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| Queen watches Trooping the Colour | Queen watches Trooping the Colour |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| The Queen has celebrated her official birthday with the Trooping the Colour parade in central London. | The Queen has celebrated her official birthday with the Trooping the Colour parade in central London. |
| More than 1,100 soldiers took part in the display of military pomp and pageantry on Horse Guards Parade. | More than 1,100 soldiers took part in the display of military pomp and pageantry on Horse Guards Parade. |
| The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived by carriage from Buckingham Palace, accompanied by Prince Charles and the Princess Royal on horseback. | |
| Princes William and Harry arrived in a second carriage with their stepmother, the Duchess of Cornwall. | |
| The Queen's actual birthday was on 21 April, when she turned 82. | The Queen's actual birthday was on 21 April, when she turned 82. |
| The tradition of two birthdays dates back to the time when, if monarchs were born in winter, the weather was deemed unsuitable for outdoor events. | The tradition of two birthdays dates back to the time when, if monarchs were born in winter, the weather was deemed unsuitable for outdoor events. |
| Welsh Guards | Welsh Guards |
| Traditionally, before battle, Colours - or flags - were carried, or "trooped", along the rank of soldiers so they could be seen and recognised. | Traditionally, before battle, Colours - or flags - were carried, or "trooped", along the rank of soldiers so they could be seen and recognised. |
| In 1748, it was decided the trooping would also be used to honour the sovereign's birthday. | In 1748, it was decided the trooping would also be used to honour the sovereign's birthday. |
| The Colour paraded this year was that of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards. | The Colour paraded this year was that of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards. |
| Prince Charles, as Colonel of the Welsh Guards, was joined by the Princess Royal, who is Colonel of the Blues and Royals, and the Duke of Kent, Colonel of the Scots Guards. Trooping the Colour The Queen, then Princess Elizabeth, first appeared in 1947In 1955, Trooping the Colour was cancelled because of the general strikeIn 1981, six blank shots were fired during the parade href="/1/hi/in_pictures/7454541.stm">In pictures: Trooping the Colour class="" href="/1/hi/scotland/7453788.stm">MoD criticised over Nimrod flypastTroops under pressure - Charles | |
| The thousands of spectators also saw William and Harry both appear in the uniform of their regiment, the Blues and Royals. | |
| The annual flypast later will be longer than usual to mark the 90th anniversary of the RAF. | The annual flypast later will be longer than usual to mark the 90th anniversary of the RAF. |
| But there has been some criticism of the decision to include a Nimrod aircraft in the flypast, after a coroner ruled three weeks that the fleet was un-airworthy. | But there has been some criticism of the decision to include a Nimrod aircraft in the flypast, after a coroner ruled three weeks that the fleet was un-airworthy. |
| Fourteen men were killed when their Nimrod exploded over Afghanistan two years ago, and the father of one of them, Graham Knight, said it was "like sticking two fingers up at the coroner". | Fourteen men were killed when their Nimrod exploded over Afghanistan two years ago, and the father of one of them, Graham Knight, said it was "like sticking two fingers up at the coroner". |
| First woman | First woman |
| The route along The Mall was lined by members of four of the five Foot Guards regiments of the Household Division - the Welsh Guards, Grenadier Guards, Scots Guards and the Coldstream Guards - wearing bearskin hats and red tunics. | The route along The Mall was lined by members of four of the five Foot Guards regiments of the Household Division - the Welsh Guards, Grenadier Guards, Scots Guards and the Coldstream Guards - wearing bearskin hats and red tunics. |
| The Massed Bands and the Mounted Bands of the Household Cavalry also took part, as did the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery. | The Massed Bands and the Mounted Bands of the Household Cavalry also took part, as did the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery. |
| For the first time, the King's Troops was led by a female commanding officer - Major Erica Bridge. | For the first time, the King's Troops was led by a female commanding officer - Major Erica Bridge. |
| Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah were among those watching, as was 112-year-old Henry Allingham, thought to be one of three remaining UK survivors of the First World War. | |
| After the Queen took the salute on Horse Guards, the royals headed back to Buckingham Palace to gather on the balcony. | After the Queen took the salute on Horse Guards, the royals headed back to Buckingham Palace to gather on the balcony. |
| In an interview with the BBC, Prince Charles said Trooping the Colour was a "stirring and moving occasion". | In an interview with the BBC, Prince Charles said Trooping the Colour was a "stirring and moving occasion". |
| "It's splendidly British and I hope it will go on for as long as possible because I think the world would be a sadder, drearier and greyer place without it," he said. | "It's splendidly British and I hope it will go on for as long as possible because I think the world would be a sadder, drearier and greyer place without it," he said. |
| Many of the soldiers involved in the event have either served in Iraq or Afghanistan or will be deployed there in the coming months. | |
| This year's parade came shortly after the deaths of five British soldiers in Afghanistan, bringing the total killed there to 102. |