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British Army lists

Commands and Army groups

Field armies in World War I

Field armies in World War II

Corps in World War I

Corps in World War II

Divisions in World War I

Divisions in World War II

Brigades in World War II

Regiments of Foot

Regiments in 1881

Regiments in 1962

Regiments in 1994

Regiments in 2008

Nicknames of regiments

This is a list of nicknames of regiments of the British Army. Many nicknames were used by successor regiments (following renaming or amalgamation).

1

• 1st Invalids - 41st (Welsh) Regiment of Foot later The Welsh Regiment^[1] (first raised as the Regiment of Invalids, in 1688)

A

• Agile and Bolton Wanderers - Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders^[2]
• The Angle-irons - Royal Anglian Regiment^[3](humourous malapropism)
• The Armoured Farmers - 3rd Royal Tank Regiment (raised in the West Country^[4])

B

• The Back Numbers - Gloucestershire Regiment^[1] (allowed to wear a regimental badge on the back of the hat, after the rear rank faced about to drive off French cavalry at the Battle of Alexandria (1801))
• The Back Flash - Royal Welch Fusiliers^[5](the last regiment to give up the queue or pigtail, retained the ribbons on the back of the collar)
• Bakers Light Bobs - 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own)^[1]
• The Bays - 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)^[6]
• The Beavers - 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1] (refers to the regiment's origin in Canada, and its first regimental badge)
• The Bendovers - 96th Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Manchester Regiment^[1]
• The Bengal Tigers - Leicestershire Regiment^[1](In 1825 the regiment was granted the badge of a "royal tiger" to recall their long service in India)
• The Bill Browns - 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards^[1]
• The Biscuit Boys - 49th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) (Hertfordshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment^[1]
• The Bird Catchers - 1st (Royal) Dragoons
• The Black Cuffs - Northamptonshire Regiment^[1]
• The Black Horse - 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards^[7]
• The Black Knots - North Staffordshire Regiment^[1] (the regimental badge was a Stafford knot)
• The Black Mafia - Royal Green Jackets^[8](number of former Greenjacket officers promoted to high rank)
• The Bleeders - Somerset Light Infantry^[1]
• The Blind Half Hundred - 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot later Royal West Kent Regiment^[1]
• The Bloodsuckers - 11th (The North Devonshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Manchester Regiment^[9]
• The Bloody Eleventh - 11th (The North Devonshire) Regiment of Foot, later The Devonshire Regiment^[1]
• The Blue Caps - The Royal Dublin Fusiliers^[1] (originally part of the British East India Company's Madras Presidency Army, whose units wore blue rather than black headgear)
• The Blues - Royal Horse Guards^[1] (only British heavy cavalry regiment to wear blue rather than red uniforms)
• Bob's Own - Irish Guards^[1] (refers to Field Marshal Lord Roberts, the first Colonel of the regiment)
• The Botherers - King's Own Scottish Borderers^[1] (humorous malapropism)
• The Brickdusts - 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Shropshire Light Infantry^[1]
• The Budgies - the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers^[10](from the hackle worn in the beret)
• The Buttermilks - 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards^[1]

C

• The Cattle Reeves - Border Regiment^[1]
• Calvert's Entire - West Yorkshire Regiment^[1]
• The Cameronians - 1st Battalion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)^[1]
• The Carbs - Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards)^[1]
• The Cat and Cabbage - The York and Lancaster Regiment^[1] (from the regimental badge, which was a royal lion atop a stylised Tudor Rose)
• The Celestials - 97th (The Earl of Ulster's) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Royal West Kent Regiment^[1]
• The Chainy 10th - 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own)^[1]
• Cheeses - 1st Life Guards and 2nd Life Guards^[1]
• The Cheesemongers - Household Cavalry
• The Cauliflowers 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion The Loyal North Lancashire Regiment^[1] (from the regimental badge, which was a stylised Red Rose of Lancaster)
• The Centipedes - 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• The Cherry Pickers - 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)^[1] (from an incident during the Peninsular War, in which the 11th Light Dragoons (as the regiment was then named) were attacked while raiding an orchard at San Martin de Trebejo in Spain)
• The Cherubims - 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)^[1] (originally the "Cherrybums", from the crimson overall trousers adopted when Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha became the Honorary Colonel in Chief)
• The Coal Heavers - Grenadier Guards^[1]
• The Coldstreamers - Coldstream Guards^[1]
• The Colonials - 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• The Crusaders - 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]

