Harry and William and their military service.

[big bad john]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/core/Content/displayPrintable.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/05/12/nharry12.xml&site=5

Harry's road to the front line starts here
By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent
(Filed: 12/05/2006)



Prince Harry will begin the training this month that will prepare him for immediate deployment in Iraq, senior officers said yesterday.



For the next five months the newly-commissioned officer will take the troop commander's course in Dorset and get "up to his elbows in engine grease" while sharing a cramped and sometimes noxious tank with two others.

Extra security measures have been taken at the Armour Centre in Bovington where the prince will learn to lead a troop of four Scimitar armoured reconnaissance vehicles.

The training, which starts on May 22, will make Prince Harry qualified to lead his men into battle by October when he joins the Household Cavalry Regiment in Windsor.

Discussions are under way at a senior level to consider the security implications on sending the prince into Iraq where 109 British troops have been killed.

The Royal Armoured Corps has been on almost continuous operations for the past 10 years serving everywhere apart from Sierra Leone.

A squadron of Household Cavalry will deploy to Afghanistan next month and early next year another will be sent to Iraq for six months as part of 1 Armoured Brigade.

The decision how to use the prince, who has expressed a strong desire to fight alongside his men on operations, will be made by his commanding officer at Windsor, Lt Col Ed Smyth-Osbourne. "He is third in line to the throne and that brings with it certain implications. But Prince Harry is a troop commander and he has a job to do," said Col Jamie Martin, the chief of staff at the Armour Centre.

"Here he will be treated like any other officer and he will be addressed by me by his christian name and by others as Cornet Wales."

Cornet is a rank unique to the Blues and Royals and is used to address a second lieutenant.

"It will be a physically and mentally challenging course but one that will prepare him well for the future," the officer added.

Prince Harry will learn "the skills of a poacher" using his armoured reconnaissance vehicle and its surveillance equipment to be the eyes and ears of his commanders.

The eight-ton Scimitar, with a 30mm cannon and powered by a 4.2 litre Jaguar engine has been used extensively in Iraq for long-range patrols and will provide mobile armour for the lightly-armed troops in Helmand province in Afghanistan.

On the course the prince will learn driving and maintenance, signalling, gunnery and armoured tactics. When he goes to Windsor he will command a troop of 11 men including a "hugely experienced and wise" sergeant, two corporals and eight other soldiers.

Col Martin ended his briefing at Bovington by quoting a Second World War tank commander just after an engagement with the enemy. The anonymous officer said: "The 75mm is firing but the 37mm is firing traverse round the wrong way. The Browning has jammed. I am saying 'driver advance' on the radio set and the driver, who cannot hear me, is reversing and as I look out of the top of the turret and see 12 enemy tanks 50 yards away someone hands me a cheese sandwich."

Prince Harry should be prepared for things to be as chaotic, Col Martin added.

 

[big bad john]

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/TrainingAndAdventure/ArmyWinTidworthPoloChallengewithALittleHelpFromHarry.htm

Army win Tidworth polo challenge...with a little help from Harry
17 Jul 06
The Army celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Rundle Cup Polo match being played in Britain by winning the annual contest against the Royal Navy with a resounding eight goals to three and a half victory.


Cornet Harry Wales strides out on his pony whilst playing in the Army versus Navy polo match at the Rundle Cup. The Army won by 8 points to 3 and a half points.
[Picture: Sgt Gary Tyson]
In what is one of the biggest events in the Polo calendar the victory meant the Army lifted the trophy for the second successive year. In front of a crowd of more than 4,000, and on a perfect sunny afternoon at Tidworth Polo Club, Cornet Harry Wales, Blues and Royals, was the star player scoring three goals in the annual Inter-Services tussle.

The scoreline did not reflect the hard fought contest in a match of drama, speed, horsemanship and skill. The Army conceded a one and a half point handicap to the senior service but soon made up the deficit and ran out worthy winners.

