North Irish Horse
Encyclopedia
The North Irish Horse is a yeomanry
unit of the British
Territorial Army raised in the northern counties of Ireland
in the aftermath of the Second Boer War
. Raised and patronised by the nobility from their inception to the present day, they were the first non-regular unit to be deployed to France and the Low Counties with the British Expeditionary Force in 1914 and fought with distinction both as mounted troops and later as a Cyclist Regiment, achieving 18 battle honours. They were reduced to a single man in the inter war years and re-raised for World War II where they achieved their greatest distinctions in the North African and Italian campaigns. Reduced again after the Cold War
the regiment is now at Squadron strength and forms part of the Queen's Own Yeomanry
.
units in Ireland commenced with the "Militia Act 1793" which in Ireland was used in conjunction with the compulsory disbandment of Lord Charlemont's Irish Volunteers who had become a political entity and "out of the scope of official influence." The scope of the Militia was broadened by an act of the Dublin Parliament in 1796 which led to the raising of 49 troops of cavalry
, later renamed yeomanry
. A troop normally consisted of a captain, two lieutenant
s (commissioned by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland) and forty men along with a permanent sergeant
and trumpeter. Troops were grouped together under the command of a regular army Brigade
Major
. The force was known collectively as the "Irish Yeomanry" Each man provided his own horse. The falling need for this force eventually led to their disbandment in 1834.
With the advent of the Boer War
a parliamentary decision was taken to raise squadrons of Yeomanry Cavalry under the "Militia and Yeomanry Act 1901" for service in South Africa. Because of the pressing need to raise this force quickly normal cavalry training with swords or lances (known as the arme blanche) was dispensed with and the new yeomanry was issued only with rifles in a break with cavalry tradition. This new force was called the "Imperial Yeomanry". Six squadrons were quickly raised in Ireland including the 46th (1st Belfast), 54th (2nd Belfast), the 60th (North Irish), and 45th (Dublin) (known as the Dublin Hunt Squadron) commanded by the Captain, the Earl of Longford
. The 45th, 46th, 47th and 54th formed the 13th (Irish) Battalion Imperial Yeomanry. The 47th (Duke of Cambridge's Own) were raised from rich "men-about-town" in London by the Earl of Donoughmore
and paid £130 each for their horses and equipment. The officers of the battalion included: the Earl of Leitrim
, Sir John Power (of the Powers whiskey
family), James Craig (later Lord Craigavon) and was known as the "Millionaires Own".
Edward VII approved the formation of the North of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry and the South of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry in 1901. Recruiting for the North of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry began in 1903, with four squadrons raised:
They became a special reserve regiment in 1908 and the name changed to the North Irish Horse as part of the Haldane Reforms
, the formation of the Territorial Force in the UK which created the Special Reserve of Militia and Yeomanry regiments in Ireland. The North Irish Horse, along with the other Militia battalions remained on the Special Reserve list until 1953. This arrangement gave the Irish units precedence in the line over the Territorial Army regiments just after the Cavalry of the Line but also guaranteed the use of the Militia and Yeomanry in overseas conflicts.
The first commander was the Earl of Shaftesbury
whose adjutant was Captain RGO Bramston-Newman, 7th (Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards
, from Cork
. Senior NCOs from regular, Cavalry of the Line units became the permanent staff instructors (PSIs). On 7 December 1913 the Duke of Abercorn
was appointed as the Regiment's first Honorary Colonel.
The declaration of war against Germany in August 1914 found the North Irish Horse at summer camp, as was its sister regiment the South Irish Horse
. The Expeditionary Force squadron (designated A Squadron) under the command of Major Lord Cole, consisting of 6 officers and 154 other ranks, along with its counterpart in the South Irish Horse (designated B Squadron) was assigned to the British Expeditionary Force. Both squadrons sailed from Dublin on the SS Architect on 17 August 1914. They were the first non-regular troops to land in France and be in action in the First World War. They were joined shortly afterwards by C Squadron of the North Irish Horse under the command of Major Lord Massereene and Ferrard
DSO
. Three more squadrons of the 'Horse' were to join the regiment in France landing on 2 May 1915, 17 November 1915 and 11 January 1916. A total of 70 officers and 1,931 men of the regiment went to war between 1914 and 1916.
The regiment did not stay together as a unit but squadrons were attached to different formations in the BEF as and when required.
On 25 May 1916 2nd North Irish Horse was formed which included, as A Sqn, the Service Squadron 6th Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. This squadron had been formed on 2 October 1914 from volunteers of the Inniskilling Horse of the Ulster Volunteer Force. This squadron did not welcome the change and maintained their Inniskilling identity and were allowed to keep their precedence in the line, coming just after the Dragoons until 1919.
Records indicate that a third regiment was being formed at the depot in Antrim
and it has been speculated that they had unofficially adopted the title "3rd North Irish Horse" but no official records exist to support this.
, noted that "the cavalry were being used for every odd job where there was no-one else to carry it out". This led to many officers and men transferring to more active units because they felt they were not taking an active part in the war. The vast majority of "Horse" casualties in the Great War were when serving with other units during this period.
After conversion to a cyclist battalion the regiment became part of the "Great Retreat of 1918" during the Operation Michael
phase of the German Kaiserschlacht (or Spring Offensive). Following the Armistice
, on the 13 November a supply of boot blackening and button polish was made available in the Other Ranks canteen and the regiment began handing in stores in preparation for moving back to Ireland. The regiment's location was close to Le Cateau
, not far from where they had started the war. During the Great War the "Horse" won 18 battle honours, and lost 27 officers and 123 men. One officer, Captain Richard West
won the Victoria Cross
, Distinguished Service Order
and Bar
, and Military Cross
.
en route for Pembroke Dock
while in Antrim the regimental depot closed and the remaining men there were transferred to the Curragh Camp
prior to being demobbed. The regiment's horses were transferred to the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars
and the regiment was classed as "disembodied" which in British Army parlance meant that it no longer existed except as a name on the Army List with a complement (in this case) of an Honorary Colonel, Honorary Chaplain, a Brevet
Colonel (EA Maude), six majors, six subalterns and the quartermaster
although these officers had no peacetime training commitments.
The naming conventions changed as the commitment of the Territorial Force in Great Britain
was rewarded by its renaming as the Territorial Army. The Special Reserve in Ireland was renamed "the Militia" on 1 October 1921. The Army List contained a section headed, "Cavalry Special Reserve - Irish Horse, North Irish, South Irish. In 1922 this changed to "Cavalry Militia" with precedence following the 17th/21st Lancers
. By this time however the South Irish Horse had been disbanded on 31 July 1922, as part of the partition of Ireland. Following the disbandment of King Edward's Horse
in 1924 the North Irish Horse became the sole cavalry militia regiment on the army list and also the only militia regiment which had not been placed in suspended animation.
Also in 1924 the regiment held its first reunion in Thompson's Restaurant in Belfast on 28 February where it was agreed that a memorial to the dead of the Great War should be commissioned. The sum of £500 was allocated and a memorial window was unveiled by the Earl of Shaftesbury and dedicated by the Right Reverend RW Hamilton MA, the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church on the 25 April 1925 on the occasion of the 2nd Regimental Reunion.
Bt
, MC
. This became a source of amusement in society and the North Irish Horse was given the sobriquet
of the "One Man Regiment". This state of affairs continued until 1938 when the British Government decided to increase the number of available regiments to meet the possible threat of war from the emergent Nazi regime in Germany.
