During the days prior to the Royal Wedding, the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment will take part in several events.

On Wednesday 5 May, when the Danish Defence pays tribute to the Crown Prince and Crown Princess-to-be, The Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment will set up a provisional stable facility including 15 horses and the Regiment’s mascot, a pony called Aramis. Aramis will take children round the quay in a small carriage. Furthermore, the Regiment will ride patrols in the old red full-dress uniform along Langeliniekajen (Langelinie Quay), and at regular intervals various cavalry bugle calls will be heard.

On Tuesday 11 May, on the occasion of a banquet at Christiansborg Palace, the Regiment will participate with a command of ten men on foot as well as a mounted command in red full-dress uniform.

On Thursday 13 May, the Regiment will have a detachment of 35 men at the Royal Theatre on the occasion of a gala performance for the Crown Prince and Crown Princess-to-be. The detachment will wear the red full-dress uniform.

On Friday 14 May after the wedding ceremony, the Mounted Squadron of the Regiment will escort the Crown Prince and Crown Princess from Copenhagen Cathedral to Amalienborg Palace. The escort will include the Regiment’s standard and 50 horses, and the Hussar will be wearing the red full-dress uniform. Colonel J. Kidde-Hansen, Chamberlain, Commanding Officer of the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment will ride behind the horse-drawn coach with the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.

Connection with the Royal House/the Royal Household
The Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment serves HM The Queen. The Regiment is called upon as royal escort in connection with state visits, the New Year levee and special events related to the Royal House. Furthermore, a mounted escort is provided when ambassadors are received at Christiansborg Palace, Amalienborg Palace or Fredensborg Palace and in connection with the New Year levee at Christiansborg Palace.

Full-dress uniform
The Hungarian cavalry uniform inspired the full-dress uniform of the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment. The blue uniform jacket design is characteristic of all countries’ hussar units. Over the left shoulder, Hussar carry a red fur-lined jacket, called pels, which was meant originally to protect the hussar’s riding arm against sabre cuts.

Hussar jacket
The first hussars were dressed in a short pale blue jacket with white braiding. This jacket was called a dolman. The front of the dolman was covered in horizontal braiding. The point of the braiding was to make up for the fact that the Hungarian national costume did not include buttonholes. Instead, strings and round snap fasteners or pins were used to keep the various pieces of the outfit together. In 1870, the dolman was abolished and replaced by the present hussar jacket.

Pels
Since 1762, a red fur-lined jacket has been part of the Danish hussar uniform. It is called pels, and it is carried over the left shoulder. Officers carry a crimson-coloured pels with silver cords, and other personnel carry a bright-red pels.

Hussar riding breeches
The uniform includes pale blue riding breeches with white piping along the outside seam. The pale blue breeches were introduced in 1822. Until then, Hussar had worn tight breeches in various colours.

Hussar riding boots
Short boots were used at the establishment of the Guard Hussar Regiment in 1762, but since 1889 the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment has worn ordinary black riding boots. They are, however, like the original boot, decorated with a white line and a rosette at the top of the bootleg. In connection with the boots, ordinary strapped on spurs are used.

Kepi with pompon, svejf, cordon and hat guard
The hussar wears a so-called kepi on his head and on top of the kepi, fastened with a pompon, there is a so-called svejf made of hair from horse of buffalo. On the kepi, there is a so-called cordon, a string placed across the kepi. When on horseback, the hussar secures the kepi with a hat guard placed at the back of the kepi and round his neck. Officers wear a golden cordon and hat guard; other personnel wear a white cordon and hat guard.

Sabre pouch
The Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment is the only regiment today whose uniform includes the sabre pouch. The sabre pouch has a hard front, which carries the ruling monarch’s Royal Monogram. However, sabre pouches still exist carrying the Royal Monograms from the time of King Frederik V to HM The Queen. The sabre pouch was previously used for carrying orders and messages.

Sabre
In 1843, a sabre common to all Danish cavalry regiments replaced the original light, curved hussar sabre.

Valdrap
Over the saddle, a so-called valdrap is placed. It is a cloth with a serrated edge carrying the ruling monarch’s Royal Monogram. Apart from the Royal Monogram, the valdrap has not changed significantly since 1762.

Snekketøj
The harness, the so-called snekketøj, of the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment is decorated with small seashells, so-called kauriskaller. The shells were brought to Denmark from the mouth of a river in Africa. They were introduced in the Regiment under the name of snogepander in 1787. Apart from their attractiveness, these seashells served a military purpose in that they protected the horse against sabre cuts.

Standard and regimental colours
The Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment has both regimental colours and a standard. The colours and the standard were presented to the Regiment on 18 September 2002 by HM The Queen to replace the regimental colours and the standard of the three previous regiments, the Zealand Life Regiment, the Danish Life Regiment and the Guard Hussar Regiment.

History
The organisation of the Royal Danish Guard Hussar Regiment is the result of the Danish Defence Agreement of 1999. The corner stones of the new regiment are the personnel from the three previous regiments, the Zealand Life Regiment, the Guard Hussar Regiment and the Danish Life Regiment. The general history of the new regiment may be traced back to 1614, when Christian IV established the Zealand Life Regiment. The history of the old Guard Hussar Regiment goes back to 10 February 1762, and that of the Danish Life Regiment to 7 December 1763.