The Acorn 1978

THE

THE REGIMENTAL MAGAZINE OF THE LIFE GUARDS VOLUME X 1978

The Sovereign's Escort approaching The Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh

THE

VOLUME X 1978

THE REGIMENTAL MAGAZINE OF THE LIFE GUARDS Colonel-in-Chief: Her Majesty the Queen.

Colonel and Gold Stick: Admiral of the Fleet the Earl Mountbatten of Burma, K.G., P.C., G.C.B., a.M., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E., G.c.v..a.,

o.s.a.

Lieutenant Colonel Commanding The Household Cavalry: Colonel J.A.C.G. Eyre. C.V.O .. O.B.E. The Blues and Royals Commanding Officer: Lieutenant Colonel A.J. Hartigan

CONTENTS Page

Page Miscellany

38

The Mounted Squadron

8 9

Equus Militaris

41

A Squadron

13

Personalities

47

B Squadron

The Mermaid of Warsaw

48

Queen's Life Guards

48

Guard's House, Folda

49

The Band

16 18 20 22

The Year's Events -1977 and 1937

50

Household Cavalry Squadron, The Guards Depot

24

The Life Guards Association Annual Report and Rules

51

Obituaries

53

Forty Third Annual General Meeting

54

Notices

55

Forthcoming Events

56

Nominal Rolls ...

59

Editorial

C Squadron Headquarter Squadron

Warrant Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers Mess Sports

26 27

The Household Battalion (1916-1918)

29

The Musical Ride

34

Joining Up - 1940

35

First Descent

36 37

...

Officers of The Second Life Guards

THE ACORN is printed and published by Art Set Limited, 122a Castle Street, Reading, Berks. for The Life Guards and The Life Guards Association

Editor: Captain J.W.M. Ellery

Editorial As 1977 creaks to a close the time has come to try and sum up what the Regiment has done since the last edition and try to forecast what the future holds.

All in all it has been a busy year verging at times on the hectic. Twelve months ago we had slightly more than a troop on emergency tour in Belize but the Regiment proper at Windsor. Since then B Squadron has completed a most successful tour in Ulster. A Squadron's tour is drawing to a close and C Squadron have completed their training prior to leaving for Ulster early in 1978. C Squadron completed the annual ACE Mobile Force training and subsequent exercise in Norway linking the two with an imaginative trail blazing 600 mile approach march. In September they took part in an Exercise in Denmark which was sadly to be the last Household Cavalry participation in the Force.

At present the Mounted Regiment is providing a significant contribution to assist Regimental Headquarters in the control centre for the military fire fighting effort in the Metropolitan area. The first 'Green Goddess' crew from B Squadron have just finished its fire training and will work with the Royal Navy in London. All in all an interesting year but one in which the Regiment has been fragmented and still had little opportunity to train together in its conventional role.

As part of the restructuring of the United Kingdom Land Forces, Headquarters Royal Armoured Corps 3rd Division was disbanded on 1st August.

However, the break was not complete and we are still fortunate enough to have Brigadier Richard Jerram in his alter ego atWilton.Operationallv we are now under command of the newly formed 6th Field Force at Aldershot. First contacts have been good and we look forward to a friendly relationship despite the colour of our berets and the extra strain on the gymnasium staff!

Despite the many diversions, conventional skills have not been entirely forgotten as shown by the high standard of gunnery at Castlemartin.

Improving these skills will be the keynote for 1978 linked with a determined effort to work together as a Regiment once C Squadron finally return to the fold in April 1978. As a major contribution to this we plan to hold an At Home Day at Combermere Barracks on 6th August 1978, and hope that as many old comrades, families and friends as possible can attend.

