HM Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee

The year 2022 Marks HM Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee and celebrates 70 years since she ascended the throne in 1952 and became queen. HER Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee culminates in a four-day Bank Holiday weekend from Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June. beginning with a special Queen’s Official Birthday Parade or Trooping The Colour to mark the platinum jubilee. The event dates back to 1748 and was performed first during the reign of Charles II when it was decided that the parade would be used to mark the official birthday of the Sovereign and it has been an annual event since 1760. The parade begins at Buckingham palace down the Mall past St James Park and the Cenotaph, through Admiralty Arch on to Horseguards Parade

This year Both Prince Charles and Princess Anne both took part in the event with Prince Charles prince of Wales taking the salute on behalf of HM queen Elizabeth, WHO observed proceedings. Others attending included, Prince William and Catherine, the duke and duchess of  Cambridge plus George and charlotte,  Camilla duchess of Cornwall, Prince Edward and Sophie, Duke and Duchess Wessex, Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Duke of Kent, Princess Anne the Princess  Royal, who is colonel of the Royal Blues and Royals, and her husband Mark Philips, and Princess Alexandra. The duke and Duchess of Sussex Prince Harry and Meghan Merkle were also present but did not appear in Public and Prince Andrew did not attend.

For the event the  1st Battallion Irish guards had the honour of escorting the colour led by their Irish Wolfhound Regimental mascot Turlough Mor. Also Taking part in the parade were the Welsh Guards, Royal Horse Artillery, Irish Guards, Life guards, household cavalry, blues and Royals, British grenadiers, the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and the Mounted Bands, The King’s Troop. They were accompanied by Music played by the Massed Bands for the event which included the National Anthem, The Mists of shannon, Ladysmith, Les huguenots, The Platinum Jubilee March, Escort to the Colour, Grenadiers slow march, The girl i left behind me, Bob’s Own, When Irish eyes are smiling, Irish guards slow march, Rhythm of the line, men of Harlech, the life guards, and Irish saffron. This was Followed by a parade led by the Irish Guards, back from Horseguards parade, through admiralty arch, past the Cenotaph down the mall past Buckingham Palace. To mark the platinum Jubilee A special 82 Gun salute was also fired in Green Park. 

Following a short interval The Queen  then appeared on the Palace balcony accompanied by Prince Charles and Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William and Catherine – the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge plus George and charlotte,  Prince Edward and Sophie, Duke and Duchess Wessex, Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Duke of Kent, Princess Anne the Princess  Royal, who is colonel of the Royal Blues and Royals, and her husband Mark Philips, and Princess Alexandra.

This was followed by a special Platinum Jubilee Flypast featuring Royal Navy 1 Wildcat 2 Merlin and 3 Apache helicopters, 3 Puma helicopters, the Battle of Britain Memorial flight, featuring an Avro Lancaster, Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, 3 DC130 Hercules aircraft, A 400m Atlas cargo plane, MRA1 (P-8A) Poseidon Patrol aircraft, RC-135W Rivet Joint surveillance aircraft, Voyager AAR Tanker, F-35b lighting 2, RAF FGR4 Eurofighter typhoon, 4 RAF Hawk trainers, 15 more RAF FGR4 Eurofighter Typhoons also flew arranged in the number 70. The flypast culminated in the Red Arrows aerobatic display team also flying RAF Hawks

There are also many other local events taking place To commemorate the platinum Jubilee. Among them them The Battle of Britain memorial flight are flying past the Severn Valley Railway from Bewdley to Bridgnorth. Bridgnorth Carnival takes place Friday 3 June. On Thursday evening a beacon will be lit at Buckingham Palace. Then 2,000 towns, villages and cities throughout the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and overseas territories will also light beacons simultaneously. The ceremony at the palace will feature The Queen’s Green Canopy of Trees installation, which reflects the Royal Family’s championing of environmental causes. Beacons were also lit at Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897 and the Queen’s Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees in 1977, 2002 and 2012. Balmoral and Sandringham will be opened to the public throughout the weekend.

