The 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards was a British army cavalry regiment, officially formed in January 1686 as Shrewsbury's Regiment of Horse. Following a number of name changes, it became the 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1804. In 1922, it was amalgamated with The Inniskillings (6th Dragoons) to form the 5th/6th Dragoons. Its history and traditions continue today in the Royal Dragoon Guards, an armoured cavalry unit of the British Army.

History

On 1 January 1686, several independent troops of horse raised in response to the 1685

Monmouth Rebellion The Monmouth Rebellion, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, the Revolt of the West or the West Country rebellion, was an attempt to depose James II, who in February 1685 succeeded his brother Charles II as king of England, Scotland and Ir ...

were formed into the

Earl of Shrewsbury Earl of Shrewsbury () is a hereditary title of nobility created twice in the Peerage of England. The second earldom dates to 1442. The holder of the Earldom of Shrewsbury also holds the title of Earl of Waterford (1446) in the Peerage of Ireland ...

's Regiment of Horse. After the 1688

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...

, it served in the

Williamite War in Ireland The Williamite War in Ireland (1688–1691; ga, Cogadh an Dá Rí, "war of the two kings"), was a conflict between Jacobite supporters of deposed monarch James II and Williamite supporters of his successor, William III. It is also called th ...

, including the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and J ...

and the First Siege of Limerick. When the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between Kingdom of France, France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by t ...

ended in 1697, the regiment escaped disbandment by being made part of the Irish military establishment, where it remained until the creation of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

in 1801. During the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

, the unit was commanded by William Cadogan, close aide to the Duke of Marlborough. It was engaged in many of Marlborough's battles and sieges, including

Blenheim Blenheim ( ) is the English name of Blindheim, a village in Bavaria, Germany, which was the site of the Battle of Blenheim in 1704. Almost all places and other things called Blenheim are named directly or indirectly in honour of the battle. Places ...

, Ramillies and Malplaquet; after the

Peace of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne ...

in 1713, it resumed garrison duties in Ireland, where it spent most of the next 80 years. Battle of Salamanca

Renamed Second Irish Horse in 1746, it then became 5th Regiment of Dragoon Guards in 1788. On the outbreak of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...

in 1793, it was posted to Flanders where it fought at the April 1794 Battle of Beaumont. The unit returned to Ireland and helped suppress the 1798 Irish Rebellion, including the battles of

Arklow Arklow (; ; , ) is a town in County Wicklow on the southeast coast of Ireland. The town is overlooked by Ballymoyle Hill. It was founded by the Vikings in the ninth century. Arklow was the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the 1798 re ...

Vinegar Hill Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains 5–8% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting simple sugars to eth ...

and

Ballinamuck Ballinamuck () is a village in north County Longford, Ireland. It was the scene of the Battle of Ballinamuck, where a French army aiding the United Irishmen rebellion of 1798 was defeated. The French soldiers were eventually repatriated. The Iri ...

. In 1804, it was retitled 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Regiment of Dragoon Guards after Princess Charlotte, later simplified to 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards. Private Michael McNamara - 5th Dragoon Guards

Private Michael McNamara - 5th Dragoon Guards

Posted to Spain in 1810, it was part of Le Marchant's brigade during the Peninsular campaign. The

Battle of Salamanca The Battle of Salamanca (in French and Spanish known as the Battle of Arapiles) on 22July 1812 was a battle in which an Anglo-Portuguese army under the Earl of Wellington defeated Marshal Auguste Marmont's French forces at Arapiles, so ...

in July 1812 is considered one of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

's greatest victories and Le Marchant's attack as the 'single most destructive charge made by a brigade of cavalry in the whole Napoleonic period.' The regiment celebrated 'Salamanca Day' until its dissolution in 1922; the tradition continues among several units of the modern British army. Redesignated heavy cavalry, it was sent to the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

in 1853 and fought in the October 1854

Battle of Balaclava The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55), an Allied attempt to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russia's principal naval base on the Black Sea. The en ...

. The Charge of the Heavy Brigade was a famous action but casualties were relatively light; the Brigade as a whole lost 92 dead and wounded in total, 15 of whom came from the 5th Dragoon Guards. A small detachment joined the 1885 Nile Expedition in 1885 but its next serious action was during the 1899–1902

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...

, when it fought at the battles of Elandslaagte and

Ladysmith Ladysmith may refer to: * Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa * Ladysmith, British Columbia, Canada * Ladysmith, Wisconsin, United States * Ladysmith, New South Wales, Australia * Ladysmith, Virginia, United States * Ladysmith Island, Queenslan ...

. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, it formed part of the British Expeditionary Force that landed in France in August 1914. Retitled 5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) in 1921, the following year it was amalgamated with the Inniskillings (6th Dragoons), to form 5th/6th Dragoons.