THE COMMANDING OFFICER Lieutenant Colonel A.j. Hartigan Deliberately I have left mention of the most memorable part of 1977 until last. This was, of course, The Queen's Silver Jubilee. The Mounted Squadron and the Band played a major part in ceremonial occasions throughout the country. We are all proud to have been connected in a greater or lesser degree with the moving and magnificent expression of national loyalty wh ich the year's celebrations have brought about.

~~~~~~~----------

--_._------

The Mounted Squad ron At the end of 1977 the Mounted Squadron can proudly reflect on one of the busiest and most fascinating ceremonial seasons ever. We have provided Sovereign's Escorts for Her Majesty The Queen's Jubilee visits to Glasgow, Edinburgh, London and Cardiff. In addition we have participated in The Queen's Birthday Parade, the Garter Ceremony and the Opening of Parliament.

From the moment the first troop drills started in April until the Cardiff Escort was happily concluded at the end of June a free weekend was a rarity . The hours of work and the activity behind the scenes in preparation for the many Escorts was considerable . However everything was well worth while when one considers the tremendous honour of taking part in the Jubilee activities-we shall all remember the various Escorts for a very long time due to the enormous spontaneous crowds everywhere we went.

Life has not been entirely devoted to the Jubilee. In March we despatched Troopers Shorey, Jones 3 '19, Smith 537 and Cooper on a Free Fall Parachuting Course which I am reliably informed they all enjoyed . This is no excuse for bailing off a horse!

On 22nd April the final of the Inter Troop Competition was held at Kensington Palace Field and yet again it was a great victory for The Life Guards with one and two troops who tied for first place. The competition included jumping, tent pegging, shooting, basketball, football and volleyball. The prizes were kindly presented by Mrs. J. Swinton, wife of The Major General.

Once again we have had a successful Summer Camp at Stoney Castle. The equitation activities were thoroughly enjoyed, especially the Squadron One Day Event which was won convincingly by Troopers Frawley and Bennett. The Officers' and Senior NonCommissioned Officers' Handy Hunter Competition was won by Lieutenant J. R. Astor and Corporal of Horse Kelly in an amazingly fast time. Two very good days were spent riding to Major W. Stringer's bloodhounds. We are indebted to him, and we hope to see both him and the exuberant Mrs. Hickman (the whipper in) next year.

Again the Regimental inter-troop competition was won by the Squadron with one troop first and three troop a very close second . Come on The Blues and Royals, give us some competition!

We were delighted to welcome our Colonel, Lord Mountbatten to Stoney Castle again on 22nd September. We are most grateful that he can find time to visit us each year at camp.

The Colonel visiting Summer Camp at Pirbright.

From left to right: Troopers Haywood-Percival and Drew , Lanc e Corporal Thompson, Trooper Smith, SCM Kelly, Th e Colon el, CoH Denton, Lieut enant Colonel T. C Morris RHG!D, CoH James, Major S. V. GilbartDenham, Lieutenant SiF. Hayward and CoH Craig,

We again rode back to London , but this year it became a Regimental move with a large escort of Police Motorcyclists and Mounted Metropolitan Police .

The only injury apart from the odd blister was a horse kicked by the Squadron Corporal Major's horse Condor or was it the Squadron Corporal Major himself?

Lieutenant The Hon. N.j. Adderley and Lieutenant j.A. Black, joint winners of the Regimental Troop Competitions, receiving a cup from Mrs. j . Swinton, wife of The Major General.

On our return to London we were invited to provide our best known Black, Queenie as a personality horse in the Horse of the Year Show. She was

very capably ridden by Trooper Snape. Queenie who is now 18 is a seasoned veteran . She has carried many senior officers on Cer emonial parades incl uding five Squadron Leaders, two Commanding Officers and the Colonel of The Blues and Royals, Field Marshal Sir Gerald Templer who rode her on The Queen's Birthday Parade this year.

The Training Wing continues at Windsor where recruits remain until they pass out of khaki in the 16th week of riding school.

The standard of riding at Windsor under Squadron Corporal Major Varley has, I believe , improved . Certainl y the scope is greater and more varied with excellent riding available in Windsor Great Park. The recruits are posted to London fo r the final four weeks in Full Dress before passing out as qualified Mounted Dut ymen.

of swimming the horses in the sea as the Squadron Corporal Major (Neptune) no doubt to his cost remembers.

At the time of writing, the Fireman's Strik e is in its seventh week with no sign of ending. Most officers and Senior Non -Commissioned Officers are involved in manning the Operations Room at Kingsway. This is reminiscent of emergency tours of duty in Northern Ireland . No doubt by the time the magazine is published the fire st rike will be over.

Major S. V. Gilbart-Denham continues as Squadron Leader and Corporal Major Kelly as Squad ron Corporal Major. We have said goodbye to Captain J.W.M. Ellery, Lieuten ant j.A. Bl ack and Lieutenant The Hon. N.J. Adderley , who have all returned I n The Life Guards. We welcome their repl acements, Captain N.j .D'Ambrumenil, Lieutenant S.F. Hayward and Lieuten ant H.S. J. Scott. SQMC Perkins has left the Army after 22 years loyal service - we wish him and his family very good luck for the future. SQMC Woodlands is his brave successor. Other changes are Corporal of Horse Slater who has been posted to RMA Sandhurst and Corporal of Horse Allen who now runs the Equitation Wing at The Guards Depot.

Congratulation s to them both on their recent promotion to Staff Corporal . We also say goodbye to our recruiter Corporal of Horse Collier and Corporal of Horse Hooper, who leaves us shortly for civilian life.

We welcome Corporals of Horse Denton and Craig.

OBITUARY Trooper Laws tragically died in a motorcycle accident on 13th July 1977 whilst serving with the Mounted Squadron . He was an excellent Life Guard who the Squadron will deeply miss. We offer our condolences to his parents and family.

Lance Corporal Scott and Trooper Davidson

Troop training during the winter months continues for the second year at Sopley in the New Forest. This is a tremendous success . It is an excellent place for progressive riding and it provides a much needed break for both men and horse from endless guard duties in London. We have even had a chance

The late Trooper Laws preparing for the Edinburgh Escort

."

The Major General's Inspection

THE JUBILEE ESCORTS

By Trooper Burge

The chances of most of us ever riding in another Jubilee are rather slim, 25/1 to be exact, which is the regularity these rare occasions occur.

On the whole it's been a hard year's work, but it has been a great change from what would have been an endless summer of Queen's Life Guards.

In The Life Guards Squadron there are 3 Troops, so it was organised that each Troop would do its fair share of Escort Guards in London. 1 and 2 Troops went to Scotland to perform in the Glasgow and Edinburgh Escorts while 3 Troop remained in London for Queen's Life Guard duties.

So we headed for Scotland, destination Glasgow, which was to be our home for the next week .

The main body went up by train, and the remainder travelled as escorts on the horse boxes. The journey was a long haul, but the horses travelled surprisingly well.

It was our first visit to Glasgow, so we were the constant centre of attention proven by the fact that although there was only one official open day, there seemed to be a constant stream of visitors being shown around the stables.

We had been installed in a cattle market-cumabbatoir on the banks of the Clyde, which as far as we could see, and feel, had been built to keep the cold in. As we were sleeping on camp beds one can imagine the grumblings that went on. You could walk in late at night, finding no bodies - only large piles of cloaks, greatcoats and blan kets, with the occupant fighting a losing battle to keep warm .

The Escort itself went well, the huge crowds making up for the moans about the cold weather as everyone was busy eyeing up the 'local talent' and very eyeable it was too!

From Glasgow we travelled in coaches and horse transporters to Redford Cavalry Barracks in Edinburgh, which used to be the home of The Scots Greys .

Here the accommodation was for humans; we actually slept between sheets and on beds. We even had carpeted floors! Being true soldiers we had to find something to grumble about and in this case it was because the stables all ran in the wrong direction, making it practically impossible to sweep properly!

11

The exercismg here was good as we were on the outskirts of the city and at the foot of the Pentland Hills. It was not unusual to be on one's way up a hill to see Captain Ellery running down having already con quered several neigh bou ring pea ks on his regular morning "jog".

There were two Escorts to do here, a Captain's and a Sovereign's, the Captain's falling to One Troop, much to their annoyance. The Sovereign's Escort went well but was very long as we were in the saddle from 0700 hours until 1400 hours. It was over an hour's ride to and from our start and finish point, Holyrood Palace. So apart from a few very sore behinds all was successful.

the Maindy Barracks which appeared to have at least 10 different detachments installed in it. The stabling was a canvas and wood affair situated in the middle of the square . As yet no-one had found anything to grumble about.

Major S. V. Gilbart-Denham, SCM Kelly and SQMC Perkins on The Queen's Birthday Parade

The Sovereign's Escort at Cavalry Barracks, Redford

The journey back to London was uneventful.

Having returned on the Wednesday night, we had the String Band Rehearsal on the Friday and the first rehearsal for the Trooping on the Saturday.

One Troop bowed out here and their place was taken by Three Troop, who were newly formed, being mostly made up of the recently passed out recruits, all on their first Escort!

In between all these rehearsals was the State Drive to St. Pauls on Jubilee Day itself, 7th June. The escort was a very short one compared with the ones we had already done. The crowds in their millions, the numerous military bands in gaps along the route and the street liners presenting arms made much more noise than any of the horses were used to, but all went well.

Back to the Trooping. All rehearsals and the actual parade were very successful.

The Cardiff Escort was the next and the last one, with One and Three Troops doing the honours with a handful of us from Two Troop to make up the numbers while the main body did their share of Escort Guards.

Cardiff was only a quick hop down the M4 so it didn't take us long to get there. We were put up in

Exercise in the morning seemed to turn into a competition between troops as to who could get lost most easily. I would say that the result was a draw.

Mind you I think J must have seen a fair percentage of the streets of Cardiff. au r rehearsal had been sched uled for the evening while the roads were fairly empty and the amount of people that turned out to watch us was amazing.

Like the others this Escort went without any trouble. The route was four miles out and four back giving the 'talent spotters' (90% of the personnel) a hard time trying to locate the same talent while on their return journey.

The turn around point was well situated just outside a public house. Several soliders could be seen sloping off towards the bar only to find it 'being guarded' by various non-riding members of the community so thay had to make do with either water or orange juice .

The people of Cardiff were, to us, the most hospitable and friendliest group of people we have ever had the pleasure to come across. We look forward to returning there, indeed I believe many have already done so, under one pretence or another!

The last occasion of the season was the Garter Service which although lengthy, for those of us who had never done it was probably the closest to our Monarch we shall ever get.

Well, that brought us to the end of the Silver Jubilee Season, for us at any rate. We were all glad when it finished , after all who has ever heard of a soldier liking hard work? May the next Silver Jubilee take its time coming around again.

A Squadron Since the last issue of 'Acorn' the Squadron has had a busy, interesting and amusing year. The year started with a troop going to Belize with Lieutenant C.B. Oldfield and CoH Jones, and it was not long before the CRAC South Pacific (Lieutenant C.B. Oldfield) was writing to the Squadron explaining the problems of tarantulas and snakes. It was a great experience for the troop and they all thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The squadron did, however, notice that later during the year when we were all put on standby to go there that the tall stories were somewhat reduced.

While the troop was in Belize the remainder of the Squadron was preparing to fire at Castlemartin under the guidance of SCpl Willis. Castlemartin produced some good shooting with the inevitable cutthroat competition with B Sqaudron. The usual gunnery cries could be heard from the Squadron Leader, which were so well remembered from Germany days. With the conclusion of Castlernartin we drove down to Salisbury Plain for a two week exercise.

The present Adjutant as troop leader continued to surprise the Squadron by his ability to arrive first at the majority of stops. January and February were not the best months for exercising on the Plain and we had our fair share of rain and mud. It was a useful exercise and many of the lessons learned were to hold us in good stead for America. Unknown to us this was to be the last time we were going to exercise with our Armoured Cars this year.

After a short administrative stop at Windsor we were off to Denmark.

at Windsor before meeting up with 2 Troop from Belize to go to Kansas in mid-America. It was also at this stage that the Squadron sadly said goodbye to the Second-in-Command, Captain H.P. Read, but welcomed Captain J. L. Morris to take his place, and also Captain D.A. York to help with administration during the American exercise. Our experiences in America have been written up in this magazine by a then troop leader on the trip.

Having shaken the Kansas dust from our large packs we had a period of leave, coming back for the preparation and training for Northern Ireland. On our return from America it was with regret that several older members had to leave the Squadron.

SQMC Alderson, CoH Daraz (who was to later join us in Northern Ireland), CoH Banks, LCpl Fry, Tpr Pullen and Tpr Wragg (off to Belize to get married) but welcomed on board Captain The Hon. H. J. Adderley, Lieutenant M. Leatham, Lieutenant N.B. Holliday, SQMC Whyte, LCoH Cusick, LCpl Lawrence, Sgts Karas and Brimicombe, and a number of extra Troopers from Headquarters Squadron and The Guards Depot.

The training for Northern Ireland was the standard NITAT package with SCpl Saunders and Sgt Knight, Grenadier Guards, playing the answer to Starsky and Hutch on behalf of the Provisional IRA, during the internal security exercises. The training finished with two weeks in Kent firing our rifles and a final exercise at Stanford. On return from Northern Ireland Training, the Squadron Leader was summoned to the Commanding Officer to be told that the Squadron was to be prepared to go to Belize and we had 36 hours to get ready. In fact in the end we did get leave and went to Northern Ireland.

A Squadron's voyage in Sir Lancelot to Denmark for Exercise Brigade Frost was terminated when an Algerian tanker collided with her in Southampton Water

The Squadron in fact never got to Denmark there was a mid-Channel duel between our LSL and an Algerian Oil tanker. The duel was a draw and both ships limped back to port, quickly followed by rude signals from Band C Squadrons, and even one from Catterick, with the general theme of navigation and the Regimental Sailing Officer who was on board at the time. This mishap gave the Squadron a few days

Troopers Garrity and Pritchard writing home from Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland has been relatively quiet so far, although we have had our share of finds shootings and bombs. We have made use of the heiicopter experience gained in America, which has caused the Squadron amusement and we hope, the Provisional IRA fear. . . Thi~ has been a thoroughly interesting year, and It IS going to be with great sadness that many of the members of the Squadron will be leaving in the New Year after our return to Windsor, among them SCM Lawson who goes to the Junior Leaders' Regim.ent to be replaced by SCM McGloughlin, and Lieutenant C.B. Oldfield who is to attend the Long Armoured Course at Bovington.

Trooper Sprague, LCoH Cusick and Lieutenant C. B. Olatield in Ulster

EXERCISE GOBI DUST

By Captain P.R.L. Hunter

When A Squadron first heard that it was going on this exercise most people could be forgiven for thinking it was a two-week desert holiday with The Sealed Knot. In fact it involved a direct exchange with 'B' Troop (UK Squadron) of the US 1/4 Horse. The l st Squadron of the 4th Cavalry are an armoured cavalry squadron (UK Regiment) stationed at Fort Riley in Kansas. This is a huge post. Over 14,000 soldiers and their families live and work on the 176,000 acre area. Fort Riley is the home of the 1st US Infantry Division commanded by Major General Benedict and it was he who led the welcome for us when we arrived on the 6th April.

The day before, we spent the night at Brize Norton and then boarded an RAF VC 10 bound for McConnell US Air Force Base in Wichita. This is a 3 hour coachdrive from the Fort. A lucky few avoided the drive and were airlifted by helicopter. They were much impressed by the two escorting Cobra Gunships (attack helicopters) which cartwheeled round our formation of Hueys showing off their air manoeuvrability. On reaching the Fort we had to wait for the coaches to arrive before forming up and marching on to a welcoming parade. The Divisional Band then played both National Anthems, and Brigadier Johns made a welcoming speech. I don't think the band quite understood British Badges of Rank as two of its n~embers approached the Squadron Leader, Major Slmpso.n Gee, with the greeting: "Hi mack, what sort of a tnp have you had?" This kind of good natured informality was to help make the remainder of the trip such a success.

Captain (Quartermaster) York. SQ~IC Alderson and the rest of the Advance Party. preceded us by a week so that we were able to move into the accommodation, etc. without any of the normal problems.

The majority lived in a new 3 storey block next to the Squadron Offices and all ranks dining hall. The Officers and Senior ranks lived some distance away which meant a great deal of commuting. In the dining hall rank has no precedence as far as the meal queue is concerned, although Mr. Bossorn. "laster Sergeant Diaz and the Regimental Corporal Major were still"discussing' this problem even at the end of the tour. Mr. Bossom is a reserve officer who joined us for the five weeks and kept everyone in the Squadron amused.

After a very good initial brief on the Fort, local 'attractions' and the strict traffic regulations. we moved to the vehicle park to begin the major part of the exchange. Each platoon commander had in effect a mini-combat team comprising 3 Scout Jeeps. 3 Sheridan Tanks, 2 APC mounted Tow "fissile launchers, one APC borne infantry section and a Mortar APC. Of this we were expected to man and operate everything except the mortar vehicle.

The vehicle took some getting used to and the LAD, under W02 Lodder (now AS"n. worked extremely hard to get all of the vehicles roadworthy.

The first week was spent with crews getting to know their equipment, and commanders studying tactics.

Everyone was taken to the ranges to fire the various infantry weapons. These included the Colt .45. M-16, M203, .50 cal MG, M60 LMG and the 66mm. The

grenade launcher was especially e ffec tive , throwing its 40mm Smoke/HE proj ectile ov er 200m . TheSheridan gunnery produced no gr eat surprises but w e found the missile in th e sim u lato r much easier to control than the older Swingfire/Vigilant.

Concurrent with all of this military activity , o ur hosts were entertaining us ex tremely well and many local families had gr oups of soldiers to their h ou ses for dinner etc.

For variou s rea son s we were unable to take part in the Squadron's ann ua l FTX but on our first e xe rc ise we were visited by Gen eral Kroessen, a foursta r Gen eral from Washington who equates to th e Ci nC UKLF. He was parti culary interest ed in our views on the ex ch an ge, a nd in our opinions of Am erican tactics and equipment. By this time we had formed our own impressions and I am not s ure th at he received totally fr ank answe rs.

By the end of th e fir st week we were ready for our first exercise. As th e train ing area is enormous thi s ga ve us plenty of room to manoeu vre . Tactics, et c. we fo und to be not that much different , but messing in the field is done ce n trally by the sq uad ro n and we found it annoyin g being neither self-suffi cient nor having cookers or boiling vessels in our vehicle s.

At the end of th e third week we had completed our fairly rigorou s training programme (which included running at 0700 hours every day) an d th e Squadron was given 5 d ay s leave. Our travel m ovements then resem bl ed a s ta r burst as the Squ adron disappeared in a myriad of different a t ti res an d directions.

The greatest tacti cal difference came with th e u se of the organic airpower. The US Cavalry Squadron has an integra ted air tr o op. This comprises Scou ts, sma ll observation heli copt ers and a gun platoon o f ej Co bras. The latter are se ns a tio n al, as displayed in th eir firepower demonstrati on . The Scout seek s out an d identifies the target , th en the Cobra takes over. It has a c ho ice of a rma me n t ranging from 72mm Rockets and a six barrell ed 7 .6 2mm ' Min i Gun' firin g 4000 rpm, to the 39 5 round 40mm grenade laun ch er.

New versions mount th e T o w anti-tank mis sile . T h is instant reaction force provides a formidable reserv e to any local command er. The pilots we found w er e not only very compet ent , but also extremely keen to take on any task we o ffe re d them. The airpower wa s probably the mo st int eresting military aspect of o ur trip .

Corporal of Horse Jones went to Lo s Angeles, Lieutenant C.B . Oldfi eld and 30 others to Fort Carson, Colorado , Lieutenant P.R.L. Hunt er a nd Mr. Bossom to the Baham as, Trooper Wragg to Beli ze , the Regimen tal Corporal Major to Dallas, and m any o t he rs to destinations sligh t ly closer. The town of Abil ene. which is the birthplace of the late Presid ent Eisen~ hower and co n ta ins hi s house and memori al lib rary, was a favourit e. It a lso has a mock up of the old cow town which exi st ed less than 100 years ago .

At th e e nd o f o ur rest (?) we rea ssern bled a t Fort Riley to bo ard the coaches for Salina A ir field .

Here we found 2 USAF C-141s awaiting us. With the minimum of form al ity we were allowed to bo ard a nd found plenty o f ro o m in which to stretch out. Our landing at Brize Norton in the rain th at eve n ing ended our tour and reality returned with a n overnigh t stay in Ga teway House.

