Coldstream Guards Born: England's Storied Regiment
Colonel George Monck raised a regiment at Coldstream, Berwickshire, on August 13, 1650, during the English Civil War. The regiment served under Cromwell, marched into London to help restore Charles II to the throne in 1660, and then simply refused to disband when the rest of the New Model Army was dissolved. They argued, successfully, that they were now a royal regiment rather than a parliamentary one. This bureaucratic survival trick made the Coldstream Guards the oldest continuously serving regiment in the regular British Army. They have fought in nearly every major British conflict since, from Waterloo to the World Wars, and still mount the ceremonial guard at Buckingham Palace in their distinctive bearskin hats and red tunics.
August 13, 1650
376 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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