Irish State Coach Irish State Coach The Irish State Coach is an enclosed, four-horse-drawn carriage used by the British Royal Family. It is the traditional horse-drawn coach in which the British monarch travels from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster to formally open the new legislative session of the UK Parliament. The original Irish State Coach was built as a speculative venture in 1851 by John Hutton & Sons of Dublin, who held a Royal Warrant as coachbuilders to Queen Victoria. Exhibited at the 1853 Great Industrial Exhibition, it was admired by the Queen, purchased and delivered to the Royal Mews. From
Dara Monarch Dara Monarch Dara Monarch (11 March 1979 – January 2005) was a British-bred, Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In 1981 he showed very promising form in Ireland, winning the Anglesey Stakes and finishing third in the Railway Stakes. In the following year he won the McCairns Trial Stakes on his seasonal debut and then rebounded from an unplaced effort in the 2000 Guineas to record impressive victories in the Irish 2000 Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes. He was then affected by illness and ran poorly in his three remaining races. After standing as a breeding stallion in Ireland he