Belgium 2022/2023
Students undertook the British Torch of Remembrance pilgrimage to Belgium. The trip involved Junior Under Officers parading at the Menin Gate and taking part in Remembrance Ceremonies at Roeselare and Bredene along with visiting Tyne Cot to commemorate fallen Dukies.
The second part of the pilgrimage saw a different group of Junior Under Officers travelling to Brussels to take part in the Gare Centrale Ceremonial Parade which takes place annually to welcome The British Torch to Brussels. The King’s Parade at the Tomb of The Belgian Unknown Soldier at the Colonne du Congres took place on 11th November. This special parade marked the centenary of the dedication of the Unknown Soldier’s Tomb. The Junior Under Officers had the privilege of parading with Belgian Army, Navy, Air and Police Cadets. Later in the day, at a private ceremony at the Waterloo Memorial in Brussels cemetery, they laid wreaths in memory of two Dukies who were killed at Waterloo in 1815.
The Torch was extinguished later that evening in a short but poignant ceremony at the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier. It will be rekindled at Westminster Abbey in November 2023.