D

• The Death or Glory Boys - 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) later the Queen's Royal Lancers^[1] (from the regimental badge, which was a death's head (skull), with a scroll bearing the motto "or Glory")
• The Delhi Spearman - 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars^[1]
• The Devil's Own - 88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers) later 1st Battalion The Connaught Rangers^[1]
• The Devils Royals - 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal West Kent Regiment^[1]
• The Diehards - 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Middlesex Regiment^[1] (from the Battle of Albuera during the Peninsular War, when Colonel William Inglis urged the decimated regiment to "die hard")
• The Dirty Half Hundred - 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal West Kent Regiment^[1]
• The Dirty Shirts - 101st Regiment of Foot (Royal Bengal Fusiliers) later 1st Battalion Royal Munster Fusiliers^[1]
• The Doc's - Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry^[1]
• The Double X - Lancashire Fusiliers^[11] (from the regimental badge which, as the 20th Regiment of Foot, carried "XX", twenty in roman numerals)
• The Drogheda Light Horse - 18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary's Own)^[12]
• The Dumpies - 19th Royal Hussars (Queen Alexandra's Own)^[1] (originally raised for the army of the British East India Company, from undersized riders who would not overload the lighter, locally-procured horses.^[13])

E

• Earl of Mar's Grey Breeks - Royal Scots Fusiliers^[1]
• The Elegant Extracts - 7th Regiment of Foot later Royal Fusiliers and 85th Regiment of Foot (Bucks Volunteers) later 2nd Battalion Shropshire Light Infantry^[1] (in 1811, many of the regiment's officers were court-martialled and replaced by officers drawn from other regiments.^[14])
• Eliott's Light Horse - 15th The King's Hussars^[1]
• The Emperor's Chambermaids - 14th King's Hussars^[15] (from an incident during the Battle of Vitoria during the Peninsular War, when the regiment captured a silver chamberpot belonging to Joseph Bonaparte, brother of the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte)
• England's Northern Cavalry - The Light Dragoons^[16]
• The Ever-Sworded - 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot later Worcestershire Regiment^[1]
• The Excellers - 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot later South Lancashire Regiment^[1](from the regimental badge; 40 in roman numberals is "XL")
• The Evergreens - 13th Hussars^[1]

F

• The Faithful Durhams - Durham Light Infantry^[1]
• Faugh-a-Ballagh Boys - 87th (Royal Irish Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers^[1]
• The Fighting Fifth - 5th (Northumberland Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot later Royal Northumberland Fusiliers^[1]
• The Fighting Fortieth - 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot later South Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Fighting Ninth - 9th Regiment of Foot later The Norfolk Regiment^[1]
• The Fighting Fifteenth - 15th The King's Hussars^[1]
• The First and the Last - 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards^[17]
• Fitch's Grenadiers - The Royal Irish Rifles^[1]
• The Flamers - 2nd Battalion The Dorsetshire Regiment^[1]
• The Forty Twas - 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot later Black Watch^[1]

G

• The Garvies - Connaught Rangers^[1]
• The Gay Gordons - Gordon Highlanders^[1]
• The Geraniums - 13th Hussars^[1]
• The Glasgow Greys - 70th (Surrey) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion East Surrey Regiment^[1]
• The Glesca Keelies - 71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Highland Light Infantry^[1]
• The Glorious Glosters - The Gloucestershire Regiment^[18]
• The Grasshoppers - 95th Regiment of Foot
• The Green Dragoons - 13th Hussars^[19]
• The Green Howards - 19th (1st North Riding of Yorkshire) Regiment of Foot later Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment)^[1] (So named in 1744, to distinguish them from Howrd's Buffs by facing colour of uniform; both regiments had colonels named Howard at the time)
• The Green Horse - 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards^[1]
• The Green Jackets - 60th (Royal American) Regiment later Kings Royal Rifle Corps and The Rifle Brigade^[1] (in the Napoleonic Wars, both were specialised corps of skirmishers, armed with rifles and wearing rifle green uniforms rather than the standard red coat)
• The Green Linnets - 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot later The Dorsetshire Regiment^[1]
• The Grey Lancers - 21st Lancers (Empress of India's)^[1]
• Guise's Geese - Royal Warwickshire Regiment^[1]
• The Gurkhas - Royal Gurkha Rifles^[20]

H

• The Hampshire Tigers - Hampshire Regiment^[1]
• The Hanoverian White Horse - Royal Fusiliers^[1]
• The Havercake Lads - 33rd Regiment of Foot later Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding)^[1]
• Hell's Last Issue - the Highland Light Infantry^[21](humourous back-acronym)
• The Hindoostan Regiment - 76th Foot^[1]
• The Holy Boys - 9th Regiment of Foot later The Norfolk Regiment^[1]
• The Horse Marines - 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own)^[1]
• Howard's Greens - South Wales Borderers^[1]

