Dyfed Celt Troops the Colour! **Photo Special**

Back in the old year, I blogged about a real Dick Whittington style story as our family's Shire Horse, Dyfed Celt embarked on a new life in London with the Queen's Household Cavalry.

I blogged then of Celt's debut in the Household Cavalry during the Emir of Qatar's State Visit at Windsor Castle.

Now, aged only 6 years old and less than 3 years after we sold him, he was the pride of west Wales as he took centre stage at Horseguards Parade during the annual Trooping of the Colour parade to celebrate the Queen's Official Birthday last Saturday.

My brother Huw and his family went down to London to see the event in person. I was delighted after an emotional few days in Edinburgh, to be able to watch it on TV as our hero carried out his responsibilities as one of only two drum horses on display in front of the Queen and her family and millions of television viewers.

His official name was also finally disclosed after months of waiting. Whilst his stable name will remain as Dyfed Celt, his name for official functions will now be Mercury! He also has the rare distinction of having been given an honourary rank in the British Army as a Major!

So please enjoy on this page, thanks to the eagled eyed camera lense of Preseli Pembrokeshire's MP Stephen Crabb, the first photos of Major Mercury strutting his stuff for Queen and country!

Well done Celt! As a family, we're all very proud of you!

Queen Elizabeth II becomes the 2nd Longest Reigning British Monarch

I'm a historian so forgive me my geekiness here, but as I mentioned in my blog here back in February, Queen Elizabeth II has continued to pass new milestones as her longevity and time on the British throne knows no bounds.

Today sees her overtake the mark of her great-great-great-great grand-father King George III as the second longest reigning monarch in British history.

The only monarch to have reigned for longer of course is Queen Victoria and she still has a 4+ year advantage over her great-great grand-daughter.

Queen Elizabeth II would surpass that record if she were still to reign on September 10th 2015 by which time she would be 89. If she has her mother's constitution and she seems to have so, there's no reason why this incredible additional milestone may not be achieved.

Whatever your personal views on the institution of monarchy itself, I doubt that many would be able or indeed desire to besmirch what has been an incredible reign by an incredible monarch.

British Guns on Dublin's Streets

It's not 1911 and not 1921, but 2011 and today, members of the British security services will walk the streets of Dublin, fully armed.

It's an incredible occurrence that until only recently, would've been thought as wholly inconceivable.

Yet today, as a new mark of a new political stability between the United Kingdom and it's nearest neighbour, Queen Elizabeth II will start a truly historic visit to the Republic of Ireland - a full 100 years since her grandfather King George V visited a then constituent part of the British Empire back in 1911.

But following that visit a century ago, there followed bloody confrontations between Irish republicans, the Irish and the British Army as the Irish battled for their independence. The latter decades of the 20th century were dominated by 'The Troubles' in Northern Ireland between Republicans and Unionists during which almost 4,000 died from both sides of the sectarian divide.

It has been a torrid, blood-stained relationship.

During her visit, she will lay a wreath at the Irish Garden of Remembrance in memory of those Irishmen and women who died in the battles against the British and will also visit that bastion of Irish nationalism, Croke Park, the scene of the original Bloody Sunday massacre in 1920 when the the infamous Black and Tans of the British Army, entered the stadium and turned their guns on the crowd and killed 14 spectators and players.

This is not therefore just a typical ceremonial visit but one that will take in emotive places in the Irish psyche. The itinery is bold and brave. It has come at the request of the Irish President Mary McAleese but then, if the Queen was to accept a cordial invitation, the first in a century, then it may as well be made in fulsome reconciliation to cover the old enmities that have scarred the relationship between these two nations.

The Irish financial bailout of recent months has demonstrated the interdependence of European nations in these difficult economic times and the Irish/British trade links are of course strong.

But we're not talking about economics here. We're talking history. We're talking symbolism. We're talking death, grief, anger and pain.

Queen Elizabeth II has in her 59 years on the throne, conducted countless official visits to foreign countries but none of them will quite hold the meaning than the one which is starting today. She has probably walked on the soil of more nation states than any other human being in the world in her 85 years. Yet, remarkably, she has never set foot on the sovereign soil of the one nation that shares a land border with her own. She'll put that right today and in doing so, will formalise in its entirety, the normal diplomatic relations of these two nations.

There are of course security concerns as not all in the Irish Republic will be pleased with this visit and hence there will British security forces on hand, along with the Irish security forces, to ensure that all goes according to plan.

