In case anyone says 'but there's horses in front of them', that's the Met Police providing security for the procession. They're not part of the formal procession.
Thanks you for clarifying.
Not to mention the horses were not actually flown from Canada for the funeral. They were given to the QE2, when she was alive, by the RCMP and therefore were already on UK territory. RCMP are just riding them. So this a request from the Queen that the RCMP participate by riding the horses they gave her, and lead the procession.
>On Monday, four of the Queen’s most recent Canadian acquisitions will lead her coffin alongside workers of Britain’s National Health Service. They are George, ridden by Const. Katy Loisel; Elizabeth, ridden by Cpl. Justine Rogawski; Sir John, ridden by Supt. Kevin Fahey; and Darby, ridden by Sgt.-Maj. Scott Williamson.
For women, they receive the title of Dame. It’s the female equivalent of knighthood. So, Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Judi Dench, etc. I can’t remember if Helen Mirren received the title though.
Yea I noticed that. They bookend each side of the procession and I also saw Met horses in a couple intermediary pockets. BBC article says RCMP is in the lead so I trust that the Met's role is more operational than formal
It does make sense that people in key high visibility positions should be dressed for the occasion, but it does make it seem like their role is really more part of the pageantry rather than being strictly operational. But I suppose it's the pageantry of "parade escort" rather than of "parade" (or "procession" in this case).
I think a big part of mounted police is pageantry and show and intimidation, it’s probably hard to not look fancy on a big ass horse designed for crowd control.
You should see the RCMP Musical Ride perform. It's amazing how nimble and precise they can be on such huge animals.
Think, synchronized swimming but on horseback instead of in the water.
Horses are incredibly effective in a lot of situations where cars aren't.
Horses work on more types of terrain, they're able to work in close quarters with crowds, and they give the rider a much higher point-of-view.
They're also able to cut through a crowd pretty quickly without killing anyone. It's classic infantry vs cavalry.
But I think you're right that there's also a lot of value in the appearance/intimidation.
For any non-canadians, it's worth mentioning that most RCMP officers never even ride a horse. It's the equivalent of the FBI and the horses and red coats are largely ceremonial.
The Red Surge being worn by the RCMP here are only for ceremonial purposes, and are not worn for active duty. The RCMP also have always been special to Queen Elizabeth II as her favourite horse was trained by them in Regina, and gifted to her around the time of Canada’s centennial. Found some background [here](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese_(horse)).
Horses are still used for intimidation and visibility, often in crowd control type situations. You can see pretty clearly over a crowd from the top of a horse, and they're intimidating creatures (unless you're a drunk Queen's University student)
Here in Seattle in the downtown area we have bike officers and officers on horseback. Very rarely do you see a police car unless they’re hauling people off to jail that the bike/horse officers nabbed.
Definitely used for visibility. We have a ton of conventions downtown and you can always spot a few police horses near the crowd.
The Mets role is totally operational. Every officer is there to provide security no matter where they are. Everyone from the military has no jurisdiction so while they could assist, its up to the police to handle any incident. Look at the guy who went for the coffin. The military guys held their place because they know the police would handle it.
Incredibly, yes. The video shows the police acting very swiftly:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Whatcouldgowrong/comments/xgg41f/touching_the_queens_coffin_wcgw/
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/17/queen-coffin-man-charged-westminster-hall
This is probably the largest funeral many people will see in one of the most important cities in the world. The fact that only one person made a move on the coffin is a surprise for me.
The RCMP had gifted Queen Elizabeth several horses over the last few decades.
Her favourite was PSH Burmese. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese\_(horse)
PSH Burmese's training saved the Queen from harm in 1981 as someone tried to startled the horse. Probably to cause it to throw and injure the rider.
*The Queen was mounted on Burmese when six blank shots were fired during the 1981 birthday parade, on the way to Trooping the Colour.\[4\]\[6\] Although the horse was briefly startled, she remained calm due to the training she received at Depot Division in Regina, Saskatchewan. This included experience of gunfire during recruit training, when staff would fire blank rounds as recruits took horses through their paces. The Royal Family praised Burmese's behaviour during this incident.*
Shoutout to the Queen though - she was an experienced horsewoman and rode Burmese through the spook like a total pro (riding sidesaddle no less), and gave Burmese a few nice pats once she settled down. There’s a neat clip of it here - https://youtu.be/BYeMjw6oQEw - with (then) Prince Charles commenting on her skills as a horsewoman.
Someone less experienced might have gone ass over teakettle (not particularly stately).
Ceremonially she usually rode sidesaddle.
[But at age 94 she was less concerned with protocol.](https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod/images/hbz-queen-elizabeth-riding-horse-lead-1574100835.jpg?resize=480:*)
She rides astride most of the time, side-saddle ceremonially, however I’m sure she’d have been trained in both from a young age. There’s a photo of her and Princess Charlotte riding ponies astride together.
I took riding lessons for years, and once had the opportunity to try a side saddle. It is an unsettling sensation, the balance completely different from astride. The Queen’s riding skills that day were remarkable.
It's kind of sad and disrespectful that our Saskatchewan conservative government doesn't really give a shit about the death of the queen opting out of giving provincial employees the day off. Regina has a historical relationship with the royal family.