On the 31 August 1939 the War Office ordered the reconstitution of the regiment as a wheeled armoured car unit under the command of Sir Basil Brooke
(formerly 10th Hussars) with Lord Erne
as his second in command, although Brooke was shortly to leave the position as his political commitments took precedence. Ultimately to be replaced, after several temporary officers, by Lt Col Sir David Dawnay, grandson of the 8th Viscount Downe
. Recruiting commenced and instructors were brought in from other RAC and Yeomanry units to raise the Horse from its "One Man Regiment" status from scratch. On 11 September a Special Army Order transferred the regiment from the Cavalry of the Line to the Royal Armoured Corps
(RAC). By November 50 recruits had been trained and a further 30–40 were due to start training immediately. The regiment also moved its base to Enniskillen
Castle in the same month. By January 1940 the regiment had received its vintage Rolls Royce armoured cars
fitted with Vickers machine gun
s and No 11 radio sets and was able to form 3 sabre squadrons plus HQ Sqn. The officer cadre was again heavily filled by members of the nobility with the squadrons being commanded by:
Training was interrupted on 24 May 1940 when an Irish Republican Army
(IRA) bomb exploded close to the officers mess which was in the Main Street in Enniskillen but before any further incidents occurred the regiment was moved to Portrush
.
Training exercises continued along the north coast, which caused a certain amount of boredom amongst the officers and men who by now had expected to be fighting. The regiment was then moved on 19 April 1941 to Ballykinlar
training camp and re-equipped as an armoured regiment with Mk 1 Valentine tanks. The Horse was designated to be a "Cruiser"
regiment but not enough stocks of this type of tank were available following the evacuation of the BEF from France
and the loss of their armour and equipment.
On 18 October 1941 the Horse left Northern Ireland and took up new accommodation at Westbury
, Wiltshire
with the squadrons billeted in the surrounding villages. The roling was changed again at this point and the regiment handed in its Valentines to receive Churchill
I - Mk IV's brigaded with 34 Army Tank Brigade under the command of JN Tetley
son of the English brewing magnate. At this point the tanks were given markings which corresponded to the formation, regiment and squadrons they belonged to and in a practice which was to become customary with all Irish units of the RAC each tank was also given a name of an Irish town or place beginning in the letter of the squadron designation.
The regiment continued to be moved around the Home Counties and also spent time in Wales, exercising and becoming familiar with their Churchill tanks. On 6 September 1942 they transferred from the 34th Brigade to the 25th Brigade attached to the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division joining the 51st Royal Tank Regiment
(formerly the 7th Leeds Rifles) and the 142nd Regiment RAC (formerly the 7th Suffolk Regiment
). News of the 8th Army
's victory at El Alamein was a good morale booster.
As Christmas leave was drawing to a close those still away from the unit were recalled by telegram and ordered to get ready to deploy for overseas service, although oddly, they were then given six days "embarkation leave" (with an extra day to allow the Irishmen to travel home). On their return the regiment's tanks were sheeted down so that all markings were hidden and all ranks had to divest themselves of identifying badges to prevent knowledge of their deployment becoming known. All were then entrained for Liverpool where they embarked up the troopship Duchess of York
.
On 2 February 1943 the North Irish Horse landed in Algiers
and marched seventeen miles on foot to their new camp.
Their first job was to create a defensive force around Le Kef. The regiment was not up to strength at this time as many of its tanks and equipment had been delayed by logistical difficulties. They were ordered to leave Le Kef at speed to counter a stroke by elements of the German 10th Panzer Division and made best speed with all 27 available tanks towards Béja
, some 90 miles away - one of the longest "on track" journeys ever made by Churchill tanks. In the ensuing 60 hour action the Horse took their first casualties of the war and lost a number of tanks to enemy artillery and direct tank-on-tank actions. They also received their first decoration with Captain Griffith being awarded the Military Cross
.
The regiment continued to support other elements of the invasion force in troop or squadron formations, taking heavy casualties and losing tanks but continuing to press forward all the time until, in early April moving to Oued Zarga where the entire regiment came together for the first time since landing at Algiers. In the further advance north while attached to the Irish Brigade under the command of Brigadier Nelson Russell the Horse showed the agility of the often underestimated Churchills by climbing heights regarded as safe from tanks and surprising the Germans occupying them, a fact noted by Spike Milligan
in his account of the Tunisian Campaign in his book "Rommel?" "Gunner Who?"
The most notable of these feats of tank hill climbing was the attack on Djebel Rhar in support of the 5th Buffs. The German infantry did not expect tanks to be able to make the crest of the Djebel and as a result were thrown into panic when the Churchills of B Sqn appeared in their midst. On the 16th June the Belfast Telegraph carried a report of the action:
One German prisoner was heard to remark that the tanks were "Iron Mules".
On 6 May the final attack was launched against Tunis
and after severe street fighting and the capture of six 88 mm guns by C Sqn (in support of the Indian Brigade) the town was finally occupied. This effectively ended the campaign in Tunisia.
The Horse were allowed to rest and receive replacement vehicles and men for several months after the Tunisian actions. It has been surmised that this is because General Montgomery did not believe the Churchill tank to be a practical vehicle for the Italian campaign. Nevertheless the regiment embarked on 16 April for Naples, coming under air attack as they entered the harbour two days later. Vesuvius could be seen just a few miles away with fire and smoke pouring from its brim, having erupted just several weeks earlier on the 18th March.
tanks and then loaded all tanks onto trains to be taken further up the coast to Foggia
and from there moved into a brigade harbour area near the village of Lucera
. By now Lord O'Neil had been given command of the regiment with Colonel Dawnay moving onto brigade staff. After a week in harbour the regiment was sent on transporters to Mignano near Monte Cassino
which had fallen some days earlier along with the rest of the Gustav Line. The fighting was not over however as the Adolf Hitler Line now renamed the Senger Line lay just six miles north and it would be the next objective. The Horse were briefed for Operation Chesterfield which was an assault by the 1st Canadian
Division supported by tanks of the North Irish Horse and the 51st Royal Tanks. H Hour was to be at 6am on the 23 May. The plan required the 2nd and 3rd Canadian Brigades supported by the two tank regiments to break through the Hitler Line on a 3,000 yard front. The assaulting troops came under a withering hail of fire on the well prepared killing grounds of the heavily defended German positions. The Horse took heavy casualties and had to regroup by merging depleted squadrons together. One tank slipped off a track and fell 50 feet into a ravine rolling over on its turret and then back onto its tracks. The crew were shaken but unhurt and the incident gave them another chance to display the marvelous climbing skills of the Churchill as they crawled slowly up the almost sheer walls of the ravine to re-enter the battle. During this battle Major Griffiths again displayed great heroism and was later awarded the only bar to the MC which an officer of the regiment received. The total cost the Horse in the engagement was 36 killed in action, 36 wounded and 32 tanks lost. This represented 60% of regimental strength. The date of 23 May was later chosen as a "Regimental Day" to commemorate the bloodiest day in the history of the North Irish Horse which lost more men than on any other day in two world wars. The breakthrough happened however and the German defenders began evacuating the position on the night of the 23rd May, meanwhile the allied advance continued.
On 4 May the regiment, along with the rest of 25 Brigade was transferred to the 4th British Division in support of 28 Brigade but remained in reserve. After news of the D Day Landings was heard the regiment was again transferred and came under command of the 17th Indian Brigade. This brief period of respite allowed a number of the men to visit Rome. Many visited the Basilica San Pietro
and marveled at the undamaged splendour of such an edifice.
The regiment was then tasked to put together a composite unit of Shermans to relieve the 142nd RAC Regt's composite group with the Indian 8th Division and the advance began westwards to Perugia
which fell on 20 June. On 16 June the Horse again relieved the 142nd, this time at Bastia Umbra
. In the days and actions that followed, new upgunned Churchill tanks arrived with their BESA machine guns replaced with Brownings and the main armament upped from a 6 pdr to the newer 75 mm (14.9pdr). As part of Operation Dragoon
the regiment again advanced, this time into the Tuscan
countryside. The Germans were still fighting tenaciously and barely a day went by without stiff resistance from them.
river followed by an attack on Coriana to secure the bridges crossing the Marano
river. On the 8th of September the regiment was withdrawn to a safer area in the knowledge that the Gothic Line had been broken.
On 29 November the regiment was advancing north to Monte Cavallo
supporting the Mahratta
infantry. Lt Col Lord O'Neill arrived and took up a position of observation at a small stone barn. A heavy shell impacted nearby and he was killed.
