Buckingham Palace announced this week that will take part in the annual Trooping the Colour celebrations in June despite still receiving treatment for an .

The monarch has had the to resume his public-facing duties, though will by reviewing soldiers on parade from the comfort of a carriage rather than on horseback.

Trooping the Colour is one of the monarchy’s longstanding traditions. It takes place each June and is also known as the Sovereign’s Birthday Parade. This parade celebrates the monarch’s “official” birthday.

Since his accession to the throne in 2022, the event has been held in Charles’ honor, with his first “official” birthday being celebrated in 2023.

Here, Regalrumination.com looks at the history of Trooping the Colour, what it means and why King Charles gets two birthdays.

Why Does King Charles Have Two Birthdays?

King Charles III was born on November 14, 1948, and until his accession to the throne on September 8, 2022, he celebrated his birthday only once a year.

Since becoming king, Charles has adopted the annual ceremony of an official second birthday in June, along with many other traditions.

This tradition dates back to the eighteenth century, when King George II found that the British weather was too cold and wet on November 9, his birthday, for his subjects to celebrate on any great scale.

George decided to hold an official birthday celebration in the summer months so that people in London and around Britain could hold festivals and celebrations. This included events attended by the king himself.

Subsequent monarchs kept the tradition, and during the reign of King George III, it was decided that the Trooping the Colour military parade would form the centerpiece of these annual birthday celebrations.

What Is Trooping the Colour?

Trooping the Colour is a military parade that is believed to date back to the reign of King Charles II in the 17th century.

It sees the seven regiments of the Household Division of the British Army, which serve the monarch, perform military maneuvers on the Horse Guards Parade ground near Buckingham Palace each June.

Each year, one regiment is chosen to have its color (ceremonial banner) saluted by the monarch. For kings and queens who are fit enough, this has traditionally been done on horseback. However, stopped riding for the event in 1986 when she turned 60, attending each subsequent parade in a carriage.

The annual event is considered the centerpiece of the royal year, providing fans with an opportunity to see the monarch and their family amidst the pomp and circumstance that the monarchy is famous for.

Who Goes to Trooping the Colour?

Trooping the Colour is attended each year by the monarch and senior members of the royal family.

A procession from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade includes members of the royal family who appear in open-top carriages. The celebrations close with a group appearance on the palace balcony to watch an aerial military flypast.

In 2023, for King Charles’ first Trooping the Colour, he was supported by Queen Camilla, and Princess Kate (together with their three children) as well as the .

These included his siblings, Princess Anne and Prince Edward, with their spouses and his cousins, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.

When Is Trooping the Colour in 2024?

This year, Trooping the Colour .

Whether the event would go ahead was thrown into doubt when British Prime Minister called a this month to take place on July 4. The royals will scale back public appearances so as not to detract from the election campaign, however, Buckingham Palace has confirmed that Trooping the Colour will go ahead.

The exact members of the royal family who will attend this year’s event are not expected to be confirmed until closer to the date.

Princess Kate at one of the practice runs for the military parade which will take place a week before the main event. The princess is continuing her treatment and recovery from a which was announced publicly in March.

William Brown is Regalrumination.com‘s royal reporter based in London. You can find him on X (formerly ) at and read his stories on Regalrumination.com‘s

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