Page 5 - The Royal Lancers Chapka 2017

REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL LANCERS (QUEEN ELIZABETHS’ OWN) 3
Colonel of the Regiment’s Foreword
Now three years old and deploying on its first operational tour as part of the United Kingdom’s contribution to the United Nations Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), we can be certain that The Royal Lancers (Queen Elizabeths’ Own) has earned fully its place in the Army’s Order of Battle. Indeed, the ongo- ing tour, no doubt known to many reading this journal, will be the first operation for many members of the Regiment as the years of recent campaigning begin to fade. Cyprus may not in- volve the military hardship, technical sophistication, tempo or dangers of Operations TELIC and HERRICK and, of course, Operation BANNER, but there is enough to test our metal and any mistakes made at the lowest levels will quickly reverberate at the highest. As it ever was, the country remains a melting pot of politics as the West meets the (Middle) East. I am longing to visit Nicosia in July and I am extremely confident that everyone on deployment will be building on what has been a most success- ful start to the tour.
The serving regiment continues to flourish. While it is easy to be downbeat about Defence, often encouraged by the media, I am always impressed by how positive everyone is at Regimental Duty. This point was made to me emphatically at the end of last year by the Divisional Commander following a visit to the Regi- ment in the field, after which he told me that he found our sol- diers more positive than any in his division. I am also impressed by the energy and enthusiasm shown at all levels; our soldiers don’t stand still but seek opportunities and go out of their way to make a difference, be it in or out of uniform. I applaud this attitude and am often being told of it by senior officers who have been in contact with the Regiment. As a result we are becoming very highly respected both within and without the Army. For example, there is no shortage of young men and women who are seeking a commission in the Regiment. In addition, our reputa- tion following Exercise NORTHERN LANCER (about which you will read later in this journal) is one of real initiative, confi- dence and ability. We should all be proud of them and I take my hat off to the Commanding Officer, his command group and all ranks at Regimental Duty for making it so.
I am also very excited about the work of our Old Comrades’ Committee as they seek energetically to achieve our vision of a vibrant Old Comrades’ Association. This supports the three pillars of Benevolence, Remembrance and Veterans’ Network- ing whilst properly recognising the fine histories of our ante-
cedent regiments, looking after the interests of our veterans and forging the bonds between our veterans and the serving regi- ment. We now have a governance structure and will shortly have established mechanisms to deliver this vision which will make us the envy of other Royal Armoured Corps regiments and the wider Army. But this needs everyone’s support, so please get involved and assist the Old Comrades’ Association and its many events that take place across the country throughout the year. And please encourage others to do so as we reach out to what we think could be a Veteran Lancer population of up to 10,000!
Now operating as The Royal Lancers’ Museum Trust, our Muse- um Committee has continued through a series of strategy days to forge ahead with its important and intellectual work to identify the narrative that we want our museums to tell together with the options available for its delivery. These vary from continuing on two sites to pursuing a single site that all past and present Lanc- ers can identify with and be proud of. In the meantime, our two existing museums go from strength to strength, increasing their footfall, focusing on education and communities, and acting as a key element of the Regiment’s footprint.
All these moving parts continue to be held together by Home Headquarters and I remain extremely grateful to everyone there for keeping almost all of us happy almost all of the time! But I also want to add my extreme gratitude to the many volunteers who give their time, energy and expertise to the development and furtherance of our Regiment across its many aspects. My rough estimate - someone will have a more accurate figure - is that there are well over fifty past and present members of the Regiment who are involved in supporting the Regimental As- sociation and its many facets; on the Charitable Trust, in our museums and museum committees, in driving the development of our Old Comrades network and in the growing number of branches. There are far too many to mention now, although I will add one member of the team by name, Lieutenant Colonel Joe Adkins who, earlier this year, completed his 50th year of full time service to the Crown and retires at the end of May 2018.
You cannot fail to be impressed by everything that is be- ing achieved across all areas of our Regiment and I am sure that
you will enjoy reading about it in this remarkable journal.
AGH