Prince Harry enters British Army
Sunday, May 8, 2005 Posted: 10:02 AM EDT (1402 GMT)
LONDON, England -- Prince Harry joins Britain's Army Sunday as he begins his new life as a career soldier.
The 20-year-old's time since leaving secondary school at the private Eton College has been dogged with controversy, from a bust-up with a paparazzi photographer to a Nazi fancy dress uniform gaffe that sparked outrage across the world.
Aides will be hoping the discipline at the elite military academy Sandhurst will keep Britain's third in line to throne on the straight and narrow.
Accompanied by his father, Prince Charles, Harry will pitch up alongside 270 other recruits at the Old College training center in Camberley, Surrey, west of London, bringing with him his standard kit, including his pair of heavy Army issue black boots.
He will be welcomed by the commandant of Sandhurst, Maj. Gen. Andrew Ritchie, Adjutant Maj. George Waters, and tough-talking Sgt. Maj. Vince Gaunt in the leafy, neatly kept grounds, the UK's Press Association reported.
Gaunt has insisted the young royal will get the same treatment as every other cadet during his officer training.
Harry, who delayed his admittance for four months due to a knee injury, will be put through his paces on the Royal Military Academy's grueling commissioning course.
For the first five weeks, he will be banned from leaving the site, even at weekends.
The prince has been parted from 19-year-old girlfriend Chelsy Davy after the pair spent a romantic break together in Africa ahead of the intense course training.
Recruits must be up at break of day and face domestic chores and harsh physical training.
They must also master the academic side of training and attend lectures on topics such as war studies.
Harry, who could be called up to fight in war zones after finishing, is believed to be the most senior royal in recent memory to attend the academy and opt for the Army rather than the Navy.
By signing up, he is continuing a historic family tradition of military service.
His father trained to be a pilot with the RAF. Charles also served in the Navy, as did Charles' father, the Duke of Edinburgh. The Duke of York was a helicopter pilot in the Falklands conflict, but the Earl of Wessex dropped out of the Royal Marines after failing to adjust to its tough regime.
Harry's brother, Prince William, also has expressed hopes of enlisting with the forces. Their mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Harry, who had set his heart on joining the Army, gained a place at Sandhurst after passing the Regular Commissions Board test last September.
As he begins his military training, his former Eton teacher Sarah Forsyth, who claims she helped him cheat in his A-level art exam, is preparing for her employment tribunal tomorrow where she alleges unfair dismissal and sex discrimination.