Buckingham Palace: Changing of the Guard Part I

One of London’s great experiences is seeing the Changing of the Guard.  The splendid array of uniforms, prancing horses, gold-tinged carriages, and stirring martial music brings the full force of ceremony and tradition to life.  It is history. It is monarchy. It is splendor.  If you only see this one part of what London has to offer, you’ll carry away a kernel of what it means to be British.

But, if you don’t know what you’re seeing, it’s like walking into a library and saying to yourself:  “Can’t read none, but the covers look reeeeel purdy!”

Attention, friends, loved ones, along with select family members, I’m here not only to enlighten, but to turn all of you into paragons of knowledge, able to casually toss out facts to companions sharing your visit to the greatest city in the world.  Stand by for your esteem to soar.  Companions will hover close, and all will pat your back and stand for a pint at the nearest pub.

Although the ceremony actually takes place at three locations, Buckingham Palace, St James Palace, and Wellington Barracks, let’s stick to the most well known, the changing at Buckingham Palace.

First off, you need to know the ceremony begins at 1130, but to really see what’s going on, get there an hour early, otherwise there will be jostling and unkind words as you carelessly force your way close enough to see more than a mouse standing next to a dinner table.

Another good spot to observe is from the raised steps of the Victoria Monument, directly in front of the palace.  This allows a better view of the entry of the guards, bands, and horse guards.

Dates:  April to July, the Changing takes place daily.

August to March, it’s on alternate days.  Here’s the schedule for the first months of 2017:

January – even dates

February- odd dates

March – odd dates

April – July – daily

“Ok, ok,” I hear the impatient rascals in the crowd crying, “But what the hell am I seeing???”

I don’t mind your semi-belligerent attitude because in your intemperate impetuosity, you have cut to the heart of the matter.  Unfortunately, I can’t just blurt it all out.  Patience lads and lassies!  Let’s take this in manageable mouthfuls.

The Guards, also known as the Household Troops, consisting of The Queen’s Guards (infantry) and Queen’s Cavalry are trained British Army soldiers, from five infantry regiments:

The Grenadiers, Coldstream, Scots, Irish, and Welsh Guards, plus two regiments of Household Cavalry, the Life Guards, and The Blues and Royals.

The Household Guards date back to 1660.  You may remember from your intensive study of English history, the English also had a civil war (some say three wars) and King Charles I lost his head over it.  With the reestablishment of the monarchy under Charles I’s son, Charles II, the Household Guards were formed.  Today the guards are known as The Foot Guards and The Household Cavalry and the changing of the guards is known as Guard Mounting.

In England, tradition is stacked upon tradition.  Here’s a quick way to identify the different foot guard regiments by cap plume, buttons, and collar insignia:

The Grenadiers:  Most senior of the Guards. Began guarding King Charles II while he was still in exile – recognized by a white plume on the side of the bearskin cap and single button spacing. On the collar is the symbol of a grenade.

Coldstream Guards, the oldest continually active regiment in the regular army, formed in 1650 and guarding the queen since 1660 – red plume, two button arrangement. Collar badge is a garter star.

Scots Guards, no plume, three button arrangement.  Collar badge is a thistle.

Irish Guards, St Patrick’s Blue plume, four button arrangement, shamrock on the collar

Welsh Guards, tricolor white, green, white plume, five button arrangement, leek on the collar.

What about the Household Cavalry?

The Life Guards, red tunic, black collar, and a white plume on their hat.

The Blues and Royals, blue tunic, red collar, red plume.

Interestingly, not only the five permanent regiments, but from time to time other British and Commonwealth units provide guard service, including Royal Air Force, Royal Marines, and Gurkhas (British Regiment made up of soldiers from Nepal).  On at least one occasion (2008), soldiers from 1^st Battalion, Royal Malay Regiment, from Malaysia, a non-Commonwealth country provided guards.

Now, on the guards’ duties.  There are three places in London guarded by the Queen’s Guard:  Buckingham Palace, St. James Palace, and The Tower of London.

While the Queen is in residence at Buckingham Palace, there are four, Foot Guards in place.  In her absence, there are two.  Each tour of duty is two hours, with four hours off.  During the two-hour watch, the guardsman (no females as yet in the British infantry) stand still no longer than ten minutes at a time.