I

• The Iron Regiment - The Royal Sussex Regiment
• Irish Giants - The Royal Irish Rifles^[1]
• The Irish Lancer - 5th Royal Irish Lancers^[22]

J

• The Jaeger - 60th (Royal American) Regiment later Kings Royal Rifle Corps^[1] (when first formed, included large numbers of German and German-speaking Swiss Jägers (light infantry))
• The Jocks - Scots Guards^[1] (mildly derogatory name for Scotsmen)

K

• The Kaiser's Own - 60th (Royal American) Regiment later Kings Royal Rifle Corps^[1]
• King's Men - 78th Highlanders later 2nd Battalion Seaforth Highlanders^[1]
• Kingsley's Stand - Lancashire Fusiliers^[11]
• Kirke's Lambs - The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)^[1]
• Kokky-Olly Birds - The King's Own Scottish Borderers^[1]
• The Koylis - The King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry^[1]

L

• The Lace demonians - Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry^[1]
• The Lancashire Lads - 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion The Loyal North Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Leather Hats - 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot later The King's (Liverpool Regiment)^[1]
• Lord Cardigan's Bloodhounds - 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)^[1] (commanded for several years in the early nineteenth century by James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan)
• Lord Wellingtons Bodyguard - Northumberland Fusiliers^[1]
• Loyal Lincoln Volunteers - 81st Regiment of Foot (Loyal Lincoln Volunteers) later 2nd Battalion The Loyal North Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Light Bobs - Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry later The Light Infantry^[1]
• Lightning Conductors - Cheshire Regiment^[1]
• The Lions - The King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)^[1]
• The Lillywhites - Leicestershire Regiment and East Lancashire Regiment and 109th Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• The Lillywhite Seventh - 7th Queen's Own Hussars^[23]
• The Lumps - 2nd Battalion The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers^[1]

M

• The Macraes - 1st Battalion Seaforth Highlanders^[1]
• The Moonrakers - The Wiltshire Regiment^[1]
• The Mounted Micks - 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards^[1] (mildly derogatory name for Irishmen)
• The Minden Boys - 20th Regiment of Foot later Lancashire Fusiliers^[11]
• Murray's Bucks - 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot^[1]

N

• The Namurs - Royal Irish Regiment^[1]
• The Nanny Goats - The Royal Welsh Fusiliers^[1]
• The Norfolk Howards - The Norfolk Regiment^[1]
• Nobody's Own - 20th Hussars^[24] (for a time, were almost the only British cavalry regiment not to have a prestigious honorary colonel with his or her title in the regimental name)

O

• The Old Agamemnons - 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot later The Welsh Regiment^[1]
• The Old and Bold - Northumberland Fusiliers and West Yorkshire Regiment and Worcestershire Regiment^[1]
• The Old Buffs - The Buffs (East Kent Regiment)^[1]
• The Old Bucks - Bedfordshire Regiment^[1] (from 1782 to 1809, were the senior regiment raised in Buckinghamshire)
• The Old Canaries - 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)^[1]
• The Old Dozen - 12th (The East Suffolk) Regiment of Foot later The Suffolk Regiment^[1]
• Old Eyes - Grenadier Guards^[1]
• The Old Farmers - 5th (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) Dragoon Guards later 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards^[1]
• The Old Fogs - 87th (Royal Irish Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers^[1]
• Old Five and Threepences - 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Shropshire Light Infantry^[1]
• The Old Hundredth - 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• The Old Iniskillings - Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards)^[1]
• The Old Immortals - 76th Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Duke of Wellington's Regiment^[1]
• The Old Stubbins - 45th (Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion The Sherwood Foresters^[1]
• The Old Seven and Sixpennies - 76th Regiment of Foot^[1]
• The Old Toughs - The Royal Dublin Fusiliers^[1]
• The Orange Lilies - 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment^[1]
• The Oxford Blues - Household Cavalry

P

• The Paras - The Parachute Regiment^[25]
• Paddy's Blackguards - Royal Irish Regiment^[1]
• The Peacemakers - Bedfordshire Regiment^[1]
• Perthshire Grey Breeks - 2nd Battalion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)^[1]
• The Poachers - 2nd Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment^[26] and The Lincolnshire Regiment^[1]
• The Pompadours - 56th (West Essex) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment later 3rd Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment^[1]
• The Poona Guards - East Yorkshire Regiment^[1]
• The Poona Pets - 109th Regiment of Foot (Bombay Infantry) later 2nd Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• Pontius Pilate's Bodyguard - 1st (Royal) Regiment of Foot, later The Royal Scots^[27]
• The Pot Hooks - 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Middlesex Regiment^[1]
• The Pump and Tortoise - 38th (1st Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment^[1]

