King Charles’s third Trooping the Colour as monarch was a slightly more muted one in the wake of the Air India tragedy this week. The King requested members of the royal family in uniform, mounted officers in the procession, and all liveried mews staff to wear black arm bands. The parade also included a minute’s silence, signaled by the Last Post and Reveille, as a mark of respect for the victims, their families, and affected communities.
In the past, the event has culminated with the extended House of Windsor filing out onto the Buckingham Palace balcony—a group often stretching upward of 40 people. But in more recent years, the crowd has slimmed. For Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022, for example, only 18 people, including senior working royals, and (in some cases) their children and non-working spouses, appeared alongside the British monarch.
Last year, only senior working members of the royal family appeared on the balcony, including the King and Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales, two of King Charles’s three siblings, Princess Anne and Prince Edward (plus their spouses, and Edward’s daughter, Lady Louise), and two of Queen Elizabeth’s first cousins: the Duke of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.
The group of royals on the balcony today was similarly small. Here, a guide to the 14 members of the British royal family who appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, from left to right:
Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester: Prince Richard’s wife
Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester: Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh: Prince Edward’s wife
Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh: King Charles’s brother
Queen Camilla: King Charles’s wife
King Charles: the British monarch, who marked his third Trooping today
Prince William: son of King Charles and heir to the throne
Catherine, Princess of Wales: Prince William’s wife
Prince Louis: son of the Prince and Princess of Wales
Prince George: second in line to the throne; son of the Prince and Princess of Wales
Princess Charlotte: daughter of the Prince and Princess of Wales
Prince Edward, Duke of Kent: Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin
Princess Anne: King Charles’s sister
Sir Timothy Laurence: Princess Anne’s husband
Notably absent for the third year was Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin Princess Alexandra, who is 88 years old but still technically a senior working royal. And Lady Louise, the daughter of Prince Edward and Sophie who typically attends the annual royal event, also missed out this year.
You Might Also Like
12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion
13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game
