THE Rifles freedom parade through Shaftesbury showed the roles of young soldiers and old soldiers are being reversed.

As the Afghanistan veterans marched to the town hall, it is now the older men who now wonder what battles their comrades have seen.

Markus Lloyd, 41, a resident and former Major in the Devon and Dorsets, said: “Even somebody like myself has never even come close to the horrors that they have faced.

“From the little they do talk about it you learn a truly horrific picture.

“It hits you when you see a friend’s face grinning out from a photograph in a newspaper and you see an obituary below it.”

Barry Marsh, 75, of Shaftesbury, a former Major in the Royal Artillery, said: “I saw serious operations in Aden and Northern Ireland.

“But I am filled with admiration because their sort of soldering is much more dangerous than mine ever was.”

Around 500 to 1,000 people turned out for Saturday’s parade as The Rifles, successors to the Devon and Dorsets, were given the freedom of the town.

One hundred men from Chepstow-based battalion 1 Rifles were joined by cadets, a Rifles TA band, and members of the Royal British Legion.

Six members of 1 Rifles and two men from attached units were killed in a recent six-month deployment to Afghanistan.

Riflemen Jamie Thornton, 20, from Pokesdown, Bournemouth said: “It’s nice to hear people cheering. It’s a bit strange for me because I only finished training after the return from Afghanistan.”

Leslie Sheen, 27, from New Milton, a former Devon and Dorset, said: “I wasn’t expecting so many people because it’s a small place.

“It’s nice to know you are wanted, that you are not doing everything for nothing.”

In front of the town hall Mayor Lester Dibben handed a Freedom Scroll to Brigadier Jolyon Jackson and received a Silver Bugle, emblem of The Rifles, in return.

Brigadier Jackson said: “For over 300 years the people of Dorset have been joining the British Army and fighting on your behalf so it is important for us to know people support our soldiers.”

Afterwards the troops enjoyed Irish stew and a free bottle of real ale at Shaftesbury School, courtesy of Hall and Woodhouse brewery in Blandford.

Shaftesbury resident John Parsons, 82, said of the parade: “It was wonderful. Something I shall always remember.”

Anne May, 66, of Gillingham, a retired publican, said: “It was smashing. Coming along makes everybody feel more involved."

Shaftesbury Cllr Nick Kendall-Carpenter, 52, a former Royal Marine, said: “Today is about providing support for the soldiers, not being for the war, or anti-war.”

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