Coldstream Guards soldier Charanpreet Singh Lall is the first to wear a turban during the Trooping the Colour ceremony. Photo / Getty Images
Coldstream Guards soldier Charanpreet Singh Lall is the first to wear a turban during the Trooping the Colour ceremony. Photo / Getty Images
A Sikh Coldstream Guard has become the first soldier to wear a turban at Trooping the Colour today as hundreds of servicemen march to honour the Queen.
More than 1000 soldiers are taking part in the ceremony today, which marks the Queen's official birthday as the nation celebrates the monarch.
For Guardsman Charanpreet Singh Lall, 22, the event is not only his first Trooping the Colour, but also marks the first time a member of the Coldstream Guards has taken part wearing a turban, reports The Daily Mail.
The soldier from Leicester said: "I hope that people watching, that they will just acknowledge it and that they will look at it as a new change in history.
"I hope that more people like me, not just Sikhs but from other religions and different backgrounds, that they will be encouraged to join the army."
Colours, or flags, were carried, or "trooped", down the ranks so they could be seen and recognised by the soldiers.
In the 18th century, guards from the royal palaces assembled daily on Horse Guards to "troop the colours", and in 1748 it was announced the parade would also mark the Sovereign's official birthday.
Coldstream Guards soldier Charanpreet Singh Lall wore a black turban featuring the ceremonial cap star to match the bearskin hats. Photo / Getty Images
Tens of thousands of cheering enthusiasts flocked to Whitehall to see the royals mingle on the balcony. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge shared a chuckle while Prince Harry watched.
Meghan wore a dress by Carolina Herrera and a hat by Philip Treacy, and Kate wore a dress by Alexander McQueen and a hat by Juliette Botterill.
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall was in a pale blue silk dress and coat by Bruce Oldfield and a hat by Philip Treacy, and the Queen wore a sky blue coat and dress by Stuart Parvin, and a hat by Angela Kelly.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex makes her balcony debut. Photo / Getty Images
This year the ceremony, which is staged every June in London's historic Horse Guards Parade, involved the trooping of the Colour of the 1st Battalion the Coldstream Guards.
With weeks of rigorous training under their belt, soldiers wear immaculate uniforms and march with precision up the Mall.
Harry and Meghan have been pictured riding in a carriage together, staged on Whitehall's Horse Guards Parade, and will later join members of the monarchy on Buckingham Palace's balcony to watch the RAF flypast and acknowledge the crowds.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex during Trooping the Colour. Photo / Getty Images
The Queen, who recently had a successful eye operation to remove a cataract, watched the Trooping the Colour ceremony from a dais in Horse Guards and later inspected the lines of guardsmen in their scarlet tunics and bearskins.
The Duke of Edinburgh, who celebrates his 97th birthday on Sunday, has retired from official public duties and is not expected to attend.
The royal colonels, all on horseback, will accompany the Queen, Prince of Wales, Colonel of the Welsh Guards, the Princess Royal, Colonel of the Blues and Royals, and the Duke of Cambridge, Colonel of the Irish Guards.
Riding in the ceremony for the first time will be the Duke of York in his new role as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards.
