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Recent releases
Dumfries will host a spectacular Homecoming Parade for local regiment The Royal Scots Borderers (1 SCOTS) on Monday 17 June 2013, marking the Battalion’s return from an operational tour of Afghanistan.
In September 2012, 1 SCOTS deployed to Afghanistan for 6 months as part of Task Force Helmand. They conducted two roles. The majority operated as the Brigade Advisor Group (BAG), responsible for training and developing the Afghan National Army (ANA) in preparation for British forces to withdraw in 2014. Having carried out this role on a previous tour in 2010, 1 SCOTS are regarded as having developed considerable expertise in this field. A smaller group was employed as the Brigade Operations Company (BOC), carrying out short-notice operations throughout Helmand in support of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). They have been involved in finding and seizing enemy weapons and explosives, impairing the capabilities of insurgents.
The parade will start at 1100 at DG One on Hoods Loaning. Around 200 soldiers and musicians and the regimental mascot will march. The route of the Homecoming Parade is Hoods Loaning, Shakespeare Street, Whitesands, Buccleuch Street (salute taken at Municipal Chambers), Burns’ Statue Square, High Street, English Street, and Hoods Loaning. The parade will arrive back at DG One at 1145.
The parade will be followed by a Civic Reception for The Royal Scots Borderers, which will be hosted by Dumfries and Galloway Council at DG One.
Councillor Brian Collins, Depute Leader and Civic Head of Dumfries and Galloway Council, said, “Many local men and women serve in The Royal Scots Borderers, carrying out difficult and often dangerous tasks on our behalf, and we’re very grateful for the work that they do. Many families in Dumfries and Galloway will have eagerly and anxiously awaited the safe return of their loved ones from their operational tour in Afghanistan. Like them, we’re glad to see them back. The Homecoming Parade and Civic Reception are our way of saying ‘thank you and welcome home’.”
Background:
The Royal Regiment of Scotland was formed on 28 March 2006 from the merger of the Scottish Infantry Regiments of the Line. The regiment has five regular battalions and two Territorial Army battalions. The 1st Battalion (The Royal Scots Borderers) was formed from the merger of the King’s Own Scottish Borderers and the Royal Scots.
The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment) was the oldest senior Regiment of the Line in the British Army, formed in 1633 for service in France. It was to become the model for all regiments. The regiment’s first battle honour was won at Tangier in 1680 and it amassed a further 148 battle honours.
The King’s Own Scottish Borderers was formed in 1689 by the beat of the drum and appointed to defend Edinburgh. In 1759, during the Seven Years War, the regiment fought at the Battle of Minden, which is still celebrated annually. Between 1689 and 2006, the regiment was awarded 131 battle honours.
Dumfries and Galloway was a key recruiting area for the King’s Own Scottish Borderers and they were admitted as Honorary Freeman of may former burghs across Dumfries and Galloway, including Dumfries and Stranraer (1953); Wigtown Newton Stewart and Kirkcudbright (1974); Sanquhar (1975); and Annandale and Eskdale District (1989).
Together with South Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway remains one of the main recruiting areas for the Royal Scots Borderers.
In April 2008, our Council unanimously agreed to grant the Freedom of Dumfries and Galloway to the Royal Regiment of Scotland; making us the first Council in Scotland to grant this honour to the new regiment. This was to recognise the outstanding service given by the national regiment and the excellent relationships developed between the local communities in our region and The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The Freedom of Dumfries and Galloway was granted to the Royal Regiment of Scotland on 7 June 2008, following a homecoming parade in Dumfries, which marked the regiment’s return from an operational tour in Iraq.
