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On 17th May, a new memorial dedicated to The Duke of Wellington’s Regiment was unveiled in Halifax, West Yorkshire. The memorial sculpture, which was designed and sculpted by Andrew Sinclair MRSS, tells the history of the Regiment by ‘weaving a sculptural story throughout the bronze’.
The unveiling was preceded by a service in Halifax Minster. Serving members of the Regiment, past and present, joined His Grace, the 9th Duke of Wellington OBE DL and other distinguished guests to celebrate with residents of the town. As Canon Hilary Barber, Vicar of Halifax, expressed in her words of welcome, the service was an opportunity to “give thanks for the three hundred and four years of service by the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment to our nation and to honour the communities of the West Riding of Yorkshire from whom the Regiment drew its soldiers for nearly all those years”. During the service, Major David Harrap narrated the story of the Regiment, accompanied by the Band of the West Yorkshire Police, who provided a musical journey through the life of the Regiment. Pieces included The Duke of Wellington’s Regimental march, The Wellesley, from George Frideric Handel’s ‘Occasional Oratorio’ and a rousing rendition of ‘Ilkla Moor Baht’At’, the unofficial anthem of Yorkshire.
Following the service, guests and townspeople gathered for the unveiling of the memorial, which now sits in a prominent position in the heart of the town. In the words of the service programme,
“There is something in the sculpture for everyone: military precision in the uniform details; historical facts; emotional connection to the soldiers, their families, the Regiment and its place in Halifax, Calderdale, the West Riding and Yorkshire”.
