20th Hussars

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20th Hussars

20th Hussars Cap Badge.jpg

Hat badge
active 1858 to 1922
Country Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Great Britain
Armed forces MinistryofDefence.svg United Kingdom Armed Forces
Armed forces Flag of the British Army.svg British Army
Branch of service cavalry
Type Light cavalry
Nickname Nobody's Own (Heard anyone)

The 20th Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army . After its use in World War I , it was merged with the 14th King's Hussars to form the 14th / 20th King's Hussars in 1922 .

history

Indian uprising of 1857

The regiment was set up in 1858 as the 2nd Bengal European Light Cavalry by the East India Company in Bengal . The task was to use it in the uprising against Siraj-ud-Daula, the last independent Nawab of Bengal. When it was taken over by the British Army in 1862, it was initially referred to as "20th light Dragoons" in Mathura on May 2nd , but this ended up being the same Year changed to "20th Hussars".

This regiment consisted largely of Indians among Indian and British officers. The three European cavalry regiments that transferred to the British Army were the 1st Bengal European Light Cavalry , the 2nd Bengal European Light Cavalry and the 3rd Bengal European Light Cavalry which eventually became the 19th, 20th and 21st Hussars.

This was the fourth time a 20th Line Cavalry Regiment had been established. It therefore also received the traditional sequence of the previous regiment with the honorary mention PENINSULA on the sabers and drums. For some reason, VIMIERA was not granted the honorable mention until 1890, although other regiments that had fought there in 1809 received it earlier. The “20th light Dragoons” had distinguished itself in this battle, and it was felt by the relatives as a grave injustice to have received the mention so late.

In 1863 the regiment consisted of 23 officers and 375 horsemen, 100 of whom came from other British regiments that had left India.

A first deployment took place in 1863 during the Ambeyla Expedition , in which the regiment was only used to protect the connecting routes. For the next seven years it remained on the Northwest Front and took part in the Hazara Campaign in 1868 , again without an opportunity to distinguish itself. After the end of the campaign, the regiment moved to Ambela, where it remained until 1872. That year it was ordered by rail to Bombay for embarkation for Great Britain. Upon arrival it was stationed first in Colchester , then in Aldershot . It was stationed in Ireland from 1879 to 1884 .

March 1885, used in the Battle of Tofrek.

In Sudan

In February 1885 it was commanded as part of the "Suakin Expedition" to Sudan , where it took part in the battle of Tofrek in March in the fight against the Mahdi . Parts of the regiment were deployed to set up the "Light Camel Regiment". In December 1885 it fought in the Battle of Ginnis and in December 1888 in the Battle of Sawakin , in which it rode several attacks. In that battle, three hussar sabers broke, which sparked a debate in the House of Commons . The regiment rode a successful attack in the Battle of Toski in August 1889. After returning to England in 1890, the regiment received the combat awards “Suakin 1885” for its service in Egypt and “Vimiera” for the merits of the previous unit “20th Light Dragoons ”. In 1895 the company was relocated to India .

Boer War 1901 to 1902

When the Boer War broke out in 1899, the regiment had been stationed in Mhow near Bombay since 1895. The officers pushed for a deployment in South Africa and some of the officers like Major Norton Legge and Lieutenant HR Lee volunteered for service with units fighting there before the 20th Hussars were mobilized. The order to do this came on November 22, 1901, after which the regiment in Bombay was loaded onto two ships, the "Saint Andrew" and the "Custodian". The strength was 666 men, plus 23 officers and 71 NCOs with 668 horses. Christmas was spent at sea and the force reached Durban just before the end of the year. The train was moved to Newcastle (South Africa) and as soon as the horses were ready for action, the ride to Perdekop began.

The first operation the regiment was involved in was a trip to the Orange River Colony, which began in Perdekop on February 21, 1902. In the south near Harrismith the Boers had to surrender under the command of Lukas Meyer and 650 prisoners could be taken. In addition, there was the spoils of thousands of cattle and 200 wagons. 50 Boers had been killed. Against the still active Boer commands under Christiaan De Wet and De la Rey, the "20th Hussars" were sent out several times. They rode up to 60 miles a day, with frequent ambushes.

