Cavalry and Guards Club
Chairman’s Introduction
The Club has applied to Westminster Council for a discount on business rates. Working with our agent CBRE, the Vice Chairman, Major Anthony Jones, has formulated a response to the request for further information received from the Council as relates to the Club’s activities. I thought I would share some of the statistics with you as they make for interesting reading.
In 2024, the Club hosted 1,040 functions for a total of 28,232 attendees. This included 278 service functions for 8,990 serving personnel and veterans. Included in the total were 25 charity functions for 873 attendees. Catering services were provided as follows (shown as individual covers): lunches 5,323; dinners 6,024; breakfasts 12,000. A mix of 9,330 single, double and occasional family-room bedrooms were provided, too.
There are 2,850 members of the Club of whom 32% are regular serving officers. The Club provides free membership for Ambassadors/Military Attachés of Commonwealth, NATO and a small handful of “friendly” countries. 31 nations take advantage of this offer. We estimate that in total 51,579 individuals made use of the Club during 2024. To deliver all the aforementioned services, the Club currently has a cadre of 62 full time staff and 14 part time staff, complemented from time to time by agency staff specifically for functions.
Our membership level remains remarkably constant, and it is good to see a regular stream of former members re-joining. In the eleven applications that were presented to the Committee in March, five were re-joiners. The Membership Secretary, Catherine Brumwell, recently wrote to members who have been a member for three years to remind them that they were able to propose and act as a seconder to potential members. To refresh your recollection, we have four categories of membership:
*3a is serving or retired members of our qualifying regiments
*3b is those associated with or worked within them e.g. padres, doctors
*3c is direct family members of those from one of our qualifying regiments
*3d is everyone else (at the absolute discretion of the Committee)
Please contact Catherine should you have someone in mind who would be interested in joining or re-joining and who you would like to propose. She will provide you with further information and guide you through the process.
I would like to thank the 814 members who contributed to the 2024 Staff Fund. This was up from 650 in 2023, which is excellent. I very much hope that in 2025 we can surpass this. The average contribution was also up. Given all the activity outlined above, the staff thoroughly deserve to be shown our appreciation for the excellent service they provide to members.
As I write, the first four refurbished bedrooms on the fourth floor are nearing completion. They look splendid. The Committee is looking to accelerate the refurbishment of the remaining bedrooms so that the whole of the fourth floor will have been completed by autumn. By way of reminder, we plan to renew the air conditioning units on the third floor before the summer and undertake works to the lantern in the hall during July and August. Please bear with us while these works are going on.
Finally, I want to mention the inaugural Club ski trip to Gargellen, Austria in February that was so well organised by Tim Bradshaw. Thank you, Tim. It was great success and terrific fun. I can thoroughly recommend the skiing, resort and hotel. Hoping that next year more members together with family members will join what we hope will become an annual outing.
Christian Yates Chairman
127 at Royal Ascot
In early March, 127 at Royal Ascot was launched. Should you wish to book tickets to our lovely marquee within the Royal Enclosure, please scan the below (one for each day).
This year got off to a challenging start, as a result of the ransomware attack. As I write, we are completing work on restoring and recording the activities since 7 February. I can only reiterate my thanks to the team for their incredible character, effort and calm during a testing time and to the members who showed such patience.
If there was not enough going on, we shall soon be reorganising our telephone extensions and making sure that everyone you might want to speak to is available on a direct dial number with dedicated voicemail. Much of the purpose of this is to reduce the volume of calls coming through the Front Desk and I would encourage you where possible to use the numbers we shall provide.
When we re-opened the Club on 6 January, we started work on four of our 4th floor bedrooms. We have stripped the walls, replastered and repainted them, recarpeted and redecorated three of the bathrooms. New, ‘smart’ televisions have been installed, and we shall continue to gently replace furnishings as the budget allows. Those of you who love a trouser press might be amused to know that, according to the sales team at Corby of Windsor, we bought all of their remaining stock.
We have also refurbished the service doors in the Coffee Room and are in the process of re-covering the two sofas in the front hall. Those of you who use the Balaclava Library will see that we have retired the ancient MACS and replaced them with just one high spec PC and a new printer.
Paul Farmer has been creating some incredible new dishes, which you will see on the menu soon and he has been formally forbidden from removing the Prawn and Crab Mac and Cheese, which you seem to love.
