Dartmouth for fifty three years – and its presence was a source of pride for the town. A standard fixture at Mayoral Parades, Regatta events and important funerals, the band gave a sense of significance to every occasion they graced. From the first moment the marines arrived in the town, it seemed as though Dartmouth took the band and its members to its heart and never let go. They were referred to as ‘our’ band. For fifty years ‘bandies’ came to Dartmouth and were welcomed with open arms, moved to the town and made their lives here.
But economics and the changing political situation meant that fears began to circulate in the late 1960s and early 1970s that the Naval College would shut – taking the band with it. During every round of spending cuts the town held its collective breath waiting for the axe to fall on its beloved band, and heaved a huge sigh of relief when it survived. Her Majesty’s Band of the Royal Marines, Dartmouth, became the first and only Royal Marines band to receive
THE BAND ON THE HILL D
artmouth’s ‘Ship on the Hill’ was home to the Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines,
the ‘Freedom’ of a town or borough in 2003. They were presented with a special scroll declaring their right to march through the town ‘with bayonets fixed and drums playing’. They had a special event to celebrate the honour, and people began to relax about the future of the Naval College and its band. But then in February 2008 it was announced that the band would be ‘suspended’ for eight months as members of the band were redeployed to provide ‘strategic support’ for troops in Afghanistan. The MoD pointedly refused to answer questions on whether the band would return. It didn’t.
As details of the ‘redeployment’ came to light it became clear this was a permanent move: most of the band members were in fact being shared between the other naval bands around the country.
Of the 36 band members, only six were being sent to Afghanistan initially, and in total only 16 were to be sent there. It came as no surprise when the MoD finally announced that the Dartmouth Band would ‘disband’ in November 2008. It was the long-dreaded end of the town’s proud
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