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The queen's love of horses -

Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II, as a child aged nine in 1935. The young princess fell in love with all things equestrian at an early age.

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Royal Windsor Horse Show -

Princess Elizabeth feeds a horse from a trophy cup on the grounds of Windsor Castle in May 1944. The horse wears the rosette for 1st prize at the 1944 Royal Windsor Horse Show.

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Royal Ascot -

King George VI (1895–1952) and Queen Elizabeth (1900–2002) at the Ascot race course on Gold Cup Day in 1952. The Queen Mother was a keen racegoer, and owned thoroughbred race horses, in much the same way Queen Elizabeth II does today.

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Royal sisters -

Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret (1930–2002) out riding at Ascot in June 1969. Princess Margaret's husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon is on the left, in the background. The couple divorced in 1978.

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Royal siblings -

A youthful Prince Charles and Princess Anne on the hoof together in Windsor Great Park, England, around 1969.

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Competitive spirit -

A respected equestrian, Anne, Princess Royal, riding Goodwill, during the cross country section of the Three Day Eventing at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games in Canada.

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Lady Diana Spencer -

A teenaged Lady Diana Spencer (1961–1997), who became Diana, Princess of Wales, pictured in 1974, being kissed by her pet pony, Scuffle. While Diana was never an active horsewoman, she nonetheless demonstrated a genuine love of animals.

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Trooping the Colour "shooting" -

Queen Elizabeth II riding sidesaddle on Burmese, a gift from the Canadian Royal Mounted Police, during the Trooping the Colour ceremony on The Mall in London on June 13, 1981.

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Royal riding skills -

The British monarch was riding at the head of the formation when a man in the crowd fired several blanks at her from a replica pistol as she was entering Horse Guards Parade. The rapid "cracks" spooked her horse and it took all her riding skills to stop the animal from bolting. The culprit was later named as Marcus Simon Sarjeant, who was subsequently jailed for five years. He served 36 months, most of which were spent incarcerated at at Grendon Psychiatric Prison in Buckinghamshire. Burmese the horse is buried at Windsor Castle, a rare privilege.

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Taking a tumble -

Princess Anne, riding Stevie B, falls at the water jump during the cross country equestrian event at the Badminton Horse Trials in May 1982 in Badminton Park, Gloucestershire, England. It was this fall that led to the often-quoted "naff off" comment made by Her Royal Highness to photographers.

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Prince William in the saddle -

A four-year-old Prince William on his pony at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, England, in July 1986. His proud mom, Princess Diana, provides a reassuring hand.

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Harry on his horse -

A six-year-old toddler, Prince Harry is dwarfed by his mount, a horse being led by a Buckingham Palace aide after the Trooping the Colour in 1990.

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Growing up in the saddle -

Their Royal Highnesses the Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex take part in the 2019 King Power Royal Charity Polo Day at Billingbear Polo Club in Woking, England, to raise awareness and funds for 15 of the charities supported by both princes.

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Like father, like son -

Prince Charles and Prince William in full gallop during the Dorchester Polo Trophy tournament staged in 2002 to raise funds for the British Wheelchair Sports Foundation and the Tetbury Hospital Trust at Cirencester Polo Club, England.

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Polo prince -

Charles, Prince of Wales playing polo in 1984. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (1921–2021) started the family tradition of playing polo by giving his son a mallet at the age of 15 and encouraging him to pursue the sport.

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Harnessing the skills of carriage driving -

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh competes in the Carriage Driving section at the Windsor Horse Show in May 1982.

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Excellent horseman -

Prince Philip at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in May 1987. The duke loved polo and carriage driving, which he excelled at, and was a great horseman in his own right.

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Horse-drawn for a 100th birthday -

Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, waves from a horse-drawn carriage with her grandson Prince Charles as she celebrates her 100th birthday in 2000. For half a century, the Queen Mother was the first lady of National Hunt racing and held an unquenchable passion for the sport.

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Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex -

Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Sophie Rhys-Jones at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 1999, the same year the couple married.

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Harry the jackaroo -

Prince Harry in 2003 taking a break from working as a jackaroo cowboy—a young man working on a sheep or cattle station—mustering Charolais and shorthorn bulls on a ranch in Australia. He's wearing a traditional Akubra leather hat and rides a horse called Guardsman.

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Traveling in the 1902 State Landau -

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge travel down The Mall, en route to Buckingham Palace, in the 1902 State Landau horse- drawn carriage following their wedding ceremony at Westminster Abbey on April 29, 2011.

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Riding in the wild -

Harry and William sharing a wonderfully intimate and carefree moment together in June 2010 as they ride horses to visit a child education center in Semonkong, Lesotho.

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Polo challenge -

Prince Harry in fine form as he takes part in the Audi Polo Challenge at Coworth Park Polo Club in May 2016 in Ascot, England.

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Enjoying the ride -

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge smiles as she chats with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex as they return to Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour, also known as the Queen's Birthday Parade, in London on June 8, 2019. Neither are active horse riders, but traveling regularly in horse-drawn carriages is a necessary element of official royal duties.

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Clip-clopping down The Mall -

Both looking resplendent, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex travel down The Mall in a horse-drawn carriage during Trooping the Colour in June 2018 in London.

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A moment in the saddle -

Queen Elizabeth is lost in her own thoughts as she prepares to take part in the Trooping the Colour ceremony with 1st Battalion Welsh Guards at Horse Guards Parade in London in 1973.

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Horse Trials princess -

Zara Phillips, daughter of Anne, Princess Royal, has obviously inherited her mom's love of horses. She's pictured competing in the Cornbury Park Horse Trials in Oxfordshire, England, in 2000. She's riding a novice horse called Toytown.

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Monarch of the Glen -

Alone with her steed, Queen Elizabeth II is pictured horse riding on the Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire, Scotland in 1982.

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Diamond Jubilee -

Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh arrive at the Diamond Jubilee Pageant in Windsor in May 2012. The monarch watched a glittering pageant of hundreds of horses and over 1,000 performers from around the world during the first big celebration for her diamond jubilee.

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Regalia and insignia -

Princess Anne returns to Buckingham Palace on horseback during the annual Trooping the Colour Ceremony in June 2013 in London.

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Jump to it! -

Prince Charles competing in a cross country event in Cirencester, England, in 1978. He is riding a horse called Candlewick.

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Mounted inspection -

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales inspect police horses during a visit to the New South Wales Police Mounted Unit in 2015 in Sydney, Australia.

Sources: (Horse and Hound) (Polo Weekly) (BloodHorse) (BBC) (Helpful Horse Hints)   

See also: All the times the British royal family turned up in unexpected places

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