Regiment Huzaren Prinses Catharina-Amalia | |
---|---|
Active | 2020–present |
Country | Netherlands |
Branch | Royal Netherlands Army |
Type | Line cavalry |
Role | Armoured Public duties |
Size | One regiment |
Part of | 43 Gemechaniseerde Brigade |
Garrison/HQ | Bergen-Lohheide |
Motto(s) | Pro Rege, Lege et Grege (For King, Law and People) |
The Regiment Huzaren Prinses Catharina-Amalia is a cavalry regiment of the Royal Netherlands Army. The regiment was formed in late 2020 through the amalgamation of three other Dutch cavalry regiments that, at the time, existed in suspension - the Regiment Huzaren Prins Alexander, Regiment Huzaren Van Sytzama and Regiment Huzaren Prins van Oranje. The new regiment took over the operation of the army's remaining main battle tanks, as well as two of the army's ceremonial units, the Cavalry Escort (Cavalerie Ere Escorte) and the Mounted Units Regimental Band (Regimentsfanfare Bereden Wapens). [1]
In November 2020, the Dutch Ministry of Defence announced the formation of a new armoured unit as part of a reorganisation of the army. This was an effort to restore a regimental structure to the three armoured regiments that had been placed in suspended animation following the disbanding of the army's force of main battle tanks between 2007 and 2012. In 2016, this capability was restored with the foundation of 414 Tank Battalion, a joint unit manned by both Dutch and German troops, with one of its three tank companies a Dutch unit. Upon its initial formation, this company was attached to the army's single remaining active armoured unit, the Regiment Huzaren Van Boreel, which operated primarily as a reconnaissance and ISTAR unit. As part of the army's reorganisation, the multiple operational roles undertaken by the van Boreel regiment were split - the ISTAR element was transferred to the newly established Intelligence & Security Corps (Korps Inlichtingen & Veiligheid "Prinses Alexia"), while the tank element was moved to a new armoured regiment formed through the amalgamation of the old Prins Alexander, van Sytzama and Prins van Oranje regiments. [2] [3] The purpose of forming a new regiment for the armoured element of the army was then to allow it to be used as the parent regiment for any potential future heavy armoured units, clearly delineating between the main battle tank and lighter, reconnaissance capability provided by the van Boreel regiment. [1]
On 20 November 2020, King Willem-Alexander announced that the new armoured regiment would be named for his eldest daughter, Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange. [2] The regiment will carry the standard of the Regiment Huzaren van Sytzama until it receives its own standard.
Upon formation, the regiment contained a total of three sub-units inherited from the Regiment Huzaren Van Boreel: [3]
The first of these is the operational element of the regiment, attached to the joint German / Dutch tank battalion. The Cavalry Mounted Escort is the army's ceremonial mounted unit. The Mounted Units Regimental Band is the army's unique bicycle mounted band.
The regiment's cap badge is the standard silver cavalry cap badge, which features St George and the Dragon on the standard nassau blue cavalry background. The piping of the background is new regiment's own sky blue colour, which is the colour used by the old heavy cavalry. In a modern setting, the sky blue color refers to the steel of the tanks. This color would also have been the regimental color of the 1e Vechtwagenregiment planned in 1946, but which was never established. [4]
A hussar was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry regiments in European armies during the late 17th and 18th centuries. By the 19th century, hussars were wearing jackets decorated with braid plus shako or busby hats and had developed a romanticized image of being dashing and adventurous.
Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange is the heir apparent to the throne of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the constituent countries of Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten.
The Royal Netherlands Army is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the Staatse Leger was raised making the Dutch standing army one of the oldest in the world. It fought in the Napoleonic Wars, World War II, the Indonesian War of Independence, and the Korean War, and served with NATO on the Cold War frontiers in West Germany from the 1950s to the 1990s.
The Regiment Huzaren van Boreel is an armoured regiment of the Royal Netherlands Army, named for Willem Francois Boreel. It currently serves in the armoured Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, Reconnaissance (ISTAR) role; the regiment provides armoured reconnaissance squadrons assigned to the 43 Mechanised Brigade, 13 Light Brigade and 11 Airmobile Brigade. An STA artillery unit, an electronic warfare unit, Human Intelligence (HUMINT) unit and imagery intelligence unit are all formed into a single battalion attached to the Combat Support Brigade.
