One of the objections to the military parade in Washington, DC last Saturday – supposedly to mark the 250th birthday of the US Army – is that it was a breach of democratic norms. The real reason it took place, say Donald Trump’s critics, was because he wanted to celebrate his 79th birthday with a display of military might – which is ‘what dictators do’, according to a general who advised him against it.
Trump’s opponents gleefully pointed out that the number of attendees – around 200,000 – was dwarfed by the millions who took part in simultaneous ‘No Kings’ protests in dozens of American cities, a reference to his habit of describing himself as a ‘King’. The theme of the coverage in the left-wing media was that this vainglorious spectacle revealed Trump’s megalomaniacal desire to appoint himself president for life, which risks turning the US into a banana republic.
Yet I spent Saturday at the Trooping the Colour, the annual display of Britain’s military prowess that takes place on the monarch’s official birthday and which was surely the inspiration for Trump’s parade. OK, there were no tanks, unlike in Washington, but some of the guardsmen were carrying guns and several antique cannons trundled past, pulled by horses.
In the UK, the Trooping the Colour is not generally seen as a symbol of our having become a ‘dictatorship’ or a sign that democratic norms have been abandoned. On the contrary, it’s a charming bit of military pageantry which conjures up an image of a unified, stable constitutional monarchy.
Perhaps the mistake Trump made was not copying the original more faithfully. He had bleachers set up all along the parade route so members of the public could watch, allowing his mean-spirited critics to point out how sparsely attended it was. At our version, the only stadium seating was in Horse Guards Parade and it was packed to the gills with people who’d paid for the privilege, such as Caroline and me. (I bought two tickets, having won the right to do so in a House of Lords ballot.) The reaction of the crowd was exactly what Trump would have wanted: people oohing and aahing at the beautiful horses, leaping to their feet whenever the national anthem was played and cheering as the King and Queen arrived in a horse-drawn carriage. Come to think of it, that’s exactly how the President and First Lady should have made their entrance.
At the Trooping the Colour, the reaction of the crowd was exactly what Trump would have wanted
Admittedly, there were some demonstrators waving ‘Not My King’ flags – would they prefer President Starmer to be our head of state? – but their pipsqueak protest was drowned out by the lusty cheers of people thronging the Mall to watch the Red Arrows, a sight that would have warmed Trump’s heart. Maybe the President’s staff were looking on in envy and realising that the secret of a well-attended parade is limiting it to a smaller footprint.
Another advantage of holding a ceremony like this in a square is that the monarch – whether real or pretend – can inspect the troops. King Charles did it on foot this year, just as he did last year, but before he was diagnosed with cancer he inspected them from on top of a splendid black stallion, which is surely something that would appeal to Trump. Or, if he’s not comfortable on horseback, he could do it from a golf cart.
If the President intends to repeat the idea next year, possibly on 4 July to mark the 250th anniversary of the Republic, he might think about hiring the UK’s ceremonial operations planning team, which is responsible for organising all major state military parades in the capital and consists of just five senior officers. Anyone contrasting the two events couldn’t help noticing how shambolic the American version was, with soldiers ambling along the route looking slightly bemused. I spotted a drone operator holding a drone above his head, looking for all the world like a ten-year-old boy pretending to fly a toy plane. I’m not sure that’s going to strike the fear of God into the People’s Liberation Army. It also didn’t help that Trump asked several of his favourite companies – Palantir, Coinbase, Oracle – to display their logos, which made them look like sponsors at a football game. I daresay his aides had to talk him out of a half-time show featuring the Village People.
In one respect, though, it might be better if the Yanks didn’t take a leaf out of our book. King Charles and Prince William were dressed in Coldstream Guards uniforms, complete with medals. I don’t think it would have enhanced Trump’s authority or added to the dignity of the occasion if he and Barron had turned up in full military regalia.
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