The regiment converted to artillery in 1920 and served as such in the early years of the Second World War, before becoming part of the Chindits in Burma.

After Britain was drawn into the French Revolutionary Wars, Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger proposed in 1794 that the counties should form a force of Volunteer Yeoman Cavalry (Yeomanry) that could be called on by the King to defend the country against invasion or by the Lord Lieutenant to subdue any civil disorder within the county.

[3] In 1819 (the year of Peterloo) six independent troops of Westmorland Yeomanry Cavalry were raised at his own expense by Colonel the Hon Henry Lowther, MP.

The Westmorland & Cumberland, Lanark, and East Lothian Yeomanry constituted the Cavalry Brigade of VIII Corps based at Musselburgh.

This was never more than a paper organisation, but from April 1893 the Army List showed the Yeomanry regiments grouped into brigades for collective training.

[8] Following a string of defeats during Black Week in early December 1899, the British government realised that it would need more troops than just the regular army to fight the Second Boer War.

The force was organised as county service companies of approximately 115 men signed up for one year, and volunteers from the Yeomanry and civilians (usually middle and upper class) quickly filled the new force, which was equipped to operate as Mounted infantry, armed with a Lee–Metford infantry rifle and bayonet instead of a cavalry carbine and sabre.

Warren had placed insufficient pickets and before dawn on 30 May a force of Boers surrounded the camp, infiltrated into the garden and prepared to attack.

The two IY companies advanced to support their picket on the southern ridge and brought their two Colt machine guns into action.

Leaving a party to keep down enfilading fire from the garden, and the Paget's Horse detachment to protect the machine guns, the rest of the IY advanced by rushes over open ground towards the ridge.

[4][19][20][21][22] The First Contingent of the Imperial Yeomanry completed their year's term of service in 1901 and 24th Company went home in May, having earned the regiment its first Battle honour: South Africa 1900–01.

[24][a] In 1900 the WCY carried out its annual training on Brackenber Moor near Appleby, and later the Earl of Lonsdale made available the 'Elysian Fields' at Lowther Park.

7, c.9),[25][26] the WCY transferred to the new force, dropping the 'Imperial' from its title and administered by the Cumberland and Westmorland Territorial Association under the chairmanship of the Earl of Lonsdale, now the regiment's Hon Colonel.

It was now distributed as follows:[2][5][27][28] [29] The WCY, together with the two yeomanry regiments in Lancashire, was attached to the TF's Welsh Border Mounted Brigade for peacetime training, but would be assigned to other formations in the event of war.

By July 1915, it was under the command of the 2/1st Western Mounted Brigade (along with 2/1st Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry[42] and the 2/1st Lancashire Hussars[41]) and in March 1916 was at Cupar, Fife.

[49] Before the TF reformed on 7 February 1920 the War Office had decided that only a small number of mounted Yeomanry regiments would be required in future, and the remainder would have to be re-roled, mainly as artillery.

[b] The WCY, 17th in the order of precedence, therefore converted to the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) as 2nd (Cumberland Yeomanry) Army Brigade[c] with two batteries and headquarters at Carlisle.

[58] In 1938 the RA modernised its nomenclature and a lieutenant-colonel's command was designated a 'regiment' rather than a 'brigade'; this applied to TA field brigades from 1 November 1938.

After being withdrawn from Tobruk it took part in the bitter fighting of Operation Crusader, serving with the 7th Armoured Division (Desert Rats).

[6][65][66] Following the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor and Malaya the regiment was moved in February 1942 to defend Ceylon as part of 16th Infantry Brigade.

[71][74][75] It was only at the end of 1940 that the RA began producing enough battery staffs to start the process of changing regiments from a two-battery to a three-battery organisation.

In May 1944 55th (WL) Division reverted to the higher establishment, implying that it might be brought up to full strength and deployed to reinforce 21st Army Group in the invasion of North West Europe (Operation Overlord).

However, although it was shipped back from Northern Ireland to England on 7 July 1944 and came under GHQ Home Forces, it was never employed, and it ended the war in Western Command.

The battalion was reduced to a cadre in 1969 and reconstituted as B (4th Border Regiment) Company, Northumbrian Volunteers, in 1971, when the yeomanry lineage was discontinued.

[2][47][55][6][79][80] Details of the dress initially worn by the troops of Westmorland Yeomanry Cavalry remain obscure as only a shako has survived from the 1818 era and contemporary written records are vague:[83] they were described at that time as wearing 'Skiddaw grey trousers and scarlet jackets with headgear that was wonderful to contemplate in shape as much like a big frying pan as anything'.

Facing colours on collars and cuffs were also white, 'trowsers' (sic) were of blue cloth and shakos were worn with black feathers.

As part of the Territorial Force the regiment continued to wear the now historic hussar jackets as parade dress, although scarlet and white peaked forage caps replaced the busbies for other ranks.

On mobilisation in August 1914 the regiment appeared in the standard khaki service dress of the regular cavalry, although initially ordered to retain the scarlet and white jackets of peacetime for off-duty wear.

These distinctions were carried over to 851 (WYC) Bty in 1964, with in addition a newly designed silver anodised yeomanry cap badge that had been authorised for 251 Rgt but never used.

[55] The Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry was awarded the following battle honours (honours in bold are emblazoned on the regimental colours):[2] The following served as Honorary Colonel of the regiment:[2][8] A granite memorial to those townsmen who died in the Second Boer war (including members of 24th Company, IY, killed at Faber's Put in 1900), was erected in front of Penrith Town Hall.