The Blues and Royals: History, Cap Badge, Waterloo Eagle & Collecting Guide

Introduction

The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) are the second most senior regiment in the British Army and one of the two regiments of the Household Cavalry. The regiment itself dates from 29 March 1969, when the Royal Horse Guards (The Blues) and The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) were amalgamated at Detmold in West Germany. What came together that day were two very different cavalry traditions: one from the Sovereign's Household, the other from the Army's oldest line-cavalry lineage.

That combination explains much of the regiment's character. The dark blue tunic and Household status come from the Royal Horse Guards; the Waterloo Eagle, Guidon tradition and much of the dragoon inheritance come from the 1st Royal Dragoons. Since 1992, Blues and Royals soldiers have served alongside The Life Guards in the operational Household Cavalry Regiment and the ceremonial Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, while retaining their own regimental identity, Colonel, uniform and customs.

Formation at Detmold, 1969

The Blues and Royals were formed at Detmold in West Germany on 29 March 1969. The amalgamation joined the Royal Horse Guards (The Blues), already part of the Household Cavalry, with The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons), the Army's oldest line-cavalry unit. Both regiments were then serving with the British Army of the Rhine.

The full title — The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) — preserves both antecedents. The abbreviation RHG/D does the same. The amalgamation also brought the Royal Dragoons, previously the Army's oldest line-cavalry unit, into Household Cavalry guards status. The new regiment took its place beside The Life Guards as the Army's second regiment in order of precedence.

The new regiment retained the Royal Horse Guards' Household traditions and dark blue ceremonial dress, while Royal Dragoons distinctions including the Waterloo Eagle and the Guidon were carried into the amalgamated regiment.

The Royal Horse Guards: The Blues

The Royal Horse Guards originated in 1650, during the Third English Civil War, when Sir Arthur Haselrig raised a regiment of cuirassiers at Newcastle-upon-Tyne on Oliver Cromwell's orders. Its men were dressed in dark blue.

After the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, the regiment transferred to Royal service. New Royalist officers were appointed and in 1661 it became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment. Its blue clothing produced the name by which it would be known for centuries: the Oxford Blues, later simply the Blues. In 1687 it was placed on the Household establishment.

The Blues fought at Dettingen in 1743 and suffered heavily at Fontenoy in 1745. During the Seven Years War they served at Minden, Warburg and Villinghausen, and during the Revolutionary Wars they campaigned in Flanders. They joined the Peninsular War in 1812 and in 1815 charged with the Household Brigade at Waterloo.

In the later nineteenth century the regiment contributed squadrons to Household Cavalry Composite Regiments in Egypt and South Africa. During the First World War it fought on the Western Front in mounted and dismounted roles; during the Second it served in armoured reconnaissance from Palestine and Iraq through Italy and North-West Europe. After 1945 it served at home and on regular deployments to Germany and Cyprus, and it was serving in Germany when the 1969 amalgamation took place.

The Royal Dragoons: Tangier, Waterloo and the Eagle

The second lineage began in 1661, when Charles II raised troops to garrison Tangier, acquired through his marriage to Catherine of Braganza. A cavalry troop known as the Tangier Horse expanded into four troops and became the 1st Dragoons, later The King's Own Royal Regiment of Dragoons and eventually the 1st (Royal) Dragoons.

The regiment fought at the Boyne and Limerick, in Flanders and against the Jacobites. At Dettingen in 1743 it captured the standard of the French Black Musketeers. Later service included the Peninsular War, the Crimea — where it charged with the Heavy Brigade at Balaklava — the Sudan and South Africa.

The episode that still marks the regiment most visibly came at Waterloo on 18 June 1815. Fighting with the Union Brigade, the Royal Dragoons captured the Eagle of the French 105th Line Infantry Regiment. Captain Alexander Kennedy Clark claimed that he struck down the French officer carrying the Eagle and ordered Corporal Francis Styles to take it to the rear; Styles maintained that he had seized it himself. The contemporary and later evidence preserves that dispute, but the capture itself is beyond question. The Eagle survives in the National Army Museum.

