THE history of the Royal Welch Fusiliers is woven into the fabric of Wrexham.

From its location as a recruiting depot for the Boer War in the late 19th century, to the soldiers who passed through to serve in two world wars and in more recent times those deployed in peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and Iraq, the town boasts a proud military history.

The Royal Welch Fusiliers can even trace its Wrexham connections back to 1805, when soldiers were recruited as part of the campaign against Napoleon, long before the town's Hightown Barracks opened.

Fittingly, a new volume examining the colourful and fascinating 20th century history of the famous old regiment will now be launched at the barracks, where the book's principle author, Lieutenant General Jonathon Riley, will be on hand for an illustrated talk and signing.

"This new volume fills the gap between the end of Volume IV in November 1918 and the beginning of Volume VI in late 1945," explains Lt Gen Riley, 64, who was the commanding officer of the 1st Royal Welch Fusiliers in Bosnia in 1995. "There was so much information we had to split it into two books.

"During the Great War, the Regiment fielded a total of 45 battalions, which is the fourth highest total of any regiment on the Army List during those years, and remarkable given the relative paucity of population in Wales, compared with the great urban centres of England. There was an awful lot of heavy industry devoted to war as well, so there were a lot of demands on the man power of Wales and yet the man power of Wales answered the call."

The emphasis of the volume is of course on the Second World War, during which North Wales battalions, independent companies and artillery regiments served in every major theatre and campaign.

"So much of the Royal Welch's success is down to the sense of community in the region," says the soldier turned historian. "The territorial battalions were very locally focused and there were lots of TA (Territorial Army) centres and drill halls which we don't have anymore. It provided a strong social focus for people and without wishing to imply the wrong motives, when Wales was dry on a Sunday and at the end of a long training weekend it was the only place you could get a glass of beer!

"People found it was something different from work and something interesting and exciting, which gave them a good social life and of course you were paid and got a decent bounty at the end of the year.

"This overall sense of belonging engendered a sense of commitment and duty which was very distinct."

Coming from a Yorkshire family with a history of military service in many Regiments and Corps of the British Army, and the Royal Navy, Lt Gen Riley joined the Army in 1973 and was commissioned the following year. On operations, he has served six tours in Northern Ireland, one in Central America, five in the Balkans, one in Sierra Leone, two years in Iraq and one-and-a-half years in Afghanistan.

"I'd always wanted to be in the Royal Welch but I couldn't get in from Sandhurst because I didn't have any family connections and there was a lot of competition," he remembers. "When I was eight-years-old I'd visited the regiment's museum in Caernarfon just after it opened and from that day I knew I wanted to be in that regiment and eventually I was!

"I commanded the 1st Battalion in Bosnia and later became Colonel of the regiment. I've always had an academic career as well in parallel to my military career and I have a PhD in modern history and have published 23 books on military history.

"When I was on active service people always used to say 'does studying military history help you in planning operations?' I'd always reply 'you're damn right it does' because you can gather the experience of other people, the mistakes they've made and the things they've got right."

During the Second World War, Lt Gen Riley describes how the regiment was awarded 27 battle honours, but with 1,200 men of the Royal Welch Fusiliers killed in action or dying of their wounds, they paid a heavy toll.

"Both the regular battalions served in Burma for a lot of the war and it was a very tough, demanding theatre of operations," says Lt Gen Riley. "The 1st Battalion took very heavy casualties at the Battle of Kohima (nicknamed Stalingrad of the East due to the ferocity of fighting on both sides) but also at the Battle of Donbaik where the poet Robert Graves' son, David was killed.

"Before that the 2nd Battalion took part in the invasion of Madagascar, which is a very little known operation to defeat Vichy France deny Madagascar's ports to the Imperial Japanese Navy and was a great success.

"Go back to the start of the war and you have the 1st Battalion at Dunkirk where they protected the perimeter and held back the Germans so the evacuation could take place. They were very badly mauled there and lost their commanding officer and a lot of troops were killed or taken prisoner.

"It is hard to pick out one action because so many are such striking tales and there are so many riveting stories."

Lt Gen Riley, who lives near Lampeter, was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for bravery and distinguished conduct in the Balkans in 1996; made an Officer of the Legion of Merit of the United States of America in 2004; made a Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath in the New Year's Honours 2008; and was awarded the NATO Meritorious Service Medal by the Secretary-General in December 2008, but he certainly hasn't forgotten his years serving with the Royal Welch.

"Wrexham is very much home of the regiment," he adds. "I'm up and down a lot to both Wrexham and Caernarfon, where the museum is and I have a real fondness for the town. I always feel at home there."

Volume V of the Regimental Records of the Royal Welch Fusiliers will be launched at a series of events in the spring of 2019, to which all members of the Regiment, past and present, and guests, are cordially invited. At each event, there will be refreshments, a short illustrated talk, and the chance to buy signed copies at a discounted price.

The launch event in Wrexham takes place at the Officers' Mess, 3 Royal Welsh, Hightown Barracks, Wrexham, on Thursday, April 11, 2019 from 6pm-8pm. Please visit http://rwfmuseum.org.ukfor more information.