The revelation that 100 bears die each year to make the King’s Guard hats has left people furious.
The hats of the King’s Guard are iconic, but people have been shocked to discover the story behind how they are made.
Read on for the full story.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, there’s a new British monarch.
King Charles ascended to the throne aged seventy-three.
This comes after Queen Elizabeth II passed away earlier this year.
The monarch was ninety-six years old.
This in turn means that the monarchy will have to deal with a few changes…
From things like the face of the monarch on cash to a change in the national anthem, tweaks will have to be made.
However, the British Royal Family is an age-old institution.
And with age-old institutions tends to come some traditions that will never change…
One such thing is the King’s Guard.
Well, aside from the fact that they were previously called the Queen’s Guard!
The guards are an iconic part of the British isles.
If you close your eyes and think of Britain, you think of these bad boys, right?
However, the guards have found themselves in a bit of hot water recently.
Well, not the guards themselves, but in fact the hats that they wear!
As per LADbible, the hats are made from real bearskin.
In fact, the tall fur hats are actually known by the simple name ‘bearskin’.
Specifically, the hats are made from Canadian black bears.
Unless it’s an officer’s hat, then it will be made from brown bear skin and is in turn dyed black.
The headwear dates all the way back to the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
Since then, the fur hats have been a staple of Britain’s iconic look.
However, the British army uses the skins of up to 100 bears each year.
And naturally this doesn’t come without controversy…
People have tried many times to do something about the hats.
Animal rights group PETA have repeatedly called for the hats to be replaced by synthetic materials.
As has fashion designer Stella McCartney…
However, the Ministry of Defense has repeatedly pushed back these attempts.
They claim that the faux replacements led to “unacceptable rates of water shedding” onto the heads of guards.
Yikes!
Another statement began: “We have examined various alternative materials in the past.”
Yet they came to the same conclusion: “But none has come remotely close to matching the natural properties of bear fur in terms of shape, weight and its ability to repel moisture in wet conditions.”
The Minister of State for Defence Procuremen, Jeremy Quin, explained the situation further…
“Our analysis of recent tests conducted on a fake fur fabric commissioned by PETA, showed it met 1 of the 5 requirements to be considered as a viable alternative for ceremonial caps.
“Whilst it met the basic standard for water absorption, it showed unacceptable rates of water shedding and performed poorly on the visual assessment.”
He concluded that the department was making no moves to bring any man-made fabrics forward.
This has led to outbursts of outrage from people all across the globe.
Naturally, people took to social media to vent their concerns…
One person wrote: “Culling, trapping, hunting. The choice of words with practically the same meaning. Killing. Killing for sport and vanity.”
Another said: “It needs to stop now! Totally unnecessary to use real fur.”
However, not everyone agreed…
“If anyone saw a bear in the wild they would instantly wish it was a hat,” one person said.
A fourth wrote: “Bloody hell, just wait till they find out that their boots are made of leather.”
What do you think?