of Horse by merging four existing troops of horse.
Renamed several times, it was designated theQueen's Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1746 as it evolved into a dragoon unit (dragoons described a force of highly mobile mounted infantry equipped with lighter, faster horses and carrying firearms) and later named the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) in 1767 to reflect the custom of its soldiers riding only bay horses.
The regiment served as horse cavalry until 1937, when it was mechanised with light tanks. The regiment became part of theRoyal Armoured Corps in 1939. After service in theFirst andSecond World Wars, the regiment amalgamated with the1st King's Dragoon Guards in 1959 to form the1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards.
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The regiment was raised in 1685 as theEarl of Peterborough's Regiment of Horse whenJames II expanded his army after theMonmouth Rebellion.[a][2]Peterborough was a Catholic who remained loyal to James and was replaced byEdward Villiers on 31 December 1688.[b][3]
During theNine Years' War, it served asVilliers Regiment in Ireland between 1689 and 1691, fighting in the battlesof the Boyne andAughrim.[c] At Aughrim, it was ordered to cross a bog under heavy fire, prompting French general theMarquis de St Ruth to shout "It is madness, but no matter, the more that cross the more we shall kill;" he was decapitated by a cannonball shortly thereafter.[4] When theTreaty of Limerick ended the war in Ireland in October 1691, the regiment returned to England.[5]
Brigadier-GeneralRichard Leveson became Colonel on 19 January 1694 and asLeveson's Regiment of Horse it was based in Flanders until theTreaty of Ryswick ended the war in 1697.[6] It escaped disbandment by being placed on the Irish establishment;[d] Leveson died in March 1699 andDaniel Harvey took over as Colonel.[7]
During theWar of the Spanish SuccessionHarveys Regiment moved to Portugal in March 1704 to support the Allied campaign in the Iberian Peninsula. In July 1710 it fought at theBattle of Almenar but in December was overwhelmed by superior forces atBrihuega, the survivors being taken prisoner.[5]
In recognition of its involvement in suppressing the1715 Jacobite rising it changed names toThe Princess of Wales's Own Regiment of Horse and afterCaroline of Wales became Queen in 1727The Queen's Own Regiment of Horse.[5] After the1745 Jacobite rising it changed titles again toThe Queen's Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1746 then2nd (The Queen's) Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1751.[8]
During theSeven Years' War, it fought atCorbach andWarburg in July 1760 and then captured several French regiments at theBattle of Wilhelmsthal in June 1762.[2] After starting to ride onbay horses, the regiment were renamed as the2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) in 1767.[8]
In an incident atLezennes, a single squadron of the regiment, under MajorRobert Craufurd, attacked and defeated a unit of 150 French troops, in October 1793 during theWar of the First Coalition.[9]
The regiment next saw action when a squadron under Major Piercy Smith charged the rebels at thecapture of Lucknow in March 1858 during theIndian Rebellion.[10] It suffered heavy losses in an action atLeeukop in March 1902 during theSecond Boer War.[11]
The regiment, which had been was stationed atAldershot at the start of the war, landed in France as part of the1st Cavalry Brigade in the1st Cavalry Division, part of theExpeditionary Force, in August 1914 for service on theWestern Front.[12] The regiment took part in theGreat Retreat in August 1914, theBattle of Le Cateau in August 1914, theFirst Battle of the Marne in September 1914, theBattle of Messines in October 1914, theFirst Battle of Ypres in October 1914, theBattle of the Somme in Autumn 1916, theBattle of Cambrai in November 1917, theBattle of the Scarpe in August 1918 and in the final advance of Autumn 1918.[13]
The regiment was renamed theQueen's Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards) in 1921.[8] The regiment served as horse cavalry until 1937, when it was mechanised with light tanks. The regiment became part of theRoyal Armoured Corps in 1939.[13]
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At the outbreak of theSecond World War, in September 1939, the regiment was in England, assigned to the2nd Light Armoured Brigade (serving alongside the9th Queen's Royal Lancers and the10th Royal Hussars) of the1st Armoured Division. In May 1940, the Bays went to France and was heavily engaged on the Somme during theBattle of France. In mid June, with the collapse of French resistance, the regiment was evacuated to England through the port ofBrest.[14] The regiment was deployed to theMiddle East in November 1941, equipped initially with theCrusader tank, and took part in theBattle of Gazala in May 1942, where its men were in action for 19 days, a record for an armoured regiment in theWestern Desert. The regiment also took part in theFirst Battle of El Alamein in July 1942, theSecond Battle of El Alamein in October 1942, theBattle of the Mareth Line in March 1943 and theTunisia Campaign in May 1943.[14] The regiment was deployed on theItalian Front in May 1944: its men took part in theBattle of the Argenta Gap in April 1945 during thefinal offensive of the Italian Campaign.[14]
After the war, the regiment remained in northern Italy, at Pegi on theRiver Isonzo, and then moved to Egypt in June 1947 before returning toDale Barracks inChester in October 1947.[15] The regiment moved on toBad Fallingbostel in Germany in 1949, before returning toTidworth Camp in September 1954 and then deploying toAqaba inJordan later in the year.[15] It deployed toLibya in February 1956 and then returned toPerham Down in August 1957 before transferring to Northampton Barracks inWolfenbüttel in 1958.[15] The regiment amalgamated with the1st King's Dragoon Guards in 1959 to form the1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards.[15]
The regimental collection is displayed atFiring Line: Cardiff Castle Museum of the Welsh Soldier inCardiff.[16]
The regiment's battle honours were as follows:[8]
Regimental colonels have included:[17]
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