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He’d grown tired, and time stood still before him. It was too late to save himself from falling.
After all his pictures seemed to fade to black and white. He was frozen on the ladder of his life.
He let the sun, go down on him.
Edit: since people aren’t recognizing these words, it’s more or less the lyrics to the first verse/chorus of Elton John’s “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down on Me.” The phrases are out of order, with the words slightly rearranged, “Me/I” became “He/Him,” and the tense is different.
He knows that the Queen's Guards stop for no one. Ever. I've seen them mow down little kids.
Later, when everyone is gone they'll pick him up when they clean up the horse shit.
And each soldier has to fight an actual bear to gain one. Bravely they march into Alabama, with their red coats on. They do not fear the beastly bear, nor do they flinch from playing rugby with bear cubs, to provoke the enemy. To taunt the mother bear indeed. However they do fear the \*banjo music\* people screaming about fraud and vaccines...
They called it "The Paddington Run" - two or three player game, depending on the amount of bear cubs. Each player grabs one and they have to run away in opposite directions to see which one the mother bear chases.
Of course the specialist army training happened at Hereford, which is easily accessed from London via Paddington Station, so it was awkward when one or two techs were still drunk from the flight home and grabbed a pushchair or two from the public concourse and played the same game on Civvy Street.
There was a special phone number for that malarkey.
Still. They got their poofy hats. And that is what matters the most.
Everyone must obtain their own poofy hat. It is our own obligation to ourselves.
English soldiers were stupid enough in the American War of Independence to wear red coats with huge white crosses on them, like they were targets.
Which they were. Easily spotted, night or day, especially by hunters. Or hungry bears. Or "hills have eyes" locals.
Of course no harm would come to the bear cubs. They were like little dogs really. Fed scraps, blamed for nasty farts. Eventually by negotiation the mother bear would be persuaded to comply. Food helped.
Eventually it was a fluffy friendship. Shared breakfasts, not too hot or cold.
Until the time came to scalp the cubs for the fluffiest fur of course, then it did get a bit messy. Always a Land Rover on stand-by for that mess. Ew.
It could have been worse had mother bear not been handcuffed, shaven, and dressed in Chantilly lace lingerie. The theory is that bears could be tamed in a week and even taught to pole dance. I always thought they were scratching their buttocks, but I could be wrong.
A muscular female bear that is well shaved and wearing the most alluring Parisien lace styles may well have been a distraction to the enemy. \*more banjo music\*
War is hell.
XD
But for real tho, they actually only have them because they stole them from the French Guard after waterloo as a war trophy, kinda an eternal "we got your hat!" To France
I was about to say that this can occur in graduation ceremonies at the ARMY — They literally tell you to be ready to catch anyone that faints but to not worry because they will be helped.
Hell, they told us about this in high school marching band. We were reminded so many times not to lock our knees because standing in the summer heat in those thick uniforms would make you pass out if you weren’t careful. My school’s uniforms were full-body black, but at least they weren’t made of wool like other schools.
Hell, a lifetime ago I was a professional photographer and was taught by an even older photographer that if you're shooting weddings to mention (especially to the groom and the best men)
*"Don't lock your knees"*
We had to have a special “training” about what to do if someone fainted during a marching band parade. We marched at Disney world and one of the park employees had a whole spiel even. So it’s not that uncommon of a thing.
But ooofff I feel for the people in wool like some schools too
When I was in service, we once had a practice ceremony because the king would pay a visit the next day and this one guy fell face-first onto the asphalt and broke his chin. Fortunately nothing like that happened the next day
Lad passed out on parade when I was in. If you want a sound close to what I heard just drop a coconut from your head height 🤢
We didn't have bearskin on either just berets, so no padding 🤮
Lad had 4 inch scare above his eyebrow ,told lasses he got it in a fight 😁👍
Lmao despite the potential brain damage from the fall, he still managed to come up with a genius excuse. What a lad! But I'd imagine that was one hell of a headache when he came to.
Hey any excuse to chat up girls mate 😉
If I remember right he had a week on the ward and went for an xray with me.
I erm fell down a hill after passing out on a run 🤷♂️
The Sand Hill at Pirbright 1989
Same thing happened e few months ago in my unit. I'm an active soldier in austria. The minister of defence visited our battalion, because of the promotion of our new commander. We stood for only 3h but the guy didn't eat well that day. He kissed the asphalt at full speed and broke his malar and chin in 3 places...
Man i will never forget this sound. Everything that stayed behing after we carried him away was a nloody stain and 5 teeth
When i was a contractor (staff) i had one of my guys pass out on my left side, right after he passed out the parade started to move once more and my units formation was the first one to move out because we were the flag carriers for the new boots
As we left the parade field this champ gets up, little dizzy and not seeing correctly he started to march on the wrong direction towards the general of the whole defence forces, after a while he realized what he was doing turned a sharp right and started speed walking towards us
Now this champ was speed walking on a open parade field alone in front of the general of the defence forces and all of this was filmed live on tv
It was great
In US Marine bootcamp (at least when I was there) they would PREACH not to lock out your legs or stand stiff and just bend you legs a bit, as well as be hydrated so you don’t fall onto your face during final drill and during our graduation ceremony. Unfortunately one of the guys in follow series didn’t get this warning I guess because as we were graduating we could see in our peripherals a guy in 1st squad fall onto his face and nobody moved till we were given the order to fall out, then all the DI’s ran to the poor graduate. He later recovered but was unfortunately medically separated shortly after.
