There have been many tributes to The Queen in the build-up to Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee, but few which have taken so much time and intense artistic effort as the lifesize bronze statue by sculptor Caroline Wallace which was unveiled by HRH the Duke of Wessex at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Friday, May 27th.
“It’s the most interesting ‒ and most challenging ‒ commission I’ve had,” said Caroline Wallace, a Gloucestershire-based sculptor whose lifesize bronzes also include that of The Queen Mother’s racehorse Special Cargo at Sandown Racecourse and the Olympic gold medal-winning showjumper Hello Sanctos.
Commissioned in November 2020, the statue depicts The Queen mounted on her favourite charger, Burmese and is modelled on Her Majesty at Trooping the Colour in 1984. The mare Burmese was given to The Queen by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in 1969 and was ridden by her at Trooping the Colour for 18 consecutive years.
The Queen is shown as wearing the uniform of the Grenadier Guards, as the dress regulations at Sandhurst are based on those of the Grenadier Guards. To research the precise and highly complicated detail of The Queen’s uniform and Burmese’s tack and saddlecloths, Caroline visited the Royal Mews and the Guards Museum at Wellington Barracks ‒ which was opened specially for her ‒ and consulted royal stud groom Terry Pendry. It was also very important to Caroline, who has spent most of her life riding and working with horses, as well as sculpting and painting them, that she got Burmese’s physical conformation absolutely right.
Caroline Wallace at work in the studio. The statue was commissioned in 2020 and unveiled 19 months later. (Miranda Meiklejohn photo)
“It’s not so much the time it takes, it’s the observation,” said Caroline. “It is a process of constant appraisal; I have been refining and redoing little things the whole time. I’ve had lots of wonderful commissions, but this is different, in terms of detail and because it’s the first time I’ve done a lifesize bronze with the subject mounted on the horse.”
She has left nothing to chance. Side-saddle experts have come and advised on The Queen’s leg position in the saddle and on the length of her side-saddle skirt. A respected judge of show hunters and a well-known equine vet have commented on the correctness of the horse’s physical attributes ‒ as has Caroline’s son Major Harry Wallace’s partner, New Zealand international event rider Lucy Jackson.
Caroline worked with horses after leaving school, first for the hotelier George Goring and then for Alison Oliver, looking after Princess Anne’s event horses while she was there. She groomed for Princess Anne at international competitions such as the European Championships in Kiev, Russia, and was responsible for Doublet, Goodwill and Columbus. Caroline later worked for the British eventing team vet Peter Scott Dunn. She was a successful event rider herself, winning at the first three-day event held at Bramham, Yorkshire, in 1976.
She began sculpting when she broke her leg while pregnant with her daughter, and was unable to ride or drive. Caroline’s commissions can be found all over the world, including Ascot, Sandown and Doncaster Racecourses, and include three Grand National winners.
“All aspects of my life have led to this very special commission to sculpt The Queen for Sandhurst,” says Caroline. “It is a privilege, and it is wonderful to see it at Sandhurst.”
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