Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

Scotland’s cavalry: a formidable fighting force

The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards is a light cavalry regiment famous for its iconic victory at the Battle of Waterloo. The regiment combines an illustrious history spanning more than 300 years with expertise in the latest battlefield reconnaissance technology.

ACTIVE FROM

2 July 1971

ROLE

Light Cavalry

SPECIALISM

Reconnaissance

Soldiers in the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards are masters of reconnaissance. They include personnel with diverse skills, from snipers and machine gunners to guided missile operators, all of whom navigate across any terrain in the Jackal 2 armoured vehicle.

Driving a Jackal 2 armoured vehicle
Firing heavy and grenade machine guns
Communication with radios
Gathering and passing on intelligence
Commanding from the front
Making judgement calls in tough situations

Past Deployments:

Operation Cabrit (Enhanced Forward Presence (EFP) in the Baltic States)
Operation Tosca (Cyprus)
Operation Telic (Iraq)
Operation Herrick (Afghanistan)

Royal Scots Dragoons need to be smart, fit and motivated – and despite its name, the regiment recruits from across the UK. As well as excellent soldiers, the SCOTS DG counts professional rugby players and an award-winning pipe band among its ranks.

171016-Columbus_SCOTS DG_LCpl Rokoduguni.jpg

Lance Corporal Rokoduguni - Bath Rugby player and soldier

Trooper Park - soldier and piper in the Pipes and Drums

LCpl Byham - dismount and Jackal gunner

The serving regiment is currently based in Leuchars in Fife, Scotland. The regiment’s home headquarters are in an historic Edinburgh Castle, which also contains a museum dedicated to its history.

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The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

My role is challenging but exhilarating Daniel, 22

Our Role

The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards is a light cavalry regiment that specialises in reconnaissance. It uses light vehicles such as the Jackal 2 and the Coyote tactical support vehicle to operate in front of their comrades, monitoring enemy forces and sending information back to commanders.

Soldiers in the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards also use a formidable arsenal of weapons, including machine guns, mortars, sniper rifles and anti-tank missiles, to immobilise and destroy enemy forces.

Off the battlefield, the regiment takes part in ceremonial duties, including a prominent role in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Past to Present

The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards is made up of several historical regiments who, between them, have earned a total of 88 battle honours, 50 of which are borne on the regimental standard. The eagle on the regiment’s cap badge dates from the Battle of Waterloo, when the Royal Scots Greys captured the French Imperial Eagle.

1678

The Royal Scots Greys (so-called for their grey horses) are formed in Scotland
1685

The Carabiniers are raised to supress the Duke of Monmouth’s rebellion
1815

The Royal Scots Greys capture the Eagle of the 45th Regiment at the battle of Waterloo
1854

The Royal Scots Guards take part in the charge of the Heavy Brigade at Balaclava
1944

All of the officers in 3rd Carabiniers’ B Squadron are killed at Nunshigum
1971

The Royal Scots Greys and the 3rd Carabiniers merge to form the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards