Regiments and Corps of the British Army

Main Index

"There is no such thing as the British Army, only a confederation of regiments, hopefully fighting on the same side, all preserving their individuality by being as different from one another as possible."

This is an observation from a 20th C journalist which opens the preface of P D Griffin's book Encyclopedia of Modern British Army Regiments.

Definitions

Regiment - a permanent unit of an army typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel and divided into several companies, squadrons, or batteries and often into two battalions.
Corps - a main subdivision of an army in the field, consisting of two or more divisions. A branch of an army assigned to a particular kind of work.
Glengarry badges were worn between the1860s until 1881.

Work in progress - projects for all Regiments and Corps are planned but will take time!
The object of this project is to map the amalgamations within the British Army and to link projects of Historical Regiments and Corps which an in turn be linked to associated profiles on Geni. Full details will be added/expanded in the individual projects as they are created.

EXCEPTIONS - those who raised the regiments as linked in the text

and those awaiting a sub-project to be set up.

Go to Individual Pages where linked for others

Names with Bold links are to Geni profiles or projects. Other links take you to external biographical web pages.

Note - the Thumbnail images alongside links to sub-projects are linked to a larger image.

The earliest form of defence depended on villagers and townspeople who were available to be called out in emergencies. The Saxon fryd whose purpose it was to protect Anglo-Saxon territories in Britain from foreign troops and the medieval Posse comitatus were possible seeds of the British Army.

Two London volunteer corps of the 16th Century - the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) and the Inns of Court Regiment - have had a fairly continual existence through to modern times. They were a reliable source of officers for the army in the two world wars. The HAC was raised through a charter of Incorporation granted by Henry VIII and remains as a senior regiment of the Territorial Army. The Inns of Court Regiment was founded in 1584 to help protect London against Spanish invasion. In 1790 it was listed as the Bloomsbury and Inns of Court Volunteers, and in 1860 the 14th Middlesex (Inns of Court) Volunteer Rifle Corps.

The British Army consists of the General Staff and the deployable Field Army and the Regional Forces that support them, as well as Joint elements that work with the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. The Army carries out tasks given to it by the democratically elected Government of the United Kingdom (UK).

The primary task of the British Army is to help defend the interests of the UK, which consists of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This may involve service overseas as part of a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) force or any other multi-national deployment. Soldiers may also be deployed on United Nations (UN) operations and used to help in other emergencies.

The Cardwell and Childers Reforms of 1881 gave the British Army its modern shape, and defined its regimental system. It is at this date that many Regiments and Corps were amalgamated to for new ones. In 1907 the Haldane Reforms formally created the Territorial Force which still exists as the Army's volunteer reserve component, which is now called the Army Reserve.

The command structure is hierarchical with divisions and brigades responsible for administering groupings of smaller units. Major Units are regiment or battalion-sized with minor units being smaller, either company sized sub-units or platoons. All units within the service are either Regular (full-time) or Army Reserve (part-time), or a combination with sub-units of each type.

The British Army has been remodelling itself throughout history. As a result the Army's Regiments and Corps have changed over time as new units have formed and old ones merged together. The individual projects that will be linked to this index will be about the "Ancestry and Amalgamation" of the Regiments and Corps.

The purpose of this project is to provide an outline of, and an overall guide to, the British Army, developing an understanding of the structure. The aim is to create sub-projects for individual Regiments and Corps. This will take time - this being the first step!

Index - Regiments and Corps of the British Army

... is being developed to locate which project individual profiles can be linked to. This is a WIP with new regiments being added as projects are set up.

Getting Involved

Feel free to follow, request to collaborate

To join the project use the request link under "actions" at the top right of the page.

Visit

Geni's Project Plaza

Working with Projects

Wicked Wiki

Geni Wikitext, Unicode and images which gives a great deal of assistance.

See the discussion Project Help: How to add Text to a Project - Starter Kit to get you going!

