Tomorrow, the British Royal Family will celebrate Trooping the Colour, a parade held on Horse Guards Parade in London in June each year to officially celebrate the Queen’s birthday. Similar to national day celebrations we see in other countries, there is much pomp and circumstance that surrounds the event, which is capped off with a balcony appearance by the entire family. Here are all the hats Queen Elizabeth has worn to this event over the past 15 years:
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A bright pink straw hat by Philip Somerville in June 2000; pale green straw hats in 2001 and 2002
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Dark and light blue Philip Somerville designs in 2003 and 2005; a graphic mint and yellow hat in 2004
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A purple Angela Kelly in 2006; vibrant green and turquoise Somerville designs in 2007 and 2008
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An aqua and red Rachel Trevor Morgan in 2009; quirky Angela Kelly designs in 2010 and 2011
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Yellow and blue designs from Angela Kelly (all made by Stella McLaren) in 2012, 2013 and 2014
Based on this history, what hat do you think the Queen will choose to wear tomorrow?
Update: Since this post was published, Queen Elizabeth has worn the following hats for Trooping The Colour:
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Pale pink textured hat by Angela Kelly/Stella McLaren in 2015; bright green hat with pink flowers by Rachel Trevor Morgan in 2016
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Pale blue straw windowpane brim by Philip Somerville in 2017; Turquoise fabric and straw Angela Kelly/Stella McLaren design in 2018
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Ecru woven fabric, sloped crown cloche by Angela Kelly/Stella McLaren in 2019; Jade straw Rachel Trevor Morgan design in 2020; Grey hat with pleated crin, feathers and yellow flowers by Angela Kelly/Stella McLaren in 2021
Photos from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
I am sure that all of you have noticed that the diamond brooch has stayed the same all these years.
Well she proved us all wrong there! Oyster coloured hat and its brand new! I think my days as a Royal Millinery soothsayer should be numbered!
I just saw it too. What a surprising choice! As soothsayers we may not cut it, but as advisors we obviously have a necessary role!
Do you think HatQueen will do a post on the hats worn at Trooping the Colour today?
I have just noticed something- Her Majesty has worn the same brooch each and every year shown here. No doubt our friends at Her Majesty’s Jewel Vault will have picked up on that, but new to me. I will have to take a look and see the brooch and why she might have chosen this particular one year after year; perhaps for some sentimental reasons. Thanks. Very excited about the upcoming events. Keep up the good work HQ.
I’m hoping that in honor of her newest great-granddaughter, we will see a repeat of a pink hat that is one of my all-time favorites on the queen. Can’t seem to get the photo to post here, so I am including a link.
I totally agree! My all time favorite.
One of the prettiest hats the Queen has worn in the last few years was the pale green one with flowers last year. It might be more of a garden party hat but I think it would be so pretty for her tomorrow.
https://royalhats.wordpress.com/2014/06/19/ascot-day-2-2/
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Oh that is such a pretty hat! I forgot about this one and it is so beautiful.
Didn’t the queen wear some new light pink hats in France last year last year? I might be wrong about this but I remember her wearing suits (not coats) with pale pink hats. Pale pink wouldn’t clash with red uniforms like bright pink would.
Good memory! I think there’s a good chance we’ll see one of these at Ascot.
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I reckon it’ll be blue again. My theory is that she sticks with colours that contrast to the red uniforms, that’s why the pink one is on its own. It’ll be a repeat as I think they all have been. Sooo…. I’d love to see he turquoisy/blue from last Ladies’ Day, or the icy blue from Ascot opening day a few years back. Sorry – I’m doing this on my phone so lack of links. It’ll no doubt be another Angela Kelly.
Glad Kate’s coming along. Imagine she’ll be in some shade of beige/blergh with a percher hat. And no doubt eye bags and a bit of baby spew somewhere! Good on her for making the effort to be there – hadn’t expected that. Soph will be missed – hope she takes her A game to Stockholm!
No worries, JamesB- I think these are the two hats you referred to
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I’m not sure we’ll see the pale blue one since she wore it for the Centenary of the WI last week.