On May 31, 1902, the war ended with the Pretoria Peace Treaty. The war had cost the regiment one officer ( Lieutenant Colonel Norton Legge DSO as the commander of a mounted infantry unit was killed on December 18, 1900 on Mount Nooitgedacht / Northwest ) and eight hussars were killed. In March 1893 an order was given to sell the horses (mainly to the Boers ) and to prepare for embarkation. In Durban they went on board the “Dunera”, which , coming from Cape Town , already had the regiment of the “14th Hussars” on board. In Suez the "20th Hussars" was disembarked and then moved to Great Britain in 1904.

1904 to 1914

The regiment was stationed in Brighton in 1904 , a division was in Canterbury . In 1906 it was relocated to Shorncliffe where the "14th Hussars" that went to India were replaced. In 1908 the regiment was commanded to Ireland and was assigned to Curragh as a garrison . During this time a new system was tried out in which 50 trained cavalry horses were loaned out to local farmers and other private individuals free of charge. The horses, however, had to be available for inspections at all times and returned to the regiment for one month every year. This should reduce the occupancy of the horse stables and keep a horse reserve. The return to England took place in 1911 with garrison in Colchester . A detachment of 100 men was sent to King George V's coronation . The regiment formed a brigade with the Scots Grays and the 12th Lancers , but personnel was repeatedly withdrawn from the “22nd Hussars” and assigned to replace the “14th Hussars” in India.

First World War

Members of the 20th Hussars, Bailleul, December 1916
mobilization

The mobilization order arrived at the regiment's barracks at 5:30 p.m. on August 4, 1914 . On August 17th, the "20th Hussars" crossed the English Channel in the brigade formation of the "5th Cavalry Brigade" (Brigadier General Chetwode ) . The staff was 24 officers and 519 horsemen, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Graham Edward.

On the night of August 21, 1914, a patrol of the regiment met German Uhlans , some shots were exchanged and three horses were stolen from the Uhlans. You lost a horse yourself. Then there were arguments with the 4th Dragoon Guards , who had entered a battle at 8:00 a.m. on the morning of August 21 and claimed to have fired the first shots of the war.

In the Battle of Mons (23 August 1914), after massive attacks by the Germans, the general withdrawal of the BEF was ordered, which was covered by the cavalry. Thereafter, the 20th Hussars were used in the following battles in infantry operations:

Fighting at St. Quentin (August 28, 1914)
First Marne Battle (September 3 to 9, 1914)
Crossing the Aisne (September 14, 1914)
First Battle of Flanders (September 15 to November 1, 1914)

On September 6, 1914, the 20th Hussars were combined as part of the independent 5th Cavalry Brigade with the 3rd Cavalry Brigade (Brigadier General Hubert Gough ) and, after the addition of parts of the Royal Horse Artillery and Royal Engineers, on September 13th in the newly formed 2nd Cavalry Division integrated.

  • On November 1, 1914, the unit on the Flanders Front was liberated by French troops and withdrawn from the front line battle. The regiment was made mounted again and used to monitor gaps in the front until November 22nd. It then moved into quarters in Steenwerk until January 15, 1915. There is no information for the rest of 1915.
  • At the beginning of 1916, parts of the cavalry had to surrender their horses to be used as infantry. These units should replace infantry if necessary, or close gaps in the front. Each of the two cavalry divisions provided a dismounted brigade of three battalions. Each battalion consisted of three companies, one from each regiment in the brigade. The officers were rotated. The designated company of the "20th Hussars" was composed of two platoons from each squadron, the first commander was Captain WH Micholls. The service in the trenches consisted of patrols, digging, operating trench mortars and working as snipers . The British High Command also saw this as a way to improve infantry morale by not placing cavalry above infantry.
  • Raid troop duties

The preferred activity for the "20th Hussars" was raiding parties to fight the Germans in advanced positions. Special training was carried out for this purpose.

  • Battle of the Somme

At the beginning of the Battle of the Somme the regiment was in Licques. It was to be used to close gaps in the front and was moved to Hazebrouck as a mobile reserve. Initially, the hussars were used for patrols and work. At the beginning of September, however, they had to move into the front and moved into a bivouac near Bray. Here they waited for an opportunity to break through the German front in a cavalry attack. Detached work departments laid out special cavalry paths made of wooden planks to make it easier to negotiate the water-filled funnel field. However, these endeavors proved useless as they were repeatedly destroyed by artillery fire. The attempt to launch an offensive was canceled in November.

