Commemoration
A Lone Charger
ANZAC Day marches and other memorial parades are often led by a lone, riderless horse, with a pair of boots pointing backwards in the saddle's stirrups. In the spirit of an even more ancient tradition, Saxon people used to bury a great warrior's horse with him so that it could serve him in the afterlife. This practice was continued in some European countries until the late eighteenth century. In modern times, custom has been kinder to the horse and it has been led along as part of its master's funeral procession; with his boots, like the arms of his soldiers, reversed as a sign of respect. In some ANZAC Day parades a lone charger has been added to the parade as an additional symbol of respect and mourning, often for the men of the light horse units.
Sir Harry Chauvel's horse with the ride boots set in
reverse, at his funeral in 1945.
AWM 087280
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