Regimental museum

Enniskillen Cathedral of St. Macartin North Aisle Royal Inniskilling Dragoons Window Detail Insigna 1685-1922 2012 09 17.jpg, Memorial window at

St Macartin's Cathedral, Enniskillen St Macartin's Cathedral, Enniskillen, is one of two cathedral churches in the Diocese of Clogher (the other is St Macartan's Cathedral, Clogher) in the Church of Ireland. It stands on high ground overlooking the town of Enniskillen, County Fe ...

St Mary's Church Eccleston, Old Churchyard - GWGC grave of J Whiston (d 1918).JPG, J Whiston, 5th Dragoon Guards; gravestone, St Mary's Church, Eccleston The regimental collection is held in the Cheshire Military Museum at Chester Castle.

List of Colonels

The colonels of the regiment were as follows: Charles Talbot, 1st Duke of Shrewsbury by Sir Godfrey Kneller, Bt.jpg,

1686-1687 File:William Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan by Louis Laguerre.jpg, William Cadogan
1703-1712 Richard Temple, 1st Viscount Cobham by Jean Baptiste van Loo.jpg,

Viscount Cobham Viscount Cobham is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was created in 1718. Owing to its special remainder, the title has passed through several families. Since 1889, it has been held by members of the Lyttelton family. The barony ...

1744-1745 cardigan.jpg,

Earl of Cardigan Earl of Cardigan is a title in the Peerage of England, currently held by the Marquesses of Ailesbury, and used as a courtesy title by the heir apparent to that Marquessate, currently David Brudenell-Bruce, Earl of Cardigan, son of the 8th Mar ...

1859-1860 James Yorke Scarlett (1799-1871), British soldier.jpg, Sir James Scarlett
1860-1871 Tom Bridges 1918.jpg, Sir Tom Bridges
1920-1922

1686 Named after Colonel eg Shrewsbury's Horse

*1686:

; resigned in 1687 and joined William III in the Dutch Republic; *1687: Marmaduke Langdale, 2nd Baron Langdale; *1687: Richard Hamilton; Irish Catholic, removed from command and jailed in the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...

31 December 1688; *1688: John Coy; Lieutenant-Colonel of the regiment since 1686, experienced veteran with service in France and the Tangier Garrison; *1697:

Charles Butler, 1st Earl of Arran Lieutenant-General Charles Butler, 1st Earl of Arran (of the second creation), '' de jure'' 3rd Duke of Ormonde (1671–1758) was an Anglo-Irish peer. His uncle Richard was the 1st Earl of Arran of the first creation. The titles were re-creat ...

; *1703: William Cadogan, later Earl Cadogan; Marlborough's quartermaster-general and head of intelligence, succeeded him as Master-General of the Ordnance in 1722. *1712: George Kellum; in service with the regiment since its formation in 1686; *1717: Robert Napier *1740: Clement Neville *1744: Field Marshall

; *1745: Thomas Wentworth (died November 1747);

1746 2nd Irish Horse

*1747:

Thomas Bligh Lieutenant General Thomas Bligh (1685–1775) was an Irish-born British soldier, best known for his service during the Seven Years' War when he led a series of amphibious raids, known as " descents" on the French coastline. Despite initial succe ...

Cannon p. 37 *1758:

John Waldegrave, 3rd Earl Waldegrave General John Waldegrave, 3rd Earl Waldegrave (28 April 1718 – 22 October 1784) was a British politician and soldier. Career Waldegrave was the youngest son of the 1st Earl Waldegrave. He joined the 1st Regiment of Foot in 1735, rising to the r ...

*1760: Hon. John Fitzwilliam

1788 5th Regiment of Dragoon Guards

*1789: John Douglas *1790: Thomas Bland; previously served 36 years with the 7th Dragoon Guards;

1804 5th (the Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Regiment of Dragoon Guards

*1816: Prince Léopold Georg Christian Friedrich of Saxe-Saalfeld-Coburg

1823 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards

*1831: Gen. Sir John Slade; died aged 97 in 1859 and served in the Peninsular War, where contemporaries described him as 'that damned stupid fellow.' *1859: Lt-Gen.

James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan Lieutenant-General James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, (16 October 1797 – 28 March 1868), styled as Lord Cardigan, was an officer in the British Army who commanded the Light Brigade during the Crimean War, leading its charge ...

; commanded the Light Brigade in the Crimean War; *1860: Gen. Hon. Sir James Scarlett; acted as CO of the regiment from 1840, led the Charge of the Heavy Brigade at Balaclava; *1871: Gen. Richard Parker; *1885: Gen. Sir Thomas Westropp McMahon *1892: Lt-Gen. Somerset Gough-Calthorpe, 7th Baron Calthorpe *1912: Maj-Gen. Richard Temple Godman *1912: Maj-Gen. William Edward Marsland *1920: Lt-Gen. Sir George Tom Molesworth Bridges *''1922: Regiment amalgamated with The Inniskillings (6th Dragoons) to form the 5th/6th Dragoons''

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * {{British Cavalry Regiments World War I Cavalry regiments of the British Army Dragoon Guards 1685 establishments in England Military units and formations disestablished in 1922 Military units and formations established in 1685 DG5 Regiments of the British Army in the Crimean War Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796–1817)