FOR a moment you could have heard a pin drop as the men of 7th Battalion The Rifles lined up along St Giles.

The parade by 120 men of A Company, cadets and the regimental association drew awe-struck gazes from the public who lined the street.

Then, as the accompanying 7 Rifles (Waterloo) Band and Bugles played out Pharrell Williams’ Happy, the inspection began.

Oxford Mail:

 Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire Tim Stevenson talks to Serjeant Adam Wheeler 

The Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, Tim Stevenson, joined Major General Patrick Sanders CBE, DSO and the Lord Mayor of Oxford Rae Humberstone for the salute.

It was the first time The Rifles had paraded through Oxford after being granted the Freedom of the City – an honour its preceding units The Royal Green Jackets and Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry have previously enjoyed.

Afterwards, 23-year-old Lieutenant Mike Kent, of Oxford’s Venneit Close, spoke of the honour of taking part.

He said: “It was really great fun but there’s a sense of pride as well.

“It’s great to see the people turn out.”

From Christ Church College, the procession marched at 140 paces a minute along St Aldate’s, Cornmarket Street and Magdalen Street before halting in St Giles.

Wheelchair-bound, 92-yearold Second World War veteran Sam Langford joined the parade.

As a private in the 2nd (Airborne) Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, Mr Langford took part in the Rhine crossings in March 1945.

He said: “It was wonderful to take part. I felt very proud to see the new generation.”

The last time the Freedom of the City of Oxford was exercised was in 2006, when The Royal Green Jackets paraded.

Oxford Mail:

 Lord Mayor Rae Humberstone 

Lieutenant Colonel James Bryant, Commanding Officer of 7 Battalion, The Rifles, said yesterday’s march recognised the link between The Rifles and its preceding units. He said: “As reservists in 7th Battalion The Rifles, we very much value our association with the city of Oxford and the county of Oxfordshire.”

When The Rifles were officially formed on February 1, 2007, it was the result of four historic regiments merging.

The Royal Green Jackets, The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry, The Light Infantry and The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment were amalgamated into one unit.