Fun on Friday: The Queen Hates Her Golden Ride

The queen is not pleased!

Her golden carriage is uncomfortable.

Queen Elizabeth the Second complained about the uncomfortable gold carriage in a documentary about the amusing trials and tribulations of being head of state. Indeed, it’s not easy being queen. I mean – riding around in a bouncy gold carriage – that’s rough.

The Gold State Coach was commissioned in 1760 and built in the London workshops of Samuel Butler. The thing measures 24-feet and weighs about 4 tons. It takes eight horses to pull the monstrosity.

The coach was originally commissioned for £7,562. That equates to about $1.7 million adjusted for inflation. Pretty pricey, And it isn’t even solid gold. It’s actually gilded in gold.

The coach may look impressive, but the queen says it’s “not meant for traveling in at all.” She described the carriage ride from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey for her coronation in 1953 as “horrible.”

It’s only sprung on leather,” she added, and “not very comfortable.”

Poor thing. I’ve always heard about the “burden of leadership.” I guess that’s true!

Now, at the risk of being disrespectful, I have to say the queen starts to sound downright whiney. She said the coach “can only go at a walking pace” and the horses “could not go any faster” as it was “so heavy.” She also complained about the height of the coach. Apparently, it bothers the queen that she towers over the coachmen. It is, after all, nice to mingle with the little people.

OK. Here’s the thing. She’s the queen of England, right? Couldn’t she just say, “Bollocks! I’m not riding in this bloody, uncomfortable thing,” and be done with it? I’m sure that would cause quite a stir. But what are they going to do? Fire her?

Luckily for the queen, they don’t roll the Gold State Coach out very often. The last time she had to suffer in her golden ride was during golden jubilee celebrations in 2002. On less auspicious occasions, the queen rides in one of her other coaches. These have creature comforts. The Australian State Coach and the Diamond Jubilee State Coach have electric windows, heating and hydraulic stabilizers.

Interestingly, Queen Elizabeth II isn’t the only British monarch to gripe about the gold carriage. King William IV said riding in the coach was like being on board a ship “tossing in a rough sea.” Queen Victoria complained of the “distressing oscillation” of the cabin. She apparently did refuse to ride in it on occasion. (They never fired her.)  King George VI said that his journey from the palace to Westminster Abbey for his coronation was “one of the most uncomfortable rides I have ever had in my life.”  He apparently never rode in an old Geo Metro with no heat in an ice storm. Granted, I’ve never ridden in a gold carriage, but I’m going to bet my ride was more uncomfortable. But hey, I’m not a king.

Anyway, for all of the apparent discomfort, the coach really does look amazing. It is, after all, covered in gold.

At SchiffGold, we don’t sell gold carriages. But we can help you invest in gold. Call one of our precious metals specialists today at 1-888-GOLD-160. No discomfort involved.

Photo by Crochet.david