The Regiment Huzaren Prins Alexander is an armoured regiment of the Royal Netherlands Army, named after Prince Alexander, the second son of King Willem II. This regiment represented the former 3rd Hussars Regiment, formed in 1814. It was known as the Red or Guards Hussars, but was never a Guards regiment.
The Regiment Huzaren Prins van Oranje was an armoured regiment of the Royal Netherlands Army, named after Prince Willem, Prince of Orange, eldest son of King Willem II. The regiment served as part of 43 Gemechaniseerde (Mechanized) Brigade operating the Leopard 2 main battle tank.
The Regiment Huzaren van Sytzama was a Dutch armored regiment named for J.G. Baron van Sytzama, which was disbanded in 2012. Its origins may be traced to the French 14th Regiment of Cuirassiers which had in turn been formed from the Dutch 2nd Regiment of Cuirassiers in 1810. From these men, the Baron raised the regiment, later styled 1e Regiment Huzaren.
Multi National Base Tarin Kot is a former International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) installation, used after the Netherlands Armed Forces' departure by the Afghan National Army. The base was located on the outskirts of Tarinkot, the capital of Uruzgan Province in southern Afghanistan.
The 1st Guides Regiment was an armoured regiment of the Belgian Army. Previously amalgamated with the 1st Regiment Chasseurs à cheval (2004), in 2011 the regiment was amalgamated with 2/4 Regiment of Chasseurs à cheval to form the "Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, Reconnaissance (ISTAR) battalion of the Chasseurs à cheval".
Armoured reconnaissance is the combination of terrestrial reconnaissance with armoured warfare by soldiers using tanks and wheeled or tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicles. While the mission of reconnaissance is to gather intelligence about the enemy with the use of reconnaissance vehicles, armoured reconnaissance adds the ability to fight for information, and to have an effect on and to shape the enemy through the performance of traditional armoured tasks.
The First Division 7 December was a division of the Royal Netherlands Army, active from at least 1946 to 2004. It was sent to Indonesia in 1946 to restore "peace, order and security" after the proclamation of Indonesian Independence in 1945.
103 NLD ISTAR Battalion was the intelligence gathering reconnaissance battalion of the Royal Netherlands Army, tasked with Intelligence Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR). The battalion was the main part of the Regiment Huzaren van Boreel. The other parts of the regiment are the independent recce squadrons which are part of the Netherlands' Army's Mechanised Brigades. 101 RPV bt and 101 Art Spt Bt belongs to the Field Artillery Regiment and 102 EW Coy to Signals Regiment.
The 13th Light Brigade is one of the three combat brigades of the Royal Netherlands Army, the other ones being 11th Airmobile Brigade and 43rd Mechanised Brigade. The brigade is a fully motorised brigade, equipped with Fennek, Boxer and Bushmaster wheeled, armoured vehicles.
43 Mechanised Brigade is one of the three combat brigades of the Royal Netherlands Army, the others being the 13th Light Brigade and 11th Airmobile Brigade. The brigade has armored and non-armored vehicles at its disposal, and is tasked with conducting combat operations, peacekeeping and various ceremonial tasks.
Prins van Oranje or Prinses van Oranje may refer to:
414 Tank Battalion is a mixed German and Dutch tank battalion, consisting of around 100 Dutch and 300 German soldiers.
The current structure of the Royal Netherlands Army is as follows:
The Korps Inlichtingen & Veiligheid Prinses Alexia is a corps within the Royal Netherlands Army that specializes in the gathering and processing of intelligence. The corps, together with the Korps Communicatie & Engagement Prinses Ariane, constitutes the Arm of Information Manoeuver and was established on 20 November 2020.
The Operational Support Command Land is a support command of the Royal Netherlands Army. The command consists of multiple combat support and combat service support units that provide the army with a broad variety of services. The OOCL was established in 2009, with the simultaneous disbandment of 1 Logistics Brigade and 101 Combat Support Brigade.
The Joint ISTAR Command is a joint military intelligence command of the Operational Support Command Land of the Royal Netherlands Army. The command is specialised in the gathering, analysis and distribution of military intelligence, and consists of eight operational company-sized subunits.