A Note to Our RADC Veterans
from the last Representative Colonel Commandant RADC
On Friday 15 November 2024, officers and soldiers paraded officially for the last time as members of the Royal Army Dental Corps (RADC). They did so proudly, with colleagues from the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) and Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps(QARANC), alongside whom they serve together on operations.
The news that our Corps was to amalgamate was announced at relatively short notice this Autumn and must, therefore, have come as a bit of a surprise. We fully recognise that some of you will have felt that you had been kept in the dark. I am truly sorry for this but, in actual fact, we were prevented from breaking the news, and involving you in the discussions, by a series of events: the death of our Late Queen; the coronation; the announcement and then the conduct of the general election; and, finally, the desire of the new government to announce it in its own way. The King had already been consulted, had asked some good questions and then assented in the Spring, but we were ordered not to break cover because public bodies went into election purdah. I would wish to emphasise that this was never a takeover bid by the bigger Corps, and not another Defence cut - our dental representatives were fully involved.
All of my fellow Trustees want to hear from you and to answer your questions, but also in case there are vitally important aspects which we may have missed and can put right.
This brings me to the stance which I hope our veterans will adopt. It is perfectly possible to support fully the new Service and yet still be proud of our shared heritage. The two positions are not mutually exclusive - I am genuinely excited about our new Service, while still retaining pride in and a deep fondness for the RADC.
We have all heard stories about other amalgamations of the past, in which members of former regiments remained at daggers-drawn, refusing to engage with the other parties, until eventually they became irrelevant and faded away altogether. Such behaviour would only serve to confuse and hinder the serving soldiers who must carry Army dentistry into the future.
The Trustees of the RADC Association have chosen, instead, to show leadership, fully backing the new Service, and our serving dental personnel of the present and the future. So, instead of bitterness, let us create a thriving and supportive community of old comrades, fully in-step with the RAMS.
The new Service is recognisably 'medical', but with many elements of which we should be proud. I was fortunate to contribute to the Heritage Working Group, along with our current Corps Sergeant Major, WOI (RSM) Zoe Beckett, to whom I pay tribute as having fought very hard to protect RADC regalia. I adopted some personal rules of thumb: that we were forging a new medical identity; that no-one could turn up on Day 2 without having made some concessions and also having adopted items from the other Corps; that we should all be allowed to bring to the table items of our own Corps identity which made us distinctive. Lastly, we should not necessarily incorporate every single desired item from all three Corps - we mustn't look like circus ring masters, and the overall effect should be powerful, but dignified.
We have tried to forge a distinctive identity; one of which we can all be proud. The new capbadge is a blend of motifs from the three Corps. It had to be clearly, visibly medical. In the RADC, we were/are particularly proud of our dragon, but several preparatory sketches showed that retaining it, at all costs, led to designs which were entertaining, but not suitably dignified for a new corps of the British Army. Instead, we contributed the sword, which was combined with the QARANC Dannebrog Cross to form the sword's hilt. I suggested that the Junior Ranks' metal badge might be bronzed, to be emblematic of the 28 Victoria Crosses won by the medical service of the Crown. The motto is a new one, in English for clarity: STEADFAST, which reminds us to be utterly reliable, even in adversity, and which perfectly commemorates our beloved Late Queen.
In the modern age, working dress (some of us will know this as 'combats') is the norm, so this was the uniform in which I wanted to have the most impact, so that we would always have a reminder of the RADC.
We have adopted a grey beret, carried forward from QARANC. I fought long, hard and successfully to have a green backing to the beret badge. So that, whilst our sword may be difficult to see from 10 yards, the observer will always see some green. In the field, the uniform item which indicates one's Arm or Service is the Tactical Recognition Flash (TRF), worn on the right sleeve. We have adopted key colours from the three Corps: Medical sombre red, drawn from the VC ribbon; Dental green, now to be Victoria Green (after the project title); and QARANC grey. Green is absolutely central to the design. This is also mirrored in the new stable belt. Mess kit will have dark red facings, but a dental green waistcoat or, with the dress, waist sash. The realities of funding, however, may see old mess kits continue until they time-out.
One nice touch is that all ranks below the rank of Colonel will have the privilege of wearing a ribbon of the French First World War Croix de Guerre on their left shoulder. This distinction is a commemorative gift from the French Republic, bestowed originally on 24 Field Ambulance for its efforts in saving the citizens of St. Amand-Les-Eaux, which had been bombarded by the enemy in 1918.