By this time the autumn rains had arrive which slowed the allied advance but did not stop it. On 2 October the regiment was ordere to move to Poggio Berni
to relieve the 6th Royal Tank Regiment. Action continued until the 3 November when the Horse were pulled out of the line and local leave granted after a memorial service for those killed in action.
. On 4 December it was again transferred, this time to the 21st Tank Brigade under the command of Brigadier David Dawnay, the former regimental commander. On 12 January they moved into Ravenna
in support of the Italian
Gruppo Cremona who were now fighting on the side of the allies.
In late March the regiment was involved in the action around Lake Comacchio
and by 2 April were behind the enemy's flood defences and engaging them at close range. The last of the German resistance crumbled as more tanks made it into position to engage them and they surrendered with the Horse taking 40 prisoners.
Following Operation Buckland and the crossing of the River Po
the regiment was ordered to stand down on the 30th April 1945 for the last time in World War II. Four days later all German forces in Italy surrendered.
The North Irish Horse lost 73 men killed in action during World War II including a commanding officer, two squadron leaders and several troop leaders.
In the immediate aftermath of the German surrender the regiment fell into a routine of guard duties and time off. Eventually most of the tanks were handed in except for three per squadron and a move was made into Austria
where the Horse took on the role of armoured reconnaissance regiment for the 78th Division. In January 1946 another move was effected into Germany where the Horsemen carried out internal security duties in the Wuppertal
area until 7 June when these duties were handed over to the 14th/20th Hussars and the North Irish Horse was disbanded. In 1947 however it was reformed as part of the extension of the Territorial Army Yeomanry into Northern Ireland
. In 1956 the TA lost its tanks and the Horse became an armoured reconnaissance regiment again in armoured cars. It survived disbandment at this point and did so again in 1961. Further cuts to the TA in 1967 saw the Horse reduced to one squadron of the only armoured car regiment retained in the TA. During the post 1956 period the regiment was equipped with a variety of wheeled armoured vehicles such as Daimler armoured cars, Alvis Saladins, Saracens, and Ferrets and later, fox armoured cars, Spartan
APCs and Sultan Command Vehicles.
from the outset but these ties were broken in 1958 when the KDG amalgamated with the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)
to form the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
. From that point onwards sponsorship was given by two of the remaining cavalry regiments of the time which were the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards
and the Queen's Royal Irish Hussars
both of whom had also had to endure amalgamation in past reforms. Today the Queens Royal Lancers also supply the Squadron with PSI's due to being a part of the Queens Own Yeomanry.
by Princess Alexandra of Kent
at a parade held on the Balmoral Showgrounds
in Belfast
. On 28 October 1962 a second memorial window was unveiled in Belfast City Hall
to commemorate the fallen of the 2nd World War. The was placed beside World War I window. Unveiled by General Dawnay and dedicated by the Archdeacon of Raphoe
, the Reverend Louis Crooks (Regimental Chaplain) who himself was a veteran of World War II with the 9th (Londonderry) HAA Regiment.
- a Squadron equipped with CVR(T) Scimitar and Spartan based at Dunmore Park Camp, Antrim Road, Belfast, with RHQ in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Personnel have been deployed to Kosovo
, Bosnia
, Iraq
and Afghanistan
.
Yeomanry
Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Territorial Army, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units may serve in a variety of different military roles.-History:...
unit of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Territorial Army raised in the northern counties of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in the aftermath of the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
. Raised and patronised by the nobility from their inception to the present day, they were the first non-regular unit to be deployed to France and the Low Counties with the British Expeditionary Force in 1914 and fought with distinction both as mounted troops and later as a Cyclist Regiment, achieving 18 battle honours. They were reduced to a single man in the inter war years and re-raised for World War II where they achieved their greatest distinctions in the North African and Italian campaigns. Reduced again after the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
the regiment is now at Squadron strength and forms part of the Queen's Own Yeomanry
Queen's Own Yeomanry
The Queen's Own Yeomanry is an armoured regiment of the British Territorial Army. The Queen's Own Yeomanry is the only Yeomanry regiment that serves in the formation reconnaissance role, equipped with the CVR family of armoured reconnaissance vehicles, including Scimitar and Spartan.On...
.
Background
The raising of MilitiaMilitia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
units in Ireland commenced with the "Militia Act 1793" which in Ireland was used in conjunction with the compulsory disbandment of Lord Charlemont's Irish Volunteers who had become a political entity and "out of the scope of official influence." The scope of the Militia was broadened by an act of the Dublin Parliament in 1796 which led to the raising of 49 troops of cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
, later renamed yeomanry
Yeomanry
Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Territorial Army, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units may serve in a variety of different military roles.-History:...
. A troop normally consisted of a captain, two lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
s (commissioned by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland) and forty men along with a permanent sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
and trumpeter. Troops were grouped together under the command of a regular army Brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
. The force was known collectively as the "Irish Yeomanry" Each man provided his own horse. The falling need for this force eventually led to their disbandment in 1834.
With the advent of the Boer War
Boer War
The Boer Wars were two wars fought between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics, the Oranje Vrijstaat and the Republiek van Transvaal ....
a parliamentary decision was taken to raise squadrons of Yeomanry Cavalry under the "Militia and Yeomanry Act 1901" for service in South Africa. Because of the pressing need to raise this force quickly normal cavalry training with swords or lances (known as the arme blanche) was dispensed with and the new yeomanry was issued only with rifles in a break with cavalry tradition. This new force was called the "Imperial Yeomanry". Six squadrons were quickly raised in Ireland including the 46th (1st Belfast), 54th (2nd Belfast), the 60th (North Irish), and 45th (Dublin) (known as the Dublin Hunt Squadron) commanded by the Captain, the Earl of Longford
Earl of Longford
Earl of Longford is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland. It was first bestowed upon Francis Aungier, 3rd Baron Aungier of Longford, in 1677, with remainder to his younger brother Ambrose. He had previously represented Surrey in the House of Commons and had already been...
. The 45th, 46th, 47th and 54th formed the 13th (Irish) Battalion Imperial Yeomanry. The 47th (Duke of Cambridge's Own) were raised from rich "men-about-town" in London by the Earl of Donoughmore
Richard Hely-Hutchinson, 6th Earl of Donoughmore
Richard Walter Hely-Hutchinson, 6th Earl of Donoughmore KP, PC , styled Viscount Suirdale until 1900, was an Irish peer and Conservative politician...
and paid £130 each for their horses and equipment. The officers of the battalion included: the Earl of Leitrim
Earl of Leitrim
Earl of Leitrim was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1795 for Robert Clements, 1st Viscount Leitrim. He had already been created Baron Leitrim, of Manor Hamilton in the County of Leitrim, in 1783, and Viscount Leitrim in 1793, also in the Peerage of Ireland. In 1800 he was...
, Sir John Power (of the Powers whiskey
Powers (whiskey)
Powers Gold Label is a brand of Irish whiskey. Originally a pure pot still whiskey, it is now produced from a blend of pot still and grain whiskey. It is the most popular Irish whiskey sold in Ireland, selling over 6 million measures per annum. - History :...
family), James Craig (later Lord Craigavon) and was known as the "Millionaires Own".
Formation
Following the South African war sixteen new yeomanry regiments were formed, two of these in Ireland. KingBritish monarchy
The monarchy of the United Kingdom is the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories. The present monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, has reigned since 6 February 1952. She and her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial and representational duties...
Edward VII approved the formation of the North of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry and the South of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry in 1901. Recruiting for the North of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry began in 1903, with four squadrons raised:
- RHQ and ‘A’ Squadron in BelfastBelfastBelfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, - ‘B’ Squadron in DerryDerryDerry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
/BallymenaBallymenaBallymena is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland and the seat of Ballymena Borough Council. Ballymena had a population of 28,717 people in the 2001 Census....
, - ‘C’ Squadron in EnniskillenEnniskillenEnniskillen is a town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is located almost exactly in the centre of the county between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,599 in the 2001 Census...
and - ‘D’ Squadron in DundalkDundalkDundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equi-distant from Dublin and Belfast. The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations...
.