Our management trainee Oliver, who follows in Max’s footsteps, is doing well and you will find him serving your breakfast for the coming weeks before we plunge him into the kitchen.
Catherine and I endured a sixteen-dish tasting at Ascot HQ in February on your behalf and you should by now have received the details of this year’s Club offering at Royal Ascot. The weather forecast is sunshine.
Wishing you a very Happy Easter and I look forward to seeing you around the Club.
Rupert Elliott Secretary
Employee of the Month
December
Imran Zaki – (Assistant Accountant). I always support the England cricket team as long as they do not play against Pakistan. My son supports England. My wife does not support anyone to keep mutual. I always like fish and chips on Friday.
Sandra – (Food and Beverage Assistant). I am from Ecuador. My favourite food is rice with chilli con carne. My hobby is going to the gym and keeping healthy.
January
Paula Munevar – (Food and Beverage Assistant). I am from Colombia and the best country I have visited is Brazil. I love all Latino food. I studied travel and tourism and marketing Jessie Correa – (Housekeeping Assistant). I am from Ecuador. I studied business but I didn’t finish my course. In 2023 I saw my brother again for the first time in 20 years.
February
Alvin Pavia – (Banqueting Porter). Last year I married my beautiful wife Rosemarie. We loved visiting Japan and love sushi and sashimi
Pete Knell – (Front Desk Porter). When at the Westbury hotel, Del and Rodney from Only Fools and Horses came in for a crafty cup of tea. Another time, the Australian cricket team stayed, including Shane Warne who was one of the nicest people I had the pleasure of meeting. The team manager wanted him to do an interview, which he did not want to do, so I hid him in the luggage room! All hell let loose but, as a thank you, he gave me lots of his kit that I still treasure now.
Imran Zaki
Sandra
Paula Munevar
Alvin Pavia
Jessie Correa
Pete Knell
2025’s Charity: The Mark Evison Foundation
The Mark Evison Foundation’s mission is to promote the personal development of young people, particularly those with less opportunity, through non-academic challenges. It was set up immediately following the death of Lieutenant Mark Evison, who sustained mortal wounds in Helmand, Afghanistan in May 2009. He was trying to get his platoon to safety, and his story inspires many of our young applicants.
Please do visit www.markevisonfoundation.org to see what their beneficiaries have done when given opportunity – physical, technical or creative.
Scan the QR code to read their newsletter.
New 4th Floor Bedrooms
As mentioned by both the Chairman and Secretary, four of our 4th floor bedrooms have been completely overhauled. Here are a few photos to give you an idea of the new design. Please do ask if you can stay in one the next time you visit. Email reservations@cavgdsclub.co.uk
President’s 50th Anniversary Lunch
On 10 December, the Chairman, Christian Yates, hosted a lunch to celebrate HRH The Duke of Kent’s 50 years as President of the Cavalry Club; succeeding his uncle HRH The Duke of Gloucester, who had been President of the Club since 1942.
On the amalgamation of the Guards Club with the Cavalry Club on 1 January 1976, The Duke of Kent became the first President of the Cavalry and Guards Club.
The lunch was attended by the Club’s two Vice Presidents, the Trustees and members of the Committee of the Club as well as by some old friends of HRH who had served with him in The Royal Scots Greys and The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.
After a delicious lunch, prepared by the Club’s Executive Chef, Paul Farmer, and his team, “washed down” by an excellent Chablis and a superb Claret, the Chairman thanked the President for his many years of service to the Club and, on behalf of the members, presented him with a stick pin of the Club’s crest. In reply, the President said how much he had enjoyed visiting the Club over the years and hoped to continue to do so for many years to come.
The Fires of Gallipoli by Captain Barney Campbell
Edward Salter is a shy, reserved lawyer whose life is transformed by the outbreak of war in 1914. On his way to fight in the Gallipoli campaign, he befriends the charming and quietly courageous Theodore Thorne. Together they face the carnage and slaughter, stripped bare to their souls by the hellscape and only sustained by each other and the moments of quiet they catch together.
When their leave from the frontline coincides, Theo invites Edward to his parents’ estate. Here Edward meets Thorne’s sister Miranda and becomes entranced by her.
An odd coolness descends between Edward and Theo. Can their friendship survive at the end of the war when everything around them is corrupted and destroyed?