The regiment at Arras 1917
  • Battle of Arras (1917)

In the battle of Arras the regiment was ordered with the other two of the "5th Cavalry Brigade" at Monchy for a cavalry attack. After great difficulties in the rough terrain, which was littered with barbed wire, Monchy, abandoned by the Germans, was captured. After the end of the battle, the cavalry was withdrawn from active combat. The regiment had one killed and seven wounded, plus 37 horses were killed.

  • Tank battle at Cambrai
During the tank battle near Cambrai, trench warfare in the forest near Bourlon and defensive battles near Gouzeaucourt
  • German spring offensive 1918

After the plans for the German company Michael became known, the cavalry formations were grouped in February 1918 in the area between Peronne and the Oise behind the 5th Army . When the German offensive began on March 21, 1918, a 224-strong (dismounted) company of the regiment was building trenches and wire obstacles northwest of St. Quentin. The advance pushed the British back to the Somme and threw the units into disarray. The fragmented small groups were then combined by officers to form two regiments with members of different units. They fought dismounted at Lagny and then at the end of March received the order to relieve the French at Cattigny. Here they were massively attacked and lost their commanding officer Colonel Cook, who died on March 26th. The survivors withdrew to Thiescourt, where they mounted and rode to Compiegne . Here the "5th Cavalry Brigade" was set up again. The remnants of the regiment were under the command of Major AC Little. On March 31, the regiment was in the Bois d'Hangard near Amiens . A company of 138 men under Captain Walter D'Arcy Hall was used in infantry combat here. On April 1, she was fighting in a trench near Domart-sur-Luce, in which 3 men were killed and 39 men were wounded. One man was missing. The mounted part of the regiment at that time consisted of 13 officers, 150 NCOs and men, as well as 245 horses. On April 11th, the 2nd Cavalry Division was deployed to reinforce the 1st Army . The “20th Hussars” was then brought to a stand of 19 officers and 442 riders by replacing them from the Yeomanry . Patrol rides were carried out for a few weeks. Quarters had been taken up in Aiz-en-Issart.

Mounted patrol 1918
  • A hundred days offensive

With the start of this offensive on August 8th , the cavalry was used again. She supported the Australians and Canadians east of Amiens and was able to move into pursuit through successful battles.

The "20th Hussars" came into action on August 9, mounted near Beaucourt. After aggressive fighting, the regiment was used for patrol duty. After the Hindenburg line had largely fallen into the hands of the Allies on October 10, the cavalry had more space for mounted actions.

On the Sambre and Oise Canal (November 1918)

When the 32nd Division attacked on November 4, 1918 via the Sambre and Oise Canal, the regiment was under the command of the "97th Infantry Brigade" in reserve. On November 6, it was at the head of the attack by the 97th Brigade, which went as far as Avesnes. Two men were killed and seven were wounded.

Last actions

On November 9th the regiment rode in pursuit of the Germans five miles in front of the infantry and came into contact with the enemy again at Touvent. Until the end of the fighting on November 11, it was tasked with patrol activities. At 11:00 o'clock that day, all the trumpeters of the regiment gathered at the regimental command post and blew the signal “stop fire”.

1918/1919

Mons Star

A stop was made to give the Germans an opportunity to withdraw in an orderly fashion. The vanguard of the British troops crossed the German border on December 1st. The "20th Hussars" were quartered in Reuland Castle. After the order for demobilization and the transfer of personnel to other units, the strength of the regiment had dropped to 135 men. In March 1919 they returned to England and were stationed in Colchester . In July the number of personnel had increased again to 16 officers and 433 men. The regiment was then shipped to Egypt and transferred to the field camp near Tel-el-Kebir. Here the 24 remaining veterans were awarded the Mons Star by General Allenby .

