1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards Cap Badge: History, Symbolism and Collecting Guide
Introduction
The 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards (QDG) cap badge is unusual in British Army service. Its principal device is the Habsburg double-headed eagle inherited from the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards.
The association dates from 1896, when Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria became Colonel-in-Chief of the King’s Dragoon Guards. The regiment was granted the privilege of wearing the Habsburg eagle, which remained closely identified with the KDG and later passed to QDG.
1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards was formed on 1 January 1959 by amalgamating the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards and The Queen’s Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards). Both predecessor regiments had been raised in 1685.
Today QDG is the Cavalry Regiment of Wales and the Border Counties and serves as light cavalry, specialising in formation reconnaissance.
Choose Your QDG Cap Badge or Display Frame
Who Are 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards?
1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards is the Cavalry Regiment of Wales and the Border Counties and the senior regiment of the line in the British Army. Its traditional recruiting area includes Wales together with Herefordshire, Shropshire and Cheshire.
The regiment was formed in 1959 from the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards and The Queen’s Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards), the two senior cavalry regiments of the line.
The Dragoon Guards belonged historically to the heavy cavalry. QDG now serves in a very different role as Light Cavalry, specialising in Formation Reconnaissance.
The regiment is based at Robertson Barracks, Swanton Morley, Norfolk, and forms part of 1st Deep Reconnaissance Strike Brigade Combat Team.
Key Dates: A Timeline of 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1685 | The two regiments that would eventually become the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards and The Queen’s Bays are raised. |
| 1746 | A Royal Warrant of 19 December changes both regiments from Regiments of Horse to Dragoon Guards. |
| 1767 | The 2nd Dragoon Guards’ association with bay-coloured horses is formally reflected in the title The Queen’s Bays. |
| 1815 | The King’s Dragoon Guards fights at Waterloo. |
| 1857–1858 | The Queen’s Bays serves during the Indian Mutiny. Robert Blair, Thomas Monaghan and Charles Anderson receive the Victoria Cross. |
| 1881 | Private John Doogan of the King’s Dragoon Guards earns the Victoria Cross at Laing’s Nek. |
| 1896 | Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria becomes Colonel-in-Chief of the King’s Dragoon Guards and the regiment is granted the privilege of wearing the Habsburg double-headed eagle. |
| 1898 | Captain Nevill Maskelyne Smyth of The Queen’s Bays receives the Victoria Cross during the Sudan campaign. |
| 1915 | During the First World War the King’s Dragoon Guards stops wearing the Austrian eagle and temporarily returns to a Garter Star badge. |
| 1919 | The King’s Dragoon Guards conducts a mounted charge during the Third Afghan War, recorded in the regimental history as the last British cavalry charge on horseback. |
| 1935 | The Queen’s Bays gives up its horses and converts to tanks. |
| 1937 | The Habsburg eagle is restored to the King’s Dragoon Guards cap badge. |
| 1938 | The King’s Dragoon Guards completes its transition from horses to armoured vehicles. |
| 1939–1945 | The two predecessor regiments serve during the Second World War, principally in the Middle East, North Africa and Italy. |
| 1956–1957 | The King’s Dragoon Guards serves during the Malayan Emergency. |
| 1959 | The King’s Dragoon Guards and The Queen’s Bays amalgamate on 1 January to form 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards. |
| 1960s | The new regiment serves in Germany and undertakes deployments to Northern Ireland, Borneo and Aden. |
| 1990–1991 | A Squadron serves during the Gulf War on Operation GRANBY and takes part in the advance into Kuwait. |
| 1996–2001 | QDG serves in the Balkans, including deployments to Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo. |
| 2003–2007 | The regiment undertakes three operational tours in Iraq on Operation TELIC. |
| 2008–2014 | QDG completes three operational tours in Afghanistan on Operation HERRICK. |
| 2018 onwards | The regiment takes part in successive NATO reassurance deployments to Poland on Operation CABRIT. |
| 2021–2022 | QDG deploys to Mali on Operation NEWCOMBE. |
| Present | QDG serves as light cavalry specialising in formation reconnaissance. |
The Two Regiments Behind QDG
1st King’s Dragoon Guards
The regiment that became the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards was raised in 1685. After the 1746 Royal Warrant it became the senior regiment of Dragoon Guards.
