Formation

The King's Royal Hussars was formed on 4th December 1992 from the amalgamation of The Royal Hussars (The Prince of Wales' Own) and The 14th/20th King's Hussars. Since its formation, The Regiment has been deployed on operational tours of Northern Ireland (1994 and 2002), Bosnia (1997) and Kosovo (1999), as well as exercising in Poland and at The  British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) in Canada. In August 2000, The Regiment was awarded its new Regimental Guidon by the Colonel-in-Chief, Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal.

Although the most recent amalgamation took place in 1992, the Regiment has a long and proud history which has its root in the amalgamation of four very individual Cavalry Regiments, each with their own history, customs and traditions. This page gives a brief explanation of the history of the four regiments, and explains the most important Regimental traditions, of which The King's Royal Hussars are rightly proud.

10th Royal Hussars (PWO)
Formed in 1715 as Gore's Dragoons to fight the Jacobites, they were renamed The 10th Light Dragoons (Prince of Wales' Own) in 1783.  In 1806 they became the first regiment to be equipped as Hussars and saw action all around the world, especially during the Second World War where they served in both Italy and Africa.  The Prince of Wales' Feathers are maintained today as collar badges.  Their squadron affiliation is with D Squadron.

11th Hussars (PAO)
Raised in 1715 as Honywood's Dragoons, they earned the name 'The Cherrypickers' during the Peninsula War, and were awarded the honour of wearing crimson trousers when they escorted Prince Albert to his wedding with Queen Victoria in 1840. This tradition is continued today. They played a prominent part in the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava. Their squadron affiliation is with C Squadron, the senior squadron.

The Royal Hussars (PWO)
Formed in 1969 as an amalgamation of the 10th and 11th Hussars. In 1982, they were the first regiment in the Army to receive Challenger. The Regiment has seen active service around the world, including tours of Northern Ireland, Cyprus and Hong Kong.

14th (King's) Hussars
Formed as Dormer's Dragoons at the time of the First Jacobite Rebellion, they gained a reputation second to none as Light Cavalry during the Peninsula War.  At Vittoria in 1813 they captured the chamberpot belonging to Joseph Bonaparte earning them the name 'The Emperor's Chambermaids' they were heavily involved in The Sikh Wars, earning their most   important   battle   honour at Ramnuggur.  Their squadron affiliation is with B Squadron.

20th Hussars
Formed originally in Enniskillen in 1759, they are the most junior of the 4 parent regiments, serving only in wartime until 1862.  They saw service in Sudan and South Africa as The Honourable East India Company Cavalry and were heavily involved in the First World War.  In 1920, whilst carrying out operations against Turkish Nationalists, they performed the last British military cavalry charge. Their squadron affiliation is with A Squadron.

14th/20th King's Hussars
Formed in 1922 as an amalgamation of the 14th (King's) and 20th Hussars.  In 1945, they fought alongside The 6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles at Medicina (earning the crossed kukris) and saw service in the first Gulf War in 1991.

The King's Royal Hussars
Formed in 1992 from an amalgamation of The Royal Hussars (PWO) and The 14th/20th King's Hussars.  Since forming, they have conducted operational deployments to Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.