Page 46 - 1RHA 2022

1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery
‘Where is 1 RHA based? I asked.
‘Larkhill’ they replied.
‘And where is that?’
‘Larkhill.... I just hope you have a good mess as the location is somewhat wanting’
Ididn’t quite know what to expect, everything I had heard was that they were incredibly posh and quite frankly eccentric. This may have been shaped by the fact the only serving officer I
recall who had been part of 1 RHA, liked to show off his can- non during Potential Officer visits from Sandhurst. A very surreal night, who knew you could get a gunpowder licence for an actual cannon.
So, with trepidation I moved into the new Campbell VC Mess; would the mess have a good culture? Would they have good par- ties? Would I be made to feel welcome?
It wasn’t long before I had an answer; Yes, Yes and Yes.
Yes, the mess had a good culture. Following on from 2 years of COVID-19 restrictions, Estonia rotations and working from home practices, a concentrated effort was made by the livers in, led by the SLIM, to re-establish some of the traditions that are essential to junior officers’ development and cohesion of the Mess. Coffee at 1000hrs was re-emphasised as an opportunity for the Offic- ers of 1 RHA to come together. It also a chance to make sure the Lines Book was duly updated. To choose just one of the many
memorable entries; when a not so junior officer enquired upon hearing the name ‘Colonel Roy,’ he responded ‘Who’s that?.’
Black Tie Tuesdays have been reinforced with livers-in expected to attend. These have been some of the most enjoyable nights in the Mess, especially when we host 19RA and 26RA. It was on one these nights that I was introduced to the game of ‘Schermuli’; a game of great complexity and one that I shan’t explain in detail but suffice to say I am terrible at it.
The Mess also seeks out opportunities for development of its Officers, whether that be attending events like the Shrapnel Lectures and Alanbrooke Lunch or whether that be the Dead Prussian Reading Club. There is a drive to enhance professional understanding and make each other better Officers.
Yes: 1 RHA certainly knows how to throw a party. From arriving at the Regiment, I have attended several formal functions such as Dine Ins, Dine Outs, Winter and Summer Balls. We have an awesome team of mess staff, led by Sharon the Mess Manager who help us pull together some great events and make sure the glasses are always topped up. In fact, so stealthy are they at top- ping up our glasses that occasionally someone takes a step past the liquid courage phase. On one such occasion, an officer who shall remain nameless got a tad overexcited, deciding it was a wise idea to call out senior members of RHQ for leaving early. Unsurprisingly, said officer was re-educated with a few extras, on top of all the other duties he was already doing. The Mess
Officers’ Mess Captain McLain Carter AGC (SPS)
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