Its long service included the War of the Spanish Succession, Waterloo, the Crimean War, service in Lower Canada and China, the Anglo-Zulu War, campaigns in South Africa, the First World War, the Third Afghan War, the Second World War and the Malayan Emergency.
The KDG also provided the principal device used on the modern QDG cap badge: the Habsburg double-headed eagle.
The Queen’s Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards)
The Queen’s Bays was also raised in 1685. The regiment became known for riding bay horses at a time when black horses were more usual in British heavy cavalry, a distinction formally reflected in its title in 1767.
The Bays served in the Indian Mutiny, the Sudan, South Africa, the First World War and the Second World War. Four of the five Victoria Crosses inherited in the QDG lineage were awarded to members of the regiment.
Its badge — a crowned laurel wreath with BAYS in the centre — did not disappear in 1959. It survived as part of the dress of the new regiment.
From Regiments of Horse to Dragoon Guards
A Royal Warrant dated 19 December 1746 changed both predecessor regiments from Regiments of Horse to Dragoon Guards.
They became the 1st and 2nd Dragoon Guards, with the King’s and Queen’s designations retained in their titles.
The change established the Dragoon Guards title still carried by QDG today. Historically the Dragoon Guards belonged to the heavy cavalry; the modern regiment serves as light cavalry.
Emperor Franz Joseph I and the Habsburg Eagle
The Habsburg eagle entered the regiment’s story in 1896.
Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards, an appointment announced in the London Gazette on 24 March 1896.
The regiment was granted the privilege of wearing the Habsburg double-headed eagle as regimental insignia.
QDG’s surviving regimental accounts differ slightly over the date at which the eagle entered dress regulations, with one later uniform account referring to 1898. The Emperor’s appointment and the granting of the Habsburg device, however, belong to 1896.
The Austrian connection reinforced an existing musical tradition. An Austrian bandmaster named Schramm, who served with the KDG during the nineteenth century, had already introduced Johann Strauss the Elder’s Radetzky March to the regiment.
The march remains closely associated with QDG today.
The Eagle During the First World War
Once Britain was at war with Austria-Hungary, the eagle could no longer reasonably remain on the regiment’s headdress.
In 1915, the King’s Dragoon Guards stopped wearing the Habsburg eagle and reverted temporarily to a badge based on the Garter Star.
The eagle returned to the cap badge in 1937. One later QDG uniform account gives 1938 in connection with changes to dress, but the dedicated QDG cap-badge history and the National Army Museum support 1937 for the restoration of the badge itself.
When the KDG and The Queen’s Bays amalgamated in 1959, the eagle was retained as the cap badge of the new regiment.
The QDG Badge Design
The QDG badge preserves the Habsburg double-headed eagle inherited from the King’s Dragoon Guards.
The badge shows the double-headed Habsburg eagle with its crowned heads, the Austrian Imperial Crown above, an orb and sceptre held in its claws, and the detailed imperial shield on its breast.
These elements belong to the inherited Habsburg device rather than having been created for the 1959 amalgamation.
The Double-Headed Eagle
The double-headed eagle records the KDG’s association with Emperor Franz Joseph I.
It had already been worn by the King’s Dragoon Guards for decades before QDG was formed and passed to the new regiment through the 1959 amalgamation.
The Austrian Imperial Crown
The eagle is surmounted by the Austrian Imperial Crown, preserving the Habsburg character of the original device.
The Orb and Sceptre
The eagle holds the orb and sceptre belonging to the Austrian imperial achievement. They form part of the inherited device rather than separate QDG emblems.
The Central Shield
The shield on the eagle’s breast carries the imperial arms.
It completes the Habsburg device inherited by the regiment.
The Badge Reproduced by Precision Military Emblems
The QDG display badge produced by Precision Military Emblems reproduces the MOD-approved Habsburg eagle design as an enlarged 3D-printed wall display.
The display shows the double-headed Habsburg eagle with its crowned heads, the Austrian Imperial Crown above, an orb and sceptre held in its claws, and the detailed imperial shield on its breast.