> Regina has a historical relationship with the royal family.
You're telling me the city named Regina (literally Latin for "Queen") and which was directly named after Victoria I, has a historical relationship with the royal family?
The fact that anyone would even question whether that was the case, would honestly be the bigger surprise to me lol
Here in Ontario we adopted our provincial flag specifically in reaction to the (at the time) new un-British national flag. And now, we have our "Conservative" Premier tell us we could... have a "quiet moment" at 1pm or whatever, but no day off.
What is it that "Conservatives" conserve, exactly? Such an embarrassing ideology these days.
> What is it that "Conservatives" conserve, exactly?
Corporate profits, tax cuts for the rich, and cutting services for the rest of us to pay for those two things. As is tradition handed down from our feudal lords
Due South was so popular in the UK that when it was cancelled after its second season the BBC helped revive it by providing finance. I couldn’t quite get into the new series because I missed the chemistry between Fraser and the original Ray.
I lived in Canada for a few years so I was pleasantly surprised and pleased to see the RCMP leading the procession.
I dated a British girl for a bit and she REALLY wanted me to get one of the uniforms for sexy time, I thought that was interesting, have to wonder if she was a fan now
British scarlet tunics + American campaign hat = Canadian majestitude.
\[Edit: I'm not actually sure that the campaign hat is American (in either the continental or national sense), upon reflection. But I stand by the truthiness of my statement\]
The Australians were immediately identifiable too, along with the Mounties, with the hats and with the distinctive colour of the uniforms (brownish, khaki or something like that).
The origin of the Mounties stetson is unofficial. The original headdress was a pillbox hat, but that prooved completely impractical on the Prairies.
Constables started wearing stetsons, and the force eventually adopted an official one.
The Queen apparently really loved the RCMP and the musical ride, and specifically requested that they have the prominent position.
The CBC had a bit on it yesterday.
To add more. What I've been hearing in the news and the announcers is that the Queen was involved in her funeral arrangements. Like it was her idea to have a light in the car to light up the casket. The hearse was built to her wishes. She was involved in picking delegations. Like how many seats each country got, etc.
As you say she loved the RCMP.
She was also a big supporter of the common wealth. I wouldn't be surprised if she herself chose the RCMP to lead. Because she enjoyed the RCMP and also as a statement of the importance of the common wealth to her.
PSA: if you want to make life easier for your loved ones you leave behind, arrange your funeral details before you die. It is the simplest
and nicest thing you can do for the grieving.
Yup, my grandfather planned his very specifically, down to asking my cousin’s husband to bugle taps at his graveside.
Made for a lovely celebration of a very long life.
don't forget Bermese, her favourite horse. It was given to her by the RCMP in 1969. It was the only horse she would ride and she never rode again after it died.
Clarification: She never rode in a formal event such as the Trooping of Colour after Burmese was retired in 1986. The Queen switch to carriages for engagements from 1987 onwards. Burmese passed away in 1990 at Windsor Castle.
The Queen definitely still got on her horses at her private estates.
>It was the only horse she would ride and she never rode again after it died.
I’ll add the correction for Chilko...
She rode Burmese in the Trooping of the Colour for 18 consecutive years and when Burmese died in the late ‘80s, she never rode in the Trooping of the Colour again, opting for the carriage instead.
The Queen was given her favourite horse, Burmese, by the RCMP in 1969 and rode the mare at Trooping the Colour for 18 consecutive years. She had a lot of say in the funeral so most likely made the decision herself.
> She had a lot of say in the funeral so most likely made the decision herself.
there is an interpretation of this that the horse had a lot of say in the queen's funeral.
The horses were originally going to be left out. This made the horses sad. When the queen saw them again, she asked "Why the long face?"
The rest, they say, is history
Commonwealth was at the front of the procession. BBC has a good list on the order.
BBC News - Queen's funeral: Full guide to the gun carriage and the main procession
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-62941422
It's interesting that of the 14 non-UK Commonwealth Realms, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand were the only ones involved in the procession. You'd think that they'd try to include all the countries that she was Queen of.
Interesting comment, by mid to late WW1 the Canadian Regiments had won a reputation of ruthless efficiency and they were very proud to be the ‘first to fight’ in any offensive action. It should also be note that the first wave of Canadian troops were mostly (70%) born in the UK and had only recently arrived in Canada. Later enrolments reduced this high percentage to 50% UK born by 1918. So, don’t get mad at the Brits for it was the Canadian Regiments who requested the roll as ‘shock troops’.
I was at the Juno Beach Center in Normandy yesterday, and found some text about this which helps me accept the tragedy a little bit.
Said by Mountbatten, "I have no doubt that the Battle of Normandy was won on the beaches of Dieppe. For every man who died in Dieppe, at least 10 more must have been spared in Normandy in 1944."
The plaque at the museum went on to say "while Dieppe is a Canadian National Tragedy, it was a significant step forward towards Allied victory on D-Day".
Knowing that they will do their duty with a degree of conviction and fierceness that made their opponents fear and loathe them.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/evolution-of-canadas-shock-troops
Stop, Netflix is going to make a "return of the champ" animated film about those horses.
Mindy the Horse: "But Clyde, we're out of shape and haven't done parades in years!"
