At 11:00 a.m., the New Guard enters through one of Buckingham Palace's gates and faces the Old Guard. The band follows behind them playing the New Guard's Regimental Slow March. Next, the New and Old guards salute each other with their guns, and the captain of the Old Guard hands off the palace key to the New Guard to symbolize the responsibility of guarding the palace changing over. Afterward, the new sentries are put in their positions. While the guards are being placed and a few other procedures are occurring, the band plays a few songs. While I was there they played Get Lucky by Daft Punk, The Incredibles Theme Song, and a few other modern and traditional songs. This is definitely a fun ceremony, instead of a somber one. At 11:35 a.m., the guards rejoin and pay their respects before the band and Old Guard depart. Overall, the Changing of the Guards is a fun event that is attended by thousands of people each year.
This tradition takes place to change the guard at Buckingham Palace in a ceremonial manner. The Changing of the Guards has been occurring for over 100 years at Buckingham Palace and at other places in England for hundreds of years before that. It has deep roots in past British military ceremonies and is still practiced today as a way of showing both traditions of the past and of the present, with the use of some modern music.
