London. 18 September 2022. Some 110 horses converged onto Combermere Barracks in Windsor in preparation for the final piece in Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral – the procession up the Long Walk and into Windsor Castle for the private committal in St George’s Chapel.
The horses belong to two mounted units, the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery. These are the horses that will pull the World War One vintage 13 Pounder field guns which will fire the minute gun salute (one round every 60 seconds during the procession) from the East Lawn of Windsor Castle. In addition are the magnificent chargers belonging to the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment.
Gunners from the Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery meticulously polish every surface of their 13 Pounder ceremonial guns that date back to the First World War. They will be used to fire the minute gun salute as HM Queen Elizabeth II makes her final journey into Windsor Castle’s St George’s Chapel. The saddles are gleaming after hours of painstaking polishing by the Gunners of Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery.
Busbies and swords belonging to the officers of the Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery are laid out having been brushed and polished in preparation for their final part in the funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the procession up Long Walk into Windsor Castle.
In the temporary gun park at Combermere Barracks in Windsor, a member of the Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery uses a power tool and polishing wheel to achieve a mirror like shine to the gun barrel. An Army farrier hammers in a new shoe to one of the chargers of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment. In preparation for the funeral service of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the farriers have shod over 120 horses in a 72-hour period. Each horse ordinarily has new shoes every 2 – 3 weeks.
Having had a new set of shoes, one of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment’s horses has his nails filed. The senior horse within the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, Yogi arrives from central London to Combermere Barracks in Windsor Castle where they will fire one round every minute during the procession of Her Majesty up Long Walk and into the castle.
The magnificent chargers belonging to the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment are led of their transport as they arrive from central London to Combermere Barracks in Windsor for the final procession in the funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The highly polished cavalry boots glint in the sun at the stables in Combermere Barracks.