The Royal Dragoons carried their cavalry traditions into mechanised warfare. They joined the Royal Armoured Corps in 1940, fought in Syria, North Africa, Sicily and Italy, landed in Normandy in July 1944 and ended the war among the forces that liberated Copenhagen in May 1945.

Post-war service included Germany, Egypt, Aden and the Malayan Emergency. The regiment was re-titled The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) in 1961 and spent the remainder of the decade in England, Cyprus and Germany before entering the Household Cavalry in 1969.

Key Dates in The Blues and Royals Story

Date	Event
1650	Sir Arthur Haselrig raises the cuirassier regiment that becomes the Royal Horse Guards.
1661	The future Royal Horse Guards becomes the Earl of Oxford's Regiment; the Tangier Horse, ancestor of the Royal Dragoons, is raised.
1743	Both antecedent lines fight at Dettingen; the Royal Dragoons capture the Black Musketeers' standard.
18 June 1815	Both antecedent regiments fight at Waterloo; the Royal Dragoons capture the French 105th Regiment's Eagle.
24–25 June 1917	Second Lieutenant John Spencer Dunville of the 1st (Royal) Dragoons performs the action for which he receives the Victoria Cross.
29 March 1969	Royal Horse Guards and Royal Dragoons amalgamate at Detmold to form The Blues and Royals.
14 July 1972	Queen Elizabeth II presents a new Regimental Guidon to The Blues and Royals in Windsor Great Park.
1982	Two Blues and Royals reconnaissance troops deploy to the Falklands; four soldiers and seven horses are killed in the Hyde Park bombing on 20 July.
1992	The Blues and Royals and The Life Guards are joined in union to form the operational HCR and ceremonial HCMR.
1994–99	Blues and Royals personnel serve with HCR in Bosnia and Kosovo.
28 March 2003	Trooper Christopher Finney of The Blues and Royals displays the gallantry for which he is awarded the George Cross during Operation TELIC.
2006–13	Blues and Royals personnel deploy repeatedly to Afghanistan with HCR; in 2013 Lance Corporal of Horse Simon Moloney performs the action for which he receives the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross.
14 June 2023	King Charles III presents a new Sovereign's Standard to The Blues and Royals at Buckingham Palace.
12 May 2025	The King presents new Household Cavalry Union Standards at Windsor Castle in the presence of The Princess Royal, Colonel of The Blues and Royals.

The Regiment after 1969: Germany, Northern Ireland and Cyprus

The new regiment did not spend its first decades confined to ceremonial duty. During the Cold War it served repeatedly in West Germany as an armoured reconnaissance regiment with the British Army of the Rhine. It also undertook several tours of Northern Ireland during Operation BANNER and served with the United Nations in Cyprus.

Ceremonial duty therefore remained only one part of regimental life. Armoured reconnaissance, field exercises and overseas deployments ran alongside the mounted commitment in London.

The Falklands War, 1982

In 1982 The Blues and Royals deployed two armoured reconnaissance troops to the Falkland Islands, equipped with Scimitar and Scorpion CVR(T) vehicles. They were distributed across the land force rather than employed as a complete squadron. Their vehicles later supported infantry operations including 2 PARA at Wireless Ridge and the diversionary attack associated with the Scots Guards assault on Mount Tumbledown.

The deployment was small in numbers, but the Scimitars and Scorpions provided mobile firepower, protected observation and effective night sights in terrain where armoured vehicles had initially been expected to play only a limited role.

Hyde Park, 20 July 1982

The same year brought tragedy at home. At 10:43 on 20 July 1982, a remotely controlled Provisional IRA car bomb exploded on South Carriage Drive as a mounted Blues and Royals detachment rode from Knightsbridge towards Horse Guards for the Queen's Life Guard.

