Cavalry regiments of the British Army

There are currently nine regular cavalry regiments of the British Army, of these, two serve as armoured regiments, three as armoured cavalry regiments, three as light cavalry and one as a mounted ceremonial regiment. All except the Household Cavalry are part of the Royal Armoured Corps. There are also four yeomanry regiments of the Army Reserve.

History

Early regiments

The British Army, in the modern sense of the standing army under the Crown, was formed following the Restoration of King Charles II in 1661. At this point, the small standing forces included the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Troops of Horse Guards and the Royal Regiment of Horse; some of these had been raised in exile and some as part of the New Model Army. The horsemen of the period were equipped as cuirassiers, with armour on the head and the body; the regulations of Charles II, in 1663, provided for them to be armed with "a sword and a case of pistolls ... each Trooper of our Guards to have a carbine besides".

British Army

The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. The force was initially administered by the War Office from London, which in 1964 was subsumed into the Ministry of Defence. The professional head of the British Army is the Chief of the General Staff.

The full-time element of the British Army is referred to as the Regular Army and has been since the creation of the reservist Territorial Force in 1908. All members of the British Army swear (or affirm) allegiance to the monarch as commander-in-chief. However, the Bill of Rights of 1689 requires Parliamentary consent for The Crown to maintain a standing army in peacetime. Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years.

Throughout its history, the British Army has seen action in a number of major wars involving the world's great powers, including the Seven Years' War, the Napoleonic Wars, the Crimean War, the First World War and Second World War. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the world's leading military and economic powers. Since the end of the Cold war, the British Army has been deployed to many conflict zones, often as part of an expeditionary force or a United Nations peacekeeping operation. Additionally, the British Army maintains several permanent overseas postings.

Cavalry

Cavalry (from French cavalerie, cf. cheval 'horse') or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the most mobile of the combat arms. An individual soldier in the cavalry is known by a number of designations such as cavalryman, horseman, dragoon, or trooper.

The designation of cavalry was not usually given to any military force that used other animals, such as camels, mules or elephants. Infantry who moved on horseback, but dismounted to fight on foot, were known in the 17th and early 18th centuries as dragoons, a class of mounted infantry which later evolved into cavalry proper while retaining their historic title.

From earliest times cavalry had the advantage of improved mobility, making it an

A man fighting from horseback also had the advantages of greater height, speed, and inertial mass over an opponent on foot. Another element of horse mounted warfare is the psychological impact a mounted soldier can inflict on an opponent.

The speed, mobility and shock value of the cavalry was greatly appreciated and exploited in armed forces in the Ancient and Middle Ages; some forces were mostly cavalry, particularly in nomadic societies of Asia, notably the Mongol armies. In Europe cavalry became increasingly armoured (heavy), and eventually became known for the mounted knights. During the 17th century cavalry in Europe lost most of its armor, ineffective against the muskets and cannon which were coming into use, and by the mid-19th century armor had mainly fallen into disuse, although some regiments retained a small thickened cuirass that offered protection against lances and sabres and some protection against shot.