Armed Forces wish the Duchess of Edinburgh a happy birthday as she turns 60

Members of the military have wished the Duchess of Edinburgh a happy birthday as she turns 60 today.

The Duchess of Edinburgh holds a number of military appointments; she became the Royal Colonel of 5th Battalion The Rifles following the reorganisation of the infantry in 2007.

She is also Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Corps of Army Music and Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps and regularly meets service personnel.

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In 2022, The Duchess became the new Colonel-in-Chief of the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), taking on the role previously held by Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, for more than 50 years.

More recently, she became the new Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Irish Regiment, a position previously held by Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince.

Sophie was also appointed Royal Colonel of The Queen's Own Yeomanry, a light cavalry regiment in the Army Reserve, a post previously held by the King. It is a light reconnaissance unit and is based in Fox Barracks, Chester.

She is also lady sponsor of HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer, and Honorary Air Commodore at RAF Wittering, the main operating base and headquarters for the RAF Support Force and a major station for flying training.

Each year, the Duchess attends The Duchess of Edinburgh Cup, an annual military skills competition in which regiments compete against each other in a series of physically and mentally demanding challenges.

The Duchess also holds two military positions in Canada: Colonel in-Chief of The South Alberta Light Horse and Colonel-in-Chief of the Lincoln and Welland Regiment.

A photograph of the Duchess of Edinburgh smiling was also released by Buckingham Palace ahead of her birthday.

The photo of Sophie was taken at her home in Bagshot Park and was captured by the London-based photographer Christina Ebenezer.

The Duchess of Edinburgh was born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones on 20 January 1965 in Oxford.

She married into the royal family 27 years ago when she wed Prince Edward, the late Queen Elizabeth and Duke of Edinburgh's youngest son, in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in 1999.