HRH Prince Charles

His Royal Highness Charles, Prince of Wales (Charles Philip Arthur George) was born 14 November 1948. He is the eldest child and heir apparent of Queen Elzabeth II. Known alternatively in Scotland as Duke of Rothesay and in South West England as Duke of Cornwall, he is the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, having held the position since 1952 and also the oldest heir to the throne since 1714. He is the first grandchild of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth and was Baptised in the palace’s Music Room on 15 December 1948. The prince’s godparents were: the King (his maternal grandfather); the King of Norway (his cousin), Queen Mary (his maternal great-grandmother);Princess Margaret (his maternal aunt); Prince George of Greece and Denmark (his paternal great-uncle, the Dowager Marchioness of Milford Haven (his paternal great-grandmother); the Lady Brabourne (his cousin); and the Hon David Bowes-Lyon (his maternal great-uncle’

When Charles was aged three his mother’s accession as Queen Elizabeth II made him heir apparent. As the sovereign’s eldest son, he automatically took the titles Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland, in addition to being a prince of the United Kingdom. Charles attended his mother’s coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953. A governess, Catherine Peebles, was appointed and undertook his education between the ages of five and eight. In 1955 Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would attend school rather than have a private tutor. Charles was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 26 July 1958. Though his investiture was not conducted until 1 July 1969 in a televised ceremony held at Caernarfon Castle.The following year he took his seat in the House of Lords and became the first member of the Royal Family since King George I to attend a British Cabinet meeting, having been invited by Prime Minister James Callaghan. Charles first attended Hill House School in west London, Charles then attended two of his father’s former schools, Cheam Preparatory School in Berkshire, England, and Gordonstoun School which his father, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, had attended as a child, and which he described as “Colditz in kilts”.

He spent two terms in 1966 at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia, during which time he visited Papua New Guinea on a school trip with his history tutor, Michael Collins Persse. Upon his return to Gordonstoun, Charles emulated his father in becoming Head Boy. He left in 1967, with six GCE O-levels, and two A Levels in history and French at grades B and C respectively Charles proceeded straight from secondary school into university, as opposed to joining theBritish Armed Forces. In October 1967, the Prince was admitted to Trinity College, Cambridge University, where he readanthropology, archaeology, and history. During his second year, Charles attended the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth, studying Welsh history and language for a term. He graduated from Cambridge with a 2:2 Bachelor of Arts In 1970, the first heir apparent to earn a university degree. In 1975, he was awarded a Master of Arts degree from Cambridge, per the university’s tradition. After earning a bachelor of arts degree from Trinity College, Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976 After requesting and receiving Royal Air Force training during his second year at Cambridge, he flew himself to the Royal Air Force College Cranwell to train as a jet pilot. Following the passing-out parade that September, he embarked on a naval career, enrolling in a six-week course at the Royal Naval College Dartmouth and then serving on the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk (1971–1972) and the frigates HMS Minerva (1972–1973) and HMS Jupiter (1974). He also qualified as a helicopter pilot at RNAS Yeovilton in 1974, just prior to joining 845 Naval Air Squadron, operating from HMS Hermes. In 1976, he took command of the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington for his last ten months serving actively in the navy. He learned to fly on a Chipmunk basic pilot trainer, a BAC Jet Provost jet trainer, and a Beagle Basset multi-engine trainer; he then regularly flew the Hawker Siddeley Andover, Westland Wessex and BAe 146 aircraft

Charles also began to take on more public duties, founding The Prince’s Trust in 1976. & expressed an interest in serving as Governor-General of Australia. After founding The Prince’s Trust in 1976, Charles has established sixteen more charitable organisations, and now serves as president of all of those Together, these form a loose alliance called The Prince’s Charities, which describes itself as “the largest multi-cause charitable enterprise in the United Kingdom, raising over £100million annually … [and is] active across a broad range of areas including education and young people, environmental sustainability, the built environment, responsible business and enterprise and international. The Prince’s Charities Canada was established in a similar fashion to its namesake in the UK. Charles is also patron of over 350 other charities and organisations, and carries out duties related to these throughout the Commonwealth realms; for example, he uses his tours of Canada as a way to help draw attention to youth, the disabled, the environment, the arts, medicine, the elderly, heritage conservation, and education. In Canada, Charles has supported humanitarian projects, for example taking part, along with his two sons, in the ceremonies marking the 1998 International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In 2013, Charles donated an unspecified sum of money to the British Red Cross Syria Crisis appeal and DEC Syria appeal, which is run by 14 U.K charities to help victims of Syria’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.Charles was one of the first world leaders to express strong concerns about the human rights record of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu, initiating objections in the international arena, and subsequently supported the FARA Foundation a charity for Romanian orphans and abandoned children. .

