Horse Guards Parade

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Trooping the Colour at Horse Guards Parade in 1956 Trooping the Colour, 1956.jpg
Trooping the Colour at Horse Guards Parade in 1956

Horse Guards Parade is a large parade ground off Whitehall in central London (at grid reference TQ299800 ). It is the site of the annual ceremonies of Trooping the Colour, which commemorates the monarch's official birthday, and the Beating Retreat.

Contents

History

The Coldstream Guards on Parade at Horse Guards, by John Chapman, c. 1755 Parade at Horseguards.jpg
The Coldstream Guards on Parade at Horse Guards, by John Chapman, c.1755

Horse Guards Parade was formerly the site of the Palace of Whitehall's tiltyard, where tournaments (including jousting) were held in the time of Henry VIII. It was also the scene of annual celebrations of the birthday of Queen Elizabeth I. The area has been used for a variety of reviews, parades and other ceremonies since the 17th century.

The adjacent Horse Guards building was once the Headquarters of the British Army. The Duke of Wellington was based in Horse Guards when he was Commander-in-Chief of the British Army. The current General Officer Commanding London District still occupies the same office and uses the same desk. Wellington also had living quarters within the building, which today are used as offices.

Car park usage

Horse Guards Parade with the London Eye Ferris wheel in the background Horse Guards from St James Park 2023.jpg
Horse Guards Parade with the London Eye Ferris wheel in the background

For much of the late 20th century, Horse Guards Parade was used as a car park for senior civil servants; about 500 were granted the privilege, which was known as the 'Great Perk'. [1] The PIRA's mortar attack on 10 Downing Street on 7 February 1991, which was carried out from a vehicle parked in Horse Guards Avenue nearby, narrowly missed causing casualties and led to concerns. In April 1993 the Royal Parks Review Group, headed by Dame Jennifer Jenkins (later Baroness Jenkins) recommended that the parade should be restored for public use, and linked to St James's Park by closing Horse Guards Road. [2] The proposal was taken up by the Department of National Heritage but then resisted by senior Cabinet members, apparently under pressure from the civil servants who were to lose their parking places. [3]

Public revelation of the resistance led to considerable criticism by Simon Jenkins, a newspaper columnist, who pressured Sir Robin Butler, Head of the Home Civil Service, to end general usage as parking as part of a wider programme of reforms. [1] In late 1996 Horse Guards Parade was cleared, for repairs, and in March 1997 it was announced that parking was banned. [4]

Layout

The parade ground is open on the west side, where it faces Horse Guards Road and St James's Park. It is enclosed to the north by the Admiralty Citadel and the Admiralty Extension building, to the east by Admiralty House, William Kent's Horse Guards (formerly the headquarters of the British Army) and the rear of Dover House (home of the Scotland Office), and to the south by Kent's Treasury building (now used by the Cabinet Office), garden walls of 10 Downing Street (the official residence and office of the British Prime Minister) and Mountbatten Green before the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's west wing. Access to the south side is restricted for national security.

On the east side, Horse Guards Parade is normally accessible to the public from Whitehall through the arches of Horse Guards.

Horse Guards Parade, London - 360deg Panorama.jpg
Panorama of Horse Guards Parade, from the northwest corner. North: Admiralty Citadel, Admiralty Extension building; east: Admiralty House (with a scaffold at its cornice level), Household Cavalry Museum, Horse Guards, Dover House; South: Cabinet Office, garden wall and trees of 10 Downing Street, Mountbatten Green and small part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; west: St James's Park (at foreground, centre) the Guards Memorial.

Monuments

The Guards Memorial Guards Division War Memorial.jpg
The Guards Memorial

A number of military monuments and trophies ring the outside of the parade ground, including:

An oddity is the black background to the number 2 of the double sided clock which overlooks the Parade Ground and the front entrance, it is popularly thought to commemorate the time the last absolute monarch of England, Charles I, was beheaded at the Banqueting House opposite.

Ceremonial

Changing The King's Life Guard in 2013. London horse guards parade 09.03.2013 13-02-45.JPG
Changing The King's Life Guard in 2013.

