Royals mark mounted police anniversary

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have toured the NSW Mounted Police Barracks in the first of a series of events in Sydney.

The Prince of Wales interacts with a police horse

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have toured the NSW Mounted Police Barracks in Sydney. (AAP)

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have been treated to a display of mounted police troop drills and crowd control during a visit to the NSW Mounted Police barracks.

The force's longest-serving female mounted police officer, Sergeant Karen Owen, led the drills on Thursday morning.

Sgt Owen has served with the mounted police for 32 years.

The display followed a visit by Prince Charles to the barracks museum while Camilla toured the stables.

The mounted police is celebrating its 190th anniversary this year, making it the world's oldest continuously operating unit.

The prince and duchess were joined by NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione, his wife Joy and NSW Police Minister Troy Grant with a demonstration put on for them by the Riding for the Disabled.

The royal couple took time to speak to mounted officers and RDA participants to learn about their horses and their roles, and signed the barracks guestbook.

The royals arrived in Sydney early on Thursday ahead of a packed schedule, which includes a public meet and greet in Martin Place and a dinner hosted by Governor General Peter Cosgrove at Admiralty House.

Mr Scipione said the visit by the horse-loving royals left officers buzzing.

He spoke to Charles during the demonstration and said the pair seemed to enjoy the show.

"(Prince Charles) would have liked more time here in fact," Mr Scipione told reporters.

"He was certainly looking forward to going down and moving into Martin Place, and having a chance to meet with a whole range of people. They seemed very excited."


Share
Published 12 November 2015 10:39am
Updated 12 November 2015 12:28pm
Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world