Note - some links to Geni profiles have been included to those instrumental in raising Regiments/Corps

Badges

Badges which feature crowns can be dated using the following guideline.
Queen Victoria - Pre 1901 King's C 1901-1952 Queen's C - Post 1952
Note Individual crown shapes are not strictly reserved for either Kings or Queens.

Another clue to dating badges is in the insignia.

• VR Queen Victoria - 1837-1901
• EviiR Edward VII - 1901-1910
• GvR George V - 1910-1936
• GviR George VI - 1936-1952
• EiiR Elizabeth II - 1952

Key Dates

1660 - restoration of the Monarchy after the civil war - triggering the gradual formation of a new Standing Army.

1707 - the Standing Army evolved into the British Army after the Act of Union with Scotland

1751 - after this date infantry (foot) regiments were known by their number in the line.

1782 - Many regiments were given territorial designations to add to their number.

1881 - Cardwell and Childers Reforms amalgamated foot regiments in territorially designated pairs and discarded the numbers in line. These, with some exceptions usually tied in with with the 1782 territorial designations.

1922 - many cavalry amalgamations occurred

1957-58 - introduction of the 1958 brigade system. leading to more amalgamations

2006-07 - 7 new regiments formed

Useful webpages

The tip of the iceberg!!

1. Information

• Individual pages for regiments on WIKI
• Long Long Trail
• National Army Museum - note images copyrighted
• Ministry of Defence
• Imperial War Museum Note the strict copyright conditions
• North East Medals explore information pages - copyrighted material
• Forces War Records Subscription based

2. Images
The following websites have kindly allowed me (CJB) the use of images from their web pages for use in these projects

• - British Military Medals (BMB)
• Military Badge Collection (MBC)
• Military Badges of the British Army (MBBA)
• British Armed Forces and National Service (BAF)

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British Army Officers

• Field Marshal FM
• General Gen.
• Lieutenant General Lt.Gen
• Major General Maj.Gen
• Brigadier General Brig.Gen
• Colonel Col Colonel
• Brigadier Brig
• Major Maj
• Captain Capt
• Lieutenant Lt
• Second Lieutenant 2/Lt

British Enlisted Men

• Warrant Officer 1st Class 1/WO
• Warrant Officer 2nd Class 2/WO
• Sergeant Major Sgt.Maj
• Sergeant Sgt
• Corporal Cpl
• Lance Corporal L.Cpl
• Private Pvt

British Naval Officers

• Admiral of the Fleet
• Admiral Adm.
• Vice Admiral V.Adm.
• Rear Admiral R.Adm.
• Commodore Com.
• Captain Capt..
• Commander Cdr.
• Lieutenant Commander Lt.Cdr.
• Lieutenant Lt.
• Sub-Lieutenant SLt.
• Commissioned Warrant Officer C.WO.
• Midshipman

British Naval Enlisted Men

• Chief Petty Officer CPO.
• Petty Officer 1st Class P.O. 1
• Petty Officer 2nd Class P.O. 2
• Leading Rate LR.
• Seaman Sea. seaman
• Boy

British RFC/RAF

• Air Marshal A/M
• Air Vice Marshal A/V/M
• Wing Commander W.Cdr.
• Squadron Commander Sqdn.Cdr.
• Flight Comander Flt.Cdr.
• Flight Lieutenant Flt.Lt.
• Flight Sergeant Flt.Sgt.
• Air Mechanic AM
• Air Mechanic First Class 1/AM
• Air Mechanic Second Class 1/AM

Royal Naval Air Service Officers

• Wing Captain W.Capt.
• Wing Commander W.Cdr.
• Squadron Commander Sqdn.Cdr.
• Flight Commander Flt.Cdr.
• Flight Lieutenant Flt.Lt.
• Flight Sub-Lieutenant Flt.SLt.

