This is the chilling moment a horse backpedaled on a king’s guard, but the warm-hearted soldier remained surprisingly calm.
Shocking video footage on the King’s Guard UK channel on YouTube shows the unknown soldier being aggressively kicked in the chest by a horse in front of him during what appears to be the Horse Guard’s Parade in St James’s Park in London.
As part of the usual drill, the soldier dismounts from his own horse before taking his position during the procession.
Viewers then see him have both legs kicked by the horse in front of him, causing him to wince in pain for a moment before sliding back into position as if nothing had happened.
People expressed relief that the soldier was able to continue, with one adding that he was “handling it well.”
In the clip, the horses are lined up and an exercise is performed after the changing of the guard.
As tourists and royal fans gather to see the Royal Guard in action, the guards dismount from their horses on command.
One guard, whose horse is on the back line, reaches the ground and walks around the front of his horse.
But as he does so, the horse in front of him raises his hind legs and kicks outward, making contact with the guard in the chest.
A clip on The King’s Guards YouTube channel shows an irritated horse kicking at a soldier
After the horse lifts its hind legs and kicks at the guard, it takes a few steps back before quickly recovering
The Royal Guard YouTube channel confirmed that the guard, who barely flinched, was not injured by the kick.
To ensure the safety of his own horse, the soldier took a few steps back, but remained in formation.
Commenting on the video, people praised the soldier for the way he handled the kick.
One person wrote: ‘Thank God for the breastplate. That could have been really bad and finishing the shift…I mean, that’s top notch!’
Another wrote: ‘God bless the guards. You saw him cringe a little, but he continued. I hope he’s doing well.’
The frightening moment comes after an elderly military veteran witnessed the friendly side of a member of the King’s Guard as he got closer to her as she posed for a photo with her husband during the Horse Guards Parade in Whitehall.
A video on social media showed the couple – who both proudly displayed their medals – getting as close as possible to the mounted soldier.
But after apparently realizing that they have both served their country, the soldier, wearing his usual plumed helmet and armor, quickly pushes his horse closer to them before allowing the woman to stroke his horse’s nose.
The couple leaves beaming and the soldier sends his horse back into position.
The video, which was originally posted on the popular YouTube channel Buska in the Park, was shared on Twitter yesterday and subsequently retweeted almost 2,000 times.