The other Army team members were Major Richard Boyle, Scots Dragoon Guards, along with Captain Alex Hayman-Joyce and Major Nick Hunter both from Kings Royal Hussars. The Royal Navy team comprised Lieutenant Commander Nick Cooke-Priest, Commander Arnie Lustman, Commander Adrian Aplin and Captain Richard Mason.

Named after the Governor of Malta, Sir Leslie Rundle, the Rundle Cup dates back to 1909 when it was first played for on the Mediterranean island. The Royal Navy won the first match, with the Army victorious in the last to be played on the island in 1966. The annual trophy game was revived in 1976 with a team that included Lt HRH the Prince of Wales leading the Navy team to success on that occasion.

Back to 2006, and earlier in the afternoon the Combined Services Team beat South Africa, five goals to two and a half, for the Indian Cavalry Officers Trophy. The Services team was Group Captain Tim Brown RAF, Officer Cadet William Wales, Lt Jack Mann, Household Cavalry Regiment and Captain Mark Dollar, also Household Cavalry Regiment.


Prince William has a look of concentration at the start of the Combined Services match in which they played against South Africa. The Combined Services won the match by 5 points to 2 and a half points.
[Picture: Sgt Gary Tyson]
In what was a clean sweep of wins for members of the Royal family, Zara Phillips led a team of eventers in a light-hearted charity match that included a chukka on bicycles rather than ponies. They defeated a team of jockeys that included Richard Johnson, Mark Llewellyn, Tom Scudamore and Luke Harvey from Radio 5 Live.

The victors, all household names in the eventing world, lined up with Clayton and Lucinda Fredericks, Rodney Powel, Mark Corbett and Zara Phillips.

Director of the Rundle Cup, John Wright, was delighted with the outcome of the day:

"Each year the event gets bigger, better and we are attracting larger and larger crowds," he said. "It is very pleasing to see both Prince William and Prince Harry following in their father’s footsteps. He supported polo at Tidworth for many years and we hope that will continue through the Princes and their cousin Zara Phillips for another generation."

 

[big bad john]

Harry fulfils his boyhood dream (and at least the helmet fits this time)
JENNIFER SYM

ALMOST 13 years ago to the day, a young Prince Harry peered out from under a commander's helmet, dressed in army working fatigues, smiling shyly, aboard a Scimitar tank as he embarked on his first formal public engagement.

Now the 21-year-old Royal presents a very different picture at the helm as he fulfils his childhood dream of a military life.

Having successfully completed the "Signals" phase of his Troop Leaders' course at Bovington in Dorset, the third in line to the throne has now begun the second segment - "Driving and Maintenance" - where, for the first time, he will drive an armoured reconnaissance vehicle.

Cornet Wales, as he is now known, will eventually command 11 soldiers and four Scimitar tanks and hopes to see action on the front line.

A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "Prince Harry will be on the D&M course for the rest of this month, and will complete the entire Troop Leaders' course in October."

 

[Trooper Hale]

Onya John. Thanks, its inspiring to hear that. I'm biased but I'm really proud of our Royals at the moment, especially Harry and William. They've turned public opinion around that given new life to the Monarchy. Look what Harry's done for his image? He may not be a very academic kind of man but he must be quite switched on in other ways. He's realised he's done some stupid things but is turning that all around, and changing how people see him. He seems like a great young bloke. Its fantastic stuff, and even better that he's armoured!

 

[Springroll]

I think alot of it has to do with growing up too.
Things change, priorities change, everything changes.

Either way, both boys are doing well, and they have definitely helped in changing the face of the monarchy back to a more positive one, at least for me.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Quite possibly they will work a deal with the press where he disappears into a unnamed unit under another name, does his tour and the press gets free footage, photo’s and interviews after the fact.

I think they could also issue a "D" notice banning the press from issuing information for security reasons.

