Queen Elizabeth II died today at age 96, after a 70 year reign. As the world mourns her passing, and her many achievements, she is also remembered for her great love of horses. My typing is limited right now (more on that later) but I have enjoyed looking at the many photos of the Queen with her horses. The joy they gave her is so clear.
Her lifelong passion for them, she explained, began as a child when she stroked the neck of a pony, which felt like “warm velvet”.
She had her first ride at 3 and was given her first pony, Peggy, at age 4. While there are many ways — of greater importance to define her life — her love of horses was a constant. And made her seem a bit more human to all of us who share her passion.
I remember seeing photos of her riding “Burmese”, a Canadian Mounted Police horse. The mare was pretty steady, even after some idiot fired a hand gun at Her Majesty as she rode past the crowd.
What happens, I wonder, to her race horses? She’s always had a horse in the Royal Ascot. While her children and grandkids all ride, I don’t see the passion in them.
I like how she has two greys showing how they age…just like her.
I was so, oh, I don’t know the word…that ‘someone’ thought to post Emma, the Queen’s last pony, along the funeral procession route.