BIG MILITARY PARADE

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22419, 4 June 1938, Page 11

BIG MILITARY PARADE

♦ OBSERVANCE OF KING’S BIRTHDAY LARGE-SCALE REVIEW IN HAGLEY . PARK The largest military parade and review arranged in Christchurch for many years will be held on Monday to celebrate the King’s Birthday. All military units stationed at Christchurch, including cadets, the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, and the Royal New Zealand Air Force, will take part in the ceremonies, which will be conducted on a spectacular scale. It will be the first time that the Christchurch public will have had an opportunity of seeing the latest developments in -mechanisation of the forces. A flight of aeroplanes will also take part in the ceremonies. The parade, which is to begin at 10.30 a.m., will be an observance of the King’s Birthday as if His Majesty were present and a review of the forces by his Excellency the GovernorGeneral (Lord Galway). Five civilian bands and the regimental bands will be in attendance, and members of territorial units from Timaru, Ashburton, and other centres will be present. The parade will be held in North Hagley Park close to the Armagh street entrance. The salute will be taken by the Governor-General, and Colonel P. H. Bell, D. 5.0., N.Z.S.C., Officer Commanding the Southern Command, will command the review by the use of loud-speakers once the forces are drawn up on the inspection line parallel to the Avon river. The 9th Field Battery of the Royal New Zealand Artillery will fire a salute of 19 guns on the arrival of the Governor-General and a further salute of 21 guns in observance of the King’s Birthday. The units in the march past will be the Royal New Zealand Air Force, the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, the Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry, the 16th Light Battery, and a field company of the Royal New Zealand Artillery with two six-wheeled tractors, four trucks, two vans, and two motor-cycles, a group of engineers and signallers with two vans, the Ist Canterbury Regiment, including a draft of the Special Reserve and the motor-cycle platoon, the 3rd Field Ambulance and 3rd Composite Company of the New Zealand Army Service Corps, and cadets from Christ’s College, Boys' High School, Technical College, St. Andrew’s College, and Christchurch West High School. They will be led by the following bands in mass:—lst Canterbury Bugle Band, two cadet bugle bands, the Caledonian, City of Christchurch, Sc ittish Society, and Timaru Pipe Bands, the Canterbury Regimental Band, the Christchurch Municipal Band and the Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry Regimental Band. Immediately after the march past a flight of aeroplanes from the Air Force station at Wigram will fly past the saluting base. Full arrangements for accommodating the public are being made, and members of the Christchurch Corps of the St. John Ambulance Brigade will parade and be in attendance in case of any mishaps. No motor-cars except that of the Governor-General will be admitted to Hagley Park.