“SHE IS BRIGHT LIGHT.” A YOUNG SOLDIER REMEMBERED HAS MADE HER FINAL JOURNEY AFTER A TRAGIC HORSE FALL AT WINDSOR. 
Lance Bombardier Ciara Sullivan was just 24 when the accident happened at the Royal Windsor Horse Show. The King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery soldier suffered fatal injuries after falling from her horse shortly after leaving the arena on May 15. Now, she has been honored in a deeply moving final journey.
A young soldier who died after falling from her horse has been remembered as a “bright light” during her final journey.
Lance bombardier Ciara Sullivan, 24, from the King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, suffered fatal injuries in an incident at the Royal Windsor Horse Show on May 15.
She fell after exiting the arena.
Her coffin, draped in a union flag and carried on a gun carriage, made the journey from the Royal Mews to the Guards’ Chapel, where her funeral was held.
A tribute from her commanding officer, issued by the Ministry of Defence, said: “Lance bombardier Ciara Sullivan, ‘Sully’ to her friends, was to all who had the privilege of serving alongside her, a bright light in any room she entered.
“An immensely professional soldier and an exceptional jockey, she approached every day within The Troop with an infectious energy.
It said this energy “lifted those around her without effort or intention.”
She was deployed at the late Queen’s state funeral in 2022 and the coronation of Charles and Camilla the following year.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said previously that the King was “greatly shocked and saddened” to learn of L/Bdr Sullivan’s death and that he would be in touch with her family to share his condolences.
State trumpeters from the Band of the Household Cavalry played fanfares as her coffin arrived.
A three-round volley was fired in Wellington Barracks, followed by the presentation of her cap and medals to her family.
Her horse Neymar took part in the procession with her riding boots reversed in the stirrups, a traditional military tribute.
L/Bdr Sullivan began her army training in Pirbright, Surrey, in November 2020 and joined the King’s Troop in June 2021.
She had recently qualified as an advanced regimental riding instructor.
The Ministry of Defence said she was passionate about the troop and took part in every activity available, including show jumping and the troop race.
Floral tributes spelling out “Sully” were placed alongside photographs of her in uniform riding her horse.