They became a special reserve regiment in 1908 and the name changed to the North Irish Horse as part of the Haldane Reforms
Haldane Reforms
The Haldane Reforms were a series of far-ranging reforms of the British Army made from 1906 to 1912, and named after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane...
, the formation of the Territorial Force in the UK which created the Special Reserve of Militia and Yeomanry regiments in Ireland. The North Irish Horse, along with the other Militia battalions remained on the Special Reserve list until 1953. This arrangement gave the Irish units precedence in the line over the Territorial Army regiments just after the Cavalry of the Line but also guaranteed the use of the Militia and Yeomanry in overseas conflicts.
The first commander was the Earl of Shaftesbury
Earl of Shaftesbury
Earl of Shaftesbury is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1672 for Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Baron Ashley, a prominent politician in the Cabal then dominating the policies of King Charles II...
whose adjutant was Captain RGO Bramston-Newman, 7th (Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards
7th Dragoon Guards
The 7th 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....
, from Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
. Senior NCOs from regular, Cavalry of the Line units became the permanent staff instructors (PSIs). On 7 December 1913 the Duke of Abercorn
James Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Abercorn
James Albert Edward Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Abercorn KG, KP, PC , styled Marquess of Hamilton between 1885 and 1913, was a British peer and Unionist politician. He was the first Governor of Northern Ireland, a post he held between 1922 and 1945...
was appointed as the Regiment's first Honorary Colonel.
The Great War
South Irish Horse
The South Irish Horse was a Territorial Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. Formed on the 2nd January 1902 as the South of Ireland Imperial Yeomanry. It was renamed as the South Irish Horse from 7 July 1908 and transferred to the Special Reserve...
. The Expeditionary Force squadron (designated A Squadron) under the command of Major Lord Cole, consisting of 6 officers and 154 other ranks, along with its counterpart in the South Irish Horse (designated B Squadron) was assigned to the British Expeditionary Force. Both squadrons sailed from Dublin on the SS Architect on 17 August 1914. They were the first non-regular troops to land in France and be in action in the First World War. They were joined shortly afterwards by C Squadron of the North Irish Horse under the command of Major Lord Massereene and Ferrard
Algernon Skeffington, 12th Viscount Massereene
Algernon William John Clotworthy Skeffington, 12th Viscount Massereene and 5th Viscount Ferrard DSO was an Ulster Unionist member of the Senate of Northern Ireland from 1921-1929. During this period he served as Deputy Leader of the Senate and Parliamentary Secretary in the Department of the Prime...
DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
. Three more squadrons of the 'Horse' were to join the regiment in France landing on 2 May 1915, 17 November 1915 and 11 January 1916. A total of 70 officers and 1,931 men of the regiment went to war between 1914 and 1916.
The regiment did not stay together as a unit but squadrons were attached to different formations in the BEF as and when required.
- A Sqn - attached to GHQ until 4 January 1916, transferred to 55th Division. On 10 May 1916 it was attached to VII Corps, forming the 1st North Irish Horse along with D and E Squadrons. 1 NIH was transferred to XIX Corps in July 1917, and then to V Corps, September 1917. In March 1918, they were reroled as the 5th (North Irish Horse) Cyclist BattalionArmy Cyclist CorpsThe Army Cyclist Corps was a corps of the British Army active during the First World War, and controlling the Army's bicycle infantry.Volunteer cyclist units had been formed as early as the 1880s, with the first complete bicycle unit being raised in 1888...
until the end of the war. - B Sqn - was attached to the 59th (2nd North Midland) Division, August 1915. In June 1916 they formed, along with C Squadron and the Service Squadron of the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons6th (Inniskilling) DragoonsThe 6th Dragoons was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1689. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into the 5th/6th Dragoons in 1922.The 'Skins' are one of the four ancestor regiments of the Royal Dragoon...
, the 2nd North Irish Horse. This battalion was attached to X Corps until August 1917, then disbanded. The men were sent to be trained as infantry more than 300 of them joined the 9th (Service) (North Irish Horse) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers. Fifty of those who transferred were later killed in action. - C Sqn - moved to France on 22 August 1914, and was attached to GHQ before being detached to 5th Division as divisional cavalry squadron to replace A Sqn of the 19th Hussars. On 14 April 1915 it was transferred to the 3rd Division, and in June 1916 was sent to join B Sqn in the 2nd North Irish Horse which was later disbanded.
- D Sqn - attached to the 51st (Highland) Division in early 1915, but in June 1916 joined A Sqn in the 1st North Irish Horse.
- E Sqn - was attached to 34th Division as part of the divisional mounted contingent from early 1915, and in June 1916 joined A Sqn in the 1st North Irish Horse.
- F Squadron - was attached to the 33rd Division from early 1915 until April 1916 before being briefly attached to 1st Cavalry Division, 49th (West Riding) Division, and 32nd Division, before joining X Corps in June 1916. It was redesignated B Squadron 1 North Irish Horse in May 1916.
On 25 May 1916 2nd North Irish Horse was formed which included, as A Sqn, the Service Squadron 6th Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. This squadron had been formed on 2 October 1914 from volunteers of the Inniskilling Horse of the Ulster Volunteer Force. This squadron did not welcome the change and maintained their Inniskilling identity and were allowed to keep their precedence in the line, coming just after the Dragoons until 1919.
Records indicate that a third regiment was being formed at the depot in Antrim
Antrim, County Antrim
Antrim is a town in County Antrim in the northeast of Northern Ireland, on the banks of the Six Mile Water, half a mile north-east of Lough Neagh. It had a population of 20,001 people in the 2001 Census. The town is the administrative centre of Antrim Borough Council...
and it has been speculated that they had unofficially adopted the title "3rd North Irish Horse" but no official records exist to support this.
Cyclist Corps
As the war in France and the Low Countries stagnated into trench warfare the mobility of cavalry and other mounted troops was restricted leading to many cavalry regiments being dismounted and deployed on a range of tasks from that of infantry to menial tasks, including burying the dead. The loss of some the squadrons' War Diaries for the early part of the war means that much information is no longer available, but enough remains to know that some men were deployed on fatigues, enough to render the squadrons non existent from a "military or fighting point." The historian of the British Cavalry, the Earl of AngleseyEarl of Anglesey
The title of Earl of Anglesey was created twice in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1623 when Christopher Villiers was created Earl of Anglesey, in Wales, as well as Baron Villiers. He was the younger brother of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham and the elder brother of John...
, noted that "the cavalry were being used for every odd job where there was no-one else to carry it out". This led to many officers and men transferring to more active units because they felt they were not taking an active part in the war. The vast majority of "Horse" casualties in the Great War were when serving with other units during this period.
After conversion to a cyclist battalion the regiment became part of the "Great Retreat of 1918" during the Operation Michael
Operation Michael
Operation Michael was a First World War German military operation that began the Spring Offensive on 21 March 1918. It was launched from the Hindenburg Line, in the vicinity of Saint-Quentin, France...
phase of the German Kaiserschlacht (or Spring Offensive). Following the Armistice
Armistice
An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
, on the 13 November a supply of boot blackening and button polish was made available in the Other Ranks canteen and the regiment began handing in stores in preparation for moving back to Ireland. The regiment's location was close to Le Cateau
Le Cateau-Cambrésis
Le Cateau-Cambrésis is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.The term Cambrésis indicates that it lies in the county of that name which fell to the Prince-Bishop of Cambrai.-History:...
, not far from where they had started the war. During the Great War the "Horse" won 18 battle honours, and lost 27 officers and 123 men. One officer, Captain Richard West
Richard Annesley West
Richard Annesley West VC DSO & Bar MC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
won the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
, Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
and Bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
, and Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
.
