London Drum

Dismounting Ceremony (4 O’Clock Parade) at Horse Guards

Where? Horse Guards, Whitehall, Westminster When? Every day 4 PM to 4.15 PM Price? Free to watch Parking: Nearby car parks Buses: 3, 11, 12, 24, 53, 87, 88, 159 Bus fares Trains: The closest station is Westminster Circle District Jubilee Other nearby stations: Charing Cross and Embankment Train fares

Craig’s review… If you want to watch some pomp and pageantry but don't fancy the big crowds, or you've got a little kid who can't stand around for an hour without needing a wee, then try the Dismounting Ceremony. You only need to give this one thirty minutes from start to finish so it's a great way of showing your little kids some pageantry without them getting restless.

Horse Guards is the ceremonial entrance into the Royal quarter of St. James's Palace and Buckingham Palace and soldiers have been guarding it since the days of Charles II. The actual barracks are long gone but the central building is still the official headquarters of the Household Division.

Horse Guards' courtyard in WhitehallPhoto: londondrum.com
Horse Guards' courtyard in Whitehall

King's Life Guard and Blues & Royals

Those horses you can see are from the King's Life Guard, drawn from one squadron of the Life Guards (red tunics and white plumed helmets) and one squadron of the Blues & Royals (blue tunics and red plumed helmets). We don't send horses off to war anymore so most of their time is spent doing ceremonial duties in London, and I'm guessing that whoever draws the short straw has to stand outside here posing for photos with the tourists.

Horse Guards sentry box in WhitehallPhoto: londondrum.com
Horse Guards sentry box in Whitehall

Do you remember when you were naughty and your mum threatened you with no TV for a week? Well the Dismounting Ceremony is the military equivalent of that because 130 years ago Queen Victoria caught the entire Guard drinking on duty and insisted on a daily inspection to make sure they were behaving themselves.

This was back in 1894 when every dress she had was black, every hat she had was black, and all of her moods were black as well - nobody messed with her in those days. This century-long 'Punishment Parade' was supposed to have ended in 1994 but Queen Elizabeth II kindly decided that they'd have to carry on with it for all eternity as a regimental tradition. So let that be a lesson to you: no drinking on duty!

Best place to stand to see the ceremony

Another handy thing about this ceremony is that hardly any tourists seem to know about it so you can turn up quite late and still get a decent vantage spot. I've arrived at 3.35 PM today and it's just a few pigeons, a few policemen and me. There's still a huge crowd of tourists taking photos of the horseboxes, of course (they'll be there all day), but they don't really venture into the little courtyard.

The white line in Horse Guards' courtyardPhoto: londondrum.com
The white line in Horse Guards' courtyard

When you get there find the thick white line that's been painted on the pavement and plonk yourself on top of that (ideally at the end furthest from the horseboxes, just before it bends around). That will be the front line of the crowd, and all of the action will take place by that big wooden gate on the opposite side of the courtyard.

There's always a Foot Guard stationed outside that gate so you'll be standing there staring at him for thirty minutes which is a bit awkward. I always look a right old mess and he looks as if he's been polished from top to toe - I can see my face in his shoes from thirty feet away. Every now and then he stamps his feet like he's trying to shake some snow off his shoes and marches a few paces back and forth. That's when I decide to bend my knees to stop them seizing up. It's almost like we're on parade together.

Soldier on sentry duty in Horse GuardsPhoto: londondrum.com
Soldier on sentry duty in Horse Guards

It's 3.45 PM now and the white line is slowly starting to fill up so you don't want to arrive any later than this. Five minutes after that it's four or five people deep all the way along the line and the machine gun coppers have started marshalling everyone away from the centre, pushing them back behind the line, when all of a sudden the Foot Guard behind us lets out an almighty roar, "MAKE WAY FOR THE KING'S GUARD!"

Life Guards from the Household CavalryPhoto: londondrum.com
Life Guards from the Household Cavalry

To say we jumped would be an understatement. We jumped out of the way like a bus was coming up behind. He then takes up a position in front of the white line and the horses trot around from the boxes and line up to the right. At 3.55 PM they're joined by a line of seven Foot Guards who march out of the gate.

Now we have to wait until the clock up on the tower strikes the hour. The horses are occasionally braying and shaking their manes while the soldiers don't even blink. Silence. Total silence. It's surprising how quiet it can be when you're only fifty feet from the road.