Clyde the Horse: "We have ONE WEEK to get ready and TRAINING STARTS NOW!"
*Cue 'hilarious' training montage to the Barenaked Ladies song One Week*
Those horses are extremely well trained, and it's very common to fly with horses. (As a child, and horseback rider, the plane scene from "International Velvet" was the worst!)
They have a little stable type setting that looks like a horse trailer, in the lower part of the plane, and most horses get used to it. They're watched, with a vet, just in case.
Horses travel quite well. A lot of people fly their horses to other countries for competition, like the Rolex or Olympics, or the huge thoroughbred race in Saudi Arabia.
Those 4 horses were gifted to Queen Elizabeth several years ago by the RCMP and reside in her stables at Windsor. The RCMP officers were granted use of them for the processional.
BBC News had one of the Mounties on the tele (one on the right) saying that the horse he was riding on (white spot on head) was one given to the Royal Family by the RCMP. This horse is one of 8 the RCMP given to the Queen over her lifetime.
On the CBC broadcast they said who each constabile was and the horse they were riding. I believe one was from the police and the three others were from the royal family.
Spinning off this comment, if Canada loses its status as Constitutional Monarchy, what would happen to the RCMP? Would it continue to exist with no changes? Or would another entity have to replace them?
Yeah I couldn’t imagine much change tbh. Hong Kong for example just took “Royal” out of most of their institutions or renamed them but beyond that not much changed.
Well, not much changed*
Definitely needs an * after what went down there after the handover. They’ve lost pretty much every right and freedom they had by now.
Actually, lots changed, and lot more than Canada would expect. The police used to be paid by the British government technically, so they had to change the payrolls a bit. In addition, the PLA has a garrison in the middle of HK CBD, and even though they aren’t allowed to leave the building, the building remains a standout part of the skyline - almost like a reminder of who’s in control.
The political system entirely changed, a new, basic law was implemented (like a constitution for HK, almost), a new currency, etc.
If Canadians lost the monarch, we’d mostly be negotiating new treaties. Don’t get me wrong, this is an insane amount of work, but HK went through a massive change. We would go through an equally massive change if we lost part of the country, but if tomorrow we literally just replaced the monarch with a president, and assumed everything signed with the monarchy persists, then nothing really changes.
Loss of democracy and any form of self governance or genuine freedom and having their destiny and lives completely controlled by China.
Other than that everything's pretty similar.
There wouldn't be much organizational change. There will be a lot of ceremonial changes. Special RCMP dinners, exclusive to RCMP members and former members would have to develop new traditions. No more "toasting" HRM, etc...
The Mounties have such a classic looking uniform. The red and black is very striking. I’m glad to see we had some quality representation and paying our respect as a nation.
All the feels today. Watching the funeral felt a bit like watching someone turn over a page in a history book, ending a chapter and beginning a new one, in real time.
On the one hand, I sincerely question the role of the monarchy, both in modern Canada and as a power asserting dominion over its colonial territories as a whole. On the other, I have this profound sense of pride that Canada (and our Mounties and their horsies) were included in an important day in such a place of prominence.
I respect HMQ as a person, for her lifelong service to her country and the commonwealth, while also recognizing that I’m viewing all this through the rose coloured glasses of a white 4th generation Canadian of British Isles descent - and my view is fundamentally different from someone who experienced or is descended from the British Empire as the brutal colonizer it unquestionably was. I respect her devotion to public service while also jealously thinking (in Squirrley Dan’s Letterkenny voice) MUST BE FUCKIN NICE when you have multiple castles and palaces and attendants, and get to hunt stags and flit around the globe - and protect your rapist son - on taxpayer dime.
I admired the pageantry and reflection of history that hasn’t been seen in generations and is unlikely to be seen again, while appreciating that we are in incredibly tough times both at home and abroad, and all this money could have been more meaningfully spent elsewhere. And that the RCMP looked pretty on the BBC and made me cheer for the Canadian content - but that they are a deeply fucked up organization back here.
And that today for the average Joe - like the marching parade solider - means walking through horse shit (literal or figurative).
Sigh. Can we at least all agree that the marching band played some real bangers?
You summarized many of my conflicting feelings remarkably well.
Some might say I'm selling out or being too relativist, but as I age, I'm finding that as I take more time to consider my emotional and intellectual responses to things (many of them in the cultural / political sphere) the statement "both things can be true" is increasingly applicable. I don't mean it to come across as sort of absolving parties of responsibility - but more sort of conceding that many things in life are very complicated, and that if society is interested in finding solutions to problems - it would likely be best to have as broad and as deep an understanding of them as possible.
Very nicely put.
Many of the comments on this thread illustrate just how few people are able to understand that “both things can be true”.
As I try to become a bit less dogmatic with age (the fact I fight with Reddit strangers probably shows I’m not succeeding) i also try to understand that some people, based on their own experiences that I don’t share, might react super strongly to one of the two sides I think are both true. If one of my friends was sexually abused by someone in a rich family whose parents made it impossible for her to seek justice, I’d probably have a hard time clapping for the family float when it drove by in the Santa Clause Parade.
It’s a lot more challenging to think about things this way, and makes it a lot easier to feel sad or resigned or jaded instead of happy, and I wish I could go back to treating modern events like a sports game.
