Princess Catherine Hands Out Shamrocks To Irish Guards

This week, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, Princess Catherine carried out a traditional ceremony with the Irish Guards that related to the regiment’s long history. Although it sounded like a small gesture, the history behind it seems rather fascinating.

Pinning The Plant

During the very formal, royal-style ceremony, a small plant gets pinned to the uniforms of the Irish Guards. Always, it involves one of the senior members of the royal family, and Princess Catherine is right up there with the best of them.

Did you know that the tradition has been happening for over a century?

March 17 is a special day for the Irish Guards, because it marks the date of their inauguration. Well, as she’s the regiment’s colonel, at least figuratively, she got to hand out the shamrocks.

More Special This Year

According to a report from the British Army, the event seemed extra special. That’s because the Princess of Wales pinned the small bit of plant on the soldiers. Plus, the mascot, an Irish Wolfhound.

Next, some Irish Guards went ahead and handed out some shamrock to Ukrainian recruits. If you don’t know, they currently train in Norfolk, which forms a part of Operation Interflex.

Apart from that, people from the regiment are all over the world. Last year, they were in places like military “operational mentoring tasks to Nigeria, Zambia, Uganda, Mozambique and Morocco.”

The Origins

Let’s take a look back in time to the origin of this special day. Back in 1900, Queen Victoria created the Irish Guards. The reason for that came because she wanted to honor Irish soldiers fighting for the British Army in the Boer War.

As noted in a recent UK Parliament debate commemorating the 125th anniversary, a letter to The Times spoke about the soldiers, asking: “why not add to the roll of glory a Regiment of Irish Guards?”

Well, the Queen was in good humor that day and agreed to do it.

Why A Little Green Plant? 

You might wonder what they chose a little green plant known as a shamrock? For those of you who live stateside, you might not know that the shamrock has been a beloved symbol of Ireland for centuries.

In fact, it was St. Patrick who famously used the plant to demonstrate the Holy Trinity. So, for the Irish Guards, wearing it takes a small piece of their homeland wherever they travele in the big wide world. Notably, it also connected them with their patron saint.

Still A Relevant Tradition

Nowadays, the ceremony like the one that Princess Catherine performed seems to run under tight guidelines. Most people with links to the Irish Guards get involved. On St. Patrick’s Day, the royal Colonel presents baskets of fresh shamrocks, grown in Ireland, to the regiment’s officers.

Next, the officers hand them out to each and every soldier. But the best moment for royal family enthusiasts comes when that beautiful mascot, the Irish Wolfhound, gets his very own shamrock clipped on his collar.

Tradition That Lives On 

For folks in the USA, the traditions involving the royal family sometimes present a head-scratching moment. But even they can understand honoring their fighting men and women. As Princess Catherine put it, St. Patrick’s Day is a chance “to strengthen the friendships and regimental identity” that are so important.

Notably, the Royal Shamrock Tradition lives on, far away from the dusty manuscripts of protocol and pageantry. For 125 years, it’s stayed fresh enough to honor the fighting folks of the UK even in 2026.

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