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King Charles III

Camilla makes first visit to regiment with special link to Prince Philip

The Duchess of Cornwall visits the Rifles

The Duchess of Cornwall has paid her first official visit as Colonel-in-Chief to 5th Battalion The Rifles.

Camilla took over the role of Colonel of The Rifles from Prince Philip in a special double ceremony last year which turned out to be the Duke of Edinburgh’s final official engagement.

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Exactly four weeks after his death, the Duchess paid the troops a visit and met some of the Riflemen who formed part of the Guard of Honour at the Duke’s funeral.

Camilla also spoke to some of the soldiers who have just returned from a deployment to Estonia.

The engagement, carried out with social distancing measures in place, also saw the Duchess of Cornwall present Long Service and Good Conduct medals.

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The Duchess of Cornwall took over as Colonel-in-Chief in an event at Highgrove House last July. Camilla was welcomed to the role soon after Prince Philip had taken his leave as Colonel in another ceremony at Windsor Castle.

As she made her first official visit to the troops, the Duchess said she wanted them to know ”how proud I am to be your Colonel-in-Chief and I hope this will be the first of many visits.”

About author

Lydia Starbuck is Jubilee and Associate Editor at Royal Central and the main producer and presenter of the Royal Central Podcast and Royal Central Extra. Lydia is also a pen name of June Woolerton who is a journalist and writer with over twenty years experience in TV, radio, print and online. Her latest book, A History of British Royal Jubilees, is out now. Her new book, The Mysterious Death of Katherine Parr, will be published in March 2024. June is an award winning reporter, producer and editor. She's appeared on outlets including BBC 5 Live, BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Local Radio and has also helped set up a commercial radio station. June is also an accomplished writer with a wide range of material published online and in print. She is the author of two novels, published as e-books. She is also a marriage registrar and ceremony celebrant.