Did your ancestor serve in the Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)? Dive into these records and uncover your ancestor's service history including dates of service, wars served in, and other personal information.
Did your ancestor serve in the Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)? Dive into these records and uncover your ancestor's service history including dates of service, wars served in, and other personal information.
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The Queen’s Royal West Surrey Regiment was one of the oldest infantry regiments in the British Army, with a lineage dating back to 1661. Originally raised as the Tangier Regiment to garrison the English possession of Tangier, it was the second oldest of the line infantry regiments. The regiment gained its enduring title in honour of Queen Catherine of Braganza, consort to King Charles II, and by the 18th century it was formally known as The Queen’s Regiment.
Throughout its long service, the regiment played a prominent role in numerous conflicts across the globe. It served in the War of Spanish Succession, the American War of Independence, the Napoleonic Wars, and the Crimean War. In the 19th century, the regiment was deployed extensively throughout the British Empire, including India, South Africa, and Egypt.
As part of the Cardwell and Childers Reforms of the late 19th century, the regiment was renamed the Queen’s (Royal West Surrey Regiment) in 1881, becoming the county regiment for West Surrey with its depot at Stoughton Barracks in Guildford. It expanded to include multiple regular and militia battalions.
During the First World War, the regiment raised 31 battalions and suffered over 7,000 casualties, serving on the Western Front, in the Middle East, and elsewhere. In the Second World War, its battalions fought in Europe, North Africa, and Burma.
In 1959, the regiment was amalgamated with the East Surrey Regiment to form the Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment, reflecting broader post-war restructuring of the British Army. Its traditions and honours are now maintained by the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment, the modern successor unit.
The Queen’s Royal West Surrey Regiment remains a symbol of distinguished service and enduring local identity, closely associated with the county of Surrey and Britain’s imperial and military heritage.