A newly promoted teenage female infantry soldier battled French troops as the allies sharpened their warfighting skills.
British Soldiers from 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (1 LANCS) wearing the Tactical Engagement Simulation System during Exercise Gaulish in France.
A French solider from 152nd Infantry Regiment, known as Les Diables Rouges (Red Devils) during Exercise Gaulish.
British Soldiers from 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (1 LANCS) wearing the Tactical Engagement Simulation System operate a drone during Exercise Gaulish in France.
Lance Corporal Amelia 'Milly' McCauley, 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment.
Lance Corporal McCauley, as a Kingsman on Exercise Hedgehog, last year.
Lance Corporal Amelia ‘Milly’ McCauley was among around 120 personnel from 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment (1 LANCS) who deployed to Europe’s most advanced military urban training facility, CENZUB, in France last month.
They joined the French 152nd Infantry Regiment on Exercise Gaulish to share tactics, knowledge, and improve the joint operational effectiveness needed to respond as one force if called upon.
The 1 LANCS soldiers gained first-hand experience working with armoured capabilities not available to their light-role battalion, practising both offensive and defensive operations against French positions.
It was the 19-year-old's first deployment in a leadership role, just a few weeks after her promotion.
We’re good at what we do
Speaking at the 46-square-mile state-of-the-art facility, providing simulation of warfare in real town environments, she said: “Learning the French Army’s skills and tactics was a great experience as we are a light role battalion, and we got to work alongside tanks and these capabilities for our exercise.
It was really enjoyable to put into practice what we’ve been training over the last year.
“It was really enjoyable to put into practice what we’ve been training over the last year. Yesterday we were attacking French positions. This time we were able to have quite a bit of time to build up our own positions, come up with a plan and defend.
“My biggest take away from the exercise is that we’re good at what we do.”
Milly left Carnforth High School in Lancaster at 16 and signed up for the Army straight away. Her progress has been rapid. After completing training to become a Kingsman (a rank unique to her regiment) she passed the Potential Non-Commissioned Officers (PNCO) course and was then made a Lance Corporal in January.
Ambition to progress
She now hopes to complete the Level 2 Junior Non-Commissioned Officer (JNCO) course next year to enable her to promote to Corporal and take up a role as an instructor at Infantry Training Centre Catterick.
Milly said: “I joined the Army to follow in my dad's footsteps. He was a Sergeant Major in 1 Mercian (1st Battalion, The Mercian Regiment), and I have always looked up to him.
“I also didn't think A-levels and university was the right fit for me. I got good grades but studying just became tedious.
Their medals were on the walls, along with all their military accomplishments.
“My dad was in for 21 years, and my mother was a Sergeant in the Adjutant General's Corps Staff and Personnel Support Branch; therefore, I grew up in a military household. Their medals were on the walls, along with all their military accomplishments.
“Then my older brother joined 11 (Royal School of Signals) Signal Regiment, and, like most younger sisters, I always looked up to my brother, so from that point onwards I knew I was going to join.”
Fascinating foreign experiences
Milly has enjoyed deployed to various countries so far, enjoying the contrasting environments. She said: “I’ve been to Cyprus, when I first joined the battalion, which led me to operational military sites in Troodos mountains.
“I've been to Estonia on a brigade-level exercise which was a fantastic experience. I then went to Bosnia to help train the Bosnian Army, which was fascinating to see the differences between our army and theirs.”
I've become a lot more confident since joining
Her service has transformed Milly. She said: “I've become a lot more confident since joining because the people you must talk to on a day-to-day basis are the same people you’re expected to command on exercise.
“I’m also a lot more independent. Usually, my grandma had to drag me out of the house for school. Now I do everything myself and have learned to live by myself which was hard for a 16-year-old leaving home for the first time.”
The highlights keep coming
Among the highlights of Milly’s fledgling career was completing her PNCO cadre, a rigorous, multi-week British Army training program designed transition soldiers from being led to leading small teams.
She said: “I was so excited. I called my dad straight away, then I did the same thing when I promoted.”
And her biggest challenge so far? “It was the patrols phase on my cadre, having to move harbours three times whilst also doing actions every night.”
Another memorable phase was participating in freedom parades in all the regiment’s local towns.
“It was fun to see people come out to watch. One of the lads had his wife and children watching and it was nice to see that.”
She also joined the battalion boxing team and her company (Burma Company) boxing team last year.
Close-knit teams
“They were both fantastic experiences,” she said. “They made me part of really close-knit teams. This links in so well with soldiering as we work in small teams, usually eight per section.”
This summer will see Milly deploy on another overseas exercise, at the world class £70-million British Army Training Unit Kenya training facility, further developing her skills in radically different conditions.
Milly is thrilled with her choice of career and would encourage other females to consider the infantry.
Joining up is definitely the best decision I’ve ever made
“Joining up is definitely the best decision I’ve ever made and hopefully soon we’ll be seeing more women within infantry battalions,” she said.
A light role infantry battalion, Weeton-based 1 LANCS is one of NATO’s pivotal Army units in the role of Forward Land Forces (FLF) Strategic Reserve, on high alert to deploy rapidly to strengthen frontline forces should conflict break out on the alliance’s eastern flank.