 

[civmick]

it would be nice to see some of them royal watcher types "embedded" - like to compare their action reportage with Christie Blatchford's  ;D

 

[big bad john]

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/PeopleInDefence/PrinceWilliamToJoinBluesAndRoyals.htm

Prince William to join Blues and Royals
21 Sep 06
His Royal Highness Prince William will join The Household Cavalry with the aim of becoming an armoured reconnaissance troop leader at the forefront of British Army operations, it was announced today, Thursday 21 September 2006.


William, who expects to complete his Officer Cadet Training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in December 2006, will join his brother, Prince Harry, in The Blues and Royals, one of the two regiments that form The Household Cavalry. Like all Officer Cadets at Sandhurst, Prince William considered a number of regiments before applying to join The Household Cavalry.

He based his decision on the variety of roles which the Regiment undertakes, from reconnaissance support to airborne forces, right through to ceremonial duties. The Prince was also attracted by the Regiment’s outstanding record in recent decades, most notably during the Falklands Conflict, the 1991 Gulf War, Bosnia and Kosovo, in Iraq and in Northern Ireland.

Prince William’s time in the Army will be divided into two parts. He will spend the first year or so continuing his training to become a fully qualified armoured reconnaissance troop leader and experiencing life as a young officer at Regimental duty.

This will include commanding a troop of twelve Household Cavalrymen, both in barracks and in the field. Following on from this period of Regimental service, Prince William will broaden his focus to encompass familiarisation attachments to the other two Armed Services. He will also spend time in this second period attaining his own personal military goals, which will emerge as his experience of the Army grows and his specific areas of interest develop.

At this time, interspersed with his military activities, he will be undertaking public engagements, which will become more frequent as he approaches the end of his service. Prince William will also aim to address the wider issues of preparing himself for his future roles; learning more about constitutional matters, charitable work and the organisation and estate management.


Finally, Prince William will be further developing his ideas for his medium-term role following Army service, both in supporting The Queen and The Prince of Wales and in furthering his own charitable interests.

Major General Sebastian Roberts OBE, General Officer Commanding London District and Major General Commanding The Household Division, welcomed the news:

"The regiment undertakes a wide range of operational and training deployments, from support to airborne forces right through to ceremonial duties. This variety of role provides an opportunity for independent command at a relatively junior rank.

"Prince William will not take operational command of a troop until he completes his specialist training."

 

[big bad john]

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-09-21T144700Z_01_L21532182_RTRUKOC_0_UK-WILLIAM.xml&pageNumber=0&imageid=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=NewsArt-C1-ArticlePage2

Prince William to join brother's army regiment
Thu Sep 21, 2006 3:43 PM BST
Email This Article | Print This Article | RSS [-] Text [+] LONDON (Reuters) - Prince William will join the Household Cavalry, his younger brother Harry's regiment, if he successfully completes his officer training, a statement from his father's office said on Thursday.

William, 24, second in line to the throne, will join Prince Harry in the Blues and Royals unit once he has finished his training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

"He based his decision on the variety of roles which the regiment undertakes, from reconnaissance support to airborne forces, right through to ceremonial duties," the statement from Clarence House added.

"The Prince was also attracted by the regiment's outstanding record in recent decades, most notably during the Falklands Conflict, the 1991 Gulf War, Bosnia and Kosovo, Iraq and in Northern Ireland."


Harry, 22, is a Second Lieutenant in the regiment having graduated from the same elite training academy in April.

He has joked in the past that, as he would initially be senior to William, he was looking to having his elder brother having to salute him.

William's time in the army will be divided between training to become a fully qualified armoured reconnaissance troop leader and gaining experience leading 12 soldiers in barracks and in the field, the statement said.

In addition to his military activities, he will also devote more time at the end of his service towards carrying out public engagements.

William, who has the prospect of eventually becoming Commander in Chief of the armed forces in the role traditionally occupied by the monarch, said before he joined the army that he expected to go wherever his men were sent.

