The Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment Band was a military band of the British Army that served as the regimental band of the Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment (Berkshire and Wiltshire) from 1959 to 1994. During its existence, the regimental band maintained a corps of drums alongside its band that took part in many different ceremonies on behalf of the regiment.
The drum major was responsible for the day to day running and deployment of the Corps of Drums. When on parade, the drum major uses a ceremonial mace used that includes silver chain is entwined about the staff. [1]
The band was founded in 1959 from an amalgamation of the Royal Berkshire Regiment Band and Drums and the Wiltshire Regiment Band. [2] Up until the late 1960s, it did not have a ceremonial full dress uniform.
In August 1979, members of the regimental band were hurt in the 1979 Brussels bombing on the Grand-Place, carried out by volunteers belonging to the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA). The bombing injured seven bandsmen and eleven civilians. [3] Fatalities were avoided as only some of the band's 30 members arrived (the rest were stuck in city traffic) and the band members that were there were dressing away from the stage. [4]
Between 1981 and 1985, the band saw a decrease in its number of musicians, dropping to 22 from 28. [5] In October 1984, the regiment was given the duty of guard mounting at Buckingham Palace, as well as the Tower of London and St. James's Palace. The band under Major Lake, supported by a company of 150 soldiers, performed during the execution of public duties in the capital. [6] In June 1986, it took part in a Beating Retreat with the Pipes & Drums of the Ulster Defence Regiment. [7] While the band was in Asia, it performed at ceremonies in neighbouring countries and territories of the Crown, including Hong Kong and Japan. [6] While the band was deployed to Joint Base Lewis–McChord in the United States in the spring of 1992, it carried out a series of engagements in the region that culminated in a joint concert with the I Corps Band at the Washington State Capitol in Olympia. In addition, the Corps of Drums participated in the Beating Retreat at an Anglo-American Band Concert. [6]
Trooping the Colour is a ceremony performed every year in London, United Kingdom, by regiments of the British Army. Similar events are held in other countries of the Commonwealth. Trooping the Colour has been a tradition of British infantry regiments since the 17th century, and since 1748 has marked the official birthday of the British sovereign, although its roots go back much earlier.
The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Queen's Division. Currently, the regiment has two battalions: the 1st battalion, part of the Regular Army, is an armoured infantry battalion based in Tidworth, Wiltshire, and the 5th battalion, part of the Army Reserve, recruits in the traditional fusilier recruiting areas across England. The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers was largely unaffected by the infantry reforms that were announced in December 2004, but under the Army 2020 reduction in the size of the Army, its second battalion was merged into the first in 2014.
Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War.
The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment was a short-lived infantry regiment of the British Army.
The Royal Gibraltar Regiment is the home defence unit, part of British Forces Gibraltar for the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. It was formed in 1958 from the Gibraltar Defence Force as an infantry unit, with an integrated artillery troop. The regiment is included in the British Army as a defence engagement force. In 1999, the regiment was granted the Royal title. The regiment recruits from Gibraltar, the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Commonwealth.
The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle.
The Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army.
The Rifles is an infantry regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of four Regular battalions and three Reserve battalions, plus a number of companies in other Army Reserve battalions. Each battalion of The Rifles was formerly an individual battalion of one of the two large regiments of the Light Division. Since formation the regiment has been involved in combat operations, first in the later stages of the Iraq War and in the War in Afghanistan.
The Queen's Own Highlanders , officially abbreviated "QO HLDRS," was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. It was in existence from 1961 to 1994.
The Royal Marines Band Service is the musical wing of the Royal Navy and an independent element of the Royal Marines. It currently consists of five bands plus a training wing – the Royal Marines School of Music at HMS Nelson – and its headquarters is at HMS Excellent, Whale Island, Portsmouth.
The Royal Regiment of Scotland is the senior and only Scottish line infantry regiment of the British Army Infantry. It consists of three regular and two reserve battalions, plus an incremental company, each formerly an individual regiment. However, three regular battalions maintain their former regimental pipes and drums to carry on the traditions of their antecedent regiments.
The Wiltshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment of Foot and the 99th Duke of Edinburgh's (Lanarkshire) Regiment of Foot.
The Lowland Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland is a Military band in the Territorial Army and one of three Military bands in the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The band is based at the East Claremont Street drill hall in Edinburgh and is administered by 52nd Lowland, 6th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland. The other two bands in the Regiment are the regular Regimental Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, which is based at Dreghorn Barracks in Edinburgh and is administered by the Royal Corps of Army Music, and the other is the territorial Highland Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, which is based at Queen's Barracks in Perth and administered by 51st Highland, 7th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The Band of the Ceremonial Guard is an ad hoc military band that is attached to the Canadian Forces Ceremonial Guard in Ottawa. All members of the band are fully trained members of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and consists of personnel principally from the two Foot Guards regiments and has even since 2007 been manned by a pan–Canadian Forces approach that is inclusive to musicians from the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force. The band forms a separate company within the CG and rely on the Headquarters Company for administration and support personnel. In full composition, the band is active from April to August.
The Central Band of the Royal Malay Regiment is the official central band of the Malaysian Army's Royal Malay Regiment that is dedicated to providing ceremonial honours and music to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. It is the Army's seniormost band. It is considered the equivalent to the 5 regimental bands of the Foot Guards.
The Band and Bugles of the Rifles is a military band serving as the regimental band for The Rifles, the sole rifle regiment and the largest in the British Army. It is the senior most of three bands in the regiment and is the only one that is part of the regular army. Uniquely, it employs bugles at its front, a tradition that goes back to the conflicts of the 18th century. Major Séan O’Neill is currently serving as the Director of Music (DOM) of the band and bugles. It is part of the Royal Corps of Army Music.
The Band of the Royal Irish Regiment is a military band serving as the regimental band for Royal Irish Regiment and the chief Irish military reserve band in the British Army. Being a reserve band, with is composed of volunteer musicians with the exception of a permanent staff instructor.
Military bands in the United Kingdom are the musical units that serve for protocol and ceremonial duties as part of the British Armed Forces. They have been the basis and inspiration for many military bands in the former British Empire and the larger Commonwealth of Nations as well as musical organizations in other countries. Military musical units with British influence include United States military bands, the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Music Corps and the Military Band of Athens. British military bands are controlled by the military music departments of the three services that compose the armed forces. These include the Royal Marines Band Service, the Royal Corps of Army Music, and the Royal Air Force Music Services. British style brass bands and carnival bands were then and are currently inspired by the British Armed Forces and its brass bands, especially of the Army's regular and reserve formations, as they follow a similar format as it relates to brass and percussion instruments.