Turkey

With the Treaty of Sèvres , large parts of Turkey were separated after the end of the war and added to other (partly newly established) countries. Eastern Thrace and parts of western Turkey had to be surrendered to Greece , while France and Italy occupied parts of the country as areas of interest. Open rebellion broke out under the leadership of Mustapha Kemal . Great Britain then sent troops under the command of General Sir Edmond Ironside. The assigned cavalry consisted of the "20th Hussars" who were in Egypt. The staff was 13 officers and 523 men under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel MC Richardson. The regiment was loaded onto ships on June 28, 1919 and joined General Ironside's troops in Derince on July 20 . After the nationalists destroyed the bridge in Gebze , repairs to the bridge had become imperative in order not to impede the actions of the British. For this purpose the "20th Hussars", the 2nd Battalion of the "39th Garhwal Rifles", a battery of field artillery and some pioneers were deployed. After the Turks had built a front in the open on July 13, 1920, it was fired at by the artillery and attacked by the "39th Garhwal Rifles". At a height north of the “Garhwal Rifles”, two squadrons of the “20th Hussars” prepared to attack, a third squadron was in reserve - a total of 300 riders. Under the command of Colonel Richardson, the attack began at stride with the bare saber and trumpet bells. He aimed at the Turkish flank and picked up speed as the distance decreased below 300 meters. The artillery ceased fire and the Turks formed small groups to face the attack but were ridden down. Only one rider was wounded.

Further actions of the small war followed while the regiment of the Turkish barracks was stationed in Soglani.

Amalgamation

The preparatory order to return home followed. The task of the regiment was taken over from October 1920 by the 3rd Hussars . 225 horsemen were transferred to this regiment. Another 118 men were transferred to the 11th Hussars in Meerut . The remaining members of the regiment returned to England to disband the unit. The reason was the general austerity measures ordered by the government. In 1922, to maintain the tradition, the regiment consisted only of the commander, his deputy, the adjutant, the quartermaster, the regimental quartermaster sergeant, a Squadron quartermaster sergeant and an officer's mess sergeant. Finally, the idea came up to set up a squadron of the regiment again and to affiliate it with the 14th Hussars as the "20th Hussars Squadron (A Squadron)". The squad continued to wear the 20th Hussars hat badge.

Regimental Museum

The "Museum of the 14th / 20th King's Hussars" was housed in Preston in the "Museum of Lancashire" until it was closed in 2016.

Battle honors

The regiment received the following combat awards:

Commanders

The colonels of the regiment were:

2nd Bengal European Light Cavalry
  • 1858-1862: Lt.-Gen. Thomas Shubrick
20th Regiment of Hussars (1862)
  • 1862-1870: Lt. Gen. Charles Montauban Carmichael, CB
  • 1870-1883: Gen. Michael William Smith
20th Hussars
  • 1883-1891: Lt.-Gen. Richard Knox
  • 1891-1910: Lt.-Gen. Sir Roger Palmer
  • 1910-1920: Maj. Gen. Hugh Sutlej Gough, CB, CMG
  • 1920-1922: Gen. Sir George De Symons Barrow, GCB, KCMG (14th / 20th Hussars)

Web links

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The regiment had no regimental owner from the royal family
  2. ↑ a b c d e f 20th Hussars . Regiments.org. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007.
  3. ↑ a b c d 20th Hussars . National Army Museum. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  4. ↑ Galloway, p. 64
  5. ^ Doug Johnson: The Battle of Ginnis . Soldiers of the Queen, Issue 11. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  6. ^ Army — The Battle at Suakin — The broken swords of the 20th Hussars . Hansard. December 21, 1888. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  7. ^ The Battle of Toski: the delta has beaten the desert . The Spectator. August 10, 1889. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  8. ↑ 20th Hussars . Anglo-Boer War. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  9. ↑ The Hussars . The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  10. ↑ Darling, p. 8
  11. ↑ Darling, p. 33
  12. ↑ Darling, p. 41
  13. ↑ Darling, p. 73
  14. ↑ Darling, p. 85
  15. ↑ Darling, p. 106
  16. ↑ Darling, p. 93
  17. ↑ Darling, p. 117
  18. ↑ Paget, pp. 349-52
  19. ↑ Carver, pp. 133-135
  20. ^ Access Statement for the Museum of Lancashire . Lancashire County Council. Retrieved June 3, 2018.