The Fires of Gallipoli is a heartbreaking, sweeping portrayal of friendship and its fragility at the very limits of humanity.
The House of War: The Struggle between Christendom and the Caliphate by Lieutenant General Simon Mayall
A powerful new history detailing the most significant military clashes between Islam and Christendom over the 1,300 years of the Muslim caliphate. The House of War offers a wide, sweeping narrative, encompassing the broad historical and religious context of this period, while focussing on some of the key, pivotal sieges and battles, and on the protagonists, political and military, who determined their conclusions and their consequences. Please note that General Mayall will be doing a talk on this book on Wednesday, 2 May.
In Memoriam
Deaths
Bouquets and Brickbats Bouquets
It all went incredibly smoothly, the staff were impeccable and the food was excellent, especially the cheese soufflé. JB
I just wanted to say the most enormous thank you for making our wedding the most perfect day.Your efficiency and hard work were second to none, and you made everything work so incredibly well and seem totally effortless. All of the food was utterly delicious, the drinks were flowing and the service was impeccable! We really could not have asked for a better day! Thank you, thank you, thank you! With lots of love and wishing you a successful year (with lots more weddings!). TB
Everything was just perfect and of the exceptional standard we have come to know from the Club. AH
What a spectacular day at Sandown for the Grand Military Gold Cup. Sincere thanks for all the considerable hosting and organisational skills. JL
Annette and her team looked after us wonderfully: they were charming, attentive and very efficient and could not have been more supportive. David and Musa in Geoffery’s were stars and coped brilliantly with the after-party. Marius and Robert were, as always, thoroughly helpful and efficient. I should also mention the kitchen staff and housekeepers who discreetly made everything happen behind the scenes. PS
With every passing year, the Club continues to improve, and the staff are simply wonderful. PF
Coming back to the Club is like coming home and I am most grateful to you and all in the management team for all that you do so cheerfully to provide a second home. SG
Just a quick note to say how much I enjoyed the Christmas lunch. I met old friends and new people, the food and the choice of wines was superb, the service was flawless and after lunch, sitting in the Conservatory and having port and cigars and chatting was so wonderfully British. LM
We greatly enjoyed the Sons and Daughters Dinner and it was good to meet up with old friends, as well as some new faces. It was very well attended and I’m sure that as word spreads numbers will grow yet further! RS
The Members Christmas Lunch was absolutely wonderful. Just perfect in every single way, beautifully presented and totally delicious, I don’t know how the Club staff coped. It was absolutely spiffing! SS
The Sons and Daughters was a great evening! Thank you for all your organisation and help. I think the younger members of my party stayed rather late… but we will gloss over that!
NR
Colonel Euan Houstoun on 10 November 2024. Grenadier Guards. A member since 13 January 1988.
Colonel John Pharo-Tomlin on 5 December 2024. 14th/20th King’s Hussars. A member since 6 October 1954.
Major Peter Griffith on 30 January 2025. Royal Horse Artillery. A member since 26 March 2003.
Major General Adrian Lyons in February 2025. Gentleman Member. A member since 7 June 2001.
We enjoyed what was a tour-de-force as we celebrated why we are all so fortunate to be members of our great Club. JS
Brickbats
I saw a waitress upending a bottle of red wine into a glass to finish it. As you will appreciate, there are often dregs at the bottom of a red wine bottle so you should never pour out every drop but leave a small amount in the bottle. JH
There was one fly in the ointment, which was the canapés. The foie gras tarts were salty and unpleasant and I witnessed guests taking a bite and disposing of the remainder in a napkin! EBA
Peter Griffith
From the Archivist
Naughty Boys’ Corner
At the top of the main staircase in ‘127’ is a small landing area that some older members may recall as the Dining Room cashier’s cubby hole, and an area that I affectionately refer to as ‘the naughty boys’ corner’ when I am showing visitors around our wonderful Club. Why so?
Facing the stairs and in the more prominent position of the two is the very well-executed portrait of the last Kaiser, Wilhelm II, the receipt of which in 2018 (from the closing Rifles Club in Davies Street), nearly caused a major upset amongst the Club’s membership and ensured the receipt of numerous letters to the Chairman of the day – and discussion at the AGM the following year. Thus it was ‘diplomatically moved from the ground floor to its current location, joining the Club’s other ‘bad boy’ – Oliver Cromwell.
