THE Navy frigate HMS Monmouth was due to dock at Newport today for the captain and crew to visit their namesake town.

The ship will stay in Newport until Tuesday and the new chairman of Monmouthshire county council, Councillor Don Spencer and the new mayor of Monmouth, Councillor Mandy Rus-sell, are both due to visit.

The ship will be berthed in Alexandra Docks and will be open for members of the public to visit this weekend between 1pm and 4pm.

The crew have arranged a busy programme of sporting fixtures and a variety of visits to Monmouth during their first visit for nearly two years.

The frigate is known throughout the Navy as the Black Duke and flies a black flag from her main mast at all times.

This custom is a legacy of her association with the infamous traitor the Duke of Monmouth, whose failed rebellion against the Catholic King James II culminated in the last pitched battle on British soil at Sedgemoor in July 1685.

The ship has just completed a seven-month deployment to the Arabian Gulf, as well as exercises in UK waters.