The Prince of Wales today thanked Gurkha soldiers for taking care of Prince Harry during his time in Afghanistan.

His Royal Highness met about 200 soldiers, their wives and children from 1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles as they trained on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire ahead of deploying to Afghanistan from next month.

As Colonel-in-Chief, The Prince spoke to several soldiers who worked alongside Prince Harry when he was in Helmand in early 2008.

The Prince was presented with a garland of the battalion’s colours – red, green and black, which he wore throughout the visit over his combats.

Gurkha soldiers also danced, clapped and sang to the beat of a drum playing a traditional folk song from Nepal while The Prince toured the hangar.

Competition is fierce in Nepal to join the British Army with up to 1,000 applicants for each of about 200 places offered every year.

They carry up to 100 lbs in communication gear, weapons and body armour and their motto is ‘It’s better to die than be a coward’.