Ormonde, the Household Cavalry horse known for nibbling tourists at Horse Guards, has retired to The Horse Trust at Speen aged 18. Updated November 2026.

Ormonde, the Household Cavalry horse famous online for nibbling tourists who got too close at Horse Guards, has retired aged 18 to The Horse Trust at Speen, near Princes Risborough.

The 17hh black Irish Sports Horse arrived in September with several other Household Cavalry retirees. The charity told his story on Wednesday 4 November, and it says messages of affection have come in from around the world.

Jeanette Allen, chief executive of The Horse Trust, said:

“We’re absolutely thrilled to have the legendary Ormonde retire to us! Famed for nibbling tourists who got a bit too close to him at Horse Guards, we are very happy to report that he has behaved beautifully since his arrival here!”

Thirteen years on royal duty

Ormonde joined the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment in 2013. The Trust says he took part in the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, the State Opening of Parliament, Trooping the Colour and the Coronation of King Charles III. He also served during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, including the period around her funeral in 2022.

A mounted trooper in a plumed helmet on a dark horse with a white blaze, with people standing behind a rope and holding up phones
Ormonde on duty, with onlookers behind. Photo: Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, supplied by The Horse Trust.

His fame came from somewhere else. He appeared on the King’s Life Guard and Ceremonial London social media channels, where the Trust says his videos attracted “enormous audiences”. In its words, he “developed quite the reputation for making his feelings known when tourists got a little too close while posing for photographs beside him”.

On its website the charity is a little blunter: “his teeth were generally involved in the communication!”

The Trust sums up his new job in two words: “professional retiree”. It adds: “And we think he might be rather good at it.”

A black horse with a white blaze in a headcollar and green lead rope, looking down at the camera under a blue sky with white clouds
Ormonde at The Horse Trust. Photo: Gemma, groom at The Horse Trust.

Life in the fields at Speen

Ormonde has become close friends with Quarterdeck, another retired horse who worked alongside him. Quarterdeck also spent 13 years with the regiment. Both horses were part of the group of retirees we reported on last week.

A dark horse grazing in a sunlit field with woodland behind
Quarterdeck, Ormonde's friend, grazing at The Horse Trust. Photo: supplied by The Horse Trust.

The staff who look after him have already got to know his habits. Lotte, a training groom, says he is “rather partial to a good neck scratch” and is always the first to come over during the daily field checks. Neck scratches are also the one thing listed under “Likes” on his profile on the charity’s website.

A black horse with a white blaze eating from a full hay net in a wood-lined stable with a shavings bed
Ormonde at a hay net in his stable. Photo: Lotte, training groom at The Horse Trust.

Kelly, a groom, has noticed that he likes to keep watch and is keen to investigate whenever someone comes to visit another horse. “He’s clearly a gentleman who likes to know what’s going on around him!” the Trust says.

His general health checks and retirement assessments are finished, and the charity says he is doing well.

A dark horse wearing a fly mask looks out over a metal-clad stable door, with hay nets hanging on the wall beside it
Ormonde in a fly mask, looking out over a stable door. Photo: Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, supplied by The Horse Trust.

How he got his name

Household Cavalry horses are named by the year they are born, in an alphabetical sequence. Ormonde was born in 2008, so his name starts with O. So does that of Odin, a fellow retiree born the same year.

What his followers are saying

The Trust has shared some of the messages it has received since announcing his retirement:

“Oh Ormonde… at last… no more annoying tourists!!”

“Have a lovely retirement Ormonde and friends. No nibbling the Horse Trust staff.”

“The King himself! Retired. Happy retirement Ormonde.”

“We will miss you Ormonde, but so pleased to see that you have been retired with friends. Happy retirement Ormonde, you deserve it.”

A black horse with a white blaze rests its head over a dark fence, with another dark horse in a paddock behind it under a grey sky
Ormonde looking over a fence, with another horse behind him. Photo: Poppy, The Horse Trust.

Can you see Ormonde at Speen?

Possibly, but do not count on it. The Trust says he will not be stabled as part of its regular visitor experience, “though he may occasionally make an appearance as a paddock star”.

The Horse Trust is on Slad Lane, Speen, HP27 0PP. It opens to visitors from Thursday to Sunday, 1pm to 4pm, every week except in December and January, so this year’s visiting ends with November. Prices are in our report from last week.

Followers who want news of him can sign up to a mailing list on the charity’s Ormonde page. The Trust says it will share updates and photographs there as he settles in.

Founded in 1886, The Horse Trust describes itself as the world’s oldest equine charity. It says it relies entirely on donations and legacy gifts.