Cap badge, 2nd Regiment of Bengal Cavalry, 1861-1890

Silver badge with the unit initials, 'B' and 'L', flanking the intersection of two crossed lances, surmounted by the regimental number, '2'.

Lieutenant-Colonel William Linnaeus Gardner (1770-1835) raised a Corps of Irregular Cavalry in 1809. 'Gardner's Horse' became the 2nd Regiment of Local Horse in 1823. In 1840 the unit became the 2nd Bengal Cavalry. In 1861, after the Indian Mutiny (1857-1859), the regiment was renamed the 2nd Regiment of Bengal Cavalry. The regiment took part in the Egyptian War in 1882, fighting at Tel-el-Kebir and Kassassin.

The regiment converted to lancers, becoming the 2nd Bengal Lancers in 1890. In 1903 the regiment was renamed again as the 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) and reverted to this title in 1922, following an amalgamation with the 4th Cavalry in the previous year. The regiment served on the Western Front and in Egypt and Palestine during World War One (1914-1918).

From the Field Marshal Sir John Chapple Indian Army Collection.