To be precise, the Irish Government is allowing up to 120 armed British police officers to patrol the streets of Irish cities to protect Queen Elizabeth II on her State visit. A force of the Metropolitan Police's royalty protection force carrying Glock pistols and Heckler & Koch submachine guns will join gardaí in ensuring her safety. They will be allowed to patrol the streets fully armed wherever Queen Elizabeth goes on her four-day visit, which has sparked the biggest security operation in the history of the State.

This is the way of things and should be taken with a pinch of salt. But just remember, as the footage is screened back to us here in Britain, that this is a remarkable sight. British guns on the streets of Dublin? Extraordinary, but a sure sign that Ireland and the United Kingdom have walked out of the darkness of the 20th century and into a more hopeful and prosperous century where they will learn to co-exist alongside each other in harmony.

Long Lives the Queen (6th February 1952 - Present)

I happened to fall upon the realisation earlier that today is the 59th anniversary of the death of King George VI in February 1952.

Interest in this under-stated monarch has been rejuvenated of late because of the success of the cinematic block-buster, 'The King's Speech' which I have gushingly written about here, here, and here.

I've always had an interest in the Royal Family - an interest that begat a more general fascination and love of history in the whole as I mentioned in my blog here.

A Second Elizabethan Age?

Today therefore sees the 59th anniversary of the accession to the throne of our current monarch, George VI's daughter, Elizabeth II.

Queen Victoria
(1837-1901)



King George III
(1760-1820)

Whatever the reader's individual's view of the monarchy may be, I hope that all can take a dispassionate view on what has been a rather incredible reign.

Elizabeth II is currently the 3rd longest reigning monarch in British history. She is now just 96 days short of eclipsing the then record set by George III, her great-great-great-great grandfather who passed away on January 29th 1820 after 59 years and 96 days on the throne. Elizabeth II will surpass this date on May 13th.

The only monarch of course to have reigned for more than 60 years is the current's great-great grandmother and grand-daughter to George III, Queen Victoria. She reigned for 63 years and 216 days when she passed away on January 22nd 1901. Elizabeth II, already Britain's oldest reigning monarch, would take the title of the country's longest reigning monarch on September 10th 2015. She would be 89 years of age at that time.

A World of Change
She has lived through a transformation in British society and in global relations, as did her great-great grandmother, these past 59 years. She has seen 11 Prime Minister's come and go and David Cameron is now her 12th.

Her reign has encompased the build and the fall of the Berlin Wall, the arrest and imprisonment, release from captivity, Presidency and retirement of Nelson Mandela and the sounds of Chuck Berry, Elvis, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Queen, ABBA, Dire Straits, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Blur, Oasis, the Spice Girls, Take That and all of this modern music from the past decade.

Family Strife

She has seen her family live a typical late 20th century lifestyle.

Her sister, her only daughter and two of her 3 sons have all married and divorced. Between them all, they have done much to bring the institution of monarchy  into disrepute. For which reason, its future can not be laid out before us easily. Will the public want King Charles III (or George VII as he'll probably be known) and his wife Camilla to lead us? Will they want a jump to another generation under King William V? What will happen to the dominions? Will Australia cut away and elect its own Head of State and will other countries from the former Empire follow?



Queen Elizabeth II
(1952-Present)

That is all for the future, but what can not be denied is that the current encumbant has gone about her life and duties over the past 59 years in a roubstly professional and respected manner. She has devoted her life to the public service of her country which she sees as being 'God's will' - a devotion that her uncle King Edward VIII was unwiling to commit and which led to his abdication and the accession to the throne of her father. If she has the constitution of her mother who passed away at the age of 101, then there's no reason why she can't go on to her 90th year and eclipse the mark of Victoria.

Whatever happens to her and to the future of the family line which she has endeavoured to resolutely uphold despite many personal family setbacks, one thing can be certain on this the 6th day of February - her father, now being made famous by Hollywood, would be proud of his daughter.

Will Kate & William pay for my wedding?

So then. Prince William and Kate Middleton will marry on April 29th 2011 at Westminster Abbey. We'll even get a Bank Holiday in to boot. This will mean 2 consecutive 4 day weekends encompassing Easter the weekend before - not that us political types will have any time off the week before the Welsh Assembly elections!