The finished display measures approximately 200 mm × 250 mm × 28 mm and incorporates an integrated rear wall mount.
It is a modern metallic-finish display reproduction. It reproduces the approved badge design rather than the materials or manufacturing methods of an issued metal cap badge.
The Queen’s Bays Legacy in QDG Dress
The KDG eagle became the cap badge, but The Queen’s Bays remained equally visible in QDG dress.
The former Bays badge — a laurel wreath containing the word BAYS beneath a crown — became the collar badge used with QDG No. 1 and No. 2 Dress.
Other ceremonial distinctions also draw on both predecessor regiments.
The cap badge came from the KDG; the wider uniform preserves the history of both.
Five Victoria Crosses in the QDG Lineage
Five Victoria Crosses are associated with the two immediate predecessor regiments of QDG. Four were awarded to men of The Queen’s Bays and one to a member of the King’s Dragoon Guards.
Robert Blair VC — The Queen’s Bays
Robert Blair was a lieutenant when he performed the action for which he received the Victoria Cross.
At Bulandshahr on 28 September 1857, during the Indian Mutiny, Blair was ordered to take a sergeant and twelve men to recover an abandoned ammunition wagon. His small party was attacked by a much larger body of enemy cavalry. Blair led his men through the attack and brought the party back, although he himself was severely wounded.
He later attained the rank of captain.
Trumpeter Thomas Monaghan VC — The Queen’s Bays
On 8 October 1858, near Sundeela in Oudh, Trumpeter Thomas Monaghan and Private Charles Anderson went immediately to the assistance of Lieutenant-Colonel W.H. Seymour after he had been attacked and brought down.
They held off his attackers until Seymour was able to regain his feet and the immediate danger had passed.
Private Charles Anderson VC — The Queen’s Bays
Charles Anderson received the Victoria Cross for the same action as Monaghan.
The two men went to their commanding officer’s aid while heavily outnumbered and prevented him from being killed.
Private John Doogan VC — 1st King’s Dragoon Guards
At Laing’s Nek on 28 January 1881, Private John Doogan saw Major William Brownlow stranded after his horse had been shot.
Doogan was already wounded. He nevertheless rode to Brownlow, dismounted and gave the officer his own horse. Doogan was wounded again during the rescue.
Captain Nevill Maskelyne Smyth VC — The Queen’s Bays
At the Battle of Omdurman on 2 September 1898, Captain Nevill Maskelyne Smyth of The Queen’s Bays rode against an armed opponent who had run among the camp followers. Smyth was wounded in the arm by a spear during the encounter but succeeded in stopping the attacker.
His Victoria Cross was gazetted on 15 November 1898.
These five awards belong to the inherited history of the modern regiment.
Battle Honours
The combined QDG lineage carries battle honours spanning more than three centuries.
Among the battle honours carried in the QDG lineage are Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, Malplaquet, Dettingen, Warburg, Waterloo, Sevastopol, Lucknow, Taku Forts, Mons, Le Cateau, Ypres, the Somme, Cambrai, Tobruk, Gazala, El Alamein, Tunis, the Gothic Line and Argenta Gap.
Later honours include Gulf 1991 and Iraq 2003.
From Horse Cavalry to Armour
The change from horse cavalry to mechanised warfare came between the wars.
The Queen’s Bays converted from horses to tanks in 1935. The King’s Dragoon Guards followed in 1938.
During the Second World War the predecessor regiments served in France, the Middle East, North Africa and Italy. The Bays fought in France in 1940, then at Gazala and El Alamein before continuing through Tunisia and into the Italian campaign. The KDG operated principally as an armoured-car regiment and also served in the Middle East and Mediterranean theatres.
Mechanisation changed how the regiments fought, not how they identified themselves.
The Malayan Emergency
One of the final campaigns of the King’s Dragoon Guards before amalgamation took place in Malaya.
The KDG deployed there in 1956 and served during the Malayan Emergency before returning shortly before its amalgamation with The Queen’s Bays.
Formation of 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards in 1959
The two regiments amalgamated on 1 January 1959.
The new title preserved elements of both. The 1st carried the seniority of the King’s Dragoon Guards, while The Queen’s retained the connection with The Queen’s Bays.
