ARCHER S POINT. Editor: O/Cdt W Mathewson

Transcription

1 Winter 16 ARCHER S POINT Edinburgh Universities Royal Navy Unit Newsletter Editor: O/Cdt W Mathewson Tweet Winter 2016 After the first term of a very busy semester, with Trafalgar Night, Remembrance and new students, we move into the new year and onto the next term, as we look forward to Sports Weekend, our new CO and much more beside. Happy new year from the Edinburgh URNU! O/Cdt W Mathewson, I/C Media New Entry Weekend Having arrived at the Unit, the first year students were put through their paces in their first drill session, with the usual difficulties of getting people into step and stopping tick-tocking. After lessons on mess etiquette and the codes of conduct (no phones in the mess!), the unit boarded the bus to HM Dockyard Rosyth. Seeing the new Queen Elizabeth-class carriers under construction was an awe-inspiring experience due to their huge size and incredible complexity. A brief on a few of the inner workings of the new carriers and how they were being constructed piqued the interest of many. Having returned to the unit we went for dinner at The Playfair - unfortunately not the library - and prepared for the social in the bar. The day was such an enjoyable experience because it provided the first years with their first taste of what to expect in the coming months, and hopefully years, in the Unit, but it also gave the opportunity for the seniors and first years to properly meet each other and form friendships. By O/Cdt D Gibbs 1

2 Trafalgar Night This year we celebrated the 111th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, on the 21st October. It is an annual event, one of the most important dates in the Naval calendar. It is an opportunity to bring us together to celebrate British victory over the French and Spanish, in 1805, during the War of the Third Coalition. It was a stunning victory, despite Britain being vastly outnumbered. Although Admiral Nelson was killed during the battle, it consolidated his position as one of the Royal Navy s most influential members. We dined at The Balmoral Hotel, a location befitting the ceremony and grandeur associated with Trafalgar Night. The evening was suitably themed on the Battle of Trafalgar itself, with the tables being named after ships in Nelson s fleet, with the likes of HMS Dreadnought and HMS Victory, giving our guests an insight into the significance of the night to the Navy. The evening began with a drinks reception, allowing us to introduce ourselves to our guests and explain to them what our Unit s aims and activities are. This was followed by bagpipes and a wonderful dinner of pate, chicken and crème caramel (the Cox n s favourite). The speech was delivered by Cdr John Bullock, in which he explored the relevance of the Battle of Trafalgar to the Navy today, including the importance of training and morale. He added a personal touch by mentioning surnames of those who fought at Trafalgar, many of whom shared surnames with members of the Unit. The evening s entertainment was provided by Mid McQuade, O/C Mathewson and O/C Gibbs, in which they acted out different Nelsons according to his different stages of life. Mid McQuade s impression of an armless, blind Admiral was particularly entertaining. Members of the Unit, and guests who wished to, retired to Hepburn House to continue the evening s celebrations. In a more relaxed setting, we spent the rest of the evening conversing with our guests and inevitably playing mess games. The evening most definitely lived up to all our expectations, and we look forward to repeating it next year at the 112th anniversary. By O/Cdt C Miller 2

3 Christmas Social Twas two weeks before Christmas, and all through the city. Not a student was stirring, because revision s not pretty. But not for the brave men and women of EURNU! Banished, the woes of exams! Gone, the sorrows of isolation! With a very strong turnout considering the proximity of December exams the Unit threw a Christmas party, complete with mulled wine, some excellent haggis sausage rolls (apparently made by O/C Ross Scott although there was no proof of that) and, after a small panic, tinsel. Commendations to O/C Channa Naragala for actually wearing the tinsel! A very thorough year review and feedback session was run by Mid Gerry McQuade I mean, Mid Lucy Asbridge and everyone agreed that with HMS Archer now at Leith we d all be much better prepared for Summer Deployment. And then when Gerry was done we could head out to Usher s. Thanks to O/C Matt Asbridge s organisation a top dinner was had, followed by a valiant attempt at No Hands Duff. Congratulations here go to Usher s themselves for not providing any beer under about 7% - nutrition like that can only be good for a dinner! Finally, a slightly less glamourous attempt was made at karaoke. The ship s company did arrive to save the day, but I m afraid your correspondent was already making a dash for the exit Overall, a welcome break from revision and a great end to the year! By O/Cdt J Wilby 3