EXTRACT FROM THE MEMOIRS OF AC NUGEE

It may be of interest to future generations to record the various marks of distinction which were awarded to servicemen during the war. With hundreds of thousands of men in khaki in the country, it was quite impossible to distinguish the men who had been at the Front from those who were going to stay at home all the time if they could possibly work it; so a system of small coloured chevrons was devised to be sewn on the tunic cuff. A red one was for those who had been overseas at the front in 1914 and a blue one was for each year or part of a year after that. If a man had been wounded and passed unfit for service overseas again, but was fit for home service, apart from his chevrons there was nothing to show why he was now at home and not back with his unit – so a stripe of gold cord was awarded to every wounded man to place above his service chevrons. Thus it was possible to read on every man’s uniform the story of his service, and as a wound stripe was awarded for each wound some men might be carrying three or four.
Then there were the war medals. Apart from the decorations there were four of them, which unlike the system in the Second War were given for service in all theatres and on every sea. First was the Mons Star, given to those who had served in France from the outbreak of hostilities to the end of October 1914. The 1915 Star, similar in design and ribbon to the Mons Star, had a different inscription: it was given to all those who had served in a theatre of war from the end of the Mons period to the end of 1915. These men were all volunteers as conscription had not yet been enforced. Then there was the British Empire War Medal, and fourth the Allied Victory medal. For those who had been mentioned in dispatches there was a bronze palm leaf to be sewn onto the ribbon of the war medal. These last three were irreverently named Pip, Squeak and Wilfred.

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Order of Precedence

The Regiments and Corps of the Regular Army are listed in order of precedence as given in the Army List according to the army's old class system where seniority does not always bring priority. Adjustments are being made to update the lists.

The following lists (will - WIP) link to sub-projects where the ancestry of the Regiments and Corps will be detailed. some details are included below until sub-projects have been set up.

1. The Household Cavalry

1.1 The Life Guards
1.2 The Blues and Royals

2. The Royal Horse Artillery

Formed in 1793 - part of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) of the British Army. Horses are still in service for ceremonial purposes but were phased out from operational deployment during the 1930s.

Almost all the batteries of the Royal Horse Artillery have served continuously since the French Revolutionary Wars or Napoleonic Wars, except the King's Troop which has existed since 1946 and M Battery which was 'reanimated' in 1993.

When on Parade with their guns The Royal Horse Artillery are privileged to take the right of the line and to march at the head of all other troops, including the Household Cavalry

There are currently four separate regiments that wear the cypher (cap badge) of the RHA:

2.1 - The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery (primarily a ceremonial unit which uses vintage 13-pounder guns for firing salutes)

After the Second World War, King George VI expressed the view that, following the mechanisation of the last batteries of horse-drawn artillery, a troop of horse artillery should be retained to take part in the great ceremonies of state. Accordingly the Riding Troop was reformed on 17 April 1946 at Shoeburyness as a six-gun Royal Horse Artillery battery for the Household Division.

2.2 - 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery (The South Yorks and Midland Gunners)

Formed in 1938 – Although some of the Batteries had existed for 145 years, 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery were formed at Bulford Camp on 1 May 1938.

2.3 - 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery (The Liverpool and Manchester Gunners)

27 August 1938, III Brigade Royal Horse Artillery at Abbassia, Egypt was redesignated as 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery.

2.4 - 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery

Formed on 27 June 1961 with the re-designation of 33rd Parachute Light Regiment Royal Artillery as 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery.
2.4.1 33rd Parachute Field Regiment Royal Artillery served until 1977 as the artillery regiment of 16th Independent Parachute Brigade Group. After a spell in Germany as a non-airborne unit, it returned to Aldershot where it joined 5th Airborne Brigade and once again assumed the airmobile role. As of 2016 the regiment's gun groups, based in Colchester, are armed with the L118 105-mm light gun which "can be towed by a vehicle, delivered by parachute heavy drop, under-slung from a helicopter or, in extremis, manually dragged into position.

