The Rifles

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For other uses, see The Rifles (band) and The Rifles (novel).
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The Rifles
Rifles cap badge.PNGRGBWback.PNG
Cap and Back badges of The Rifles
Active 1 February 2007 –
Country United Kingdom
Branch Army
Type Infantry
Role 1st Battalion—Light Role
2nd Battalion—Light Role
3rd Battalion—Light Role
4th Battalion—Light Role
5th Battalion—Armoured Infantry
6th Battalion—TA Reserve
7th Battalion—TA Reserve
Size Seven battalions
Garrison/HQ RHQ—Winchester
1st Battalion—Beachley
2nd Battalion—Ballykinler
3rd Battalion—Edinburgh
4th Battalion— Bulford
5th Battalion—Paderborn, Germany
6th Battalion—Exeter
7th Battalion—Reading
Motto Swift and Bold
March Quick: Mechanised Infantry
Double Past: Keel Row/Road to the Isles
Slow: Old Salamanca
Commanders
Colonel in Chief HRH The Duke of Edinburgh
Colonel Commandant General Sir Nicholas Parker KCB CBE
Insignia
Tactical Recognition Flash RIFLES TRF.PNG
Arm Badge Croix de Guerre
From Devonshire and Dorset Light Infantry
Abbreviation RIFLES

The Rifles (RIFLES) is the largest regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of five regular and two territorial battalions, plus a number of companies in other TA battalions, Each battalion of the Rifles was formerly an individual battalion of one of the two large regiments of the Light Division (with the exception of the 1st Battalion, which is an amalgamation of two individual regiments). Since formation the regiment has been involved in combat operations, first in the later stages of the Iraq War and currently in the War in Afghanistan.

Contents

[edit] History

The Rifles was created as a result of the Future Army Structure. Under the original announcement, the Light Division would have remained essentially unchanged, with the exception of the Light Infantry gaining a new battalion through the amalgamation of two other regiments, and both gaining a TA battalion. However, on 24 November 2005, the Ministry of Defence announced that the four regiments would amalgamate into a single five-battalion regiment. The Rifles was formed on 1 February 2007 by the amalgamation of the four Light Infantry and Rifle Regiments of the Light Division:

The two existing battalions each of the Light Infantry and the Royal Green Jackets were renamed, while the single battalions of the DDLI and the RGBWLI were merged into one battalion. This brought the whole of the Light Division under a single cap badge.

On formation, The Rifles became the county regiment of the following counties:

As a rifle regiment, a private soldier in The Rifles is known as a Rifleman and Serjeant is spelt in the archaic fashion; the regiment wears a Rifle green beret. A number of golden threads have been brought into the new regiment from each of its founder regiments:

  • Croix de Guerre - the French Croix de Guerre ribbon awarded to the Devonshire Regiment in World War I, and subsequently worn by the Devonshire and Dorset Light Infantry, is worn on both sleeves of No. 1 and No. 2 dress.
  • Back Badge - the badge worn on the back of headdress reads Egypt. This was awarded as an honour to the 28th Foot, and subsequently worn by the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry is worn on the forage cap and side hat, and on the shako of the regimental band and bugles.
  • Bugle Horn - the bugle horn badge of the Light Infantry, now surmounted by St. Edward's Crown, is the regiment's cap badge.
  • Maltese Cross - the Maltese Cross of the Royal Green Jackets is worn as a buckle on the cross belt, and will contain the regiment's representative battle honours; currently one space is kept free for future honours. In accordance with the tradition of rifle regiments, the regiment does not carry colours.
  • Black Buttons - the traditional black buttons of a rifle regiment are worn on all forms of dress with the exception of combat dress.

In addition, the new regiment's "Double Past" march (the music used when marching past at the double) is an amalgam of the Light Infantry's (Keel Row) and the Royal Green Jackets' (Road to the Isles).

[edit] Organisation

British Army Arms and Services
Flag of the British Army.svg
Combat Arms
Royal Armoured Corps
Infantry
Army Air Corps
Combat Support Arms
Royal Artillery
Royal Engineers
Royal Corps of Signals
Intelligence Corps
Combat Services
Royal Army Chaplains Department
Royal Logistic Corps
Army Medical Services
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Adjutant General's Corps
Small Arms School Corps
Royal Army Physical Training Corps
General Service Corps
Corps of Army Music

The new regiment has 5 regular and 2 Territorial Army battalions:

In addition to the seven battalions above, a further two companies are also cap badged as The Rifles but are attached to other TA infantry Battalions:

  • D (RIFLES) Company, 5th (V) Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (includes Y (RIFLES) Platoon) - redesignation of C (Light Infantry) Company, Tyne-Tees Regiment and Minden (Light Infantry) Company, East and West Riding Regiment (The 'D' and 'Y' designations were specifically chosen to help maintain The Rifles' county links to both Durham and Yorkshire.) As of April 2009 permission has been granted for D (RIFLES) Company to establish another platoon detachment based at Minden House, Pontefract, West Yorkshire.
  • E (RIFLES) Company, 4th (V) Battalion, Mercian Regiment - redesignation of E (Light Infantry) Company, West Midlands Regiment.

Approximately one third of all cadets now wear The Rifles cap badge. There is only one single Combined Cadet Force unit that still carries the RGJ cap badge and that is the London Oratory School CCF, London, England.

