The 1st Regiment of Life Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the

1st Troop of Horse Guards The 1st (His Majesty's Own) Troop of Horse Guards was formed from King Charles II's exiled followers in the Netherlands (the Stuart monarchs had been overthrown during the English Civil War, and replaced with the Commonwealth). The regiment w ...

and 1st Troop of

Horse Grenadier Guards The Horse Grenadier Guards, usually referred to as Horse Grenadiers, were a series of cavalry troops in the British Household Cavalry between 1687 and 1788, who used grenades and other explosives in battle. Originally attached to the Troops of ...

. In 1922, it was amalgamated with the 2nd Life Guards to form the Life Guards.

History

The regiment was formed in 1788 by the union of the

and 1st Troop of

. It fought in the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...

and at the Waterloo. In 1877, it was renamed 1st Life Guards and contributed to the Household Cavalry Composite Regiment in the

Anglo-Egyptian War The British conquest of Egypt, also known as the Anglo-Egyptian War (), occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom. It ended a nationalist uprising against the Khedive Tewfik Pasha. It ...

, in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

and in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

from August to November 1914. From 1916 to 1918, the Reserve Regiment contributed to the Household Battalion. In 1918, the regiment was converted to the 1st Battalion, Guards Machine Gun Regiment. It was reconstituted in 1919 and was amalgamated with the 2nd Life Guards in 1922 to form The Life Guards.

Battle honours

The battle honours of the regiment were: * ''Early Wars'': Dettingen,

Peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

, Waterloo, Tel-el-Kebir,

Egypt 1882 Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, Relief of Kimberley, Paardeberg, South Africa 1899–1900 * ''The Great War'':

Mons Mons commonly refers to: * Mons, Belgium, a city in Belgium * Mons pubis (mons Venus or mons veneris), in mammalian anatomy, the adipose tissue lying above the pubic bone * Mons (planetary nomenclature), a sizable extraterrestrial mountain * Batt ...

, Le Cateau,

Retreat from Mons The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western F ...

, Marne 1914, Aisne 1914, Messines 1914,

Armentières 1914 Armentières (; , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord department in the Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. The motto of the town is ''Pauvre mais fi� ...

Ypres 1914 Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

'15 '17, Langemarck 1914, Gheluvelt, Nonne Bosschen, St. Julien, Frezenberg,

Somme 1916 __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media *Somme (book), ''Somm ...

, Albert 1916, Arras 1917 '18, Scarpe 1917 '18, Broodseinde, Poelcappelle, Passchendaele,

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (, Siegfried Position) was a German Defense line, defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in France during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to ...

, Cambrai 1918, France and Flanders 1914–18

Colonels-in-Chief

The Colonels-in-Chief of the regiment were: *1815–1830:

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

*1831–1837:

King William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...

*1880–1910:

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

*1910–1922:

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

Regimental colonels

The colonels of the regiment were: *1788–1789: General The Most Hon. The Marquess of Lothian *1789–1792: General The Rt Hon. The Lord Dover *1792–1829: General The Rt Hon. The Earl of Harrington *1829–1865: Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Viscount Combermere *1865–1888: Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Earl of Lucan *1888–1902: Field Marshal Prince Edward of Saxe-Weimar *1902–1907: Lieutenant General The Rt Hon. The Lord de Ros *1907–1920: Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Lord Grenfell *1920–1922: Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Viscount Allenby

References

Sources