Historical Record of The Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment, 1958–2018

The Gurkha Army Service Corps, the predecessor of The Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment, was raised in Singapore in 1958 ten years after the transfer of Gurkha regiments from the Indian Army to the British Army and towards the end of the Malayan Emergency. Within four years of being formed, it was committed to continuous operations in Brunei and Borneo during Confrontation with Indonesia between 1962-66. It was also redesignated the Gurkha Transport Regiment in 1965 to reflect changes to the Army’s logistic structure. Between 1966-71, the Regiment was substantially reduced in size, along with the rest of The Brigade of Gurkhas, as Britain withdrew its forces from East of Suez. Concentrated in Hong Kong, the Regiment provided transport support to the Garrison for the next 20 years. In 1991, a composite squadron was sent to reinforce British Forces in the Gulf War after which, in preparation for the handback of Hong Kong to China, the Regiment moved to and became permanently stationed in the UK. In recognition of its past services, it was granted the royal title ‘The Queen’s Own Gurkha Transport Regiment’ in 1992. The following two decades saw it undertake multiple operational tours to the Balkans, Iraq, Cyprus and Afghanistan as well as providing humanitarian assistance to the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone. It also expanded both its role, to incorporate supply and catering, and size, which led in 2001 to it being redesignated to its current title ‘The Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment’. This history records the events and activities of the Regiment during its first 60 years of service to the Crown. While of wider interest to military historians, it is principally written for members of the Regiment, past, present and future.