The Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Catherine, were back in their first-ever home – Wales, today. William and Catherine visited Anglesey and Swansea. The Royal Family has remained in mourning for a week after Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral. The mourning period ended today morning. King Charles and Queen Camilla are in Scotland for the week and will be returning to the work next Monday. After a very much public grieving, Charles deserved to have this one week away from media and public scrutiny to reflect on the loss he just had.
This was the Royal couple’s first visit to the country which was also their first home since becoming the Prince and Princess of Wales. The Palace reported earlier that Prince William and Catherine are looking forward to returning back to Wales at the very first opportunity and they did. When the royal couple received the title earlier this month, their spokesperson said,
“The Prince and Princess of Wales are focussed on deepening the trust and respect of the people of Wales over time. They will approach their roles in the modest and humble way they’ve approached their work previously. The new Princess of Wales appreciates the history associated with this role but will understandably want to look to the future as she creates her own path.”
Before their marriage, William and Catherine visited Anglesey for their first official joint engagement in February 2011. They visited Trearddur Bay Lifeboat Station at Anglesey on February 24, 2011, in Trearddur, Wales. The newly engaged couple named the Trearddur Bay Lifeboat Stations new Atlantic 85 inshore RNLI lifeboat the Hereford Endeavour. The vessel was launched during the naming ceremony and the crew demonstrate some of her rescue capabilities.
What a lovely tribute they paid to Wales. Their first-ever official engagement was in Wales with RNLI and their first official engagement after becoming Prince and Princess of Wales after mourning is also in Wales and with RNLI.
After their marriage in April 2011, William and Catherine lived at the Bodorgan Hall on the Isle of Anglesey in North Wales for 3 years between 2010-2013 while William was posted there as an RAF search and rescue pilot. The 4-bedroom house was also Prince George’s first family home. The couple paid £750 per month in rent. The Prince flew a Sea King Helicopter as a Search and Rescue pilot based at RAF Valley
Here, William and Catherine stepped out for the first time in August 2013 after the birth of Prince George. They attended Ring O Fire Anglesey Coastal Ultra Marathon. William and Catherine’s stay in Wales for the first three years of their marriage reflected the time the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip enjoyed in Malta after their marriage when Prince Philip was deployed in Malta. These early years away from public life gave them time to settle into a more stable and strong family life and build a lifelong foundation for a relationship that will always be under scrutiny. It worked very well for Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth who were married for more than 7 decades and were separated by death only.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have talked about their life and experience in Wales many times with so much love and warmth, “This island has been our first home together, and it will always be an immensely special place for us both. Catherine and I look forward to returning again and again over the coming years with our family. I know that I speak for Catherine when I say that I have never in my life known somewhere as beautiful and as welcoming as Anglesey.“
It’s been confirmed that there are no plans for Prince William’s big investiture as the Prince of Wales. The last investiture was held on July 1, 1969, at Caernarfon Castle in Wales when the late Queen Elizabeth II invested her elder son Prince Charles as the Prince of Wales.
Prince William’s first official visit with his parents was also to Wales when he was 8 years old. Kensington Palace had emphasized that
These are very different times. Their focus is on deepening the ‘trust and respect of the people of Wales’ over time. The Prince and Princess will return to Wales before Christmas.
The investiture ceremony is not a traditional ceremony or part of the British Monarchy’s traditions. Usually, the Monarchs simply bestow the title on the heir apparent just like King Charles III did.
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The Royal couple arriving in Wales this morning. Four-year-old Theo Crompton presented the Princess with a posy of flowers.
This little lad has been waiting outside the lifeboat station since 8:30am with a bu ch of flowers for princess kate. Such a wholesome moment to witness they got the little lad over to hand to her personally. ❤️❤️❤️ #PrinceofWales #PrincessOfWales #Anglesey #RoyalFamily #Sweet pic.twitter.com/gHSV14IaU7
— ⭐️⭐️⭐️Gem ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@gem_louise23) September 27, 2022
Another cute video of the moment. From Hello! report,
In one sweet moment, Princess Kate met four-year-old Theo Crompton who presented the royal with a sweet bouquet of pink roses.
His mother, Rebecca Crompton, 35, said: “We were actually on the way to school when I changed my mind and decided to bring him down here for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Theo was picked from the crowd by William’s Private Secretary, Jean-Christophe Gray, so he could give the roses they had brought to the Princess of Wales.