The Inter-war years
By 31 January 1919, the regiment was preparing to reduce to a cadre of 3 officers, 5 senior ranks and 27 other ranks who would oversee the rundown of the regiment and its departure from France. On 13 May 1919 the rear party left VignacourtVignacourt
Vignacourt is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Vignacourt is situated northwest of Amiens, on the D12 and D49 junction.-Population:-External links:*...
en route for Pembroke Dock
Pembroke Dock
Pembroke Dock is a town in Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales, lying north of Pembroke on the River Cleddau. Originally a small fishing village known as Paterchurch, the town was greatly expanded from 1814 onwards following the construction of a Royal Naval Dockyard...
while in Antrim the regimental depot closed and the remaining men there were transferred to the Curragh Camp
Curragh
The Curragh is a flat open plain of almost 5,000 acres of common land in County Kildare, Ireland, between Newbridge and Kildare. This area is well-known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the famous Japanese Gardens. Also...
prior to being demobbed. The regiment's horses were transferred to the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars
8th King's Royal Irish Hussars
The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1693. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into The Queen's Royal Irish Hussars in 1958....
and the regiment was classed as "disembodied" which in British Army parlance meant that it no longer existed except as a name on the Army List with a complement (in this case) of an Honorary Colonel, Honorary Chaplain, a Brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
Colonel (EA Maude), six majors, six subalterns and the quartermaster
Quartermaster
Quartermaster refers to two different military occupations depending on if the assigned unit is land based or naval.In land armies, especially US units, it is a term referring to either an individual soldier or a unit who specializes in distributing supplies and provisions to troops. The senior...
although these officers had no peacetime training commitments.
The naming conventions changed as the commitment of the Territorial Force in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
was rewarded by its renaming as the Territorial Army. The Special Reserve in Ireland was renamed "the Militia" on 1 October 1921. The Army List contained a section headed, "Cavalry Special Reserve - Irish Horse, North Irish, South Irish. In 1922 this changed to "Cavalry Militia" with precedence following the 17th/21st Lancers
17th/21st Lancers
The 17th/21st Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1922 to 1993.It was formed in 1922 in England by the amalgamation of the 17th Lancers and the 21st Lancers . From 1930 to 1939 it was deployed overseas; first in Egypt for two years, and then in India for seven...
. By this time however the South Irish Horse had been disbanded on 31 July 1922, as part of the partition of Ireland. Following the disbandment of King Edward's Horse
King Edward's Horse
King Edward's Horse was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1901, which saw service in the Boer War and the First World War.-Early history:...
in 1924 the North Irish Horse became the sole cavalry militia regiment on the army list and also the only militia regiment which had not been placed in suspended animation.
Also in 1924 the regiment held its first reunion in Thompson's Restaurant in Belfast on 28 February where it was agreed that a memorial to the dead of the Great War should be commissioned. The sum of £500 was allocated and a memorial window was unveiled by the Earl of Shaftesbury and dedicated by the Right Reverend RW Hamilton MA, the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church on the 25 April 1925 on the occasion of the 2nd Regimental Reunion.
The "One Man Regiment"
Retirement and death eventually reduced the regimental strength in 1934 to just one combatant officer, Major Sir Ronald D RossSir Ronald Ross, 2nd Baronet
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Ronald Deane Ross, 2nd Baronet MC was an Ulster Unionist Northern Irish Member of Parliament .-Military career:...
Bt
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
. This became a source of amusement in society and the North Irish Horse was given the sobriquet
Sobriquet
A sobriquet is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. It is usually a familiar name, distinct from a pseudonym assumed as a disguise, but a nickname which is familiar enough such that it can be used in place of a real name without the need of explanation...
of the "One Man Regiment". This state of affairs continued until 1938 when the British Government decided to increase the number of available regiments to meet the possible threat of war from the emergent Nazi regime in Germany.
Prelude to war
Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough
Basil Stanlake Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough, Bt, KG, CBE, MC, PC, HML was an Ulster Unionist politician who became the third Prime Minister of Northern Ireland in 1943 and held office until 1963....
(formerly 10th Hussars) with Lord Erne
John Crichton, 5th Earl Erne
John Henry George Crichton, 5th Earl Erne , briefly known as Viscount Crichton in 1914, was an Anglo-Irish peer, soldier and politician.-Biography:...
as his second in command, although Brooke was shortly to leave the position as his political commitments took precedence. Ultimately to be replaced, after several temporary officers, by Lt Col Sir David Dawnay, grandson of the 8th Viscount Downe
Viscount Downe
Viscount Downe is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland. The first creation came in 1675 for William Ducie. However, the title became extinct on his death in 1679. The second creation came in 1680 for John Dawnay. He had earlier represented Yorkshire and Pontefract in the...
. Recruiting commenced and instructors were brought in from other RAC and Yeomanry units to raise the Horse from its "One Man Regiment" status from scratch. On 11 September a Special Army Order transferred the regiment from the Cavalry of the Line to the Royal Armoured Corps
Royal Armoured Corps
The Royal Armoured Corps is currently a collection of ten regular regiments, mostly converted from old horse cavalry regiments, and four Yeomanry regiments of the Territorial Army...
(RAC). By November 50 recruits had been trained and a further 30–40 were due to start training immediately. The regiment also moved its base to Enniskillen
Enniskillen
Enniskillen is a town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is located almost exactly in the centre of the county between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,599 in the 2001 Census...
Castle in the same month. By January 1940 the regiment had received its vintage Rolls Royce armoured cars
Rolls-Royce Armoured Car
The Rolls-Royce armoured car was a British armoured car developed in 1914 and used in World War I and in the early part of World War II.-Production history:...
fitted with Vickers machine gun
Vickers machine gun
Not to be confused with the Vickers light machine gunThe Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled .303 inch machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army...
s and No 11 radio sets and was able to form 3 sabre squadrons plus HQ Sqn. The officer cadre was again heavily filled by members of the nobility with the squadrons being commanded by:
- HQ Sqn - Captain Newton commanding with the Marquess of ElyMarquess of ElyMarquess of Ely, of the County of Wexford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Charles Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely. He was born Charles Tottenham, the son of John Tottenham, who had been created a Baronet, of Tottenham Green in the County of Wexford, in the Baronetage of...
as second in command, based at Castle Barracks - A Sqn - CaptainCaptain (British Army and Royal Marines)Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
Lord O'NeillBaron O'NeillBaron O'Neill, of Shane's Castle in the County of Antrim, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1868 for the musical composer The Rev...
, based at County Hall - B Sqn - Captain Booth, based at the McArthur Hall
- C Sqn - Captain Sir Norman StrongeNorman StrongeCaptain Sir Charles Norman Lockhart Stronge, 8th Baronet, MC, PC , JP was a senior Unionist politician in Northern Ireland....
BtBaronetA baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
, based at the Orange HallOrange InstitutionThe Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...
Irish Republican Army (1922–1969)
The original Irish Republican Army fought a guerrilla war against British rule in Ireland in the Irish War of Independence 1919–1921. Following the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty on 6 December 1921, the IRA in the 26 counties that were to become the Irish Free State split between supporters and...
(IRA) bomb exploded close to the officers mess which was in the Main Street in Enniskillen but before any further incidents occurred the regiment was moved to Portrush
Portrush
Portrush is a small seaside resort town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on the County Londonderry border. The main part of the old town, including the railway station as well as most hotels, restaurants and bars, is built on a mile–long peninsula, Ramore Head, pointing north-northwest....
.
Training exercises continued along the north coast, which caused a certain amount of boredom amongst the officers and men who by now had expected to be fighting. The regiment was then moved on 19 April 1941 to Ballykinlar
Ballykinler
Ballykinler or Ballykinlar is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies 12 kilometres south west of Downpatrick, in the parish of Tyrella and Dundrum. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 348 people. It is within the Down District Council area.It is a linear settlement running...
training camp and re-equipped as an armoured regiment with Mk 1 Valentine tanks. The Horse was designated to be a "Cruiser"
Cruiser tank
The cruiser tank was a British tank concept of the inter-war period. This concept was the driving force behind several tank designs which saw action during the Second World War....
regiment but not enough stocks of this type of tank were available following the evacuation of the BEF from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the loss of their armour and equipment.
On 18 October 1941 the Horse left Northern Ireland and took up new accommodation at Westbury
Westbury, Wiltshire
Westbury is a town and civil parish in the west of the English county of Wiltshire, most famous for the Westbury White Horse.-Name:The most likely origin of the West- in Westbury is simply that the town is near the western edge of the county of Wiltshire, the bounds of which have been much the same...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
with the squadrons billeted in the surrounding villages. The roling was changed again at this point and the regiment handed in its Valentines to receive Churchill
Churchill tank
The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV was a heavy British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, and its use as the basis of many specialist vehicles. It was one of the heaviest Allied tanks of the war...
