Desert Sappers cheered on medal day (From Free Press Series)

Desert Sappers cheered on medal day

TERRITORIAL Army soldiers serving with the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia) were presented with medals to mark their tour of duty in Iraq on Sunday.

At the ceremony on the town's Vauxhall Fields, 180 soldiers from the four squadrons that make up the regiment received the medals from HRH The Duke of Gloucester.

Forty-four soldiers were deployed to Iraq for the fighting phase, with the majority mobilised for a six-month tour of duty as part of Operation TELIC.

The soldiers returned home in January after carrying out general engineer support tasks, which included the reconstruction and maintenance of the local infrastructure in the Basra area.

After the medal ceremony people crowded on to the streets of Monmouth as the regiment re-exercised their right to the freedom of the town.

People cheered them as they paraded up the town led by The Band of the Corps of Royal Engineers to Agincourt Square.

The Mayor of Monmouth Councillor Anthea Dewhurst took the salute of the soldiers marching through the town.

She said: "It has been absolutely wonderful and an honour to represent the town in this way.

"It was a delight to see the pride and gratitude given to the regiment by the people of Monmouth.

"The soldiers have done a fantastic job and they thoroughly deserve the right to re-exercise their Freedom of the town."

Commanding Officer of the regiment Col David Caulfield said: "The response that we got from local people was incredible and it was obvious that the soldiers were full of pride.

"For us it was a really moving occasion which brought a lump to the throat.

"I wish to recognise the contribution of Monmouth town council, the two mayors and the clerk for their support during the past year.

"But it is the soldiers of the regiment who worked so very hard over the past 18 months to make the deployment such a success and have been instrumental in laying on this event.

"I hope you are proud of your regiment and its soldiers, I for one most certainly am."