Albuhera Day, the 16th May, commemorates the famous action at Albuhera in the Spanish Peninsular War when, on that day in 1811, three of the Regiments forebears, the 3rd Foot, the 31st foot and the 57th foot played a heroic part in this extremely bloody contest. It is therefore particularly fitting that the Queens Regiment has selected Albuhera Day as its Regimental Day, and it is celebrated in each battalion.

Battalion Days

1st Battalion  Glorious First of June(1794)
2nd Battalion 8th September Battle of Sevastopol(1855)
3rd Battalion 13th September Battle of Quebec(1759)

The Loyal Toast

The Queen's health is drunk seated, each mess member and guest responding to the toast in rotation. This custom has been inherited from the Royal Sussex and stems from their earliest days as the Earl of Donegall's'. It seems that the Earl required his officers to raise there glasses one by one so that he could be sure of their loyalty in those days of high tension in Northern Ireland. When they sailed from the Isle of Wight a year later (1792) they remained aboard to carry out commando raids and appear to have fallen into the lasting custom of drinking the toast seated, as in the Royal Navy. In view of the naval traditions inherited from other founder members, the custom was readily adopted by The Queen's Regiment. Both our Royal Colonels in Chief have graciously agreed that the toasts to them may also be drunk seated.

The Silent Toast

The Silent Toast Ceremony, inherited from the Middlesex Regiment, forms part of the Regimental Day ( Albuhera Day ) proceedings in all battalions. It is held in the Warrant Officers and Sergeants Mess and consists of a toast ' To the Immortal Memory', proposed by the Commanding Officer and drunk by officers and sergeants intermixed. The memory is to all who have contributed to the heritage of the Queens Regiment.

The Salt Ceremony

The senior officer dining and each officer on first dining with any battalion, takes salt from a special salt cellar as a mark of trust and welcome. This custom has been inherited from the East Surreys The cellar used by the 1st Battalion has a fragment of the Regimental Colour carried by the 31st at Sobraon inside its cover. Only when salt is taken is this fragment revealed, reminding the new officer of the responsibilities that accompany the welcome.

The Motto

UNCONQUERED I SERVE is of joint derivation from ancient mottos, stemming from founder members of The Queen's Regiment UNCONQUERED is a translation of INVICTA, the motto that goes with the White Horse of Kent. It was carried by the Kent Militia, passed on to The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment on its formation in 1881, and likewise to The Queen's Own Buffs in 1961. It is of specious origin, stemming from the fact that William the Conqueror allowed Kent alone to retain her ancient customs and liberties perhaps because the people fell in submission before him when he entered the county after defeating Harold at Hastings. However, Kent has defied all attempts at conquest ever since, thanks in no small measure to the sacrifices made by all the ancestors of The Queen's Regiment whether militiamen or regular, conscript or volunteer, and being an inheritance from the Militia. The word serves as a reminder of the immense range of fabrics that have gone into the building of the regiment's traditions.

I SERVE is a translation of ICH DIEN, the motto granted to the 77th with the Prince of Wales's feathers and subsequently adopted by The Middlesex Regiment (DCO). The Black Prince gained it because its former owner, the brave King John of Bohemia, served his cause unto death just as ancestors of The Queen's Regiment have done in their tens of thousands more recently. I SERVE is an essential complement to UNCONQUERED, emphesising that there can be no freedom from servitude without service.