SERVING and retired members of the Royal Regiment of Artillery joined together yesterday at Salisbury Cathedral for a Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate the Tercentenary of the Regiment.

Guest of honour was the Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire, Sarah Troughton. She was welcomed by the Master Gunner St James’s Park, General Sir Timothy Grenville-Chapman and inspected a Guard of Honour provided by men from Tidworth based 1st Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery and four pipers from 19 Regiment, The Scottish Gunners.

Twelve Royal Artillery Association standards lined the West door of the Cathedral as the guests moved in. Among those attending were eleven Royal Artillery In-pensioners from the Royal Hospital, Chelsea.

The ceremony was led by the Bishop of Salisbury, Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam, assisted by the Army Chaplain General, Assistant Chaplain General, The Dean of Windsor and The Venerable John Blackburn, The Gunner’s Honorary Chaplain.

During the service The original Royal Warrant from King George I signed on 26th May 1716 and addressed to The Duke of Marlborough in his role as ‘Master General of Our Ordinance’ and the Captain General’s Baton were processed to the Altar by an escort from Larkhill based 32 Regiment, The Wessex Gunners, and were rededicated.

The Captain Generals Baton which has spent the last 12 months going around the word and contains a loyal message for the Queen which will be presented today to Her Majesty at Larkhill during the Tercentenary Day celebrations.

Salisbury resident and Normandy veteran, Brigadier David Baines read the Collect of the Regiment and a fanfare was sounded followed by the Regimental Quick march played by the Band of The Royal Artillery.