William James Frecklington , known as "W. J." or "Jim" (born c.1949 in Parkes,

NSW ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia), is a maker of

carriage A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...

s. After working in the Arctic, he moved to England, and was engaged at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...

, and later moved to the Royal Mews in London, caring for the Royal ceremonial horses and driving the carriages on ceremonial occasions. He also served as an outrider at Ascot. In 1977 he was invited to manage the Queen's Silver Jubilee Exhibition during its tour of Australia, and following that he built a replica of Edward VII's

1902 State Landau The United Kingdom's 1902 State Landau is a horse-drawn carriage with a flexible leather roof which drops in two exact halves, back and front. It is a postilion landau, drawn by six horses under the control of three postilions, with no pr ...

. He then went on to build Queen Elizabeth's

Australian State Coach The Australian State Coach is an enclosed, six horse-drawn coach used by the British Royal Family. The coach was presented to Queen Elizabeth II of Australia and the United Kingdom as the official gift on the occasion of the Australian Bice ...

, which was presented to the Queen on the occasion of the

Australian Bicentennial The bicentenary of Australia was celebrated in 1988. It marked 200 years since the arrival of the First Fleet of British convict ships at Sydney in 1788. History The bicentennial year marked Captain Arthur Phillip's arrival with the 11 ships ...

in 1988. A new British state coach constructed on Frecklington's initiative, the Diamond Jubilee State Coach (also known as the State Coach Britannia), was first used during the

State Opening of Parliament The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremonial event which formally marks the beginning of a session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It includes a speech from the throne known as the King's (or Queen's) Speech. The event takes place ...

in June 2014. The Diamond Jubilee State Coach was also used in the coronation of King Charles III. In April 2023 it was reported that Frecklington was constructing a new coach, but he has kept the details secret.

External links

The State Coach Britannia at downau.com
(with images)
The British Monarchy official website - Carriages in the Royal Collection

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frecklington, W. J. 1949 births Living people People from Parkes, New South Wales Coachbuilders of Australia Royal Victorian Order Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia