The regiment was originally formed as A Company, Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps in May 1916 during the First World War (1914–1918).

Remaining active in the army during the interwar period, in 1939 it was renamed the 1st Royal Tank Regiment.

During the Second World War (1939–1945) the regiment took part in the Siege of Tobruk in the summer of 1941 and the Battle of El Alamein in October 1942, the advance up Italy in late 1943, the Normandy landings in June 1944 and the Western Allied invasion of Germany in 1945.

When it left Hong Kong in 1960 it replaced the Comet tanks with Centurions at Hohne, West Germany.

[4] On 25 June 2008 at Buckingham Palace, both 1RTR and 2 RTR were presented with their new Standard by The Queen, which included the new Battle Honour of Al Basrah 2003.