The Regiment That Isn’t

THE LONDON GUARDS

Next time you’re passing Buckingham Palace, you may spot Britain’s newest regiment standing guard, but as Christopher Joll observes, there is more to the London Guards than meets the eye

Those of you who are up to date on their British regiments will no doubt be aware of the new Ranger Regiment. Raised in December 2021, this special operations force is the newest regiment in the army – or is it?

Eagle-eyed observers of this year’s Queen’s Birthday Parade will have noticed one minor – yet significant – change: HRH The Earl of Wessex, who rode in a carriage to watch the parade from the 1st Duke of Wellington’s former office in Horse Guards, was not in his customary full dress uniform of The London Scottish. Instead, he appeared to be dressed as a Colonel in the Foot Guards – but which Foot Guards regiment? Surely not that of his elder brother, The Duke of York, whose surrender of the colonelcy of the Grenadier Guards earlier in the year attracted so much media attention?

Want to read more?

This is a premium article and requires an active subscription.

Existing subscriber? Sign in now

No subscription?

Pick one of our introductory offers