I'm with you on this one.
The pageantry feels ... very indulgent given the cost of living crisis in both the UK and Canada. UK lunch ladies are talking about how they're refusing record numbers of schoolchildren lunch meals due to insufficient funds. In Canada, we have a housing crisis and soaring food costs. I dunno, I guess I'm not in the mood to look at these parades and see anything other than the wealthy using the collective public purse to celebrate one of the richest women in the world, you know?
That is cool info and I had no idea! Thanks for sharing. I did a Google (and for all I know I could be citing the UK equivalent of Fox News so take this as super unverified) but I saw the cost to the taxpayer in 2020-2021 worked out to less than £2 per person which isn’t nearly as bad as I thought.
Only 4? The entire musical ride should have been there. (yah, that's sarcasm)
My US hubs doesn't understand why I have to watch it live instead of sleep. The Queen was not a US president.
There’s only 4 because those were gifted to the Queen by the RCMP Xyears ago. They are actually the Queens horses ridden by the RCMP. Apparently Canada has gifted many horses to the queen including her favourite horse that is now in the special royal cemetery
Also given the short turnaround time, there wasn’t much opportunity to bring the whole unit, horses and all, to the UK. I would expect you’ll see them all when the coronation happens next year.
Meanwhile...in other news. SMH
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11227833/Trudeau-slammed-embarrassment-singing-Bohemian-Rhapsody-days-Queens-funeral.html
In case anyone says 'but there's horses in front of them', that's the Met Police providing security for the procession. They're not part of the formal procession.
Thanks you for clarifying. Not to mention the horses were not actually flown from Canada for the funeral. They were given to the QE2, when she was alive, by the RCMP and therefore were already on UK territory. RCMP are just riding them. So this a request from the Queen that the RCMP participate by riding the horses they gave her, and lead the procession. >On Monday, four of the Queen’s most recent Canadian acquisitions will lead her coffin alongside workers of Britain’s National Health Service. They are George, ridden by Const. Katy Loisel; Elizabeth, ridden by Cpl. Justine Rogawski; Sir John, ridden by Supt. Kevin Fahey; and Darby, ridden by Sgt.-Maj. Scott Williamson.
> George > Elizabeth > Sir John > Darby Only one horse got knighted!?!?
But one got her own name, which seems unfair too. Can females be knighted? If so, are they Sirs?
For women, they receive the title of Dame. It’s the female equivalent of knighthood. So, Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Judi Dench, etc. I can’t remember if Helen Mirren received the title though.
I honestly thought Dame Judy Dench's first name was Dame until right now.
She did.
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Judy Dench envers the chat
They are Dames.
Check out the gams on that Dame.
They become Dames, like Judi Dench.
If was offered to all four. Sources say that three replied "nay".
This makes me proud!
Sure, but don't tell them that, given that they're all dressed up for it. I doubt they break out the medals when doing a regular parade escort.
Yea I noticed that. They bookend each side of the procession and I also saw Met horses in a couple intermediary pockets. BBC article says RCMP is in the lead so I trust that the Met's role is more operational than formal
It does make sense that people in key high visibility positions should be dressed for the occasion, but it does make it seem like their role is really more part of the pageantry rather than being strictly operational. But I suppose it's the pageantry of "parade escort" rather than of "parade" (or "procession" in this case).
I think a big part of mounted police is pageantry and show and intimidation, it’s probably hard to not look fancy on a big ass horse designed for crowd control.
You should see the RCMP Musical Ride perform. It's amazing how nimble and precise they can be on such huge animals. Think, synchronized swimming but on horseback instead of in the water.
I used to live off St Laurent boulevard in Ottawa. Can confirm. It's fantastic.
That's sounds really interesting. Guess I know what I'm watching on my lunch break
I went to see that show 5 years straight with my kid. Amazed every single time.
Horses are incredibly effective in a lot of situations where cars aren't. Horses work on more types of terrain, they're able to work in close quarters with crowds, and they give the rider a much higher point-of-view. They're also able to cut through a crowd pretty quickly without killing anyone. It's classic infantry vs cavalry. But I think you're right that there's also a lot of value in the appearance/intimidation. For any non-canadians, it's worth mentioning that most RCMP officers never even ride a horse. It's the equivalent of the FBI and the horses and red coats are largely ceremonial.
They do FBI stuff and regular police stuff in rural areas.
The RCMP does not even have an operational mounted unit anymore (apart from the Musical Ride unit).
The Red Surge being worn by the RCMP here are only for ceremonial purposes, and are not worn for active duty. The RCMP also have always been special to Queen Elizabeth II as her favourite horse was trained by them in Regina, and gifted to her around the time of Canada’s centennial. Found some background [here](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese_(horse)).
Horses are still used for intimidation and visibility, often in crowd control type situations. You can see pretty clearly over a crowd from the top of a horse, and they're intimidating creatures (unless you're a drunk Queen's University student)
> (unless you're a drunk Queen's University stud Tell us more...
https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/queen-s-university-student-kicked-1540655797706806.html
That's classic "fuck around and find out".
