The Princess of Wales put money behind the bar for soldiers as she took part in her first solo St Patrick’s Day parade as Colonel of the Irish Guards.

The Princess, wearing a bottle green Alexander McQueen coat and a regimental brooch, caught up with the troops and their families over half a pint of Guinness, telling them how much she had missed taking part in last year’s ceremony.

The Princess was forced to miss last year’s parade after major abdominal surgery. The previous year, she was accompanied by her husband, the Prince of Wales, shortly after taking over from him as Colonel.

Revealing that she had put money behind the bar for this year’s celebrations, the Princess said: “It’s the least I can do.”

On Monday, she appeared delighted to be reunited with the regiment, beaming on arrival at Wellington Barracks, in central London, where she was greeted by Maj Gen Sir Chris Ghika and Lt Col Ben Irwin-Clark before meeting their wives and families inside.

Leaning down to shake hands with Rory Irwin-Clark, aged six, she said: “You’re six? The same age as my Louis.”

His mother, Carice, revealed that they often saw the Princess at sports matches as their daughter was the same age as Princess Charlotte at a nearby private school.

The Princess presented operational medals to soldiers who had recently returned from deployment in Iraq, as well as long service and good conduct medals, before joining the parade outside.

She then presented traditional sprigs of shamrock to officers and guardsmen, as well as Turlough Mor, otherwise known as Seamus, the regiment’s Irish Wolfhound mascot, bending down to give him an affectionate ruffle.

The Princess attached her own sprig to her lapel before taking the Royal Salute during a march-past.

After posing for photographs, she met Irish Guards veterans as well as junior cadets from Northern Ireland, known as Mini Micks.

In the junior ranks’ dining hall, Senior Guardsman Barry Loughlin proposed a toast in her honour before the soldiers gave her three cheers. The Princess, clutching half a pint of Guinness, smiled broadly before lifting her glass in recognition and taking a sip.

The relaxed gathering gave her the chance to speak informally to soldiers about their experiences, including those recently deployed overseas and others involved in training Ukrainian troops.

She chatted to one group about the difficulties of being on deployment, noting: “Being able to manage that work-life balance – it’s tough.”

She told Corporal Adam Hamilton, an Australian reservist, that she would love to return to Australia with her three children, having taken a nine-month-old Prince George on an official visit in 2014.

“It’s finding time to do that,” she said. “But I love to travel – yes, it’s a long flight. But I love the Middle East because that’s familiar to me growing up. There are so many opportunities now to travel, I think it’s brilliant to experience it.

“We tend to go further afield when it’s official visits – it’s being able to carve out time to experience these countries in a more private capacity.

“Because otherwise you end up seeing lots of insides of amazing buildings but you don’t get to meet that many people. It’s making sure that you can combine a bit of work with the children. I might see you down there!”

The Princess also chatted to section commanders in the bar about Prince William’s beard. “These trends come and go,” she said. “I was saying to my husband, I’m not sure how long he’s going to keep his for.”

Expressing enthusiasm for the various different careers on offer in the Army, the Princess also revealed that she was particularly keen to help bolster recruitment.

Senior Guardsman Loughlin said afterwards: “She wanted to know how things were going with the blokes in general. She was really nice and really warm. I was kind of flustered. You could tell she had a genuine interest in us.”

The event marked one of the Princess’s most high profile solo outings since she embarked on a gradual return to public duties.

Last February, the Princess wrote to the regiment apologising for not being able to join them as she continued her recovery from abdominal surgery.

A few days later, she released a video message, in which she announced that “tests after the operation found that cancer had been present” and that she was in the “early stages” of chemotherapy.

It was not until last September that she announced she had completed her treatment, later confirming that she was in remission.