1st The Queen ' s Dragoon Guards 1st The Queen ' s Dragoon Guards ( QDG ) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army . Nicknamed The Welsh Cavalry , the regiment recruits from Wales and the bordering English counties of Herefordshire , and Shropshire , and is the senior cavalry regiment , and therefore senior regiment , of the line of the British Army . The regiment is part of the Royal Armoured Corps . Operational role . The regiment operates in the formation reconnaissance role and is equipped with vehicles from the CVR ( T ) family . These include the Scimitar armoured reconnaissance vehicle ; the Sultan command vehicle and Samaritan ambulance ; the Spartan armoured personnel carrier and the Samson armoured recovery vehicle . Current status . The QDG has been based in Germany since after the invasion of Iraq . It is based in Sennelager and in a unit of 20th Armoured Brigade . The regiment completed its second tour of Afghanistan ( Operation Herrick XV ( October 2011 - April 2012 ) ) , its fifth tour to the Middle East in seven years . In 2003 , C Squadron QDG was attached to 3 Commando Brigade , providing the reconnaissance and light armour support necessary to allow the brigade ' s advance north to Basra , Iraq . Members of C Squadron won a variety of operational awards for their efforts on Op Telic 1 , most notably the Military Cross es awarded to Lieutenant Simon Farebrother and Major Henry Sugden . In May 2012 , there was speculation that the unit would become a victim of the defence budget cuts . As it was one of only three regiments historically associated with and still largely recruits from Wales , there was much support from the Welsh public to keep the QDG . However , Ministry of Defense officials announced no such plan has been made . As part of the Army 2020 plans , most units based in Germany will return to the UK and the QDG is scheduled to move to Swanton Morley , Norfolk by 2015 . They will re - role as " light cavalry " , using Jackal vehicles . History . The current regiment was formed in 1959 by the amalgamation of 1st King ' s Dragoon Guards ( raised in 1685 as Lanier ' s or 2nd Queen ' s Regiment of Horse by James II of England in reaction to the Monmouth Rebellion ) and the Queen ' s Bays or 2nd Dragoon Guards ( the former Peterborough ' s or 3rd Regiment of Horse , also raised in 1685 by James II in reaction to the Monmouth Rebellion ) . In 1896 Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria was appointed Colonel - in - Chief of the 1st King ’ s Dragoon Guards and allowed the regiment to wear the Austrian imperial coat of arms , which is still used as the regiment ' s cap badge today . Also the regiment adopted an Austrian military march , Radetzky March , as quick march . The current Regimental March is Radetzky March and Rusty Buckles , the latter being the Regimental March of The Queen ' s Bays . The regimental museum is located in Cardiff Castle . Perhaps the best known member in recent years was Captain Mark Phillips , one - time husband of The Princess Anne . The regiment has spent much of its history based in Germany at various times . It served during the Aden Emergency and its squadrons were dispersed throughout the Middle East through the 1960s . During the 1980s and 90s the regiment was deployed to Lebanon in support of the allied Multinational Force , the Middle East for the Gulf War and to Bosnia as part of NATO peacekeeping forces during the Yugoslav Wars . In 2003 the regiment served in Iraq during the invasion of Iraq and subsequent Operation Telic tours . It has also served in Afghanistan on Operation Herrick . The regiment celebrated their fiftieth anniversary on 31 July 2009 with a ceremony at Cardiff castle and a parade through the streets of Cardiff city both attended by their Colonel - in - Chief The Prince of Wales . The regiment received a great response from the people of Cardiff . That same year the unit was also awarded with the Freedom of the City of Swansea . Collections relating to 1st The Queen ' s Dragoon Guards are displayed at . Alliances . Commonwealth Non - Commonwealth