 Its first commander was Friedrich von Blumenthal, who died unexpectedly in 1745; his brother Hans von Blumenthal, who, with the other officers of the regiment had won the "Pour le Mérite" in its first action at the battle of Hohenfriedberg, assumed command in 1747.Hans von Blumenthal was badly wounded leading the regiment in a successful cavalry charge in the battle of Lobositz and had to retire from the military.Initially, the Regiment was used in part as a training unit for officers as part of a programme of expansion of the cavalry.