You may have heard the term ‘Trooping the Colour’ in recent weeks and wondered what exactly this event is.
Fortunately for you, we’ve put together a handy guide to explain exactly what the tradition entails.
The Trooping of the Colour officially celebrates the occasion of the Queen’s Official Birthday and sees hundreds of troops parade every June.
Although The Queen was born on 21 April, the parade traditionally takes place in the summer as the weather should (although not always) be better.
Her Majesty has attended the event since coming to the throne in 1952, taking the first Royal Salute that year.
This hugely impressive display of pageantry is carried out by the Sovereign’s personal troops, known as the Household Division.
The Foot Troops – one regiment is chosen each year to Troop their Colour – and the Household Cavalry lead the march followed by The King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery.
Her Majesty attends to take the salute as the parade travels from Buckingham Palace along The Mall to Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall and back again.
More than 1,400 officers and men, alongside more than two hundred horses and four hundred musicians take part.
The Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry attended the event in 2014 and will again join this year’s procession.
The 2015 parade takes place on Saturday 13 June and includes an RAF fly past when the Queen and other members of the Royal Family have gathered on the Buckingham Palace balcony.
Some spectators are lucky enough to get tickets in the seated stands at the Guards Parade while thousands more people line the Mall as the procession goes past.
The event is televised around the world and is watched by millions of people every year.
It can still get the better of some people though, including this soldier who fainted as the Queen rode by during the 1970 parade.
The Queen has attended the Trooping the Colour in a carriage rather than riding since 1987. On the 36 occasions before that Her Majesty wore the uniform of the regiment whose Colour was being trooped.
The custom of Trooping the Colour dates back to the 17th century and the times of Charles II. In those times the Colours of the regiment were marched in front of soldiers to distinguish between them in battle.
The first mention of the concept being used to mar the Sovereign’s birthday was by the Grenadier Guards in 1748. It also occurred following the coronation of King George III in 1760. Following that event, it was ordered that Trooping the Colour should make the occasion every year.
Since George IV became King, the event has taken place annually, apart from a few exceptions and during the two World Wars.
So there you have it – what you need to know about the Queen’s official birthday. It’s an event to be enjoyed, as this soldier proves…