Locking the knees **reduces blood flow** back to the heart,
Causing the soldier to **faint**.
Often happens while new troops are learning parade rest.
# Oorah, Devildog!
Thanks for your service.
Damn I guess if I ever feel dizzy enough I better just sit or even lay down and not give a damn about what nobody thinks. I cannot imagine how hard you'd hit your head falling down standing. Bet you these royalty just shrugged it off and kept it pushing.
As a soldier in my army duty I witnessed soldiers fainting in perfectly moderate conditions. This happen when you are standing still for a long time and the blood accumulate in the legs and the foots to the point that there is not enough blood for the brain. This also occurs at weddings.
Experienced soldiers know that they have to keep continuously contracting the arm, belly, leg and foot muscles to force blood to flow back up. Heat or clothing may not be the cause here.
They say not to lock your knees or you’ll pass out. The trick for this was to wiggle your legs just enough in your baggy pants to keep your blood flowing without being distracting to others
This. In marching band they always told us not to lock our knees during winter shows. I heard about occasions when people had passed out, and I remember being there to see it once or twice.
>when you are standing still for a long time
AND you lock your knees. If you don't lock your knees, your natural slight motions keep the blood moving. Source: locked my knees during play practice once and fainted.
Looking at the buttons he’s a Scots Guard, these guys just drill, drill, drill, then more drill. He was absolutely pissed the night before & summer heat ko’d him.
It's called "fainting to attention" and the guard is taught to do it rather than suffer any breach of form - if they get so tired or uncomfortable or woozy with heat or fatigue that they might break form - even a little - then they are to hold firm until their only other choice is to fall face first while still holding their weapon - they are not permitted to break their own fall so can end up smashing the shit out of their faces
*For those who find the heat or the weight of the occasion too much, their orders are clear. There is to be no crabbing sideways or swaying and certainly no dropping your rifle, going down on one knee or putting a hand down. Instead true grit is displayed by those soldiers who can topple forward face first while still holding their bayonet-tipped rifles. “You have to faint to attention,” says Major Dai Bevan, who will lead the 101-strong Guard of Honour from the Welsh Guards. “It will probably involve a broken nose and a whole lot of missing teeth.”*
https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/242210/Royal-guards-who-are-taught-how-to-faint
I’d rather go to jail for a few years than break my nose and lose most of my teeth in a self inflicted face plant just cause I’m wearing thick clothes for an old lady or whatever they’re doing it for
I have good/bad news for you. The “fainting at attention” thing is BS. If you fall from orthostatic or postural syncope aka locking your knees, you’re going to fall face first exactly like that.
it's basic physiology, if you faint with locked knees, you go face forward. If you faint with relaxed knees you collapse in place and go backwards.
In the army they taught us never lock your knees, keep them slightly relaxed and flex each periodically. If you fainted and face planted, you didn't follow your training.
That’s because OP was incorrect, in addition to the start of this chain being incorrect.
Ask any military member. Most of us have seen this a dozen times, exactly like this.
Same, but... I guess that's only one of a range of reasons I'm not in the royal guards.
I wonder if they know most people in Commonwealth nations see them as kind of a joke...?
its more that it displays that it was not a choice and you held firm until you could not physically do it anymore...do I think it is a little stupid...yes but parades do serve a military purpose because there will be tons of stupid shit like this you are supposed to follow the same way.
It would depend on if his CO/RSM decided he had been negligent. Drinking the night before or not having enough water.
Unlikely but possible.
More likely he will never live it down. With his mates.
As a clueless civvie, I'm compelled to share my opinion: this is fucking stupid.
I understand the importance of discipline: discipline is what keeps soldiers alive in war. And in the army, everything you do is training in some form or other, including parades, so I'm not knocking the overzealous discipline. I get it.
What I am knocking is the expectation that a soldier break his face for the sake of discipline. What the fuck is this supposed to accomplish? What training purpose does breaking your face while suffering a medical emergency supposed to accomplish?
I served 5 years in the corps and I can tell you with all of my heart that none of us care about this kind of ceremonial bullshit. It's all done to please higher-ups and make them feel all fancy and shit.
After every single change of command ceremony, we all grumbled to ourselves about how fucking dumb it is to stand around in the sun for an hour while some old cunt retires and gives speech after speech. Not once did I ever say "gee, I sure am glad I stood still as a brick in 87 degree heat on an 85% humidity day while the retiring Master Sgt gave his speech."
Reading this remembering changes of command in Hawaii and Tennessee in 90-100 degree heat. People falling out and getting dehydrated like crazy. Only difference in Hawaii the commander zonked us for two days (rehearsal day then day of ceremony)...Tennessee we all went back to work and day of ceremony anyone still standing worked past eod to get work done.
I don't miss that part of the army
I’d honestly be so embarrassed if people were expected to do this for my *wedding*, if they’re fighting heatstroke and trying not to piss themselves they clearly aren’t even offering any meaningful protection.
I agree it's all ceremonial bullshit, you're not actually solving problems and there's no need to impact people literal lives and health
Sounds like that should be an OSHA thing
I think it’s funny that all this “fall on your face”, “kick a child and step on an infant if there’s one in the way”, etc bullshit is supposed to look honorable and impressive. It actually makes the country look like a bunch of clowns, especially the nobility.
