An early birthday celebration! King Charles III announced that his first Trooping the Colour will be held five months before his 75th birthday in November 2023.
The former Prince of Wales unveiled initial plans for his first Trooping the Colour as monarch in December 2022, revealing that the celebration will take place on June 17, 2023. The parade traditionally marks the U.K. sovereign’s official birthday, but in the case of Charles — and his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II — the day falls months away from the real date.
The late monarch’s birthday was in April, but Trooping the Colour was held in June throughout her reign. Charles will follow in his mother’s footsteps by holding his own parade later in the month.
The parade’s origins date back to the 17th century, while the tradition of marking the sovereign’s birthday with the parade began in 1748 during the reign of King George II. During Elizabeth’s reign, more than 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians participated in the event, which followed a route from Buckingham Palace along The Mall to Horse Guards Parade and back again. At the end of the parade, the royal family gathers on the balcony of the palace to watch a fly-past of the Royal Air Force.
The queen’s final Trooping the Colour took place during her Platinum Jubilee, which commemorated her 70 years on the throne. Several members of the royal family joined her on the balcony to watch the fly-past, including Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Kate. The queen’s great-grandchildren Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis were also in attendance — and Louis, for his part, made headlines for covering his ears as the military planes flew by.
The king’s first Trooping the Colour will take place just weeks after his coronation, which will occur on May 6. Charles immediately assumed the throne following the death of his mother in September 2022, but the coronation will see him formally invested and crowned.
Two days after Elizabeth’s passing, Charles had an Ascension Ceremony that officially declared him monarch. “My mother’s reign was unequaled in its duration, its dedication and its devotion,” he told the Ascension Council during the ceremony. “Even as we grieve, we give thanks for this most faithful life. I am deeply aware of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of sovereignty which have now passed to me.”
Keep scrolling for everything to know about Charles’ first Trooping the Colour: