King Charles III has a brand new horse — one who has performed all across Canada as part of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s Musical Ride.
The horse, named Noble, is a gift from the RCMP to the King, and has been settling into her new home this week.
A photo posted to Twitter on Saturday by the Royal Family shows a tall black horse standing next to King Charles III.
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“The seven year-old mare – who stands at 16.2 hands high – is currently settling into life at The Royal Mews in Windsor,” the tweet thread states, adding that she was “chosen for her athletic ability and calm demeanour.”
In a second photo, Noble’s head is lowered to receive a pat on the nose from King Charles III.
She was chosen after she impressed with her work in the RCMP’s famous Musical Ride, in which police officers perform intricate formations set to music while on horseback.
“Having demonstrated her potential during the tour with the Musical Ride, participating in 90 public performances at 50 different locations in Canada, Noble was selected as the ideal horse for His Majesty because of her size and ability,” a press release from the Royal Family stated.
King Charles III was “pleased” to meet Noble earlier this week, the release added.
It’s a longstanding tradition for the RCMP to gift a horse to the ruling Monarch. During Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, she was gifted eight horses in total from 1969 to 2019.
A press release from the RCMP explained that Noble’s journey to the Royal Family was to celebrate both the 150th anniversary of the RCMP, and the upcoming coronation of King Charles III in May.
“The RCMP has had the honour of enjoying a strong, personal relationship with the Royal Family for over a century,” RCMP Comissioner Brenda Lucki said in the release. “As we mark our organization’s 150th anniversary this year, and look ahead to the coronation of our new monarch in the spring, it seems only fitting that we mark these dual milestones with the gift of Noble to His Majesty King Charles III this year.”
Noble is set to take over as the King’s charger horse, but not until another horse gifted by the RCMP retires.
“His Majesty personally requested a horse from the Musical Ride to eventually be his new charger horse (ridden for Trooping the Colour parades) when his current horse, George, retires,” the RCMP stated. “George was presented to Queen Elizabeth II in 2009 and has been The King’s charger horse since that year.”
Noble was bred and trained in Canada through the RCMP programme in Pakenham, Ontario.