Lieutenant Anthony Daly, Staff Corporal Roy Bright — serving as Squadron Quartermaster Corporal — Lance Corporal Jeffrey Young and Trooper Simon Tipper were killed. Seven horses — Cedric, Epaulette, Falcon, Rochester, Waterford, Yeastvite and Zara — also died, and 31 other people were injured.

Sefton, one of the surviving horses, suffered 32 potentially fatal injuries and underwent eight hours of surgery. He returned to active duty in October 1982 and later became closely associated with fundraising for equine veterinary care.

The 1992 Household Cavalry Union

Under the post-Cold War reorganisation, The Blues and Royals and The Life Guards were joined for service in 1992. Their operational elements formed the Household Cavalry Regiment (HCR), while their mounted ceremonial squadrons formed the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR).

The Blues and Royals did not cease to exist. They contribute two squadrons to HCR and a mounted squadron to HCMR, while retaining their own Colonel, uniform, Standards, Guidon and customs.

For the broader story of the combined organisation, see the Household Cavalry history and cap badge guide.

Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan

Blues and Royals soldiers continued to deploy operationally after 1992 through the Household Cavalry Regiment. National Army Museum records place HCR squadrons in Bosnia in 1994–95 and Kosovo in 1999, followed by repeated deployments to Iraq between 2003 and 2011 and Afghanistan between 2001 and 2014.

During the 2003 Iraq campaign, D Squadron served as the formation reconnaissance squadron for 16 Air Assault Brigade. On 28 March 2003, Trooper Christopher Finney of The Blues and Royals repeatedly exposed himself to danger while rescuing comrades from burning Scimitar vehicles. He was subsequently awarded the George Cross.

Afghanistan brought further tours in reconnaissance, fire-support and dismounted roles. In July 2013, Lance Corporal of Horse Simon Moloney of The Blues and Royals was shot through the neck during an operation in an insurgent stronghold. After treatment he returned to his position and continued to suppress enemy fire for around 90 minutes. He was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross in the operational honours announced on 21 March 2014.

The Blues and Royals Today

The Blues and Royals remain one of the two constituent regiments of the Household Cavalry. Operationally, their soldiers serve in the Household Cavalry Regiment at Ward Barracks, Bulford Camp, where the role is armoured reconnaissance and the Army now lists Ajax as the regiment's vehicle platform.

Ceremonially, the Blues and Royals Squadron serves in the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment at Hyde Park Barracks. Its duties include the King's Life Guard at Horse Guards, the King's Birthday Parade, State Visits, State Opening of Parliament and other major State occasions.

The wider Household Cavalry Regiment continues to deploy overseas. Recent HCR commitments include Operation TOSCA in Cyprus in 2023 and Operation ELGIN 17 in Kosovo from October 2025 to April 2026. These are HCR deployments, within which personnel of both Household Cavalry regiments serve.

King Charles III is Colonel-in-Chief of the Household Cavalry. Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal has been Colonel of The Blues and Royals since 1998.

Uniform, Identity and Regimental Customs

Dark Blue Tunic and Red Plume

In Mounted Review Order, The Blues and Royals are immediately distinguished from The Life Guards by their dark blue tunics and scarlet helmet plumes. Household Cavalry Museum material also records their use of black sheepskin saddlecloths while mounted. The steel cuirass is shared with The Life Guards.

Cornets

The regiment retains the cavalry title Cornet for its newest commissioned officers rather than second lieutenant. The custom survived both the 1969 amalgamation and the 1992 Household Cavalry union.

The Silver Kettledrums

In 1805, King George III presented a pair of solid-silver kettledrums to the Royal Horse Guards as testimony to the regiment's conduct. The drums survive in Household Cavalry musical tradition and continue to appear with the Drum Horse on major ceremonial parades.

The Waterloo Eagle

The most distinctive Blues and Royals regimental symbol is the French Eagle worn on the sleeve. It derives from the Royal Dragoons' capture of the Eagle of the French 105th Line Infantry Regiment at Waterloo.