I am genuinely pleased for Kate and William. They looked happy, relaxed and in love with each other when they made the announcement of their engagement a week or so ago and after being with each other after 8 or so years, decided it was eventually time to tie the knot. I'm confident that they will prove to be a durable and happy couple - certainly more in the vein of his grandparents than his parents. The fact that they're marrying in the same place as the his grandparents as opposed to St Pauls Cathedral where his parents married can only be a good omen.

Yet, over the past week or so, there's been some real vitriol on-line regarding the marriage. Many of the comments come from Liberal Democrat friends of mine. It's not necessarily surprising. Whilst the Tories have always been avidly Monarchist and Labour have been generally more Republican in nature, the Lib Dems fall between both stools. A great proportion of my liberal friends are Republicans - they see no need for this archaic, unmeritocratic, institution. But having said that, I have many liberal friends who are proudly pro-Monarchy and are indeed, pleased with the news that has come from Buckingham Palace recently.

 A Reluctant Monarchist
Me? Well, I used to be a staunch Monarchist as a child but my passion for this very British of institutions has faded over the years as my ingrained liberalism has taken a greater hold.

I'd like to think that I have good reason of being a fan in the first instance. For it was the Royal Family and it's history that got me interested in history in the very first place. I can trace a love for history that saw me through to study it and undergraduate and postgraduate level in University down to one simple, but unintentional incident as a child.

My parents and I were on one of our many touring caravan holidays. I must have been 7 or 8 at the time and this was a particularly wet holiday. I decided to buy a pack of playing cards to help us through the wet times, having played a lot of cards with my family as a child. I purchased a pack in the innocence of thinking that they were playing cards but they turned out to me information cards about every King or Queen since 1066. Before I knew it, I was fascinated. The next Christmas, my auntie Elinor bought me a book about the Royal Family. I still have that book. I've since been to Windsor Castle as a child, I attended a Buckingham Palace Garden Party with my mother back in the summer and our family visited Windsor only a few weeks ago to see our family horse Dyfed Celt take his place in the Household Cavalry.

But as a liberal who belives in a meritocracy, there are questions that must be asked regarding a situation where the Head of State is decided not upon merit, but upon an accident of birth. But then, at this moment of financial difficulty, for me, the question of the future of the Royal Family shouldn't be a priority - there's much more important issues that need to be dealt with in the meantime.

The Firm

Personally, I have a lot of time for the Queen. To devote an entire life to public service in the way that she has, without complaining about it in public, is quite an incredible personal achievement. I'm also (controversially maybe) a fan of Prince Charles. I met him in Cardigan Castle a few years. We spoke briefly and he seemed to me to be an affable, pleasant enough chap. William seems like a nice guy too. Just like his great aunt, I'm pleased that Harry wasn't born the eldest - like Margaret, he's wild!

Who should pay for the Wedding?
But, stripping away the individuality of the situation and taking it in the whole, can we afford the Royal Family? Should the tax-payer have to pay for Royal Weddings when we're tightening our belts enough as it is?

It's a tough one. The British monarchy last year in total, cost the taxpayer £38.2m (not including security costs). This equates to 62p per person. A bargain you might say and many would argue. But Prince William himself has security that costs £1.4m for his cottage in north Wales where he is working with the RAF. There will also be a temporary grant of £1m to help pay for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012.

The issue is that we're all tightening our belts and it's difficult to imagine, even for a potential future King, that even more money will be given from us the tax-payer, to pay for this wedding. It is estimated that the Queen has a personal reserve of some £290m. She may well have to 'dip' into this wealth herself. All things considered, I think she should. She has already shown restraint in agreeing to cut the total spending of the Royal Household by 14% in 2012/13 which is in-line with the public sector cuts that her subjects are having to face. This to me seems fair and reasonable. If she were to pay for the costs of her grandson's wedding, it would be an even greater sign of her acknowledging that now is not the time to make more demands on the public purse.

Because at the end of the day, I wouldn't expect William and Kate to have to pay for my wedding so in these austere times, they shouldn't expect us to have to pay for theirs. If they want to marry in Westminster Abeey with all of the pomp and occasion that goes with it, that is their choice and I have no problem with that - but let the Royal Family pay for it.

If they were to do so, then on the big day itself, we could all enjoy the extra day off and celebrate the day with them, knowing that they've done their bit by not asking us to foot the bill. It'll also give us an additional reason to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

The Royal Family are popular in Britain. To remain so, their PR machine should be telling them the best thing to do - pay for the wedding themselves and don't burden an already thrifty and concerned society any further on this occasion. By doing so, it will only further bolster that popular support.