The Prince of Wales has openly expressed his views on architecture and urban planning, asserting that he “cares deeply about issues such as the environment, architecture, inner-city renewal, and the quality of life and his interests encompass a range of humanitarian and social issuesTwo of his charities (The Prince’s Regeneration Trust and The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community) promote his views, on archetechture and the environment. He has long championed organic farming and sought to raise world awareness of the dangers facing the natural environment, such asclimate change. As an environmentalist, he has received numerous awards and recognition from environmental groups around the world. His 2010 book, Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World, won the Nautilus Book Award. He has been outspoken on the role of architecture in society and the conservation of historic buildings, and produced a book on the subject called A Vision of Britain: A Personal View of Architecture in 1989. He has also promoted herbal and other alternative medical treatment. Charles helped establish a national trust for the built environment in Canada after lamenting, in 1996, the unbridled destruction of many of the country’s historic urban cores.

He offered his assistance to the Department of Canadian Heritage in creating a trust modelled on Britain’s National Trust, a plan that was implemented with the passage of the 2007 Canadian federal budget. In 1999, the Prince agreed to the use of his title for the Prince of Wales Prize for Municipal Heritage Leadership, awarded by the Heritage Canada Foundation to municipal governments that have shown sustained commitment to the conservation of historic places. While visiting the United States and surveying the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, Charles received the National Building Museum’s Vincent Scully Prize in 2005, for his efforts in regard to architecture; he donated $25,000 of the prize money towards restoring storm-damaged communities.From 1997, the Prince of Wales has visited Romania to view and highlight the destruction of Orthodox monasteries and Transylvanian Saxon villages during the Communist rule ofNicolae Ceauşescu.] Charles is patron of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, a Romanian conservation and regeneration organisation and has purchased a house in Romania. Charles also has “a deep understanding of Islamic art andarchitecture”, and has been involved in the construction of a building and garden at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies that combine Islamic and Oxford architectural styles. In 2010, The Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment decided to help reconstruct and redesign buildings in Port-au-Prince, Haiti after the capital was destroyed by the 2010 Haiti earthquake

In 1980, he wrote a children’s book titled The Old Man of Lochnagar which was later adapted into an animation short film, a musical stage play and a ballet. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer and they had two sons, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (born 1982), and Prince Harry of Wales (born 1984). In 1996, the couple divorced, following well-publicised extra-marital affairs. The following year, the Princess of Wales died in a car crash. In 2005, he married Camilla Parker Bowles in a civil ceremony followed by a televised blessing service. Camilla uses the title Duchess of Cornwall.

On 16 June 2012, the Queen awarded the Prince of Wales honorary five-star rank in all three branches of the British Armed Forces, “to acknowledge his support in her role as Commander-in-Chief.” He became a field marshal, an admiral of the fleet and amarshal of the Royal Air Force. He has held substantive ranks in the armed forces of a number of countries since he was made a flight lieutenant in the Royal Air Force in 1972. Since 2009, Charles holds the second-highest ranks in all three branches of the Canadian Forces. Charles’s first honorary appointment in the armed forces was as Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Regiment of Wales in 1969; since then, the Prince has also been installed as Colonel-in-Chief, Colonel, Honorary Air Commodore, Air Commodore-in-Chief, Deputy Colonel-in-Chief, Royal Honorary Colonel, Royal Colonel, and Honorary Commodore of at least 32 military formations throughout the Commonwealth, including the Royal Gurkha Rifles, which is the only foreign regiment in the British army.He has been inducted into seven orders and received eight decorations from the Commonwealth realms, and has been the recipient of 20 different honours from foreign states, as well as nine honorary degrees from universities in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand

As Prince of Wales, Charles undertakes official duties on behalf of his mother and the Commonwealth realms. He officiates at investitures and attends the funerals of foreign dignitaries. At the funeral of Pope John Paul II, Charles unintentionally caused controversy when he shook hands with Robert Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe, who had been seated next to him. The Prince finds the current Zimbabwean regime abhorrent. He has supported the Zimbabwe Defence and Aid Fund which works with those being oppressed by the regime. The Prince also recently met Pius Ncube, the Archbishop of Bulawayo, an outspoken critic of the government.”Both Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall travel abroad on behalf of the United Kingdom. The Prince has been regarded as an effective advocate of the country, with his visit to the Republic of Ireland, where he delivered a personally researched and written speech on Anglo-Irish affairs that was warmly received by Irish politicians and the media, being cited as an example. Prince Charles makes regular tours of Wales, fulfilling a week of engagements in the principality each summer, and attending important national occasions, such as opening the Senedd.

In 2000, Charles revived the tradition of the Prince of Wales having an official harpist, in order to foster Welsh talent at playing the harp, the national instrument of Wales. He and the Duchess of Cornwall also spend one week each year in Scotland, where the Prince is patron of several Scottish organisations. His service to the Canadian Armed Forces also permits him to be informed of troop activities, and allows him to visit these troops while in Canada or overseas, taking part in ceremonial occasions, such as placing a specially commissioned wreath, made from vegetation taken from French battlefields, at the Canadian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and in 1981 he became the patron of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum. In 2010, he represented the Queen at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India. He attends official events in the United Kingdom in support of Commonwealth countries, such as the Christchurch earthquake memorial service at Westminster Abbey in 2011 On 16 November 2011, he attended a special service at Westminster Abbey celebrating the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible in the presence of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall attended the enthronement of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby at Canterbury Cathedral on 21 March 2013. ThePrince of Wales represented the Queen at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2013,

From his youth the Prince had been avid player of competitive polo until 1992, breaking his arm in 1990, and becoming briefly unconscious after a fall in 2001. He then played for charity until 2005. Charles also frequently took part in fox hunting, before the sport was banned in the United Kingdom in 2005. The Prince has been a keen salmon angler since youth and, frequently fishes the River Dee in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, Charles is a supporter of Burnley Football Club. The Prince is also President or Patron of more than 20 performing arts organisations, including the Royal College of Music, the Royal Opera, the English Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, Welsh National Opera, and the Purcell School. As an undergraduate at Cambridge he played cello, and has sung with the Bach Choir twice. He is a fan of Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. He founded The Prince’s Foundation for Children and The Arts in 2002, to help more children experience the arts first-hand. He is President of the Royal Shakespeare Company and attends performances in Stratford-Upon-Avon, supports fundraising events and attends the company’s annual general meeting. He enjoys comedy, and became a member of The Magic Circle after passing his audition in 1975 by performing the “cups and balls” effect

Prince Charles is also keen and accomplished painter and has exhibited and sold a number of his works, and published many books. In 2001, 20 lithographs of his watercolour paintings illustrating his country estates were exhibited at the Florence International Biennale of Contemporary. He was awarded the 2011 Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award by the Montblanc Cultural Foundation for his support and commitment to the arts. Upon moving into Highgrove House, he became interested in organic farming, and launched his own organic brand, Duchy Originals. The Prince of Wales also became involved with farming and various industries within it, regularly meeting with farmers to discuss their trade. In 2004, he founded the Mutton Renaissance Campaign, which aims to support British sheep farmers and make mutton more attractive to Britons. In 2007 he received the 10th annual Global Environmental Citizen Award from the Harvard Medical School’s Center for Health and the Global Environment, In 2007, Charles launched The Prince’s May Day Network, which encourages businesses to take action on climate change. He also spoke of the need to protect fisheries, the Amazon rain forest, and to make low-carbon emissions affordable and competitive. In 2011, Charles received the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Medal for his engagement with the environment, such as the conservation of rainforests and continues his work to this day.

HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark was born 10th June in 1921. He is the husband of Queen Elizabeth II and is the United Kingdom’s longest-serving consort and also the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch. to mark the occasion , The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery fires a salute in London’s Hyde Park, which is fired every year to herald the occasion and the event will be open to the public but is not customarily attended by members of the royal famil

Prince Philip is a member of the Danish-German House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, And was born in Greece into the Greek royal family, but his family was exiled from Greece when he was a child. After being educated in Germany, England and Scotland, he joined the British Royal Navy at the age of 18 in 1939. From July 1939, he began corresponding with the 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth, his third cousin and the eldest daughter and heiress presumptive of King George VI, whom he had first met in 1934. During World War II he served with the Mediterranean and Pacific fleets. After the war, Philip was granted permission by George VI to marry Elizabeth. Prior to the official engagement announcement, he abandoned his Greek and Danish royal titles, converted from Greek Orthodoxy to Anglicanism, and became a naturalised British subject, adopting the surname Mountbatten from his British maternal grandparents.

After an official engagement of five months, as Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten he married Elizabeth on 20 November 1947. On his marriage, he was granted the style of His Royal Highness and the title of Duke of Edinburgh by the King, his father-in-law. Philip left active service, having reached the rank of Commander, when Elizabeth became Queen in 1952. The Queen, his wife, made him a Prince of the United Kingdom in 1957 and Lord High Admiral in 2011.Philip has four children with Elizabeth: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. Through an Order in Council issued in 1960, descendants of Philip and Elizabeth not bearing royal styles and titles can use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor, which has also been used by some members who do hold titles, such as Charles and Anne. A keen sportsman, Philip helped develop the equestrian event of carriage driving. He is a patron of over 800 organisations, and chairman of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme for people aged 14 to 24 years

HRH Prince Charles

His Royal Highness Charles, Prince of Wales (Charles Philip Arthur George) was born 14 November 1948. He is the eldest child and heir apparent of Queen Elzabeth II. Known alternatively in Scotland as Duke of Rothesay and in South West England as Duke of Cornwall, he is the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, having held the position since 1952 and also the oldest heir to the throne since 1714. He is the first grandchild of King George VI andQueen Elizabeth and was Baptised in the palace’s Music Room on 15 December 1948. The prince’s godparents were: the King (his maternal grandfather); the King of Norway (his cousin), Queen Mary (his maternal great-grandmother);Princess Margaret (his maternal aunt); Prince George of Greece and Denmark (his paternal great-uncle, theDowager Marchioness of Milford Haven (his paternal great-grandmother); the Lady Brabourne (his cousin); and the Hon David Bowes-Lyon (his maternal great-uncle’

When Charles was aged three his mother’s accession as Queen Elizabeth II made him heir apparent. As the sovereign’s eldest son, he automatically took the titles Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland, in addition to being a prince of the United Kingdom. Charles attended his mother’s coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953. A governess, Catherine Peebles, was appointed and undertook his education between the ages of five and eight. In 1955 Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would attend school rather than have a private tutor. Charles was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 26 July 1958. Though his investiture was not conducted until 1 July 1969 in a televised ceremony held at Caernarfon Castle.The following year he took his seat in the House of Lords and became the first member of the Royal Family since King George I to attend a British Cabinet meeting, having been invited by Prime Minister James Callaghan. Charles first attended Hill House School in west London, Charles then attended two of his father’s former schools, Cheam Preparatory School in Berkshire, England, and Gordonstoun School which his father, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, had attended as a child, and which he described as “Colditz in kilts”.