I - Mk IV's brigaded with 34 Army Tank Brigade under the command of JN Tetley
Joshua Tetley
Joshua Tetley was the founder of the Tetley's Brewery in Leeds, England. The brewery was founded in 1822 and Joshua Tetley bought the brewery for £400. In 1839, Tetley made his son a partner of the business...
son of the English brewing magnate. At this point the tanks were given markings which corresponded to the formation, regiment and squadrons they belonged to and in a practice which was to become customary with all Irish units of the RAC each tank was also given a name of an Irish town or place beginning in the letter of the squadron designation.
Tank names
| Donegal |
|---|
| Adara |
| Ballina |
| C Squadron Carnlough Carnlough Carnlough is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It has a picturesque harbour on the shores of Carnlough Bay. Carnlough is situated on the Coast Road beside the North Channel and at the foot of Glencloy, the second of the nine Glens of Antrim... Castlederg Castlederg Castlederg is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Derg and is close to the border with County Donegal. The village has a ruined castle and two ancient tombs known as the Druid's Altar and Todd's Den... Cavan Cavan Cavan is the county town of County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland. The town lies in the north central part of Ireland, near the border with Northern Ireland... Clonmel Clonmel Clonmel is the county town of South Tipperary in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. While the borough had a population of 15,482 in 2006, another 17,008 people were in the rural hinterland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked both... Cobh Cobh Cobh is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour. Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island... Cookstown Cookstown Cookstown may refer to either of the following:*Cookstown, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland*Cookstown, Ontario, Canada*Cookstown, New Jersey, United States... Carrickfergus Carrickfergus Carrickfergus , known locally and colloquially as "Carrick", is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,201 at the 2001 Census and takes its name from Fergus Mór mac Eirc, the 6th century king... Castlerobin Claudy Claudy Claudy is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It lies southeast of Derry, where the River Glenrandal joins the River Faughan. Claudy is located in the Faughan Valley.... Coagh Coagh Coagh is a small village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, situated five miles east of Cookstown. Part of the village also extends into County Londonderry. It had a population of 545 people in the 2001 Census... Coleraine Coleraine Coleraine is a large town near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is northwest of Belfast and east of Derry, both of which are linked by major roads and railway connections... Cork Cork (city) Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban... Carryduff Carryduff Carryduff is a small town and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland, about south of Belfast city centre. It had a population of 6,595 people in the 2001 Census.... Castlerock Castlerock Castlerock is a seaside village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is situated between Coleraine and Derry and is very popular with summer tourists, having numerous apartment blocks and three caravan sites. Castlerock Golf Club has both 9 and 18-hole links courses bounded by the beach, the... Clogher Clogher Clogher is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Blackwater, south of Omagh. The United Kingdom Census of 2001 recorded a population of 309.-History:... Coalisland Coalisland Coalisland is a small town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, with a population of 4,917 people . As its name suggests, it was formerly a centre for coal mining.-History:... Comber Comber Comber is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies 5 miles south of Newtownards, at the northern end of Strangford Lough. It had a population of 8,933 people in the 2001 Census. Comber is part of the Borough of Ards... Crossgar Crossgar Crossgar is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is about 15 miles south of Belfast – between Saintfield and Downpatrick. Crossgar had a population of 1,539 people in the 2001 Census.- History :... |
| Edenderry |
Royal Tank Regiment
The Royal Tank Regiment is an armoured regiment of the British Army. It was formerly known as the Tank Corps and the Royal Tank Corps. It is part of the Royal Armoured Corps and is made up of two operational regiments, the 1st Royal Tank Regiment and the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment...
(formerly the 7th Leeds Rifles) and the 142nd Regiment RAC (formerly the 7th Suffolk Regiment
Suffolk Regiment
The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated with the Royal Norfolk Regiment as the 1st East Anglian Regiment in 1959...
). News of the 8th Army
Eighth Army (United Kingdom)
The Eighth Army was one of the best-known formations of the British Army during World War II, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns....
's victory at El Alamein was a good morale booster.
As Christmas leave was drawing to a close those still away from the unit were recalled by telegram and ordered to get ready to deploy for overseas service, although oddly, they were then given six days "embarkation leave" (with an extra day to allow the Irishmen to travel home). On their return the regiment's tanks were sheeted down so that all markings were hidden and all ranks had to divest themselves of identifying badges to prevent knowledge of their deployment becoming known. All were then entrained for Liverpool where they embarked up the troopship Duchess of York
SS Duchess of York
SS Duchess of York was a 20,021 ton ocean liner operated by the Canadian Pacific Steamship Company. Built in 1928 in Clydebank by the shipbuilders John Brown & Company, she was originally intended to be named SS Duchess of Cornwall...
.
Operation Torch
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
and marched seventeen miles on foot to their new camp.
Their first job was to create a defensive force around Le Kef. The regiment was not up to strength at this time as many of its tanks and equipment had been delayed by logistical difficulties. They were ordered to leave Le Kef at speed to counter a stroke by elements of the German 10th Panzer Division and made best speed with all 27 available tanks towards Béja
Béja
Beja is a town in Tunisia, Africa. It is the capital of the Béja Governorate. It is located 105 km from Tunis, between the Medjerdah River and the Mediterranean, against the foothills of the Khroumire, the town of Beja is situated on the sides of Djebel Acheb, facing the greening meadows,...
, some 90 miles away - one of the longest "on track" journeys ever made by Churchill tanks. In the ensuing 60 hour action the Horse took their first casualties of the war and lost a number of tanks to enemy artillery and direct tank-on-tank actions. They also received their first decoration with Captain Griffith being awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
.
The regiment continued to support other elements of the invasion force in troop or squadron formations, taking heavy casualties and losing tanks but continuing to press forward all the time until, in early April moving to Oued Zarga where the entire regiment came together for the first time since landing at Algiers. In the further advance north while attached to the Irish Brigade under the command of Brigadier Nelson Russell the Horse showed the agility of the often underestimated Churchills by climbing heights regarded as safe from tanks and surprising the Germans occupying them, a fact noted by Spike Milligan
Spike Milligan
Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
in his account of the Tunisian Campaign in his book "Rommel?" "Gunner Who?"
"Rommel?" "Gunner Who?"
Spike Milligan's second volume of war autobiography, "Rommel?" "Gunner Who?": A Confrontation in the Desert, was published in 1974, with Jack Hobbs credited as an editor. This book spans events from January to May 1943, during Operation Torch, the Allied liberation of Africa in World War II...
The most notable of these feats of tank hill climbing was the attack on Djebel Rhar in support of the 5th Buffs. The German infantry did not expect tanks to be able to make the crest of the Djebel and as a result were thrown into panic when the Churchills of B Sqn appeared in their midst. On the 16th June the Belfast Telegraph carried a report of the action:
It was very slow and therefore a most impressive assault with steel. At times the tanks almost 'stood on their heads', twisting to avoid mounds of rock and to get at right angles to the huge cracks and shell holes, but always getting nearer and nearer. Like beetles trying to climb an inverted ice-cream cone, the slipped a little, hung suspended and then went onwards towards the top. The behaviour of these tanks upset the Germans. Such tactics were untanklike, and no answer was contained in their military textbooks. Too late now to shift the anti-tank guns from their positions, too late to make alternative arrangements to deal with the new menace. There was only one answer - retreat, and that's what the Germans did - leaving the British tanks and infantry in possession of the first slope up the heights of Longstop. So ended 23 April.
One German prisoner was heard to remark that the tanks were "Iron Mules".
On 6 May the final attack was launched against Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
and after severe street fighting and the capture of six 88 mm guns by C Sqn (in support of the Indian Brigade) the town was finally occupied. This effectively ended the campaign in Tunisia.
