1st King ' s Dragoon Guards The 1st King ' s Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army . The regiment was formed in 1685 as The Queen ' s Regiment of Horse , named in honour of Queen Mary , consort of King James II . It was renamed The King ' s Own Regiment of Horse in 1714 in honour of George I . The regiment attained the title 1st King ' s Dragoon Guards in 1751 . The regiment served as horse cavalry until 1937 when it was mechanised with light tanks . The regiment became part of the Royal Armoured Corps in 1939 . The regiment merged with The Queen ' s Bays ( 2nd Dragoon Guards ) in 1959 to form 1st The Queen ' s Dragoon Guards . The Habsburg connection . In March 1896 Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria became Colonel - in - Chief of the regiment , which he remained until the outbreak of the Great War in 1914 . At the same time the double - headed Austrian eagle became the cap - badge of the regiment ( see illustration above ) until it , too , was replaced , in 1915 . On Dec 2 , 1908 the Emperor instituted the " Inhaber - Jubiläums - Medaille für Ausländer " ( Commander ' s Jubilee Medal for Foreigners ) to celebrate his 60 years on the throne . Some of the 40 Golden , 635 Silver and 2000 Bronze medals were awarded to officers , NCOs and private soldiers in the regiment . In 1938 , the Austrian eagle returned as the regiment ' s cap badge , but without the scroll . First World War ( 1914 - 18 ) . At the commencement of war in 1914 the KDGs were stationed in Lucknow , India as part of the 8th ( Lucknow ) Cavalry Brigade . The regiment was ordered to France and arrived at Marseilles on 7 November . The KDGs formed part of 1st Indian Cavalry Division serving on the Western Front . The regiment returned to India in 1917 and joined 1st ( Peshawar ) Division and during 1919 took part in the Third Afghan War . Third Afghan War ( 1919 ) . The KDGs remained in garrison at Meerut until October 1918 when they exchanged stations with 21st ( Empress of India ' s ) Lancers and moved to Risalpur . On 2 May 1919 Afghan troops seized control of wells on the Indian side of the border . The Afghan Amir Amanullah was warned to withdraw , but his answer was to send more troops to reinforce those at the wells and to move other Afghan units to various points on the frontier . The KDGs were mobilised on 6 May and formed part of the British Indian Army ' s 1st Cavalry Brigade . The regiment served throughout the Third Afghan War and saw action at the Khyber Pass and Dakka . On 8 August a peace treaty with Afghanistan was officially signed and the KDGs returned to Risalpur on 28 August . Second World War ( 1939 - 1945 ) . The Regiment fought with distinction in North Africa and Sicily and Italy , landing at Salerno against concentrated enemy opposition . They were the first Allied unit into Naples . The Welsh writer Norman Lewis , in his celebrated account of life in Naples claimed that the King ' s Dragoon Guards was the first British unit to reach Naples in 1943 , and that many of its officers immediately went on a looting spree , cutting paintings from their frames in the prince ' s palace . Post - War . The Regiment was posted to Home Duties at Omagh , Northern Ireland before moving to Germany in 1952 as part of the British Army of the Rhine ( BAOR ) , initially stationed in Hamburg and later Celle and Wolfenbüttel . In 1956 the KDG were sent on active service in Malaya during the Emergency and were stationed at Ipoh . During this time they took part in counter - insurgency operations in both mounted operations ( armoured car ) and on foot in the dense jungles . The regiment returned to BAOR in 1959 . A Squadron spent 1956 - 59 in Jahore Bahru at Majedee Barracks . They were joined in 1958 by B Squadron in preparation for the pending amalgamation in 1959 .