The Bands of the Household Division refer to the grouping of the seven military bands of the Household Division, which forms a part of the British Army's London District. The bands belong to five regiments of foot guards and two Household Cavalry regiments.
The two Household Cavalry bands are Band of the Household Cavalry and the Countess of Wessex's String Orchestra. The five bands of the foot guards are Band of the Grenadier Guards, Band of the Coldstream Guards, Band of the Scots Guards, Band of the Irish Guards and Band of the Welsh Guards. [1]
As of 1913, the massed bands numbered around 250 musicians who are members of the Royal Corps of Army Music rather than the named regiments. These have been on show in the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace. Similarly, both the Household Cavalry regiments have their own mounted bands and also their own regimental quick and slow marches. [2]
On an unusually warm June day in London in 2023, three soldiers fainted during a rehearsal in full dress, wearing woolen uniform and bearskin, [3] leading a NY Times commentator to question the sense of "soldiering on in our old, wrong clothes" in the light of climate change. [4]
The Beating Retreat is a massive gathering of the band's of the Household Division on Horse Guards Parade. It is based on a 16th-century military ceremony in England that was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle. It is held each year, on the Wednesday and Thursday evenings preceding Trooping the Colour, with the Massed Bands, Pipes and Drums and Corps of Drums of the Household Division, supported by The King's Troop and visiting military bands from around the world. [5]
The Massed Bands and Mounted Band are featured annually at Trooping the Colour. In addition to the occasional pipers that join the bands, the presence of the Bands of the Household Division totals to approximately 400 musicians.[ citation needed ] It is responsible for performing the Royal Salute ( God Save the King ), providing music for the inspection of the line, the trooping through the ranks, and the march past in slow and quick time. One of the unique roles it has is the trooping of the band. This occurs once the King is seated, to which the command "Troop!" is given by the Field Officer. Upon hearing the command, three strikes on a bass drum and a playing of one note by the bands give the signal for the Massed Bands to begin. Under the command of the Senior Drum Major, the Massed Bands march and countermarch on Horse Guards Parade in slow and quick time. The slow march music is traditionally the Waltz from Les Huguenots while the quick march is generally a chosen tune. During the quick march, a lone drummer from the Corps of Drums breaks away to post himself just to the right of No. 1 Guard to sound the lone drummer's eight-bar "Drummer's Call". This initiates the Trooping of the Colour phase, by means of signalling the Captain of No. 1 Guard to cede his command to the Subaltern of No. 1 Guard. The call having been sounded, the lone drummer returns to the Massed Bands.
As the Escort to the Colour slow-marches down the field towards No. 6 Guard to begin their colour trooping, the massed bands perform a maneuver unique to their unit and the Royal Marines [6] known as the anti-clockwise "spinwheel". It is a 90° turn in restricted space, and is the specific responsibility of the Garrison Sergeant Major.
Lieutenant-Colonel Rodney Bashford, Director of Music for the Grenadier Guards from 1960-1970, was quoted as saying the following about on the spinwheel:
In 1887, the first bandmaster was commissioned; Daniel Godfrey of the Grenadier Guards received the title as a personal award coming with a Jubilee Medal as part of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee Honours. [8] In the Foot Guards, personal commissions would later be granted to Lieutenant Colonel John Mackenzie Rogan and Captain Albert Williams.[ citation needed ] As a result, on 6 June 1914, the term "Director of Music" was introduced to distinguish those with a commissioned rank from warrant officers.[ citation needed ]
Since 2020, the senior director of music has become known as 'Commanding Officer, Household Division Bands'. [9] [1]
List of Senior Directors of Music since 1914: [10]
| Name | Regiment | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant Colonel John Mackenzie Rogan | Coldstream Guards | 1914–1920 |
| Captain Albert Williams | Grenadier Guards | 1920–1921 |
| Captain Frederick Wood | Scots Guards | 1921–1929 |
| Major Andrew Harris | Welsh Guards | 1929–1938 |
| Lieutenant Colonel George Miller | Grenadier Guards | 1938–1942 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Jiggs Jaeger | Irish Guards | 1963–1968 |
| Major Rodney Bashford | Grenadier Guards | 1968–1970 [11] |
| Lieutenant Colonel James H. Howe | Scots Guards | 1970–1975 [12] |
| Major Gerald Horabin | Irish Guards | 1975–1977 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Richard Ridings | Coldstream Guards | 1977–1985 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Derek Kimberley | Grenadier Guards | 1985–1987 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Michael Lane | Irish Guards | 1987–1989 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Peter Hannam | Welsh Guards | 1989–1993 |