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3. The Royal Armoured Corps

3.1 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
3.2 The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
3.3 The Royal Dragoon Guards
3.4 The Queen's Royal Hussars
3.5 The 9th/12th Royal Lancers
3.6 The King's Royal Hussars
3.7 The Light Dragoons
3.8 The Queen's Royal Lancers
3.9 The Royal Tank Regiment

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4. Royal Regiment of Artillery

(Royal Horse Artillery Excepted)

...commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA)
The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises ...

• The Royal Artillery and
  
• the Royal Horse Artillery.
  

The Regular regiments of the Royal Horse Artillery

• The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery – a ceremonial unit equipped with 13 pounder guns for firing salutes, and is now located in Woolwich Garrison
• 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery – equipped with AS90 self-propelled artillery and MLRS and GMLRS at Assaye Barracks in Tidworth
• 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery – (The Liverpool and Manchester Gunners) are equipped with L118 105mm light gun based at Albemarle Barracks outside Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.
• 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery – (The Airborne Gunners) are equipped with L118 105mm light gun and are currently part of 16th Air Assault Brigade based in Colchester
  

Regular regiments of the Royal Artillery

• 4th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The North East Gunners) are equipped with L118 105mm light gun at Alanbrooke Barracks in Topcliffe
• 5th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The North, East & West Yorkshire Gunners) are equipped with Surveillance and Target Acquisition and based at Marne Barracks in Catterick, North Yorkshire
• 12th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The Lancashire and Cumbrian Gunners) are equipped with Starstreak HVM and are based at Baker Barracks, Thorney Island
• 14th Regiment Royal Artillery – are the Training and Support Regiment based at Stirling Barracks in Larkhill
• 16th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The London and Kent Gunners) are equipped with Rapier and are based at Baker Barracks, Thorney Island
• 19th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The Highland Gunners) are equipped with AS90 self-propelled artillery and MLRS and GMLRS at Assaye Barracks in Tidworth
• 26th Regiment Royal Artillery –– (The West Midland Gunners) are equipped with AS90 self-propelled artillery and MLRS and GMLRS at Mansergh Barracks in Gütersloh
• 29th Commando Regiment Royal Artillery – (The Commando Gunners) are equipped with the L118 105mm light gun, and are currently part of 3 Commando Brigade, with most batteries based at the Royal Citadel in Plymouth with one battery (148 (Meiktila) Battery) based at RM Poole and 7 (Sphinx) Battery Royal Artillery Based at Royal Marines Base Condor in Arbroath.
• 32nd Regiment Royal Artillery – (The Wessex Gunners) are equipped with Surveillance and Target Acquisition and Unmanned Air Vehicles and are based in Roberts Barracks in Larkhill
• 47th Regiment Royal Artillery – (The Hampshire and Sussex Gunners) – are equipped with Unmanned Air Vehicles and are based in Roberts Barracks in Larkhill
  

Army Reserve

• 101st (Northumbrian) Regiment Royal Artillery (MLRS)
• 103rd (Lancashire Artillery Volunteers) Regiment Royal Artillery (Field Artillery) (Lancashire Artillery Volunteers Band)
• 104th Regiment Royal Artillery (Surveillance and Target Acquisition – Unmanned Air Vehicles)
• 105th Regiment Royal Artillery 'The Scottish & Ulster Gunners' (Field Artillery)
• 106th (Yeomanry) Regiment Royal Artillery (Air Defence Artillery)

Note: The Honourable Artillery Company is an Army Reserve unit based in London, it is not part of the Royal Regiment of Artillery although parts of it currently have a Surveillance and Target Acquisition role

5. Corps of Royal Engineers

6. Royal Corps of Signals - see Corps of Royal Engineers

Infantry Regiments

7. Regiments of Foot Guards
8. Line Infantry Infantry Regiments

8.1 Royal Regiment of Scotland

8.2 The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment

8.3 The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment

8.4 The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers

8.5 The Royal Anglian Regiment

8.6 The Yorkshire Regiment

8.7 The Mercian Regiment

8.8. The Royal Welsh

8.9 The Royal Irish Regiment

8.10 The Parachute Regiment

8.11 The Royal Gurkha Rifles

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9. The Rifles

1st Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment

1st Life Guards (1818-1819) - also The Household Cavalry Regiment outside those dates

2nd Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment

2nd Life Guards (1818-1819) - also The Household Cavalry Regiment outside those dates

3rd Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment

4th Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment

6th (Machine Gun) Regiment of Foot Guards

Foot Guard Machine Gun Battalion

Guards Machine Gun Battalion formed 1918

Guards Machine Gun Regiment

Royal Horse Guards (1818-1819) - also The Household Cavalry Regiment outside those dates.

