Guards Bands at Horse Guards Parade, London during Trooping the Colour 2014

© Malcolm Park editorial/Alamy Live New

Painting the town red. Trooping the Colour

As summer blooms in London, a centuries-old ceremony unfurls with pomp and pageantry—Trooping the Colour. The event marks the official birthday of the British sovereign in a tradition dating back to the 18th century. Trooping the Colour is deeply rooted in the practicalities of yore, where battlefield standards served as vital rallying symbols for soldiers.

Today, the regiments of the Household Division, resplendent in their bearskin hats and scarlet tunics, perform this ritual with a Drummer's Call and the dignified slow march, imbuing their colours with the respect and reverence they deserve. These striking flags are then paraded, or 'trooped', before the monarch, a salute to the sovereign's connection to the armed forces. And then, there's the fly-past by the Royal Air Force, where aircraft from yesteryear and today roar over the Buckingham Palace, while the Royal Family watches from the balcony. The ritual is not just a London spectacle; it resonates within Commonwealth realms, each adding local flair. In Canada, it blends with the solemnity of Remembrance Day. Australia's military cadets inherit this duty in Canberra, signifying continuity and alliance.