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother became the first Colonel-in-Chief of QDG.
The new regiment moved to Wolfenbüttel in Germany, where it served in the reconnaissance role during the Cold War.
Early QDG Operations: Northern Ireland, Borneo and Aden
QDG undertook an early tour in Northern Ireland, including service at Omagh, while elements of the regiment also deployed to Borneo during the Indonesian Confrontation.
In 1966–67 the regiment served in Aden, where it carried out reconnaissance and internal-security duties during the final period of British rule.
Northern Ireland remained a recurring commitment. QDG returned on a number of later tours between the 1970s and the end of the 1990s. Other Cold War commitments included service in Cyprus, Sharjah and Lebanon.
The Gulf and the Balkans
During the 1990–91 Gulf War, A Squadron served on Operation GRANBY and took part in the coalition advance into Kuwait.
The regiment later served in the Balkans. Deployments included Bosnia and Croatia in 1996, followed by service in Kosovo from 1999 to 2001.
Iraq and Afghanistan
QDG completed three operational tours in Iraq on Operation TELIC, including deployments in 2003, 2004–05 and 2006–07.
The regiment subsequently completed three tours in Afghanistan on Operation HERRICK between 2008 and 2014.
Army and regimental sources use slightly different shorthand for the individual tour years, but both record three operational deployments during the campaign.
Poland, Mali and More Recent Commitments
More recent service has included successive NATO reassurance deployments to Poland on Operation CABRIT.
QDG also deployed twice to Mali on Operation NEWCOMBE in 2021 and 2022.
Subsequent commitments have included further Operation CABRIT deployments and support to Operation INTERFLEX, the UK-led programme training members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
QDG Today
The British Army employs QDG as Light Cavalry specialising in Formation Reconnaissance.
Its soldiers operate vehicles including the Jackal 2 and use surveillance systems, communications equipment and mounted and dismounted weapons to locate, identify and report on enemy forces and terrain.
The regiment remains based at Robertson Barracks, Swanton Morley.
The equipment bears little resemblance to that used by the cavalrymen of 1685. The Habsburg eagle, however, still links the modern regiment directly to the King’s Dragoon Guards of the late Victorian Army.
Collecting Original QDG Cap Badges
Collectors need to distinguish between the Habsburg eagle as a regimental design and a particular period of badge.
The eagle was worn by the King’s Dragoon Guards long before QDG was formed, so the presence of a double-headed eagle alone does not identify an example as a post-1959 QDG badge.
Period, manufacture, dimensions, reverse fittings and provenance all need to be considered together.
King’s Dragoon Guards and QDG Examples
The National Army Museum holds both earlier KDG eagle badges and later QDG examples.
One documented QDG other-ranks badge dating from approximately 1960–1985 was manufactured by Dowler.
Earlier KDG patterns should not automatically be treated as identical merely because the broad eagle device is shared.
Maker’s Marks and Reverse Fittings
Maker’s marks and reverse fittings can assist identification, but neither should be relied upon alone to date a badge.
Known museum examples, documented provenance, dimensions and construction provide a firmer basis for comparison.
Original Badges and the Precision Military Emblems Display Piece
The collecting points above concern original service insignia.
The Precision Military Emblems QDG Cap Badge is an officially licensed modern display piece produced from MOD-approved artwork and enlarged for wall display.
It is not sold as an original service badge and does not attempt to reproduce the manufacturing method of historic metal insignia.
Displaying and Preserving Original Badges
Original military badges are best kept in a stable, dry environment away from prolonged direct sunlight.
Display materials should not scratch, permanently bond to or chemically react with the surface. Where an original badge has documented provenance, reversible mounting is preferable to permanent fixing.
A modern licensed display reproduction serves a different purpose, allowing the regimental design to be displayed at large scale without using an original piece of service insignia.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards formed?
QDG was formed on 1 January 1959 by amalgamating the 1st King’s Dragoon Guards and The Queen’s Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards).
Why does QDG wear an Austrian eagle?
Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria became Colonel-in-Chief of the King’s Dragoon Guards in 1896. The regiment was granted the privilege of wearing the Habsburg double-headed eagle, which passed to QDG on amalgamation in 1959.
