Original British Victorian P-1847 Dragoon Style “Albert” Helmet for The Queen’s Own Royal Yeomanry (Staffordshire Yeomanry) Light Cavalry Regiment with Black Plume – 1860-1870s Era Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. The Albert helmet is a type of dragoon helmet introduced by the British military in the 19th century. The helmet was developed by Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1842, and was first introduced for service with the Household Cavalry in 1843. The helmet was introduced to other heavy cavalry units in the British Empire in 1847.

This example is in excellent condition with signs of faithful wear. The badge on the front indicated which element utilized the helmet, in this case it was for the Yeomanry. The Staffordshire Yeomanry (Queen’s Own Royal Regiment) was a mounted auxiliary unit of the British Army raised in 1794 to defend Great Britain from foreign invasion. It continued in service after the Napoleonic Wars, frequently being called out in support of the civil powers. It first sent units overseas at the time of the Second Boer War and saw distinguished service in Egypt and Palestine in World War I. During World War II it gave up its horses and became a tank regiment, serving in the Western Desert and landing in Normandy on D-Day. Postwar the Staffordshire Yeomanry became part of the Queen’s Own Mercian Yeomanry with one of the squadrons being designated ‘Staffordshire Yeomanry’ until 2021.

The overall condition is quite nice and is presented without any extensive damage. The helmet body does have a few minor dents present but nothing that subtracts from the beauty of it. The front plate still retains all of the original silver finish with all details still easily discernible. There is no chinstrap/scales present with one of the rosettes for attaching the chinscales is missing on the left side. The interior still retains a lovely, but worn red leather lining.

A lovely example ready for further research and display.