The 2023 Trooping the Colour was held on 17 June 2023. Over 1,500 soldiers, 300 horses, and 400 musicians took part in the ceremony, the first to be held during King Charles III's reign, and for his first Official Birthday.[1][2]
| 2023 Trooping the Colour | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Date(s) | 17 June 2023 |
| Location(s) | Horse Guards Parade, London, England |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Previous event | 2022 |
| Next event | 2024 |
| Activity |
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The parade
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The parade began at 11 am British Summer Time (BST).[1] It was the first time since 1986 that the monarch had ridden on horseback during the ceremony.[3] The King was accompanied on horseback by William, Prince of Wales, Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, and Anne, Princess Royal. Senior members of the royal family, including Queen Camilla, Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, rode in carriages to the Horse Guards Parade. All five regiments of the Foot Guards participated in the parade, alongside the two regiments of the Household Cavalry.[citation needed] The colour was trooped by the Welsh Guards.[4] The parade was the first following a shift in honorary colonelcies in the Foot Guards in December 2022. Queen Camilla replaced Prince Andrew, Duke of York as colonel of the Grenadier Guards, while Prince William became colonel of the Welsh Guards. The Princess of Wales took her husband's former role as colonel of the Irish Guards[5] The Duke of Edinburgh rode in his capacity as colonel of the London Guards, a reserve regiment formed in May 2022.[6]
After the parade
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Following the trooping at the Horse Guards Parade, the royal family took part in the return procession that escorted them back to Buckingham Palace. The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery fired a 41 gun salute from St James' Park while at the Tower of London, the Honourable Artillery Company fired 62 guns.[2] At 1 pm, the royal family made a balcony appearance and watched a flypast; this was the event that had originally been scheduled for the coronation on 6 May, but had been curtailed by poor weather. Seventy aircraft from all three Armed Service participated. The contingrent of helicopters were followed by a Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane and Avro Lancaster of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Notable elements of the flypast included three C-130 Hercules transports on their last mission before retirement and eighteen Eurofighter Typhoons flying in a "CR" formation. The final element consisted of the newest RAF aircraft, the Dassault Envoy IV VIP transport, which was flanked by the Red Arrows display team trailing red, white and blue smoke.[7]
Balcony appearance
editBritish royal family
edit- The King and Queen
- The Prince and Princess of Wales, the King's son and daughter-in-law
- Prince George of Wales, the King's grandson
- Princess Charlotte of Wales, the King's granddaughter
- Prince Louis of Wales, the King's grandson
- The Prince and Princess of Wales, the King's son and daughter-in-law
- The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, the King's sister and brother-in-law
- The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the King's brother and sister-in-law[8]
Other descendants of the King's maternal great-grandfather King George V and their families:
- The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the King's maternal first cousin once removed and his wife
- The Duke of Kent, the King's maternal first cousin once removed
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Foot Guards process along The Mall -
18 Typhoons formed the shape of a “CR” - standing for “Charles Rex”. -
The Red Arrows fly over the Mall. -
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References
edit- ^ a b Petit, Stephanie (12 June 2023). "How to Watch Trooping the Colour 2023, King Charles' First Birthday Parade as Monarch". People. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
- ^ a b Andersson, Jasmine; Coughlan, Sean (17 June 2023). "Trooping the Colour: Royals celebrate King Charles's first birthday parade". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ Henni, Janine (12 June 2023). "King Charles Is Bringing Back a Trooping the Colour Tradition Not Seen Since 1986". People. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
- ^ Ward, Victoria (12 June 2023). "What to expect from this year's Trooping the Colour". The Telegraph. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ Rhoden-Paul, Andrew (22 December 2022). "Trooping the Colour: New roles for Kate and Camilla". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ Petit, Stephanie. "Prince Edward Will Have a Personal First at Brother King Charles' Trooping the Colour". People. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "King's Birthday Flypast 17th June". www.raf.mod.uk. Royal Air Force. 21 July 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
- ^ According to the BBC, the Duchess' children, Earl of Wessex and Lady Louise Windsor, were supposed to accompany her during the procession and on the balcony "Trooping the Colour: The King's Birthday Parade". BBC iPlayer. 17 June 2023.
