Soldiers do battle with leeks

4:09pm Thursday 28th February 2008

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Soldiers from 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh competed today in their annual St David's Day leek eating competition.

According to tradition, the 600 soldiers were woken with "gunfire" - tea laced with rum - served by senior ranks and officers.

And in keeping with regimental custom, the youngest soldiers from each company later took part in a leek-eating competition before drinking a toast to A Dewi Sant.

An Army spokeswoman said: "The youngest members of each company stand up in front of everyone and have a race to see who can eat a raw leek the fastest - the winner's prize is bragging rights for the next year."

This year's St David's Day celebrations took place two days before the day itself, March 1.

Attending 2 Royal Welsh's base in Tidworth, Wiltshire, today was Chief Buthelezi, a Zulu leader whose ancestors were among those who fought against 139 British soldiers at Rorke's Drift.

The iconic stand in 1879 by the men of Rorke's Drift won them the respect not only of the British public but also the 4,500 Zulu opponents they managed to resist.

The chief, from a long line of Zulu royalty dating back to King Cetywayo, made a speech at the St David's Day parade and presented the men with miniature leeks to wear on their berets. He was also introduced to Taffy, the regimental goat.

The soldiers of Rorke's Drift, a mission station in Natal, South Africa, included B Company 2nd Battalion 24th Foot, who later became the South Wales Borderers, and then The Royal Regiment of Wales before forming 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh two years ago.