Current Army dress regulations identify the 105 Eagle as a Blues and Royals arm badge, worn in black and gold on the left upper arm by all ranks in the specified order of dress. Its place in current dress makes the Waterloo distinction part of the regiment's living insignia rather than a purely historical emblem.

The original 105th Regiment Eagle survives in the National Army Museum. The modern arm badge commemorates that specific trophy taken at Waterloo rather than a general Napoleonic emblem.

Standards and the Regimental Guidon

The Blues and Royals inherit both Household cavalry and dragoon traditions. The regiment has a Sovereign's Standard and three Squadron, or Union, Standards; through the 1st Royal Dragoons it also retains a Regimental Guidon.

Queen Elizabeth II presented a new Regimental Guidon in Windsor Great Park on 14 July 1972, preserving the Royal Dragoons' Guidon tradition within the new Household Cavalry regiment from the outset.

On 14 June 2023, King Charles III presented a new Sovereign's Standard to The Blues and Royals at Buckingham Palace, accompanied by The Princess Royal as Colonel of the Regiment. On 12 May 2025, The King presented new Household Cavalry Union Standards at Windsor Castle; the Sovereign's Standards were also marched on parade. In September 2025 the late Queen Elizabeth II's former Sovereign's Standards of The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals were formally laid up in Salisbury Cathedral.

One earlier Blues and Royals Squadron Standard has a particularly direct connection with regimental history. Presented in 1973, it was damaged in the Hyde Park bombing of 1982 and is now preserved in the Guards' Chapel.

The Standards carry battle honours inherited from the antecedent regiments as well as honours earned in later service. In his 2025 address, The King described the history on the Standards as extending from Dettingen and Tangier to Afghanistan. Honours predating 1969 remain the honours of the Royal Horse Guards and Royal Dragoons lines rather than campaigns fought by The Blues and Royals under their modern title.

The Blues and Royals Cap Badge

Household Cavalry dress distinguishes between the common Household Cavalry badge and each regiment's own insignia. British Army badge guidance states that personnel of both The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals wear the common Household Cavalry cap badge on the forage cap, while separate regimental badges are worn on the service dress cap and beret.

The National Army Museum holds a post-1969 Blues and Royals regimental cap badge dated to about 1990, separate from the common Household Cavalry forage-cap badge.

Queen's Crown and King's Crown Versions

The change of Sovereign affects modern military insignia through changes to the Royal Cypher and heraldic Crown. In 2023 the British Army published the newly approved King Charles III cap-badge designs, including those for the Household Cavalry and The Blues and Royals. The Precision Military Emblems range includes both Queen Elizabeth II-pattern and King Charles III-pattern display reproductions. These are modern MOD-licensed display pieces; they are not service-issued badges.

The Cap Badge Is Not the Waterloo Eagle

The Waterloo Eagle is a separate sleeve badge and should not be catalogued as the Blues and Royals cap badge. The two forms of insignia have different functions and positions in dress.

Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Displays

The Precision Military Emblems range also includes the Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Regimental Device in Queen's Crown and King's Crown forms, together with matching framed displays. These commemorative display reproductions represent the separate Waterloo Eagle tradition inherited from the 1st Royal Dragoons and should not be confused with the regiment's cap badge.

• Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Regimental Device — Queen's Crown
• Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Regimental Device — King's Crown
• Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Regimental Device Display Frame — Queen's Crown
• Blues and Royals Waterloo Eagle Regimental Device Display Frame — King's Crown

Victoria Cross and the Regimental Lineage

No Victoria Cross is recorded for an action performed under the post-1969 Blues and Royals title. The direct VC carried in the regiment's antecedent line is that of Second Lieutenant John Spencer Dunville, 1st (Royal) Dragoons.

Second Lieutenant John Spencer Dunville VC — 1st (Royal) Dragoons

Dunville was serving near Épehy in France on the night of 24–25 June 1917. Two parties of Royal Dragoons were conducting a raid against the German line. When a Bangalore torpedo intended to breach the wire became damaged, Dunville deliberately placed himself between a Royal Engineers NCO and the enemy fire while the damaged joint was repaired.

