All set for the annual Riding of the Marches

Royal Scots Dragoon Guards and the War Horse Memorial co-founders to join the 2018 Edinburgh Riding of the Marches.

This year’s event, taking place on Sunday, 16 September, will be commemorating the centenary of the end of the World War I, as part of the Royal Mile cavalcade.

The Edinburgh Captain Gary Ulke and Edinburgh Lass Jennifer Caw will be escorted by officers of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (SCOTS DG) mounted on traditional grey horses.

The origins of the regiment began in 1678 when three companies of dragoons were raised in Scotland during a Government campaign to suppress the Covenanters.

By 1693 the regiment was mounted on grey horses, eventually becoming known as The Royal Scots Greys and in 1971 amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers to become The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys).

Also joining the ceremonies this year will be co-founders of The War Horse Memorial, Alan Carr MBE and Susan Osborne, who will be presenting the Lord Provost of Edinburgh with the final of the four bronze horseshoes atop the Mercat Cross; the remaining three having been gifted to the Lord Mayors of Cardiff, London and Belfast.

The presentation will signify the service and sacrifice that horses of the Scottish Regiments – and the men and women who worked with them – gave during World War I.

For the first time in the event’s modern-day history, two lucky Edinburgh Primary School children have won the chance to join this year’s cavalcade on horseback. Lucy McDowall, 10, who attends Juniper Green Primary School and Ellie Tullis, 11, who attends George Watson’s College, will be accompanying the front parade horses on ponies supplied by local business, Tower Farm Riding Stables.

The Edinburgh Riding of the Marches, a custom first mentioned in history archives in 1494, sees riders from all over the world, as well as from many of the Scottish Borders towns taking part in one of the City’s largest living-history events, attracting more than 20,000 spectators annually.

Narrated by The Voice of the Tattoo, Alasdair Hutton OBE TD , the day starts early with the traditional high-energy gallops through countryside surrounding the City Centre to re-enact the ancient custom of inspecting the Burgh Marches to mark the boundaries and keep them in order.

The 280 riders then continue their journey through Holyrood Park before finally traversing up the Royal Mile, led by pipes and drums and the Rt. Hon. Frank Ross, the City of Edinburgh’s Lord Provost and Lord Lieutenant. This spectacular cavalcade commemorates Randolph Murray’s return from the Battle of Flodden, carrying the ancient Blue Blanket, with the tragic news of defeat of the Scottish Army.

The Edinburgh Riding of the Marches, organised and fund-raised entirely by a small group of volunteers, welcomes spectators to the Royal Mile this year from midday onwards. The event is free to spectate and is enjoyed by visitors travelling from all over Scotland, the UK and across the world.

For more information about the Edinburgh Riding of the Marches click HERE.