The Scots Greys
Cap badge of the Scots Greys
Active	1678 - 1971
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Army
Type	Line Cavalry
Role	Armoured regiment
Size	One regiment
Part of	Royal Armoured Corps
Garrison/HQ	Maryhill Barracks, Glasgow
Motto	Nemo me impune lacessit (Nobody touches me with impunity) Ich Dien (I Serve) Second to None
March	Quick (band) - Hielan' Laddie Slow (band) - The Garb of Old Gaul; (pipes & drums) - My Home
Anniversaries	13 April (Nunshigum)
Commanders
Colonel-in-Chief	HM The Queen
Insignia
Tartan

The Scots Greys was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1678 until 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) to form The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys). Image File history File links Rysgreys. ... Events August 10 - Treaty of Nijmegen ends the Dutch War. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... The Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) is currently a collection of ten regular regiments, mostly converted from old horse cavalry regiments, and four Yeomanry regiments of the Territorial Army. ... For other uses, see Glasgow (disambiguation). ... Nemo me impune lacessit (English: No one wounds me with impunity, literally meaning (lacessere = to appeal to, to provoke, to attack): No one provokes me with impunity) is the royal Scottish motto, used historically for the Kingdom of Scotland where it appeared on the Royal Arms of Scotland. ... Highland Laddie, also known as Hielan Laddie, is the name of an ancient Scottish popular folk tune. ... is the 103rd day of the year (104th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... The Royal Stewart Tartan File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... There are currently eleven regular cavalry regiments of the British Army, with five serving as armoured regiments, and five as formation reconnaissance regiments. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Events August 10 - Treaty of Nijmegen ends the Dutch War. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... The 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Waless Dragoon Guards) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. ... The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) (SCOTS DG) is the senior Scottish regiment of the British Army and Scotlands only cavalry regiment. ...

Regimental name changes

The regiment's history began in 1678, when three independent troops of Scots Dragoons were raised. In 1681 these troops were regimented to form The Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons, numbered the 4th Dragoons in 1694. They were already mounted on grey horses by this stage and were already being referred to as the Grey Dragoons. In 1707 they were renamed The Royal North British Dragoons (North Britain then being the envisaged common name for Scotland), but were already being referred to as the Scots Greys. In 1713 they were renumbered the 2nd Dragoons, as it was established that only one regiment of English dragoons had existed prior to their creation. In 1877 their nickname was finally made official when they became the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys), which was inverted in 1921 to The Royal Scots Greys (2nd Dragoons). They kept this title until 2nd July 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers. British regiment A regiment is a military unit, consisting of a variable number of battalions - commanded by a colonel. ... For the TV show, see F Troop. ... Events March 4 - Charles II of England grants a land charter to William Penn for the area that will later become Pennsylvania. ... Events February 6 - The colony Quilombo dos Palmares is destroyed. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... Events January 1 - John V is crowned King of Portugal March 26 - The Acts of Union becomes law, making the separate Kingdoms of England and Scotland into one country, the Kingdom of Great Britain. ... This article is about the country. ... Year 1713 (MDCCXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... A light dragoon from the American Revolution A dragoon is a soldier trained to fight on foot, but transport himself on horseback. ... 1877 (MDCCCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... July 2 is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 182 days remaining. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... The 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Waless Dragoon Guards) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. ...

An album called "Last of The Greys" of the Royal Scots Greys regimental band was released in 1971 - from which the track of "Amazing Grace" went, astonishingly, to top of the "Top 40" charts on both sides of the Atlantic.

Up until at least the Second World War, The Greys also had a popular, if somewhat derogatory, nickname of "The Bird Catchers" which derived from both their cap badge and the capture of the Eagle at Waterloo (see below). This article or section seems to contain too many examples (or of a poor quality) for an encyclopedia entry. ...

Motto

The Scots Greys had the motto "Second to none". It referred to their seniority in the British Army and their fighting prowess. Their official motto, however, was the royal Scottish motto Nemo Me Impune Lacessit (No one provokes me with impunity). Wearing bearskins, they were distinguished as the only heavy cavalry regiment not to wear helmets. A motto (from Italian) is a phrase or a short list of words meant formally to describe the general motivation or intention of an entity, social group, or organization. ... The Royal Coat of Arms of Scotland, as used before 1603 The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. ... A motto (from Italian) is a phrase or a short list of words meant formally to describe the general motivation or intention of an entity, social group, or organization. ... Irish Guards, wearing bearskins, march to the Cenotaph, London, on June 12th 2005 for a service of remembrance for Irish troops For the fairy tale of this title, see Bearskin (fairy tale). ... Not to be confused with Golgotha, which was called Calvary. ... A person wearing a helmet. ...

