King Charles' Guard Breaks Protocol to Allow Elderly Veteran to Pet His Horse

The mounted Blues and Royals trooper discreetly relaxed a rule

King Charles' soldiers are paying it forward to the public this summer.

While British troops famously remain stoic while on guard, a video has swept social media of a soldier on King’s Life Guard kindly moving his horse closer to two elderly veterans for a better photo op.

In a clip viewed over a million times since hitting YouTube and Twitter, an unnamed mounted trooper from the Household Calvary’s Blues and Royals regiment kept watch at Horse Guards Parade in London. The soldier didn’t react when various visitors came close for a photo until an elderly couple approached. The veterans looked sharp with medals on their jackets and Forces.net noted the man served with the Royal Regiment of Scotland.

As the couple smiled for a photo, the soldier took a few surprise steps towards them to create a better picture and even turned his horse's nose towards the woman for her to pet it. The veterans then continued on their way, and the guard moved back into place.

Related: Royal Soldier Sweetly Nods at Young Boy Dressed in Own Mini Version of His Uniform: Watch

The gesture was reminiscent of another kind deed by a Blues and Royals trooper at Horse Guards Parade earlier this summer. Last month, a soldier was praised for taking a similar step toward a young man with Down syndrome for a better photo.

"[Ibrahim] was nervous around the guard, probably because I was being careful to give the soldier space and because the guard has such emphatic body language,” the young man’s friend Mike van Erp told Forces Network.

Video footage of the guard’s gesture has since been viewed over five million times on TikTok and even caught the eye of Major Steve Parker, an official at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where Prince William and Prince Harry both went.

Related: King Charles' Guard Goes Viral with Warm Gesture for Young Man with Down Syndrome

“I am proud to be a member of @HCav1660 (Blues and Royals) every single day but seeing this young Trooper do this has me bursting with Pride. Well done young man, you are a fantastic example of the empathetic, strong young leaders we need in the @BritishArmy,” Parker tweeted as the clip lit up social media.

Another thoughtful tribute charmed the web in July when a King's Guard nodded at a little boy named Frank — who perhaps amused him with his mini uniform featuring a bearskin hat and scarlet tunic! — in a TikTok clip viewed over six million times.

The Blues and Royals are one of seven regiments that comprise the Household Calvary. King Charles, 74, became ceremonial head of all the units — the Grenadier Guards, Welsh Guards, Irish Guards, Blues and Royals, Scots Guards, Life Guards and Coldstream Guards — following Queen Elizabeth’s death last September and his subsequent accession.

In addition to succeeding his mother as head of state and Commander-in-Chief of the military, King Charles also holds a range of military appointments and affiliations.

Last Friday, Buckingham Palace announced a slew of new military appointments for nine members of the royal family. The King, Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Edward, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, Princess Anne, Prince Richard and Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester were all awarded new royal roles.

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“Following His Majesty’s Accession, The King is pleased to announce further military appointments for working Members of the Royal Family,” the palace said in the announcement. “The new appointments will continue to reflect the close relationship between the Armed Forces and the Royal Family in His Majesty’s reign.”

The cohort already held a range of military affiliations, and the update comes a month ahead of Charles’ first Accession Day on Sept. 8.

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