Following the restructuring of the infantry and the end of the arms plot, the new regiment's five regular battalions will have fixed roles:

The 1st Battalion formed on 25 December 2007 in Alma Barracks, Catterick Garrison (the same place where the RGBW formed in 1994) as part of 52 Infantry Brigade. In August that year, the Battalion moved again to its permanent home of Beachley Barracks at Chepstow still under 52 Brigade, whose HQ had departed for Afghanistan. From 1 April 2008 however, it was permanently attached to 3 Commando Brigade, where it will serve as one of the brigade's four manoeuvre battalions/units alongside the three commandos of the Royal Marines.

HRH The Duchess of Cornwall visited the 4th Battalion in July 2008. From early 2008 until summer 2010 the commanding officer was Lieutenant-Colonel Rupert Jones, son of Lt-Col "H" Jones VC.

Territorial Army locations:

  • 6th Battalion - Gloucester, Taunton, Dorchester, Truro and Exeter.
  • 7th Battalion - Abingdon (Edward Brooks Barracks), Reading (Brock Barracks), Milton Keynes, and London (Davies Street in West London and "The Cedars" TAC in West Ham, East London).
  • D Coy, 5th Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers - Bishop Auckland, Consett, Sunderland, Washington, Doncaster and Pontefract.
  • E Coy, West Midlands Regiment - Shrewsbury.

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh (ex-Colonel-in-Chief, RGBWLI) is the new regiment's Colonel-in-Chief, but each battalion has its own Royal Colonel:

1st Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Duke of Kent (ex-Colonel-in-Chief, DDLI)
2nd Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Earl of Wessex
3rd Battalion, The Rifles HRH Princess Alexandra, The Hon Lady Ogilvy (ex-Colonel-in-Chief, LI)
4th Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Duchess of Cornwall
5th Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Countess of Wessex
6th (V) Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Duke of Gloucester
7th (V) Battalion, The Rifles HRH The Duchess of Gloucester

[edit] The Band and Bugles

The Rifles maintains a single regular regimental band, the Band and Bugles of The Rifles. This was formed by renaming the Band and Bugles of the Light Division, which in itself was an amalgamation of four separate bands:

  • The Corunna Band of the Light Infantry
  • The Salamanca Band of the Light Infantry
  • The Peninsula Band of the Royal Green Jackets
  • The Normandy Band of the Royal Green Jackets

In addition, the two TA Battalions maintain their own bands:

  • The Salamanca Band of the Rifles - 6th Battalion (formerly the Band of the Rifle Volunteers)
  • The Waterloo Band of the Rifles - 7th Battalion (formerly the Band of the Royal Rifle Volunteers)

There are also a number of Cadet Force Bands including The Corunna Band & Bugles of Oxfordshire (The Rifles) Army Cadet Force and The Borneo band of Durham Army Cadet Force, as well as the Peninsula Band and Bugles of the Cornwall Army Cadet Force Battalion (The Rifles) and the Wiltshire Army Cadet Force trowbridge Band and Bugles. More recently E (The Rifles) Company (Yorkshire N&W) ACF have formed a Bugle & Drum section - Minden Bugles & Drums. Bands also exist in Combined Cadet Forces including the Band and Bugles of The Thomas Hardye School, and The Band and Drums of Adams' Grammar School CCF.

[edit] Alliances

Although no list of regimental alliances has been announced as yet, using the large regiments that have formed already as examples, it can be assumed[citation needed] that all of the current alliances of the four individual regiments will be carried into the Rifles.

[edit] Battle honours

The following battle honours are a representation of the total honours awarded to the regiments which formed The Rifles. These are inscribed on the regiment's belt badge:

[edit] Order of precedence

Preceded by
Royal Gurkha Rifles		 Infantry Order of Precedence Succeeded by
Special Air Service

[edit] Lineage

Lineage
The Rifles The Devonshire and Dorset Light Infantry The Devonshire Regiment
The Dorset Regiment The 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot
The 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot
The Light Infantry The Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's)
The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
The King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry The 51st (2nd Yorkshire West Riding) Regiment of Foot
The 105th Regiment of Foot (Madras Light Infantry)
The King's Shropshire Light Infantry The 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot
The 85th (King's Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot
The Durham Light Infantry The 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot
The 106th Regiment of Foot (Bombay Light Infantry)
The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry The Gloucestershire Regiment The 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot
The 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot
The Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment (Berkshire and Wiltshire) The Royal Berkshire Regiment
(Princess Charlotte of Wales's)		 The 49th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) (Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot
The 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot
The Wiltshire Regiment
(Duke of Edinburgh's)		 The 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment of Foot
The 99th Duke of Edinburgh's (Lanarkshire) Regiment of Foot
The Royal Green Jackets The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry The 43rd (Monmouthshire) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry)
The 52nd (Oxfordshire) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry)
The King's Royal Rifle Corps
The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own)

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

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[edit] Further reading

  • Ben Barry A Cold War: Front-line Operations in Bosnia 1995 - 1996 ISBN 1-86227-449-5. An account of the end of the Bosnian Civil War by the CO of the 2nd Battalion the Light Infantry
  • Les Howard Winter Warriors - Across Bosnia with the PBI ISBN 1-84624-077-8. A TA Royal Green Jacket on operations with the 2nd Bn the Light Infantry
  • Swift and Bold: A Portrait of the Royal Green Jackets 1966-2007 ISBN 1-903942-69-1.
  • Steven McLaughlin Squaddie: A Soldier's Story ISBN 1-84596-242-5. A Royal Green Jacket's account of modern-day basic training, battalion life & culture, and operational tours in Iraq and Northern Ireland.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Rifles

[edit] Video links

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