Button, 9th Regiment of Bengal Lancers, pre-1901 (gilt)

Button, 9th Regiment of Bengal Lancers, pre-1901. Gilt button made by Ranken and Company, Calcutta, with crossed lances, unit initials, ‘BL’, surmounted by a crown. The 9th Bengal Lancers evolved from Hodson’s Horse, an irregular cavalry unit raised by Brevet Major William Hodson during the Indian Mutiny (1857-1859). The 9th Bengal Cavalry was one of three regiments formed from Hodson’s Horse. Converting to the lance in 1885, the 9th served in the Sudan campaign (1885-1886) and on the North West Frontier from 1895 to 1898. During World War One (1914-1918) the regiment served on the Western Front and in Palestine. In 1921 9th Hodson’s Horse were amalgamated with 10th Duke of Cambridge’s Own Lancers (Hodson’s Horse), forming the 4th Duke of Cambridge’s Own Hodson’s Horse in the following year. Post-independence, the 4th (Hodson’s) Horse retained it’s founder’s name, as part of India’s armoured force. From the Field Marshal Sir John Chapple Indian Army Collection.