Next m orning 'B' Troop arrived fr om Windsor in our tran spo rt so th at there was a bri ef o p por tu nity in which to e x ch an ge 'g re e tings' and wish th em a 'safe return' .

As a wh ol e the trip was a gr eat success and a very valua b le ex pe rie nc e for every on e. We see littl e o f the Am erican Army even when we are in Ge rm a ny, so that this e xc h ange programme goes a long way toward s sa tisfy ing that requirement.

Captain P. R. L. Hunter, CoH Banks, LCpt Loftus, Troopers Clipston and Dove on Exercise Gobi Dust

B Squadron 1977 began fo r B Squ ad ron with preparations for Annua l Firing at Castlemart in. We carr ied out a very successful week's firing th at proved no t only the cap ab ilities of th e Rarden canno n bu t also t hat of Fox across country . On our return to Windsor the Foxes went into preservation and we began our t raining fo r Northern Ireland. Periods of lect ures and exerc ises at the Cinque Ports Tr aining Area brought us to Apri l and leave. On 26th April th e main party crossed the Irish sea to begin a fo ur mo nt h tour in Dungann on , Co. Tyron e.

Th e Squ ad ron lived in Cast le Hill Cam p, soo n to be know n as Fort Combe rmere, in th e pleasant co untry town of Dungann on. Ou r area of responsibility included the town, the surrounding co unt ryside, th e rat her unpl easan t tow n of Coa lisland , and an eq ually un pleasant area known as the Was hing Bay. The bay area had various dubio us att ributes not least the presence of Mrs. Bernadett e McCluskey , nee Devlin, famous ex-Member of Parliament and book reviewer .

Dunganno n and the surround ing a rea fo rm a corner of the infamous 'murder tr iangle ', the activ ity of which was demonstrated within two da ys of our ar rival. A part-t ime UDR cap tai n was murdered within earshot of t he camp . A few weeks late r a reserve co nstab le was crue lly murdered while driving his school bus . On 22nd May at 23 41 hours B Squadron suffered its first casua lities in a well planned amb ush just outside Coalisland. LCpl Tinsley, LCpl Lewis and Troo per Tho mas were all hit by fire from an automatic rifle. LCpl Ti nsley and LCpl Lewis have made a good recovery but Troop er Th omas st il l suffers fro m loss of hearing in one ear an d will shor t ly leave t he Army as a result.

A pattern of att acks was beginning to emerge with alternate attacks on members of th e local security forces and B Squad ron . The mu rder of t hree policemen just ou tside our area was closely fo llowed by a second ambush on a B Squadron patrol . T roo per Jerram had a lucky escape when a bullet grazed his fore head . And so the tou r went on with the likelihood that ano ther attack wou ld fo llow in t ime. On 19th June it came . Th e mode of operatio n was similar to the earlier amb ushes. Troo per Newt on , sta ndi ng in t he rear of th e mac rilon Land Rover, received a bullet in his ank le.

On all th e amb ushes fire was speedily ret urned .

On the last ambush a t ot al of 90 rounds were fired by th e patrol , so me of which were from an LM G fired by a visiting member of NITAT . Th ere's a good chance that one or more gunme n were injured in t he various ambushes. We do know th at one of th em had a serious injury to a hand which might have been caused by B Squadro n.

Troop er Herd asking to be " beamed up".

Lance Corpo ral of Horse Orm iston and Lance Corporal Slatfor d in Dungannon

16

During t he to ur the Squad ron had many finds, thus depriving t he Provision al IRA of equ ipmen t wit h wh ich to continue the ir cam paign. Amo ng our notab le finds were a Woodmaster rifle wit h single poin t sight; 283 Ibs of am moni um nit rate explosive; 21 Provisional IRA han d grenades and a soph isticated radio-control led bomb safel y neut ralised by th e bomb disposal expert.

Everyon e enjoyed th eir Rest and Recu peration and derived maximu m benefit from it. At t imes the Squadron was pushed to fill the gaps caused by R & R and injuries, but somehow the various demands were met withou t the Squadro n's opera t ional commitments suffering.

Many frie nds were made du ring t he tou r.

Regular visits to the Brit ish Legion were enjoyed by many so ldiers. A happ y and close liaison ex isted between B Squ ad ron and RUC and 8 UDR.

The summer in North ern Ireland is always a busy t ime a nd thi s year was no except ion. In May we had th e frustrations of the Ulster Work ers' Strike and later, in August, th e resoundin g success of The Queen 's Jubilee visit. The Bl ack Preceptor y March , held in Dungannon on o ur last Saturd ay proved th at the violent con frontati ons of a few years ago are now , and hopefull y will con ti nue to be , a thin g of t he past.

At th e end of Novemb er th e Squ ad ron took part in the AMF( L) exe rcise 'A vo n Express '. For th e purposes of th e exercise the Squadron was o rganised wit h three tr oop s each of six Foxes. This gave us the op po rtuni ty to work with th e new size tro o p t hat is soon to be introduced. Th ere is no do ubt th at th e challenge of 1978 will be to implem ent the Squ adr on reo rganiza t ion and make it wo rk.

On 2nd September, a hap py B Squadron embarked on th e LSL at Bel fast Docks for th e return crossing to Liverp ool. Rumou rs of A Squad ron being delayed in arri ving had proved to be wrong.

The end of Sep temb er , eight mo nt hs afte r our No rth ern Ireland tr aining began and we were fin ally back with ou r Fo xes in Windsor . The first priority within t he Squ adron was co urses. The new RAC Emp loyment st ruc t ure has demanded a mor e versatile level of trad e t rainin g and the Squad ron is well on its way to achieving this . Since October co urses in D & M Gunn ery and Signals have been run . It is hop ed th at

by April 197 8 all crews will be int erchangeabl e.

And so to the close of th e year . From Annu al Firing in Janu ary, No rth ern Ireland in the Summ er to co urses and reo rganisati on in th e Win ter, B Squadron , again , has had an int erestin g and rewardin g year. And now , as thi s art icle is being writt en, fire fight ing crews fro m B Squad ron are being despat ched and tr ain ed for duties over Christmas. Forsome a year . of wor k won' t be over unt il 31st Decemb er " Plus ca change....... .. " .

Lance Corp oral Davies, Trooper Brazier and Lance Corpo ral of Horse Stephenson in Dungannon

17

C Squadron It has been anot he r very fu ll and inte resting year fo r the AMF (L) Sq uadr on. Before Chr istm as we were pleased to welco me ou r t roop bac k fro m Belize with Lieutenant D. St. e.O. Bruton and Corporal of Horse Wh yt e. They fo und t hemselves return ing fro m the heat of Central America just in t ime to start Pre-Hardfall training fo r ou r trip to Norway.

Exercise Hard fall this year was und oub tedly the most enjoya ble t rip to Nor way we have had, altho ugh it was sad to know th at it wou ld be our final t raining period in th e Nor th. We again went to Rinn liret and renewed many o ld fr iendships. Our t ime was fu lly occupied and we were happ y to have visits fro m both t he Command ing Officer and th e Second-in-Comma nd , Major A.B.S.H. Gooc h.

The Seco nd-in-Co mma nd arrived , unfortu nately for him, at t he sa me t ime as four rat her senior visitors . We ho pe th at they enjoyed their two days wit h t he Squad ron. It has to be ad mitt ed that the Squad ro n Leader was somewhat horrified whe n he was told at short notice about this visit. He even co ntemplated putting three Major Genera ls and a Brigadier (to cook) in o ne tent in the sno w for a night , but his courage fai led him at the last mo ment. Or perhaps it was t he th ou ght th at he might have been ex pected to be there himself.

After a month in Rinnliret where we co nducted several exe rcises in the area ; fired at }herki n ranges and com pleted our basic survival tr aining. We embarked on a fasci nat ing journ ey - The Squ adron had to be at a spot 70 miles nor th of Narvik by th e 18th March fo r an Anglo-Norw egian exe rcise. So rat her th an take th e co nvent ional route by sea we decided to move th e whole Squadron overland, a journey of so me 580 miles. At 05 30 hour s on t he 12th March, we said o ur fa rewells in th e South and head ed North in a sno w sto rm.

We were s upported by a Forwar d Repair tea m fro m 9 Field Workshops, tw o RCT pet rol bowsers, t wo Army Air Corps Gazelle helico pt ers and a Norwegian liaiso n officer.

The weather was bad to sta rt with but improved as we moved Nor th , with temp eratu res ranging from - 15 0 C to +15 ° e. The roa ds varied from met alled to graded soil wit h a covering of ice and snow . There were extensive st ret ches of narrow, windi ng, moun tain roads wit h long gradie nts . Two high passes were crossed and two civilian fe rries were used to cross Fjo rds.

Th e Squadron took five days to co mplete t he journey passing through so me of t he wildest and most beautiful scen ery in Nor way. The move was not with out its pro blems and exciting momen ts. LCoH Powell met a large timber lorry on a nar row road and 18

had to spend 3 hou rs digging himself out of t he snow bank he ran int o while ta king avoidi ng actio n. LCoH McBride tur ned ove r in his Ferr et on a bad moun tain road and a Scimit ar crewed by Th e 1st Batt alion Royal Anglian Regimen t turned ove r on anot her mo untai n road in dee p snow . Lance Corp oral Kelly and Troop er Newto n showe d great driving ski ll by tow ing one 4-ton ner beh ind ano t her for 300 miles over very bad roads and tracks. Th e co mplete Squ adron arrived in the Nort h o n sched ule and read y to par ticip at e in Exercise Cold Wint er with the Norw egian Army. It was a journe y th at will be long rememb ered by a ll th ose who too k part in it.

A Scimitar manned by LCoH Pace and LCpl O 'Connor during Exercise Har dfall in Norway. In the background is a Gazelle helicopter.

On return ing from Norway we immed iate ly had to hand o ur vehicles and equipment ove r to the American Squadron who , if nothing else, made a very great impr ession on all ot he r road users in th e South of England betwe en th e 7th April and 9t h May. During May and Jun e th e Squ adron was full y occ upied wit h Regular Arm y co mmitme nts, trade tr ainin g and co urses. Second Lieu tenan t D.e. Waterh ou se commanded a Kape tour in the Nort h West of England wit h Staff Corp oral Allen .

Exercise Hardfall - Tro op recovery

In Ju ly th e Squ ad ron completed its annual firin g at Lulworth. It was goo d to see Ca ptai n B.P. Payne, who had last been with us as Squa dron Cor ­ po ral Major in 197 4 . Cor po rals of Horse Renn ie and Craig both wor ked hard to ensu re t hat ou r brief per iod of gunnery was a success and we were sorry to have to say goodb ye to th em o n our return to Windsor . Immedi at ely afte r live firing th e Squ adron moved t o Salisbury Pl ain where th e Sch ool of Infantry Co mbat team co mmanders course provid ed th e Squ ad ron Leader and Tro op Leaders fo r Exercise Phantom Bugle.

Second Lieutenant D. C. Waterhouse and his Troop

Afte r a well-earned leave period in August , th e Squadr on prepared fo r th e fina l overseas AMF(L) exe rcise, Exercise Arrow Expr ess in Denm ark. We dep loyed to Ju tland by LSL and th en dro ve ac ross Jutl and to catc h a civilian ferry to reach th e exe rcise area in Zeeland . After enduring an app alling few days of torr en t ial rain in a field , we moved into th e very co mfortable ou t buildi ngs of a fine hou se 40 miles sout h of Co penhagen fr om where we conduc ted t he first phase of th e exercise . We were acco mpa nied by th e Paymast er who , much to his annoya nce , lost his beret to the amorous (male) inmate of a lunat ic asylum. He cheered up again when he was allowed to dr ive a pol ice mo to r bike around th e Danish co untry­ side .

Th e co mba t phase of the exe rcise was most enjoya ble and we fo und ourse lves wo rki ng wit h Danish , Italian , Lux embourg and British t roops. Th e exe rcise area was the who le of Zeeland, less, unf or­ tu nat ely, Copenhage n. Aft er a th or ou ghly wort hwhile but tirin g exercise we return ed t o Englan d to find ourselves immediatel y thrown into North ern Ireland t rainin g. This involved a com plete re-organ isati on of th e Sq uadron . We said farewe ll to Majo r T.J . Earl, Captain N.P. Hearson , SQMC Leighton , Staff Co rpora l Allen and Corp oral of Ho rse Land and welco med th eir

replacements, Major C.N. Haworth-B ooth , SQMC Kno wles, Co rpora l of Horse Knowles and a plat oon of sol diers fr om Th e Roy al Arm y Ord nance Co rps und er co mmand as rein forcements.

It was with great sadness th at we han ded over t he AM F(L) co mmit me nt to The 17th /21 st Lanc ers on th e 20 th Oct ob er. C Squ adr on firs t took o n the role in 1968 . Since t hen we have had six t rips to Norw ay and have part icipated in 9 AMF(L) exercises in No rway, Denm ark , Greece, Turkey and Sa rdin ia.

SCM Hutchings and SQMC Leighton

All th ose who have had th e pleasur e t o be part of t he Squ ad ron over th ese yea rs have made many friends in man y different countries. We will all carry away amusing and happ y me mories of our tr ips away . We reluct antl y relinquish what, in th is tim e of co nt ractio n for th e Arm y, must be th e most enjo yable and wo rt h­ while job available t o an Armoured Reconnai ssance Squadro n.

19

Headquarter Squadron Everyon e kno ws th at Headqu ar ter Squ adron is th e la rgest Squ adron and has stacks of blo kes all sit t ing abo ut doi ng nothin g all day. If yo u wa nt any­ thi ng or anyo ne "j ust ask Head quarter Squ ad ron " or " Headqu arter Sq uadron for action" o r " Head quarter Squad ron to prod uce ". Well this yea r we have pro­ du ced suc h thin gs as overnight acco mmod at ion fo r Rolls Ro yce cars on their Jubilee Review (Edu cat ion Centre fo r ac t io n); 2500 staves for The Sealed Knot , (MT T roop to convey); a Guide to Windsorfo r t he US Cavalr y (Squ adr on Leader and Squadron Cler k for act ion); a f ire o rde r in Norwegian translated fro m th e o riginal Dut ch (Int. Clerk for action) , and d rawers Dracu la fo r Green Goddesses, etc . etc.

As yo u can imagin e we are all perm anentl y on th e go and make a th or oughl y goo d jo b of it t oo.

We are all so busy th at we find in o ur Dep art­ ments that we just ca nno t release peopl e for t hose

tir esom e Drill o r PT parad es. Th is fo rces th e Squadro n Lead er t o the gene ro us step of layi ng on th ese parades at 07 30 hours. Ho wever, as a result we were quite clearly th e best Squ ad ron o n th e Major Gen eral 's Inspecti on and we all got t h rough the Fit to Fight Test. We nearly forgot abo ut Range Classif icatio n but the new Squ adr on Leader , Majo r V.A . L. Goodh ew, was kind enough t o fit th at in at 06 00 hours most days.

We say a sad farewell to SCM Hatt o who has been at the helm of the Squ ad ron for so long, he has left for a civilian job in which we wish him the best of luck. SQMC Shaw repl aces him and SQMC Land has taken over from SQMC Knowle s, who has flitted to C Squadron along with th e Squ ad ron Lead er and sixteen ot he rs for Northern Ireland .

CoH Rymer, The Provost CoH

ORCoH Et ches

SQMC Land

W02 Hatto

Staff Corpo ral Hoare

20

REGIMENTAL ORDERLY ROOM Since the last issue of the Acorn a great number of moves have taken place in th e Orderly Roo m. Th e main move was that of OR QMC Cherring­ to n to the J LR RAC Bovington , and in his place we welcome O RSQMC Henderson from the J LR RAC Be vington . and hop e his stay will be a long and happ y one . His bro ther is the Chief Clerk of Th e Mounted Regiment an d shor t ly bo th will be Wa rra nt Officers.

Staff Co rporal Dugdale has also de parted fo r Boving­ ton as he co uld not imagine his form er Chief Clerk managing with out him; he has in fac t ta ken up the appo int ment of Chief Clerk of th e Arm our Scho ol. In his place we welco me back Cor pora l of Horse Etches fro m th e wilds of Hou sehold Cavalry Record s in Lon don. It was rum oured tha t it took him a week to find his uniform again. LCoH St ar ling has also de­ pa rted fo r Hou seh old Cavalry Reco rds to tackle t he computer. We are not sure who will win bu t o ur money is on th e co mp uter . Cor pora l of Ho rse Wals h has returned fro m Household Cavalry Reco rds and has now fou nd t hat life in uniform is a lot different from London. The Post Cor pora l, LCoH T uck, has de parted back to the sharp end with A Squadron , and LCoH Beck no w has the co mfor ts of th e Orderly Roo m. Other new faces are LCoH Kallaste from The Ho usehold Cavalry Regimen t, LCp l Ridsdel from the Guards Depot, and LCpl O'Neill from B Squadron .

The only face th at has not changed is T roop er Holmes who is now t he lon gest serving me mber of the Orderly Ro om.

We have don e ou r fa ir sha re of so ldiering dur ing th e past yea r. Staff Cor pora l Dugdale and LCoH Kallast e both went o n a Regimental CPX in th e wilds of Salisbury Plain. LCoH Beck and Troop er Holmes wen t with Headqu art er Squ adr on t o Fold a House on Advernt ure Training.

Th e Ord er ly Room have also co mple ted t heir Fit to Fight and Person al Weapo ns Test s with 100 % success. Cor pora l of Ho rse Etches has atte nded a Regimen tal Intelligence Course and now knows more about the Russian Army th an his ow n.

On th e sporti ng side of t hings the O rderly Roo m was well represented in the Regimen tal Cricket Team by Staff Cor poral Dugdale, Co H Etches, LCoH Beck and LCpl Ridsdel. Th e team did not perform all that well but it was not our fault that the rema ining members did not reach our standards.

THE CATERIN G DEPAR TMENT The ACC attac hed members of Th e Regiment have had a very busy time with exe rcises and No rth ern Ireland tou rs. Th e 'stay at hom es', nam ely Head­ quarte r Squadron have had th eir fair shar e of th e

load looki ng afte r t he man y Regimental fun ions.

Th e ou tstanding function being the Associa tion Dinner for 350 serving and ex-serving members of The Regiment. Th e guests sat dow n to a mea l of: Prawn Cocktail Fillet of Beef Chasseu r Croquet Potatoes Sliced Beans Cauliflower Au Gra tin Meringue Glace Cheese and Biscu its Since Th e Regiment 's return from Ger many many faces have cha nged but tw o sta lwa rts who remain a re LSgt Murph y and LCpl Smi th , a n ex-Life Guard coo k who t ransfe rred to th e Corps. A Squ adr on took LCpl Ferguson to No rth America, who afte r a month came bac k an ex pert in th e art of coo king Hamb urgers, Beef burgers and any ot her burgers yo u care to imagine and not fo rgetti ng frie d pota toes.

Th ey we re in th e USA o n an exc hange. Here in Windsor we were looki ng af ter B Troop 1st Sq uad ­ ron of th e 4t h Cavalry . Th ey in th eir wisdom did not bring cooks with the Troop to pass on the secrets of the Burger. However it did take them a while to get used to not having chips with every meal. By acc ident, one day we found a great liking by our American counter par ts to POM, Yes, Mashed Pot ato Powder. In the USA t hey have listened to Smash Men and thrown away t he rou nd dirty things that yo u have to peel.

Afte r teach ing us how to do a barbec ue they returned to th e St at es.

B Squ adr on have had a hard tim e in North ern Ireland and are at the mom ent chargi ng up th eir batt eries and a nx iously wai t ing fo r th e d ice to sto p rollin g and give the m a tour in th e sun.

C Squ adr on coo ks have had a goo d yea r wit h the AMF(L) Squad ron on exe rcies and tra ining in Norway and Denm a rk end ing th e year with an Ulster tou r.

As wit h all attac hed personn el we co me and go but some of t he perso nalities who have left over th e yea r are:­ Master Chef W02 MacDonald on pro mo tio n to Grou p Catering, Aldershot.

LSgt Webster to the Metropolitan Police LSgt Woolacot 23 Signal Squ adron , Lou ghbo rough.

LSgt Bla ke to The Guards Depot, Pirbright.

LCpl Cox to a Hotel in Germa ny .

LCpl Cape on promotion to The Ho me Postal and Courier Unit , Royal Engineers .

THE LIGHT AID DETACHMENT Since th e last edi t ion of Th e Acorn th ere has been a large tu rnover of personn el in th e Headqu art er LAD. AQMS Leyland , SSgt Bevan, LSgt Pati ent, and 21

LCpls Gray and Elmer have been posted, and ASM Thomas and LCpls Pearce and Livingstone have moved on to civilian life. Everyone in the LAD would like to take this opportunity to wish them well for the future and also to welcome SSgt Kirrage, SSgt Iredale, Sgt McConaghy, LCpls Boynton-Quinion and Seymour and Craftsmen Bright, Ryan, Bray, Hands, Waldon, Porter, Woodcock and Lafferty. AQMS Lodder has been promoted to ASM and has taken over the hot seat from ASM Thomas.

There have been no major exercises involving Headquarter's LAD but with the other Squadrons away for the majority of the time there has been plenty to do - PT, Drill, Duties, PT, more Drill, PT more Duties, and the normal LAD work! A party from the LAD went with Headquarter Squadron to Guards House, Folda in Scotland, to take part in adventure training activities such as land skiing, pony trekking, rock-climbing, hiking, cycling and fishing.

In spite of the weather all concerned thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

The main sporting achievement has been the success of the LAD team in the Welsh 3000 compe­ tition. This gruelling annual competition takes place in Snowdonia over a 25 mile course, traversing over 14 peaks of 3000 feet. The aim of the competition is to encourage a high standard of physical fitness and endurance to enable soldiers to move across difficult and mountainous country. The LAD team consisted of Sgt Karas, LSgt Turner and Craftsmen Harris and

The

Brannigan with Craftsman Bright as reserve and the EM E Captain D.L. Judd as team manager. On the day, the team turned in a creditable performance finishing eighth out of the 25 teams in a time of 10 hours and 15 minutes.

In July a team from the LAD also took part in the RMP 25 mile Centenary March. All in all, a busy six months for the Headquarter's LAD and things look very much the same in the forseeable futu reo

Band

Nineteen Seventy Seven, being The Silver Jubilee of Her Majesty The Queen, has proved arduous but satisfying. It has been said that the Band has not undertaken such a year since The Coronation (there are still members with vivid recollections of that occasion).

Among the many concerts undertaken in February the concert at The Royal Festival Hall stands out in one's mind as the most interesting.

This concert was in aid of the Fanfare magazine which, in case the reader is no military band enthus­ iast, is the yearly magazine of The Royal Military School of Music. Four Bands of The Household Division played to a full house and among the many famous people attending was Imogen Holst who conducted her father's "Suite in Eb".

March saw us treading the sacred turf of Wembley for the League Cup Final. This occasion turned out to be well publicised for the Bands, for several members inadvertently lost their spurs during 22

The Welsh 3000. From left to right: Sgt. Karas, Craftsmen Brannigan and Harris, l.Sqt. Turner.

the half ti me marching display causing the game to be stopped in the second half while the footballers searched for stray spurs. I say "well publicised" because the following day's press mentioned that this was the highlight of the match!

During April we managed to record a double album with a difference. Musicians from all The Guards Bands got together to perform as a concert band, we suspect for the first time . Also, around this time, our Jubilee record was released which is proving a tremendous success.

