Blues and Royals

The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) (RHG/D) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. The Colonel of the Regiment is Anne, Princess Royal. It is the second-most senior regiment in the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1969 from the merger of the Royal Horse Guards, which was known as "the Blues" or "the Oxford Blues", and the Royal Dragoons, which was known as "the Royals". Of these, the Blues were founded as a unit of the New Model Army, having been raised in 1650 by Sir Arthur Haselrig on orders from Oliver Cromwell; it was incorporated into the Restoration army in 1660 and gained the title "Royal" in the 18th century. The Royal Dragoons were formed shortly after the Restoration, in 1661, composed of cavalry veterans of the New Model Army. Since formation in 1969, the new regiment has served in several countries. From 1969 the regiment had troops deployed to Northern Ireland as part of Operation Banner. In the 1970s and 1980s, during the Cold War, the Regiment was headquartered at Detmold in West Germany and was a unit of the British Army of the Rhine's 20th Armoured Brigade, part of the 3rd Armored Division with an armoured and reconnaissance role. During that time it was tasked with defending part of the North German Plain in the event of an invasion by the Warsaw Pact. During the Falklands War of 1982, the regiment provided the two armoured reconnaissance troops. The regiment also had a squadron on operational duty with the United Nations in Bosnia in 1994–95. Most recently, the regiment saw action in the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. Both Prince William and Prince Harry joined the regiment as cornets in 2006. As a result of the Options for Change Review in 1991, The Blues and Royals formed a union for operational purposes with The Life Guards as the Household Cavalry Regiment. However, they each maintain their regimental identity, with distinct uniforms and traditions, and their own colonel.