With less than a week to go until Trooping the Colour, the final dress rehearsal took place on the Mall in London today as over 1,400 soldiers paraded between Buckingham Palace and Horse Guards Parade.
The term Trooping the Colour refers to the act of parading the flag of that year’s chosen regiment. It is the Grenadier Guards’ turn at this year’s parade, who have the Queen as their Colonel.
However, due to Peter Phillips’ and Harriet Sperling’s wedding, as well as her attendance at the Epsom Derby, Camilla, 78, was not present to take the Colonel’s salute. She was instead represented by Major General Commanding the Household Division, Major General James Bowderas, who acted as her Inspecting Officer.
The Queen took over the colonelcy in December 2022. Before her, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor held the position from the time that his father, Prince Philip, retired in 2017 until January 2022, when he was officially stripped of his military roles.
Also known as The King’s Birthday Parade, Trooping the Colour marks the official birthday of the sovereign, rather than their actual birthday, which in King Charles’s case falls on November 14. While it had been held during the reign of King Charles II, it became an annual event in 1760 after King George III’s accession and has taken place almost every year since.