Former King’s Guards reveal what is likely to be hiding underneath bearskin caps

Former King’s Guards have revealed how the tall bearskins worn by guardsmen are ‘multi-purpose’ – and could possibly be concealing one thing from public view.

In letters to The Times, Michael Scott, previously of the Scots Guards and William McLean, previously of the Coldstream Guards, Eyton on Severn, in Shropshire, have revealed what they used to cover underneath their bearskin caps.

The hats, which will be traced again to the Napoleonic wars, had been worn by each gunner within the British and French navy to make them seem taller and extra intimidating.

Members of Napoleon’s imperial guard wore the caps to mark their excessive standing and when British forces defeated Napoleon’s on the Battle of Waterloo, they took the hats as trophies. Nowadays, using the bearskin cap has been adopted by all Foot Guards for ceremonial functions.

Grenadier Guards march the streets in entrance of Big Ben in Westminster on the day of Britain’s King Charles’ coronation in London, Britain May 6, 2023

Prince William, Prince of Wales, rides down The Mall throughout the Trooping the Colour on June 17, 2023 in London, England

Writing in The Times newspaper, Mr Scott revealed: ‘When on King’s Guard at St James’s Palace, two officers out of the three on obligation are allowed to swim within the Royal Automobile Club’s indoor pool in Pall Mall. 

‘To go there they have to be correctly wearing bearskin, tunic and sword. But not, clearly, allowed to hold a parcel.’

Instead, Mr Scott, stated guardsmen should take their bathing fits with them and subsequently ‘secrete their Speedos’ inside their bearskin caps for the journey again, which he admitted may generally ‘current issues’.

Mr McLean recalled a time when he was doing his first guard on the Tower of London and was finishing up his tour of the sentries within the early hours.

‘It was eerily quiet, the mist swirling up from the Thames by Traitors’ Gate; visions of beheaded corpses popping up from behind a turret had been near thoughts’, he stated in The Times.

Eager to ‘take a look at his steadiness’, he stated, a fellow officer  hid a small alarm clock in his bearskin and as he walked round Traitor’s Gate the alarm went off, giving him a fright.

Mr McLean added: ‘It was good coaching for a tour six months later in South Armagh on the top of the Troubles.’

Members of the King’s Guard march down The Mall in the direction of Buckingham Palace forward of the State Opening of Parliament on November 7, 2023

Irish Guards and ‘Semus’ (backside centre) their Irish Wolfhound, seen right here at Wellington Barracks in London, earlier than participating within the King’s Coronation Procession

Animal rights organisation PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has campaigned for the caps’ fur to get replaced with an artificial substitute since 2002, condemning the MoD’s alleged ‘help for the slaughter of Canadian black bears’.

They threatened the MoD with authorized motion in 2022 in a row over changing the King’s Guards’ bearskin caps with a fake fur different. 

The MoD pledged to drop fur as soon as an alternate was discovered, however not too long ago stated ‘no fake fur meets the requirements to offer an efficient substitute’.  

However, PETA say they’ve labored with luxurious fake furrier ECOPEL to develop an acceptable materials that’s waterproof and mimics actual bear fur in each look and efficiency. 

But the MoD has claimed that ‘while fake fur samples have been offered for testing up to now, so far, and to the Department’s data, no fake fur pattern has been produced which meets the requirements required to offer an efficient substitute for the bearskin ceremonial caps.’ 

In a letter to PETA in November 2023, the MoD’s gear crew defended using fur and stated: ‘The furs utilized by the MOD are solely procured through native Canadian suppliers with a ‘Furmark’ accreditation.

‘This is a worldwide certification and traceability system for pure furs that ensures animal welfare and environmental requirements, and in flip, ensures the moral sourcing and sustainability of the fur.’

A Grenadier Guard’s Warrant Officer waits with a Ceremonial Guard shaped by Kings Troop, Royal Horse Artillery

Members of the general public take footage of King’s Guard troopers marching exterior Buckingham Palace throughout Queen Elizabeth funeral ceremonies in central London Monday, Sept. 19, 2022

But campaigners instructed the accreditation is simply ‘one other try at greenwashing’. In 2021, Respect for Animals concluded in a report: ‘Furmark® – the fur business’s ‘certification’, traceability and labelling scheme – lacks transparency and credibility and fails to deal with the environmental impacts of the fur business.’

Senior Campaigns Manager Kate Werner stated: ‘Instead of aligning with the values and morals of the British public, who reject fur, and with the instance set by the late Queen Elizabeth when she refused to purchase fur for her wardrobe, the MoD is aligning itself with an accreditation scheme that makes an attempt to greenwash and justify the slaughter of majestic bears.

‘PETA urges the MoD to finish its complicity with bear slaughter and absolutely consider the fake bear fur so it may be quick-marched into service.’

In October 2023, the group laid 498 minimize outs to symbolize the Canadian black bears killed since PETA and ECOPEL made their fake fur supply in 2017. 

A 2022 ballot revealed that three quarters of voters thought-about bearskin caps – which have price the taxpayer round £1million since 2015 – a ‘dangerous use of presidency funds’, with every cap costing £1,710.