One nice touch is that all ranks below the rank of Colonel will have the privilege of wearing a ribbon of the French First World War Croix de Guerre on their left shoulder. This distinction is a commemorative gift from the French Republic, bestowed originally on 24 Field Ambulance for its efforts in saving the citizens of St. Amand-Les-Eaux, which had been bombarded by the enemy in 1918.
The title for the new Service caused informed commentators to ask why we weren't simply to be the Royal Army Medical Corps, but that goes back to my rule of thumb, that no side should be able to continue without having made some changes. The King gave his approval to the word 'Service', and it neatly reflects exactly our role.
I was emphatic that, in our quest for a fresh identity, we must not throw the baby out with the bath water. We are a medical Service and, therefore, our facing colour and piping could/should be roughly a blood colour. Similarly, I recommended that the Service's quick march should continue to be the RAMC's 'Here's a Health Unto His Majesty'. Why? Because, it has a steady beat, and is very easy to march to for soldiers on parade. Certainly, our old march 'Green Facings' was unique, but never quite so straightforward to keep in step to.
The associations and veteran groupings of all three Corps are now feeling their way forward. As you know, our RADC Association is our charity, and our charity is our association. Looking ahead, 'the Association' will run out out of new members and will eventually fade away so, as you know, our Trustees are recommending that we consider dissolving the charity, to transfer our funds to the new RAMS charity. We will have dental representation on the Board of the charity, so we can be confident that dental activities and benevolence will continue.
Dissolving 'The' Association would mean that there would potentially be a comradeship gap, so it now looks as if there will be friendly, localised groupings of a RADC old comrades' association. As Trustees, and with ample experience of having to herd cats, we would suggest that these local groups might sensibly remain semi-formal, thus minimising the requirement to hold and account for funds, with all the necessary governance which that would entail. Such groups, and I would include here the RADC marching contingent at the cenotaph, could reasonably bid for limited funds to support specific projects and events.
Projecting forwards 50 years, very few of us proud Late/RADC folk will still be alive, so I anticipate that dental remembrance will ultimately all be carried out through the RAMS Association. So how do we get from where we are to where we need to be?
A few decades ago, one insightful Military Secretary introduced a guiding principle: that the needs of the Service come first, but only very slightly ahead of the needs of the individual. This is not a cast iron rule, so it can be adjusted as circumstances require. We can forge a similar principle: that we rally round and support the serving dental personnel first and foremost, but that our veterans come a close second. Clearly, in terms of remembrance and benevolence, those would be the very occasions when our attention would rightly be on the past. Our shared dental heritage, in the service of the Army and our patients, is what uniquely binds us and is the link between the past, the present and the future.
To that end, we must protect our book of remembrance. The RAMC is fortunate to lodge its book in Westminster Abbey. It may be that the RAMS will be privileged to maintain its book there too and, of course, future dental personal will be recorded in it. However, our book of remembrance is every bit as important as those of the other two Corps. I strongly believe that the Corps Chapel and the RADC Turning of the Page must be maintained and fostered.
Initially, one suspects that the associations of the three Corps will make a point of being separate from one another. However, by their very nature, they cannot go on forever and they will progressively shrink. I can envisage, and would support, a time in the near future, in which we gather together, RAMS in the lead, but proudly followed closely by groupings of the RAMC, RADC and QARANC Associations. Carrying that image further, I can actually envisage one 'squad' of the same ingredients. Personally, I will be proud of my roots, but also proud of the new Service and, if invited, proud to stand alongside my ex-RAMC and ex-QARANC friends and colleagues.
I would encourage us to go 'all in' by identifying with our serving colleagues, backing them, supporting and encouraging them, while still remaining loyal to the memory of our old Corps. We can use the past to inspire, and here I'm thinking of our origins, of Private Coe DCM, of Donald Taylor, of dentistry attempted in captivity, of Captain Ridler MC in Sicily and then at Arnhem, and so forth. We can contribute a lot to the new Service by education, describing how we met the challenges of the past, adapting kit and techniques for the operational setting, and by showing friendship.
Let us go forward in strength together.
16 November 2024
Major General Ewan B Carmichael CBE L/RADC