The Training Of
A Household Cavalryman

There are two quite distinct types of training required
- either for service in the Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment
(using tracked and other vehicles), or for service
in the Mounted Regiment (riding horses).

It must also be remembered that horses themselves
need to be trained - to acknowledge control without the use
of words of command, to behave normally when in
the midst of massed Bands playing music, and when
the roads are lined with cheering or noisy crowds,
such as on major State occasions and parades.

As members of The Household Division, recruits
(who join at age 17 or over) carry out their basic (Phase 1)
training at the Army Training Regiment at Pirbright in
Surrey, where they undergo 12 weeks of training in which
they learn the fundamentals of soldiering.

After this basic training, the recruits pass out on a
formal parade. This gives the newly trained soldier
the grounding which he will require for his
Phase 2 training - whether commencing with the
Armoured Regiment or the Mounted Regiment.

This second phase of training takes place
at either the Household Cavalry Training Wing,
Combermere Barracks, Windsor (mounted), or at the
Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) Centre, Bovington (armoured).

At Windsor, the soldier is introduced to his special to arm
training which includes driving and - most importantly - riding.

The Training Wing course lasts for at least 12 weeks,
during which time the soldiers learn to ride, and also
decide whether they wish to go first to the
Mounted Regiment or to the Armoured Regiment.

Most soldiers decide to do the mounted duty before
going on to armoured soldiering, with those preferring to
be armoured-trained going on to Bovington -
where they complete their B3 CVR(T) driver's and
Phase 1 signals courses (including vehicle maintenance),
before being posted to Windsor.

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Training A Mounted Dutyman

The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment's Training Wing,
at Windsor, aims to train a recruit within 24 weeks
from never having ridden a horse to becoming a
fully qualified Mounted Dutyman Class 3,
capable of taking his place in Ceremonial Duties.

Training is carried out through a gradual but
sustained progression of confidence-building
exercises on horseback, instruction in horse management
and horsemastership, simple veterinary problems,
and how to clean, fit and wear saddlery and uniform.

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The Khaki Ride

During the first few weeks in the Household Cavalry
Training Wing (HCTW), the soldiers will be based at Windsor,
and the course is split into two parts.

The first part forms the "Easy Rider" course
(which lasts for five weeks), where the very basics
of civilian riding are taught. The second part lasts
eight weeks, and is spent "in khaki", and comprises of
riding in army saddlery, and learning all the
necessary military drills on horseback.

Like all physical skills, the development of
horsemastership requires progressive fitness and
agility training, coupled with continuous practice
of what has been taught.

Since the majority of soldiers have never ridden
a horse before, the course - like all military courses -
starts with basics and proceeds at a pace to suit
"the slowest learner". They must also learn how to march
and drill in ceremonial uniform, including jackboots.

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The Kit Ride

The final (additional) four weeks are devoted to learning
to ride in full ceremonial uniform (known as Full Dress).
This training is carried out in London, at the
Mounted Regiment's barracks in Knightsbridge.

The soldier rides for two hours a day, sometimes more.
All that they have learned about seat and position
applies more than ever, because a weak seat
or bad position will make the ride uncomfortable,
and make it more difficult for the rider to achieve
what he wants the horse to do.

This applies all the more because rising to the trot
in Full Dress is not permitted.

The soldier then learns progressively how to
fit all the paraphernalia of State Dress and Saddlery,
from sheepskins with the front arch underneath,
to collar chains and stirrup bosses, from sword slings
to plumes and cuirasses (breast plates).

First and foremost the helmet must be fitted correctly,
because a helmet that is too loose may tip forward
or back, and a helmet that is too tight will give
the wearer an unbearable headache.

The ride concentrates on troop drills in Hyde Park,
and in the outdoor riding school. On Saturdays
they learn to wear cloaks when mounted,
and how to use swords when cloaked.

At the end of the seventeenth week, the Ride passes out
in Full Dress in front of the Commanding Officer.

After two weeks' leave the members of the Ride,
now fully qualified Mounted Dutymen Class 3, are ready to
take their place in the troop to which they are allotted.

All Troopers aspire to the Richmond Cup, which is
awarded to the trooper judged to be the best turned out
in full state uniform, and for which two troopers from
each troop compete. It is not unknown for H.M. The Queen
to present the Cup, which adds to the thrill of winning.

Incidentally, training of horses does not prepare them
for the huge noise that can be generated by millions of
people lining the streets - such as for Jubilee celebrations.
The Regiment has its own method - "rent a crowd"!

In the weeks leading up to a big parade, non-participating
Household Cavalrymen and their families turn out
to subject horses and riders to organized mayhem,
designed to prepare them for the absolute worst
- by banging dustbin lids, waving sticks,
blowing whistles, and bursting balloons.

The results speak for themselves - by the day of
the parade, men and horses take it all in their stride!