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The Royal couple received a very warm welcome from the locals. After almost 25 years, the UK has now a publicly recognized Princess of Wales. the last Princess of Wales was Queen Camilla but she went by her other title – The Duchess of Cornwall. The last recognized Princess of Wales was Lady Diana – Prince William’s mother who became the Princess of Wales upon her marriage to William’s father the then Prince Charles in 1981 and held the title until her untimely demise.
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Last week, Prince William and Princess Catherine stepped out in Windsor to meet with the staff and volunteers who worked tirelessly to ensure The Queen’s funeral go smoothly and well-wishers do not face any difficulties while paying their respects to the late Queen.
William and Catherine’s last visit to Wales was in June this year when they were The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and brought Prince George and Princess Charlotte with them. They visited Cardiff Castle to join the celebrations marking Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee.
Today, The Prince and Princess of Wales are visiting to meet different communities across the nation to learn about the work of key charitable organisations. About the visit, Kensington Palace said, “The Prince and Princess have a deep affection for Wales, having made their first family home in Anglesey, and have thoroughly enjoyed previous visits, and the warmth and the kindness shown by the Welsh people. Their Royal Highnesses are looking forward to spending more time in Wales over the coming months and years, taking the time to strengthen their relationship with communities in all parts of Wales.“
The first stop of the day was the RNLI Holyhead life board station. Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a search and rescue charity that has been saving lives for nearly 200 years. It was founded in 1824 as the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Lives and Property from Shipwreck.
Holyhead is one of the three oldest lifeboat stations on the Welsh coast and has a remarkable history of bravery and has won 70 awards for gallantry.
The founder of the RNLI, Sir William Hillary, had royal connections, having been equerry to George III’s sixth child, Prince Fredrick Augustus. When Hillary established the RNLI on 4 March 1824, King George IV became Patron. Since then, the reigning monarch has always held the position. The current patron is King Charles III.
At RNLI, William and Catherine met with the crew, volunteers and some of those who have been supported by their local unit.
The second leg of the visit will take The Prince and Princess of Wales to St. Thomas Church, a re-developed church in Swansea which supports the local people and across the City and County of Swansea. King Charles III was scheduled to visit the church in February this year when he was the Prince of Wales but his visit was cancelled due to the gales.
At St Thomas’ Church Swansea where the old Prince of Wales had been due to visit in February but had to cancel due to the gales. Now the new Prince of Wales – his son – will be visiting instead and taking home to a gift to the king! pic.twitter.com/jZe1ZO01pk
— Rebecca English (@RE_DailyMail) September 27, 2022
1st Eastside Boys Brigade and Girls’ Association welcomed the Royal couple at St. Thomas’ church. Shortly before their arrival, the church bells rang to the tune of “God Save the King” while the well-wishers cheered for the couple. From People’s report,
“It’s wonderful that Charles bestowed the title on them,” local Sarah East, 65, tells PEOPLE. “He was always known as William of Wales as a boy. They’re so well-suited to it as they’ve lived in Anglesey and know all about Wales.
Pauline Bushrod, 80, who was also in the crowd, says: “It’s brilliant they’re here. Our future King and Queen. It could not be better that it’s them.” Another local woman from nearby Neath, adds, “It’s an honor that the new Prince of Wales is coming here to this community when they’re still mourning Her Majesty.”
The church has recently gone through a huge transformation that turned it into a thriving community hub and is now home to a vast array of services that includes a foodbank that serves 200 people every week and Baby basics which supports local families and new parents and provides them with essential items such as clothes and toiletries for new mothers and babies. Baby Basics works with midwives, health visitors and other professional bodies to provide starter packs for those in need.
You might remember that Princess Catherine worked with Baby basics, Little Village and AberNecessities in 2020 during the middle of the pandemic.
The Princess brought together nineteen British brands and retailers to donate over 10,000 new items to more than 40 baby banks nationwide. Catherine visited the UK Headquarter of Baby Basics in Sheffield, London and West Norfolk where she helped staff unpack donations, before talking to parents about how baby banks have provided them with invaluable support when they have needed it most such as teenage mums, asylum seekers, and women fleeing domestic violence and trafficking.