So, what do the Kaiser and Oliver Cromwell have in common? Namely this – that a considerable number of members over a considerable number of years believe that both have no place in a leading British Military Club – and certainly not in 127 Piccadilly! However, without wishing to prove to be too controversial, I believe that in both cases there is a good reason for their presence.
Like that of the Kaiser, the portrait of Oliver Cromwell (even more tucked away in the corner), is a fine one. It is identified as ‘after Robert Walker’ and was presented to the Club by Major General The Lord Chesham KCB (Late 10th Hussars and 16th Lancers). A Committee minute of September 1906 records the ‘thanks of the Committee and Members of the Club … for his handsome and valuable present’. Sadly, his Lordship was not able to enjoy seeing the painting in the Club for very long as he died tragically as the result of a hunting accident near Daventry in November 1907 – being thrown from his horse and suffering a ‘dislocated neck’.
Robert Walker (1599-1658) – after whom the painting is accredited – was an English portrait painter, notable for his portraits of the ‘Lord Protector’ Oliver Cromwell – and other distinguished parliamentarians of the period. He was influenced by Van Dyck and many of his works can now be found in the National Portrait Gallery.
So why might Lord Chesham have considered this a suitable gift for the Club? Well, a possible hint might be found in the fact that he started his military career in 1870 by joining the Coldstream Guards before transferring to the 10th Hussars (as above mentioned) three years later. The significance of that could also provide the justification for the retention of the portrait in the Club for more than a century!
For whilst it is clear to most that Oliver Cromwell should not be in a ‘loyalist’ Club due to his having overseen the cutting off of the head of a monarch and the establishment of a republic (for the first and, hopefully, only time in the history of these isles), his place is justified as the ‘founding father’
of the New Model Army – incorporating significantly two regiments with which the Club is most closely associated –one being the Coldstream Guards (very originally Monck’s Regiment of Foot – formed 13th August 1650)– and the other, the Royal Horse Guards ‘The Blues’ (again a regiment having its origin in the Regiment of Cuirassiers raised by Sir Arthur Haselrig in August 1650).
Hopefully that will convince the doubters – but, just to be ‘safe’, the painting will remain in its rather cloistered position!
Interestingly below it hangs a stick with this inscription, ‘This Stick was given by Oliver Cromwell to Colonel Robert de Duckinfield on the occasion of his defeating Prince Rupert at Stockport Bridge.’
It was presented to the donor by the late Miss Susan Turner of Poulton-le-Fylde Lancashire. She was a direct descendant of Colonel de Duckinfield through her mother who was a Lindley. Presented to The Cavalry Club by Major LGS Molloy DSO Late The Duke of Lancaster Own Yeomanry Oct 1930.
Whilst undoubtedly Duckinfield’s contribution and active role in the English Civil War is well-documented, as is his role in suppressing the Booth rebellion at the end of the period of the Commonwealth, I personally have always been a little sceptical of this notable gift in the Club’s collection. Rather like the many purported and valued pieces of the shroud of Christ (which if placed together would surely cover the proverbial football pitch!) – I suspect the number of sticks supposedly belonging to/gifted from Oliver Cromwell would outstrip many a tree. But then again, maybe I’m as wrong as those who believe the ‘naught boys’ corner shouldn’t be there!
A footnote – and finally – not content with one portrait of Oliver Cromwell in the Club, we in fact had two! As an old photo of the Balaclava Room in Anthony Lejeune’s wonderful book The Gentlemen’s Clubs of London illustrates, a three-quarter length portrait of Cromwell hung over the fireplace in this library. Probably considering that this was indeed ‘overkill’ and mindful of the need to raise funds for the purchase of the freehold in 1987, the Committee sold it!
David Cowdery Club Archivist
Interest Groups
Alpine Group: Ski Trip
‘We are not a mid-station nation!’ said Dominic Fisher as the Alpine Club ski group went in search of ever deeper snow and steeper slopes! With good snow and excellent company, the Cavalry and Guards Club’s inaugural ski trip to the tiny Austrian village of Gargellen was a resounding success.
The group gathered at Zurich airport before making the two-hour pilgrimage into the Voralberg, Austria. The Madrisa Hotel is a third-generation family hotel set at the foot of the mountain from which to takes its name. Each day, the team headed to the lifts while Mark Rynehart bravely undertook what became one-to-one lessons with his Austrian ski instructor. I understand he still wakes up in the night to cries of “change the weight, change the weight!”