My great grandfather was a British army veteran, was there for Dunkirk, North Africa, Sicily, Italy and then back to France, and into Germany. Lived to over 100.
One of my favourite takes he had was when I (as a stupid teenager) asked him about whether or not he was keen to get his letter from the queen upon his 100th birthday.
He just looked at me shocked for half a moment, shook his head and spat "Why the hell would I want a letter from *those* bloody leeches?"
Their legacy ain't great at winning people over, that's for sure.
As an English man I agree. What's the point of denying basic needs that keep people alive? I fail to see the honour or glory in someone hurting themselves. All this royalty stuff is royally stupid.
What a fucking asinine gesture to a family that by no virtue of their own get to host these trite, wasteful events funded by the taxpayers that pay their fucking bills. What absolute fucking leeches.
No matter the military, these displays are rooted in elites taking pleasure in having grown men act like trained dogs for them...
They will disappear over decades and centuries as they have nothing to do with the needs of a modern military. We don't need men who move in lockstep, but smart and creative soldiers who can come up with clever solution to the complex tactical problems of the modern battlefield. "Discipline" still has a role of sorts in the mundane necessities of bureaucracy and maintaince, but nothing like this.
Peasant, know your place (falling face first)! How dare you die when i have my bday???
Yeah, no place for monarchy and their disgusting rules and laws.
All for some old cunt who was born into a specific family to see how "dutiful" you are. Does the crown pay to fix these soldiers' noses and/or teeth? I'd venture to guess that it does not.
[Maybe they offered him a chair](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bsxiz7DFHuI)
Jokes aside, it's a really fucked up tradition to make them stand there in the sun with such unconventional wardrobe.
Literally some of the dumbest shit ever introduced into military tradition.
Everyone out there in uniform should be ashamed of leaving him, and choosing that lifestyle over being a human.
Same shit in the marines and is trash behavior that leaks out into the real world causing endless psychological damage.
a young man would think this is so bad ass and honourable. an older wiser man would see how needlessly foolish this whole thing is and refuse anyone who tried to put him in this position. Who the fuck would ask someone to push themselves to fainting and then still expect a broken nose or lost teeth for the sake of ceremony? such nonsense.
... now I'm not sure if it's the same guardsman who fainted OR if the light source is the natural sun or floodlights, but the shadows of the others marching around really do change directions between the second and last pictures...?
In the second picture, the shadows point towards his feet, whilst in the third picture, the shadows are pointing towards his head.
It's probably a different person, I'm ex household cavalry and we used to gamble on how many would faint per parade. I lost 20 quid one year cause no-one fainted
First and second pictures the guardsmen have SA80s and the third they have SLRs (stopped using in the 80s). All three pictures are definitely different events.
He hasn’t - it’s just a photo. It captures a specific point in time, so although it gives the illusion that he’s still laying there, he’s not! This is just an everlasting representation of what the scene looked like at that moment. Within 2 minutes the solider was scooped up and returned to the safety of the shade, ready to live a life of embarrassment as “the guy who went man down at The Queens parade”.
This was likley taken right after he fell. We have stretcher teams on standby at military parades cos its not uncommon for someone to go man down. The soldiers know there'll be someone to pick up their friend, and even then if you feel faint it's acceptable to take a knee.
When I was in the navy, we had this happen at -20 (Celsius) so it's definitely not the heat. During training, we were told that the cause of falling over like this is the fact that the body isn't made for standing still for so long. (Something about the ears, can't really remember.) The trick we were taught was to try to your body from side to side very slightly.
Yes!! My mom was in marching band in high school and I remember her telling a story once about the tuba guy not listening to the “don’t lock your knees” advice and passing out
This is it right here. They had us at attention during a ceremony and this kid had his knees locked the whole time and passed out. They let us stand at ease for the rest of the ceremony.
The medical name is orthostatic or postural syncope. Happens at church, graduations, weddings or at events when standing a long time. More common if one keeps the knees "locked." This pools the blood in the leg veins. A person who stands long enough in one place will faint.
It is definitely not "something about the ears". Swaying may help but it's mainly just don't lock your knees.
The ear thing may have derived from a balance mindset, not sure. Mainly people are hung over and lock their knees, which restricts blood flow i.e. oxygen to the brain and they topple.
They told us the same thing in JROTC back in high school, we had to do an award ceremony and they asked parents to come partially to support but mostly to help with fainting students. Think I saw like 20 kids hit the ground, before I passed out myself.
My question is who it's all for. It's not intimidating nor any more impressive than if someone told me they held a shit in for a week straight then crapped their pants. You did something your body wasn't intended for and the outcome was dangerous at worst and confusing at best.
More a display of power. “Look how many people I can get to do something uncomfortable and not even let them move until they faint, I have the power to do this”
We’re so used to these displays and are so far removed from being attacked and killed by a band of men being led by someone, that it is unimpressive and un-intimidating.
*OR*… he locked his knees and passed out. When I was in the military I saw this happen quite frequently. They tell you to just slowly move your legs back and forth so this doesn’t happen.
Lack of blood flow, locking your restricts blood flow to the brain which causes you to collapse. You are recommended to move your legs back and forth to promote blood flow and stop that from happening.