In May we were fortunate to be asked to visit Guernsey for the first time. This proved a success and we are all eager to go again. At the end of this month we recorded a programme for the BBe's "Songs of Praise" series in the Garrison Church in Windsor which was transmitted on the Sunday before Jubilee Day. This event is remembered by most members of the Band because, after the recording, which lasted until ten thirty at night, we left for

London at two o'clock in the morning for the early Trooping The Colour rehearsal . Jubilee Day found the Band participating in a Fireworks Spectacular in Windsor Great Park in the presence of The Royal Family. The occasion was shown live on television but, to the producer's horror, the lights of the especially constructed bandstand failed to work as we were about to play . However, with some inspired busking, a potential disaster was averted . During th is month we were back at Wembley Stadium, this time mounted, to the sound of two thousand military musicians participating in the Services Silver Jubilee Musical Pageant.

The British Amateur Gymnastics Association have employed us over the past few years in many of their special occasions . One such occasion was in July when the gymnasts from the Republic of China came to visit Britain. Later in the month we played for another sporting occasion, this time the Benson and Hedges Cup Final at Lord's Cricket Ground .

wish the following ex-members every success in their chosen ca reers : Band Corporal Major Walthew after 24 ea rs service.

He has been able to establish himself as a te acher and band trainer in the Croydon area .

Trumpet Major Close after 22 years service. He will be remembered by many of The Household Division as Band Sergeant Major at the Junior Musician's Wing at Pirbright. He has now become the landlord of the "Duke of Wellington" in Twyford where he welcomes all ex-Life Guards with a free pint!

CoH Cooper after 23 years service. He is now training as an Instrument repairer.

LCoH Dean . He is now ' making a "bomb" in London play ing that magic trombone of his.

We would also like to welcome all the new faces in the Band and wish them success in both the easy and the hard rimes ahead!

The dismounted inspection of The Band by the Commanding Officer

September found us sailing for Jersey for the second year running. This is becoming a favourite tour of the Band even though it is a matter of sur­ vival of the fittest owing to the Toe H hostel accom­ modation! Arriving back found CoH Harman with a few days to organise the final arrangements for the Band Social. The Social was a great success and we would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude for CoH Harman's efforts .

In October various major cities and towns throughout England saw the Band. During this month the Russian Gymnastics Team visited the Empire Pool Wembley where we played for their displays as in previous years . Wembley was also the venue for the start of the Lombard RAC Rally in November.

Several members of the Band have left during the past year and so we take this opportunity to

Musician Slater

23

Household Caval ry Squadron The Guards Depot The Guards Depot has seen several changes in its organisation over the past two years and there are no doubt a number of people who will be unaware of its present organisation.

Basically, the adult recruits of The Household Division are trained in Caterham Company which is staffed by members of all seven regiments. This means that members of The Household Caval ry get a thor­ ough grounding in infantry training prior to going for technical training at Catterick, or into riding school at Windsor and Knightsbridge. There is little doubt that with the present tours the Regiment has had in Northern Ireland, this extra infantry training has proved invaluable.

Household Division Juniors are trained in the two Junior Companies and The Household Cavalry Squadron. Number One Company trains the Grenad.ier and Coldstream juniors, l'Jumber Two Company trains the Scots Irish and Welsh juniors and The Household Cavalry Squadron trains the junior soldier~ of Th.e Life Guards and The Blues and Royals. This organi­ sation has allowed the Squadron to run a different syllabus from Number 1 and 2 Companies, which is arranged so as to lay the foundations ~or sUbs~qu~nt trade training, whilst at the same time the Juniors still receive a thorough grounding in all infantry skills and weapons. They are therefore able to take part in field training exercises.at Thetford and co~­ pete against the Foot Guards In all the normal Dnll PT and March and Shoot Competitions. Specialist RAC trade training is obviously limited by the equip­ ment and facilities available, but the Squadron has a well equipped radio classroom and has recently acquired a Scorpion Armoured Car. So much for the present organisation.

1977 has been a highly successful year for the Squadron. The Spring term Champion. Platoon Competition was won by Arras 8 under Lleute.nant A. W. Kersting RHG/D and CoH Baxter LG, assisted

by LCoH Harding RHG/D and LCoH Mills LG. Not content with winning the competition the Squadron also took second, third and fourth places with the remaining troops. Arras 8 Troop won the PT Com­ petition and JTpr Steedon, as a mem.ber o~ the Depot Boxing Team, reached the Army Juniors Finals.

The Summer term began with a two week camp at Pen hale near Newquay in Cornwall, where the Squadron was able to take. p~rt in a variety. of activities , which included sea fishing, sand yachting, climbing and skating.

June 7th saw the celebration of The Quee.n's Silver Jubilee, and the day was planned. so that whilst the day at Pirbright was full of entertainment, every­ one was still able to watch the events in London on 24

the television. The day began with a parade, and this was followed in the afternoon by a series of events which included a Free Fall Parachute Display, a Riding Competition and an "It's A Knockout" Com­ petition between the Companies and Squadron. In spite of a very wet afternoon, the events were enjoyed by everyone and culminated in a barbecue and discotheque in the evening.

The Summer also saw several changes in the Depot staff. These included the departure of the Commandant Lieutenant Colonel S.c.c. Gaussen WG, who has been succeeded by Lieutenant Colonel D. R. P. Lewis WG, and Major V.A. L. Goodhew, who left the Squadron after two years and handed over to Major P.B. Rogers RHG/D. Lieutenant P.J. Knipe also left the Squadron to rejoin The Regiment.

The Autumn term saw the Squadron's only troop, Rhine 4, whose instructors include CoH Meade and LCoH McDermott, setting off to camp at Dibgate near Folkestone. Despite poor weather all the usual adventurous activities were tackled as well as a day trip to Calais. The September intake, Ypres, have settled in well.

SCM Hales, BEM has retired and has been succeeded by SCM Patteron, RHG/D. SCpl Wright, RHG/D, BEM has also retired from the stables after

Trooper Wright - winner of the Kiwi Spur

many years teaching Junior Troopers to ride, and has been replaced by Staff Corporal Alien, LG. LSgt Day, Grenadier Guards, who has worked in the stables for 13 years has retired and gone to work in The Royal Mews. In February Cornet T.T. Jones, RHG/D, joined the Squadron from Northern Ireland and in November Lieutenant T.L.S. Livingstone­ Learmonth arrived from BAOR. In other parts of the Depot, Major T.J. Earl has taken over command of Headquarter Company and Captain P.S.W.F. Falkner has been appointed the Assistant Adjutant, whose prime job is to run the Brigade Squad for potential officers.

In October, the Squadron said goodbye to SQMC Shaw who has returned to The Regiment on promotion and we welcome in his place the other SQMC Alien, complete with broken ankle, from C Squadron.

The Autumn term ended with the Squadron narrowly missing the Champion Platoon prize but having all three troops well up in the order of merit.

HOUSEHOLD CAVALRY SQUADRON STAFF - MARCH 1977 L/Cpl R. Tonks, RHG/D

L/Sgt E. Sawdon, CG

L/CoH A. Smith, RHG/D CoH. G. George, LG CoH C. Read, LG L/CoH D. Claridge, RHG/D CoH F. Baxter, LG

SQMC 1. Shaw, LG

L/Cpl. M. Price, WG L/CoH A. Fury, LG

Tpr. 1. Allen L/Cpl T. Yarrow, LG Tpr. D. Bale, LG L/CoH D. Hale, LG L/CoH B. Meade, LG Tpr. C. Zotti, LG

L/CoH 1. Mills, LG L/CoH 1. Stickles, RHG/D L/CoH M. Harding, RHG/D L/CoH M.McDermott, LG

Ct. T. Thompson-Jones RHG/D Lt. P.1. Knipe LG Lt. A.W. Kersting, RHG/D Lt. H.K. Hamilton, LG

L/CoH M. Whatley. LG L/CoH G. Wilde RHG/D

SCM. C.1. Hales, BEM, LG SCpl. J. Wright, BEM,RHG/D

L/CoH 1. Wilkenson,LG Tpr. R. Schofield, RHG/D

Major V.A.I.. Goodhew, LG CoH C. Grant, LG

25

Warrant Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers Mess To be honest, because of operational com­ mitments, the Mess Notes should really be produced under the four separate headings of A, B, C and Headquarter Squadrons. They, the Squadrons, spend so much time away from Combermere that they often have to run an independent mess. Naturally, any suggestion that they should produce notes is met with blank amazement. To suggest that their 'goings on'should be divulged to the public would be nothing short of committing military suicide; preferring to believe that any contact between themselves and the local population is more in the line of duty.

"Diplomatic relations not entertainment; to be suffer­ ed rather than to be enjoyed". - We believe them!

Although duty has created the absence of many of the members, those unfortunate to be left behind have still continued to enjoy themselves at Windsor.

The Entertainments Committee, under SQMC Alderson SQMC Woodland, SQMC Alien and SQMC McGlough­ lin, have provided many functions throughout the year and it is only a few that are mentioned here.

The Christmas Draw of 1976 took on a slightly different flavour resulting in a military type operation to ensure its success. The aim was achieved and our thanks must go to SQMC Alien and his hard­ worked committee for providing the blueprint for the draws to come. It is always difficult to buy gifts for one's own immediate family, and the prospect of buying for 300 would deter most people.

However, although one cannot please everyone very few people were disappointed. The measure of success is surely reflected in the numbers who stayed well into the next day. Recovery rate from this night coincided with the New Year's 1977 festivities. As usual, the night was well attended. Because the Mess started the evening early, the magic hour was reached with just the right amount of 'spirit'. We finished with a Champagne breakfast which left the Regimental Corporal Major amazed at the amount of 'bubbly' that was consumed. Luckily SQMC Alderson and CoH Banks provided the answer and surely both will remember this particular New Year's Eve for many years to come.

There now comes a gap in Mess intelligence until we reach a point in Mess life when we were invaded by "noncoms" of 1st Squadron 4th Cavalry, who came from Fort Riley, Kansas, USA. Life in Windsor was very much as portrayed in the television series, "Yanks Go Home", but without the overtones portrayed in the title.

As hosts it was important that no effort should be spared in ensuring that our guests should be entertained in a manner to which they were no longer accustomed - the American Army having abolished 26

Messes as we know them. A touch of 'southern hospitality' was the order of the day. The problem was to condense virtually a year's entertainment into the five week visit. This was supported by all mess members under RQMC(E) Reynolds and the PMC of the day, SCM Hutchings, and the full cycle of functions, dinners, band nights, dances, discos, bar­ becues, were organised. It soon became a test of stamina for them and us, and it was with some relief that we said goodbye to our 'red eyed' guests in the early hours of Sunday morning. However, the object had been achieved. There can be no doubt that Anglo­ American relations have been improved and many lasting friendships formed.A Squadron who went to Fort Riley, will certainly remember their own visit to America.

RQMC (E) Reyna/ds, RQMC Reed, SCM Hutchings, RCM Lumb, ASM Ladder and SCM Murnan

June 11 th was the date of this year's Life Guards Association Dinner. Many old and not-so-old friends were seen in Barracks on a day that surely must be the highlight of the year. The event was as well supported as ever, and all those attending were invited into the Mess after the dinner. Just how five hundred people managed to fit into the building is a continual source of amazement, but they do. It was an excellent night, much enjoyed by all, especially those 'happy' ex-members who finally allowed us to close the bar, open since the 11 th, in the late hours of the 13th. Now we have a year to recover before the next onslaught.

Formal Balls are always an occasion for those attending to 'Dress up' and such was the case for the Autumn Ball. Our friends at Pinewood Studios were once again most helpful and provided much of the decor to ensure that the Mess didn't look like the Mess! Obviously a great deal of hard work goes into these functions, and it is doubly rewarding when all goes as smoothly as it did on this occasion.

All the Mess functions are catered for by our new Master Chef, SQMS Sinclair, who joined us early in the year. The standards set by his predecessor have been maintained. It may be that on occasions they may even have been surpassed, but no one would ever say so. Anyway, as we all know, Lance Corporal Smith is the real driving force in the cookhouse. To be serious, though, the cooks always perform miracles and as prices soar, the standards do at least remain constant.

As in the past, the Mess is very often used by individual Squadrons for their own dinners. Such occasions are always very popular. It b'ecomes neces­ sary to outdo the previous Squadron's efforts and those who are lucky enough to be invited benefit by what can only be described as friendly rivalry.

Headquarter Squadron are alone in that they have yet to succumb to this form of 'one-upmanship' and we await their event with baited breath. Maybe not this year, but be patient; maybe next year!

Readers will be kept informed of Squadron Corporal Major Shaw's progress on this subject.

As always the Mess has had its fair quota of visits. Some of the guests we have hosted were: The Colonel of the Regiment Major General J. Swinton, OBE, The Major General Colonel J.A.c.G. Eyre, CVO, OB E, The Lieut­ enant Colonel Commanding General Sir Edwin Brammell, KCB, OBE, MC, Commander-in-Chief, UKLF.

Major General M.J.H. Walsh, DSO, General Officer Commanding 3rd Division.

Brigadier M.S. Gray, OBE, Commander 6th Field Force.

Brigadier R.M. Jerram, MBE, Brigadier Royal Armoured Corps, UKLF. We have said farewell to many members this year. W02 Deaville, Staff Corporal Close, W02 Walthew, Corporals of Horse Perry, Cooper and Newens, who have left us for civilian life. We wish them and their families every success in the outside world. Staff Corporal Daysmith is posted to the Junior Leaders Regiment, Staff Corporal Maxwell to 2 Armoured Delivery Squadron, Staff Corporal Dug­ dale to the Armour School, Staff Corporal L10yd to the D & M School, Corporals of Horse Lea, Collier and Turner to Army Careers Information Offices at Stoke, Liverpool and Preston respectively.

We have welcomed the following to the Mess from ERE: W02 Shaw from the Guards Depot, Corporal of Horse Etches from Regimental Headquarters, Household Cavalry, Corporal of Horse Jolly from the Junior Leaders Regiment, Corporals of Horse Cozens and Rymer from The Guards Depot, Corporals of Horse Saunders and Richards from recruiting offices in Stoke and Preston, and finally Corporal of Horse Ross from the RAC Training Regiment.

The following promotions amongst the seniors have taken place and the recipients are to be congrat­ ulated: Staff Corporals Leighton, McGloughlin, Shaw and Henderson to W02, Corporals of Horse L1oyd, Maxwell, Daysmith, Whyte, Dugdale, Sanders, Willis, Nicklin, Land, Richards, Townsend and Williams to Staff Corporal and Lance Corporals of Horse Byrne, 8urns and Lea to Corporal of Horse.

Sports Because The Regiment was so split up in 1977 we did not manage to field truly Regimental teams, but those who have competed were not disgraced.

The Football Team, under the command of Captain (Quartermaster) D. York, came 2nd on goal

average to The Royal Military School of Music in one of the divisions of the London District League. They also nearly won the cup for good behaviour. In the Cavalry Cup we beat the 15th/19th Hussars, and after two exciting re-plays lost The United Kingdom semi­ final to The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

27

Captain G.B. Charters-Rowe, 2nd Lieutenant D.e. Waterhouse, Staff Sergeant McQuilkin, Sergeant Smith REME, and Trooper Vickers have represented The Regiment in London District Golf competitions, in one of which we lasted until the second round before being beaten by the Guards Depot. We look forward to next year when The Regiment is together and Lance Corporal Treble returns from parachuting.

The Regimental Cricket Team, captained by Staff Corporal Dugdale, and largely manned by the Orderly Room staff, played several enjoyable friendly matches during the Summer.

The 1977 Season of the London Services Cross-Country Running League began on 5th October with a race at RAF West Dray ton and despite man­ power difficulties in raising a team The Regiment sent five members who produced a creditable result for our first fixture. The next meeting was at RE Mill Hill where the team of six runners again showed promise, especially as a large proportion of the field appeared to come from civilian organisations which were not present last year. As the season progresses we hope to build up a pool of runners to draw on, at least to be sure of sending an 'A' team to every league race. Training tends to be difficult with so many of the team in different departments but the average standard of fitness is high. (Note from Headquarter Squadron Leader - thanks to the Squadron 'Fit to Fight' trai ni ng!).

Three individual gladiators did well in 1977.

Our PTI, Staff Sergeant McQuilkin, (who has now been posted to the UKLF PT School at Bulford) won the Individual London District Squash Championships, and was a regulr member of the Army Squash Team.

Lance Corporal Johnson won the London District Cross Country. He is an Army runner and came third in the Army 3000m. During a quiet period on guard one night Lance Corporal Johnson worked out that he had covered 3640 miles in training during the season. LCoH Davey, C Squadron, entered the Army Intermediate Boxing Championships and did very well to get through to the semi-finals. This was a particularly good effort as it was his first competition and he was up against very experienced opposition.

MOUNTED SPORTS Due to the unusually heavy ceremonial com­ mitments this Jubilee year we have competed in fewer events than normal, however we have managed to achieve some satisfactory results.

The first event of 1977 was Crookham Horse Trials which resulted in W02 Varley, riding ling, winning the first prize for the best Intermediate horse in the Open Intermediate Class.

28

In the annual Hickstead Cross Country race Lance Corporal of Horse Sanderson on Unisex and Major V.A.L. Goodhew on Yankee were in the team which finished fifth overall.

W02 Varley finished sixth on ling in the Intermediate Class of the Bucklebury Horse Trials.

At The Royal Tournament Trooper Haverley won the individual tent pegging competition which was a good result against some very experienced competitors.

SCM Var/ey riding Zing clearing the Elephant Trap at Badminton

Lance Corporals of Horse Flaherty, on Yas­ mine and Sanderson, on Burma, were in the team which won the team Jumping competition at The RMA Sandhurst Horse Show. This was a new com­ petition where style and pace were judged in addition to the normal rules of jumping.

At the Army Hunter Trials we had a number of successes. The first being Trooper Ward, riding Churchill, who won the prize for the best Other Rank in his class and was second overall.

Lance Corporal of Horse Flaherty, riding Yasmine, was third in the Open Class and Lance Corporal of Horse 0' Flaherty partnered Lance Cor­ poral of Horse Hague, The Blues and Royals, to win the pairs competition.

In the Cross Country team race at Buckby Folly W02 Varley on ling, Staff Corporal McKie, on lion, and LanceCorporal of Horse Flaherty, on Yasmine, came a very creditable second in a strong field.

The Household Battal ion (1916-1918) SIXTIETH AI\lI\IIVERSARY OF THE PASSING OF THE HOUSEHOLD BATTALION (1st September 1916 to 16th February 1918) by (Squadron Corporal Major) C.W. Frearson Esq. More than 600,000 British infantrymen were killed or wounded during the ten weeks of the battles of the Somme Valley which began on 1st July 1916.

The battlefields of Flanders and France had become a maze of trench systems, so complex as to require air observation to comprehend.

Trench warefare bore hardest on the infantry and in August 1916 it was decided by The King, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff and the Colonel of The 1st Life Guards, that the flood of recruits for the Household Cavalry would be diverted into badly needed infantry - a battalion, in fact, raised and trained within The Household Cavalry. On Friday, 1st September 1916, The Household Battalion formed at Hyde Park Barracks, under the wing of the Reserve Regiment of The 1st Life Guards. The battalion strength was 28 Officers and 900 men. Of the 84 Officers who eventually served in the new unit, 15 were 1st Life Guards, 11 were 2nd Life Guards, 8 were from The Blues, 22 were commissioned directly into The Household Battalion, 17 were Foot Guards and 11 came from cavalry and infantry of the Line.

Captain Wyndham Portal of The 1st Life Guards was appointed to the Lieutenant Colonelcy of the Battalion. He had served in The 1st Life Guards from 1908 to 1911 and rejoined from the Reserve in 1914. He was to command The Household Battal ion throughout its existence and thereafter a battalion of the Machine Gun Corps. During the 2nd World War he served in various Government Ministries and the Colonial Development Council and was created the 1st Viscount Portal of Laverstoke in 1945; In 1948 he was President of the Olympic Games. He died 6th May 1949 aged 64.

Lea.'ing Waterloo Station for France, 8th November 7976

Captain W. R. Portal, 7st Life Guards who was appointed to Command the Household Battalion 9th September 7976 and who commanded until the disbandment 76th February 7978. This photograph shows him in 7976 at the time of his appoint as Lt. Colonel - aged 37 years.

The new infantry battalion trained in Hyde Park and later in September, moved to camp in Richmond Park. Shortly after The Household Battalion entrained for France, on 8th and 9th November 1916, the Reserve of the Battalion moved from London to Combermere Barracks, Windsor, with the Reserve Regiment of The 2nd Life Guards.

From here, drafts of over 2,000 men were sent out to the Western Front to replace casualties suffered by The Household Battalion during its 14 months of combatant service. The men were paid the cavalry rate of pay, a few pence more than the infantry, and they wore cavalry service dress on furlough with a distinctive cap badge, the design of which is per­ petuated in the present-day Household Cavalry Forage Cap Badge.

Cap Badge of the Household Battalion. It was the pre­ cursor of the Forage Cap Badges of the Household Cavalry designed in 7927. It was bronze like the original (7974) SD Cap Badges of the Household Cavalry.

29

