The new head of the Army in Wales has described the role as the pinnacle of his career.

Brigadier Alan Richmond OBE took over as Commander 160th Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Wales this week, succeeding Brigadier Martyn Gamble, who has occupied the role since February, 2014.

The Army Headquarters in Wales, based at the Watton Barracks in Brecon, has the operational command of four infantry units that are deployed across the world – 1st Battalion The Rifles, 6th Battalion The Rifles, 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment and 2nd Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be taking on the job and it’s a huge privilege,” said Brigadier Richmond, who has been in the Army for nearly 30 years and previously commanded 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards, The Welsh Cavalry, from 2007 to 2010.

“To be representing the Army in Wales and, of course, championing Wales within the British Army, is a significant honour, responsibility and pleasure. It is the pinnacle of a military career spanning 27 years.”

160th Infantry Brigade has seen significant change over the last three years, restructuring from a regional brigade with a principal focus on looking after the firm base to a fully-fledged infantry brigade within the 1st United Kingdom Division with additional operational commitments.

The firm base concept focuses on the military and civil society working together to care for soldiers, veterans and their families along the five pillars connected to health, housing, welfare, employment and education.

Brigadier Richmond said: “We can be justifiably proud of what the brigade has achieved and I would like to pay tribute to my predecessor, Brigadier Martyn Gamble, for handing over to me a headquarters and brigade that are in such fine fettle. I look forward to building on his work to make my brigade and our Welsh regiments true icons of Wales.”

Significant strides have been made to ensure a fully-joined up approach with Welsh Government, all 22 local authorities, the NHS Trusts, the voluntary sector and charitable bodies across Wales to achieve a cohesive approach to the firm base.

Brigadier Richmond said the headquarters was now on a more operational footing than ever before as the Strategic Defence and Security Review placed an even greater emphasis on upstream prevention and capacity building overseas.

He said: “We currently have 1 Rifles deployed in Iraq and another, 1 R Irish, preparing to deploy to Afghanistan as well as partnering with friendly countries in Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Caucuses and Central Asia to help develop the capabilities of their Armies and help maintain stability and security in regions that are strategically important to the UK.

“It is a real delight to be moving to Brecon, which is somewhere that I have visited many times before, both during my service with The Welsh Cavalry (indeed when I commanded B Squadron QDG my Challenger tank was named Brecon) and in a private capacity.

“My mother is from a branch of the Trevor family (Denbighshire) and my wife’s father was proudly from Llanelli – a mix that I hope will help me represent all of Wales.”

Brigadier Richmond’s career has also involved working at the national military-political interface in the Ministry of Defence, as military assistant to the Chief of the Defence Staff, running operations in support of the civil authorities during the Foot and Mouth Crisis and capacity building with partner nations overseas.