4 Sea Weekend th NOV On the evening of Friday 25 th November 2016, ten Edinburgh URNU students travelled down to Newcastle to bring HMS ARCHER back up to her home in the port of Leith, from her old berth at HMS CALLIOPE. As the majority of students present were URNU First Years, it was our first opportunity to experience life on ship. Saturday morning began a chilly one, with students completing daily tasks in order to get the ship ready to set sail. After a few briefs for the First Years, we were prepped and ready to bring ARCHER on the first leg of her journey home to Leith - a forty or so mile passage to Eyemouth. Once we were out of the Tyne, sea conditions were wonderfully calm perfect for our first time at the helm. Once alongside in Eyemouth, we settled down to an evening of passage planning, and learning about chart work very much a learning on the job experience, but, by the end of a few hours, students were able to explain their charts and the passage that had been planned and a few had even been able to add details such as tidal diamonds. Chart work whilst alongside was certainly much easier than trying to take fixes on a moving ship! For my first time on ship, I was given the middle watch on Saturday night whilst we were alongside at Eyemouth. Although to begin with I wasn t looking forward to this too much, when the time came, it wasn t half as bad as I had been anticipating. The arrival back of the other students, who had braved a night out in Berwick, brought some relief from staring into the dark and reading warship recognition guides. By the end of my watch, I was sure I d be doing ropework in my sleep! Sunday morning was a much warmer one than Saturday, but sea conditions were most certainly not as calm as they had been the day before. This presented some challenges such as staying upright but luckily by the time we approached the Forth Estuary, things had calmed down. As we arrived into Leith on Sunday afternoon, O/Cdt Matt Asbridge piped ARCHER into her new berth, a lovely way to celebrate her Scottish homecoming. Over the period of the two days, First Year students rotated round different roles on ship everything from chart and radar, to officer of the watch and helm whilst more senior students helped us with learning how to do these new tasks. My first weekend on ship was great fun, and I cannot wait to get back on board and do it all again! By O/Cdt S Baird 4

5 Remembrance Sunday Ahead of the Remembrance Sunday parade at Edinburgh University's Old College, students had several drill practises to ensure the unit's marching was on point for the parade. Having practised at the 2 preceding drill nights, the unit formed up at Old College on the Saturday in 1s for a dress rehearsal. After several goes at marching the length of the quad and pulling the odd student out of the parade due to questionable marching, the unit were keeping in step consistently and were looking pretty good. Having practised enough to get a 'happy days' out of the Cox'n, students fell out and helped collect for Poppy Scotland in town. Come the 13th November, the Edinburgh URNU were well turned out at Edinburgh University's Old College quad to remember the service personnel who gave their lives in the line of action. After a bit of last minute practise with the OTC and the UAS, the unit fell out and mustered in the Playfair Library for the service. After the sermon and final prayer, EURNU, the OTC and the UAS fell in in their divisions in the quad as the service continued with the laying of the wreaths. Following this, the units started their parade with the UAS marching off first. Despite the OTC almost being told to turn the wrong way, the OTC made their way off and finally the URNU marched off, keeping well in step, much to the delight of the Cox'n. The OTC very kindly invited the URNU back to their unit for lunch and some inter-service bonding. By O/Cdt W Mathewson Taranto Night On the 16 th of November 2016, the URNU celebrated the battle of Taranto. This was a naval battle which involved the Royal Navy and the Italian navy. The Royal Navy launched the first all air to ship battle of its kind. Admiral Cunningham said "Taranto, and the night of November 11 12, 1940, should be remembered forever as having shown once and for all that in the Fleet Air Arm the Navy has its most devastating weapon. Because of this, as a unit, we celebrated it. After the normal drill night, we dressed up as airmen and women or naval personnel. This was then followed by a series of mess games all with air themes. We also had air themed drinks which were quite exotic. O/C Matt Asbridge gave an interesting lecture on Taranto and why it is so important but with an interesting twist which made the lecture more interactive. It was a very good night and very informative; I can t wait for next year! By O/Cdt J Robertson 5