Cavalry and Guards Club
Encyclopedia
| Founded | 1810 (Guards' Club Guards' Club The Guards' Club, established in 1810, was a London Gentlemen's club for officers of the Guards Division, originally defined by the club as being the Coldstream, Grenadier Guards or Scots Guards, traditionally the most socially elite section of the British Army. Officers of the Welsh and Irish... ); 1890 (Cavalry Club Cavalry Club The Cavalry Club was a London gentlemen's club, which was established in 1890. In 1975, it merged with the Guards' Club, and became the Cavalry and Guards Club, which still exists today.... ); 1976 (merged club) |
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| Home Page | http://www.cavgds.co.uk/ |
| Address | 127 Piccadilly Piccadilly Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St... |
| Clubhouse occupied since | 1908 |
| Club established for | Cavalry Cavalry Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms... and Guards Guards Division The Guards Division is an administrative unit of the British Army responsible for the administration of the regiments of Foot Guards and the London Regiment.-Introduction:... officers |
| Club motto | Septem juncta in uno |
The Cavalry and Guards Club is a London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
gentlemen's club
Gentlemen's club
A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...
, at 127 Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
, situated next to the RAF Club. It has three foundation dates:
- 1810, the foundation date of the Guards' ClubGuards' ClubThe Guards' Club, established in 1810, was a London Gentlemen's club for officers of the Guards Division, originally defined by the club as being the Coldstream, Grenadier Guards or Scots Guards, traditionally the most socially elite section of the British Army. Officers of the Welsh and Irish...
, which was based in Pall MallPall Mall, LondonPall Mall is a street in the City of Westminster, London, and parallel to The Mall, from St. James's Street across Waterloo Place to the Haymarket; while Pall Mall East continues into Trafalgar Square. The street is a major thoroughfare in the St James's area of London, and a section of the...
. - 1890, the foundation date of the Cavalry ClubCavalry ClubThe Cavalry Club was a London gentlemen's club, which was established in 1890. In 1975, it merged with the Guards' Club, and became the Cavalry and Guards Club, which still exists today....
, which has always been based at its current location. - 1976, the date when the two clubs merged.
When the Cavalry Club first occupied the site in 1890, it was a proprietary club owned by an officer in the 20th Hussars
20th Hussars
The 20th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. In 1922 it was amalgamated with the 14th Hussars to form the 14th/20th Hussars, later the 14th/20th King's Hussars.-History of the 20th Hussars:...
, but five years later, ownership passed into the hands of its members and it became a members' club. They raised the funds to build an entirely new clubhouse, which was completed on the site in 1908. The work was carried out by the architect's firm Mewes and Davies.
Edward VIII was known to spend a great deal of time in the Cavalry Club premises in the 1920s and 1930s, when he was Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
.
The club narrowly avoided closure in 1987, when its landlord sold the premises on to a property developer, who planned to convert the building into luxury flats. This was averted through the membership raising the capital to buy the property for the club.