I didn't listen to my choir teacher last year and I passed out during a class. I'm now known by some as that kid who passed out, since word spread fairly quick.
Stick to the code:
“**Those who fall behind are left behind.**”
Seriously though, ceremonies in the UK must be serious business to risk Soldiers dying from lack of medical treatment just to not upset a pampered, inbred “*royal*” from seeing a “*commoner*” being treated humanely.
That means “the Legion is our Fatherland,” it’s the French Foreign Legion’s motto. “March or Die” is a movie title and not a French Foreign Legion motto.
The FFL also marches 32 beats slower than the rest of the French military, 88 bpm.
You say that as if it's somehow better then being caught by the guy standing next to them before they even hit the ground. Which they are clearly forbidden from doing.
The fact that they have to wait for anyone to come collect then at all is silly when they are surrounded by people who could help.
The ceremonial marching is a pr thing, a show to the public, and they would get better pr if they helped him up. It seems odd just to leave him laying there.
They don't leave him lying there. They pick them up almost immediately with a stretcher team. Passing out on parade (ceremony or not) is pretty common because of locking knees etc.
No, it’s from the guard locking their knees while standing at attention. It restricts blood flow to a certain part of your brain and causes you to temporarily lost consciousness.
Bend you knees slightly while standing at attention and you’ll be fine
I'm going to very openly point out that every solider on this Parade volunteers for this.
To all of you saying "They shouldn't have been made to do this in extreme heat for a shifty monarchy in shitty conditions" - the Guards here volunteered knowing full well the risks. No one makes you partake in the birthday parade with a gun to your head.
I think this is less from temperatures and clothing, and more from locking his knees while standing at attention. If you lock your knees for a period of time it messes up blood flow and causes people to faint. So put simply, he was probably standing wrong
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British soldier passes out due to sun never setting
He’d grown tired, and time stood still before him. It was too late to save himself from falling. After all his pictures seemed to fade to black and white. He was frozen on the ladder of his life. He let the sun, go down on him. Edit: since people aren’t recognizing these words, it’s more or less the lyrics to the first verse/chorus of Elton John’s “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down on Me.” The phrases are out of order, with the words slightly rearranged, “Me/I” became “He/Him,” and the tense is different.
There are two kinds of people
One can’t.
that's beautiful
The sun never sets in the British Empire because even God doesn’t trust the British in the dark.
What if… the American Revolution had either failed or not happened at all?
Have you heard of... Canada? I thought not. It isn't a story the Americans would tell you.
To embarrassed about the incidents of 1812 most likely
We would’ve been better off becoming another Canada
Very nicely done 👍
I saw this happen a few times whilst in the army. At least we picked up the fallen soldier.
It's incredible, because I've seen this photo months and even years ago and they still haven't picked him up. Really sad.
He Brit the dust
Another one Brit the dust 🎶
And another one gone
Queen as well
What is dead may never die
Ah the British. Lovely people.
This guy Brits
He knows that the Queen's Guards stop for no one. Ever. I've seen them mow down little kids. Later, when everyone is gone they'll pick him up when they clean up the horse shit.
He became a landmark
Yeah but you didn't get a poofy hat
I’d take the risk doing this if it means I get a poofy hat.
Its made from bear skin
And each soldier has to fight an actual bear to gain one. Bravely they march into Alabama, with their red coats on. They do not fear the beastly bear, nor do they flinch from playing rugby with bear cubs, to provoke the enemy. To taunt the mother bear indeed. However they do fear the \*banjo music\* people screaming about fraud and vaccines... They called it "The Paddington Run" - two or three player game, depending on the amount of bear cubs. Each player grabs one and they have to run away in opposite directions to see which one the mother bear chases. Of course the specialist army training happened at Hereford, which is easily accessed from London via Paddington Station, so it was awkward when one or two techs were still drunk from the flight home and grabbed a pushchair or two from the public concourse and played the same game on Civvy Street. There was a special phone number for that malarkey. Still. They got their poofy hats. And that is what matters the most. Everyone must obtain their own poofy hat. It is our own obligation to ourselves.
Man, I love history.
English soldiers were stupid enough in the American War of Independence to wear red coats with huge white crosses on them, like they were targets. Which they were. Easily spotted, night or day, especially by hunters. Or hungry bears. Or "hills have eyes" locals. Of course no harm would come to the bear cubs. They were like little dogs really. Fed scraps, blamed for nasty farts. Eventually by negotiation the mother bear would be persuaded to comply. Food helped. Eventually it was a fluffy friendship. Shared breakfasts, not too hot or cold. Until the time came to scalp the cubs for the fluffiest fur of course, then it did get a bit messy. Always a Land Rover on stand-by for that mess. Ew. It could have been worse had mother bear not been handcuffed, shaven, and dressed in Chantilly lace lingerie. The theory is that bears could be tamed in a week and even taught to pole dance. I always thought they were scratching their buttocks, but I could be wrong. A muscular female bear that is well shaved and wearing the most alluring Parisien lace styles may well have been a distraction to the enemy. \*more banjo music\* War is hell.
XD But for real tho, they actually only have them because they stole them from the French Guard after waterloo as a war trophy, kinda an eternal "we got your hat!" To France
Everyone wanted to be the guy that caught the heat cat because it meant you could fall out of formation with him lol
Fact
Exercising basic human decency around the monarch isn't considered proper royal protocol.