Battle honours

The Eagle of the French 45th Ligne captured by the Royal Scots Greys

The regiment has many battle honours from Blenheim in 1704 through to the Second World War. Their most famous engagement took place at Waterloo on 18 June 1815. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 240 KB) The French Imperial Eagle captured by the Royal Scots Greys at the Battle of Waterloo This image has been (or is hereby) released into the public domain by its creator, Hammersfan. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 240 KB) The French Imperial Eagle captured by the Royal Scots Greys at the Battle of Waterloo This image has been (or is hereby) released into the public domain by its creator, Hammersfan. ... Combatants England, Dutch Republic, Holy Roman Empire, Denmark Kingdom of France, Electorate of Bavaria Commanders Duke of Marlborough, Prince Eugène of Savoy Duc de Tallard, Maximilian II Emanuel, Ferdinand de Marsin Strength 52,000, 60 guns[3] 56,000, 90 guns Casualties 4,542 killed, 7,942 wounded 34... Events Building of the Students Monument in Aiud, Romania. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... Combatants First French Empire Seventh Coalition: United Kingdom Kingdom of Prussia Kingdom of the United Netherlands Kingdom of Hanover Duchy of Nassau Duchy of Brunswick Commanders Napoleon Bonaparte, Michel Ney Duke of Wellington, Gebhard von Blücher Prince William of Orange Strength 73,000 67,000 Coalition 60,000 Prussian... is the 169th day of the year (170th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... April 5-12: Mount Tambora explodes, changing climate. ...

The charge at the Battle of Waterloo

At approximately 1:30 pm, the second phase of the Battle of Waterloo opened. Napoleon launched D'Erlon's corps against the allied centre left. After being stopped by Picton's Peninsular War veterans, D'Erlon's troops came under attack from the side by the heavy cavalry commanded by Earl of Uxbridge including Major General Sir William Ponsonby's Scots Greys. Combatants First French Empire Seventh Coalition: United Kingdom Kingdom of Prussia Kingdom of the United Netherlands Kingdom of Hanover Duchy of Nassau Duchy of Brunswick Commanders Napoleon Bonaparte, Michel Ney Duke of Wellington, Gebhard von Blücher Prince William of Orange Strength 73,000 67,000 Coalition 60,000 Prussian... For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ... Jean-Baptiste Drouet, Count dErlon (July 29, 1765-January 25, 1844) was a marshal of France and a soldier in Napoleons army, who commanded the French 1st Corps at the battle of Waterloo. ... Sir Thomas Picton (August, 1758-June 18, 1815) was a British military leader who fought in a number of campaigns for Britain and rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General. ... For the 1862 American Civil War campaign, see Peninsula Campaign. ... Henry William Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey (17 May 1768 - 29 April 1854) was a British military leader and politician, now chiefly remembered for leading the charge of the heavy cavalry against dErlons column during the Battle of Waterloo. ... Major-General Sir William Ponsonby (1772-1815) was the second son of William, 1st Baron Ponsonby, of Imokilly, County Cork and Louisa Molesworth. ...

During the charge Sergeant Ewart, of the Greys, captured the eagle of the French 45th Ligne. The Greys charged the French Grande Batterie and, having spiked some of the French cannon, came under the counter charge of the legendary Polish Imperial Guard Lancers (suggested by some historians to be the best cavalry of the Napoleonic wars, having never lost a single cavalry engagement). Ponsonby, who had chosen to ride one of his less expensive mounts, was ridden down and killed by the lancers. The Scots Greys' casualties included: 122 killed; 93 wounded; and the loss of 228 of the 416 horses that started the charge, the Greys never saw action again that day. The Eagle captured by Ewart, now on display in the Scottish War Museum. ... Although they were presented with Regimental Colours, the regiments of Napoleon I tended to carry at their head the Imperial Eagle. ... La Grande Armée (French for the Great Army or the Grand Army) first entered the annals of history when, in 1805, Napoleon I renamed the army that he had assembled on the French coast of the English Channel for the proposed invasion of Britain and re-deployed it East... The term lance has become a catchall for a variety of different pole weapons based on the spear. ...

This engagement also gave the Scots Greys their cap badge, the eagle itself. The eagle is displayed in the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards museum in Edinburgh Castle. A cap badge, also known as head badge or hat badge, is a badge worn on uniform headgear and distinguishes the wearers organisation. ... The castle dominates the Edinburgh skyline as seen here from Princes Street Gardens Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress which, from its position atop Castle Rock, dominates the sky-line of the city of Edinburgh, and is Scotlands second most visited tourist attraction, after the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and...

The charge of the Scots Greys in the painting "Scotland Forever!" by Lady Butler in Leeds City Art Gallery famously depicts the event and inspired the slow-motion shots of the charge in the film Waterloo directed by Sergei Bondarchuk in 1970. Elizabeth Thompson 1846-1933 was a British painter better known by her married name of Lady Butler. ... For other uses, see Leeds (disambiguation). ... Waterloo was a film of 1970, directed by Sergei Bondarchuk. ... Bondarchuk as Pierre Bezukhov in War and Peace Sergei Fedorovich Bondarchuk (IPA: , Russian: Серге́й Фё́дорович Бондарчу́к; Ukrainian: Сергі́й Фе́дорович Бондарчу́к September 25, 1920 – October 20, 1994) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, and actor. ... Year 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• The British Army's web page on The Royal Scots Dragoons Guards (Carabiniers and Greys)
• Official site of the Royal Scots Dragoons Guards
• www.regiments.org The Royal Scots Greys
• www.scotsatwar.org.uk The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
• Scottish Military Historical Society: The Royal Scots Greys Lineage page
• Early history of the Scots Greys, Excerpt from the Navy and Army Illustrated 15 January 1897 by G F Bacon
• What ever happened to Sergeant Charles Ewart
• The Battle of Waterloo as seen by an ordinary British cavalryman