Bugle Summer 2026 - Flipbook - Page 57
NORTH
Surprise Visit to
100-Year-Old KOYLI
Veteran John Heald
A surprise visit was arranged for John
Heald, a 100-year-old veteran of 2KOYLI,
at his sheltered housing facility in Leeds.
John, believed to be the oldest surviving
KOYLI serviceman, shared memories
and photographs. He also bequeathed a
handwritten register of 2KOYLI soldiers who
served in the Far East, to be passed to the
KOYLI Museum in Doncaster.
Ll Col (Retd) Robin Smith presents
Col Comdt Letter to Ronnie Walsh
LEEDS BRANCH HOSTS
FORMER RIFLEMEN MARTIN
EDWARDS & SIMON COOKE
At the Leeds Branch function at Kings Croft Hotel, Pontefract,
members welcomed former Riflemen Martin Edwards
and Simon Cooke. Both guests received gifts from Branch
Chairman Major (Retd) David Jarratt and Branch Secretary
Alan Whitehead and have been given an open invitation to
future branch events.
Jeff Gantschuk (RBL), Adrian
Waites, Phil Solomon, Colin
Cranswick, John Heald (seated)
Robert Smith and Andrew Kober at
Pontefract Sounding Retreat
THE RIFLES
SOUNDING
RETREAT IN
DONCASTER AND
PONTEFRACT
The 80th anniversary of the KOYLI
receiving the Freedom of Doncaster
and Wakefield was marked with
Sounding Retreat parades by the
Band and Bugles of The Rifles
in Doncaster Market Place and
Pontefract Castle. Crowds enjoyed
military music, ceremonial displays
and performances involving The
Rifles, Minden House Buglers and
Association Standard Bearers.
Arnhem
Remembers
Operation Anger
In April, Philip and Christopher Knight
attended a commemoration at Arnhem
City Hall to mark the 81st anniversary of
the city’s liberation. They represented
the Association and the memory of
their grandfather, Fred Adamson
KOYLI, who took part in the battle and
died in 2025 aged 105.
The ceremony recalled Operation
Anger, when the 49th (West Riding)
Infantry Division, the “Polar Bears”,
entered Arnhem on 12 April 1945.
With Canadian support, the city
centre was liberated on 14 April,
ending occupation and beginning
Arnhem’s long recovery.
LAST SOLDIER
GIVEN VICTORIA
CROSS BY QUEEN
HONOURED
The life and courage of Charles
Ward VC, KOYLI’s first Victoria Cross
recipient in 1900 which was also the
last VC presented by Queen Victoria,
were commemorated in Leeds in July,
marking 150 years since his birth.
The event was organised by local
historian and researcher Mr Ronnie
Walsh, whose work has helped bring
renewed attention to Charles’s story.
Family members travelled from
across the country and were joined
by civic, military and Association
representatives. Representatives of
the VC Society and the Leeds hospital
where Charles was treated after the
Boer War also attended. A highlight
was the display of the tunic Charles
wore when he was wounded during
the Boer War action for which he
received the Victoria Cross.
The VC citation was read, before
relatives were presented with letters
from General Charlie Collins, Colonel
Commandant of The Rifles. The family
also received framed prints of Charles’s
Victoria Cross and medal set, closing
a fitting tribute to one of KOYLI’s most
distinguished soldiers.
Jerry Ward
with Lord
Lieutenant of
West Yorkshire
Standard Bearer
Graham Lightfoot
at Doncaster
Sounding Retreat
RIFLES The Bugle 57
