Riley officers visit Prince Philip
A half dozen senior officers from the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry had an audience with Prince Philip Wednesday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
RHLI Hon. Col. Peter Young described the meeting as “wonderful.”
The closed-door meeting with the Duke of Edinburgh was something that was requested by the Rileys and comes three months after the 96-year-old colonel-in-chief of the Rileys announced he was retiring from public life.
It was expected that succession would be part of the conversation. At some point in the near future, Prince Philip will likely pass on his Riley responsibilities to another member of the Royal family, perhaps to his son Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, who has filled in before as head of the regiment.
The visit by Riley officers was a side trip from the 75th anniversary tour of Dieppe and other battlefields and cemeteries from both world wars in France and Belgium.
The RHLI lost nearly 200 soldiers in a disastrous raid of the city in on Aug. 19, 1942.
“He was particularly interested in what was happening with the regiment and our just completed battlefield tour,” Young said.
“As on every visit he was most gracious, charming as well as humorous, with a genuine interest on the RHLI,” he added.
Young said it is customary for RHLI officers to ask for an audience with Prince Philip when they are visiting Europe.
That was the case five years when a small delegation travelled to Dieppe for the 70th anniversary of the raid.
Two years ago, there was another meeting, after RHLI officers attended commemorations for the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Ypres.
“He’s very interested,” Young noted. “He wants to know what’s happening, particularly about our commanding officer (J.P. Hoekstra) having done three tours of duty.
Hoekstra, who was made commanding officer in May of 2016, has served overseas in Afghanistan, Iraq and South Sudan.
“Prince Philip had always been happy to meet us privately as his visitors,” said Young.
“He loves the personal contact.”