Queen Elizabeth’s birthday was officially celebrated today with the Trooping the Colour ceremony performed on Horse Guards Parade by St. James’s Park. A tradition of British infantry regiments since the 17th century, the event is a colourful military spectacle.
For this year’s birthday celebration, Queen Elizabeth repeated her ecru, pink and pale blue woven silk wool coat and hat. The modified cloche shape of the hat features a steeply sloped crown and is trimmed with beautifully detailed wired sequin flower trim.
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I was surprised to see this hat today- the Queen usually chooses less work ensembles for this event in bright colours that make her stand out in the sea of red uniforms. The gentle colour variation in the weave of the fabric on this hat is beautiful, as are the sequin flowers that embellish it but both of these are lost at distant view, which is a bit disappointing for an event like this.
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Designer: Angela Kelly made by Stella McLaren
Previously Worn: Mar 17, 2019; Aug 19, 2018; May 9, 2017; Feb 28, 2017; Sep 11, 2016; Sep 6, 2015; May 20, 2015; Dec 30, 2014, Apr 30, 2013
As in years past, members of the royal family holding the rank of Colonel in various regiments rode along in the military parade with distinctive plumes in each of their bearskin hats to signify their respective regiments:
Striped green and white plume of the Welsh Guards for the Prince of Wales
St. Patrick’s blue plume of the Irish Guards for the Duke of Cambridge
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White plume of the Grenadier Guards for the Duke of York, whose regiment’s colours were trooped this year.
The Princess Royal in the wonderful red plumed bicorne hat of Colonel of the Blues and Royals.
York, Wessex and Phillips Families
Gloucester and Kent Families
Royal Hats 
I agree with JamesB; a disappointing choice for Trooping, especially as we saw it only a few months ago.
Except for the steeply pitched crown of the hat, this is one of my favourite outfits on HM. The lovely soft colours and the bit of sparkle are just beautiful !
I was surprised to see it at Trooping, expecting something brighter. I went back to see previous Trooping hats and noticed in 2015 she wore the palest peach/beige outfit and in 2014 her ensemble was also very muted.
I love this hat and outfit in all aspects except the slant of the hat’s crown; and so, as with many others among HM’s slanted crown hats, I’ll just pretend I don’t see that bit 🙂
I notice that HM often wears some variety of white for events that involve high-level representing – such as State dinners, Opening of Parliament, Garter Ceremony, Diamond Jubilee, Coronation etc – and seeing HM this time inside the exquisitely refined Scottish coach, with its cream interior matching the apparent “off-white” appearance of her outfit, suggested to me that HM may possibly have chosen a colour to emphasise the symbolic aspects of this occasion. Be that as it may, the pale colour certainly stands out in the balcony setting, as Sandra says. Jimbo’s point about the brooch being hard to make out on this fabric, indicates that the brooch was not the deciding factor in this wardrobe choice. As always, there is plenty of food for speculation when it comes to how dressing decisions concerning HM’s wardrobe are made.
This ensemble is not the most exciting color for a balcony appearance, but it must be a favorite of its wearer, since this is the 10th recorded outing. As beautiful as the fabric is, I’ve come to appreciate less the sloped crown on HM. The Brigade of Guards Badge, traditionally worn on Trooping the Colour Day since at least 1987, (the Queen had ridden her own horse regularly in the parade, 1986 being the last time) blends in too much, and doesn’t have the “pop” required when viewed from even a moderate distance. It is a very important part of the celebration with symbolism and beauty, and it should be visible to as many as possible. From past Troopings, the brooch usually does jump out, but sometimes gets hidden by the coat, such as these examples.
June 17, 2000: 2 different coats, 2 different results.
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June 13, 1998, June 13, 2015
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I purposely included Philip and his grand bear skin hat. Here is a short 2:30 minute video from 1951 on the making of these unique creations.
Fascinating video Jimbo.
I don’t mind this outfit on the Queen and I think her choice speaks for itself in the balcony photo. The light colour stands out well against the red uniforms. Apparently, the weather forecast was variable so maybe this coat is a little cosier than some of her other early summer coats.
The top photo of Charles in his bearskin … how much like his father he looks, seeing just this lower part of his face and in quite a stern expression. I’ve never seen that resemblance before.
Thank you for the close-up and descriptions of the Royal colonels bearskins. I can’t believe in all these years I never noted the plumes!
In many ways, this outfit is actually one of my favorites for the Queen: the fabric is absolutely gorgeous, and up close the colors are amazing.. It seems totally wrong, however, for Trooping since it just looks beige from a distance. What an odd choice for a balcony viewing. (And it was just worn a few months ago!)
This outfit got such a big sigh from me. She’s worn it so often and it’s such a plain colour, it just doesn’t feel special enough for the stripping. I hate to say it, but this is a rare misstep for me.
The close up photos on these uniforms are outstanding! I love the detail and the richness of the colors. I’m still amazed that anyone can handle wearing those hot hats and uniforms.
I too was surprised by the color choice of Her Majesty. She usually wears a brighter color to stand out. Maybe she’s saving it all up for Ascot!!!