In pictures: The Royal Anglian Regiment perform ‘Beating The Retreat’ at Bedford School

The Royal Anglian Regiment performed Beating The Retreat at Bedford School on Friday (July 14).

VIPs including Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire’s Lord Lietenants and High Sheriffs turned out for the event, along with the mayors of Bedford, Stevenage and Northampton and the deputy mayor of Luton

Beating The Retreat has its origins in the early years of organised warfare, when the beating of drums and the parading and posting of guards, heralded the closing of camp gates and the lowering of flags at the end of the day.

The event was chaired by Major Timothy Brown, with Bridadier Oliver Brown (Royal Anglian) in attendance.

The Royal Anglian Regiments recruits from Lincolnshire to Hertfordshire – and the army band for this occasion was from Colchester.

The event inclued speeches by army officers on topics from deployments, training and recruiting to the army itself.

There were displays of weaponry, tools and two infantry vehicles, The Jackal and the Foxhound. Both vehicles are British manufactured and serve the infantry. The jackal is an all terrain recce vehicle and the Foxhound a section troop carrier – both are state of the art and battle tried and tested.

The Royal Anglian Regiment has two regular battalions, The First Battalion (The Vikings) and the 2nd Battalion (The Poachers). There is also Third Battalion (the Steelbacks) which is an army reserve battalion.

The 1st Battalion is based in Dhekelia, Cyprus until August 2023 before being located with the 2nd Battalion in Cottesmore, Rutland. The 3rd Battalion has a location in an Army Reserve Centre in close proximity to each of the 10 counties with its headquarters in Bury St Edmunds.