Charles revives royal tradition at Trooping the Colour
King Charles III revived a royal tradition by riding horseback in the first Trooping the Colour since he was crowned, marking the British sovereign’s official birthday.
Although the King’s birthday is officially in November and typically celebrated privately, the ceremonial event on June 18 showcased all the pomp and pageantry expected of royal celebrations, drawing massive crowds to central London.
Accompanying 1,500 soldiers, 300 horses and hundreds of musicians, Charles filed the short distance from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade in St James’ Park for the ceremony viewed by members of the royal family.
It was a sight not seen for nearly 40 years, with Queen Elizabeth II being the last reigning monarch to ride in the procession in 1986.
Dressed for the occasion, King Charles was wearing a Welsh Guard uniform, with a leek emblem on the collar and green and white plum on his bearskin.
He was followed on horseback by various royal colonels including Prime William, also donning a uniform of the Welsh Guard, the regiment he inherited from his father in December 2022. He rode alongside Princess Anne Gold Stick in Waiting and Colonel of the Blues and Royals and Prince Edward, who is Colonel of the London Guards.
Behind them was a horse-drawn carriage carrying the Queen, Catherine, Princess of Wales and her children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The royal party was joined by a Sovereign’s Mounted Escort of soldiers from the Household Calary’s Life Guards and Blues and Royals.
The traditional military spectacle was flooded with well-wishers dressed in fascinators and draped in Union flags ahead of the parade to claim their prime position along the Mall outside the royal residence.
Speaking to CNN, broadcaster and royal watcher Bidisha Mamata, said there was “a real sense of celebration”.
"The coronation was very serious … there was a lot of medieval pageantry. This is much more military focused. This is so much more about connecting King Charles with his own history in the Marines, the RAF - he has a strong connection to the military," she said.
The ceremony saw Queen Camilla join her husband to watch the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards troop their colour in front of hundreds of Guardsmen and officers.
The regiment carried out complex battlefield drill manoeuvres to music, with Kensington Palace previously describing the 2022 musical program as having “a distinctly Welsh theme”, with new compositions from the band written accordingly.
After the parade, the royal party returned to Buckingham Palace following the same route. They there made a balcony appearance to watch an extended military flypast and greet a sea of royal supporters.
Image credit: Getty