Bayonet Drill, Hyde Park 7976 'Order of the Bath' - Officers of the Household Battalion posing for a joke' photograph, Richmond Park, September -October, 7976.

The Somme Valley (8th December 1916 to mid February 1917) Most of the men had merely 99 days service when The Household Battalion manned trenches for the first time on 8th December 1916 at Sailly­ Sailliesel, East of Combles and Morval in the Somme Valley. The Somme battles had petered out five days earlier but German artillery still rumbled and the sticky, red, Somme mud was just as deep. Over forty men had to be dug out and there were cases of total exhaustion during the period December - January, after which The Household Battalion moved to other trenches at Bouchavesne and went into the 'rest area' of Arras in mid-February.

through Arras. North of the Scarpe, The Household Battalion, as part of the 10th Brigade in the 4th Infantry Division were allotted the task of advancing along the swampy banks of the muddy little river on the hamlet of Fampoux, (formerly pop. 1,015 ­ but now flattened and enemy held).

While their brothers of The 1st and 2nd Life Guards and Blues rode against barbed wire and machine guns with the 3rd Cavalry Division to Monchy, The Houshold Battalion stalked toward Fampoux with rifles and bayonets in the sleet. With them were the Warwicks, Seaforth and Royal Irish Fusiliers. It took the Brigade 11 days to take Fampoux and The Household Battalion lost 4 Officers and 166 non-Commissioned Officers and Men killed in action. Ahead was the smaller but even more formidable German defence at Roeux at a bend in the river, one mile from Fampoux and 6,000 yards from the Hindenburg Line itself.

The Scarpe, Arras, Fampoux and Roeux (8th April to 14th May 1917) The misfortunes of Britain's allies in 1917 dictated ci rcu mstances in wh ich th ree major battles, (Arras, 3rd Ypres and Cambrai), were planned and fought. The Household Battalion was involved to the hilt in all three. The French commander Nivelle was replaced by Marshals Foch and Petain in Spring 1917 after part of the French army mutinied. Field Marshall Sir Douglas Haig launched the Arras offensive on Easter Monday 1917 to draw German attention away from the disaster which had overtaken the French army, further South. As a cavalry officer, he saw the mission of cavalry as the exploitation of the eventual break-through in the trench-war stalemate and put the 3rd Cavalry Division into the attack on the Hindenburg Line at Monchy le Preux on Easter Monday, 9th April 1917. There was a general advance of the infantry north and south of the 45 foot wide, 6 foot deep Scarpe River, flowing east to west 30

Troopers - (although 'infantry' they were called Troopers) - with a hand-cart presumed to be for tentage. September 7976.

Roeux Cemetry (3rd May and 12/13th May 1917) Roeux cemetery, 50 yards north west of the village, must have been among the least attractive pieces of land in northern France in 1917. Packed with Germans, well entrenched, it was even less desirable when The Household Battalion attacked it on 3rd May. With the Irish Fusiliers, who had attacked the village, The Battalion was forced back with above 230 casualties.

3rd BATTLE OF YPRES 1917. TH E 1st BATTLE OF PASSCHENDAELE, 12th October 1917. (Household Battalion attack west of Poelcappelle).

The attack was renewed on the 12th May, the same battalions taking the same objectives.

Smoke shells gave a screen which prevented a clear pictu re of the attack from Battal ion Headquarters, but overnight, and in the early hours of the 13th May, The Household Battalion won one Military Cross and nine Military Medals and forced the Germans out of Roeux at bayonet point. The squalid little villages of Fampoux and Roeux cost The Household Battalion nine Officers killed and a total of nearly 500 casualties, that is to say, more than half the original strength of The Battalion.

The remnant moved to the cellars under the old city of Arras, ruined and bleak. They rested here for some days while their losses in manpower were made good by new faces - recruits from Windsor.

ARRAS 1917 and the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battles of the Scarpe.

9th April - 14th May, 1917.

(Fampoux and Roeux taken by The Household Battalion)

The 3rd Battle of Ypres reached its climax in the 7st Battle for Passchendaele. The sharpest actions were fought around Passchendaele and PoeJcappelle. The Household Battalion were fighting for a position known as Requette Farm to the North West of Poelcappelle. The attack failed all along the line.

Ypres 1917; Poelcappelle and Passchendaele (4th to 13th October 1917).

Russia, our eastern ally, had virtually ceased to be militarily effective against the Germans from July 1917 and the Bolshevik Revolution of October 1917 took Russia out of the war altogether. Italy suffered the crush ing defeat - at the hands of the Austrians - of Caporetto. The United States had come into the war in April 1917 but no United States troops arrived in France in any number until 1918. The British authorities were apprehensive of the arrival of new German Divisions on the Western Front from the Russian Front. The 3rd battle of Ypres began on 31st July 1917 and lasted to the 10th November. Its aim was to kill as many of the enemy as possible - not to gain ground. In fact, reckoned in killed and wounded per mile of ter­ ritory gained, the 3rd Battle of Ypres was more expensive than the Somme 1916. 8,200 British casualties were inflicted per mile of territory gained at Ypres against 5,000 on the Somme.

After the French Army mutinied, the British attempted to breach the new "Hindenburg Line" by breaking through with cavalry divisions towards Monchy. North of the River Scarpe, British infantry, (Household Battalion included), forced a way up to the German defence through the hamlets of Fampoux and Roeux. The Life Guards and Blues were engaged mean­ while in the cavalry attack on Monchy le Preux.

On 10th October 1917, Colonel Portal's unit came under command of 12th Brigade and was instructed to be ready to advance on 12th October on extreme right of the 12th Brigade which was on the extreme right of the 4th Div with 18th Inf. Div on its right. The Household Battalion's objective was a few pillboxes and MG posts marked on the map as Requette Farm, left and east of Poelcappelle where fighting had been going on since the 9th October.

31

Early in the morning of the 12th October, Colonel Portal's men lost touch with the Royal West Kents, who were on their right and acting as extreme left flank battalion of the 18th Infantry Division. The Household Battalion also came under heavy fire from Poelcappelle which contained enemy.

Part of a company of The Household Battalion were able to get into Requette Farm, capture its machine gunners and guns and hold it. Their hold was tenuous since no runner, (the only means of communication with Battalion Headquarters), could get by Poelcappelle on account of snipers. Nonetheless, this dwindling remnant of a company of cavalry-cum­ infantry held out until the late afternoon. At 1500 hours, 12th October, only three Officers remained in the forward companies of the Battalion. They were Captain V.A. Cazalet, MC, (1 LG); 2nd Lieut. C.H. Davies, (2LG); and Lieutenant A.L. Martin (Gren.

Gds.). All three had begun the action in the Support Company. The men under their command were utterly exhausted and not a single non-Commissioned Officer above the rank of Corporal remained. In the dark of the small hours of the 13th October, the 3 rifle companies still left at the rear had to be taken up in relief by the Commanding Officer, his Acjjutant, Captain R.W.G. Dill, and Battalion Corporal Major Wright.

To the right of the 4th and 18th Divisions, the attack on Passchendaele failed and wounded men, and some able, drowned in the mud beneath floating duck-boards. There was a withdrawal along the whole sector of the Poelcappelle - Passchendaele Front.

The reckoning for The Household Battalion was a loss of over 400 men for a temporary gain of 600 yards.

In rest at Arras, The Household Battalion received its last draft of 500 new faces from Windsor in late October.

their relative importance (e.g., the more important actions might be classed as battles, and the lesser ones as combats, and etc.) to define the geographical and chronological (c) limited of each action.

Volume III of the "Story of the Household Cavalry" ignores this publication but has a single chapter devoted to The Household Battalion in which, The Battalion's last action is covered in the sentence; "Two months were spent in the usual routine of trench duty on the Cambrai Road sector."

THE BATTLE OF CAMBRAI 1917 THE DEFENCE OF BOURLON WOOD (30th November to 3rd December 1917).

Cambrai 1917; Bourlon Wood. A Recommendation for The Victoria Cross. (20th November to 3rd December 1917.)

The Official History of the Household Cavalry in the 1914-18 War, Volume III of Sir George Arthur's "Story of the Household Cavalry", leaves much to be desired. It contains no maps, no chrono­ logical marginal notes and few references to forma­ tions, save names of their commanders and does not tie up the narrative with the previously published 'Official Names of the Battles and Other Engagements, etc etc" of the Battles Nomenclature Committee as Approved by the Army Council - HMSO 1921).

This excellent and concise document, ratifies chrono­ logical, geographical and nomenclatural details accor­ ding to its terms of reference laid down in August 1919, which were: (a) (b)

to tabulate the actions fought in this war. to classify these actions with a definitive system of nomenclature which will denote

On the 20/27st November 7977, 324 British tanks attempted to take the Hindenburg line by storm west of Bourlon Wood.

The tank attack failed. Infantry went in and took Bourlon Wood 23rd-28th November, but the Germans launched an attack with infantry, artillery and poison gas, 30th November to 3rd December 7977 and restored the former position.

This reference is to the activities of Colonel Portal's men during the battles near Cambrai bet­ ween 20th November and 3rd December 1917. Here, in an effort to end the stalemate of trench warfare by the use of the mobility of tanks, the British army had been engaged in violent action, the vortex of which was a few acres of tree stumps and rain filled shell holes known as "Bourlon Wood".

The Battalion Padre, the Rev. R.E,M. Haines wrote of Bourlon Wood; "I doubt very much whether his, (a clerical acquaintaince) religious beliefs would have stood us in much stead in holding Bourlon Wood at Cambrai, living as we had to, under the most beastly shell and gas fire, simply in shell holes, and come away as we did with just 90 fit men." So much for 'routine trench duty'.

In another letter, the same Padre Haines writes; "I see the Cambrai despatch is out. We feel a bit disappointed as we thought one of our Troopers might have got the VC for which he was recommen­ ded. The Bosch began shelling us with his beastly gas shells and everybody dashed for his respirator. In the confusion, the Colonel could not find his and called for his orderly to bring it. It couldn't be found but in a few seconds the orderly came back with one in his hand and said, 'Here it is Sir'. Colonel Portal put it on. When we came to take them off, twenty minutes later, the orderly was seen dead without a gas mask. He had deliberately given his own respirator, which he was perfectly justified in keeping for him­ self, to the Colonel, knowing that it meant death for him in a few minutes. One can never take a mean view of life and men but we did think he might have been given the Victoria Cross."

The End. (27th January to 16th February 1918.)

The Household Battalion was disbanded on 16th February 1918. It had proved too much to fill the gaps in its ranks from The Household Cavalry in addition to the maintainance of drafts for The 1st and 2nd Life Guards and The Blues, who were due to lose their horses for the rest of the war and become The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Guards Machine Gun Regiments. Thus on 27th January 1918, the remains of The Household Battalion manned the trenches for the last time. It was as muddy, cold and unpleasant as ever, but this time, the mere handful of men were not called on for either offensive or defensive action on any large scale. By early February all that remained was Battalion Headquarters, which dispersed 16th February. George V wrote a valedictory, "You can rest assured that as an infantry battalion formed from The 1st and 2nd Life Guards and The Royal Horse Guards, you have added yet another chapter to the grand traditions of my Household Cavalry."

King's Colour of the Household Battalion. It is an infantry colour and bears none of the permitted ten honours, (7976 --7978), the Honours of the Battalion are carried on the Standards of The Household Cavalry. The Colour is in Holy Trinity, Windsor.

men of The Household Battalion who had given their lives during the War's darkest year.

The Colour is the normal Union Flag of the infantry colour but unique in respect of its gold­ stitched title, in the first quarter, "The Household Battalion" and, totally without any other device or heraldic embellishment, it bears at the centre of the crosses of St George, St Andrew pnd St Patrick, the Crest of The Household Cavalry and the cap badge of The Household Battalion. The finial is the spear-point of old days, before 1858 and not The Crown and Lion emblem.

The final gesture of this gallant Battalion came when it was given the choice of selecting its honours to be stitched on the Colour. Colonel Portal decided that the honours to which The Household Battalion was entitled should be embroidered on the Standards of the parent Regiments of Household Cavalry.

The Household Battalion Colour therefore bears no battle honours.

All That Remains The Household Battalion never had a Standard or Colour during its existence but in 1919 a King's colour was made for The Battalion. It remains in the place where it was lodged by Colonel W.R, Portal, in Holy Trinity Church, Windsor on Sunday, 25th July, 1920 on the left of the chancel screen. On Sunday 16th October 1921, new altar rails in the church were dedicated to the memory of the 450 33

The Musical Ride This year's Musical Ride was called "The Quadrille". It was trained as usual by Major (Riding Master) A. J ackson, MBE, and was generally reckoned to be quite ambitious. Certainly there were few members of the public who had seen Mounted Duty­ men galloping in the 'kit' - not intentionally anyway.

The Quadrille consisted of two Mounted Drummers, eight Trumpeters, eight Remount Riders/Riding Instructors and eight Dutymen. The old style, large ride is probably now a thing of the past because of the enormous expense of horse transport.

The year started with a very wet press day at Kensington Palace Fields, this was a foretaste of things to come at The Royal Windsor Horse Show, where again it was wet and again there was some 'dismounting without leave' (Trooper Nicholson playing to the crowd again!). One old lady wrote in to say how much she had enjoyed the Ride but asked that the horses no longer be made to lie down as there was far too much 'grovelling to foreigners' without The Household Cavalry becoming involved.

We had a very enjoyable trip to the Essex County Show in spite of Trooper O'Donnell's keen­ ness to get back to the stables during two of the performances.

Next stop was the Basingstoke Show: The highlight of which was Trooper Leggott's police act.

While on guard he discovered an intruder in the stables. Having struck the man with a jackboot tree he then marched him off to the police station wield­ ing the farrier's hammer.

Remount Riders (left to right): LCoH F1aherty, LCoH Sanderson, Trooper Ward and LCoH Bevan - Dutymen Trooper O'Donnell, Trooper Cowling, LCpl Thompson and Trooper Milburn

From there we took the long journey to Builth Wells in the heart of Wales. Here there were Woodhouse looseboxes, a huge marquee for the soldiers, excellent food and a hotel for Captain Ellery and the Riding Master a suitable distance away. (Too far for collecting forgotten boots 15 minutes before a performance -- Trooper ELLIS!).

Deal was the next stop where we were very well looked after by The Royal Marines who reluc­ tantly gave us their drill shed for a stable. They expressed concern about the smell but we assured them that the horses would get used to it!

The Colchester Searchlight Tattoo was hard work and made all the more exciting by sharing the collecting ring IN'ith The Royal Signals Motorcycle Team, during the firework display.

Finally the Ride performed at Summer Camp after leave and then at the Dunhill Christmas Show at Olympia where Troopers O'Donnell and Nicholson again found walking preferable to riding.

The year had been kept deliberately fairly quiet because of the Jubilee and a trip to America which was cancelled at the last minute. Wherever we went we were the recipients of much kindness for which we were very grateful. The best performances were undoubtedly in the places where horses and men were co-located and where the shows followed one another without returns to Barracks and this should be our aim in the future.

Captain j. w.M. Ellery, Musician Marsh (RHG/D), Musician Slater 34

Joining Up -1940

by Tim Carew On a gloomy September afternoon I reported to the guardroom of the Household Cavalry Training Regiment at Windsor. Seated on a stool and gazing morosely into a mug of congealing cocoa was Corporal Bell. He eyed me with undisguised disfavour.

"And wot," he finally asked, "are you?"

This seemed to be an unprornising beginning, and I explained that I was a recruit.

Corporal Bell digested this piece of intelligence thoughtfully. At length he said: "Well, **** off, we don't want yer."

He started to clean his nails with a matchstick.

I explained as politely as possible that even though he, Corporal Bell did not want me, I had no choice but to stay and produced a bewildering array of documents that proved, hideous as it might seem, that I had in fact joined The Regiment.

He favoured me with a sour stare and sum­ moned a Trooper who, lying prone on his bed, was reading a paper-backed novel entitled "The Dead stay Dumb". "'Ere," he said, "take this 'orrible lookin' article away."

To-day, I believe, a recruit is introduced gradually and comparatively gently to the army.

This system did not apply to the Household Cavalry in 1940. On arrival in a barrack room, I dumped my suitcase on the floor, sat down on the bed assigned to my use and gazed about m0. My escort had told me to Iisten for the "gru b tru mpet" and promptly lost interest in me. The room was totally deserted as it was 5.30 p.m., the time for evening stables. The stables were directly below the barrack room and I could hear a discordant sound made up of the shrill neighing of horses, kicking, scrubbing, and obscenity.

I looked at myself in the one full length mirror and saw a tall and bewildered youth clad in his best suit.

It was a nice suit and had been worn twice before, once at a cocktail party and once at a race meeting.

Very soon I was to bitterly regret putting it on. I strolled to the window and looked out.

What I saw stripped the cavalry of much of its glamour. I saw men unloading wheelbarrows of manure on to a vast and foetid pit. Others staggered past carrying what appeared to be impossibly large loads of hay. Horses were being watered and groomed.

A Trooper, holding a horse's tail up with one hand, was performing a menial office ~or the animal with a sponge held in the other, which it clearly resented. It showed its resentment by periodically aiming a savage kick at the man which he dodged with extraordinary agility. I could hear the soldier cursing the animal with a flood of mournful blasphemy. A

cavalryman is reputed to love his horse, but if there was an undercurrent of affection intermingled in this conversation, I failed to detect it. Yet another soldier was squatting with a horse's hoof in his lap, scraping dirt out of it with an implement which went by the name of a hoof-pick. A magnificient skewball pranced past ridden bareback by a soldier in shirt sleeves. I wondered where I had seen that horse before until I remembered the Coronation procession of 1937. It was the drum horse.

Presiding over this activity was a Corporal of Horse. I gazed at him with interest. He was every­ where at once, and seemed to be charged with a frightening demoniac energy. I suddenly realized with a sick feeling of horror that he was staring straight at me. His gaze was not friendly.

Suddenly a terrifying shout rang out.

The reactions of beasts and men in his imme­ diate vicinity was immediate and varied. A horse, which was being taken to the water trough, reared up on its hind legs. A soldier forking manure dropped his implement with a clatter. A young officer, who had been slapping hs superbly booted calf with a whip in a disinterested fashion, jumped and dropped his whip. The shout was directed at me and was accom­ panied by an imperiously beckoning forefinger.

The Corporal of Horse looked at me for a full twenty seconds. His steely eye raked me from head to toe. He put his face very close to mine and said in a soft voice, but with indescribable menace: "And what might you be?"

I said: "I'm a recruit, sir," and felt rather like a mouse wh ich finds itself confronted by a large and predatory tom-cat.

He said: "A recruit," He said it twice, savour­ ing the words with his tongue.

I said, being anxious to help: "That's right, sir. A recruit. For The Household Cavalry," I added unnecessarily.

He looked at me for a further ten seconds. He said: "That's funny. I thought you were from the RSPCA." I tittered dutifully, but there was no answer­ ing smile.

He pondered for a further ten seconds, and started to sweat.

He said: "Know anything about horses?"

Now, horses as a child were my joy (they still would be if I could afford to have any). At the age of four, I was part owner of a Shetland pony. I had been presented with a fox's brush for sustained effort in the hunting field at ten. I had performed in pony shows and gymkhanas, and had galloped round 35

..i j

sundry show rings with rosettes of different hues between my teeth, to the tumultuous applause of my proud relatives.

I said: "Yes, indeed, sir. Ridden all my life."

I was to rue those brave words.

"Ever mucked out a stable?"

"Well, er __ If

"Get in there."

"1 get your pardon?"

"Get in there!"

The voice was no longer soft. It had risen to the shout which had caused the earlier chaos.

I looked round and followed the directions of his pointing finger. There was a horse in a stall who, or so it appeared to me, was shaking with silent and sinister laughter. It had plainly been in the stall for some time and there was ample evidence of its tenancy.

"Clean it out," said the Corporal of Horse conversationally.

I asked him where I could find a fork or a spade.

Once more his face was close to mine. He said: "Gawd made 'ands before he made forks and spades. Move!,:' I moved.

By now the horse was laughing unashamedly.

Ten days later found me in the riding school.

This, I thought complacently, is too easy. I was riding a placid and friendly old bay which did everything quite mechanically. In my squad were a miner, a garage mechanic, a sheet metal worker, a bricklayer, a professional footballer, a hairdresser, a fruit hawker,

and a disdainful hunt servant. The hunt servant, who had been second whip to a famous hunt for five years and had served in a mounted yeomanry regiment before that, had said without batting an eyelid that he'd ridden very little. None of the others had ever ridden at all.