| Lieutenant Colonel David Price | Irish Guards | 1993–2000 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Phillip Hills | Grenadier Guards | 2000–2002 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Chatburn | Irish Guards | 2002–2005 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Bob Owen | Scots Guards | 2005–2007 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Graham Jones | Coldstream Guards | 2007–2011 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Barnwell | Welsh Guards | 2011–2013 [13] |
| Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Roberts | Welsh Guards | 2015–2017 [14] [15] |
| Lieutenant Colonel Darren Wolfendale | Irish Guards | 2017–2020 |
| Lieutenant Colonel Simon Haw [9] [1] | Coldstream Guards | 2020–2022 |
| Lieutenant Colonel David Barringer | Welsh Guards | 2022-present |
Trooping the Colour is a ceremonial event performed every year on Horse Guards Parade in London, United Kingdom, by regiments of Household Division, to celebrate the official birthday of the British sovereign. It is also known as the Sovereign's Birthday Parade. Similar events are held in other countries of the Commonwealth. In the UK, it is, with the State Opening of Parliament, the biggest event of the ceremonial calendar, and watched by millions on TV and on the streets of London.
In some militaries, foot guards are senior infantry regiments. Foot guards are commonly responsible for guarding royal families or other state leaders, and they also often perform ceremonial duties accordingly, but at the same time are combat soldiers.
The Household Division forms a part of the British Army's London District and is made up of five regiments of foot guards and two Household Cavalry regiments. The division is responsible for performing public duties and state ceremonies in London and Windsor. Such functions include the State Opening of Parliament, Trooping the Colour, and mounting the King's Guard.
The Household Cavalry (HCAV) is a corps of the Household Division, made up of the two most senior regiments of the British Army, The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals. These regiments are divided between the Household Cavalry Regiment stationed at Wing Barracks in Wiltshire, with an armored reconnaissance role, and the ceremonial mounted unit, the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, garrisoned at Hyde Park Barracks in London. Both the HCMR and HCR are made up of elements of the Life Guards and the Blues and Royals. The Household Cavalry is part of the Household Division and is the King's official bodyguard. Although the Household Cavalry Regiment is armoured, it is not part of the Royal Armoured Corps, being assigned to the Household Division.
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The Band of the Scots Guards is one of five bands in the Foot Guards Regiments in the Household Division which primarily guards the British monarch.
Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle.
The Canadian Guards was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army that served in the same role as the five regiments of foot guards in the British Army. The regiment was formed on 16 October 1953, by Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds, the Chief of the General Staff of the Canadian Army, with the redesignation of four separate battalions:
The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army tasked primarily with ceremonial duties. Part of the Household Division, it is classed as a regiment of guards, and carries out mounted ceremonial duties on State and Royal occasions. The HCMR is one of two operational units that form the Household Cavalry (HCav), the other being the Household Cavalry Regiment (HCR), a formation reconnaissance regiment, with front-line combat duties.
The Band of the Grenadier Guards is the military band of the Grenadier Guards, which is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It was raised between 1660 with first a drum and 1665, when a fife was added.
The Band of the Welsh Guards is the youngest of the five bands in the Foot Guards Regiments in the Household Division, specifically the Welsh Guards which primarily guards the British monarch.
The Band of the Irish Guards is one of five bands in the Foot Guards Regiments in the Household Division whose main role is to guard the British monarch. The Band supports the Regiment by providing the musical backing to which much of the ceremonial duties depend within Central London.
The Horse Grenadier Guards, usually referred to as Horse Grenadiers, were a series of cavalry troops in the British Household Cavalry between 1687 and 1788, who used grenades and other explosives in battle. Originally attached to the Horse Guards, they became independent for a century before being disbanded. However, the men of the troops formed the basis of the new troops of Life Guards.
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The Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry is a British Army band which ceremonially serves the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR). The HCMR Band is the largest symphonic wind band in the British Army. It is one of the bands of the Royal Corps of Army Music (RCAM) and is currently based at Hyde Park Barracks and Combermere Barracks.
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