The King and Queen have appointed a female crown equerry, the first woman to hold one of the most senior roles in the royal household, whose job is to oversee all royal transport — including horses.
Colonel Erica Bridge, 52, a keen horsewoman, was picked by Charles and Camilla, who interviewed a shortlist of candidates for the role.
Bridge, who is the defence attaché at the UK embassy in Rome, will take up her position in the spring. She will succeed Colonel Toby Browne, 70, who is retiring after 15 years as crown equerry.
The crown equerry “meets the official and private requirements of the royal family at the highest level” and is responsible for providing carriage processions at ceremonial occasions such as state visits, coronations, Trooping the Colour and Royal Ascot.
Erica Bridge, who has been appointed the first female crown equerry, took part in Trooping the Colour in 2003
NIGEL NORRINGTON/CAMERA PRESS
They are also in charge of all the royal family’s chauffeur-driven cars for public engagements and their private cars, and oversee the training and care of Royal Mews horses and staff.
In a sign of the monarchy’s operations further shifting from Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle, it can also be revealed that the Royal Mews, which has been based at the palace for 200 years, will move from London to Windsor.
It is understood the move, which is already under way, is largely due to logistical reasons because senior members of the royal family no longer live in London. Buckingham Palace, which has been undergoing a ten-year, £369 million renovation, no longer serves as the London residence of the monarch. Charles, 77, has his private office at the palace but he and Camilla stay at Clarence House when they are in London. They are not expected to move into the palace when the refurbishment works are complete in 2027.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have recently moved from Adelaide Cottage to Forest Lodge, their new home on the Windsor estate where they will continue to live when they are king and queen.
While the Waleses maintain their private office at Kensington Palace, their former London residence, they are not expected to live in the capital again. Buckingham Palace has not been occupied by the monarch since March 2020, when Queen Elizabeth left London for Windsor during the Covid pandemic.
Bridge, a mother of three and a Newcastle University graduate with a degree in French and Spanish, has more than 30 years of experience in the army with a career spanning operational and ceremonial appointments in the UK and overseas. In 2007, she became the first female commanding officer of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery.
A royal source said: “Erica brings deep expertise in equine management, ceremonial planning and logistical operations, combined with a proven record of values-based leadership and governance.”
Last week, Bridge discreetly attended the German state visit at Windsor Castle, shadowing her predecessor, Browne, and watching proceedings from inside the castle’s quadrangle for the carriage procession and ceremonial welcome of President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife, Elke Büdenbender.
Bridge’s appointment follows that of Captain Kat Anderson, who last year became the first female equerry to the sovereign. Charles appointed Anderson as his assistant equerry in February 2024, to help with the running of his official diary and accompany him on public engagements.
Bridge has more than 30 years’ experience in the army
MURRAY SANDERS/ANL/SHUTTERSTOCK
Anderson, who was on secondment from the Cabinet Office and No 10, where she worked as an assistant private secretary to the national security advisers, served the King for an agreed short-term secondment and has now moved to another role outside the royal household.
Figures from this year’s sovereign grant report showed that 54 per cent of employees in the royal household are women.
The role of crown equerry is separate from that of equerry to the sovereign. The King’s current senior equerry is Lieutenant Colonel Jonny Thompson of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, who is often seen accompanying the King and Queen on official public engagements, and who also oversees co-ordinating their private diaries.