Good luck to William and Kate. I hope you'll be happy together. My gut instinct is that you will.

The Cole Family's Royal Connection

Last Tuesday, I was delighted to get on a bus to Windsor with friends and family for what was a pretty special day out.

In a twist on the Dick Whittington story, we all went to see the formal debut of our family horse Dyfed Celt as a member of the Queen's Household Cavalry.

As a family, Shire Horses are in the blood. My grandfather John Rees Lewis (or J.R as he was known) worked the land at Carnhuan, Eglwyswrw, with the Shires and latterly showed them with help up until his death in 1991. Our family, not wanting to sell his wonderful legacy, decided to diversify and open the farm to the public as the Dyfed Shire Horse Farm in 1994. We've sold horses to Germany and to the USA over the years, but never, until now, to the Royal Family.

It seems like an age ago when the BBC Wales cameras reported on Celt's new adventure in London, away from his Eglwyswrw home in west Wales.

Now, exactly 2 years later, we've gone full circle.

Eglwyswrw to London
As the report above shows, we as a family saw an advertisement for a Drum Horse in the Heavy Horse World and got in touch with the powers that be.

For only a young 3 year old, we knew his attitude and tempremant would be what was required. We weren't disappointed when the offer was made to purchase him for the Household Cavalry.

But that didn't mean that he'd make the grade and for the past 2 years he's been living in the underground Kensington Barracks in London and grazing in Hyde Park whilst undertaking the training required for him to be officially welcomed into the Cavalry.

The regiment have been excellent in communicating with us Celt's progress and last summer, the family and friends had a bus trip to Kensington to see Celt in his new surroundings. I was unfortunately unable to make it - being on holiday in France at the time.

Windsor & the Emir of Qatar
So I was really pleased to have a second opportunity this week to have a trip to the bigger smoke to see Celt at work. Now, 2 years on, it wasn't just a matter of seeing him in training, but actually seeing him in action.

The Emir of Qatar and his entourage were due to arrive on an official visit and were to be met by the Queen, Prince Phillip and the family.

We arrived in good time and found a place en-route just a 100 or so yards from the main welcoming platform. In the light drizzle, some 50 of us waited attentively for the star of the day to arrive - no, not the Emir or the Queen, but Celt!

See here a slideshow of photos taken by BBC Berkshire of the day and in particular, photo 6 of our gang, manning the barricades!  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-11630223 As the caption says, the bus left west Wales at around 4am - but I think the locals must've been bemused as to why we were there in the first place!

The reason arrived at the head of the procession just after 11am. Celt, 2nd in line of some 200 horses of the Household Cavalry, passed us in his full regalia, carrying those solid silver drums and the musician on top.

He behaved very well throughout the short welcoming ceremony and we could see him in the distance, at the heart of the action, as the respective anthems were played.

The Household Cavalry's Mounted Regiment Training Wing
We were then fortunate enough to be given a tour around Celt's home for the day at the regiments' near-by training wing. There, we saw him back in the stable after the exertions of his day out on formal parade.

We were told that this was the Queen's first opportunity to see him in action and in a matter of days it is expected, we shall hopefully find out what his new formal, Roman name will be. His stable name however will remain Dyfed Celt which will remind all of his roots. He will also be given the rank of a Major - not bad going for a West Walian!

He will next be on parade at the Lord Mayor's Parade in London in a few weeks time and next year there's a very good chance that he'll be on Horseguards Parade in the Trooping of the Colour.

It really was great to see one of our family's horses taking his place, centre stage, in the Queen's Household Cavalry. It was great in addition, that this was witnessed by a wide community of family and friends who had willingly paid the £20 coach fare and got up ridiculously early, to see a real 'one-off' occasion in the flesh.

More Media Coverage
Just as before when he left for the bright lights of the city, the Welsh media have again been enthusiastic in their interest of Celt's progress.

S4C's 'Ffermio' programme recorded the proceedings and will be transmitting the footage this coming Monday at 8.25pm. Meanwhile, my oldest brother Huw, who did a great job in organising the trip, went live on BBC Radio Wales' Jamie Owen and Louise Elliott programme on Wednesday morning. This clip on iplayer is only retrieveable for the next few days. Wind forward to 2:30:30 for an 8 minute interview with Huw.

It's a lovely story and one, that as a family and a community, we are rightly very proud.