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| Italy’s Famed Palio Horsemen Decline Royal Invitation | Italy’s Famed Palio Horsemen Decline Royal Invitation |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| ROME — When Her Majesty calls, the commoners hasten? Not necessarily. | |
| Especially if the commoners in question are the proud representatives of the Palio, the famed horse race in Tuscany, who have said they will not join the festivities planned in May for the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. | Especially if the commoners in question are the proud representatives of the Palio, the famed horse race in Tuscany, who have said they will not join the festivities planned in May for the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. |
| Invited to join others in an equestrian showcase, the Palio organizers had made special requests to maintain the “prestige and decorum” of the event in “mutual satisfaction,” they said. Those could not be fulfilled, however. | Invited to join others in an equestrian showcase, the Palio organizers had made special requests to maintain the “prestige and decorum” of the event in “mutual satisfaction,” they said. Those could not be fulfilled, however. |
| “Mostly for organizational, but also ethical issues, the conditions were not there,” the Magistrato delle Contrade di Siena, the body that oversees the 17 districts of Siena, where the race is held, said in a statement on Wednesday. | “Mostly for organizational, but also ethical issues, the conditions were not there,” the Magistrato delle Contrade di Siena, the body that oversees the 17 districts of Siena, where the race is held, said in a statement on Wednesday. |
| The debate over participating in the queen’s birthday celebrations had roiled the Tuscan city for months, ever since HPower Group, a British event management company, had invited the contrade, the city’s competing districts, to perform at Windsor Castle in a parade that will feature 900 horses and 1,500 participants from around the world. | The debate over participating in the queen’s birthday celebrations had roiled the Tuscan city for months, ever since HPower Group, a British event management company, had invited the contrade, the city’s competing districts, to perform at Windsor Castle in a parade that will feature 900 horses and 1,500 participants from around the world. |
| Voicing the widespread concern in Siena that the parade might have misrepresented, or even underrepresented, the Tuscan medieval horse race, the Palio organizers had requested a six-minute show time, and the participation of at least two standard-bearers and a drummer from each district. | Voicing the widespread concern in Siena that the parade might have misrepresented, or even underrepresented, the Tuscan medieval horse race, the Palio organizers had requested a six-minute show time, and the participation of at least two standard-bearers and a drummer from each district. |
| Selecting fewer representatives would have generated endless polemics among the fiercely competitive districts, many feared. | Selecting fewer representatives would have generated endless polemics among the fiercely competitive districts, many feared. |
| “We were honest with the Palio Contrade about our ambitions to produce something unique for the queen but they declined our offer,” HPower Group said in an emailed statement. “We respect that decision and their desire to protect the integrity of the Palio.” | “We were honest with the Palio Contrade about our ambitions to produce something unique for the queen but they declined our offer,” HPower Group said in an emailed statement. “We respect that decision and their desire to protect the integrity of the Palio.” |
| The parade for the queen is scheduled to last 90 minutes and will be replicated for four nights, featuring horseback performers like the Royal Cavalry of Oman, the Chilean Huasos, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and 100 military and Commonwealth pipers. | The parade for the queen is scheduled to last 90 minutes and will be replicated for four nights, featuring horseback performers like the Royal Cavalry of Oman, the Chilean Huasos, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and 100 military and Commonwealth pipers. |
| One night will be broadcast live on television. However, the allure of the global limelight did not enchant the Sienese. | One night will be broadcast live on television. However, the allure of the global limelight did not enchant the Sienese. |
| “Ours is not a haughty refusal, I want to clarify that,” Bruno Valentini, mayor of Siena, said in a phone interview. “But the Palio is not acrobatics or juggling, it’s a solemn and complex festivity. Just the anthem lasts three minutes. How could we respect the timing?” | “Ours is not a haughty refusal, I want to clarify that,” Bruno Valentini, mayor of Siena, said in a phone interview. “But the Palio is not acrobatics or juggling, it’s a solemn and complex festivity. Just the anthem lasts three minutes. How could we respect the timing?” |
| Representatives of the contrade have rarely left the city in recent history. In the 1930s, under Mussolini, they performed at a flag-throwing ceremony for Hitler, who was visiting Florence. | Representatives of the contrade have rarely left the city in recent history. In the 1930s, under Mussolini, they performed at a flag-throwing ceremony for Hitler, who was visiting Florence. |
| They also traveled to Rome in the 1970s, when Pope Paul VI proclaimed St. Catherine, from Siena, doctor of the church. Those were, however, unmissable events. | They also traveled to Rome in the 1970s, when Pope Paul VI proclaimed St. Catherine, from Siena, doctor of the church. Those were, however, unmissable events. |
| In general, many in Siena believe that taking the historical parade outside the city walls distorts its nature, which is deeply connected to the city’s shell-shaped square and its white and greenish-black marble cathedral with a Gothic touch. | In general, many in Siena believe that taking the historical parade outside the city walls distorts its nature, which is deeply connected to the city’s shell-shaped square and its white and greenish-black marble cathedral with a Gothic touch. |
| Even when the crew of the 2008 James Bond movie, “Quantum of Solace,” decided to film the Palio race and its emblematic flags and scarves, they went through a meticulous review. | Even when the crew of the 2008 James Bond movie, “Quantum of Solace,” decided to film the Palio race and its emblematic flags and scarves, they went through a meticulous review. |
| Each frame showing Siena and the contrade was reviewed carefully by the consortium that protects the Palio’s image, Alessandro Orlandini, a local historian, recalled. | Each frame showing Siena and the contrade was reviewed carefully by the consortium that protects the Palio’s image, Alessandro Orlandini, a local historian, recalled. |
| “The Palio is a strong element for the city identity, religious and secular at the same time,” Mr. Orlandini said. “This is not a matter of narrow-mindedness; we respect our tradition.” | “The Palio is a strong element for the city identity, religious and secular at the same time,” Mr. Orlandini said. “This is not a matter of narrow-mindedness; we respect our tradition.” |