Freedom parade for the last time

[Anth]

Soldiers past and present marched proudly through Salisbury city centre for the last time to mark the final freedom parade of the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire and Light Infantry (RGBWLI).

Anthony Charles Walsh, aged 68 from Salisbury was member of the Regiment between 1958-1960
[Picture: Gary Tyson]

It was one of 11 parades held to mark the passing of the Regiment before it merges with the Devon and Dorset Light Infantry to become the 1st Battalion, The Rifles in February 2007. The other parades were held in Bristol, Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Stroud, Swindon, Devizes, Abingdon, Wallingford, Reading and Windsor, all traditional recruiting areas for the regiment.

The 1st Battalion The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry returned from a successful six month tour of Afghanistan last April.
Speaking about the parades, the Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel David Brown said:

"This was a wonderful way to say thank you to all the people in our home towns for providing so many of our excellent soldiers in the past and reminding them that we will be carrying on recruiting from the areas for years to come.

"It gives us great pleasure to exercise our freedoms, maintaining our proud heritage and regional links."

The RGBWLI is one of the youngest regiments in the British Army, but it was formed from the Gloucestershire Regiment and the Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment whose 300 years of history and traditions it inherited. It has gained 209 battle honours, 16 Victoria Crosses and one George Cross. Since it formed in 1994, the Regiment has completed demanding and successful tours in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan.

It is currently based in Chester, but once the new battalion forms it will move to a new base in Chepstow. It will then enter a training cycle with the aim of being operationally deployable by next autumn.

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