He was severely wounded but continued to direct the operation until the raid had been completed. Dunville died of his wounds on 26 June 1917. His citation appeared in the Fourth Supplement to The London Gazette of 31 July 1917, issued on 2 August 1917. King George V presented the medal to his father at Buckingham Palace on 29 August 1917. The medal is held by the Household Cavalry Museum.

The award belongs specifically to the 1st (Royal) Dragoons. The regiment did not become part of The Blues and Royals until 1969, so the VC is an inherited regimental distinction rather than an award won by The Blues and Royals under their modern title.

Collecting and Identifying Blues and Royals Badges

Start with the Type of Badge

Identification begins with badge type. A Blues and Royals regimental cap badge, the common Household Cavalry forage-cap badge and the Waterloo Eagle sleeve badge are three different pieces of insignia. They should be separated before questions of reign, manufacture or authenticity are considered.

Check the Crown and Royal Cypher

For modern Royal insignia, the Crown and cypher help place a piece within a reign. Queen Elizabeth II-pattern designs use her cypher and the Crown form associated with her reign; King Charles III-pattern designs use the CIIIR cypher and the Tudor Crown representation selected for his reign.

Check Provenance, Construction and Wear

Original service badges should be judged by construction, fittings, finish, provenance and period consistency rather than by shape alone. Modern reproductions are plentiful, and a convincing front view does not establish age or authenticity.

Display Reproductions Are a Separate Category

The large Blues and Royals pieces sold by Precision Military Emblems are intentionally modern wall displays produced under MOD licence. They are not represented as original or wearable service insignia.

Frequently Asked Questions

When were The Blues and Royals formed?

The regiment was formed at Detmold in West Germany on 29 March 1969 by amalgamating the Royal Horse Guards (The Blues) with The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons).

What does RHG/D mean?

RHG/D preserves the two antecedent titles: Royal Horse Guards and Dragoons. It remains a commonly used abbreviation for The Blues and Royals.

Are The Blues and Royals part of the Household Cavalry?

Yes. They are one of its two constituent regiments, alongside The Life Guards. Since 1992 Blues and Royals personnel have served in both the operational Household Cavalry Regiment and the ceremonial Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment.

Why do The Blues and Royals wear a French Eagle?

It commemorates the capture of the Eagle of the French 105th Line Infantry Regiment by the 1st Royal Dragoons at Waterloo in 1815. The Eagle is worn as a sleeve badge and is inherited through the Royal Dragoons lineage.

What did The Blues and Royals do in the Falklands?

The regiment deployed two reconnaissance troops equipped with Scimitar and Scorpion vehicles. Blues and Royals detachments supported British infantry, including The Parachute Regiment at Wireless Ridge.

Why are Blues and Royals officers called Cornets?

Cornet is an old cavalry officer title retained by the regiment for its newest commissioned officers in place of second lieutenant.

Did The Blues and Royals win any Victoria Crosses?

No VC is recorded for an action under the post-1969 Blues and Royals title. The direct antecedent line includes John Spencer Dunville VC of the 1st (Royal) Dragoons, awarded for his action near Épehy in June 1917.

Who is Colonel of The Blues and Royals?

Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal is Colonel of The Blues and Royals. King Charles III is Colonel-in-Chief of the Household Cavalry.

Is a Blues and Royals cap badge the same as the Household Cavalry cap badge?

No. Army badge guidance distinguishes the common Household Cavalry badge worn on the forage cap from the separate Blues and Royals regimental badge worn on the service dress cap and beret.

Are the Precision Military Emblems badges original military issue?

No. They are large modern commemorative display reproductions produced under official MOD licence for wall display.

Museums and Heritage

The principal regimental collection is held by the Household Cavalry Museum at Horse Guards, Whitehall. Its collections cover The Blues and Royals, Royal Horse Guards, Royal Dragoons, The Life Guards and the wider Household Cavalry story.