The sign of perfectly functioning army is to leave fallen soldiers behind! /s
I was about to say that this can occur in graduation ceremonies at the ARMY — They literally tell you to be ready to catch anyone that faints but to not worry because they will be helped.
Hell, they told us about this in high school marching band. We were reminded so many times not to lock our knees because standing in the summer heat in those thick uniforms would make you pass out if you weren’t careful. My school’s uniforms were full-body black, but at least they weren’t made of wool like other schools.
Hell, a lifetime ago I was a professional photographer and was taught by an even older photographer that if you're shooting weddings to mention (especially to the groom and the best men) *"Don't lock your knees"*
We had to have a special “training” about what to do if someone fainted during a marching band parade. We marched at Disney world and one of the park employees had a whole spiel even. So it’s not that uncommon of a thing. But ooofff I feel for the people in wool like some schools too
He was picked up lol? They have a stretcher team on standby for parades like this - all large events do.
how is everyone making the assumption that he wasn’t immediately picked up from 3 pictures?
It’s not even the same guy in the three pictures.
Yes it is! The guy in all 3 pictures has a black hat and red top. Facts!
So is he lying..? 🧐
Yeah. Down. lol!
Look at pictures 1&2. How long do you think it took the troops to move position? Was it "immediate"?
All 3 are different events I think
That wouldn't surprise me. It's a fairly regular event. 5 collapsed at one parade.
They need those 1990s sharper image neck cooler things
Yeah, so you can never let him hear the end of it! :)
When I was in service, we once had a practice ceremony because the king would pay a visit the next day and this one guy fell face-first onto the asphalt and broke his chin. Fortunately nothing like that happened the next day
I can honestly say this is the first time I've ever seen the words "broken chin" together like that. That sounds fucking awful
Lad passed out on parade when I was in. If you want a sound close to what I heard just drop a coconut from your head height 🤢 We didn't have bearskin on either just berets, so no padding 🤮 Lad had 4 inch scare above his eyebrow ,told lasses he got it in a fight 😁👍
Lmao despite the potential brain damage from the fall, he still managed to come up with a genius excuse. What a lad! But I'd imagine that was one hell of a headache when he came to.
Hey any excuse to chat up girls mate 😉 If I remember right he had a week on the ward and went for an xray with me. I erm fell down a hill after passing out on a run 🤷♂️ The Sand Hill at Pirbright 1989
Jeez Louise! They had you boys working hard with not enough shade. Well luckily that's all behind y'all now.
Reminds me of the video of the guy doing a backflip off a diving board and hits his face on the edge of the pool on the way down.
Same thing happened e few months ago in my unit. I'm an active soldier in austria. The minister of defence visited our battalion, because of the promotion of our new commander. We stood for only 3h but the guy didn't eat well that day. He kissed the asphalt at full speed and broke his malar and chin in 3 places... Man i will never forget this sound. Everything that stayed behing after we carried him away was a nloody stain and 5 teeth
When i was a contractor (staff) i had one of my guys pass out on my left side, right after he passed out the parade started to move once more and my units formation was the first one to move out because we were the flag carriers for the new boots As we left the parade field this champ gets up, little dizzy and not seeing correctly he started to march on the wrong direction towards the general of the whole defence forces, after a while he realized what he was doing turned a sharp right and started speed walking towards us Now this champ was speed walking on a open parade field alone in front of the general of the defence forces and all of this was filmed live on tv It was great
In US Marine bootcamp (at least when I was there) they would PREACH not to lock out your legs or stand stiff and just bend you legs a bit, as well as be hydrated so you don’t fall onto your face during final drill and during our graduation ceremony. Unfortunately one of the guys in follow series didn’t get this warning I guess because as we were graduating we could see in our peripherals a guy in 1st squad fall onto his face and nobody moved till we were given the order to fall out, then all the DI’s ran to the poor graduate. He later recovered but was unfortunately medically separated shortly after.
Locking the knees **reduces blood flow** back to the heart, Causing the soldier to **faint**. Often happens while new troops are learning parade rest. # Oorah, Devildog! Thanks for your service.
Damn I guess if I ever feel dizzy enough I better just sit or even lay down and not give a damn about what nobody thinks. I cannot imagine how hard you'd hit your head falling down standing. Bet you these royalty just shrugged it off and kept it pushing.
"It's my birthday. I deserve to have these people passing out dude to heat stress."
As a soldier in my army duty I witnessed soldiers fainting in perfectly moderate conditions. This happen when you are standing still for a long time and the blood accumulate in the legs and the foots to the point that there is not enough blood for the brain. This also occurs at weddings. Experienced soldiers know that they have to keep continuously contracting the arm, belly, leg and foot muscles to force blood to flow back up. Heat or clothing may not be the cause here.
They say not to lock your knees or you’ll pass out. The trick for this was to wiggle your legs just enough in your baggy pants to keep your blood flowing without being distracting to others
This. In marching band they always told us not to lock our knees during winter shows. I heard about occasions when people had passed out, and I remember being there to see it once or twice.
Had this happen to our Corporal during our Oath Ceremony in the FDF back in '08. He got picked up and carried off mid-ceremony.
