7th Dragoon Guards
| 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's) | |
|---|---|
 Regimental Badge | |
| Active | 1688-1922 |
| Country |  Kingdom of England (1688–1707)
 United Kingdom (1801–1922) |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Cavalry |
| Role | Heavy Cavalry |
| Size | 550 |
| Nickname(s) | The Black Horse |
| March | (slow)7th (Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Defunct |
The 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards in 1922.
History
The regiment was first raised as Lord Cavendish's Regiment of Horse in 1685, by the regimenting of various independent troops, and ranked as the 9th and later 8th Regiment of Horse. In 1746 it was transferred to the Irish establishment, where it was ranked as the 4th Regiment of Horse, or the "Black Horse", and transferred back to the British establishment in 1788 as the 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards for Princess Charlotte.
The regiment was stationed in Cape in 1846, and took part in the First Kafir War (1846–47). Returning to England in 1847, it was stationed abroad in India from 1857 to 1868, Ireland from 1872 to 1878, Egypt from 1882 to 1883, India again from 1883 to 1893, and another stint in Egypt from 1893 to 1894, when they returned home.[1]
20th century
Following the outbreak of the Second Boer War in late 1899, the regiment was again sent abroad for service in South Africa. A total of 24 officers and 500 men left Southampton in the SS Armenian on 8 February 1900.[2]
After service in the 9th (Secunderabad) Cavalry Brigade during the First World War, it retitled as the 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's) in 1921, and was amalgamated with the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards, to form the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards the following year.
Colonels —with early names for the regiment
- 9th Regiment of Horse
- 1688 William, Lord Cavendish —Lord Cavendish’s Regiment of Horse
- 1690 Meinhardt, Duke of Leinster —Duke of Leinster’s Regiment of Horse
from 1693 8th Regiment of Horse
- 1711 Charles, Marquess of Harwich —Marquess of Harwich's Regiment of Horse
- 1713 Charles Sybourg —Sybourg's Regiment of Horse
- 1720 Sir John Ligonier K B —Ligonier's Regiment of Horse
in 1746 transferred to the Irish establishment and ranked
- 4th (Irish) Regiment of Horse
- Black Horse
- 1749 Sir John Mordaunt K B —Mordaunt's Regiment of Horse
- 1749 Henry de Grangues —de Grangues's Regiment of Horse
On 1 July 1751 a royal warrant provided that in future regiments would not be known by their colonels' names, but by their "number or rank".
- 1754 Henry Seymour Conway
- 1759 Philip Honywood
- 1782 Studholme Hodgson
in 1788 transferred to the British establishment and ranked
- 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards
- 1789 Sir Charles Grey K B
- 1795 Sir Ralph Abercromby K B
- 1796 Sir William Medows K B
- 1813 Richard Wilford
- 1822 Sir Robert Bolton K C H
- 10 February 1900 Sir Henry Peter Ewart
from 1921 7th Dragoon Guards (Princess Royal's)
from 1922 4th/7th Dragoon Guards after amalgamation with 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards
References
- Mills, T.F. "7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards". regiments.org. Archived from the original on February 27, 2007. Retrieved March 30, 2007. Includes chronological index of titles.