The National Army Museum also holds major objects from the regiment and its antecedents, including the original Eagle of the French 105th Regiment captured at Waterloo and examples of Blues and Royals cap badges, Standards, uniform and archival material.

Further Reading

Selected authoritative sources used for this article:

• The British Army — Household Cavalry Regiment
• Household Cavalry Foundation — Regimental History
• National Army Museum — The Blues and Royals
• National Army Museum — French 105th Regiment Eagle captured at Waterloo
• National Army Museum — Blues and Royals Cap Badge, c.1990
• Soldier Magazine, April 1969 — contemporary report of the Blues and Royals amalgamation at Detmold

View full research source list

• The British Army — Household Cavalry on Operation TOSCA, Cyprus, 2023
• The British Army — Household Cavalry on Operation ELGIN 17, Kosovo, 2025–26
• The British Army — The King's Life Guard
• Household Cavalry Museum — Household Cavalry Uniforms
• The British Army — Band of the Household Cavalry and the 1805 Royal Horse Guards kettledrums
• The Household Division — Household Cavalry Standards in the Guards' Chapel
• Household Cavalry Museum — Hyde Park Bombing, 20 July 1982
• UK Parliament — Hyde Park bombing: casualties and background
• The Royal Family — New Sovereign's Standard presented to The Blues and Royals, 2023
• The Royal Family — Presentation of New Household Cavalry Standards, 2025
• The British Army — Laying up of Household Cavalry Standards at Salisbury Cathedral, 2025
• Soldier Magazine — British Army Badges: Household Cavalry
• Soldier Magazine — King Charles III approved cap-badge designs, 2023
• British Army Dress Regulations — Blues and Royals 105 Eagle arm badge
• National Army Museum — The Royal Horse Guards (The Blues)
• National Army Museum — The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons)
• National Army Museum — The British Army and the Falklands War
• British Army Review — RHG/D CVR(T) troops in the Falklands
• National Army Museum — The Hyde Park Bombing
• National Army Museum — The George Cross and Christopher Finney GC
• Ministry of Defence — Simon Moloney CGC, Afghanistan
• Victoria Cross and George Cross Association — John Spencer Dunville VC
• The Gazette — First World War Victoria Cross awards

Officially MOD-Approved Blues and Royals Displays

Precision Military Emblems produces officially MOD-licensed Blues and Royals display reproductions in both Queen's Crown and King's Crown forms.

The main cap-badge range includes the Queen's Crown Cap Badge and King's Crown Cap Badge, with matching deep display frames in Queen's Crown and King's Crown versions.

The Waterloo Eagle range includes Queen's Crown and King's Crown standalone Regimental Device displays, together with matching Queen's Crown frame and King's Crown frame.

The cap-badge wall displays are approximately 245 mm high × 150 mm wide × 30 mm deep. The framed cap-badge versions use a deep 35 × 35 cm display frame with a professionally pigment-printed backing. All are modern commemorative display pieces rather than wearable issue insignia.

Intellectual Property of the Secretary of State for Defence is used under licence.

About Precision Military Emblems

Precision Military Emblems produces officially MOD-licensed three-dimensional British military display pieces and deep shadow-box frames in Leicestershire. Historical articles are researched against Army, regimental, museum, Royal Household and gallantry sources, with inherited battle history distinguished from service performed by later amalgamated regiments.

Conclusion

Formed in 1969, The Blues and Royals brought together the Household tradition of the Royal Horse Guards and the campaigning lineage of the Royal Dragoons. The modern regiment's own service includes Cold War reconnaissance duty, Northern Ireland, Cyprus and the Falklands, followed after 1992 by operational service through the Household Cavalry Regiment in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Its regimental identity still shows both inheritances clearly: the dark blue tunic and scarlet plume of the Blues, the Royal Dragoons' Guidon and Waterloo Eagle, the title Cornet and the silver kettledrums first presented to the Royal Horse Guards in 1805. The result is not a fusion in which the antecedent histories disappear, but a regiment whose present-day customs continue to display where each part of its history came from.