Royal Horse Artillery

The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. Although the cavalry link remained part of its defining character, as early as the Battle of Waterloo the RHA was sometimes deployed more along the lines of conventional field artillery, fighting from comparatively fixed positions. The Royal Horse Artillery, currently consists of three regiments, (1 RHA, 3 RHA and 7 RHA) and one ceremonial unit (King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery). Almost all the batteries of the Royal Horse Artillery have served continuously since the French Revolutionary Wars or Napoleonic Wars, except the King's Troop, created in 1946, and M Battery which was 'reanimated' in 1993. Horses are still in service for ceremonial purposes but were phased out from operational deployment in the 1930s. History In 1793, in the course of the French Revolutionary Wars, Great Britain and allied European powers declared war on France over French occupation of the Rhine delta and Antwerp, precipitating the Flanders Campaign. Britain remained in conflict with France for almost 22 years, during which time significant progress was achieved in artillery development. The first two troops of Horse Artillery (A – later entitled "The Chestnut Troop" – and B) were raised in January 1793 at Goodwood, West Sussex, by the Master-General of the Ordnance, the 3rd Duke of Richmond, to provide fire support for the cavalry. They were joined by two more troops in November 1793. Each troop had six 6-pounder guns. Another development was the formation of a headquarters staff providing a channel between the regiment and the Board of Ordnance. Captain John Macleod was the first brigade major and became the first deputy-adjutant-general in 1795. By 1806, eleven troops had been formed, with ten companies of the Royal Irish Artillery incorporated, as the Seventh Battalion, after the union with Ireland in 1801. The Royal Regiment of Artillery was not part of the British Army at this time, but part of the establishment of the Board of Ordnance, with the Master-General its commanding officer; only after the Board's abolition in 1855 did the Artillery become part of the British Army under the Commander-in-Chief of the Forces. All RHA personnel were mounted.