The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. In 1941, the SAS was founded as a regiment, and in 1950, it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terrorism, hostage rescue, direct action and covert reconnaissance. Much of the information about the SAS is highly classified, and the unit is not commented on by either the British government or the Ministry of Defence due to the secrecy and sensitivity of its operations.
A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force using dedicated operation techniques.
The 7th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army that saw distinguished active service during the Second World War, where its exploits in the Western Desert Campaign gained it the Desert Rats nickname.
The Commandos, also known as the British Commandos, were formed during the Second World War in June 1940, following a request from the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Winston Churchill, for a force that could carry out raids against German-occupied Europe. Initially drawn from within the British Army from soldiers who volunteered for the Special Service Brigade, the Commandos' ranks would eventually be filled by members of all branches of the British Armed Forces and a number of foreign volunteers from German-occupied countries. By the end of the war 25,000 men had passed through the Commando course at Achnacarry. This total includes not only the British volunteers, but volunteers from Greece, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Poland, and the United States Army Rangers and US Marine Corps Raiders, which were modelled on the Commandos.
Field Marshal Sir Gerald Walter Robert Templer, was a senior British Army officer. He fought in both the world wars and had taken part in the crushing of the Arab Revolt in Palestine. As Chief of the Imperial General Staff, the professional head of the British Army, from 1955 to 1958, he was Prime Minister Anthony Eden's chief military adviser during the Suez Crisis. He is also credited as a founder of the United Kingdom's National Army Museum.
The Queen's Royal Irish Hussars, abbreviated as QRIH, was a cavalry regiment of the British Army formed from the amalgamation of the 4th Queen's Own Hussars and the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars in 1958. The regiment saw active service against insurgents in Aden; during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation and during the Gulf War, as well as regular service in West Germany as part of the British Army of the Rhine. The regiment was amalgamated with the Queen's Own Hussars to form the Queen's Royal Hussars on 1 September 1993.
Lieutenant Colonel Walter Lorrain Brodie was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
The 1st Green Jackets was an infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1958 to 1966. The regiment served in the Cyprus Emergency, Brunei Revolt, Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation and West Berlin. The regiment formed part of the Green Jackets Brigade and in 1963 was redesignated as a rifle regiment.
The 7th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade formation of the British Army. The brigade is also known as the "Desert Rats", a nickname formerly held by the 7th Armoured Division, of which the brigade formed a part of during the Second World War until late 1941.
Lord Rupert Charles Montecute Nevill was a member of the aristocratic Nevill family, he was treasurer and subsequently private secretary to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, between 1970 and 1982. He married Lady Anne Camilla Evelyn Wallop, daughter of The 9th Earl of Portsmouth and Mary Lawrence Post, on 22 April 1944.
Algernon Robert Fitzhardinge "Algy" Kingscote was a British tennis player, who won the Men's Singles event at the Australasian Championships in 1919. Kingscote also competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. He was born in Bangalore, India, in 1888.
Evans Fordyce Carlson was a decorated and retired United States Marine Corps general officer who was the legendary leader of "Carlson's Raiders" during World War II. Many credit Carlson with developing the tactics and attitude that would later come to define America's special operations forces. He is renowned for the "Makin Island raid" in 1942, and his raiders' "Long Patrol" behind Japanese lines on Guadalcanal, in which 488 Japanese were killed. Carlson popularized the phrase "gung-ho".
The 1st Armoured Brigade, raised as the 1st Light Armoured, later the 1st Armoured Brigade Group, was an armoured formation of the British Army.
The Royal Dragoons was a mounted infantry and later a heavy cavalry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1661 as the Tangier Horse. It served for three centuries and was in action during the First and the Second World Wars. It was amalgamated with the Royal Horse Guards to form The Blues and Royals in 1969.
Hon. Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole, was an Anglo-Irish British Army general and politician.
East Africa Command was a Command of the British Army. Until 1947 it was under the direct control of the Army Council and thereafter it became the responsibility of Middle East Command.
The Nevill Ranch raid occurred on the night of March 25, 1918 and was the last serious attack on a Texas ranch by Mexican rebels during the Bandit War. Though it is not certain, there was reason to believe that Villistas were responsible for the raid in which two people were murdered. Afterwards, the rebels withdrew to the village of Pilares, Chihuahua, in Mexican territory, under pursuit by a cavalry of American soldiers. A small battle was fought at Pilares on the following day, several more people were killed, and the Americans burned the village before they returned to Texas.
Antony Maxwell Ayrton known as Tony Ayrton, was an artist and camouflage officer. He is best known for his work on the large-scale deception for the decisive second battle of El Alamein, Operation Bertram.
From the Camouflage staff I was given a most devoted and effective sapper, Major Ayrton, who became my assistant and worked miracles.
--- Colonel Charles Richardson, deception planner for El Alamein
The 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of the Queen's Official Birthday celebrations during the month of June. The Queen's Birthday Honours for the United Kingdom were announced on 9 June; the honours for New Zealand were announced on 4 June and for Australia on 11 June.
John Castle Woollett, was a British Army officer. He joined the Royal Engineers in 1935 and studied for a degree in mechanical sciences at St John's College, Cambridge. Woollett joined the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France in September 1939, at the start of the Second World War. After the BEF was evacuated to the United Kingdom in 1940 he volunteered for commando service. Woollett commanded the demolition engineers in Operation Archery, a 1941 raid on Vågsøy in German-occupied Norway. He commanded 16 Field Squadron, an armoured engineer unit, from 1942. With the 79th Armoured Division he took part in the North-West Europe campaign of 1944–45, assisting with river crossings and demolition of German strongholds, and won the Military Cross.
