THE Crown Prince of Bahrain and other members of the royal family were among guests at a passing-out parade at Britannia Royal Nava College.

Cadets from four continents were on parade at the final graduation of the year to be held at the Dartmouth college.

The head of the Royal Navy, Admiral Sir George Zamb­ellas, the First Sea Lord, was the inspecting officer for the ceremony which marked the successful end of training for 94 Royal Navy officers, 30 officers for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and 29 international students, from 12 nations.

The international students included His Highness Isa Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, the son of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, the Crown Prince of Bahrain.

The newly commissioned Royal Navy officers have trained alongside their international counterparts for past 30 weeks.

During this time they have had to prove their leadership ability on the rugged landscape of Dartmoor, the River Dart and within the college.

The officers have also spent three weeks at sea on an operational warship, giving them the chance to see how the individual departments on board ship contribute to the overall effectiveness. Members of the RFA have completed their own bespoke course.

Speaking at the parade, Admiral Zambellas told the young officers that wherever their journey takes them, the reputation of BRNC will precede them, built on 500 years of naval history.

He said: ‘But our task, and now yours, is to match the pride you feel toward our past, with a fearless ambition for our future – ambition for your success as an individual; but also ambition for the Royal Navy’s part in our nation’s future.

‘We will soon become one of only a tiny handful of navies in the world charged with delivering both continuous nuclear deterrence and continuous carrier strike.

‘HMS Queen Elizabeth and her sister ship, HMS Prince of Wales, each represent more than 65,000 tonnes of military might. They are symbols of our nation’s rediscovered self-belief. Far from withdrawing from the world, Britain’s maritime star is in the ascendant.

‘Your leadership, your imagination, can bring the Royal Navy’s astonishing capabilities alive, to support defence and security, diplomacy and influence, trade and prosperity. You have the ability to turn raw military power into global authority. You personally and collectively will put the “Great” into Great Britain. Your most important responsibility as an officer is to ensure you, and those who serve under you, are always ready to fight and win.’

With the first phase of their training complete the newly commissioned Royal Navy officers will embark on their basic fleet time in the new tear.

Captain Henry Duffy, the commanding officer of BRNC said: ‘The young officers on parade have been tested to the limit and to earn their place on the parade ground they have met the high standards that we require.

‘As we prepare to rejoin our families for the Christmas break, this parade marks the end of another busy and highly successful year for the college.

‘We have provided initial training to over 500 officer cadets. While most of them have been destined for careers in the Royal Navy, the figure also includes new members of the RFA, the vital service that enables the Royal Navy to operate world-wide. It also includes our students from overseas nations. ‘Defence diplomacy begins at BRNC and we are very lucky to be able to introduce our own cadets to this aspect of the Royal Navy’s work at such an early stage of their career.

‘The Royal Navy Leadership Academy, the leadership centre of excellence for the Royal Navy here on site, has also played its part in providing a range of training to prepare officers, at all levels, for promotion. While we applaud those on the parade ground, they would not have been able to achieve what they have without the hard work and dedication of my staff, who have guided them through the transition from civilian to military officer.’

At the end of the parade, Admiral Zambellas presented the Crown Prince will an album containing photographs of his son throughout the course as a memento of his training. The album was put together by BRNC’s media team of Craig Keating and Sir Martin Thomas, who both work for Babcock.

Forces TV will be taking viewers behind the scenes of the training that takes place at BRNC in a documentary due to be broadcast on Boxing Day.

Navy Command: Tested to the Limits follows a group of cadets as they take part in their final exercise on the River Dart. The programme is due to go out at 5.30pm on Sky Channel 264, Virgin 277 and Freesat 652.