Bright blue skies greeted the Queen as she arrived to meet soldiers and families of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (SCOTS DG) at their new barracks in Leuchars today.
Around 1800 military personnel and their families are to be stationed at the former RAF base, with just over a quarter of those associated with the SCOTS DG following the unit’s relocation from Fallingbostel in Germany.
The Queen, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment, arrived by helicopter from Balmoral before taking time to talk to soldiers and families about their work and activities and listening to the regiment’s world famous pipes and drums.
There was also a lighthearted moment when the regimental drum horse Talavera perhaps got a bit over-familiar with the royal visitor as she offered it some food, with Her Majesty having to wipe away some excess horse saliva.
The Queen chats to soldiers of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards at Leuchars Station in Fife: pic.twitter.com/5PAHOm2CxO via @cat_webster
— Press Association (@PA) September 28, 2015
Children from Leuchars Primary School were also invited to the base and were present as the monarch unveiled a new stone cairn to name the eastern side of the camp ‘Waterloo Lines’.
Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin Cattermole, Commanding Officer, said he was delighted to welcome the Queen to Fife.
“On behalf of the SCOTS DG, it was an honour to be visited by our Colonel-in-Chief in our new home, Leuchars Station,” he said.
“Her majesty took great interest in the work the regiment is doing, both here in the UK supporting UK resilience and overseas on numerous training missions.”
The switch to Leuchars from Germany marks the first time the regiment has been based in Scotland for more than 40 years.
The move is part of the army’s restructuring, which will see more than 5,000 British Army personnel and their families totalling some 10,000 people return from Germany to various UK locations this year and all troops return from Germany by 2020.
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