The Rifle Volunteers is a regiment of the British Territorial Army.
History
The Rifle Volunteers were formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of the amalgamation of the 6th Battalion, The Light Infantry, 4th (V) Battalion, The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and elements of the 2nd (V) Battalion, The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment in consequence of the reforms implemented due to the Strategic Defence Review. The HQ is based at Exeter and the Regiment is comprised of 5 companies:
- The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment Company
- C (Devonshire and Dorset Regiment) Company
- D (Cornwall Light Infantry) Company
- E (Devonshire and Dorset Regiment) Company
In April 2004 a composite company (Salamanca Company) of the Regiment was dispatched to Basra, Iraq attached to the 1st Battalion Cheshire Regiment, as part of 1 Mechanised Brigade , part of the Multi-National Division (South East) . The Company returned home later that year. The Regiment is presently part of 43 (Wessex) Brigade .