Yeohelmetguy
Well-known member
Hello all!
In this new post showcasing the British and Commonwealth regular army and yeomanry helmets in my cavalry helmet collection I have these two 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabinieris) helmets. The first helmet pictured is an 1848 Albert pattern troopers' helmet and the second helmet pictured is an 1871 pattern officer’s helmet.
A brief history of the regiment from its formation to the period the pictured helmets were use follows:
The regiment was raised during the reign of James II by Richard Lumley, 1st Earl of Scarborough, who recruited an independent troop of horse in response to the 1685 Monmouth Rebellion. It was subsequently used to create Lord Lumley’s Regiment of Horse and ranked as the 9th Regiment of Horse; the Queen Dowager (Charles !! widow, Catherine of Braganza) then gave approval for Lumley to use the title “The Queen Dowager's Horse”. Lumley was removed in 1687 for refusing to admit Catholic officers into the regiment and replaced by the loyalist Sir John Talbot. In 1690, it became the 8th Regiment of Horse and transferred to Flanders for the Nine Years War. The regiment was renamed The King's Regiment of Carabineers in 1692 and was ranked as the 7th Horse in 1694 and it fought at the Battle of Blenheim in August 1704 and the Battle of Ramillies in May 1706 during the War of Spanish Succession.
When the regiment returned to England in 1745 almost all of the regiment's recruits were Irish Protestants, so it was moved to the Irish establishment in 1746 as the 3rd Irish Horse. During the Seven Years War (1756-63), it fought in Germany, including the battles of Warburg (1760) and Bellingshausen (1761). The regiment returned to the British establishment in 1788 as the 6th Regiment of Dragoon Guards. Then, in 1793, it was sent to fight the French in the Low Countries once again, gaining Willems (1794) as a battle honor. The regiment was back in Ireland from 1796 to 1807, countering French landings and the Irish Rebellion (1798). From there, it sent a detachment of 400 officers and men to South America in 1806. From 1807 to 1855, it alternated between garrison duties in England and Ireland. In 1826, it was renamed the 6th Regiment of Dragoon Guards (Carabineers). Then, in 1840, its title changed again to the 6th Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers). In 1855, it was sent to the Crimean War (1854-56), although the only battle honor it gained there was Sevastopol. It then fought in the Delhi campaign during the Indian Mutiny (1857-59) in 1857, only returning to the British Isles in 1861. The regiment was back in India in the late 1870s to fight in the Second Afghan War (1878-80), taking part in the Khyber Pass operations. The regiment returned to England, remaining there until the outbreak of the Boer War (1899-1902), during which it helped relieve Kimberley (1900) before joining the operations in the Orange Free State. In August 1914, it deployed to France as part of the British Expeditionary Force. It served throughout the First World War (1914-18) on the Western Front, fighting in many engagements in both a mounted and infantry role. These included Mons (1914), the Marne (1914), the first two battles of Ypres (1914 and 1915), the Somme (1916), Arras (1917), Cambrai (1917) and Amies (1918).
The regiment spent the post-World War One years stationed at the Curragh during the Irish War of Independence (1919-21), before returning home to Aldershot.
The 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabiniers) had the unique distinction of being the only regiment among the seven dragoon guard regiments to be clothed in blue tunics instead of usual red/scarlet of the other six regiments. Do note the change to the spelling of “Carabinieri” on the title scroll at the center of the helmet plate… the first helmet, an 1848 Albert pattern helmet with the old spelling “Carabineers” vice the new spelling on the 1871 pattern the officer's helmet. The helmet plume was changed from black horsehair to white horsehair in 1873.
Please enjoy these photographs... thank you!
Regards all,
David
1848 Albert pattern trooper's helmet, 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabineers)
1871 pattern officer's helmet, 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabiniers)
In this new post showcasing the British and Commonwealth regular army and yeomanry helmets in my cavalry helmet collection I have these two 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabinieris) helmets. The first helmet pictured is an 1848 Albert pattern troopers' helmet and the second helmet pictured is an 1871 pattern officer’s helmet.
A brief history of the regiment from its formation to the period the pictured helmets were use follows:
The regiment was raised during the reign of James II by Richard Lumley, 1st Earl of Scarborough, who recruited an independent troop of horse in response to the 1685 Monmouth Rebellion. It was subsequently used to create Lord Lumley’s Regiment of Horse and ranked as the 9th Regiment of Horse; the Queen Dowager (Charles !! widow, Catherine of Braganza) then gave approval for Lumley to use the title “The Queen Dowager's Horse”. Lumley was removed in 1687 for refusing to admit Catholic officers into the regiment and replaced by the loyalist Sir John Talbot. In 1690, it became the 8th Regiment of Horse and transferred to Flanders for the Nine Years War. The regiment was renamed The King's Regiment of Carabineers in 1692 and was ranked as the 7th Horse in 1694 and it fought at the Battle of Blenheim in August 1704 and the Battle of Ramillies in May 1706 during the War of Spanish Succession.
When the regiment returned to England in 1745 almost all of the regiment's recruits were Irish Protestants, so it was moved to the Irish establishment in 1746 as the 3rd Irish Horse. During the Seven Years War (1756-63), it fought in Germany, including the battles of Warburg (1760) and Bellingshausen (1761). The regiment returned to the British establishment in 1788 as the 6th Regiment of Dragoon Guards. Then, in 1793, it was sent to fight the French in the Low Countries once again, gaining Willems (1794) as a battle honor. The regiment was back in Ireland from 1796 to 1807, countering French landings and the Irish Rebellion (1798). From there, it sent a detachment of 400 officers and men to South America in 1806. From 1807 to 1855, it alternated between garrison duties in England and Ireland. In 1826, it was renamed the 6th Regiment of Dragoon Guards (Carabineers). Then, in 1840, its title changed again to the 6th Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers). In 1855, it was sent to the Crimean War (1854-56), although the only battle honor it gained there was Sevastopol. It then fought in the Delhi campaign during the Indian Mutiny (1857-59) in 1857, only returning to the British Isles in 1861. The regiment was back in India in the late 1870s to fight in the Second Afghan War (1878-80), taking part in the Khyber Pass operations. The regiment returned to England, remaining there until the outbreak of the Boer War (1899-1902), during which it helped relieve Kimberley (1900) before joining the operations in the Orange Free State. In August 1914, it deployed to France as part of the British Expeditionary Force. It served throughout the First World War (1914-18) on the Western Front, fighting in many engagements in both a mounted and infantry role. These included Mons (1914), the Marne (1914), the first two battles of Ypres (1914 and 1915), the Somme (1916), Arras (1917), Cambrai (1917) and Amies (1918).
The regiment spent the post-World War One years stationed at the Curragh during the Irish War of Independence (1919-21), before returning home to Aldershot.
The 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabiniers) had the unique distinction of being the only regiment among the seven dragoon guard regiments to be clothed in blue tunics instead of usual red/scarlet of the other six regiments. Do note the change to the spelling of “Carabinieri” on the title scroll at the center of the helmet plate… the first helmet, an 1848 Albert pattern helmet with the old spelling “Carabineers” vice the new spelling on the 1871 pattern the officer's helmet. The helmet plume was changed from black horsehair to white horsehair in 1873.
Please enjoy these photographs... thank you!
Regards all,
David
1848 Albert pattern trooper's helmet, 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabineers)
1871 pattern officer's helmet, 6th Dragoon Guards (The Carabiniers)