The Italian Campaign
The Hitler Line
At Afrigola the regiment received 18 ShermanM4 Sherman
The M4 Sherman, formally Medium Tank, M4, was the primary tank used by the United States during World War II. Thousands were also distributed to the Allies, including the British Commonwealth and Soviet armies, via lend-lease...
tanks and then loaded all tanks onto trains to be taken further up the coast to Foggia
Foggia
Foggia is a city and comune of Apulia, Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known as the "granary of Italy".-History:...
and from there moved into a brigade harbour area near the village of Lucera
Lucera
Lucera is a town and comune in the Province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southern Italy.-Ancient era and early Middle Ages :Lucera is an ancient city founded in Daunia, the centre of Dauni territory . Archeological excavations show the presence of a bronze age village inside the city boundaries...
. By now Lord O'Neil had been given command of the regiment with Colonel Dawnay moving onto brigade staff. After a week in harbour the regiment was sent on transporters to Mignano near Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, Italy, c. to the west of the town of Cassino and altitude. St. Benedict of Nursia established his first monastery, the source of the Benedictine Order, here around 529. It was the site of Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944...
which had fallen some days earlier along with the rest of the Gustav Line. The fighting was not over however as the Adolf Hitler Line now renamed the Senger Line lay just six miles north and it would be the next objective. The Horse were briefed for Operation Chesterfield which was an assault by the 1st Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Division supported by tanks of the North Irish Horse and the 51st Royal Tanks. H Hour was to be at 6am on the 23 May. The plan required the 2nd and 3rd Canadian Brigades supported by the two tank regiments to break through the Hitler Line on a 3,000 yard front. The assaulting troops came under a withering hail of fire on the well prepared killing grounds of the heavily defended German positions. The Horse took heavy casualties and had to regroup by merging depleted squadrons together. One tank slipped off a track and fell 50 feet into a ravine rolling over on its turret and then back onto its tracks. The crew were shaken but unhurt and the incident gave them another chance to display the marvelous climbing skills of the Churchill as they crawled slowly up the almost sheer walls of the ravine to re-enter the battle. During this battle Major Griffiths again displayed great heroism and was later awarded the only bar to the MC which an officer of the regiment received. The total cost the Horse in the engagement was 36 killed in action, 36 wounded and 32 tanks lost. This represented 60% of regimental strength. The date of 23 May was later chosen as a "Regimental Day" to commemorate the bloodiest day in the history of the North Irish Horse which lost more men than on any other day in two world wars. The breakthrough happened however and the German defenders began evacuating the position on the night of the 23rd May, meanwhile the allied advance continued.
- As a result of the breaking of the Hitler Line and in "appreciation of the support they received" the regiment was asked by the Canadians to wear the Maple LeafMaple leafThe maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree, and is the most widely recognized national symbol of Canada.-Use in Canada:At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the settlements of New France had attained a population of about 18,000...
insignia of the Canadian Military. In the battles of the Hitler Line was a DonegalDonegalDonegal or Donegal Town is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. Its name, which was historically written in English as Dunnagall or Dunagall, translates from Irish as "stronghold of the foreigners" ....
born Lieutenant Pat Reid MC who in later life would emigrate to Canada and would chair the committee selected by the Canadian Prime Minister which would choose the Maple Leaf design for the new national Flag of CanadaFlag of CanadaThe national flag of Canada, also known as the Maple Leaf, and , is a red flag with a white square in its centre, featuring a stylized 11-pointed red maple leaf. Its adoption in 1965 marked the first time a national flag had been officially adopted in Canada to replace the Union Flag...
.
On 4 May the regiment, along with the rest of 25 Brigade was transferred to the 4th British Division in support of 28 Brigade but remained in reserve. After news of the D Day Landings was heard the regiment was again transferred and came under command of the 17th Indian Brigade. This brief period of respite allowed a number of the men to visit Rome. Many visited the Basilica San Pietro
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
and marveled at the undamaged splendour of such an edifice.
The regiment was then tasked to put together a composite unit of Shermans to relieve the 142nd RAC Regt's composite group with the Indian 8th Division and the advance began westwards to Perugia
Perugia
Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria in central Italy, near the River Tiber, and the capital of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area....
which fell on 20 June. On 16 June the Horse again relieved the 142nd, this time at Bastia Umbra
Bastia Umbra
Bastia Umbra is a comune in the Province of Perugia in the Italian region Umbria, located about 15 km southeast of Perugia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 20,523 and an area of 27.6 km²....
. In the days and actions that followed, new upgunned Churchill tanks arrived with their BESA machine guns replaced with Brownings and the main armament upped from a 6 pdr to the newer 75 mm (14.9pdr). As part of Operation Dragoon
Operation Dragoon
Operation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France on August 15, 1944, during World War II. The invasion was initiated via a parachute drop by the 1st Airborne Task Force, followed by an amphibious assault by elements of the U.S. Seventh Army, followed a day later by a force made up...
the regiment again advanced, this time into the Tuscan
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
countryside. The Germans were still fighting tenaciously and barely a day went by without stiff resistance from them.
The Gothic Line
Advancing again though mountainous countryside another tank slid off the track and rolled 6 times down a 200 foot slope. The crew were not so lucky this time as one was killed and the rest injured. The tank was a write-off. The race was on however to drive the Germans back and the North Irish Horse was rushed in again to relieve the hard pressed 142nd RAC Regt at Maria del Monte. On the 3 September they crossed the ConcaConca (river)
The Conca is an Italian river whose source is north of Carpegna in the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche. The river flows northeast past Mercatino Conca before crossing into the province of Rimini in Emilia–Romagna...
river followed by an attack on Coriana to secure the bridges crossing the Marano
Marano
Marano as a surname has noble Italian origin, derives from last name Marani of Vicenza that came to Naples in the 16th century with Francesco Antonio buried in the church of Sant'Antonelli to Caponapoli in the ancient center of Naples city...
river. On the 8th of September the regiment was withdrawn to a safer area in the knowledge that the Gothic Line had been broken.
Monte Cavallo
Monte Cavallo is a comune in the Province of Macerata in the Italian region Marche, located about 80 km southwest of Ancona and about 45 km southwest of Macerata....
supporting the Mahratta
Mahratta
Mahratta may refer to* the Maratha caste, a ruling class of the Indian subcontinent* the Maratha EmpireShips*SS Mahratta , lost in a collision with SS Victoria in 1887 in the River Hoogly.* SS Mahratta , lost on the Goodwin Sands in 1909....
infantry. Lt Col Lord O'Neill arrived and took up a position of observation at a small stone barn. A heavy shell impacted nearby and he was killed.
By this time the autumn rains had arrive which slowed the allied advance but did not stop it. On 2 October the regiment was ordere to move to Poggio Berni
Poggio Berni
Poggio Berni is a commune of the Province of Rimini, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy.Wine and oil are its leading products – with the DOC "Colli di Rimini" wines and an olive. Poggio Berni is home to the Palio dei Somari, a donkey race...
to relieve the 6th Royal Tank Regiment. Action continued until the 3 November when the Horse were pulled out of the line and local leave granted after a memorial service for those killed in action.
The end of the Italian Campaign
On 7 November Lt Col Llewellen-Parker took command and the advance northwards quickly continued. The Churchills once again proved their worth in their ability to cross natural obstacles such as rivers, mountains and the thick glutinous mud which formed on the arable farmland during the rains and after it had been churned up by thousands of men and machines. Eventually the regiment was granted an extended period of maintenance and rest at RiccioneRiccione
Riccione is a comune in the Province of Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. As of 2007 Riccione had an estimated population of 34,868.-History:...
. On 4 December it was again transferred, this time to the 21st Tank Brigade under the command of Brigadier David Dawnay, the former regimental commander. On 12 January they moved into Ravenna
Ravenna
Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
in support of the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Gruppo Cremona who were now fighting on the side of the allies.
In late March the regiment was involved in the action around Lake Comacchio
Spring 1945 offensive in Italy
The Spring 1945 offensive in Italy, codenamed Operation Grapeshot, was the Allied attack by Fifth United States Army and British 8th Army into the Lombardy Plain which started on 6 April 1945 and ended on 2 May with the surrender of German forces in Italy....
and by 2 April were behind the enemy's flood defences and engaging them at close range. The last of the German resistance crumbled as more tanks made it into position to engage them and they surrendered with the Horse taking 40 prisoners.
