Global InformationRoyal Horse Guards information
| Royal Horse Guards | |
|---|---|
 Cap badge of the regiment (with royal cypher of George V) | |
| Active | 1650–1660 1661–1969 |
| Country |  Commonwealth of England (1650–1660) Kingdom of England (1660–1707) Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1800) United Kingdom (1801–1969) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Cavalry |
| Role | Exploitation and armoured assault |
| Size | Divisional |
| Garrison/HQ | Windsor |
| Nickname(s) | "The Oxford Blues"[1] "The Blue Guards"[1] "The Blues"[1] |
| Motto(s) | Honi soit qui mal y pense |
| March | Quick March: Grand March Slow March: Regimental Slow March of the Royal Horse Guards |
| Mascot(s) | Newfoundland dog |
| Engagements | See Battle honours list |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Richard Howard-Vyse Aubrey, Earl of Oxford Robert Hill John Manners, Marquess of Granby John Churchill, Earl of Marlborough |
The Royal Regiment of Horse Guards (The Blues) (RHG) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.
Raised in August 1650 at Newcastle upon Tyne and County Durham by Sir Arthur Haselrigge on the orders of Oliver Cromwell as a Regiment of Horse, the regiment became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment in 1660 upon the Restoration of King Charles II. As, uniquely, the regiment's coat was blue in colour at the time, it was nicknamed "the Oxford Blues", from which was derived the nickname the "Blues." In 1750 the regiment became the Royal Horse Guards Blue and eventually, in 1877, the Royal Horse Guards (The Blues).
The regiment served in the French Revolutionary Wars and in the Peninsular War. Two squadrons fought, with distinction, in the Household Brigade at the Battle of Waterloo. In 1918, the regiment served as the 3rd Battalion, Guards Machine Gun Regiment. During the Second World War the regiment was part of the Household Cavalry Composite Regiment. The Royal Horse Guards was amalgamated with the Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) to form the Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) in 1969.
- ^ a b c Farmer, John S. (1984). The Regimental Records of the British Army. Bristol: Crecy Books. p. 5. ISBN 0-947554-03-3.