Was the eagle worn during the First World War?
No. The King’s Dragoon Guards stopped wearing it in 1915 while Britain was at war with Austria-Hungary and temporarily used a Garter Star badge.
When did the Habsburg eagle return?
The dedicated QDG cap-badge history and National Army Museum evidence support 1937 for the restoration of the eagle to the King’s Dragoon Guards cap badge.
What happened to The Queen’s Bays badge?
The Bays badge did not disappear. The crowned laurel wreath containing BAYS became a QDG collar badge and remains part of the regiment’s dress tradition.
How many Victoria Crosses are associated with the QDG lineage?
Five. Four were awarded to members of The Queen’s Bays — Robert Blair, Thomas Monaghan, Charles Anderson and Nevill Maskelyne Smyth — and one to John Doogan of the King’s Dragoon Guards.
Was QDG historically heavy cavalry?
Its Dragoon Guards predecessors belonged to the heavy cavalry tradition. The modern regiment serves as Light Cavalry.
What is QDG’s role today?
The regiment specialises in Formation Reconnaissance, gathering information about enemy forces and terrain and passing it rapidly to commanders.
Where is QDG based?
The regiment is based at Robertson Barracks, Swanton Morley, Norfolk.
Is the Precision Military Emblems QDG badge a service cap badge?
No. It is an enlarged, officially MOD-licensed 3D-printed display reproduction produced from approved artwork for commemorative and wall-display use. It is not issued military insignia.
Amalgamation and Continuing Tradition
The Habsburg eagle predates QDG by more than sixty years.
It belonged first to the King’s Dragoon Guards, disappeared from the regiment’s headdress during the First World War, returned in 1937 and was retained when the KDG and The Queen’s Bays amalgamated in 1959.
The Bays left an equally visible mark through its collar badge and other dress traditions.
QDG therefore carries the history of both predecessor regiments rather than the insignia of one alone.
Further Reading
Selected authoritative sources used for this article:
- British Army — 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
- 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards — History
- 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards — Regimental Cap Badge
- National Army Museum — 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
- National Army Museum — 1st King’s Dragoon Guards
- 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards — Medals and Victoria Crosses
View full research source list
- 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards — Chronology
- 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards — Regimental Music
- National Army Museum — The Queen’s Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards)
- A.L. Kipling and H.L. King, Head-Dress Badges of the British Army
- J.B.M. Frederick, Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978
- Firing Line Museum of The Queen’s Dragoon Guards and The Royal Welsh, Cardiff Castle
Officially Licensed Emblems & Heritage Displays
Precision Military Emblems produces officially licensed 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards display pieces using MOD-approved artwork.
1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
View our 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards Cap Badge and our 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards Cap Badge Display Frame.
The historical material above describes the regimental badge and its historical context separately from these modern licensed display products.
Intellectual Property of the Secretary of State for Defence is used under licence. Every item is produced for commemorative and display purposes and is not official issue military insignia.
About Precision Military Emblems
Precision Military Emblems produces officially MOD-licensed 3D-printed British military badge display pieces and framed heritage displays in Leicestershire. The Military Heritage series is researched from regimental, museum, government and institutional sources.
Related Military Heritage Articles
Readers interested in the wider history of Britain’s cavalry and armoured regiments may also find the following Military Heritage articles useful:
- The Royal Armoured Corps provides the organisational home for QDG and the Army’s other armoured regiments. Read our Royal Armoured Corps Cap Badge: History, Symbolism and Collecting Guide.
- The Royal Tank Regiment represents a different strand of Britain’s armoured history, originating from the tank units of the First World War rather than horse cavalry. Read our Royal Tank Regiment Cap Badge: History, Symbolism and Meaning.
- The Royal Dragoon Guards is another modern Dragoon Guards regiment but has a separate lineage through the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards and 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards.
- The Queen’s Royal Hussars and King’s Royal Hussars provide further examples of modern cavalry regiments preserving older regimental identities through amalgamation.
- The Royal Lancers and Light Dragoons continue other strands of Britain’s historic cavalry tradition within the modern Royal Armoured Corps.