Museums

Thousands of visitors have flocked to an exciting new military museum in Nottinghamshire, following its recent opening by Her Royal Highness the Princess Alexandra, Deputy Colonel in Chief of the Queen’s Royal Lancers.

The Queen’s Royal Lancers and Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum at the Thoresby Courtyard, has proved to be a runaway success during its first few weeks of being open to the public.

Already attracting more than a thousand visitors a week, Curator Captain Mick Holby is delighted that the unique collection of exhibits, ranging from arms, medals and silver to uniforms and paintings, is providing an endless source of fascination to visitors from Nottinghamshire and beyond.

Says Mick, who served in Northern Ireland, Cyprus, Germany and the Oman during a 25-year career with the 17th/21st Lancers: “Thoresby is a fantastic venue and the museum provides a great opportunity to bring together three fine collections that would normally be unavailable to public access in regimental collections not normally seen by the public.

“As it’s free to enter, the museum is enabling the public to see more of their local history through the eyes of the collection. It’s also proving to be a great day out for families during the school holidays. The exhibition has attractions to appeal to all ages.”

The exhibits at the new museum illustrate the role the local regiments have played in the great battles of the last three centuries.

Created by The Queen’s Royal Lancers, a cavalry regiment, and The Nottinghamshire Yeomanry, made up of The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry and the South Nottinghamshire Hussars, in partnership with the Stonebridge Trust, the museum tells the human, social and military history of the regiments as well as the ongoing story of the British Army today.