Description
Physical description
Headdress badge to officers of The Life Guards, being a padded embroidered badge of a St. Edward's (Queen's) crown in gold and silver wire and coloured silk embroidery with a red velvet cushion, surmounting a blue silk Garter with edges, motto and Garter-ends in gold wire, within the Garter a red velvet backing to the EIIR Royal cypher in gold wire. Captioned: Beret Badge. Badge glued to the card mount.
Physical description
Note that although affixed to a mounting card to "The Life Guards", this badge was common to all Household Cavalry, Life Guards and Royal Horse Guards.
Physical description
Box 1: Mounting card captioned "The Life Guards Officers" on which 7 items (10001-10007). Evidence of the removal of a Service Dress cap badge. Top left an oval green sealing wax seal with on which MINISTRY OF DEFENCE / PATTERN ROOM, with across the centre, ARMY / OFFICERS. Reverse with seven deposits of green sealing wax securing the white cotton binding tape. Top right an oval stamp bearing "Q (MAINT) 2 / MINISTRY OF DEFENCE / 4 MAY 1970".
History note
In 1660 a mounted bodyguard was formed in Holland from 80 Royalists who had gone into exile in 1646 with the young future King Charles II. After the restoration in 1660, this body became King Charles's personal escort, in effect the sovereign's 'life guard'. They joined the standing army in 1661 and remained as individual troops of horse until 1746 when they re-organised as 1st and 2nd Horse Guards Regiments.
History note
In 1678, three troops of Horse Grenadier Guards were raised, a fourth troop being formed in 1686. In 1709 they reorganised as 1st and 2nd Horse Grenadier Guards.
History note
In 1788 the Horse Guards amalgamated with the Horse Grenadier Guards to form the First and Second Life Guards, remaining 'Household' troops. In the 1922 reforms, 1st and 2nd Life Guards were amalgamated to form "The Life Guards (1st & 2nd)", in 1928 losing the parentheses.
History note
In 1992 "The Life Guards" joined with "The Blues and Royals" to form "The Household Cavalry Regiment", a fully operational force reconnaissance unit. Within the Regiment, squadrons maintain their original identities and wear their own badges. The unit includes "The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment", which carries out ceremonial duties and comprises Life Guard and Blues and Royals squadrons.
History note
BADGE. This headdress badge is in all essentials the same as that taken into wear for the Forage Cap in 1919.
History note
The badges for the 'Household' cavalry regiments (Life Guards and Royal Horse Guards) originated in 1913. In that year's manoeuvres the Regiments wore khaki for the first time, and thus could not, as previously, be distinguished by their uniforms. King George V noted that his Household troops, of all the Army, had no cap badge and offered to supply the deficiency if they so wished. As Household troops the badge was inevitably going to be closely associated with the sovereign. The first design was for the Service Dress cap, showing the Royal Cypher surrounded by a circlet bearing the name of the Regiment, surmounted by a Royal crown. This design was first issued on the outbreak of war in 1914. A second design, with the circlet replaced by a Garter with motto and including no Regimental title, was common to all three regiments of the time (1 & 2 Life Guards and Royal Horse Guards). This was for the Forage cap, which was re-introduced in 1919.
History note
Subsequent changes to the design have been limited to the Royal Cypher and the use of the Imperial or St. Edward's crown.
Embroidered
HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE