Civic Freedoms

The Queen’s Royal Regiment was granted the Freedom of Guildford in September 1945. The Regiment exercised its right to march through the town with “Drums beating and Colours flying and bayonets fixed” for the first time as Honorary Freemen on 29th September 1945, with detachments of the Royal Navy marching in the parade.

The East Surrey Regiment was granted the Freedom of Kingston-upon-Thames in 1944, and the Regiment were presented with their Freedom Scroll at a parade in 1947.

When the Queen’s and Surreys amalgamated in October 1959, the civic honours granted to them were extended to The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment. The Regiment marched through Guildford on 28th April 1960 and the following day, the 29th, marched through Kingston- upon-Thames.

Scrolls granting the Freedom of the towns were presented at both parades, and the officers and men were given a very enthusiastic welcome and reception on both occasions.

The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment had the honour of being allowed to “march through Reigate with Drums beating and Colours flying on all ceremonial occasions”. The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment were granted this in “perpetuity and title” as a mark of “great record and glorious traditions of The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment and its close associations with the town”.

The 4^th Battalion, The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment ( TA ) were admitted as Freemen of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea on the 29^th January 1964. The Freedom Scroll and a silver casket were presented to the Battalion on the 25^th March 1964.

On the formation of The Queen’s Regiment, the Boroughs of Guildford, Kingston-upon-Thames and Reigate and Banstead extended the civic honour of Freemen on the new Queen’s Regiment.

This honour was continued in 1992 following the formation of The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment, and the privilege and distinction of “marching through the town with Colours flying and Drums beating” has been exercised regularly in recent years, but perhaps not so regularly as the townspeople or the Regiment would wish.

Adoptions

The London Borough of Wandsworth adopted B Company, 6^th (Territorial) Battalion, The Queen’s Regiment (Queen’s Surreys) on 4^th October 1967.

This adoption was not passed on to other elements of the regiment in later years.

 

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