The Chapel of The Queen’s Royal Regiment in Holy Trinity Church Guildford

Memorials in the Church

Above the Memorial are situated three stained glass windows subscribed for by the 3rd, 8th, and 10th Battalions. The window on the left (8th Battalion) represents the Victory over the Devil - St Michael slaying the Dragon. That on the right (10th Battalion) contains the figure of St. Catherine making her choice between the Crown of Laurels and the Crown of Thorns - the victory over the flesh. The centre window (3rd Battalion) depicts the victory of the Lamb, from the famous painting of Van Eyck. There is a dedicatory inscription at the foot of each window.

On the panels to left and right of the casket, are the Battle Honours awarded to the Queen’s and borne on the Colours from “Tangier 1662-80”, (the oldest Battle Honour in the British Army) to “Kohima”.

Above the north door is a Memorial Window to Brigadier-General Alexander William Taylor, late of The Queen’s Royal Regiment. It depicts Saint Oswald.	To the left of the Chapel entrance is a small tablet. “To the Memory of Captain Maurice Bell, late 3rd Battalion the Queen’s Regiment, who was killed in action on the Congo, while serving with the Belgian Army, 25th Jan., 1899. This Tablet was erected by his brother officers”. It is placed against the east wall of the church.

Immediately above the left hand roll of Battle Honours is the Naval Crown superscribed “1 June 1794”. In 1794 officers and men were embarked on ships of the Royal Navy to act as Marines. A naval battle took place against the French in which the Regiment served with great distinction. As a result of this battle the Regiment was authorised to wear as a Battle Honour on the Regimental Colour the Naval Crown. This Battle Honour has been known ever since as “The Glorious First of June”, and continues to the present day with The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment.

In the centre are two Cyphers of Queen Catherine within the Garter. The Cypher consists of two “C’s” interlaced.

Above the Battle Honours on the right is The Sphinx superscribed ‘Egypt’, another Battle Honour which is also displayed on the Regimental Colour today. It commemorates the part played by the Regiment in the Egyptian Campaign of 1801.

The Mottoes of the Regiment were ‘Pristinae virtutis memor’ - ‘Mindful of the gallant actions of the past’ and ‘Vel exuviae triumphant’ - ‘Even in defeat there can be triumph’.

After the Second World War the Regimental Council decided that selected Battle Honours awarded, would be incised on the right hand column, and that a Book of Life be created for the Second World War and a Third Book of Life would record those who died on service between the wars and post 1945 to 1959. These Books are contained in the central bronze and glass casket with the Book of Life from the First World War.

A view of the entrance to the Chapel from the rear of the Church. Above the Memorial on the left are the Colours of 5th Bn The Queen’s Royal Regiment (TA) presented by Her Majesty Queen Mary on 28th May 1926 at Guildford. They were laid up here in this church by 3rd Bn The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment (TA) successors to 5th Bn The Queen’s Royal Regiment (TA) on 25th October 1964.