The church also facilitates the homeless and provides them with food, showers and toilets with its project ‘Swansea Night Shelter’. A non-profit cafe and community training kitchen are also part of the church facilities. The Swansea Night Shelter is a network of churches that all take turns to open their doors to provide a safe place to sleep and a meal for the homeless throughout the coldest months of the year. The Port Tennant night shelter is currently located in St Stephens Church and is open from January through to March.
Homelessness is a cause very close to Prince William’s heart. Earlier this year he marked his milestone 40th birthday by selling ‘Big Issue’.
William also penned an article in that month’s issue,
“I was 11 when I first visited a homeless shelter with my mother, who in her own inimitable style was determined to shine a light on an overlooked, misunderstood problem. I have always believed in using my platform to help tell those stories and to bring attention and action to those who are struggling. I plan to do that now I’m turning 40, even more than I have in the past.
I have always believed in using my platform to help tell those stories and to bring attention and action to those who are struggling. I plan to do that now I’m turning 40, even more than I have in the past. So, for my part, I commit to continue doing what I can to shine a spotlight on this solvable issue not just today, but in the months and years to come.”
St. Thomas Church runs a food distribution network which collects food from supermarkets at the end of each day and distributes it from the church to prevent food waste and to help end food poverty as part of its initiative ‘Make Lunch’. Make Lunch is a national scheme that aims to feed children during the school holidays whose parents may find the extra meals a challenge to provide when the children aren’t in school.
And she’s still helping! pic.twitter.com/z7fGa6JOoM
— Rebecca English (@RE_DailyMail) September 27, 2022
At the church, William and Catherine enjoyed a musical performance by the local orchestra that had practised the performance for King Charles’s cancelled February visit.
The Princess tells children “we’ll have to tell him (The King) what beautiful voices you’ve got,” after hearing they had planned to sing for him in February: pic.twitter.com/kOvghuciJX
— Emily Nash (@emynash) September 27, 2022
Outside the church, Prince William and Catherine met with the locals and did a short walkabout. A video shared by a local Lucy Vladev on Twitter.
Spending a lot of time meeting people here and chatting pic.twitter.com/pNzUsdF7Ir
— Lucy Vladev (@LucyVladev) September 27, 2022
Cathrine wore LK Bennett Spencer Red Recycled Wool Blend Snaffle-Detail Coat. Thanks to KateMiddStyle on Twitter for the information. The £599 coat was described as, “A statement coat with heritage-inspired snaffle detail, the Spencer coat sits in our LKB Conscious collection. Crafted from a luxurious red recycled wool blend fabric by Manteco* – the leading textile company for sustainability and high-end fabrics – it’s a single-breasted style with gold dome buttons, an oversized collar, a tailored silhouette and front patch pockets finished with gold snaffle detail. Wear it over tailored trousers and a knit or your favourite winter dress.”
Catherine paired the outfit with a Boden Clothing Cashmere Crew Neck Jumper
with Roland Mouret Axon Wide-leg Trousers.
She topped the outfit with Ba&sh Betty Buckle Belt.
The Duchess was wearing her Russell and Bromley 100 Point Blade Heel Court Shoes that she debuted earlier this month when she visited the Commonwealth Troops participating in The Queen’s funeral.
Catherine was carrying her Grace Han Love Letter Small Top Handle Bag.
The Princess of Wales was wearing her Spells of Love Alia Hoops.
In other news, King Charles III has released his new cypher. The King selected the cypher from a series of designs by the College of Arms. From today, the new cypher will appear on all franked items of mail from the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace for all mail leaving the Palace. The Cypher is the Monarch’s Monogram featuring his initials with the title ‘Rex’ that means ‘King’ in Latin. The Scottish version of the Cypher features the Scottish Crown.
The decision to replace cyphers will be at the discretion of individual organisations and the process will be gradual as per Palace’s announcement.
Earlier, the Palace shared the picture of the King with the famous Red Box. Every Monarch receives a red-coloured box every day filled with papers related to Government, Commonwealth, Charities and societies. The documents are sent from the Private Secretary’s Office to The King, wherever he may be in residence.
The Duke of Norfolk, the head of the Coronation committee has recently been banned from driving due to the violations. During the court case hearing it came out that the coronation date is already fixed. It’s just a matter of time before it will be announced. As the Royal Mourning period is over and with King coming back to Royal duties on Monday we all are looking towards the future of the Monarchy after this month’s huge loss.