Life Guards from the Household CavalryPhoto: londondrum.com
Life Guards from the Household Cavalry

I think there are several levels of silence. When people stop talking it's silent. But when they stop moving as well then it's silence. That's the level we're at right now. The planes have halted overhead. The clouds have frozen in the sky and we're waiting for the clock to count down the final five minutes.

Inspection at 4 o'clock

At 4 PM the soldiers suddenly stand to attention and a smart officer comes storming out of the gate with his big boots making a metallic slapping sound on the concrete. Then he goes down the line of Foot Guards inspecting their hats and haircuts and the shine of their shoes, etc., and checking whether they've all blown their noses this morning.

The Life Guards having their daily inspectionPhoto: londondrum.com
The Life Guards having their daily inspection

He's basically making sure that they all look respectable, looking for creases in their clothes, picking off stray hairs and wiping away thumb smudges from their gleaming helmets. He reminds me of those playground mums who spit on a tissue to wipe away spots of chocolate from their children's cheeks. Once he's happy he orders the soldiers to sheath their swords and they march inside the gate.

The Household Cavalry having their daily inspectionPhoto: londondrum.com
The Household Cavalry having their daily inspection

Then he turns his attention to the horses and walks around them as well, looking them up and down like he's inspecting a secondhand car that he's thinking about buying. Then he orders the riders to dismount and horror of horrors - turn away snowflakes! - they slap the horses so hard that it draws an audible gasp from the crowd. I'm guessing the horses hardly felt a thing because their necks are thicker than tree trunks, but it certainly pained the animal lovers in the crowd. Apparently that slap is to prepare the horses to take all the rider's weight on one side of the stirrups.

The horses being led into the stablesPhoto: londondrum.com
The horses being led into the stables

Once the horses have disappeared inside the gate the ceremony is effectively over. The action only lasted from 3.50 PM to 4.05 PM so it was very quick. Lots of tourists will walk down Whitehall afterwards and wonder where the horses have gone - now you know. The courtyard is then watched over by two Foot Guards until they shut the gate at 8 PM, when it's reduced down to one. The gate won't re-open again until 7 AM.

Worth a visit? Value for money? freeGood for kids? Easy to get to?

I also recommend… If you enjoy Horse Guards then you might like to visit Downing Street (you can walk it in less than 3 mins) and Parliament Square (you can walk it in 6 mins). The best daily parades are at Buckingham Palace and Horse Guards. The ceremony at St. James's Palace might be worth a try if you want one with a smaller crowd. You can learn some more about the soldiers themselves at the Guards' Museum and Household Cavalry Museum

How to get to Horse Guards

Bus and train fares to Horse Guards
Fare zone Cash Oyster & Contactless Travel­card
Single fare Single fare Daily cap One day
Peak Off-peak Peak Off-peak Any­time Off-peak
Bus n/a 1.75 5.25 6
Train (zone 1) 7 2.90 2.80 8.90 8.90 16.60(zone 1-4) 16.60(zone 1-6)
Train (zone 1-2) 7 3.50 2.90 8.90 8.90
Train (zone 1-3) 7 3.80 3.10 10.50 10.50
Train (zone 1-4) 7 4.60 3.40 12.80 12.80
Note: Prices are correct as of
Bus No.3, 11, 12, 24, 53, 87, 88 and 159 all stop near Horse Guards. The closest train station is Westminster Circle District Jubilee

Your comments (7)

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Ask a question, or share your experience of this event

Peter The slap on the neck is to let the horses know they are dismounting and all their weight will be on one stirrup. It is a signal to let the horse know that all the weight will be on side, and the other slap is to let them know that the maneuver is over and they will now dismount. So in other words they are a command. It looks harder than it is but the horses have to be trained for battle conditions and the slap is a heads up for when there could be a battle going on and a lot of noise and distractions happening.

N Cage I didn’t know this happened and saw it by chance, it was a good thing to see.

Stephen Gray You mention late in your piece about ‘foot guards’, but they are actually dismounted cavalrymen, which is a totally different thing.

Craig Hi Stephen. Thanks for spotting that, I’ve changed it over.

Irma How many minutes do the kings guard stand guard with their horses at the gate.

Diane Forth-Eglon What does the dismounted guard say to the mounted guard when he goes up to him, by the small sentry point? Just curious. And are they allowed to converse with Joe Public? (Like, if someone asks the name of the horse or how tall is the horse).

Craig Hi Diane. They don’t chat with the public. Unless you get too close to the horses, or try and touch them, and then they will literally shout at you to move back. There are always some armed police nearby though, and they are usually happy to talk with you.

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