Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse
Cap badge of the Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse
Active	1956-Present
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Yeomanry
Role	Light cavalry
Size	Since 1992 only one squadron
Part of	Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry
Garrison/HQ	HQ at Yeomanry House, Cupar
Nickname(s)	The Highland Cavalry
Motto(s)	Pro Aris et Focis (For Hearth and Home)
March	Quick - Wee Cooper of Fife (band); The Scottish Horse (pipes and drums) Slow - The Garb of Old Gaul (band); Bonnie Dundee (pipes and drums)
Commanders
Honorary Colonel	Major Sir James M.E. Lindsay Bt.
Notable commanders	Duke of Atholl Sir John Gilmour 2nd Bt Sir John Gilmour, 3rd Bt Earl of Lindsay
Insignia
Regimental Tartan (Murray of Atholl)

The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse (FFY/SH) is a special army unit in the United Kingdom. It is part of the Territorial Army, which is now called the Army Reserve. This unit was created when two older army groups, The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry and The Scottish Horse, joined together.

Today, the FFY/SH is known as C Squadron of the Queen's Own Yeomanry. This squadron is part of a larger group called the 15 (North East) Brigade. Even though it's part of a bigger group, it's looked after by the 51st (Scottish) Brigade because of where its members are located across Scotland.

The Queen's Own Yeomanry is the only unit of its kind that specializes in formation reconnaissance. This means they are experts at scouting ahead to gather information. They use special armored vehicles like the Scimitar and Spartan for this job. When needed, they can join regular army reconnaissance units. Members of the squadron have even served in real operations, like Operation TELIC, working alongside regular soldiers.

The FFY/SH and the units that came before it have earned many special awards for their bravery in battles. They have even had one soldier receive the Victoria Cross, which is a very high honor.

History of the FFY/SH
Special Awards and Honors
Unit Uniform and Symbols
Alliances with Other Units
Images for kids
See also

History of the FFY/SH

Scimitar vehicles previously used by the Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse Squadron

The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry and the Scottish Horse officially joined forces on November 1, 1956. This created the new regiment. However, in 1967, the regiment was put into a "suspended" state. This meant they couldn't recruit new members for a while.

Later, in 1969, the squadron became very small, almost like a training group. It was supported by another unit, the 153 (Highland) Transport Regiment. This small group was eventually closed down in 1975.

But the unit's history was not forgotten! In 1992, the C (Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse) Squadron was formed again. It became part of the Scottish Yeomanry and took on a new role: reconnaissance. This means they focused on scouting and gathering information. In 1999, the squadron moved to join the Queen's Own Yeomanry.

In 2007, the unit's special flag, called a guidon, was shown at a ceremony. This was when the Queen's Own Yeomanry received its first guidon from the Prince of Wales. In 2013, the squadron moved again, this time to the Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry.

Today, the squadron works as a light cavalry unit. They mainly use Land Rover RWMIK vehicles for their scouting missions.

Special Awards and Honors

The FFY/SH squadron has a very special connection to a Victoria Cross winner. This highest award for bravery was given to Lieutenant Colonel William English. He earned it in 1901 for his brave actions in South Africa. At that time, he was a lieutenant serving with the Scottish Horse, one of the units that later formed the FFY/SH.

Unit Uniform and Symbols

The cap badge of the Fife and Forfar Yeomanry/Scottish Horse is quite unique. It shows a knight on horseback, known as the Thane of Fife. Behind the knight, there is a cross of St Andrew. This cross has both laurel and juniper leaves on it.

The officers and soldiers of the regiment wear a special pattern of fabric called a tartan. This tartan is known as Murray of Atholl, which belongs to the Duke of Atholl. They wear this tartan in different parts of their uniform.

Alliances with Other Units

The FFY/SH has special connections, or alliances, with other military units around the world. These alliances help units support each other and share traditions.

Scotland - Atholl Highlanders (a Scottish ceremonial unit)
Australia - The 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers (an Australian army unit)
South Africa - Transvaal Scottish Regiment (a South African army unit)