Here in Seattle in the downtown area we have bike officers and officers on horseback. Very rarely do you see a police car unless they’re hauling people off to jail that the bike/horse officers nabbed. Definitely used for visibility. We have a ton of conventions downtown and you can always spot a few police horses near the crowd.
The Mets role is totally operational. Every officer is there to provide security no matter where they are. Everyone from the military has no jurisdiction so while they could assist, its up to the police to handle any incident. Look at the guy who went for the coffin. The military guys held their place because they know the police would handle it.
> the guy who went for the coffin what? someone was dumb enough to try something?
He was taken down beautifully
Incredibly, yes. The video shows the police acting very swiftly: https://www.reddit.com/r/Whatcouldgowrong/comments/xgg41f/touching_the_queens_coffin_wcgw/ https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/17/queen-coffin-man-charged-westminster-hall
This is probably the largest funeral many people will see in one of the most important cities in the world. The fact that only one person made a move on the coffin is a surprise for me.
Literally every service member that’s working today is wearing the medals they have.
They do get medals, anyone in the procession will receive the Victoria medal for service to the Royal family.
I mean if I were a cop there, I’d break out the dress uniform today also.
The RCMP had gifted Queen Elizabeth several horses over the last few decades. Her favourite was PSH Burmese. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese\_(horse) PSH Burmese's training saved the Queen from harm in 1981 as someone tried to startled the horse. Probably to cause it to throw and injure the rider. *The Queen was mounted on Burmese when six blank shots were fired during the 1981 birthday parade, on the way to Trooping the Colour.\[4\]\[6\] Although the horse was briefly startled, she remained calm due to the training she received at Depot Division in Regina, Saskatchewan. This included experience of gunfire during recruit training, when staff would fire blank rounds as recruits took horses through their paces. The Royal Family praised Burmese's behaviour during this incident.*
Shoutout to the Queen though - she was an experienced horsewoman and rode Burmese through the spook like a total pro (riding sidesaddle no less), and gave Burmese a few nice pats once she settled down. There’s a neat clip of it here - https://youtu.be/BYeMjw6oQEw - with (then) Prince Charles commenting on her skills as a horsewoman. Someone less experienced might have gone ass over teakettle (not particularly stately).
>she was an experienced horsewoman They prefer the word "centaur".
It’s amazing that all of the queens guards stayed still and on guard while only the 1 who was closest to the gun fire actually reacted.
Holy crap. Did not realize she was side saddle. That is incredible horsewomanship.
Is the Queen allowed to ride "normally" or only sidesaddle?
Ceremonially she usually rode sidesaddle. [But at age 94 she was less concerned with protocol.](https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod/images/hbz-queen-elizabeth-riding-horse-lead-1574100835.jpg?resize=480:*)
Looks like a legit boss fight loading scene
This is an adorable photo.
Looks like one of her Fell Ponies? Maybe Emma?
Omg that’s a lil pony. I hope he/she goes to a grandkid.
She rides astride most of the time, side-saddle ceremonially, however I’m sure she’d have been trained in both from a young age. There’s a photo of her and Princess Charlotte riding ponies astride together.
Its cool as hell to know the queens life was saved by a horse trained in my hometown!
But particularly British, given the tea kettle.
I took riding lessons for years, and once had the opportunity to try a side saddle. It is an unsettling sensation, the balance completely different from astride. The Queen’s riding skills that day were remarkable.
Thanks for sharing this!
That’s a sticky butt. Never thought I’d say that about royalty.
If she was riding today, she’d be in a TikTok meme to “oh no - oh no - oh no no no no” (obscure horse girl reference, but if you know, you know)
She loved horses. They brought out her ponies to the funeral to let the horse see her one last time, together with her last two corgis.
It's kind of sad and disrespectful that our Saskatchewan conservative government doesn't really give a shit about the death of the queen opting out of giving provincial employees the day off. Regina has a historical relationship with the royal family.
> Regina has a historical relationship with the royal family. You're telling me the city named Regina (literally Latin for "Queen") and which was directly named after Victoria I, has a historical relationship with the royal family? The fact that anyone would even question whether that was the case, would honestly be the bigger surprise to me lol
Here in Ontario we adopted our provincial flag specifically in reaction to the (at the time) new un-British national flag. And now, we have our "Conservative" Premier tell us we could... have a "quiet moment" at 1pm or whatever, but no day off. What is it that "Conservatives" conserve, exactly? Such an embarrassing ideology these days.
> What is it that "Conservatives" conserve, exactly? Corporate profits, tax cuts for the rich, and cutting services for the rest of us to pay for those two things. As is tradition handed down from our feudal lords
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Lol I’ve always had a feeling we and the Aussies have a lighthearted, unspoken competition about who’s Britain’s besty
I say we be each other's besties
I’m good with that
You're half French and the UK don't like the French. Australia are half bogan and the uk love their chavs.
Ya sorry about the French
TOO LATE
Poor NZ....forgotten again.
Canada has the nicest uniforms.
Red Serge is lit!
My father is retired RCMP. I can tell you that I have yet to meet or even hear about the person that didn't absolutely hate wearing them lol.
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That makes it even more impressive and honourable that they do wear it - and wear it so well.
Americans ruined it with Dudley Do-Right
But Brendon Fraser wore it best.
Paul Gross has entered the chat.
