Prince William Grieves for Royal Gurkha

PRINCE WILLIAM has said he is "deeply saddened" by the death in Afghanistan of his platoon commander at Sandhurst, Major Alexis Roberts, 32, of The Royal Gurkha Rifles. The prince described the soldier as a "good friend" and said his thoughts and prayers were with Major Roberts' wife and two young daughters. The Ministry of Defence said Major Roberts died as a result of an improvised explosive device on Thursday.


The Royal Gurkha Rifles is a unique regiment of the British Army in that it recruits Gurkhas from Nepal, which is a nation independent of the United Kingdom and not a member of the Commonwealth (Read: Gurkha Terms and Conditions of Service). They are considered to be some of the finest soldiers in the world, as is evidenced by the high regard they are held in for both their fighting skill, and their smartness of turnout on parade. Their standard of drill is considered to be on a par with that of the Foot Guards, so much so that on many occasions the regiment has mounted the guard at Buckingham Palace. The Regiment is commanded by both British Officers, who are trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and by Queens Gurkha officers who commission from the ranks. The British Officers all complete language training in Nepal.

The Kukri or Khukuri is a heavy, curved Nepalese knife used as both tool and weapon. It is also a part of the regimental weaponry and heraldry of Gurkha fighters. It is known to most as simply the "Gurkha knife".

Photo Left: The Queen's Truncheon: By tradition, rifle regiments do not carry colours; this goes back to their formation, when they were used as skirmishers and sharpshooters.

While individual units may have had banners or pennants to distinguish themselves from other units, regiments as a whole never needed a full stand of Colours.

Today, the two rifle regiments in the British Army, The Rifles and the Royal Gurkha Rifles carry their battle honours on their drums, while the Green Jackets also have theirs inscribed on their cap badge. In place of a Regimental Colour, the Gurkhas carry the Queen's Truncheon.

Honorary Lieutenant Tulbahadur Pun, VC, a former Gurkha from Nepal who was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery during the Second World War, was granted on exceptional grounds, a settlement visa to enable him to receive urgent medical treatment in the UK on 4 July 2007, where he was officially welcomed by members of the Gurkha regiment. In total, 13 Gurkhas have been awarded the VC.