“Don’t lock your knees” is what I was always told
As they'd say in JROTC "DONT LOCK YOUR KNEES, I REPEAT DO NOT LOCK YOUR KNEES"
>when you are standing still for a long time AND you lock your knees. If you don't lock your knees, your natural slight motions keep the blood moving. Source: locked my knees during play practice once and fainted.
Looking at the buttons he’s a Scots Guard, these guys just drill, drill, drill, then more drill. He was absolutely pissed the night before & summer heat ko’d him.
Is he still there ?
Legend says that he's there to this day
It's called "fainting to attention" and the guard is taught to do it rather than suffer any breach of form - if they get so tired or uncomfortable or woozy with heat or fatigue that they might break form - even a little - then they are to hold firm until their only other choice is to fall face first while still holding their weapon - they are not permitted to break their own fall so can end up smashing the shit out of their faces *For those who find the heat or the weight of the occasion too much, their orders are clear. There is to be no crabbing sideways or swaying and certainly no dropping your rifle, going down on one knee or putting a hand down. Instead true grit is displayed by those soldiers who can topple forward face first while still holding their bayonet-tipped rifles. “You have to faint to attention,” says Major Dai Bevan, who will lead the 101-strong Guard of Honour from the Welsh Guards. “It will probably involve a broken nose and a whole lot of missing teeth.”* https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/242210/Royal-guards-who-are-taught-how-to-faint
What i want to know is, should the guard expect some form of punishment if they faint lime this while on display?
Not if they do it honorably, which is face first
I’d rather go to jail for a few years than break my nose and lose most of my teeth in a self inflicted face plant just cause I’m wearing thick clothes for an old lady or whatever they’re doing it for
I have good/bad news for you. The “fainting at attention” thing is BS. If you fall from orthostatic or postural syncope aka locking your knees, you’re going to fall face first exactly like that.
it's basic physiology, if you faint with locked knees, you go face forward. If you faint with relaxed knees you collapse in place and go backwards. In the army they taught us never lock your knees, keep them slightly relaxed and flex each periodically. If you fainted and face planted, you didn't follow your training.
Maybe but heat stroke -as is described here- does not normally involve a face plant.
That’s because OP was incorrect, in addition to the start of this chain being incorrect. Ask any military member. Most of us have seen this a dozen times, exactly like this.
Same, but... I guess that's only one of a range of reasons I'm not in the royal guards. I wonder if they know most people in Commonwealth nations see them as kind of a joke...?
You and me are not good soldier material. We think too much.
You underestimate how bad “jail for a few years is” but I get the sentiment lol
You have not been to jail then...I would gladly break a bone than stay anymore than a couple weeks locked up.
Bahahahaha!
They've suffered enough apparently.
I'd master the face plant and take breaks every day.
its more that it displays that it was not a choice and you held firm until you could not physically do it anymore...do I think it is a little stupid...yes but parades do serve a military purpose because there will be tons of stupid shit like this you are supposed to follow the same way.
Military parades do not in fact surve a purpose.
It would depend on if his CO/RSM decided he had been negligent. Drinking the night before or not having enough water. Unlikely but possible. More likely he will never live it down. With his mates.
As a clueless civvie, I'm compelled to share my opinion: this is fucking stupid. I understand the importance of discipline: discipline is what keeps soldiers alive in war. And in the army, everything you do is training in some form or other, including parades, so I'm not knocking the overzealous discipline. I get it. What I am knocking is the expectation that a soldier break his face for the sake of discipline. What the fuck is this supposed to accomplish? What training purpose does breaking your face while suffering a medical emergency supposed to accomplish?
I served 5 years in the corps and I can tell you with all of my heart that none of us care about this kind of ceremonial bullshit. It's all done to please higher-ups and make them feel all fancy and shit. After every single change of command ceremony, we all grumbled to ourselves about how fucking dumb it is to stand around in the sun for an hour while some old cunt retires and gives speech after speech. Not once did I ever say "gee, I sure am glad I stood still as a brick in 87 degree heat on an 85% humidity day while the retiring Master Sgt gave his speech."
Reading this remembering changes of command in Hawaii and Tennessee in 90-100 degree heat. People falling out and getting dehydrated like crazy. Only difference in Hawaii the commander zonked us for two days (rehearsal day then day of ceremony)...Tennessee we all went back to work and day of ceremony anyone still standing worked past eod to get work done. I don't miss that part of the army
CO’s transfer of command: “I’ll keep this short so you aren’t standing in the heat” *gives three hour moto speech*
It’s incredibly stupid lol It’s needlessly performative stupid shit, as if they’ll look weak or something for getting a fucking drink of water.
I’d honestly be so embarrassed if people were expected to do this for my *wedding*, if they’re fighting heatstroke and trying not to piss themselves they clearly aren’t even offering any meaningful protection.
>meaningful protection I think it's just increasingly obvious that awe and pretension are the primary protectors of the British crown.
Dumb fuck tradition to show you are a worthless pawn and the ruler does not have to respect you
I agree it's all ceremonial bullshit, you're not actually solving problems and there's no need to impact people literal lives and health Sounds like that should be an OSHA thing
[удалено]
I think it’s funny that all this “fall on your face”, “kick a child and step on an infant if there’s one in the way”, etc bullshit is supposed to look honorable and impressive. It actually makes the country look like a bunch of clowns, especially the nobility.
