Did you know that Queen Elizabeth II is passionate about horses?
It all started with a Shetland pony named Peggy. Peggy was given to her when she was a young child, at the age of 4 more precisely.
It’s only 2 years later, when she was 6 years old, that she finally started riding Peggy. The famous British children’s author Sir Michael Morpurgo published, on the occasion of the Platinum Jubilee of the Queen of England Elizabeth II, a book retracing the life of the Queen, in which horses hold an important place.
It was during a meal in 2016 that the monarch told the author where her love for equines came from.
The queen was born in 1926 and by her 18th birthday, she was already an accomplished rider. Even more impressive, she kept riding up till her nineties!
From pleasure riding and race horses, to carriage rides and official appearances, the queen has done it all.
Interestingly, her father, King George VI, was also a rider. The King developed a close working relationship with his wartime Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, as most of Europe fell to Nazi Germany.
He had a chestnut horse named Winston that the queen ended up riding after the King died. Perhaps this horse was named to honour the relationship between the King and his Prime Minister, or was it a simple coincidence?
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The Queen’s favorite place to visit in the United States is Kentucky, as it is the world’s prime location for Thoroughbred breeding. Her passion for race horses led her to win over 1,600 races including all the British Classic Races and the Prix de Diane in 1974, a French Classic. The only race she has never won till this day is the Epsom Derby.
She also breeds Shetland, Highland and Fell ponies to ensure the traditional bloodlines in these native breeds, so they can be preserved and enhanced. For a few years, Her Majesty prefers to ride ponies only, as they are not as high off the ground.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was, on November 26th 2014, the recipient of the FEI Lifetime Achievement award in recognition of her leading role as supporter of equestrian sport throughout her reign as British monarch.
The award was presented to Her Majesty by FEI President HRH Princess Haya, her grand-daughter, at a ceremony in Buckingham Palace in the presence of former FEI President the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Phillip, and Keith Taylor, Chairman of the British Equestrian Federation.
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Princess Haya has created this award for her grand-mother that last year of her presidency of the FEI. 100 years in the Olympic Movement were celebrated at the London 2012 Olympics, where The Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips claimed team silver medal in Eventing.
Zara Phillips won team and individual gold at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in 2006 and was also crowned European champion in 2005. Her mother, The Princess Royal Anne, won the European title in 1971 on Doublet, a horse bred by the Queen out of one of Prince Philip’s polo ponies. Former FEI President, she is an IOC Member and President of the British Olympic Association.
Her participation in Montreal’s Olympic Games in 1976 made her the first Royal Family member to ever become an Olympian.
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The FEI Lifetime Achievement was created to acknowledge an individual who has inspired generations across the global equestrian community. It is a stunning white gold and diamond brooch of nine interlinked horseshoes, created especially for the presentation, and mirroring the insignia of the FEI Awards.
Her life long passion and dedication to horses definitely deserved to be acknowledged and celebrated, what a beautiful attention from her grand-daughter.
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