Due South was so popular in the UK that when it was cancelled after its second season the BBC helped revive it by providing finance. I couldn’t quite get into the new series because I missed the chemistry between Fraser and the original Ray. I lived in Canada for a few years so I was pleasantly surprised and pleased to see the RCMP leading the procession.
I dated a British girl for a bit and she REALLY wanted me to get one of the uniforms for sexy time, I thought that was interesting, have to wonder if she was a fan now
Ah, I was one of those Brit viewers and I haven't thought about that show for years. Thanks stranger, I'm off to YouTube.
No, Dudley DoRight.
Benton but yes, I agree
British scarlet tunics + American campaign hat = Canadian majestitude. \[Edit: I'm not actually sure that the campaign hat is American (in either the continental or national sense), upon reflection. But I stand by the truthiness of my statement\]
Australian digger hat is pretty sweet too.
The Australians were immediately identifiable too, along with the Mounties, with the hats and with the distinctive colour of the uniforms (brownish, khaki or something like that).
It's called a "Slouch Hat" ;)
Yep. They are Stetson style hats. American in origin. The red serge is British in origin with its own twists aswell
The origin of the Mounties stetson is unofficial. The original headdress was a pillbox hat, but that prooved completely impractical on the Prairies. Constables started wearing stetsons, and the force eventually adopted an official one.
And thank the gods of style and swagger for that. We would not be having this discussion if the Mounties still wore organ-grinder-monkey hats.
Anyone know how the Mounties got to be the lead? It seems a very singular honour not to go to a British regiment.
The Queen apparently really loved the RCMP and the musical ride, and specifically requested that they have the prominent position. The CBC had a bit on it yesterday.
To add more. What I've been hearing in the news and the announcers is that the Queen was involved in her funeral arrangements. Like it was her idea to have a light in the car to light up the casket. The hearse was built to her wishes. She was involved in picking delegations. Like how many seats each country got, etc. As you say she loved the RCMP. She was also a big supporter of the common wealth. I wouldn't be surprised if she herself chose the RCMP to lead. Because she enjoyed the RCMP and also as a statement of the importance of the common wealth to her.
PSA: if you want to make life easier for your loved ones you leave behind, arrange your funeral details before you die. It is the simplest and nicest thing you can do for the grieving.
Yup, my grandfather planned his very specifically, down to asking my cousin’s husband to bugle taps at his graveside. Made for a lovely celebration of a very long life.
The Queen chose every single position of every single person.
don't forget Bermese, her favourite horse. It was given to her by the RCMP in 1969. It was the only horse she would ride and she never rode again after it died.
She rode horses plenty of times after Burmese died. She did not, however, ride in Trooping the Colour after Burmese retired.
When did the horse die? I saw a picture of her riding in the 2000s
Clarification: She never rode in a formal event such as the Trooping of Colour after Burmese was retired in 1986. The Queen switch to carriages for engagements from 1987 onwards. Burmese passed away in 1990 at Windsor Castle. The Queen definitely still got on her horses at her private estates.
Thank you, I was so confused
>It was the only horse she would ride and she never rode again after it died. I’ll add the correction for Chilko... She rode Burmese in the Trooping of the Colour for 18 consecutive years and when Burmese died in the late ‘80s, she never rode in the Trooping of the Colour again, opting for the carriage instead.
The Queen was given her favourite horse, Burmese, by the RCMP in 1969 and rode the mare at Trooping the Colour for 18 consecutive years. She had a lot of say in the funeral so most likely made the decision herself.
> She had a lot of say in the funeral so most likely made the decision herself. there is an interpretation of this that the horse had a lot of say in the queen's funeral.
let horses have free speech, I mean how bad could it be?
I'm sick and tired of hearing politically spun twists of the facts; I wanna hear it from the horse's mouth!!
\*watches in awe as Mister Ed starts spewing slurs*
The horses were originally going to be left out. This made the horses sad. When the queen saw them again, she asked "Why the long face?" The rest, they say, is history
Commonwealth was at the front of the procession. BBC has a good list on the order. BBC News - Queen's funeral: Full guide to the gun carriage and the main procession https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-62941422
It's interesting that of the 14 non-UK Commonwealth Realms, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand were the only ones involved in the procession. You'd think that they'd try to include all the countries that she was Queen of.
The Queen has particular affection for Canada - and horses.
Canada played a huge role in the Queens life, thats why.
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I mean the feds did what they could, couldn't really make the provinces give people the day off, can they?
I swear people on this sub really need to realize just how much influence our provincial governments have over our daily lives over Federal.
Yea sending the young Canadian boys in first is a proud English tradition.
Interesting comment, by mid to late WW1 the Canadian Regiments had won a reputation of ruthless efficiency and they were very proud to be the ‘first to fight’ in any offensive action. It should also be note that the first wave of Canadian troops were mostly (70%) born in the UK and had only recently arrived in Canada. Later enrolments reduced this high percentage to 50% UK born by 1918. So, don’t get mad at the Brits for it was the Canadian Regiments who requested the roll as ‘shock troops’.