Following Operation Buckland and the crossing of the River Po
Po River
The Po |Ligurian]]: Bodincus or Bodencus) is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest face...
the regiment was ordered to stand down on the 30th April 1945 for the last time in World War II. Four days later all German forces in Italy surrendered.
The North Irish Horse lost 73 men killed in action during World War II including a commanding officer, two squadron leaders and several troop leaders.
Post war
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
where the Horse took on the role of armoured reconnaissance regiment for the 78th Division. In January 1946 another move was effected into Germany where the Horsemen carried out internal security duties in the Wuppertal
Wuppertal
Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in and around the Wupper river valley, and is situated east of the city of Düsseldorf and south of the Ruhr area. With a population of approximately 350,000, it is the largest city in the Bergisches Land...
area until 7 June when these duties were handed over to the 14th/20th Hussars and the North Irish Horse was disbanded. In 1947 however it was reformed as part of the extension of the Territorial Army Yeomanry into Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. In 1956 the TA lost its tanks and the Horse became an armoured reconnaissance regiment again in armoured cars. It survived disbandment at this point and did so again in 1961. Further cuts to the TA in 1967 saw the Horse reduced to one squadron of the only armoured car regiment retained in the TA. During the post 1956 period the regiment was equipped with a variety of wheeled armoured vehicles such as Daimler armoured cars, Alvis Saladins, Saracens, and Ferrets and later, fox armoured cars, Spartan
FV103 Spartan
FV103 Spartan is a tracked armoured personnel carrier of the British Army. It was developed as the APC variant of the Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance family. The vehicle can carry up to 7 personnel, including 3 crew members. Armed with a single machine gun, it is almost indistinguishable from the...
APCs and Sultan Command Vehicles.
Sponsorship
Every yeomanry regiment has a regular regiment to sponsor it and supply it with a series of permanent staff instructors (PSI's). In the case of the North Irish Horse it had been the 1st King's Dragoon Guards1st King's Dragoon Guards
The 1st King's Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1685 as The Queen's Regiment of Horse, named in honour of Queen Mary, consort of King James II. It was renamed The King's Own Regiment of Horse in 1714 in honour of George I...
from the outset but these ties were broken in 1958 when the KDG amalgamated with the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)
2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)
The 2nd Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1685 by King James II. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards in 1959....
to form the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards is a cavalry regiment of the British Army. Nicknamed The Welsh Cavalry, the regiment recruits from Wales, Herefordshire, and Shropshire, and is the senior cavalry regiment, and therefore senior regiment, of the line of the British Army...
. From that point onwards sponsorship was given by two of the remaining cavalry regiments of the time which were the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards
5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards
The 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1922 to 1992, when it was amalgmated into the Royal Dragoon Guards.-The beginning:...
and the Queen's Royal Irish Hussars
Queen's Royal Irish Hussars
The Queen's Royal Irish Hussars, abbreviated as QRIH, was a cavalry regiment of the British Army formed from the amalgamation of the 4th Queen's Own Hussars and the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars in Hohne, West Germany in 1958....
both of whom had also had to endure amalgamation in past reforms. Today the Queens Royal Lancers also supply the Squadron with PSI's due to being a part of the Queens Own Yeomanry.
Guidon & Memorial
On 15 May 1960 the regiment was presented its guidonHeraldic flag
In heraldry and vexillology, an heraldic flag is any of several types of flags, containing coats of arms, heraldic badges, or other devices, used for personal identification....
by Princess Alexandra of Kent
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy is the youngest granddaughter of King George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck. She is the widow of Sir Angus Ogilvy...
at a parade held on the Balmoral Showgrounds
King's Hall, Belfast
The King's Hall Complex is a multi-purpose venue located on the Lisburn Road, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the largest exhibition venue in Northern Ireland and prior to the completion of the Odyssey and the Waterfront Hall, was the only large concert venue in Northern Ireland...
in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
. On 28 October 1962 a second memorial window was unveiled in Belfast City Hall
Belfast City Hall
Belfast City Hall is the civic building of the Belfast City Council. Located in Donegall Square, Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, it faces north and effectively divides the commercial and business areas of the city centre.-History:...
to commemorate the fallen of the 2nd World War. The was placed beside World War I window. Unveiled by General Dawnay and dedicated by the Archdeacon of Raphoe
Raphoe
Raphoe is a town in County Donegal, part of the province of Ulster in Ireland. It is the main town in the fertile district of East Donegal known as the Laggan, as well as giving its name to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raphoe and the Church of Ireland Diocese of Derry and Raphoe.-Name:Raphoe,...
, the Reverend Louis Crooks (Regimental Chaplain) who himself was a veteran of World War II with the 9th (Londonderry) HAA Regiment.
Battle honours
Further battle honours were awarded to the Horse for their distinguished service in a number of actions from 1943-1945. Those in bold type are emblazoned on the regimental guidon.| 1914-1918 | 1939-1945 |
|---|---|
| RETREAT FROM MONS, MARNE 1914, AISNE 1914, ARMENTIERS 1914, Somme 1916/18, ALBERT 1916, MESSINES 1917, Ypres 1917, Pilckem, St Quentin, BAPAUME 1918, Hindenburg Line, Epehy, | HUNT'S GAP, Sedjenne, Tamera, Mergueb Chaouach, DJEBEL RMEL, LONGSTOP HILL, 1943, TUNIS, North Africa 1943, |
| St Quentin Canal, CAMBRAI 1918, SELLE, Sambre, FRANCE AND FLANDERS | Liri Valley, HITLER LINE, ADVANCE TO FLORENCE, GOTHIC LINE, Monte Farneto, Monte Cavallo, CASA FORTIS, Casa Bettini, Lamone Crossing, Valli di Comacchio, SENIO, ITALY 1944-45 |
Present day
The unit survives in the modern Territorial Army as B (North Irish Horse) Squadron, Queen's Own YeomanryQueen's Own Yeomanry
The Queen's Own Yeomanry is an armoured regiment of the British Territorial Army. The Queen's Own Yeomanry is the only Yeomanry regiment that serves in the formation reconnaissance role, equipped with the CVR family of armoured reconnaissance vehicles, including Scimitar and Spartan.On...
- a Squadron equipped with CVR(T) Scimitar and Spartan based at Dunmore Park Camp, Antrim Road, Belfast, with RHQ in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Personnel have been deployed to Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
, Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
.
Attack on Dunmore Park Camp
On Thursday 22 October 2009 between the time of 01.30-02.00 a device was thrown over the front gate of the compound in Ashfield Crescent. It is suspected that dissident republicans carried out the attack.Attached to
- 34th Army Tank Brigade — 1 December 1941–3 September 1942
- 25th Army Tank Brigade — 3 September 1942–3 December 1944
- 21st Army Tank Brigade — 4 December 1944–10 June 1945
- 21st Army Tank Brigade — 11 June 1945–31 August 1945
Notable personalities
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BtBaronetA baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
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VCVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
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& Bar, MC - Thomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of LongfordThomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of LongfordThomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of Longford KP, MVO , known as Lord Silchester until 1887, was an Irish peer and soldier....
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- Colonel Sir Michael McCorkellMichael McCorkellColonel Sir Michael McCorkell, KCVO, OBE, TD, JP, DL was an Northern Irish soldier and British public servant, emulating the high level of British public service of successive generations of the McCorkell family, being Lord Lieutenant of County Londonderry for 25 years...
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- Lt Col David Dawnay
- Lt Col Nicholas C Tougher
- Maj Michael Murdock
- Maj Stephen James Montgomery
- Regimental Association Chairman Gareth Baillie-Stewart Esq.
- Regimental Association Secretary Maj Reynold Kirk
External links
- http://www.1914-1918.net/nirishhorse.htm
- http://www2.army.mod.uk/qoy/b_nih_sqn/index.htm