The hairdres!1er clearly had his hands full.

Mounted on a raking black with.8 vicious eye, he had clung successively to its mane, the pummel of the saddle, and round its neck. The horse, who was clearly tired of him, had given a fin'al contemptuous buck and thrown him neatly into the sand.

Corporal of Horse Sallust ranged us in front of him and raked us with his gimlety eye. It finally fell on me. He said: "Aha, a horseman. Said you could ride. Seem to remember saying you'd ridden all your life."

I said: "Well--" "On you get," said Corporal of Horse Sallust dispassionately.

I think I was on the brutt;l's back for thirty seconds. I suspected that the black horse was in league with Corporal of Horse Sallust. I described a neat arc over its head and landed at the feet of Sallust's horse. Winded, and with my mouth and eyes fu 11 of sand, I thought: "1 've broken my collar bone or my pelvis, or both. Now they'll have to invalid me out.

From what seemed a very long way I heard a familiar voice. Dimly., through the sand, I saw a moustache.

The voice saiEl: "And who told you to dis­ mount?"

That night I was busily formulating plans to become a fighter pilot.

Fi rst Descent

by Second Lieutenant W.S.G.Doughty The Household Division Free Fall Parachute Course is a short and simple introduction to the sport of parachuting. A five day course in which most of the work is completed in the first day and a half. Instruction on landings, emergency procedures, flight and parachute packing is carried out at the 36

Free Fall Club at the Guards Depot. Once completed the student is well prepared for the next stage of the course down at Dunkeswell airfield near Honiton in Devon. A few more practice parachute rolls, aircraft drills and by the morning of the third day the student is ready for his first descent.

I

My anxieties over that short period of training were constantly changing. I began by being concerned about the landing. There seemed to be only one correct way. Any other, I convinced myself, would be, if not fatal, certainly painful. Then there was the steering of the parachute itself. Scenes from 'The Longest Day' flashed through my mind as I recalled paratroopers dropping into wells, clock towers and conservatories. A more recent story of a student landing on a barn roof did not fill me with great confidence. But then the procedures for steering seemed quite simple, provided that I found the toggles to pull. I was assured that I would. Finally, the worry that every student and parachutist, how­ ever experienced, must have - will the parachute open?

These worries, which must be common to all those who take up the sport, occupied some of my thoughts in those first few days. When the moment of descent came I didn't have time to think about any of them.

Midday on the third day and everything was ready. All that remained was to collect our parachu tes and reserves and make our way to the end of the runway. The aeroplane, a Cessna 185, had been strip­ ped inside to allow room for four students and the jump master. It was uncomfortable to the extent that it was almost a relief to get out. A final check of the parachutes by the instructors and we climbed into the aeroplane. It seemed an eternity before we were flying at the dropping height of 2,500 feet and were coming in for the first run over the airfield. The first two went and then we were circling for the next run. One more went and then it was my turn. The

jump master motioned me towards the door. Slowly, very slowly, I crawled towards the opening and climbed out onto the step with my hands clutching the wing strut in front. The jump master shouted 'GO' and gave me a quick jab in the side.

I jumped. To do otherwise at that point would have required considerable stubborness and misguided determination. The sensation of falling was extraordinary, not unlike that which sometimes occurs in dreams. Almost immediately I felt the tug of the static line as my parachute began to deploy.

I was no longer falling, just floating slowly towards the ground. My anxieties disappeared and, in the surrounding silence, I said out aloud 'this is fantastic'.

Someone else was descending a hundred metres away and I shouted out to him. I found the toggles above my shoulders and began to experiment. By pulling them I could turn towards the left or the right. I looked around below for the Land Rover and finally spotted it on the far side of the airfield. The ground was getting closer now and I began to think about the landing. I avoided some concrete and by doing so I drifted sideways over the runway. At about 100 feet above there seemed little I could do to avoid it. I brought my feet together and moments later I landed. It was not particularly graceful but neither was it uncomfortable. I had a mixed feeling of elation and anti-climax. It was so much easier and safer than I had ever imagined. I stood up, waved my arm and shouted at some workmen weeding the runway. They either didn't hear me or they ignored me. They'd seen it all before. As one of the instructors said 'parachutes open with boring monotony.' As far as I'm concerned it was anything but boring.

Officers of The Second Life Guards !1

September 1914

• !

Officers of the 2nd Life Guards, September 7974

This photograph shows Officers of The 2nd Life Guards in camp at Ludgershall in September 1914, shortly before embarking for Belgium. The photo­ graph is in The Household Cavalry Museum at Windsor and was used by the ATV company in the production of the television series, "Upstairs, Downstairs". The Curator and Assistant have identified all but three of the Officers shown.

37

It is thought that someone may have a copy of the photograph with the names of the Officers, or that someone may be able to positively identify the

Officers number 1,9 and 10, left to right, in the bac~ row. Enlargements of the three unidentified Officer, are as shown above.

Miscellany "I arrived safely at the Depot and shall be here for 14 weeks or more training to be a soldier. It's bad here; they kick us, beat us and make us run round like dogs. They all shout and scream and use language like you've never heard before. That information officer was lying - it's just the same now as it was a 100 years ago. Nearly every week someone runs away ­ one of our troop disappeared on Monday".

ANON

JUBILEE 1887 - Escort of 2nd Life Guards for the Indian Princes

JUBILEE 1887 - Rel'iew at Aldershot, Squadrons of the 1st Life Guards trotting past.

1918 ~ Number 4 Section of D Company, The 2nd Life Guards in Belgium.

Captain R. CS. VMan is The Life Officer and second from the left, behind the left-hand machine gun is 299358 Trooper Baxter who sent this photo.

38

- ­ - ------- -.-Iiiii-iiiiiiiiiii_~_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Miscellany Copy of a letter sent by the late Major (later Lieutenant Colonel) R.J. T Hills to SCM (later RSM Staffordshire Yeomanry) J. Ball.

98835 Maj RlT. Hills 'L' Sqn GHQ Liaison Regt No. 1 APDC Laidon 25 June 44 My dear Jack, I have been trying for some time to answer your last letter but it has been a little difficult because a week ago tonight, in pitch darkness I drove in a jeep from the bowels of a Yankee ship on to a beach in Normandy. The above is , my address. The whole thing was very sudden but, like everything else in this wonderful show, efficient to the last degree. The Channel was so full of ships one could hardly see the way. And what comfort! Food & hot drink all the way, blankets for the men, berths for the officers.

Everyone had ample good reserve rations. And the stuff here is fantastic. Nothing has been left out. Every road is full and every field a dump. We have some unpleasant­ ness and sleep in fox-holes. The weather. is perfect and I have seen most of the interesting places, some of them very bad. We borrowed the local Church this morning and the General read the lesson. Oh, I must tell you every officer and sergeant was allowed to buy one bottle of Scotch as personal baggage. I have a tot in my hole every night. The boys are in excellent heart and if you saw the Yanks here it would surprise you.

All the very best

Lance Corporals Snelling, Hills (later Lieut. Col) and Warren (Later Major) in the 1920s.

Ray.

The Old Barracks - 1922 General Inspection

The New Barracks - 1977 - Fall in the Field Officer

Brigadier H D.A. Langley, MBE (late of The Life Guards). Brigade Commander. 4th Guards Armoured Brigade, about to hand over the Brigade Pennu .•t to the Major-General during the Disbandment Parade

LCoH Ormiston and CoH Nicklin in Dungannon

39

M'iscellany

The Regimental Corporal Major

The Captain's Escort dismounts. Edinburgh

The Joint Headquarters at Kingsway manned by The Househol~ Cavalry during the Fire Brigade Strike. The Lieut. Colonel Commanding and Major J.B. Emson.

LCoH Lowry and Troopers Kerrane and Bisset on 'active service'in Ulster

40

We the Willing, Led by the Unknowing, Are doing the Impossible, For the Ungrateful

We have done so much.

For so long, With so little, We are now Qualified To do ANYTHING With NOTHING

Equus Militaris Seeing the state of complete euphoria into which my twelve year old daughter passes on enter­ ing a stable and also the miraculous transition from bored dejection to vibrant interest whenever she merely sees a horse, I wonder whether something has happened to British horseflesh in the last twenty five years. My bewilderment is increased when I visit present day riding establishments and savour the air of kindly gentleness which pervades. I am astoun­ ded to know from whence it came. As one whose first acquaintance with raw horse was in the Army, I certainly came to have an implacable hatred for the military variety, anyone of which was a double dyed villian with a vile sense of humour shared only by the instructors, a bullying tendency to use its superior weight, and the dramatic genius of Sir Laurence Olivier whenever it suited its purpose. I was convinced for years that there was a mystic 'Open Sesame', some magic button of which it was essential to have knowledge before the Army horse could be made to do what its rider wanted. I fre­ quently suffered the humiliating experience of being told to ... "Get orf 'is back, Sir, for Gawd's sake and let me get up or 'e"ll wake up the rest of the 'orses wiv 'is snoring!" When I descended, red-eared, the Sergeant Instructor would leap aboard. The horse which, up until then had been giving a startling carica­ ture of a cart horse on its way to the knackers, would spring, phoenix-like, in to sublimely well disciplined action; the positive epitome of all that a dewy eyed Anna Sewell could conjure up. I never really learned the nature of the trick but I suspect that the horses got a copy of the Posting Orders of the instructors.

I am sure that one vi tal factor separating my early opinion of horses from that of my daughter, an opinion which she obviously shares with the hundreds of bright eyed, rosy cheeked slips of maiden­ hood one sees bounding round astride ponies on almost any open space these days, is the primeval hour at which army riding took place. My fellow subalterns and I, of nearly a quarter a century ago, were unfortunate in several respects, the first of which was that our initial Young Officers Course coincided with the sort of winter which is a posi­ tive battle honour for the Met Office. The leaves fell some time around the twentieth of August and by the time we assembled, the frost was taking nightly bites at the puddles.

Secondly, we were commissioned into an age in which you had to go to the cinema to see some­ thing even approaching present day standards of liv­ ing. It was, one must remember, a time when the Second World War was only an Anderson Shelter away. The Korean War was in full blast and Britain, as only Britain could be, was in the grip of rationing worse than during the war itself. Cold dark austerity reigned everywhere, spiced with the heartfelt threat

of Russian hordes pouring into West Germany. It was a pre-Beatle era not given to softness and central heating was still very much an American gimmick.

The cavernous Victorian rooms in which we lived become cold enough on most winter's nights to freeze the water in the washstand and in three subsequent years in Germany I rarely felt as cold as in the pitiless half light of those December dawns. I am sure thatwe shared rooms solely so that there would be someone to raise the alarm if one or other of us froze to death whilst shaving, and it was common knowledge that the mice left the Officers Mess during the winter because it was warmer outside.

The third and possibly the most insiduous factor was that riding was only a small part of our course, or rather, that was all that it was intended to be. In all our minds it loomed massively large and is still etched into our memories as irrevocably as hieroglyphics on the Rosetta Stone. However, riding was in theory a lower priority subject and it was for this reason, as much as in deference to the creed that no Army horse should be abed after 0600 hours, that it was fitted into the cold, dark, top end of the day.

Also, of course, anyone who could instruct in more important and compelling subjects, such as "How to inspect a Barrack Room", was very sensibly still hull down on his mattress at that hour. Because riding took place at such times neither we nor the horses were at our best, which may well be the under­ statemen t of the century. Never did I get to see them at more enlightened hours when, for all I know, they may have been prancing beasts of noble bearing. At the hour and in the temperature at which we saw them they bore as much resemblance to that image as George Brummel would to Beau after commuting on the Bakerloo Line.

Quite apart from these main reasons, the dress we wore added inconvenience to despair rather like the cannon ball chained to the leg of a convict in solitary. When my daughter prepares for the eques­ trian art she does so in about three minutes flat: leaping into all-ways stretching jodphurs and a sweater with a glad cry and slipping her feet non­ chalantly into boots as supply as carpet slippers.

Our dress for riding, on the other hand, made us look like a mixture of 1914-1918 soldiers and Dis­ placed Persons. The whole ensemble was obviously designed to lower confidence in the ability to dress oneself to the level of a year old chimpanzee, and it succeeded. As far as the nether regions were concer­ ned, we wore breeches, Army boots and long, long, long puttees. The upper half of the body was encased in a then conventional battle dress blouse which. parted company with the breeches at waist level on the very slightest provocation. Army boots, of course, require no explanation - except to say that anyone who feels they might have jammed in the stirrups has obviously not seen the size of Army stirrups.

The breeches were built for strength and were issued to a size determined as a result of a single, penetra­ 41

ting, stare from the Company Quarter Master Sar­ geant. It was the sort of look which could get you arrested in Soho but was obviously effective as the breeches actually fitted. However that may have been a delusion as one could scarcely feel them when dressing because the nerves in one's legs cowered about three inches below the surface until eight o'clock.

On the subject of puttees, I should perhaps enlarge. We were not permitted the luxury of riding boots until much later in our course because, as we were crushingly but enigmatically told, we had to start from 'scratch '. The inevitable gap between the top of the boots and the bottom of the breeches therefore had to be covered with a veneer of military decency by a two yard strip of khaki material of hessian-like consistency. No more fiendishly ingen­ ious form of torture than these puttees, with the pos­ sible exception of the Army bicycle, can be con­ ceived. The aim was to wrap ones legs, firmly and evenly with puttees to achieve something which looked like a cross between a military mummy and a rather stylishly lagged salami. To do so, and above all to get the end of the puttee in the right place, bearing in mind that the puttee itself stretched with age, humidity, one's temper, state of health and about four thousand other variables, required a sound knowledge of the Calculus, the patience of a saint and the skill of an Ancient Egyptian from the House of the Dead. The whole business was made the more ghastly because it needed one to crouch at an angle which would have knocked the stuffing out of a Black Belt in Yoga, and, as an added refinement, it had, of course, to be done in the early morning when breathing alone was a penance and the puttees were as coldly unco-operative as a war dog on its trade test.

There was a dreadful temptation to tighten or slacken the last few wrappings as one's errors of length became increasingly apparent. To do so was fatal. One of the great laws of cussedness is that the too tight puttee tightens and the too loose, loosens.

Puttees which felt no more than a little firm about one's calves as one left the bedroom, would tighten up to the tension of a tourniquet applied by a VC­ ambitious RAMC Lance Corporal by the time one had reached the stables. Conversely, the somewhat comfortably slack puttee would unravel itself remorse­ lessly like a modern Laocoon before one got clear of the Mess, to ~he feigned disgust but actual delight of fierce elderly Majors. Even when the fiendish lagging had been wound to the correct tension there was the hazard of rain. A wet putteee could shrink or stretch acccording to which caused the wearer the greatest discomfort. It was small wonder that the British Army survived the horrors of the trenches and the German war machine between 1914 and 1918.

Soldiers who could cope with long puttees could cope with anything.

42

The first dreadful morning of my acquain­ tance with the Army horse slunk querulously into my consciousness after a night of such refined bitter­ ness that the Snow Queen herself would have invested in double glazing, and when we assembled in the riding school at seven o'clock,our breath hung about us like ectoplasm at a mediums' convention.

The cold dankness of the school, lit by distant and coldly glaring electric lights, is difficult to describe.

The nearest I can get to the atmosphere is to imagine oneself orphaned, on Waterloo Sation, at two 0' clock on a Christmas morning, during a rail strike. In those days, of course, no one liked subalterns but a subal­ tern in a riding school was not merely Daniel in the lion's den but Daniel smeared with something to give a meal lion-appeal.

As we stood shyly waiting, the gallery above our heads filled with a trickle of spectators. I remem­ ber being somewhat flattered at the time but I was soon disillusioned. Those spectators had as much interest in our progress as equestrians as Nero had in the lion taming prowess of early Christians. They came for blood or a good laugh. Preferably both.

As a preliminary we were addressed by a Sergeant Instructor on something like the following lines.

"Now GENTLEMEN ... your introduction to the HAWSE." Every now and then a word was almost shouted, as though to a distant observer who could not hear everything, but who, by this means, would have the benefit of a sort of verbal shorthand.

"We shall teach you the BASIC elements of RIDING and later on, if you WORK HARD ... (it was obvious from the tone of voice that the Sergeant felt this to be a remote possibility) ... we shall take you out for a TROT. NOW, we teach you the ARMY way of SADDLING UP and MOUNTING and it will .be DIFFERENT to what-any-of-Ydu-have-been­ taught-outside-have-been-taught ... CAN ANY OF YOU GENTLEMEN RIDE ALREADY?" This last sally was shouted in such a veno­ mous tone that even a past Grand Master of the Spanish Riding School would have denied every hav­ ing seen a horse before. Our time at Sandhurst had not been wasted ... we remained silent to a man and a faint glimmer of disappointment in the Sergeant's eye showed how wise our instinct had been.

Whilst this oration was proceeding, a groom, clad in much the same kit as ourselves but serving by its brilliance to show up our inadequacies, led in a horse, It was a nice horse. It stood quietly and docilely, nuzzling gently at the groom's arm with a comrades-in-arms gesture which plucked at the heart strings. Its soft brown eyes and pricked intelligent ears turned towards us with kindly interest. It was a lovely friendly animal, not too large, and it obviously had not a nasty thought in its being. Our spirits rose.

If this was a sample of the horseflesh, all might be well.

"Now then GENTLEMEN. This is a HAWSE" ... there was no pause for a laugh so we all assumed, probably rightly, that the Sergeant really did think that he was uniquely introducing us to an example of God's creation... "The HAWSE gentlemen, has a head and four legs and is dangerous from ALL angles.

The only SAFE place is to be on his BACK." Here there was a pause, filled by a hysterical outburst of laughter from the gallery. We tittered nervously.

"The HAWSE is controlled by NATURAL and ARTIFICIAL aids. The NATURAL aids are the HAJ.'lDS, the LEGS, and the BODY. The ARTIFI­ CIAL aids are WHIPS and SPURS but you will NOT USE THEM HERE ... EVER!" This last statement was shrieked with all the indignation of Thomas a Beckett excommunicating half the peerage of England. In the next few weeks I was to pray fervently and frequently for the use of these very, forbidden aids and if the Almighty had stretched an arm out of Heaven and given me a great cutting whip and a pair of spurs with rowels like Boadicea's chariot wheels, I would have been His forever.

"The HAWSE has a very sensitive SKIN" ... this was accompanied by a flat handed smack on the friendly horse's rump which would have felled a small bullock. It obviously made no small impression on the horse who seemed to feel that some of the humour was fading out of the situation. He edged discreetly away.

"A HAWSE can feel PAIN just like YOU or ME" ... looking at the speaker I doubted the truth of that particular part of the statement but the horse took it very much to heart and, seeing the hand rising again, moved his pain sensitive skin adroitly.

"FURTHERMORE, gentlemen. The HAWSE can HEAR. So we must always speak QUIETLY, CONFIDENTLY and FIRMLY. We must NEVER BANG or SHOUT or WHINE ... " At this point the Sergeant noticed that the horse had moved. He seemed to grow about a foot in every direction whilst his face went puce. He forgot us completely.

"STAND STILL YOU B ... B ... XYZ. '00 TOLD YEW TO MOVE? WHAT THE BLANK­ ETY, SANGUINARY, HIGHLY DECORATED HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING OF? IN ALL MY BRIGHT RED LIFE I'VE NEVER SEEN NOTHING LIKE IT. GET AN EVEN MORE HIGHLY DECORATED GRIP ON YOURSELF!" He said quietly, confidently and firmly.

look at us and so that we could witness their party tricks. After that particular morning in the stables, I sat at breakfast next to an officer whom I knew rode very well indeed and whose knowledge of matters equine stretched back over many years. He was pale and shaking and when I asked him why he told me patiently of all the vices horses can have, from biting to weaving. I listened politely and was beginning to think that he had lost his nerve when he ended by saying: "And those horses had all of them. They should all be put down!"