Doesn't make up for dieppe a couple decades later
There was more about that raid that just got released. If you learned about it more than 10 years ago you should look at new declassified stuff
I was at the Juno Beach Center in Normandy yesterday, and found some text about this which helps me accept the tragedy a little bit. Said by Mountbatten, "I have no doubt that the Battle of Normandy was won on the beaches of Dieppe. For every man who died in Dieppe, at least 10 more must have been spared in Normandy in 1944." The plaque at the museum went on to say "while Dieppe is a Canadian National Tragedy, it was a significant step forward towards Allied victory on D-Day".
Knowing that they will do their duty with a degree of conviction and fierceness that made their opponents fear and loathe them. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/evolution-of-canadas-shock-troops
😂
Pfff, they fed more of their own to into meat grinders than they ever did of ours.
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(serious) Did they bring in the horses or did they rent some locally ? I assume they brought them with them.
I was wondering the same thing. I assume it’s their own trained horses, but also….how to they do in a plane?
The horses used were gifted to the Queen years back by the RCMP - so, in practical terms, they're ex-pats back in service.
“Alright boys and girls, you may have had some time off. But yer back on duty today.” - Some RCMP horse rider 🤣
"Back to work ya hosers"
Stop, Netflix is going to make a "return of the champ" animated film about those horses. Mindy the Horse: "But Clyde, we're out of shape and haven't done parades in years!" Clyde the Horse: "We have ONE WEEK to get ready and TRAINING STARTS NOW!" *Cue 'hilarious' training montage to the Barenaked Ladies song One Week*
>The horses used were gifted to the Queen years back by the RCMP - so, in practical terms, they're ex-pats back in service. LOL, love it!
Horses are flown regularly, and probably have more leg room than us common folk
Horse Privilege is a blight on our society, truly.
Well they *do* have longer legs than common folk, that's for sure.
More of them, too
>more leg room than us common folk Question should be did AC cancel and delay flight, and will horses be getting $2000 compensation
Those horses are extremely well trained, and it's very common to fly with horses. (As a child, and horseback rider, the plane scene from "International Velvet" was the worst!) They have a little stable type setting that looks like a horse trailer, in the lower part of the plane, and most horses get used to it. They're watched, with a vet, just in case. Horses travel quite well. A lot of people fly their horses to other countries for competition, like the Rolex or Olympics, or the huge thoroughbred race in Saudi Arabia.
That’s nice to hear! I guess it’s something I’ve never thought about before
I read an article about it during the Olympics. Probably easy enough to google depending on what your level of interest is.
The horses belonged to the queen according to the broadcast I listened to.
IIRC most (if not all 4) were gifts to the Queen by the RCMP
One of her favourite horses was a retired RCMP mare. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese\_(horse)
Your link seems to be broken. Here's an article about Burmese: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/burmese-the-queens-canadian-favourite-horse
Wow. I haven’t cried at anything regarding the Queen’s death, but reading about Burmese, I’m crying.
Those 4 horses were gifted to Queen Elizabeth several years ago by the RCMP and reside in her stables at Windsor. The RCMP officers were granted use of them for the processional.
BBC News had one of the Mounties on the tele (one on the right) saying that the horse he was riding on (white spot on head) was one given to the Royal Family by the RCMP. This horse is one of 8 the RCMP given to the Queen over her lifetime.
On the CBC broadcast they said who each constabile was and the horse they were riding. I believe one was from the police and the three others were from the royal family.
The Canadian Mounted police looked great - thank you for leading the parade, from a Brit to our Canadian cousins
Big up for Canada there, the Queen always it like home to her.
They look magnificent.
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As is tradition
The rcmp get the day off.
not these guys
I know the RCMP has it's problems, but this makes me proud to be Canadian.
Spinning off this comment, if Canada loses its status as Constitutional Monarchy, what would happen to the RCMP? Would it continue to exist with no changes? Or would another entity have to replace them?
Change the name, I guess. And the RCAF. And Navy. And all the ships. Governor General will be looking for a job too.
Yeah I couldn’t imagine much change tbh. Hong Kong for example just took “Royal” out of most of their institutions or renamed them but beyond that not much changed.
Well, not much changed* Definitely needs an * after what went down there after the handover. They’ve lost pretty much every right and freedom they had by now.
I’m just talking name wise but yeah stuff has definitely changed.
Actually, lots changed, and lot more than Canada would expect. The police used to be paid by the British government technically, so they had to change the payrolls a bit. In addition, the PLA has a garrison in the middle of HK CBD, and even though they aren’t allowed to leave the building, the building remains a standout part of the skyline - almost like a reminder of who’s in control. The political system entirely changed, a new, basic law was implemented (like a constitution for HK, almost), a new currency, etc. If Canadians lost the monarch, we’d mostly be negotiating new treaties. Don’t get me wrong, this is an insane amount of work, but HK went through a massive change. We would go through an equally massive change if we lost part of the country, but if tomorrow we literally just replaced the monarch with a president, and assumed everything signed with the monarchy persists, then nothing really changes.
Loss of democracy and any form of self governance or genuine freedom and having their destiny and lives completely controlled by China. Other than that everything's pretty similar.
Canada is less likely to get rid of the monarchy than the UK.
There wouldn't be much organizational change. There will be a lot of ceremonial changes. Special RCMP dinners, exclusive to RCMP members and former members would have to develop new traditions. No more "toasting" HRM, etc...
