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The 209th Battery (Manchester Artillery) of the 103rd Royal Artillery Regiment will receive the freedom of the city on Saturday.
The freedom of the city is the prize Manchester can bestow.
The rite of honorary deliverance will take place in St. Peter’s Square at 11 a. m. and you will see the regiment identified by its many valuables to Manchester for over 216 years.
After the ceremony, the public will have the rare opportunity to see the regiment honor the city and this momentous occasion by parading through the city center with colors fluttering in the wind, drums beating and bayonets in hand.
The parade will start in St. Peter’s Square, pass by the Cenotaph, then Princess Street, then Cross Street, towards St Mary’s Gate, Deansgate, Peter Street, and through it all went towards St. Peter’s Square.
Barriers will be put in place so that the parade can take place safely.
The public is encouraged to parade and celebrate with the regiment.
The Freedom of the City, a rare phenomenon, has been awarded six times in this millennium.
Previous recipients include:
The resolution to grant city rights to Battery 209 (Manchester Artillery), 103rd Royal Artillery Regiment, was proposed through the Mayor at an ordinary meeting held on 25 November 2020 at the City Hall.
The regiment has been active for some 216 years, serving in the Boer War, World War I, Gallipoli, the Sinai and the Western Front.
The current 209th Battery (Manchester Artillery), 103rd Royal Artillery, continues to recruit and exercise citizens of Manchester in a position to protect the country at home and abroad.
Councillor Tommy Judge, Mayor of Manchester, said: “It is a privilege to grant the 209th Battery, the Manchester Artillery, the 103rd Royal Artillery, the freedom of Manchester.
“I would like to congratulate and thank them for their hard work and commitment to the people of Manchester for so long.
“The regiment has a long and illustrious relationship with the city.
“The importance of his paintings is an integral part of Manchester’s history and even future.
“It’s a proud moment as mayor and as a former soldier to honour the 209th Battery (Manchester Artillery), the 103rd Royal Artillery Regiment and attend the parade. “
Lieutenant Colonel Taylor-Jane Fox said: “Battery 209 (the Manchester artillery) is history.
“To get the name Liberty from the City of Manchester is an honour.
“It is a wonderful privilege to have the Battery in the history books of this wonderful city and each and every soldier participating in the parade is proud to be a component of this vital event.
The rite will be attended by Mayor Tommy Judge, accompanied by Mayor Carole Judge; the head of the town council, Sir Richard Leese; Joanne Roney, Executive Director of the City Council, OBE; Master Gunner St James’s Park, Lieutenant General Sir Andrew Gregory KBE CB; Honorary Colonel, 103rd Royal Regiment of Artillery, Brigadier Bill Kingdon; and the commanding officer of the 103rd Royal Regiment of Artillery, Lieutenant Colonel Taylor-Jayne-Fox.
After a brief blessing service conducted through the Reverend Reverend Father M. W. Johnstone CF. et of the Regiment, an inspection of the regiment was conducted. Executive Director Joanne Roney OBE will read the Council’s solution conferring honorary city rights on the regiment.
Several roads will be closed during the parade and all road closures will be lifted at 2 p. m.
Details of the road closures on Saturday, October 30 are indexed below.
Closed from 7 a. m. to 1 p. m. :
– John Dalton Street (from Deansgate to Cross Street)
– Princess Street (crossing the street to Portland Street)
– Cross Street (from Princess Street to St Mary’s Gate)
Closed from 7 a. m. to 2 p. m. are:
– St Mary’s Gate (Cross Street to Blackfriars Street)
– Deansgate (Victoria Bridge Street to Great Bridgewater Street)
– Peter Street (from Deansgate to Oxford Street)
– Mount Street (from Windmill Street to Peter Street)
Traffic orders will also be in effect for Watson Street, which will be one-way in the opposite direction of normal.
On Portland Street, the bus lane will be suspended.
As far as possible, cars will be checked in the open air in the parking lots that come out onto the aforementioned roads.
Access to and exit from Marcos Park.
For more facts on the city’s Freedom Parade, https://secure. manchester. gov. uk/news/article/8852/freedom_of_the_city_parade?utm_source=Twitter
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