The tour of the stables had obviously made a profound impression on him but it was no more than the due result of a theatrical ability which should have known the thespian air of Drury Lane. Each and every Army horse, as far as I can tell, can put on the most incredibly convincing act of being savage, noble or vicious in rapid succession, to suit any situation.

Underneath they are all the same. Bone idle and with an intelligence quotient in the low teens.

As we proceeded up the stables that morning, a loud thudding heralded our approach. The head of the cruellest, meanest and wildest of God's creatures slewed round to look us over. From the flared nostrils and yellowed teeth to the flattened ears there was nothing but sheer hatred of mankind. The rear hooves were doing their best to convert the stall to kindling wood whilst the front ones leaped up and down in a demoniacal tap dance. It was awesome and we all shrank away from the teeth which gnashed at us after the Sergeant had discreetly been allowed to pass unscathed.

The friendly horse fixed him with a Medusa like glare and ground its teeth slowly and mena­ cingly. It was very definitely no longer a friendly horse and I looked round carefully to revise my geography of the door.

After this prologue we were taken to the stables proper so that the horses could get a good

We then set to work on our own saddles, having been spared the bridle which mercifully had already been fitted. Our horses were apparently beyond benefit of martingales. I was immensely grateful for the fitting of the bridle as I had no con­ fidence that Bamboo would accept the bit as eagerly as the 'demonstration purposes only' horse which had

"Nice hawse that," remarked the Sergeant, "name's Bamboo." Bamboo fixed me, in particular, with a baleful glare which owed something to the Great Goat of Menon and in that instant I just knew that he would be mine. I was not wrong.

Our instruction proper began with a lesson in the gentle art of "saddling up". In good military fashion this was preceded by a demonstration of such incredibly professional slickness that everyone was immediately buoyed up by the completely fallacious notion that the whole thing was simple. Bridle, martingale, blanket and saddle flowed onto the horse with the smoothness and ease of a vacuum cleaner salesman's patter. Within a matter of a minute or so, the horse, obviously a highly co-operative 'demon­ stration purposes only' model, was fully kitted out and, despite the fact that its hooves had sunk three inches into the floor with the weight, seemed to enjoy the process.

43

sucked it in like a child with candy floss. Looking at Bamboo's teeth I was reminded depressingly of the Maginot Line and my heart sank at the thought of future lessons when I would have to brave them.

To those who do not know the Army saddle I should digress to explain that the priorities for this piece of equipment which, after all, does the highly important job of separating you from the horse, were completely wrong. I deduce that when they were first decided, which must have been in time for the First Crusade, they ran on the following lines: There should not be the remotest danger of the horse being put to any inconvenience.

The saddle should be repairable by a con­ genital idiot in the middle of the Arabian desert.

Mine had been, I am quite sure.

It should last for at least a century.

These conditions were met so resoundingly well that the General Service Saddle had probably been held up as a shining example to developers of military equipment, ever since. At no stage, apparently, was the comfort of the rider given more than a pas­ sing cynical thought. However, the precious Army horse is protected from even the touch of this superb piece of equipment by a minutely folded blanket.

The whole ensemble is wrapped securely round with a massive leather strap called a surcingle. The surcingle is intended to keep the saddle on if the girth should break but anyone who has seen the thickness and breadth of Army girth straps knows how laughingly remote such a possibility is short of a direct hit from a fourteen inch Naval gun. No ... the purpose of the surcingle is plain to anyone with an understanding of military thinking. Equipment is valuable but even more important, it has to be signed for and actually produced to Annual Stocktaking Boards. Ideally therefore, one nails equipment to something immov­ able or concretes it into the ground. As this is debat­ ably not possible' with a saddle, the next best thing is to fasten it very securely indeed to the piece of move­ able equipment most likely to return eventually to base ... namely the horse.

I rapidly discovered that Bamboo did not react, or fail to react, in at all the same way as the 'demonstration purposes only' horse. True he stood as rigid as a statue whilst I folded and re-folded the blanket.. This took some time as there is a great deal of difference between obtaining a neat mat from a new blanket and achieving the same from a time expired, old soldier of a blanket which has stretched and crinkled into lines of old and near forgotten sin.

Having at last got some sort of compromise from the blanket, the second I heaved the thing onto Bamoo's back, he laid his ears back, snorted, and flipped it off onto' the tan floor with suspicious expertise. I picked it up and hurled it back on only to be stunned by a shriek from the Sergeant Instructor who was, 44

it appeared, astonished, astounded, horrified and appailed that any young gentlemen could think of not checking carefully that the blanket, in such cir­ cumstances, was free of all fragments of tan. Whether this was entirely out of concern for the horse or was in deference to the fact that the floor itself had been 'signed for' by someone, I do not know, but I checked the blanket in the approved manner by shaking it furiously and was then faced with the original problem of folding. Bamboo, watching me carefully, chose his moment and again the blanket was on the floor as a look of infinite smugness stole across the brute's face. This procedure was repeated for the third time and then I resorted to sterner measures. Applying my mouth to the beast's ear I told it quietly, confidently and firmly every good Anglo Saxon expletive I had heard in my twenty years of existence. Whilst Bamboo was puzzling out the more obscure and fundamentally rude, nursery originated ones, I got both blanket and saddle aboard and even managed to winch the girth up to a fair grip before the monster had recovered enough to remember to puff out his ribs like a barrage balloon.

Most of the other horses were not so pre-occupied and by breathing in deeply as their girths were tightened managed to give their trusting riders the illusion that their saddles were as firm as if glued on.

Naturally, the second the horse breathed out, the girth became slack enough to accommodate another small horse and the unfortunate officer drew down upon his head a good deal of sarcastic comment as to his intelligence, physical strength and hearing. The Instructors and the horses were permanently at war with each other but combined forces, in an unholy Axis against us, whenever the opportunity presented itself. However, on this occasion, I got the better of Bamboo and, when my efforts were inspected, I was merely told that every strap was wrongly adjusted and that Bamboo would have been flayed alive within two miles had I ridden him with such disgustingly applied tack. Later in my course such a prospect would have been Nirvana itself but these were early days and the Sergeant's comments were rare praise.

Whilst we were standing, holding our horses, there was a sudden and very loud bellow of pain from one of my fellow would-be horsemen. Despite the Sergeant's warning this had no effect at all on the horseflesh which affected an air of detached and bored indifference. It rapidly became apparent that one horse had stepped nonchalantly sideways, planting one hoof squarely on his unfortunate temporary owner's foot. It took some time even to persuade the brute that he was, in some way, responsible for the awful noise emanating a foot from his nearside ear and it was only the purposeful approach of the Instructor which convinced him that it might be as well to stand on his own feet. The 'casual hoof on foot' was an old time favourite it appeared from the bright condition of the gallery.

To my simple mind at that time, stirrups were surely one of the most useful aids to good riding after long whips and sharp spurs. Stirrups not only gave you a sort of swinging, one runged ladder with which to get on, but were highly useful for propping up your legs to the conventional stance whilst on top. I was extremely distressed to discover, therefore, that Army riders apparently do not use stirrups to mount, preferring to spring, gazelle-like, up the side of the horse, to rest their stomachs across the saddle and then, with a rupture-evocative sideways swing, to plump into place before the horse has made up its mind that the grass on the horizon is greener and the best way to get there is to gallop, and now.

Later I was to discover to my horror that stirrups are also intended to be largely superfluous when on the move. Certainly we spent much of our time without their benefit in the ancient belief that knees are a better adhesive. Possibly they are for Red Indians who, for all I know, may be born with sweat glands oozing gum arabic down their legs. By the time I had prepared for riding, walked half a mile to the stable, cajoled Bamboo into believing it was morning, strapped him into a hundred weight of saddlery and lurched into the saddle with about the same degree of vivacity and success as an octogen­ arian trying to imitate Olga Korbuts, I would not have given a butterfly even a feeling of claustrophobia if it had lighted between my knee and the saddle.

The only real point of Army stirrups is to tax the novice rider with the problem of getting them to hang at the right length. The aims of Army riding, it appeared to me as a subaltern is to get the stirrups as low as possible and the constant cry of our instruc­ tors was to "lengthen the leathers". Whenever an instructor mounted one of our horses in consequence of some particular example of ineptness on our part, he would invariably give a snort of disgust and let the stirrups down a notch or two. This was so much a part of the act that one humorous officer, having noted the idiosyncracy, let his stirrup leathers out to their fullest ex ten t and then carefully tucked them up so that they looked reasonably normal. For ten _ minutes or so he suffered the muscle agony of trot­ ting without putting any weight on the stirrups before his lumbering gait in the saddle drew forth the wrath of the instructor. He dismounted with a savage joy in his heart, letting the tucked up stirrup leathers fall to their full length as he did so. The Riding Master himself was taking us that morning and was intent on making in impression, which was, of course, riot difficult. He flung himself on the unfor­ tunate horse, gripped it with his legs like a hungry grizzly bear and instinctively gave the required grunt of professional lothing as he seized the stirrup leathers, only to discover that the stirrups already hung six inches below his feet. The look of utter incredulity he gave the erst-while rider whose inside leg measurement was obviously several inches less than his own, made any previous discomfort worth­

while. It being absolutely unthinkable for any instruc­ tor actually to shorten a pupil's stirrups, the Riding Master had to clatter round without using them. I am sure that did not bother him at all but the barely concealed grins of the class most certainly did and we suffered for our few moments of supremacy.

The vital business of getting on having been explained, we proceeded to do so. At least, some of us did. Some found the lighthearted Lochinvar-type vault into the saddle a little beyond their constitu­ tions at that ghastly hour of the day. Others, having arrived at the end of the first movemen t, were carried off round the school, lying across their saddles like dead outlaws. Hysteria mounted in the gallery.

Eventually we were all topsides however and walking round as to the manner born, to the accom­ paniment of a volley of advice and much invocation of the Deity. From the way the diatribe continued it was apparent that the Almighty, very sensibly, had no intention of intervening in Number One Riding School that morning.

There is no doubt that anyone tends to feel like a belted Earl the moment he gets on a horse and we all suffered a rise in morale as we slowly circum­ navigated the school. My heart began to warm to Bamboo who could not have been more docile. So well behaved was he that I called down no torrents of remonstration on my head for cutting the corners and drifting languidly towards the centre of the school. In foolish delusion I imagined that Bamboo realised that he had met his master and began to feel something of the thrill of horsemanship. Then I felt my leg touch the boarded side of the school and soon, impervious to everything I did, the brute had gauged the distance to a nicety and was trudging along, scraping my leg against the wall with the effic­ iency of a master carpenter using Number Five glass paper. Eventually I leapt off in self defence as it was obviously a straight choice between the Sergeant's wrath and being crippled, and I saw no point in abandoning the Field Marshal's baton in my knap­ sack quite as early as that in my career. The look Bamboo gave me dispelled any thought that the affair was accidental.

The walk was comparatively simple but we then progressed to the 'bump trot', assuredly the most truthfully titled manoeuvre in an age of half truths. In theory it requires little more effort or skill than the walk but the horse is moving somewhat faster in the basement whilst the rider is supposed to be doing much the same on the floor above. The Household Cavalry Regiment do it for most of the time but they do have the advantage of wearing a ballast of half a hundred-weight of polished mild steel to keep them in position. In general, all is well providing you have a grip with your knees which would crack coconuts - if not you tend to go one way whilst your gallant steed goes blithely on in another. This is painfully true at corners. Addition­ 45

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ally, there is trotting and trotting. There are horses which trot with the smoothness of old brandy, putting their hooves down precisely and evenly and in such delightful co-ordination that the tears come to one's eyes. I regret that our horses were more like Irish stew than old brandy in their trotting. You never knew quite what to expect but it rapidly became apparent that just about everything possible was there. Bamboo flung his hooves down at the floor as vindictively as the successful participants in the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre, managing to trot so unevenly that I actually peered downwards to make sure that he still had four legs. At the same time his body swayed like Woolwich ferry and he approached each corner with an air of complete surprise, swivel­ ling round at the last moment with a great shaking of his head and a lurch akin to a three decker going about it a Force 10 gale. We parted company fre­ quently, as did most of the ride, and it was then that I heard for the first of a myriad of questions, those angrily jocular questions so beloved and typical of Army riding instructors.

"Wot are yew doing of down there, Sir?" '00 told yew to dismount?" The words should have been carved above the entrance to every Army riding school as a warning to all who entered. To my mind they were the key to Army riding instructions at that time and even now, if I fall off a horse, they echo unbidden in my ears, out of the past.

I could continue for hours as the memory of those now distant rides are seared in vivid detail into my memory. However, our course lasted for three months and space permits me only to pick out high­ lights. Suffice to say that as we sweated over that equisitely sadistic form of equestrian PT which invol­ ved such liver jerking exercises as dismounting on one side, ducking under the horse and mounting on the other, and dismounting at the trot and racing forward to catch and mount the horse in front, we swore an eternal vendetta against the Army horse. As we struggled to fit pack saddles and tie up the complica­ ted wrangle of rope required to fix a ration box to the back of a singularly disinterested animal which had wandered off in the meantime, we vowed that the only horses we wanted to see in the future would be in cans. As we stumbled and fell over and under our horses in pouring rain, a vicious wind and black darkness on pack and night exercises, we learned to growl at them like true professionals. As we heaved frantically on the reins to try and stop our ~orses from re-enacting the Charge of the. LIght BrIgade, which was their favourite entertainment when, latterly, we were taken 'out for a trot', we swore bitter things about the horse's so-called so~t a?d .s~n­ sitive mouth. Many - so many were the IndlgnttIes and discomforts we suffered because of those Army horses , and even more intolerable was the frustration . of being told, time and time again, after some partIc­ ular piece of Machiavellian wickedness that It was entirely our fault and that, properly handled, the 46

horses would do anything. So very often I longed, just once, to give Bamboo a straight left between the eyes. It would, I am sure have done us both good, btyt those horses were better protected than the lower crested whooping crane. Smugly inviolate behind the armour of military convention and with the Army Act as a long stop, they could do their evil worst - and did.

However, maybe I do understand something of my daughter's feelings when she rushes back to the car after an hour's ride and demands my agreement to her heart-felt belief that ... "Rennie is the most intelligent and loveliest creature in the whole world".

I would never go so far as to agree that any horse could aspire to such a description but I must admit tht after a while I began to see through the surface villainies of Army horses which, like a Regimental Sergeant Major's cataclysmic explosions of anger, were normally assumed to meet an immediate situa­ tion which might, otherwise, involve them in a lot of work. If I never actually saw a silver lining, I did detect something approaching EPNS. Slowly I came to realise that, despite displays of savagery which would have done credit to Ivan the Terrible, precious few Army horses will actually kick you, even in that dreadful moment when your backward somersault off the brute's back has landed you in a sprawling heap under its tail. I did also grow to have a healthy respect for an animal which, while appearing as clumsy as a drunken ox, could avoid a fallen officer with the agility of Nijinsky. My heart warmed a little, despite myself, when I realised that the wicked­ est, most God-forgotten, teeth grinding, stall crashing beast is a sucker for carrots and will, under temp­ tation of an apple, become as amenable as a spaniel.

I suspect in fact that my approach to horses is sounder that that of my daughter who classifies them generally as excellent but has, very sadly, to acknow­ ledge that some have minute failings. I, on the other hand, know that they are aJ[ wicked, idle, savage, capricious, clumsy, wilful, greedy, stupidly bone­ headed, humorous in a crudely Chaucerian way, over fond of demonstrating how much bigger and heavier -they are than you, and liable to go desperately lame at the first creak of the tack room door. Occasionally I meet one which does not have all of these failings and it is a wholely delightful experience.

Written by Lieutenant Colonel N.A. W. Fincham for The British Army Review

Personalities 294971 John William IVIcNELLV, MVO. Born on 14 Jan 1912 and joined The Life Guards on 25 May 1933 and retired with the rank of W02 on 24 May 1955.

Served overseas with The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment during the War and subsequently in the Middle East and BAOR and was one of the original members of The Life Guards posted back to London for Mounted Duties when the Horse Squadrons were reformed for ceremonial duties.

On his retirement from the Army he was appointed Comptroller of Stores at The Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace. He held this post until July 1975 and for his services at the Royal Mews was awarded the MVO by Her Majesty. For a number of years he has been a member of The Queen's Bodyguard of The Yeoman of the Guard. Since 1958 he has been a member of the Committee of The Life Guards Association.

Major (Quartermeaster) Eric SANT. Born on 31 Aug 1924 and joined The Life Guards on 9 June 1943.

He was posted to The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment in Italy in June 1944 and was with that Regiment in BAO R from March 1945. Apart from a tour with the Inns of Court Regiment TA he served with The Regiment until his appointment as Regimental Corporal Major in June 1958. In March 1962 he was Commissioned in the Regiment for

service as Transport Officer to Headquarters 4th Guards Brigade in BAOR and returned to The Life Guards as their Quartermaster in February 1965, which appointment he held until September 1971.

He was then Camp Quartermaster at HQ UKLF from October 1971 to April 1975 and Quarter­ master at CAAT in Iran from May 1975 to May 1977. He retired in October 1977.

47

Queen's Life Guards I,

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sil

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The Mermaid of Warsaw

by Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) A. D. Meakin

Q for QUEEN'S Life Guards enormously tall, They sometimes make other folks seem rather small.

You may possibly urge that the picture you view Really makes them a little too large to be true; I can merely reply, it was drawn with much care, Though I have heard they're not quite as tall as they were; But to settle the question you've only to go For a stroll in the Park, and you'll very soon know, For you'll see them like turtle-doves billing and cooing, Their long legs tucked under them, tenderly wooing The prettiest nursemaids that sit'neath the trees, While the poor little infants do just as they please.

cc Sf)

sa sp

The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment, formed at the beginning of the Second World War, went to the Middle East as a horsed Cavalry Regiment and by the time of the Battle of El Alamein had been reorgan­ ised as an Armoured Car Regiment.

On 12th April 1944, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Eric Gooch (later Colonel Sir Robert Gooch, Baronet) The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment landed in Italy and came under command of 5th Corps. From 13th August to 3rd September 1944 they were under command of the Second Polish Corps, and as part of KAW force they led the advance of the Corps to the River Metauro, on to the Gothic Line and to the capture of Pesaro.

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In view of their outstanding service with the Polish Troops, Lieutenant General W. Anders, who was commanding 2nd Polish Corps and Commander­ in-Chief of the Polish Army of the East, decided to honour The Regiment by granting them the distinc­ tion of wearing the bade of the "Mermaid of Warsaw".

This was approved by His Majesty King George VI and it was laid down that all members serving with The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment during their period of service with the 2nd Polish Corps, would in future be permitted to wear the badge on their left forearm in battledress.

