Page 37 - Mercian Eagle 2014

Mons Parade 24–26 Aug 2014
Lt Elliott, B (Malta) Coy, 1 MERCIAN
To mark the centenary of the Battle of Mons, 1 MERCIAN travelled to Belgium for a weekend to take part in a remembrance parade in the village of Audregnies.
On 23rd August 2014 the 120 soldiers and officers who were
there for the parade
took part in a series
That evening the Battalion was invited to the ‘British Ball’ in Audregnies. The party was great fun and the locals had even brewed a commemorative beer called ‘Ever Glorious’.
On the day of the parade the Battalion paraded through the
streets of Audregnies and down to the village cemetery where the Battalion Padre, Rev Ben Archibald, led a service alongside the local dignitaries. The Battalion then paraded
to the battlefield itself for the opening of a new memorial to commemorate the fallen soldiers.
It was a real honour to be involved in this event as it clearly meant a lot to all the inhabitants of Audregnies. All of the locals
were incredibly welcoming and there wasn’t a single house without a British flag flying from one of the windows. There can’t be any other village on the continent that has such a strong link to a British Regiment, or would put in so much effort to prepare for a visit like this one.
Majors Eddie Pickering, secretary of the CRA and John Cotterill, our battle field guide, at the British Ball
Major Grover at the British Ball
of TEWTs and battle
field studies under
the instruction of Maj
(Retd) John Cotterill.
This day was incredibly
interesting but also
provided some good training for the soldiers. The final battle field of the day was the battle field of Audregnies itself and all of the soldiers stood on the very ground that their forebears had fought on to win one of the Regiment’s most famous battle honours.
The party was great fun and the locals had even brewed a commemorative beer...
LCpl Kelly, Pte Keogh and Pte Buchanon enjoying themselves at the British Ball
Enjoying the band at the British Ball
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
35