Page 12 - Cadet Review Spring 2023

Joint Service News
WHAT IT MEANS TO HAVE BEEN A LORD-LIEUTENANT’S CADET
By Corporal Salahudeen Hussain
Over the past 12 months, I have had the honour
of being the Lord-Lieutenant’s cadet for South Yorkshire. One of my first duties was to accompany the Lord-Lieutenant to the Barnsley Cenotaph for Remembrance Day. My first ever parade as a 13 year old Royal Marines Cadet was on Remembrance Sunday so it has extra special meaning for me. I was responsible for handing the Lord-Lieutenant the wreath that she would lay. It was an occasion filled with meaning; remembering the past and ensuring we learn the lessons for the future.
I was also able to view the ceremony from
an entirely new perspective. In previous years, I
have been with the rest of my troop rather than dignitaries. I spent time talking to Dan Jarvis MP, a former officer in the Parachute Regiment. I also had opportunities to discuss the significant contribution of Muslim Commonwealth soldiers during both World Wars with those in attendance. I particularly enjoyed relaying the story of Fazal Din VC, see link to The London Gazette https://www.thegazette.co.uk/ London/issue/37091/supplement/2647/data.pdf
One of the highlights of my term was accompa- nying the Lord-Lieutenant to the High Sheriff of South Yorkshire’s Legal Service in Sheffield. It was especially important to me as it marked the first time
I will forever be honoured to have served both Monarchs and the Lord- Lieutenant
of South Yorkshire
both myself and my father (a then Queen’s and now King’s Counsel) were together in our ceremonial dress. I relished the fact that, due to my official position, I was above him in the order of precedence when we processed through Sheffield!
Towards the end of my term, we received terrible news. Whilst at my unit, our Sergeant informed us that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II had passed away. We quickly mustered on the deck to lower our ensign and to pay our respects during colours. We then sang, for the first time, the national anthem to our new monarch, His Majesty King Charles III. I was now in a uniquely strange position; I had become one of the few Lord-Lieutenant’s Cadets to serve both a Queen and a King.
Whilst people are free to question the role of the Monarchy in modern Britain, the outpouring of emotion and queues for miles illustrated how important the institution of the Monarchy is to so many people and our national identity.
I now move on towards exams, university and
a role in the Reserve Forces whilst studying Medicine. I will forever be honoured to have served both Monarchs and the Lord-Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, Dame Hilary. I wish all new Lord-Lieu- tenant’s cadets the very best of luck. Seize every opportunity offered to you and show initiative in identifying others.
12 CADET REVIEW SPRING 2023
Salahudeen, on appointment with the outgoing and incoming Lord-Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, Mr Andrew Coombe CVO and Dame Hilary Chapman DBE.