The Conversation (0)
Breanna Robinson
Dec 29, 2021
A child was trampled by guards at the Tower of London in a shocking TikTok video.
The clip showed two guards - dressed in blue-grey coats, bearskin caps, and holding rifles - marching in unison as a small crowd watched.
“My sister went to England; first day in,” the onscreen text said.
As the guards marched, one of them appeared to shout out a warning a split-second before colliding with the child, stepping over him, and then carrying on marching.
Onlookers can be heard gasping in shock as the child falls to the ground and then quickly gets back to his feet.
Almost immediately, a woman who was presumably the child’s mother or carer, rushed over to check if the child was OK.
The video itself on TikTok received 1.6m views at the time of writing.
@user7312510220627 Nobody is safe 😢 #england #royalguards #foryou #foryoupage #london
Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter
People in the comments of the video were divided, with some saying that it’s known that people have to move out of the way for the guards.
“Make way for the Queen’s guard is pretty common knowledge,” someone wrote.
But someone else responded with: “It’s a child? They might not have known that - have some sympathy.”
“Do that to my child; we are fighting,” wrote a third.
Someone else said that the “soldier didn’t hurt him on purpose.”
”I did that job once. The soldier didn’t hurt him on purpose, but they are on guard and move for absolutely no one unless ordered to do so.”
Check out some other reactions to the incident below.
@NewsForAIl Just no need for this— Shane Levitt (@Shane Levitt) 1640787463
@PhallusCrystal @NewsForAIl There are children who seek contact at inappropriate times. These particular children d… https://t.co/slJdgJ92Ib— Parochena☃️twitch.tv/parochena (@Parochena☃️twitch.tv/parochena) 1640789312
@NewsForAIl Yeah its actual soldiers on guard duty not something fun for the tourists— Fuzzwuzzle (@Fuzzwuzzle) 1640787685
@_T_W_1878 @parochena @PhallusCrystal @NewsForAIl https://t.co/mlSOnbBA0V— brozzeh (@brozzeh) 1640789972
@NewsForAIl @PoliticsForAlI I blame the parents. Why were none of them telling the kid to get out the way when they… https://t.co/JJeBFOp0fW— Andrew Storey 🏴🇬🇧🌹 (@Andrew Storey 🏴🇬🇧🌹) 1640787869
Just watching certain British people blaming the child or his parents…if this had happened in another country I’m s… https://t.co/S53YfwM8mn— AssedBaig (@AssedBaig) 1640797291
If members of the public get in the way of their duties, the guards are allowed to shout at people to get them to move out of the way.
They have previously shoved people when their warnings aren’t heeded, and many videos on YouTube also show this practice in action.
Speaking with Indy100, an Army spokesperson said the following: “The Guardsmen on duty warned members of the public that a patrol was approaching but the child, unfortunately, ran out in front of the soldier unexpectedly. The soldier tried to step over the child and continued on his duty. Following the incident, the soldier checked on the child and was reassured that all was well.”
This article was updated on 30 December to include a comment from a Ministry of Defence Army spokesperson.