863 (Thurston) Squadron Summer Camp – Day 5

Day 5 of Summer Camp saw the cadets heading north for a day in Leeds, beginning with a visit to the Royal Armouries Museum.

The Royal Armouries is the United Kingdom's national museum of arms and armour and looks after one of the largest collections of its kind anywhere in the world. The Leeds museum contains thousands of objects charting centuries of military history, from medieval armour and weaponry through to more modern examples of arms and conflict.

A particular highlight for the cadets was the Mongolian Horse Show, part of the Royal Armouries' special Mongolian Summer. This wasn't simply a riding display – the riders demonstrated some of the mounted combat techniques that helped make the Mongol armies such a formidable military force, including impressive displays of horseback archery and mounted weapons skills.

The timing of our visit was particularly fortunate, as the museum is currently hosting Genghis Khan: How the Mongols Changed the World, bringing more than 250 rare objects from Mongolia to Leeds and exploring the military organisation, technology and

innovations behind one of history's largest empires.

After a few hours exploring the museum, we headed into Leeds city centre, where the cadets were given an hour to explore.

Leeds itself has a proud connection with Britain's Armed Forces community. At Victoria Gardens in the heart of the city stands the Leeds War Memorial, which continues to be the focus of the city's Remembrance and military commemorations. The city also hosts an annual Armed Forces Festival celebrating serving personnel, reservists, veterans and, appropriately for our visit, cadets.

After some well-earned free time in the city centre, it was time to regroup and head back to camp, bringing another busy day to a close.

A big thank you to CI Barbrooke for today's recap and for keeping us updated on the cadets' adventures.