Changing The King's Life Guard

The ceremony of Changing The King's Life Guard takes place every weekday at 11:00 am on Horse Guards Parade, adjacent to the Horse Guards building. Two mounted sentries guard the entrance to Horse Guards on Whitehall from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm and are changed every hour. There is a dismounted parade at 4:00 pm and two dismounted sentries remain on duty until 8:00 pm. [6]

Trooping the Colour in 2022. Trooping the Colour 2022.jpg
Trooping the Colour in 2022.

Trooping the Colour

In the early summer, grandstands are erected in Horse Guards Parade in preparation for the Trooping the Colour ceremony which is usually on the second Saturday in June and celebrates the monarch's Official Birthday. There are two full dress rehearsals:

Around 1,400 soldiers take part in the ceremony in which the regimental colour of one of the guards regiments is "trooped" or marched along the assembled ranks. It concludes with the foot and horse guards marching past and saluting the monarch. The public can watch the troops enter and leave Horse Guards Parade and tickets for the seating are sold subject to a ballot. [7]

The Bands of the Household Division at the finale of Beating Retreat in 2013. LOND-2013-076-300.JPG
The Bands of the Household Division at the finale of Beating Retreat in 2013.

Beating Retreat

On two evenings in June, this ceremony is carried out by the Bands of the Household Division. [8] Beating Retreat is also performed at Horseguards biannually in July by the Royal Marines Band Service. Proceeds from ticket sales are donated to military charities. [9]

Remembrance Sunday

At the National Service of Remembrance, the various contingents of veterans' organisations form up on Horse Guards Parade, and after the ceremony at The Cenotaph, they return and march past a member of the Royal Family by the Guards Memorial, who takes their salute. [10]

Sporting and public events

2012 Summer Olympics

Horse Guards Parade during the 2012 Summer Olympics 2012 Summer Olympics - Beach volleyball.jpg
Horse Guards Parade during the 2012 Summer Olympics

Horse Guards Parade hosted beach volleyball at the 2012 Summer Olympics held in London. Temporary courts and seating designed by Populous were installed by the Arena Group, [11] much as seating is installed annually for Trooping the Colour. There was one court with a capacity of 15,000 with two tiers and a floodlight tower at each of its four corners, two practice courts to the east of the arena, and a further six practice courts at St. James's Park. [12] Most matches were played on Centre Court, but some matches were played on Court 1 on day 6 of the competition.

London Polo Championships

Horse Guards Parade hosted the 1st London Polo Championships on 17 and 18 June 2009 with teams from around the world. [13]

Sainsburys Anniversary Games 2014

On Sunday 20 July 2014, a temporary arena played host to the anniversary games. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitehall</span> Road in the City of Westminster, in Central London

Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London, England. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Square. The street is recognised as the centre of the Government of the United Kingdom and is lined with numerous departments and ministries, including the Ministry of Defence, Horse Guards and the Cabinet Office. Consequently, the name "Whitehall" is used as a metonym for the British civil service and government, and as the geographic name for the surrounding area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Mall, London</span> Road in London, England

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trooping the Colour</span> Military ceremony in the British Army and other Commonwealth militaries

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, one of the biggest events of the ceremonial calendar, and watched by millions on TV and on the streets of London.

The Household Cavalry (HCav) is 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 and the ceremonial mounted unit, the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, garrisoned at Hyde Park Barracks in London. 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery</span> Ceremonial mounted unit of the British Army

The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, is a ceremonial unit of the British Army, quartered at Woolwich. It is a mounted unit and all of its soldiers are trained to care for and drive teams of six horses, each team pulling a First World War-era QF 13-pounder gun; six teams are used in the unit's Musical Drive. The Troop's duties include firing salutes on royal and state occasions, participation in parades, and the duties of the King's Life Guard at Horse Guards for one month each year. The unit provides the gun carriage and team of black horses for state funerals. The unit is most often seen providing gun salutes on state occasions in Hyde Park, and Green Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King's Guard</span> Military units charged with protecting the royal residences of the United Kingdom

The King's Guard are sentry postings at Buckingham Palace and St James's Palace, organised by the British Army's Household Division. The Household Division also mounts sentry postings at Horse Guards, known as the King's Life Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beating retreat</span> Military Ceremony

Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horse Guards (building)</span> Military headquarters, barracks and stables in London

Horse Guards is a historic building in the City of Westminster, London, between Whitehall and Horse Guards Parade. It was built in the mid-18th century, replacing an earlier building, as a barracks and stables for the Household Cavalry. It was, between the early 18th century and 1858, the main military headquarters for the British Empire. Horse Guards originally formed the entrance to the Palace of Whitehall and later St James's Palace; for that reason it is still ceremonially defended by the King's Life Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horse Guards Road</span> A road in London, England

Horse Guards Road is a road in the City of Westminster, London. Located in post code SW1A 2HQ, it runs south from The Mall down to Birdcage Walk, roughly parallel with Whitehall and Parliament Street.

Horse Guards or horse guards can refer to:

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guards Memorial</span> War memorial in London, England

The Guards Memorial, also known as the Guards Division War Memorial, is an outdoor war memorial located on the west side of Horse Guards Road, opposite Horse Guards Parade in London, United Kingdom. It commemorates the war dead from the Guards Division and related units during the First World War, and of the Household Division in the Second World War and other conflicts since 1918.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of the Earl Mountbatten, London</span> Statue in London, U.K.

A bronze statue of Admiral of the Fleet Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma is located on Mountbatten Green, off Horse Guards Road, Whitehall, London, England. The sculptor was Franta Belsky and the work was cast by the Meridian Bronze Foundry. The memorial was unveiled on 2 November 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry</span> Musical artist

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presentation of Colours</span> Traditional British military and Commonwealth ceremony

The Presentation of Colours is a military ceremony that marks an anniversary or significant event in the history of a particular regiment or similar military unit. This involves the presentation of a new version of the regimental colour to a regiment or equivalent formation in their respective armed forces service branch. This is a traditional ceremony that was pioneered by the British Armed Forces, and is today used in most Commonwealth countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bands of the Household Division (United Kingdom)</span> Grouping of 7 bands of the British Army

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.

<i>Platinum Jubilee Celebration: A Gallop Through History</i> Equestrian event, part of Queen Elizabeth IIs platinum Jubilee

Platinum Jubilee Celebration: A Gallop Through History was an equestrian event held in the grounds of Windsor Castle on four evenings from 12 to 15 May 2022, as part of Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Trooping the Colour</span>

The 2022 Trooping the Colour ceremony was held on Thursday 2 June 2022, as part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II. Over 1,400 parading soldiers, 200 horses, and 400 musicians came together in the traditional parade to mark the Queen's Official Birthday, which usually takes place on the second Saturday of June. It was the final Birthday Parade to take place under the reign of Elizabeth II before her death on 8 September later that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Trooping the Colour</span>

The 2023 Trooping the Colour was held on Saturday 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.

References

  1. 1 2 Jenkins, Simon (4 June 1994). "Desperate to guard the perk on the Park". The Times. p. 16.
  2. John Young, "Watchdog deplores traffic disgrace at Buckingham Palace", The Times, 22 April 1993, p. 2.
  3. David Lister, "Mandarins say No Minister to traffic ban", The Independent, 2 June 1994, p. 3.
  4. Alan Hamilton, "Bashed square back on parade fit for a king", The Times, 7 March 1997, p. 8.
  5. UK Ministry of Defence: Guards Memorial
  6. "The King's Life Guard". www.householddivision.org.uk. The Household Division. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Trooping the Colour". www.householddivision.org.uk. The Household Division. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  8. "What is the Beating Retreat and how did it originate?". www.forces.net. BFBS. 7 July 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  9. "Beating Retreat 2022". www.royalnavy.mod.uk. Royal Navy. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  10. "Remembrance 2022". www.royal.uk. The Royal Household. 10 November 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  11. Rachael Church-Sanders. "Arena Group and London 2012". majoreventsinternational.com. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
  12. London2012.com profile Archived 15 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 29 September 2010.
  13. "London International Polo 2014". londonpolo.co.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
  14. "Sainsbury's Anniversary Games". ITV News. 20 July 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2022.

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