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The Mercian Regiment is one of the new large infantry regiments of the British Army . The regiment's formation was announced on 16 December 2004 by Geoff Hoon and General Sir Mike Jackson as part of the restructuring of the Infantry - it is formed of three regular battalions, plus a TA battalion, and was created through the merger of three single battalion regiments:
The new structure sees the regiment having a single battalion of Armoured Infantry and two battalions of Light Role Infantry :
The regiment was formed on . The regiment's cap badge is a double headed Mercian Eagle with Saxon crown. This has been chosen because it forms a link to the regiment's recruiting area, which encompass a number of divergent counties that do not have traditional links, except under the ancient Kingdom of Mercia (unlike the other new regiments from Scotland, Wales and Yorkshire). It was originally intended to use the old Mercian Brigade badge worn by the Cheshire Regiment, Staffordshire Regiment, Worcestershire Regiment and Sherwood Foresters from 1958 to 1968, rather than create an amalgamated badge that would require elements from all of the antecedents. In 2005 this badge was rejected by the Army Dress Committee on the grounds that it had been the badge of a Territorial unit, The Mercian Volunteers, junior to the amalgamating regiments. Regiment's 'strangled chicken' badge rejected, (telegraph.co.uk), accessed August 22, 2007 Accordingly a slightly modified design was adopted. Various "Golden Threads", representing the traditions of predecessor units, are incorporated in the Mercian Regiment's uniform:
''Private Derby'', the mascot of the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters, will be the new regiment's mascot. He is described as "a pedigree Swaledale Ram ". Mercian Regiment Formation Update, March 7, 2007 (Ministry of Defence) The Mercian Regiment serves as the county regiment of the following counties: FORMATION The regiment formed on September 1 2007 ; at this point, 1 CHESHIRE moved to Catterick as part of 4 Mechanised Brigade , becoming 1 MERCIAN. At the same time, 1 WFR became 2 MERCIAN while part of London District (although the battalion was in Afghanistan at the time of re-badging), and 1 STAFFORDS became 3 MERCIAN at Tidworth . The 4th Battalion retained a multi-badge structure, with E Company ( Light Infantry ) West Midlands Regiment being badged as Rifles . ALLIANCES Although no list of regimental alliances has been announced as yet, due to the Mercian Regiment not forming until August 2007, using the large regiments that have formed already as examples, it can be assumed that all of the current alliances of the three individual regiments will be carried into the Mercian Regiment.
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