Q

• Queer Objects On Horseback - Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars^[28] (humourous back-acronym)

R

• The Ragged Brigade - 13th Hussars^[1]
• The Ramnuggar Boys - 14th King's Hussars^[1] (from the Battle of Ramnagar in 1849)
• The Redbreasts - 5th Royal Irish Lancers^[22]
• The Red Feathers - 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry^[1]
• Red Knights - 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment of Foot later Cheshire Regiment^[1]
• The Rollickers - 89th (The Princess Victoria's) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers^[1]
• The Rorys - The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders^[1]
• The Royal Goats - The Royal Welsh Fusiliers^[1]
• The Royal Tigers - York and Lancaster Regiment^[1]
• Rusty Buckles - 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)^[1]

S

• The Sandbags - Grenadier Guards^[1]
• The Scarlet Lancers - 16th The Queen's Lancers later 16th/5th The Queen's Royal Lancers^[29] (the only British light cavalry regiment to wear red rather than blue uniforms from 1830 to the late nineteenth century)
• The Saucy Greeni - Worcestershire Regiment^[1]
• Saucy Sixth - 6th Regiment of Foot later Royal Warwickshire Regiment^[1]
• The Shiners - Northumberland Fusiliers^[1]
• The Shiny Tenth - 10th Royal Hussars^[30]
• Saucy Seventh - 7th Queen's Own Hussars^[23]
• The Skilljngers - Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards)^[1]
• The Snappers - East Yorkshire Regiment^[1]
• The Splashers - The Wiltshire Regiment^[1]
• The Springers - 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment of Foot and The Lincolnshire Regiment and The Wiltshire Regiment^[1]
• The Staffordshire Knot - 80th Regiment of Foot (Staffordshire Volunteers) later 2nd Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment^[1]
• The Star of the Line - Worcestershire Regiment^[1]
• The Steelbacks - 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Middlesex Regiment and The Northamptonshire Regiment^[1]
• The Steel Heads - 109th Regiment of Foot (Bombay Infantry) later 2nd Battalion Leinster Regiment^[1]
• The Supple Twelfth - 12th Royal Lancers^[31]
• The Surprisers - 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot^[1]
• The Sweeps - 95th Rifles later The Rifle Brigade^[1]

T

• The Tabs - 15th The King's Hussars later 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars^[32]
• The Thin Red Line - 93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot later The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders^[1]
• The Tigers - 37/67th of Foot The Royal Hampshire Regiment and 4th Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment^[26]
• The Tigers - Royal Leicestershire Regiment
• The Tin Bellies - 1st Life Guards and 2nd Life Guards^[1]
• Titchburns Own - Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards)^[1]
• The Trades Union - 1st King's Dragoon Guards^[1]
• The Triple Xs - East Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Two Fours - 44th (East Essex) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion Essex Regiment^[1]
• The Two Fives - 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot later 2nd Battalion Border Regiment^[1]
• The Two Tens - - Lancashire Fusiliers^[11]
• The Two Twos - Cheshire Regiment^[1]
• The Three Tens - East Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Twin Roses - York and Lancaster Regiment^[1]

U

• The Ups and Downs - 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot later The Welsh Regiment^[1]

V

• The Vein Openers - 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot later Worcestershire Regiment^[1]
• The Vikings - 1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment^[26]

W

• Wardour's Horse - The Welsh Regiment^[1]
• The Warwickshire Lads - Royal Warwickshire Regiment^[1]
• Wolfe's Own - 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion The Loyal North Lancashire Regiment^[1]
• The Woofers - Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment^[33](pronunciation of WFR)

X

• The XV - 20th Hussars^[1]

Y

• The Young Buffs - 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot later 1st Battalion East Surrey Regiment^[1]

Z

See also

• Nicknames of U.S. Army divisions
• Regimental nicknames of the Canadian Forces

Notes

References

• Beevor, Anthony (1991). Inside the British Army. Corgi Books. ISBN 0-552-13818-5.  
• Chant, Christopher (1988). The Handbook of British Regiments. Routledge. ISBN 0415002419.  
• Field-Marshal His Majesty the King (George V of the United Kingdom) (1916). Regimental Nicknames and Traditions of the British Army. Gale & Polden Ltd. London. http://www.archive.org/stream/regimentalnickna00londuoft/regimentalnickna00londuoft_djvu.txt.