His brother has made the same comments, but the Ministry of Defence has already said Harry might be shielded if his unit were sent to war and the prince became a specific target.

Currently troops from the Household Cavalry are serving with British forces in Helmand province in Afghanistan where fighting has been intense.

There is a tradition of royals serving in the armed forces. William's uncle, the Duke of York, flew a helicopter in the Falklands War in 1982 and his great-grandfather King George VI saw action in World War One.

 

[HItorMiss]

Not one of then with the stones to be a Para or an RM sad huh....

Seriously though I think nothing but good can come out of both Prince's doing Military stints in an operational Army unit, I just shudder that my future King will be a zipper head  ;D

 

[BillN]

BBJ -
To be honest I'm very disappointed in their choice of Regiment.   The last thing the HCR needs is another aristocratic officer...or two.....Gawd 'elp us !!  

It is no secret that moral in the British Army is pretty low, especially after the recent round of forced amalgamations.  I think those two young fella's would have done a heck of a lot of good if they had chosen a good county regiment........or perhaps Her Majesties Bootnecks.....or even, God bless us, Her Majesties Rockapes.

All this is going to do is reinforce the "poncy" reputation of the HCR....long hair and a inclination for dwopping our "R"s.  ???

(edited for spelling)

 

[big bad john]

I believe that they had "help" in their choice of regiments.

 

[JackD]

"there's a tradition...and his great grandfather King George VI saw action in World War One" - yes at Jutland - his brother Edward was in the trenches for a bit, Their father George V - famous for his tattoos - visited the trenches often... but no mention made here about the Duke of Edinburgh - a navy man during the Second World War.

 

[Old Sweat]

No mention was made of the Duke of Edinburgh because he was not a member of the royal family during the Second World War. The others were all in the line of sucession to the throne when they saw active service. For what it is worth Major Prince Christian Victor, a grandson of Queen Victoria, died of enteric fever during the Boer War while serving in the South African Field Force. He was an infantry officer who had seen a fair amount of active service in both Africa and India.

 

[baboon6]

Not one of then with the stones to be a Para or an RM sad huh....

Seriously though I think nothing but good can come out of both Prince's doing Military stints in an operational Army unit, I just shudder that my future King will be a zipper head  ;D

You can't join the Royal Marines from Sandhurst. RM officer training is entirely separate and is all done at the Commando Training Centre RM at Lympstone. It also takes about a year.

 

[tomahawk6]

If they had to choose a Household division regiment one should have selected an infantry unit - maybe the Welsh Guards.
At least they didnt join the Navy. ;D

 

[Kirkhill]

I wonder, like BBJ, if other considerations didn't enter into the decision.  Like security.  By putting them both in the same regiment then one security detail can cover them both.

I think it is unusual for two members of the Royal Family to serve concurrently.

 

[JackD]

yes true about the old Duke - however it is semantics isn't - as to what is the Royal family... Come to think of it you can I guess include the Kaiser in the Royal family..as he was a close relative.. hell you'd probably include a 1/4 of the people in Europe as being related to the Royal family. So much for that Victorian rectitude when it comes to sex... What was the old joke  - Some pukka-sahib Duke or Lord meeting a headhunter, in the wilds of Borneo, loinclothed, bone in his lip, feathers in his hair, clutching his spear and the chap speaking with the proper Oxbridge accent "Cheerio and how is dear old mumsie?"

 

[big bad john]

You can't join the Royal Marines from Sandhurst. RM officer training is entirely separate and is all done at the Commando Training Centre RM at Lympstone. It also takes about a year.

Some, a rare few go through Sandhurst and then go through the Young Officers Course at CTCRM.

 

[big bad john]

I wonder, like BBJ, if other considerations didn't enter into the decision.  Like security.  By putting them both in the same regiment then one security detail can cover them both.

I think it is unusual for two members of the Royal Family to serve concurrently.

Security concerncs were certainly part of the equation.  Prince Charle's and Prince Andrew's service overlapped.