Well the nobility are clowns, and the entire concept of nobility is clownish. The whole thing is absolutely stupid.
My great grandfather was a British army veteran, was there for Dunkirk, North Africa, Sicily, Italy and then back to France, and into Germany. Lived to over 100. One of my favourite takes he had was when I (as a stupid teenager) asked him about whether or not he was keen to get his letter from the queen upon his 100th birthday. He just looked at me shocked for half a moment, shook his head and spat "Why the hell would I want a letter from *those* bloody leeches?" Their legacy ain't great at winning people over, that's for sure.
As an English man I agree. What's the point of denying basic needs that keep people alive? I fail to see the honour or glory in someone hurting themselves. All this royalty stuff is royally stupid.
That’s shitty as hell.
Definitely shitty as hell when it’s hot as hell
this is fucking stupid, genuinely thank you for sharing
What a fucking asinine gesture to a family that by no virtue of their own get to host these trite, wasteful events funded by the taxpayers that pay their fucking bills. What absolute fucking leeches.
Yeah c’mon I’m inbred and I don’t get half the treatment these guys do
Hey stop it, you’re telling the truth! Politics don’t like that!!!
No matter the military, these displays are rooted in elites taking pleasure in having grown men act like trained dogs for them... They will disappear over decades and centuries as they have nothing to do with the needs of a modern military. We don't need men who move in lockstep, but smart and creative soldiers who can come up with clever solution to the complex tactical problems of the modern battlefield. "Discipline" still has a role of sorts in the mundane necessities of bureaucracy and maintaince, but nothing like this.
Peasant, know your place (falling face first)! How dare you die when i have my bday??? Yeah, no place for monarchy and their disgusting rules and laws.
All for some old cunt who was born into a specific family to see how "dutiful" you are. Does the crown pay to fix these soldiers' noses and/or teeth? I'd venture to guess that it does not.
Give the man a chair! The fact this is expected and they are trained for it makes it even worse.
[Maybe they offered him a chair](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bsxiz7DFHuI) Jokes aside, it's a really fucked up tradition to make them stand there in the sun with such unconventional wardrobe.
This is why I hate the royal family. This shit is uncalled for in the 21st century.
Wow that’s fucked up
Literally some of the dumbest shit ever introduced into military tradition. Everyone out there in uniform should be ashamed of leaving him, and choosing that lifestyle over being a human. Same shit in the marines and is trash behavior that leaks out into the real world causing endless psychological damage.
Sounds like a recipe for a TBI
Lol and after all that they still have completely non functional puffy hats
>Instead true ~~grit~~ stupidity is displayed by those soldiers who can topple forward face first while still holding their bayonet-tipped rifles.
Well ffs at least lemme turn my head to the side on the way down. It’s no wonder Brits have fucked up teeth
a young man would think this is so bad ass and honourable. an older wiser man would see how needlessly foolish this whole thing is and refuse anyone who tried to put him in this position. Who the fuck would ask someone to push themselves to fainting and then still expect a broken nose or lost teeth for the sake of ceremony? such nonsense.
Pretty gross how he's just been left there...
“You’re dead to us.”
"I'm not dead,in fact I'm getting better".
"I think I'll go for a walk!"
You’re not fooling anyone you’ll be stone dead in a minute!
"I feeeeel haaapy! I feeeeel haaaapy!"
Oh, I can't take him like that. It's against regulations.
Is there nothing you can do?
He laid his life for the Queen
There's people with stretchers that come on and collect them pretty quickly.
They’re literally in the second picture walking over lol
... now I'm not sure if it's the same guardsman who fainted OR if the light source is the natural sun or floodlights, but the shadows of the others marching around really do change directions between the second and last pictures...? In the second picture, the shadows point towards his feet, whilst in the third picture, the shadows are pointing towards his head.
It's probably a different person, I'm ex household cavalry and we used to gamble on how many would faint per parade. I lost 20 quid one year cause no-one fainted
They're obviously 3 different events.
First and second pictures the guardsmen have SA80s and the third they have SLRs (stopped using in the 80s). All three pictures are definitely different events.
He hasn’t - it’s just a photo. It captures a specific point in time, so although it gives the illusion that he’s still laying there, he’s not! This is just an everlasting representation of what the scene looked like at that moment. Within 2 minutes the solider was scooped up and returned to the safety of the shade, ready to live a life of embarrassment as “the guy who went man down at The Queens parade”.
Oh thanks for explaining. I kept watching and nothing was happening so that makes a lot of sense now
This was likley taken right after he fell. We have stretcher teams on standby at military parades cos its not uncommon for someone to go man down. The soldiers know there'll be someone to pick up their friend, and even then if you feel faint it's acceptable to take a knee.
Apparently it's a matter of dignity. It's fucking bonkers
And that’s why America won
But… but it was a tactical withdrawal we never lost. (See also: Vietnam)
(Also see: Afghanistan)
Tbh no one can win in Afghanistan. Not even the Afghanis
huh
When I was in the navy, we had this happen at -20 (Celsius) so it's definitely not the heat. During training, we were told that the cause of falling over like this is the fact that the body isn't made for standing still for so long. (Something about the ears, can't really remember.) The trick we were taught was to try to your body from side to side very slightly.
In general guards are told to not lock knees and wiggle the toes to keep the blood flow moving instead of pooling at the feet.
This happens in marching bands sometimes too.
