The Duchess of Cornwall, newly-minted Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles, visited 2 Rifles’s Northern Ireland base in Lisburn to unveil a plaque for its Rifles Welfare Garden.
Camilla arrived with a fanfare played by buglers in the Rifles regiment and then met with the soldiers of 2 Rifles’s ‘A’ Company, and with the families and children of soldiers over a cuppa.
She then unveiled a plaque to officially open the Rifles Welfare Garden, which was started during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.
Camilla was joined by Sarah Huyler, who started the Welfare Garden and whose partner is the 2 Rifles’s Operations Officer, for some flower arranging in the Garden. Afterwards, she said of Camilla, “You can tell that The Duchess has an eye for detail and colour. She very quickly put together a very beautiful arrangement.”
“We were honoured to host Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cornwall, our new Colonel-in-Chief,” said Lieutenant Colonel Will Wells, Commanding Officer of 2 Rifles, on the British Army’s website. “We are very grateful for her ongoing support.”
Camilla, who became Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles last July, has carried out a few engagements with various Rifles units and regiments around the United Kingdom. She took over the role from her late father-in-law, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in what turned out to be his final royal, and public, engagement.
Earlier this month, she met with soldiers of the 5th Battalion, some of whom participated in Prince Philip’s funeral.
Last year, Camilla recorded a message for The Rifles ahead of Remembrance Sunday, saying: “Riflemen, with the rest of our nation, I am profoundly in your debt for all that you do, especially during these troubled times. Continue to uphold those qualities of discipline, courage and sense of humour that my father spoke of and be proud of all that you represent. Wherever you may be viewing this message, on operations in Afghanistan, deployed to Estonia, on exercise in the U.K. or indeed, enjoying some much-deserved leave, thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
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