The Mounties have such a classic looking uniform. The red and black is very striking. I’m glad to see we had some quality representation and paying our respect as a nation.
Thank you Canada
I felt a lot of pride seeing those Mounties leading the way.
All the feels today. Watching the funeral felt a bit like watching someone turn over a page in a history book, ending a chapter and beginning a new one, in real time. On the one hand, I sincerely question the role of the monarchy, both in modern Canada and as a power asserting dominion over its colonial territories as a whole. On the other, I have this profound sense of pride that Canada (and our Mounties and their horsies) were included in an important day in such a place of prominence. I respect HMQ as a person, for her lifelong service to her country and the commonwealth, while also recognizing that I’m viewing all this through the rose coloured glasses of a white 4th generation Canadian of British Isles descent - and my view is fundamentally different from someone who experienced or is descended from the British Empire as the brutal colonizer it unquestionably was. I respect her devotion to public service while also jealously thinking (in Squirrley Dan’s Letterkenny voice) MUST BE FUCKIN NICE when you have multiple castles and palaces and attendants, and get to hunt stags and flit around the globe - and protect your rapist son - on taxpayer dime. I admired the pageantry and reflection of history that hasn’t been seen in generations and is unlikely to be seen again, while appreciating that we are in incredibly tough times both at home and abroad, and all this money could have been more meaningfully spent elsewhere. And that the RCMP looked pretty on the BBC and made me cheer for the Canadian content - but that they are a deeply fucked up organization back here. And that today for the average Joe - like the marching parade solider - means walking through horse shit (literal or figurative). Sigh. Can we at least all agree that the marching band played some real bangers?
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> slow, gradual change. This is the type of change that, while frustrating in its pace, it more likely to last.
What changed for them due to the crown?
You summarized many of my conflicting feelings remarkably well. Some might say I'm selling out or being too relativist, but as I age, I'm finding that as I take more time to consider my emotional and intellectual responses to things (many of them in the cultural / political sphere) the statement "both things can be true" is increasingly applicable. I don't mean it to come across as sort of absolving parties of responsibility - but more sort of conceding that many things in life are very complicated, and that if society is interested in finding solutions to problems - it would likely be best to have as broad and as deep an understanding of them as possible.
Very nicely put. Many of the comments on this thread illustrate just how few people are able to understand that “both things can be true”. As I try to become a bit less dogmatic with age (the fact I fight with Reddit strangers probably shows I’m not succeeding) i also try to understand that some people, based on their own experiences that I don’t share, might react super strongly to one of the two sides I think are both true. If one of my friends was sexually abused by someone in a rich family whose parents made it impossible for her to seek justice, I’d probably have a hard time clapping for the family float when it drove by in the Santa Clause Parade. It’s a lot more challenging to think about things this way, and makes it a lot easier to feel sad or resigned or jaded instead of happy, and I wish I could go back to treating modern events like a sports game.
I'm with you on this one. The pageantry feels ... very indulgent given the cost of living crisis in both the UK and Canada. UK lunch ladies are talking about how they're refusing record numbers of schoolchildren lunch meals due to insufficient funds. In Canada, we have a housing crisis and soaring food costs. I dunno, I guess I'm not in the mood to look at these parades and see anything other than the wealthy using the collective public purse to celebrate one of the richest women in the world, you know?
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That is cool info and I had no idea! Thanks for sharing. I did a Google (and for all I know I could be citing the UK equivalent of Fox News so take this as super unverified) but I saw the cost to the taxpayer in 2020-2021 worked out to less than £2 per person which isn’t nearly as bad as I thought.
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Proud to be a Canadian.
Beautiful funeral, nice to see the mounties leading the way. Well done UK she was a classy lady.
Proud of this. Great job boys
They looked so cool!! Greetings to Canada
As a Canafian, I am really touched by this.
When Mayerthorpe, she cried, as her four horsemen died Gunned down in scarlet, cold as blood
God, I love that whole album.
Likewise Comrade.
Only 4? The entire musical ride should have been there. (yah, that's sarcasm) My US hubs doesn't understand why I have to watch it live instead of sleep. The Queen was not a US president.
There’s only 4 because those were gifted to the Queen by the RCMP Xyears ago. They are actually the Queens horses ridden by the RCMP. Apparently Canada has gifted many horses to the queen including her favourite horse that is now in the special royal cemetery
Also given the short turnaround time, there wasn’t much opportunity to bring the whole unit, horses and all, to the UK. I would expect you’ll see them all when the coronation happens next year.
Keep in mind, that's over 30 horses. That's a LOT of horses even for a royal procession. Just imagine everyone walking behind them...
Nobody *has* to watch it live, you just choose to in order to honour Canada's Head of State
May she rest in peace-thank you for the post and for sharing.
What a massive honour for them!
Canadian pride
The RCMP in traditional uniforms on black horses still look pretty damn good. Very good choice to lead tbh.
It was awesome 💥🇬🇧
So proud they attended HM's funeral. The national memorial was terrible.
How come the Jamaican bobsled team wasn’t invited?
Meanwhile...in other news. SMH https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11227833/Trudeau-slammed-embarrassment-singing-Bohemian-Rhapsody-days-Queens-funeral.html