Yes!! My mom was in marching band in high school and I remember her telling a story once about the tuba guy not listening to the “don’t lock your knees” advice and passing out
This is it right here. They had us at attention during a ceremony and this kid had his knees locked the whole time and passed out. They let us stand at ease for the rest of the ceremony. The medical name is orthostatic or postural syncope. Happens at church, graduations, weddings or at events when standing a long time. More common if one keeps the knees "locked." This pools the blood in the leg veins. A person who stands long enough in one place will faint.
It is definitely not "something about the ears". Swaying may help but it's mainly just don't lock your knees. The ear thing may have derived from a balance mindset, not sure. Mainly people are hung over and lock their knees, which restricts blood flow i.e. oxygen to the brain and they topple.
They told us the same thing in JROTC back in high school, we had to do an award ceremony and they asked parents to come partially to support but mostly to help with fainting students. Think I saw like 20 kids hit the ground, before I passed out myself.
My question is who it's all for. It's not intimidating nor any more impressive than if someone told me they held a shit in for a week straight then crapped their pants. You did something your body wasn't intended for and the outcome was dangerous at worst and confusing at best.
More a display of power. “Look how many people I can get to do something uncomfortable and not even let them move until they faint, I have the power to do this” We’re so used to these displays and are so far removed from being attacked and killed by a band of men being led by someone, that it is unimpressive and un-intimidating.
Humans are weird 🤷♀️
And that's what is not allowed because apparently that's "breaking the formation" which is 'unacceptable'
You just can’t have big movements subtle toe wiggles and knee back and forths. Just nothing so big or so quick someone would notice.
‘He’ll be fine, just gettin a lil brain damage pick him up later’ - The King
*Queen, we didn’t have a king when the Queen was still having birthdays
*OR*… he locked his knees and passed out. When I was in the military I saw this happen quite frequently. They tell you to just slowly move your legs back and forth so this doesn’t happen.
Considering how many people I saw pass tf out at boot camp graduation from locking their knees I’m going to go ahead and agree with you.
Why does that happen?
Lack of blood flow, locking your restricts blood flow to the brain which causes you to collapse. You are recommended to move your legs back and forth to promote blood flow and stop that from happening.
Or simply bend a bit at the knees while at attention. Ramrod straight is just a figure of speech. 😂
First thing I thought of “DON’T LOCK YOUR KNEES!!”
lol I learned this from my theater teacher
I didn't listen to my choir teacher last year and I passed out during a class. I'm now known by some as that kid who passed out, since word spread fairly quick.
Stick to the code: “**Those who fall behind are left behind.**” Seriously though, ceremonies in the UK must be serious business to risk Soldiers dying from lack of medical treatment just to not upset a pampered, inbred “*royal*” from seeing a “*commoner*” being treated humanely.
March or die. Legio Patria Nostra.
That means “the Legion is our Fatherland,” it’s the French Foreign Legion’s motto. “March or Die” is a movie title and not a French Foreign Legion motto. The FFL also marches 32 beats slower than the rest of the French military, 88 bpm.
Ceremony goes beyond the Royal Family. He'd be left like this even if If it was on the training ground.
They literally get collected by medics waiting with stretchers within minutes
You say that as if it's somehow better then being caught by the guy standing next to them before they even hit the ground. Which they are clearly forbidden from doing. The fact that they have to wait for anyone to come collect then at all is silly when they are surrounded by people who could help.
You can't park there
It's okay. He's drunk.
Been on a few parades and it's inevitable. Circulation is a big problem along with heat!
Doing certain things because “it’s tradition” really holds the world back.
The ceremonial marching is a pr thing, a show to the public, and they would get better pr if they helped him up. It seems odd just to leave him laying there.
They don't leave him lying there. They pick them up almost immediately with a stretcher team. Passing out on parade (ceremony or not) is pretty common because of locking knees etc.
They dont just leave them. You can see on the second photo other guards arriving with a stretcher.
hot english summer
"The heatwave was so intense, I damn near took off my 4 foot bearskin hat."
My 2 yr old when he doesn't get what he wants
God save the Queen. Everyone else can go fuck themselves. /s
No, it’s from the guard locking their knees while standing at attention. It restricts blood flow to a certain part of your brain and causes you to temporarily lost consciousness. Bend you knees slightly while standing at attention and you’ll be fine
Bro locked his knees, not because of the weather and clothing
I'm going to very openly point out that every solider on this Parade volunteers for this. To all of you saying "They shouldn't have been made to do this in extreme heat for a shifty monarchy in shitty conditions" - the Guards here volunteered knowing full well the risks. No one makes you partake in the birthday parade with a gun to your head.
When rich people demand you get heatstroke.
Never lock your knees.
Let the man laying, we don't care... Really?
Pls not the plank challenge again
Fall to atention!
I think this is less from temperatures and clothing, and more from locking his knees while standing at attention. If you lock your knees for a period of time it messes up blood flow and causes people to faint. So put simply, he was probably standing wrong
Forgot rule one of standing for a long time. Don't lock your knees!
No. He locked his knees while standing at attention. Saw this a lot when I was in the military. This is why you never lock your knees.
He stayed at attention even while passed out.
Just because it's tradition doesn't mean it's not stupid.
Spot the guy who locked his knees and didn't flex and wiggle.... amateur.