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The badge has continued to be proudly worn by members of The Regiment and the last serving mem­ ber with this privilege was Major (Quartermaster) E. Sant who joined the Army in June 1943 and served with The 1st Household Cavalry Regiment from July 1944.

48

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Guards House, Folda F olda House is located in the East of Scotland about sixteen miles North of Blairgowrie and twenty miles Sou th of Braemar. The House was once F olda Village School but now had accommodation for twen ty eigh t all ranks. The setting is a combination of lush green fields and rugged hills.

The Advance Party left Windsor on 29th August and arrived at Folda on 30th with ~n over­ night stop at Edinburgh. The weather on arnval was dreadful with rain pouring down. However Sergeant Donald (the caretaker) made the Party welcome and settled us into the accommodation. The afternoon was spent looking round the training area.

The Main Party arrived on the next morning at Perth Railway Station looking a bit tired but cheerful after a long train journey from London.

Once settled into the House and after breakfast Major C.N. Haworth-Booth was eager to get us out as the weather had changed into ideal conditions ­ certainly a change from the day before. The party was divided into three groups: Group 1 - Hill-Walking It was surprising to see a lot of volun teers for this activity. It was perhaps due to the fact that they did not know what they were letting themselves in for! The party was dropped off about five miles north of Folda where they had to make an eight mile trek over the 'hills' to Glen Shee ski lodge. All aspects of safety and danger while in the hills were taken into account and a lot of emphasis was placed on map reading and compass work. On the route various species of animals and birds were seen and some breath taking scenery. On arrival back at F olda all were feeling more than a bit tired. This was thought to be the shock to the system!

by Lance Corporal of Horse Rothwell

Group 2 - Rock Climbing This group under Sergeant Williams - APTC was introduced to the safety rules, knots and rope work of simple rock climbing.

Group 3 - Pony Trekking The pony trekking was organised at a local riding school. This group was suspected to be the laziest or most sly, being content to make their horses do the work.

On day two the groups were changed round with some new activities being introduced such as fishing, grass ski-ing and cycling (the bicycles were borrowed from the Guardroom in spite of the Adjutant's reluctance). Everything was kept on a relaxed basis and voluntary efforts were called for, but if minds were not made up they were usually allocated to the smallest group. The evenings were spent watching television for those short on funds, bu t the remainder headed for Blairgowrie and 'The Gig' (a discotheque), which was taken over by The Life Guard contingent.

The third day was again different. Fifteen of the group were required to go grouse beating. At first this was viewed with some doubt but on the mention of wages (£5.50 each) the list was mysteriously filled in short order. The grouse shooting was taken seriously by shooters and the game keeper gave a creditable performance of a drill instructor, by stand­ ing on a hill, screaming, shouting and throwing 'wobblers' at his lines of beaters spread out along miles of the most exhausting moorland he could find for us. In fact the dressing achieved would do credit to a Trooping. At the end of the day everyone seemed satisfied with our efforts.

The final day was spent by some at the Braemar Games - something we had been told not to miss. Various local crafts and cultures were seen and another side of life was explored, not least the local hospitality. Four of us were needed for another spell of grouse beating and they went off happily for the hills and their £5.50 wages.

The trip was considered to have been a worthwhile and enjoyable venture provided one took advantage of the facilities offered. The general feeling was that a longer period at the House would have been of more benefit and evening recreational pas­ times could have been made easier with better trans­ port. Folda House is definately worth a second visit, perhaps a winter visit with ski-ing on the programme would offer a different incentive.

A map reading problem - Major CN. Haworth-Booth, LCoH Carrington, Trooper Henley, LCoH Rothwell (standing), Trooper Tomkins, Trooper Robinson and LCoH Chant.

49

Events During the Year 1937

1977

The Regiment was stationed at Knightsbridge Bar­ racks, having moved there from Windsor in October 1936.

The. Regiment is stationed at Comb.ermere Barracks, havIng moved there from Germany In October 1975.

January A Squadron troop training in Thetford.

A and B Squadrons live firing at Castelmartin.

February C Squadron (the AMF(L) Squadron), under com­ mand of Major T. J. Earl, left by LSL for Norway to participate in Exercise-Hardfall.

March A composite troop, under command of Second Lieutenant C. B. Oldfield, returned from Belize where they had been serving with The Queen's Own High­ landers on internal security duties.

A Squadron, under command of Major C. J. Simpson­ Gee, left by LSL for Denmark. The vessel collided in the Solent with an Algerian tanker and had to return to Southampton. (See photo in A Squadron's notes).

April A Squadron left for Exercise-Gobi Dust in America.

B Squadron, under command of Major C.]. D'Oyly, left for Dungannon, Northern Ireland for a 4 - month tour in the infantry role.

May Lord Mountbatten visited The Regiment.

June Trooping The Colour and Association Dinner.

July C Squadron live firing at Lulworth.

September C Squadron left for Exercise-Arrow Express in Den­ mark, the last AMF(L) exercise before this role was handed on to The 17th/21st Lancers.

A Squadron replaced B Squadron in Northern Ireland for a 4 - month tour.

October Re-organisation to the new Establishment (see below).

November .

The Major General's Inspection.

Remembrance Sunday Parade.

B Squadron took part in Exercise-Avon Express on Salisbury Plain.

The Fire Brigade strike - Household Cavalry man Headquarters in London.

December

April Lieutenant Colonel The Hon. E. H. Wyndham, MC, handed over command of The Regiment to Lieuten­ ant Colonel E. J. L. Speed, MC. May Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

The Life Guards found The King's Life Guard and The Sovereign's Escort. Officers of the Escort were Lieutenant Colonel R. A. F. Thorp, (Second in Command of The Regiment and Commanding the Escort); Major A. H. Ferguson; Captain R. J. Hardy; Lieutenants, Sir J. G. Fuller, Bt; The Hon. G. N. Rous; J. D. Young and B. R. Williams.

Major R. E. S. Gooch and Captain F. E. B. Wignall were marshals to the procession. The Earl of Athlone, (Goldstick), Lieutenant Colonel E. J. L. Speed, MC, (Silverstick) and the Silverstick Adjutant, (Captain A. H. Head), rode in The King's Entourage and had seats in the Abbey.

May The State Drive of Their Majesties to the Guildhall was marred by inclement weather and The Sovereign's Escort was cancelled.

July C Squadron marched to Pirbright for their annual musketry course.

August 2 Troops under Captain F. E. B. Wignall, marched to Braintree for 4th Guards Brigade manoeuvres.

October The Life Guards moved from Hyde Park Barracks to Windsor.

C Squadron, under command of Major C. N. Haworth­ Booth left for Londonderry, Northern Ireland for a 4 - month tour in the infantry role.

ESTABLISHMENT The Peacetime Establishment of 1929 applied. This was for:- 24 Officers, 419 Other Ranks and 263 horses. Motor transport was of the sketchiest kind, Bren guns and anti-tank rifles were not issued until 1938 and the main small arms were the Lee Enfield :303" rifles of the kind used in 1918.

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The Life Guards now serve in 6th Field Force to provide reinforcement in Europe in time of War. To this end there are: 35 Officers, 415 Other Ranks and 171 vehicles. A and C Squadrons are equipped primarily with Scimitar and Scorpion (both tracked) and B Squadron with Fox (wheeled).

NOMINAL ROLLS REGIMENTAL HEADQUARTERS Lieutenant Colonel A.J. Hartigan Major J.B. Emson Captain P;R;L; Hunter Captain G.B. Charters-Rowe RCM Lumb

HEAOQUARTER SQUADRON SHQ Major V.A. L Goodhew Captain J.W.M. Ellery SCM Shaw SOMC Land LCoH Carrington LCpl Mills Tpr Wood Tpr Henley Tpr Monk Tpr Hembling

ORDERLY ROOM OROMC Henderson CoH Etches CoH Walsh LCoH Kallaste LCoH Beck LCpIO'Neill LCpl Ridsdel Tpr Holmes

RHQ Tp SCpl Richards CoH Burns LCpl Wood LCpl Sturgess Tpr Maksymiw Tpr Gibson Tpr Collett Tpr Bell 594 Tpr Rogan

QM's DEPT. Captain (OM) D. Charles RaMC Reed SOMC Hoare LCoH York LCoH Bartlett LCoH MacDonald LCpl Bamber Tpr Gummer Tpr Softley

QM(E) DEPT. Captain (OM) D.A. York ROMC(E) Reynolds CoH Edge LCoH Short man LCoH Gledhill LCoH Haighton RHG/D LCpl Matthews LCpl O'Connell LCpl Shaw LCpl Yarrow Tpr Bannon

MT SCplOliver CoH Monaghan LCoH Hugman LCoH Parsley LCoH Wild LCpl Seale LCpl Wale LCpl Crossan Tpr Jarvis Tpr Laird

Tpr Prior Tpr Smith 939 Tpr Tomkins Tpr Godley Tpr White Tpr Bell 291 Tpr Bingham Tpr Birkett Tpr Brazier Tpr Crossan

PROVOST STAFF

ACC

4 TROOP

W02 Sinclair Sgt Smith LCpl Smith LCpl Coutts LCpl Houghton Pte Blackwell Pte Goodwin Pte Vernon Pte Shirley

SCpl Willis LCoH Jordan LCpl Pickard LCpl Lawrence LCpl Reed Tpr Batey Tpr Cox Tpr Farrar Tpr Kilburn Tpr Smith Tpr Smithers Tpr Walley Tpr Pinnington

GYMNASIUM

CoH Rymer LCoH Mayo LCoH Rothwell LCoH Petch LCpl Fry LCpl Dangertield LCpl Theakston LCpl Evans

Sgt Williams

A SQUADRON SHQ TROOP Major C.J. Simpson Gee Captain The Hon. N.J. Adderley Captain J.L Morris SCM McGloughlin LCoH Renton LCpl Hawkins LCpl Loftus LCpIO'Neill Tpr Bray 349 Tpr Clipston Tpr Hoskins Tpr Jones Tpr Kay Tpr Kennedy Tpr Roberts

OFFICERS MESS LCoH Sutherland LCoH Mussett LCoH Chant LCpl Harkup

WOs & NCOs MESS CoH Davis LCoH Boots Tpr Fogg Tpr Fitzpatrick Tpr Smith 058 Tpr Pullen Tpr Rimmer Tpr McKay

1 TROOP Lieutenant N.B. Holliday CoH York LCpl Willis LCpl Jenkins LCpl Corser Tpr Bray 482 Tpr Davies 490 Tpr Huskisson Tpr Kerrane Tpr Oldman Tpr Wallace Tpr Wilde Tpr Rose Tpr Rea

RECRUITING TEAM LCoH Beel Tpr Mortimer Tpr Gawthorne

LAD Captain D. L. Judd ASM Lodder SSgt Kirrage SSgt Iredale SSgt Blackman Sgt Gutsell Sgt Roddis Sgt Welch Sgt Blundell Sgt Penn LSgt Griffiths LSgt Spence LSgt Mallinson LSgt Masters LCpl Campbell LCpl Gilbey LCpl Greentield LCpl Howell LCpl Hill LCpl Sandells LCpl Boynton-Ouinion LCpl King Cfn Mantle Cfn Hands Cfn Bright Ctn Brodie

2 TROOP SCpl Saunders LCoH Lowry LCoH Beck LCpl Hollman LCpl Killean Tpr Bisset Tpr Bruce Tpr Clapp Tpr Garrity Tpr Kelland Tpr Pritchard Tpr Thompson Tpr Sanson

3 TROOP Lieutenant M. Leatham CoH Jones LCoH Cusick LCoH Rhodes LCpl Fry LCpl Rigby Tpr Brooks Tpr Bucktrout Tpr Chowns Tpr Clark 301 Tpr Kane Tpr Terry Tpr Whiteland Tpr Sprague

PAY OFFICE Major J.C.C. Ward SSgt Truelove Sgt Meadows LSgt 0' Leary LSgt Eagle Pte Hines-Randle

SURVEILLANCE TROOP CoH Cozens LCoH Harvey LCplCarson LCpl Gratton Tpr Barnett Tpr Birkin Tpr Boyns Tpr Clark 346 Tpr Court Tpr Derbysh ire Tpr Willis Tpr Schubert Tpr Guiney

ADMIN TROOP SOMC Whyte LCoH Kissock LCoH Tuck LCoH Cavin LCpl Dove LCpl Page Tpr Brown Tpr Coe Tpr Carr Tpr Davies 272 TPR Gee Tpr Gynane Tpr Hadden Tpr Ormerod Tpr Key Tpr Stiff Tpr Lewis Tpr Evans Tpr Walmsley LSgt Brimicombe ACC LCpl Ferguson Pte Blaymies Pte Yates

LAD SSgt Stone Sgt Smith LSgt Iveson LSgt Robinson Cpl Weir Cfn Hamilton Ctn Garden Ctn Street

B SQUADRON SHQ Major R.J. Morrisey·Paine SCM Leighton CoH Lawrence LCoH Wise LCoH Puddephat LCpl Drennan LCpl Bell Tpr Ditcham Tpr Goodchild Tpr Waudby

59

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;1 TROOP

5 TROOP

Second Lieutenant The Hon. C.W. Cayzer CoH Mills CoH Lodge LCpl Tinsley LCpl Slatford LCpI Lewis pr Strange Tpr Airey Tpr Brown 361 Tpr Angel Tpr Worley Tpr Ingram Tpr GriHin Tpr Sumnall Tpr Cairncross Tpr Sands Tpr Ashton

SCpl Nicklin CoH Gries LCoH Mitton LCpl George LCpl Wright LCpl Pitt LCpl Stinchcombe Tpr Jeram Tpr Austin Tpr Lindsay Tpr Clark 507 Tpr Lambert Tpr Egan Tpr Layzell Tpr Kidd Tpr Braham Tpr Pillman

ADMIN TROOP 2 TROOP Lieutenant D.G. E. Naylor- Leyland CoH Finney LCoH Ormiston LCpl Martell LCpl James Trp Clarke Tpr Fenn Tpr Hodge Tpr Harrison Tpr Coole Tpr Keach Tpr Ellis 461 Tpr English Tpr Page Tpr Leach Tpr Horton

3 TROOP SCpl Townsend LCoH Brunning LCpl Liddell LCpl Leader LCpl Heath Tpr Ellis 369 Tpr Plumstead Tpr Trevethan Tpr Preston Tpr Elliott Tpr Mansfield Tpr Newton fpr Herd Tpr Williams Tpr Doe Tpr Graham

4 TROOP Second Lieutenant P.G. Daubeny CoH Mead LCoH Stephenson LCpl Frape LCpl Davis LCpl Gilbank Tpr Castle Tpr Hunter Tpr Means Tpr Bellringer Tpr Jackson Tpr Stanton Tpr Craister Tpr Nicholson Tpr Wood Tpr Thomas Tpr Collins

&0

saMC Wllliams LCoH Jewell LCoH Bevan LCoH Snowden Tpr Gaddas Tpr Davis Tpr Keyworth LSgt Jordan ACC Pte Harkins Pte Powell Pte Simmons

LAD SSgt Goodison Sgt Lang LSgt Midwinter Cpl Bell LCpl Dickson LCpl Seymour Cfn Scanton Cfn Watson

C SQUADRON

(Northern Ireland) SHQ Major C.N ... Haworth-Booth Captain L.O. Stratford Lieutenant I.S. Forbes-Cockell SCM Hutchings CoH Byrne LCoH Powell LCoH Smith Tpr Ayres Tpr Abel Tpr Gaunt Tpr Gee Tpr Lee Tpr Prior Tpr Thorpe Tpr Vickers Cpl Hyndman (R Sigs)

1 TROOP Second Lieutenant P.J.D. Marlow-Thomas CoH Knowles LCoH Hallas LCoH McBride LCoH Collins LCpl Mullen LCpl Johnson Tpr Blowey Tpr Chambers Tpr Creagh Tpr Cumming

Tpr Dickinson Tpr Fletcher Tpr Pearson Tpr Pringle Tpr Slade Tpr Smith 88 Tpr Vince Cfn Walden CplOwen Pte Drysdale Pte McConnichie Pte Mumo Pte Pugh Pte Swan Pte Vernon

2 TROOP Lieutenant P.J. Knipe CoH Banks LCoH Plant LCoH Davey LCpl McCance LCpl Fenn Tpr Arthur Tpr Brown Tpr Hancock Tpr Kalisz Tpr Knight Tpr Newton Tpr Parr Tpr Smith 65 Tpr Smith 67 Tpr Taft Tpr Wilson Cfn Woodcock Cpl Goodeve RAOC LCpl Jones Pte Curnow Pte Goodman Pte Graham Pte Jones Pte Mooney Pte Smart

3 TROOP Second Lieutenant D.C. Waterhouse CoH Stay LCoH Jones l.CoH Pace LCoH Coffey LCoH Windebank LCpl Hastie LCpl Kelly Tpr Aish Tpr Appleyard Tpr Ellis Tpr Hunt Tpr Kenniford Tpr Langford Tpr Lockett Tpr Porter Tpr Stanworth Tpr White Cfn Bray REME Cfn AlIsop REME Cfn Lafferty REME Cfn Ryan REME LCpl Jorlan RA/OC LCpl Bownay RAOC LCpl Pillinger RAOC

INT. TROOP Captain J.A. Black CoH Daraz CoH Potts LCoH Frazer LCpl O'Connor LCpl Steele LCpl Gale

LCpl Blunt LCpl Cullen LCpl Darley LCpl Lucas LCpl McCLure LCpl Page LCpl Price LCpl Roper

ADMIN TROOP saMC Knowles CoH Ross LCpl Jones LCpl Treble LCpl Foster LCpl Moore LCpl Brewster Tpr Egan Tpr Henson Tpr Robinson Tpr Pe'ar LSgt Tipping RAPC LSgt Murphy ACC LCpl Cairns ACC Pte Bevan ACC Pte Davis ACC Pte Lewis ACC Pte Mercer ACC

LAD SSgt Davidson Sgt Leeming Sgt Hobson L,Cpl Crilley LCpl Slade LCpl McDowall Cfn Brannigan Cfn Butfoy Cfn Porter Cfn Reynolds

MOUNTED DUTY SQUADRON HEADQUARTERS Major S.V. Gilbart-Denham Captain N.J.D. D'Ambrumenil W02 (SCM) Kelly LCpl Boal

1 TROOP Lieutenant S.F. Hayward CoH Denton LCoH Smith LCoH Tucker LCpl Thompson LCpl Wood Tpr Brown Tpr Cowling Tpr Drew Tpr Hall Tpr Haycock Tpr Hayward-Percival Tpr Ingham Tpr Jones Tpr Lanahan Tpr Lewis Tpr Margan Tpr Mountford Tpr Nicklin Tpr Norcombe Tpr O'Donnell Tpr Schubert Tpr Sims Tpr Thornton Tpr Watts

2 T'ROOP Lieutenant H.S.J. Scott CoH Bishop LCoH Robertson LCoH O'Flaherty LCpl Scott LCpl Wilson Tpr Alien 180 Tpr Burge Tpr Butler Tpr Cooper Tpr Dodson Tpr Ellis Tpr Haverley Tpr Hearn Tpr Hopewell Tpr Leete Tpr Lesczar Tpr Seneviratne Tpr Taylor Tpr Thomas Tpr Wilshaw Tpr Wood

3 TROOP Lieutenant J. R. Astor CoH Craig LCoH Thornton LCoH Pennick LCpl Redfearn LCpl Sadler LCpl Hargreaves Tpr Archer Tpr Bennett Tpr Bprkowski Tpr Frawley Tpr Grey Tpr Hodson Tpr Lawes Tpr Pett Tpr MacAllum Tpr Rettalick Tpr Roe Tpr Snape Tpr Sykes Tpr Wilkinson

SQUADRON HEADQUARTERS TROOP CoH Hooper Tptr LCoH Spencer LCpl Clark LCpl Hickman Tpr Davison Tpr Lawson Tpr Lee Tpr Leggott Tpr Milburn Tpr Ward Tptr Orchard

SQUADRON STORES SaMC Woodland LCpl Tinkler Tpr Morrey Tpr Williams

FARRIERS W02 (FaMC) Stewartson FSCpl King FLCoH Williams FLCpl Carrington FLCpl Jones FLCpl Becker FLCpl Airey

HUNTING STABLES LCpl Leishman Tpr Burns Tpr Greig Tpr Howard Tpr Smith

RIDING INSTRUCTORS Major (RMI A.Jackson, MBE SCpl McKie LCoH Sanderson

ORDERLIES

LCpl Wilkinson Tpr Mateer

SADDLERS SCpl Richards Tpr Castelow

TAILORS SCpl Taylor LCoH O'Sullivan LCpl Masters Tpr Edwards

TRAINING WING

LCpl Seager Tpr Alien 590 . Tpr Le Fondre Tpr Marsden Tpr VanCraeyenest Tpr Wright

W02 Varley Tpr Coles

COURSES

CoH Kelly LCoH O'Flaherty LCoH Bevan

CoH James (Melton Mowbrayl LCpl Evans (GO) Tpr Harrison (Melton Mowbray) Tpr Sutcliffe (Melton Mowbray)

INSTRUCTORS

RIDE NCOs LCpl ~obertson LCpl Westaway LCpl Hunt

HEAD QUARTER SQUADRON STABLE MEN W02 (SCM) Gook LCplDiggle

ORDERLY ROOM W02 (OROMC) Hendetson CoH Morgan LCoH Radford LCpl Rodwell

PROVOST STAFF CoH Thakston Tpr Godden Tpr Holden Tpr Livings

OFFICERS MESS LCoH Otton

WOs and NCOs MESS LCpl Simpson Tpr Stevens Tpr Roberts

Tpr Howe Tpr Mamwell

RECRUITS IN RIDING SCHOOL LCpl Gibson Tpr Stephenson Tpr Stone Tpr Ward Tpr Milton Tpr Edwards Tpr Hazlewood Tpr Darvell Tpr Mullen Tpr Wright Tpr Brooks Tpr Hayes Tpr Oldfield Tpr Bartlett Tpr Lish Tpr Sangster Musn Collier Musn Grieve

THE GUARDS DEPOT MEDICAL CENTRE CoH Borthwick LCoH Woleznski

MT DEPT. Tpr Banks Tpr Bear Tpr Bryant Tpr Ludlam Tpr Morgan

BARBER Tpr Grogan

QM DEPT. Major (OM) J.W. Greaves CoH Veal CoH Rhodes

Major T.J. Earl Captain P.S.W.F. Falkner Lieutenant H.K. Hamilton Second Lieutenant W.S.G. Doughty SOMC Alien Scpl Alien SCpl Alderson CoH Read CoH George CoH Baxter CoH Grant CoH Meade LCoH Callard LCoH Wilkinson LCoH Gilbert LCoH Whatley LCoH Mills LCoH Hale LCoH McDermott LCoH Holbrook

LCoH Fury LCoH Tinsley LCoH Vince LCoH Evans LCoH Dobson LCoH Richie LCoH Carter LCoH Parkinson LCpl Hollingswood LCpl Shipway LCpl Alien LCpl Croager Tpr McAlpine Tpr Anscombe Tpr Dixon Tpr Elliott

Musn Hamer Musn Harris Musn Harrison Musn Harrison Musn Hart Musn Manfield Musn Meikle Musn Morton Musn Owen Musn Pankhurst Musn Pope Musn Redford Musn Sandell Musn Szreider Musn Tibbels Musn Wiltshire Musn Woodhouse

REGIMENTAL HEADOUARTERS HOUSEHOLD CAVALRY

OFFICERS SERVING AWAY FROM THE REGIMENT

OFFICERS WHO HAVE RETIRED DURING 1917 Major J.R. Bedells Captain P.T. Fletcher Captain H.P. Reed Captain N.P. Hearson Lieutenant H.C. Belfingham Major (OM) E. S.ant

Brigadier H.D.A. Langley, MBE - Royal College of Defence Studies, London Lieutenant Colonel S.C. Cooper - GSOI Junior Division of The Staff College, Warminster Lieutenant Colonel A.B.S.H. Gooch - Deputy Controller Army CoH Smith Display, Aldershot CoH Dean Major C.J. D'Oyly - GS02 SO RAC Centre, Bovington CoH Charlett Major C.S. Harcourt-Smith - GS02 Intelligence, SHAPE (BAE) LCoH Starling Brussels LCpl Smith Captain G.C.T. Musgrave - Staff Captain O. Headquarters, Tpr Brady Detmold Garrison Tpr O'Daly Captain A.P. De Ritter - Staff Captain Headquarters, Household Division, Horse Guards Captain P.G. Huntley - Intelligence and Security Group, Northern Ireland Captain S.D.G. Vetch - Watchkeeper 3rd Infantry Brigade, Northern Ireland Lieutenant C.B. Oldfield - Armour School, Bovington Second Lieutenant H.F.J. Langley - Durham University Surgeon Lieutenant Major W. Jones - S02 MOD (OAR) London Colonel J.M. Stewart Captain C.T. Rodger - RAC Gunnery School, Lulworth SCpl Mitchell Captain D. Bentley - Headquarter 7th Armoured Brigade, LCoH Darby Hohne LCpl Clark Captain B.P. Payne - Driving and Maintenance School, Tpr Tanner Bovington LCpl Leak Tpr Nixon LSgt Barrett RAMC LCpl Murray RAMC LCpl Plumb RAMC

HOUSEHOLD CAVALRY HOSPITAL

THE BAND Major (OM) A.J. Richards W02 Frost SCpl Marsden CoH Fletcher CoH Davies CoH Jolley CoH Taylor CoH Wood Cpl Harman Cpl Robinson Cpl Mean Cpl Whitworth LCpl Barnes LCpl Lund LCpl Morris LCpl Bourne LCpl Watts LCpl Nichols Musn Poland Musn Jarvis Musn Hopkins Musn Alien Musn Bole Musn Collier Musn Davies Musn Fensom Musn Graves Musn Grieve

EXTRA REGIMENTALLY EMPLOYED GUNNERY SCHOOL

JUNIOR LEADERS REGT. RAC

Tpr Greest

W02 Lawson W02 Cherrington SCpl Griffiths SCpl Daysmith CoH Redford CoH Ward

O&M SCHOOL SCpl 1I0yd (Det. to CAAT Iran) CoH Miller CoH R ichardson

SIGNALS SCHOOL

HQ Trg. Gp. R.SIGS. & CATTERICK GARRISON

CoH Cruddaee

W01 (GCM) Walley

RAC TRG. REGT.

RAC SALES TEAM

CoH Milne CoH Belza

LCpl MeKenzie

ATDU

RECRUITERS

W01 Miles

Stoke

CoH Marshall

CoH Lea & LCpl Bagnell CoH Turner Preston Leeds CoH Lee Nottingham CoH Bourne Liverpool CoH Collier

ARMOUR SCHOOL SCpl Dugdale

RMCS LCpl Hardaere

ARMY APPRENTICE COLLEGE ARBORFIElD CoH Pearson

RMAS Sepi Slater LCpl Stockwell

CoH Jewell

61

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5 CH CoH Mclvor

HQ RHEINDAHLEN GARRISON

HOUSEHOLD DIVISION FUNDS

JSPC NETHERAVON

CoH Clough

LCoH Johnston

LCplDagge

2 ADS

7 REGT. AAC

BATUS

SCpl Maxwell

HQ LONDON DISTRICT

JSSC WARMINSTER

LCoH Thorpe

LCoH Harrison

SCpl Keeys LCpl Long

HQ MUNSTER GARRISON

RAVC TRG. CENTRE

W02 Mitcheson

LCoH Archibald Tpr Beer

CoH Burns

HQ (A) MAN SG (WS)

LCoH Wiseman

ARMY DOG UNIT NORTHERN IRELAND

SCpl Englishby

1 REGT. AAC 657 SQUADRON AAC

Tpr Wilkinson

25 CH

HQ1 DIV. & SIG. REGT.

W02 Cummins

MVEE (K) Tpr Shone

11 ARMED Bde & Sig. SQUADRON

CoH Purves

LCpl Hall

RHKR (V)

247 PRO COY RMP

C SQUADRON RY W02 Murnan Tpr Williams

W01 Cornish

22 SAS Two members

SCplDigney

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PREMIERE PRODUCTS and incorporating Vanguard Floor Maintenance

OAKLEYGARDENS, CHELTENHAM TEL. CHELTENHAM 7647 (5 lines)

5 STAR

iFROM THE SAME STABLE~

§ Our popular 'Burghley' felt hat illustrated is just one of the well known

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range of H. J. head wear from the ..., same stable as your service caps. ~ Available from our Old Burlington ..., Street shop, by pOst- or from one ::; of our trade stands at Country and X Equestrian shows now regularly ..., visited throughout the country.

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X Send for details of our full head..., wear range in 'The Complete Guide ::; toHeadwear'andf.ordetailsof :t shows visited.

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The 'BURGHLEY' In rough finish fell. £17.9S&£1.2Spp

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13 Old Burlington Street, London WIX ILA 01-4397397/9 ...,

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• Manufacturers of Cleaning Materials - Polishes Detergents - Sealers • Manufacturers of Floor Maintenance Machines Equipment - Accessories • Free Cleaning Consultancy, Technical Advisory and System Installation Service • Suppliers of a Comprehensive Range of Janitorial and Domestic Requirements • A Complete Service, One Invoice, One Account, and a Quick Delivery Service

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Ladies Hats: 80 Grosvenor Street, London WI X 9DE

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X I Please send me 'The Complete Guide to Headwear' 0* I J:

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Please send me details of all shows visited

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§I ~:::e .s~~~ .~~ ~ "~~~~~I~~'. ~~t. ~~~~~~~~e~~ .s~~e. : : : .* I ~ i I Address . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . .. . .. . . . . . .. . . .. I §:t §X I

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