What is Trooping the Colour? Everything to know about King's birthday parade 2026

Trooping the colour comes from the practical tradition practiced on the battlefields. Colours were flags that were used as a point where the soldiers could rally during battles. 

The term “trooping” means bringing the color slowly among all soldiers so that each of them could identify their own regiment’s flag.

Today, it is considered the biggest military ceremony in Britain, organized in honor of the queen by the Household Division.

Which regiment is trooping the colour in 2026?

The 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards will be chosen to troop its color at the parade of 2026. The year would also witness the completion of 370 years for this regiment.

Colonel of the Grenadier Guards is Queen Camilla. The slow march for the regiment is "The March from Scipio" by Handel, while the quick march is "The British Grenadiers."

How many participants are involved?

• Over 1,400 officers and soldiers
  
• Approximately 200 horses
  
• More than 400 musicians from ten bands and Corps of drums
  

What happens during the ceremony?

The bands move into position to execute an elaborate manoeuvre called the "spinwheel" that lacks written instructions in any drill manual and must be adapted to fit the situation by each individual musician.

The monarch travels from Buckingham Palace along The Mall, doing so this year in a coach (having travelled on horseback in 2023 and in a coach from 2025 onwards).

On reaching Horse Guards Parade, he is presented with the salute of his troops and inspects them. Massed bands play and are then followed by the trooping of the coloured flag of the Grenadier Guards among the Foot Guards.

The Foot Guards then march past His Majesty in both slow and quick time, followed by the passage of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery and Sovereign's Escort of the Household Cavalry in the walk and trot.

The King then heads back to Buckingham Palace at the head of his Guards, giving his last salute before joining the members of the Royal Family on the balcony for a Royal Air Force flypast.

The BBC broadcasts the King's Birthday Parade live in the UK, with commentary reaching millions of viewers worldwide.