Fusilier Turrington was 18 years and 131 days old when he died in action as troops stormed the southern Iraqi city of Basra on April 6.

Soldiers under the age of 18 have been officially barred from combat duty since about 1998, but for longer by military convention.

The teenager’s coffin was draped in the Cross of St George on which his beret and hackle were placed. The coffin was carried by six pallbearers from the regiment.

His parents Ann, 46, and John “Curly” Turrington, 54, followed with his brother Liam, 15. About 500 mourners gathered at All Saints Church, Haslingfield, Cambridgeshire, and outside in the churchyard, where the service was relayed by loud speakers.

Most of Fusilier Turrington’s colleagues from the 1st Battalion were not able to attend as they are still in Iraq. His best friends, Fusiliers Stephen Scott and Darren Bone, were flown in for the service.

Meanwhile, the most junior-ranking recipient of the Military Cross since it was made available to non-officers in 1993 was honoured for his courage in Afghanistan.

Liam Armstrong, a 23-year-old Royal Marine from Carlisle, was awarded the medal for confronting armed men defending a weapons cache. His was among more than 100 honours announced for the Armed Forces.

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