Lovely as that is I meant this one- it’s not had much wear I don’t think…
This one hasn’t had much wear at all (so little that I had completely forgotten about it!). I suspect it is an Angela Kelly design and I think it’s a great guess for an outing tomorrow. Here is a front view:
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It’s amazing how quickly posts develop when one doesn’t look at this blog for several hours.
Yes! When I started reading I was thinking of this blue outfit; I think the hat is interesting, and I’ve wondered why it hasn’t been repeated since Ascot 2012. I’m referring to the blue-turquoise blue netted hat shown next to Camilla in the off-white. (This is the closest “reply” button available; I’m not sure where my response actually will appear.) It was suggested by JamesB in his response to himself. It’s never been reworn, although I believe the dress alone was worn in Scotland during at Holyrood Week during 2013.
I also very much like the pink and white suit worn in Paris, but she’s not going to wear a short jacket tomorrow. We were fortunate she consented to wearing one in Paris, I think.
I like the first hat featured today as well, the white with the blue worn as Ascot 2013, although I believe that I was about the only person on the blog who liked it; most people absolutely hated it. It won’t show up well on the balcony, though.
At any rate, it’s a safe bet that tomorrow there will NOT be a new hat on the Queen’s head. I do hope Ascot and the German visit might produce a few new ones, though (finally).
Blue seems to be a very common color for her at Trooping the Colour and is a very likely candidate, but as others have said, pink could be a likely contender. Personally, I’d like to see her bring out purple.
Maybe this blue and white hat?
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Queen Elizabeth always looks so good in blue. I think this teal hat and coat would be a good choice to stand out against all those red uniforms!
https://royalhats.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/queen-and-duke-of-edinburgh-reopen-canada-house/
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Please, not this one. It is one of my least favourites!! Sorry.
A new purple hat would be great! If it’s a repeat, I’m hoping for this one.
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There’s been a lot of green blue and yellow so I think pink would make a nice change!
This has got to be the best hat week of the year upcoming. Trooping tomorrow ( and wedding in Sweden! ) then Garter Monday ( (I will be there, will be interested to see if Kate goes to either event ) and Ascot. Hat Heaven!!!!
Word is today that both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be at Trooping the Colour on Saturday. No word yet about the Garter Service on Monday. I highly doubt we’ll see them at Ascot.
You can expect them both at the Garter service. Who knows about Ascot. They don’t seem to be as keen on racing as other members of the Royal Family. That said, since there are five days of Ascot there are certainly opportunities. The Duchess’s parents are regulars so maybe if they attend she and the Duke will join them.
While William and Kate have attended Epsom, they have yet to attend Ascot. My guess is with a new baby and new job, Ascot won’t be on their schedule this year.
What kind of hats has Kate worn for Trooping the Colour?
Kate has attended Trooping the Colour four times and worn four hats. Interestingly, her hats at this end are among her more elaborate pieces:
2011: Black straw hat with upturned lattice brim from Lock & Co.
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2012: A dove grey percher with twisted straw detail designed by Jane Corbett
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2013: Also from Jane Corbet, a pale pink large teardrop shaped hat that was raised on one side. The hat was trimmed in fine lace and a straw bow on the crown
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2014: Another teardrop hat with lace trim, this time in grey from Jane Taylor
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I see several repeat hats. Does she usually debut a new hat here or do we see a repeat outing at Trooping of the Colour. For instance, I think she wore the yellow Angela Kelly for a wedding
The past six years have all been repeats and I think many of the previous ones were repeats as well.
I’m afraid I can’t resist a guess myself… while I would love to see Her Majesty début a new Rachel Trevor Morgan hat tomorrow, I don’t think she is going to interrupt her five year streak of Angela Kelly designs. My guess is one of the two pink Angela Kelly hats she wore at Ascot last year, neither of which have been repeated so far. I’m hoping for pink to change things up a bit (and as a sentimental nod to the family’s newest member!)
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HM makes that tourmaline brooch come to life!
It’s one of the few pieces of hers I dislike. I love tourmaline but dislike the shape.
It is rather clunky. I don’t like it with this outfit- there’s just too much going on between the over trimmed hat and the wide piping on the neckline of her dress.
I’d love to see the pale pink again, it was lovely… But as I said, I reckon it be blue…