When asked how his lessons were going, he somewhat reticently referred to performing repeated knees to chest exercises at 2,500m and something about this is why he had joined the cavalry not the infantry!
It was excellent to have family members join the group. Despite repeated warnings from me not to try and keep up with my former ski racing wife the Chairman, Christian Yates, heroically refused to quit no matter what the slope nor
what the weather! Meanwhile I took it upon myself to show the more sensible members of the group some of the other delights that the village had to offer i.e Glühwein served at 3pm in an outdoor bar overlooking the Madrisa mountain!
Every evening the group would reconvene in the bar for gin and tonics accompanied by tales of the days’ exploits. With an exquisite five-course dinner set every evening the hotel was the perfect base camp. It didn’t take long before the laughter and voracious consumption of wine had the group labelled, affectionally, as the naughty table! We blame Mr Fisher!
The only conflict throughout the whole week surrounded the discussion of appropriate dress in the sauna, especially when accompanied by other members families! The jury is still out!
I am already in talks with the hotel for next year’s trip and am of the opinion that, if it’s not broken don’t fix it! The plan will be to run the trip at a similar time. Please get in touch with the Membership Secretary (membership@cavgdsclub. co.uk) if you are interested. No need to take my word for it I am sure all of the members who attended would be happy to share their experiences.
Cavalry and Guards Motor Club
There is a great line up of events in 2025 for the Motor Club. Please visit the Interest Groups section of the website to see what is in store. If you would like to be on the CGMC contact list or would like to know more about their events, please email membership@cavgdsclub.co.uk
On another note, Club member Bruce Corley finished one of his pandemic projects. “If you look closely at the badge on the front of the 1939 MG TB you should get a laugh. I finally put together a car worthy of the badge!” The photo was taken in September 2024 at the British Car Day in Oakville Ontario, the largest North American meet.
Upcoming events
Saturday, 5 April
Sandhurst Cadet visit to the Club. If you are around, please do come and say hello.
Tuesday, 8 April
Annual Sailing Club Drinks
18-21 April
Easter. The Bar and Dining Room will be closed. For anyone staying, we will provide a Continental Breakfast in your room.
Friday, 25 April
Spring Reels
Tuesday, 29 April
Club Talk: Crossing Antarctica with Justin Packshaw
Wednesday, 30 April
Ladies Lunch with Mary Killen
7-11 May
Badminton Horse Trials. The Royal Gloucestershire Hussars Association will once more open there tent to C&G member and their friends.
Thursday, 8 May
Opera Holland Park at the Club
Friday, 16 May
Fine Wine Dinner
Wednesday, 22 May
Club Talk: with recent Household Cavalry Artist in Residence Zoe Carmichael
Wednesday, 4 June
Club Talk: The Fires of Gallipoli by Barney Campbell
Tuesday, 11 June
Annual General Meeting
Thursday, 12 June
Club Talk: Dreams, Delusions and Disasters by Donough O’Brien
17-21 June
Royal Ascot
Thursday, 26 June
Cigar and Port Evening
Wednesday, 2 July
Club Talk: The House of War by Lt Gen
Simon Mayall
Saturday, 2 August
Sandhurst Cadet visit to the Club. If you are around, please do come and say hello.
Wednesday, 17 September
Art Exhibition Lunch: Cartier at the Victoria and Albert Museum
Thursday, 18 September
Grouse Dinner
Wednesday, 24 September
Fine Wine Dinner
Wednesday, 1 October
Annual Alpine Group Drinks
Wednesday, 15 October
Connect 127 Annual Drinks
Early November
Cavalry and Guards Motor Club Annual Dinner
Wednesday, 5 November
Club Talk: The Kadir Cup
Saturday, 6 December
Sandhurst Cadet visit to the Club. If you are around, please do come and say hello.
Wednesday, 10 December
Art Exhibition Lunch: Turner and Constable at the Tate Gallery
Wednesday, 10 December
Sons and Daughters Dinner
Thursday, 11 December
Members Christmas Lunch
Please note
While we hope there will be no changes, some might occur. Please contact the Membership Secretary for more details membeship@cavgdsclub.co.uk