He spent two terms in 1966 at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia, during which time he visited Papua New Guinea on a school trip with his history tutor, Michael Collins Persse. Upon his return to Gordonstoun, Charles emulated his father in becoming Head Boy. He left in 1967, with six GCE O-levels, and two A Levels in history and French at grades B and C respectively Charles proceeded straight from secondary school into university, as opposed to joining theBritish Armed Forces. In October 1967, the Prince was admitted to Trinity College, Cambridge University, where he readanthropology, archaeology, and history. During his second year, Charles attended the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth, studying Welsh history and language for a term. He graduated from Cambridge with a 2:2 Bachelor of Arts In 1970, the first heir apparent to earn a university degree. In 1975, he was awarded a Master of Arts degree from Cambridge, per the university’s tradition. After earning a bachelor of arts degree from Trinity College, Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976 After requesting and receiving Royal Air Force training during his second year at Cambridge, he flew himself to the Royal Air Force College Cranwell to train as a jet pilot. Following the passing-out parade that September, he embarked on a naval career, enrolling in a six-week course at the Royal Naval College Dartmouth and then serving on the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk (1971–1972) and the frigates HMS Minerva (1972–1973) and HMS Jupiter (1974). He also qualified as a helicopter pilot at RNAS Yeovilton in 1974, just prior to joining 845 Naval Air Squadron, operating from HMS Hermes. In 1976, he took command of the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington for his last ten months serving actively in the navy. He learned to fly on a Chipmunk basic pilot trainer, a BAC Jet Provost jet trainer, and a Beagle Basset multi-engine trainer; he then regularly flew the Hawker Siddeley Andover, Westland Wessex and BAe 146 aircraft

Charles also began to take on more public duties, founding The Prince’s Trust in 1976. & expressed an interest in serving as Governor-General of Australia. After founding The Prince’s Trust in 1976, Charles has established sixteen more charitable organisations, and now serves as president of all of those Together, these form a loose alliance called The Prince’s Charities, which describes itself as “the largest multi-cause charitable enterprise in the United Kingdom, raising over £100million annually … [and is] active across a broad range of areas including education and young people, environmental sustainability, the built environment, responsible business and enterprise and international. The Prince’s Charities Canada was established in a similar fashion to its namesake in the UK. Charles is also patron of over 350 other charities and organisations, and carries out duties related to these throughout the Commonwealth realms; for example, he uses his tours of Canada as a way to help draw attention to youth, the disabled, the environment, the arts, medicine, the elderly, heritage conservation, and education. In Canada, Charles has supported humanitarian projects, for example taking part, along with his two sons, in the ceremonies marking the 1998 International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In 2013, Charles donated an unspecified sum of money to the British Red Cross Syria Crisis appeal and DEC Syria appeal, which is run by 14 U.K charities to help victims of Syria’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.Charles was one of the first world leaders to express strong concerns about the human rights record of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu, initiating objections in the international arena, and subsequently supported the FARA Foundation a charity for Romanian orphans and abandoned children. .

The Prince of Wales has openly expressed his views on architecture and urban planning, asserting that he “cares deeply about issues such as the environment, architecture, inner-city renewal, and the quality of life and his interests encompass a range of humanitarian and social issuesTwo of his charities (The Prince’s Regeneration Trust and The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community) promote his views, on archetechture and the environment. He has long championed organic farming and sought to raise world awareness of the dangers facing the natural environment, such asclimate change. As an environmentalist, he has received numerous awards and recognition from environmental groups around the world. His 2010 book, Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World, won the Nautilus Book Award. He has been outspoken on the role of architecture in society and the conservation of historic buildings, and produced a book on the subject called A Vision of Britain: A Personal View of Architecture in 1989. He has also promoted herbal and other alternative medical treatment. Charles helped establish a national trust for the built environment in Canada after lamenting, in 1996, the unbridled destruction of many of the country’s historic urban cores.

He offered his assistance to the Department of Canadian Heritage in creating a trust modelled on Britain’s National Trust, a plan that was implemented with the passage of the 2007 Canadian federal budget. In 1999, the Prince agreed to the use of his title for the Prince of Wales Prize for Municipal Heritage Leadership, awarded by the Heritage Canada Foundation to municipal governments that have shown sustained commitment to the conservation of historic places. While visiting the United States and surveying the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, Charles received the National Building Museum’s Vincent Scully Prize in 2005, for his efforts in regard to architecture; he donated $25,000 of the prize money towards restoring storm-damaged communities.From 1997, the Prince of Wales has visited Romania to view and highlight the destruction of Orthodox monasteries and Transylvanian Saxon villages during the Communist rule ofNicolae Ceauşescu.] