|
Trooping the Colour |
is Part of the Gator Solutions Network of Travel Sites
|
|
Search London By:
Services:
Train Tickets
|
The official birthday of the Sovereign is marked each year by a colourful and historic military parade and march-past, known as Trooping the Colour. It takes place each June on Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, in front of crowds of onlookers and, thanks to television, is enjoyed by millions world-wide. The troops participating in the parade are drawn from a military organisation which, though a part of the Army and therefore composed of fully trained, operational troops, is a national institution - the Household Division. It is The Queen's Colour of a Foot Guard battalion which is 'trooped' each year before the Sovereign. Only one colour can be trooped (carried along the ranks) at a time, and the five Regiments - Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish and Welsh - therefore take their turn year by year.
The ceremony derives from two old military ceremonies, Trooping the Colour and Mounting The Queen's Guard. The origin of the ceremony goes back to the early eighteenth century, and possibly even earlier, when the guards and sentries for the Royal Palaces and other important buildings in the capital were mounted daily on the parade ground by the Horse Guards building. A feature of guard mounting was for the colours (or flags) of the battalion, which were - and still are - symbols of honour, but also in the past served as rallying points in battle, to be carried (or 'trooped') slowly down the ranks so that they could be seen and recognised by the soldiers. In 1748 it was ordered that this parade would also mark the official birthday of the Sovereign. From the accession of George IV the parade became - with the few exceptions of two World Wars and a parade cancellation in 1955 caused by a national rail strike - an annual event.
Because the Guards, both Horse and Foot, are Household Troops who traditionally have the honour of guarding the monarch, their link with the Sovereign has been especially close. The custom for the Sovereign to take the salute personally at Trooping the Colour became a regular practice only with King Edward VII but Queen Victoria's concern for an interest in her troops was most marked. She twice took the salute at Windsor Castle and, in 1845, watched incognito in London with the young Prince of Wales when Prince Albert was on duty. She was represented in London by her Commander-in-Chief: first the Duke of Wellington and later her cousin, the Duke of Cambridge. In 1896 the salute was taken on her behalf by The Prince of Wales who, on his accession in 1901 as King Edward VII, became Colonel-in-Chief of all the Household regiments and was regularly present at the parade.
Until 1913, the normal procedure for guard mounting from Horse Guards Parade was marked on the official birthday of the Sovereign by the attendance of the King, Prince of the Blood Royal, visiting members of foreign Royal Families, the Army Council and other senior officers, and a large number of foreign military attaches and members of the Royal Households. Indeed, in 1907 King Edward VII was accompanied by nine Royal Highnesses, Imperial Highnesses and Highnesses, and His Majesty's mounted procession when he arrived on the parade numbered over fifty. The King was greeted with a Royal salute and carried out an inspection of the troops. The massed bands performed a slow and quick musical 'troop' and the escort for the colour advanced to receive the regimental colour which was then carried down the ranks. All the Foot Guards (and sometimes the Household Cavalry) marched past, and after a final salute the King and his procession departed, leaving the 'duties' to be formed up for their various guards. This form of parade can still be seen during May, without the appearance of the Sovereign and those in attendance.
In 1914 however, King George V agreed that his Birthday Parade should be altered in order to present a more impressive display for the ever-increasing numbers of spectators. At the close of the ceremony, it was decided that the King should place himself at the head of his Guards and ride down the Mall to Buckingham Palace behind the massed bands. The troops who were to provide the King's Guard at the Palace and at St James's marched into the forecourt for the Changing of the Guard, and His Majesty took up his position in the centre gateway, where he was saluted by the remainder of those on parade as they marched past and returned to barracks.
This is the procedure today, but with several modifications over the years by the Sovereign's command. In 1950, for example, King George VI ordered that the Household Cavalry should cease to be an independent corps, receiving their instructions almost directly from the Sovereign, but should be grouped with the Foot Guards in what was called the Household Brigade, and is now the Household Division. As a result it was decided that the mounted regiment, which comprised squadrons of The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals, should play a more important part than hitherto. Previously they had escorted the Sovereign to the parade ground and then returned to barracks. Now, with their mounted band, they walked and trotted past the King before or after the Foot Guards. The Royal Horse Artillery fired a salute in one of the Royal parks, but it was later decided that they would also rank past the King at Buckingham Palace at the end of the ceremony. Since 1998, The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery have also walked and trotted past Her Majesty on Horse Guards. When the march pasts had been completed His Majesty joined other members of the Royal Family on the balcony to witness the fly past by the Royal Air Force, a selection of which, as the Royal Flying Corps Military Wing, had taken past for the first time at the Birthday Parade on Laffan's Plain, Aldershot, in 1913.
The Queen, then Princess Elizabeth, first appeared on parade, mounted, as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards in 1947, the first Birthday Parade to be held after the Second World War. All ranks wore battledress except the Sovereign's escort of the Household Cavalry, mounted officers and members of the regimental bands who were in service dress, and The Princess who was in blue uniform, wearing a forage cap which later became in style that of the Women's Royal Army Corps. In 1951, when The King was unable to take the salute himself because of illness, she deputised for him, and subsequently sent the following message to the Major-General Commanding: "Will you please inform all ranks that The King was delighted to hear my report on the excellence of The King's Birthday Parade today. I was very proud to deputise for the King and take the Parade for the first time".
The Queen has been at the saluting base every year of her reign with the exception of 1955, when a national rail strike forced the cancellation of the parade. There is, therefore, no one who is more expert or knowledgeable on every detail, and no mistake escapes her experienced eye. To all ranks of the Household Troops, who have been trained in their dual operational and ceremonial roles to accept one standard only - perfection - this is expected and is a source of pride. On this very special day they pay a personal tribute to their Sovereign and Colonel-in-Chief.
The scarlet tunic which was worn by The Queen when she rode on horseback always bore the badges and button groupings corresponding to the regiment who colour was being trooped that year. She wore atricorn hat with a plume designed by Aage Thaarup the colour of which was also changed to march the plume worn on the side of the guards' bearskins. The Duke of Edinburgh usually accompanies The Queen on horseback and wears the uniform of Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, while The Prince of Wales, who rode at the Trooping the Colour for the first time in 1975, wears the uniform of Colonel of the Welsh Guards.
On the 1969 parade The Queen first rode Burmese and continued to do so until 1986. Her Majesty then decided that rather than train another charger for this distinguished role she would be driven in a phaeton which had been build for Queen Victoria in 1842, and take the salutes on Horse Guards and at the Palace from a dais. The Queen no longer wears her uniforms which were essentially habits designed for wear on horseback.
"Your Majesty's Guards are ready to march off, Ma'am" are the words addressed to The Queen by the Field Officer commanding the parade, followed by the moment when Her Majesty moves out and takes position at the head of The Queen's Guard. This climax symbolises what they have stood for over the centuries and their especial position in peace and war. The ceremony, for all who are serving or who have served in the Household Division, has become the focal point of what they mean when they talk of themselves, uniquely, as Guardsmen. But it is also the outward sign of The Queen's majesty. |
Looking For a London Guest House? Visit Best Guest Houses Directory for your Guest House in London. |
|
Looking For a London Hotel? Visit AccommoGator for your Hotel in London. |
||
|
Click Here for More Information
|
||
|
Top London Hotels is part of the Gator Solutions Network of Travel Sites. Our other sites: UK Hotels (AccommoGator), Best Guest Houses, Top Edinburgh Hotels, Top Manchester Hotels, Top Torquay Hotels, Top York Hotels |