British Flag

Royal Standard

Another way to tell if the Queen is in residence:  If the British Flag flies over Buckingham Palace, the Queen is NOT there.  If the Royal Standard flies, she is there.

Tomorrow:  Part II, filled with more curiosities.

On Board Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia

On the bridge

note the enclosed railings to protect the royal skirt from breezes

Want to spend a couple of hours stepping back into times and styles of the middle to late twentieth century?  Have a fascination with royalty and things British?

Ever dream of having tea with “Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and of Her other Realms and Territories, Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith?”

You can, you know.  Yes, you can …almost…

Tour Her Majesty’s Yacht Britannia, relax with visions of Princess Di and her kids;  have a pot of tea and fluffy, oven fresh scones.  Magical.  Childhood dreams. Visions of grandeur.  HMY Britannia. 

Sadly the Queen no longer has the privilege of gracing her decks, yet her presence is still here.  There’s a fragrantly pleasing air about the expansive teak decks, the spotless railings, the armchairs that beg for a sunny book.

Now moored in the Port of Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland, the price and chore of Britannia’s upkeep falls to a Scottish charity.  They do a splendid job.  Getting to the port is only a matter of stepping on a bus in downtown Edinburgh.

Let’s begin Britannia’s lengthy tale with the story of the ship itself. Commissioned by Queen Elizabeth in1954, and after 43 years of faithful service, the Labor government had the vessel decommissioned in1997 as a cost saving measure.  The government also declined to build a replacement.  To make matters even darker, Britannia’s last overseas voyage was to bring the last British Governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, and Prince Phillip back to the U.K., after the return of the former British colony to the People’s Republic of China.

Now, before you settle down to tea and a quick, but elegant bite, tour the ship and accustom yourself to ease and sea breeze.

In the 43 years of her service, the Britannia sailed over a million miles and served as the Queen’s family home, including several royal honeymoons, as well as a distinguished visitor center for such luminaries as Nelson Mandela, Bill and Hillary, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan.  If the place looks more homey and less formal than one would expect, it’s because the Queen supervised every phase of the interior design, wanting to keep it a ‘country cottage’ décor.

Although voyagers were restricted to Royalty and Royal guests, the Britannia was a proud Royal Navy ship, complete with a crew of some 330 sailors and marines, including a Royal Marine Band and a compliment of Royal Marine guards. The Marines were only on board when the Royal Family was.

Other oddities:  The yacht was designed to be converted to a hospital ship, should the need arise.  During the cold war, it was also to be the Queen’s safe haven, flitting from craggy loch to loch in Northern Scotland, as protection from nuclear calamity.

Ready for a tea break?  Just a couple of more items:  The Queen and Prince Phillip had separate, adjoining bedrooms.  Easy to tell one from the other.  One was frilly and flowery, and the other stark, as befitting a Naval officer’s cabin.

When Prince Charles and Diana honeymooned onboard, he had a double bed installed in a guest room.  Very bright of him, although I’m sure it was a complication for Camilla.

Tea need not be boring

On to tea.  The café on the Royal Deck was certainly not a café in the Royal days, but now it’s a bright and sunny spot on the upper deck.  Waitresses in black and white take orders from the small, but elegant menu, and of course the drink selection is all you would expect, both hot, cold, alcoholic and non. Starched table cloths.  Flowers.  Sparkling china, glassware, silverware.

Being old school, meaning married, old, and a complete slave to tired traditions, we succumbed to tea and scones, complete with fresh strawberry jam and clotted cream.

Tea is never just tea

Culinary tidbits:  clotted cream is heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized) heated several hours in a very low temperature oven, until clots rise to the top.  Here’s another:  the Brits called golden raisins sultanas. Our scones had both raisins and sultanas.

It’s hard not to linger.  Difficult not to order a second pot of tea, while luxuriating on a ship fit for a queen.  Ah, but times whisks away.

Another quick stroll around and it was time to be piped to shore, leaving behind a wonderful ship, which will unfortunately no longer proudly sail the seas.  Wish the government would’ve found another way to shave off a few pounds of fat. Want to see her back afloat?  Me too.  Meanwhile, you can walk the teak decks, stare at the Queen’s Rolls Royce Phantom and enjoy at least a brief brush with royalty.

The State Dining Room