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10. Special Air Service Regiment

The inception of the Special Air Service Regiment is owed to Colonel David Stirling. As a Scots Guard subaltern attached to No. 8 Commando in North Africa formed small, independent raiding parties to be dropped behind enemy lines. The first force of picked men was authorised in July 1941 - titles 'L' Detachment Special Air Service brigade. The Brigade consisted of only 66 - all ranks.

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11. Army Air Corps

The present Corps dates from 1957 but its origins can be traced to the early days of WWII when in 1942 the Air OP (Observation Post) squadrons of light observation aircraft were formed, piloted by Royal Artillery officers. An Army Air Corps comprising the Glider Pilot Regiment and the Parachute Regiment (Army Order 21/42) were formed in the same year. In 1944 the recently formed Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) was also incorporated in the Corps.

In 1945 the SAS was disbanded temporarily. The Parachute Regiment was divorced from the Corps in 1949 to join the Infantry of the Line, and in 1950 the original Army Air Corps was disbanded. The remaining Glider Pilots were retrained to fly powered aircraft and were formed into Light Liaison Flights operating alongside or as part of the Air OP squadrons.
In 1957 the existing Army Air Corps was formed from ... the

11.1 Air Observation Post
11.2 Light Liaison Units.

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Services

12. Royal Army Chaplain's Department

A centralised Army Chaplains' Department was formed under a Chaplain-General in Sept. 1796, although clerics had ministered to the troops since medieval times..

13. Royal Logistics Corps (RLC)

Formed 5 April 1993, by the union of five British Army corps ...
13.1 - Royal Engineers Postal and Courier Service
13.2 - Royal Corps of Transport

The Corps dates from July 1965 under its present title when the Royal Army Service Corps was re-designated and joined by the transportation elements and movement control service of the Corps of Royal Engineers. The new Corps became responsible all forms of transport, movement control, driver training and road safely in the Army. The responsibilities for providing rations, forage and fuel, together with barracks, fire-service elements and military staff clerks were transferred to the Royal Army Ordnance Corps.

13.3 - Royal Army Ordnance Corps

Traditionally the roles have been the procurement, storage and issue of armaments, ammunition and other warlike matériel - took over the supply functions from the The Royal Army Service Corps in 1965. Since then the Corps has been responsible supplying the Army with everything needed to fight, move and subsist.

13.3 Royal Pioneer Corps
13.4 Army Catering Corps

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14. Royal Army Medical Corps

15. Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers

16. Adjutant General's Corps

formed on 6 April 1992 through the amalgamation of ..
16.1 Army Legal Corps
16.2 Corps of Royal Military Police
16.3 Military Provost Staff Corps
16.4 Royal Army Educational Corps
16.5 Royal Army Pay Corps
16.6 Women's Royal Army Corps

formed on 1 February 1949 by Army Order 6 as the successor to the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) that had been founded in 1938. For much of its existence, its members performed administrative and other support tasks.
Disbanded April 1992 - Those that served with the Royal Army Pay Corps, the Corps of Royal Military Police, the Military Provost Staff Corps, the Royal Army Educational Corps, the Army Legal Corps and the Staff Clerks from the Royal Army Ordnance Corps were transferred to the newly formed Adjutant General's Corps.

16.7 Staff clerks from the Royal Army Ordnance Corps
16.8 Clerks from the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME)

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17. Royal Army Veterinary Corps

18. Small Arms School Corps

19. Royal Army Dental Corps