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1 Armoured Medical Regiment Hold Sennelager Farewell Parade

1 Armoured Medical Regiment has held a farewell parade at Dempsey Barracks in Sennelager, Germany, as they prepare to say goodbye in 2019.

The Dempsey Barracks, named after General Sir Miles Dempsey, has been occupied by a number of regiments including the Grenadier Guards and the Royal Artillery since opening after World War II.

The regiment has called the Barracks 'home' since 2015 but as the UK prepares to recall troops from Germany, the Regiment is set to leave in 2019.

Despite not leaving for at least a few more months, the parade was put on early to have as many soldiers present as possible.

Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Victoria Moorhouse, explained: "A lot of the regiment are going to be deployed on various overseas exercises, different training events, therefore in order to put as many people on parade and put as much effort as we did into it, we wanted to do it now."

The farewell parade gave the chance for soldiers' families, invited guests and local German dignitaries to also say their goodbyes.

As the soldiers and officers were inspected on the parade square, they were watched by members of the Paderborn Schützenverein, or 'Marksmen Club', with whom the Regiment has formed close ties.

Horst Schuemer from the Paderborn Schützenverein says he will miss the regiment: "It's always been great fun together with 1 Armoured Medical Regiment."

Mayor of Paderborn, Michael Dreier, addressed the soldiers in a speech: "Since 1945, the British have been a big part of Paderborn.

"Now, many soldiers and their families will say goodbye."

Brigadier General Torsten Gersdorf from the German military also presented the Regiment with the Fahnenband honour, which he described as the "highest award my country can present to a military unit".

Although a total of 4,000 troops will have left Germany by next summer, the Commander British Forces Germany, Brigadier Richard Clements, said: "This is also not the end of the relationship between British Forces and Germany but rather the start of a new chapter."