A female army officer cadet who was found dead in her room at the prestigious Sandhurst military academy showed "fearless determination" to succeed in life, an inquest heard.
Olivia Perks, 21, was discovered dead at the elite military training school in February 2019.
"Pen portraits" of her were painted by her family as the full three-week inquest into her death began at Berkshire Coroners Court in Reading on Monday.
Dad Ian Perks said: "It breaks my heart to know now that was suffering so unnecessarily."
At the time of her death, Olivia had allegedly been romantically involved with a colour sergeant and had been invited to spend the night with him following a celebration ball called Docklands at the academy.
On the following morning she was late for a training session and had to walk past her colleagues in her ball outfit from the night before.
The cadet was understood to have been a known suicide risk when men embarked on affairs with her at the academy.
Both colour sergeant Griffiths and staff sergeant Easingwood have been named as "interested parties at her inquest", which includes 35 witnesses.
The RMA at Sandhurst, which was attended by Prince William and Prince Harry, has a complete ban on personal relationships with the officer cadets.
A previous damning internal military report into the circumstances surrounding Olivia's death revealed that she had been a victim of "a complete breakdown in welfare support."
The first witness heard today, Colonel Rob Manning, a member of the AH Reserves, said that he had compiled a report made up of over 300 pages about Ms Perks' death and her experiences at Sandhurst.
He said there had been "several aggravating features", including her relationships with officers and her alcohol consumption.
He told the inquest in Reading: "There was a complete breakdown in support during her time at Sandhurst and despite her being discussed as numerous management meetings - nothing had been put in place to support her."
Col. Manning spoke about a visit to the Royal Engineers, where the candidates went to meet the officers and socially spend time with them at a BBQ and an open bar.
He said Olivia - known as Liv - had "drunk to access and got in quite a state."
She was being supported by another cadet but once they got off the minibus back to their accommodation, they were immediately lost.
He said: "All the buildings looked the same so they spent some time walking around and in that time Olivia became distressed.
"She talked about wanting to go to the sea to kill herself and asked for a knife and a belt."
He said the cadet looking after her began to record her, saying: "The things Olivia was saying were quite outlandish so she didn't know if people would believe her."
When another cadet went to help Olivia, she started to pick up stones and eat the gravel, eventually being physically restrained by her colleagues at the time, to stop her.
Despite an ambulance being called, Olivia was taken back to Sandhurst and referred to the mental health team in Guildford, Surrey.
In a statement read out by coroner Alison McCormick, her mother Louise Townsend said: "Liv was the most wonderful, vivacious and captivating girl.
"From a young age she showed fearless determination to push forward."
She said her daughter said she wanted to join the army while a teenager and joined the junior cadets while still at school, where she was held in high regard.
She "watched with great pride" when her daughter joined Sandhurst in 2018 and was told Ms Perks was an "integral member" of her platoon.
Ms Perks scored top marks on a course which she undertook before joining Sandhurst and was the youngest officer cadet in her intake, the hearing was told.
Ms Townsend continued: "People spoke of her as that stand-out figure who was so motivated and driven to succeed.
"She was known for her smile and her wicked sense of humour.
"She was full of energy and enthusiasm, always willing to take on any adventure, and as a friend she was compassionate and kind. She was always ready to help and support others.
"She had that natural ability to be at ease with everyone, no matter their age or gender, and treated everyone equally.
"The enormity of losing her remains palpable, not only within her family but also her massive circle of friends.
"We are incredibly proud of our remarkable girl and everything she achieved in her life, a life which ended prematurely before she was able to reach her full potential."
Ian Perks said his daughter was the "best daughter any father could wish for".
He added: "She was full of energy and enthusiasm, had an enormous sense of fun joining in with anything and everything."
He added that she used to bring certificates home from school, one of which praised her for her determination.
"That was Liv all over," he added.
He said he was "so proud" when she joined Sandhurst and added that it "broke my heart" when he found out what she was going through before she died.
The inquest continues.
The Samaritans is available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch. You matter.
