The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, is a ceremonial unit of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, quartered at

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

. 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 World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

-era QF 13-pounder gun; six teams are used in the unit's Musical Drive. The Troop's duties include firing

salutes A salute is usually a formal hand gesture or other action used to display respect in military situations. Salutes are primarily associated with the military and law enforcement, but many civilian organizations, such as Girl Guides, Boy S ...

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 The Green Park, one of the Royal Parks of London, is in the City of Westminster, Central London. Green Park is to the north of the gardens and semi-circular forecourt of Buckingham Palace, across Constitution Hill road. The park is in the m ...

History

After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

expressed the view that, following the mechanisation of the last batteries of horse-drawn artillery, a troop of

horse artillery Horse artillery was a type of light, fast-moving, and fast-firing field artillery that consisted of light cannons or howitzers attached to light but sturdy two-wheeled carriages called caissons or limbers, with the individual crewmen riding on h ...

should be retained to take part in the great ceremonies of state. Accordingly the Riding Troop was reformed on 17 April 1946 at

Shoeburyness Shoeburyness ( ), or simply Shoebury, is a coastal town in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England; it lies east of the city centre. It was formerly a separate town until it was absorbed into Southend in 1933. I ...

as a six-gun

Royal Horse Artillery The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. Although the cavalry link rem ...

battery for the

Household Division The Household Division forms a part of the British Army's London District (British Army), London District and is made up of five regiments of foot guards#United Kingdom, foot guards and two Household Cavalry regiments. The division is responsible f ...

. At the suggestion of Brigadier John Anquetil Norman, the King declared that the Riding Troop would be known as 'The King's Troop'. The King issued his proclamation on 24 October 1947 by amending the page on the visitors' book by striking out the word "Riding" and inserting "King's". On her accession, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

declared that the name 'The King's Troop' would remain in honour of her father. On 6 September 1997, members of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery carried the coffin of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

on a gun carriage to her funeral. On 14 September 2022, members of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery carried the coffin of Elizabeth II on a gun carriage from

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

to lie in state at

Westminster Hall Westminster Hall is a medieval great hall which is part of the Palace of Westminster in London, England. It was erected in 1097 for William II (William Rufus), at which point it was the largest hall in Europe. The building has had various functio ...

. The King's Troop was for 65 years stationed at

St John's Wood Barracks St John's Wood Barracks is a former military base in St John's Wood in London. Until 2012 it served as headquarters for Royal Horse Artillery troops responsible for (among other things) firing royal salutes in central London. History In 1804 a ...

before it was relocated to Napier Lines (also known as King George VI Lines) at the traditional

Royal Artillery Barracks Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich, is a barracks of the British Army which forms part of Woolwich Garrison. The Royal Regiment of Artillery had its headquarters here from 1776 until 2007, when it was moved to Larkhill Garrison. History In 171 ...

at Woolwich in February 2012. Because of the greater distance from central London, the troop can no longer ride to many ceremonial events. Horses are transported by vehicle to stables in central London for appearances at Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace and elsewhere.Moore-Bridger, Benedic
King's Troop hoof it 15 miles to new barracks

Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free newspaper, free of charge in London, Engl ...

, London 8 October 2008. Accessed 3 February 2012 The King's Troop has about 140 members. Women were able to apply from 1996, and eventually made up about 40% of the Troop.

Role

Princess Diana Funeral St James Park 1997

Musical Drive

The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery performed their Musical Drive at every

Royal Tournament The Royal Tournament was the world's largest military tattoo and pageant, held by the British Armed Forces annually between 1880 and 1999. The venue was originally the Royal Agricultural Hall, before moving to Olympia London and latterly the Ea ...

from its formation in 1947 to the final Royal Tournament on 2 August 1999. The Musical Drive can be seen at shows around the United Kingdom and always at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in May every year. Many of the manoeuvres of the Musical Drive have remained unchanged since it was first performed in 1897. The start, known as the Big Drive, features the Scissors, where the whole team criss-cross at gallop, displaying choreography, teamwork and discipline. Another manoeuvre, the Wagon Wheel, depicts an inner wheel, spokes, and an outer wheel. For a "Hero's Welcome" event in Windsor in May 2008 there were six gun teams, each of ten horses and seven riders. Women, first admitted to the King's Troop in 1996, made up one-third of the display team. Major Erica Bridge was the first female officer commanding the King's Troop.

Trooping the Colour

Together with the

the King's Troop has appeared every June since 1997, when it made its first appearance, at

Trooping the Colour 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 King's Official Birthday, official birthday of the British sovereign, though t ...

, on

Horse Guards Parade Horse Guards Parade is a large Military parade, parade ground off Whitehall in central London (at British national grid reference system, grid reference ). It is the site of the annual ceremonies of Trooping the Colour, which commemorates the K ...

to celebrate the King's/Queen's Official Birthday. At the end of the event, the King's Troop ranks past the King. After the ceremony, the King's Troop moves to

, adjacent to

, firing a 41-gun salute, which is a 21-gun salute with an additional 20 rounds fired because the gun position is in a Royal Park.

King's/Queen's Life Guard

One of the regular duties undertaken by the King's Troop is to mount the King's Life Guard on

. Although this is primarily the role of the

Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment 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 (and some dismounte ...

, every summer this unit goes away for 2–3 weeks for summer training (and to provide a break for their horses) to Norfolk. During this period, the King's Troop takes over responsibility for providing the mounted sentries.

Order of precedence

In the

British Army Order of Precedence The British Army is listed according to an order of precedence for the purposes of parading. This is the order in which the various corps of the army parade, from right to left, with the unit at the extreme right being highest. Under ordinary cir ...

, the Household Cavalry is listed first and normally parades at the extreme right of the line. However, when the

is on parade with its guns, they take on the honour of taking right of the line.

Film ''The Troop''

A 35mm

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic format, anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its cr ...

film, ''The Troop'', was filmed in

Windsor Great Park Windsor Great Park is a Royal Park of to the south of the town of Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. It is adjacent to the private Home Park, Windsor, Home Park, which is nearer the castle. The park ...

and at '

The Wood ''The Wood'' is a 1999 American coming-of-age comedy drama film directed by Rick Famuyiwa in his feature directional debut and starring Omar Epps, Richard T. Jones and Taye Diggs. It was written by Famuyiwa and Todd Boyd. Plot Roland is get ...

' barracks. The film had a royal premiere before

the Princess Royal Princess Royal is a title customarily (but not automatically) awarded by British monarchs to their eldest daughters. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been ...

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

in September 1999. The Glory Film Co. production was produced and directed by

Marcus Dillistone Marcus Dillistone is a British film director. A close friend of Sir John Mills, he directed the BBC/Carlton documentary of Mills' life, '' Sir John Mills' Moving Memories''. Dillistone and Mills first collaborated on Dillistone's film ''The T ...

, the associate producer was Paul-Anthony Viollet (a former Troop Officer) and the introduction was spoken by Sir

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

. Music was composed by Julian Scott and performed by the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

.The Troop—An Epic Short Film
at Glory Film Co.

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Official site
* Col Anan

An (unofficial) History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery {{Royal Horse Artillery Royal Artillery batteries British ceremonial units 1946 establishments in the United Kingdom Military units and formations established in 1946 Military units and formations in Woolwich Military units and formations in London