15 October 2007
City of London hosts homecoming ceremony for soldiers
One hundred and forty soldiers, largely Territorial Army members
from London, of Somme Company, The London Regiment, paraded at the
City of London’s Guildhall yesterday (Sunday 14 October) on their
return from Afghanistan. They were greeted by the Lord Mayor
of City of London, Alderman John Stuttard, and many soldiers met
their families for the first time since returning.
During the parade the Lord Mayor and The General Officer
Commanding London District and Commander Household Division, Major
General “Bill” Cubbitt, and other senior officers presented
operational medals to every member of Somme Company present,
including those wounded during the six-month tour.
Somme Company, comprising 76 members of The London Regiment, 29
soldiers of 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, 20 other TA soldiers,
10 Regular Army Reservists and five airmen of the Royal Auxiliary
Air Force, had spent six months supporting 12 Mechanised Brigade in
its operations against the Taliban. This is the first time a
TA Infantry Company has integrated and effectively used large
numbers of Regular soldiers under TA command on operations.
The ceremony was organised at the invitation of the Lord Mayor
before the recent public debate on ‘homecoming parades’. The City
and its Livery Companies have always been extremely supportive of
the Forces and have many strong connections with individual
units.
Deployed as the Force Protection Company for Camp Bastion in
April 2007, Somme Company was eventually involved in every aspect
of the Brigade’s tour. Roles included the provision of the
Immediate Response Team, the protection for helicopter-borne
medical teams; in six months the Company took part in 200
evacuation missions, often under fire. Also, Rifle Platoons
deployed forward to work alongside their Regular counterparts on
offensive operations and independently, they most recently acted as
mentors to units of the Afghan National Police.
The parade paid tribute to Guardsman Daryl Hickey, Grenadier
Guards, who sadly was killed in action while attached to Somme
Company.
The ceremony which was held on the Guildhall courtyard was
attended by several hundreds of families and friends. After
the parade the soldiers met their families and there were many
emotional scenes, including L/Cpl Field who announced his
engagement and Cpl Jason Turner who proudly embraced his daughter,
Shay, who was born while he was away.
Everyone then assembled in the Guildhall’s Great Hall for a
reception hosted by the Lord Mayor.
Ends
Notes for editors
The London Regiment is London’s TA Infantry battalion.
Formed in 1993 from a number of other units, the regiment traces
its history directly back to 1859 and sent over 80 battalions of
London soldiers to the First World War.
- It is the TA battalion within the Household Division and, where
possible, will provide reinforcement to Foot Guards battalions
deploying on operations (1st Battalion Grenadier Guards are part of
12 Mechanised Brigade
- The Battalion is headquartered in Battersea and has TA Centres
in Edgware & Hornsey, Balham, Westminster & Catford and
Camberwell
- The Regiment has deployed a total of 330 soldiers since January
2003, including two Rifle Companies to Iraq in 2004. Many of those
with Somme Company have served in Iraq and other theatres of
operations.
- Somme Company, is a composite company special formed for the
operation. It mobilised in January and spent two weeks at the
Reserves Training and Mobilisation Centre, Chilwell, to bring their
military skills to a certain level. They then spent six weeks
bringing their skills to the standards of their Regular Infantry
counterparts through exercises on Salisbury Plain and Otterburn,
Northumberland, culminating in a live firing exercise with tank,
artillery and helicopter support, before deploying to
Afghanistan.
For further information on The London Regiment or the event,
please see the website at
www.londonregiment.mod.uk or contact Major
Giles Morgan on 07711069661 or Lt Col David Sievwright on 0207 414
233.
For press enquires regarding the Lord Mayor and the City of
London, please contact Michelle Logie at the City of London’s Press
Office on 0207 332 3450 or
michelle.logie@cityoflondon.gov.uk.