Blank cartridges, eggs and even a ROSE: Previous times when Charles, the Queen and Prince Philip came under fire in the line of duty
- In 1981, Marcus Sarjeant fired six blanks at The Queen during Trooping the Colour ceremony on The Mall
- Charles was also targeted with blanks when he was visiting Sydney in 1994
- The then Prince of Wales was slapped around the face with a rose wielded by a school girl in Latvia in 2001
- The Queen and Prince Philip were targeted with eggs during a visit to New Zealand in 1986
King Charles being targeted with eggs is not the first time that senior royals have come under fire in public.
Both Charles and his late mother the Queen have been shot at with blanks in the past, whilst Her Majesty also had eggs thrown at her during a visit to New Zealand with Prince Philip in 1986.
Charles was targeted in a less concerning way in 2001, when a protester slapped him across the face with a red rose.
1981: Marcus Sargeant fires blanks at the Queen
The Queen was riding down The Mall during a Trooping the Colour parade in 1981 when 17-year-old Marcus Sarjeant fired six blank shots at her.
He was tackled by a soldier and the police before being arrested and charged.
Although the Queen had to calm her horse, named Burmese, she continued with the ceremony.
Sarjeant was later jailed for five years under the 1842 Treason Act.
The last person to be convicted of a similar offence was Nazi collaborator William Joyce during the Second World War.
The Queen was riding down The Mall during a Trooping the Colour parade in 1981 when 17-year-old Marcus Sarjeant fired blank shots at her. He was tackled by a soldier and the police before being arrested and charged
Sarjeant had previously made attempts to join the police and fire services and had also tried to join the Royal Marines. He also attempted to join the Army but left after only two days of induction.
He became involved in the anti-Royalist movement and bought two imitation Colt Python revolvers for £66.90. Both weapons were only capable of firing blanks, but Sarjeant had tried and failed to get live ammunition for his father’s handgun.
Sarjeant sent a letter to Buckingham Palace before the attack. It read: ‘Your Majesty. Don’t go to the Trooping the Colour ceremony because there is an assassin set up to kill you, waiting just outside the palace.’
However, the note ironically arrived three days after the incident.
Sarjeant was later jailed for five years under the 1842 Treason Act. The last person to be convicted of a similar offence was Nazi collaborator William Joyce during the Second World War. Above: The Queen controls her horse
The Treason Act was introduced by Queen Victoria after two men fired at her in 1842. John Francis aimed at Victoria but did not fire as she rode a carriage across The Mall.
The monarch went out again the following day to bait her would-be assassin, who this time did fire a shot before he was arrested by plainclothes policemen.
Shortly afterwards, John William Bean fired a pistol at Victoria, but it had been loaded only with paper and tobacco.
1986: The Queen and Prince Philip targeted with eggs in New Zealand
The Queen and Prince Philip were visiting New Zealand for the seventh time in 1986 when they were targeted with eggs while riding in an open top car.
The car was travelling through Auckland’s Ellerslie Racecourse as 42,000 school children watched on.
After the eggs had been thrown, the Queen was seen brushing away any residue before she nodded in reply when Philip asked her if she was ok.
The Queen and Prince Philip were visiting New Zealand for the seventh time in 1986 when they were targeted with eggs while riding in an open top car. The car was travelling through Auckland’s Ellerslie Racecourse as 42,000 school children watched on
Two women wearing white coats were then bundled away by police.
Her Majesty later made light of the incident in a joke at that evening’s banquet, saying: ‘Of course New Zealand has long been renowned for its dairy produce.
‘Though I should say, that I myself prefer my New Zealand eggs for breakfast.’
Reports at the time noted how the then New Zealand prime minister denounced the egg-throwing as ‘a shameful act of gross discourtesy’.
1994: Charles is shot at with blanks
When the then Prince Charles was on a visit to Sydney in 1994, 23-year-old student David Kang fired a shot at him from a starting pistol.
Charles had been making a speech at the time, to mark Australia Day.
Kang, who went on to become a barrister, later said that he carried out the stunt to highlight the plight of Cambodian asylum seekers being held in detention camps in Australia.
He was bundled to the ground and arrested before being found guilty of threatening unlawful violence and sentenced to 500 hours of community service.
When the then Prince Charles was on a visit to Sydney in 1994, 23-year-old student David Kang fired a shot at him from a starting pistol
2001: Latvian schoolgirl slaps Charles across the face with a rose
When Prince Charles was on a visit to Latvia in 2001, he was targeted by schoolgirl Alina Lebedyver, who was then 16.
She used a rose to slap him around the face and later said she performed the stunt to protest against the war in Afghanistan.
Lebedyver also told reporters that Britain was ‘the enemy of the world’.
She was charged with endangering the life of a foreign dignitary and faced up to 15 years in prison.
Charles made a plea for leniency and the charges were downgraded, eventually to the point where she was put under her mother’s supervision for a year.
When Prince Charles was on a visit to Latvia in 2001, he was targeted by schoolgirl Alina Lebedyver, who was then 16. She used a rose to slap him around the face and later said she performed the stunt to protest against the war in Afghanistan
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