Volunteer Forces on the Diamond Fields The regiment's origins lie in the early, lawless,
diamond rush days in
Kimberley in the 1870s. To bring law and order to the region, which was then known as
Griqualand West, the government encouraged the formation of part-time volunteer forces. Among them were the
Kimberley Light Horse and the
Du Toitspan Hussars, both formed in 1876, which amalgamated in 1877 to form the
Diamond Fields Horse. Volunteers from the DFH served in the
9th Frontier War in 1877, in operations in Griqualand West in 1878, and in the
Basutoland Gun War in 1880 and 1881. Kimberley later raised two more units, the
Victoria Rifles of Kimberley in 1887, and the
Kimberley Scots in 1890. They, along with the
Diamond Fields Artillery, amalgamated in 1890 to form the
Kimberley Rifles. Both the
DFH and the
Kimberley Rifles served in the 1896-1897
Bechuanaland campaign. In 1899, the two units amalgamated to form the
Kimberley Regiment. Regimental traditions have survived from each of the constituent cavalry, artillery and rifle units, with a distinctly Scottish element very much in evidence in the uniforms, pipe band and regimental culture to this day. in the Armoured Brigade of the
6th South African Armoured Division throughout the Italian Campaign. Winning Battle Honours and awards for bravery, the Kimberley Regiment also suffered more casualties than any other South African regiment in the campaign.
Border War Kimberley Regiment was the first to become officially bilingual (English and Afrikaans) in South Africa, in 1963. It was later, in 1977, the first South African Regiment to apply to become multiracial, although the request was not approved at the time. The regiment served in the
South African Border War in the 1970s and 1980s.
SANDF Era Since 1994 it has been deployed in peace-keeping roles in the
Sudan and the
Democratic Republic of Congo. == Leadership ==