THE Royal Regiment of Scotland celebrated its tenth birthday in style last week.

It was in March, 2006, that the Royal Regiment was formed with the King's Own Scottish Borders and the Royal Scots merging to make up one of its four regular battalions.

The Regiment which also has two reserve battalions and a public duties company, is one of the largest in the Army and has been at the forefront of every operation the British Army has been involved in since its formation.

On Friday, 100 soldiers from across the Regiment's regular and reserve battalions, accompanied by The Band of The Royal Regiment of Scotland and Pipers and Drummers from across the Regiment, exercised their Freedom of the City of Edinburgh, with a parade.

The soldiers marched from from the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle down the Royal Mile with colours flying and bayonets fixed.

The salute was taken outside the City Chambers by The Lord Provost of Edinburgh, Donald Wilson.

The parade then stopped at the Cannongate Kirk, near the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where the soldiers attended a service of thanksgiving and remembrance.

Prior to the parade, the Pipes and Drums and the Band of the Royal Regiment performed, for the first time, a new composition to celebrate the anniversary, entitled “Decennial”.

Saturday saw the launch of a new exhibition at Edinburgh Castle, in partnership with National Museums Scotland, as part of the Scottish National War Museum.

The Life Support: Stories from the Royal Regiment of Scotland exhibition marks the Regiment’s first decade of operations, and will run until January 2017.

It concentrates on the support that soldiers receive on operations, whether from their family, their kit and equipment, or the pastoral and welfare support available from Chaplains and has interactive exhibits featuring personal stories of those who have been on operations.

The battalions of the Regiment remain as busy as ever this year, committed to training and enduring operations, with battalions currently on peacekeeping duties on the UN mission in Cyprus, assisting with Short Term Training Teams in parts of Africa and having just returned this week from a 9 month tour in Kabul, providing protection and assistance to the NATO advisors to the Afghan National Security Forces.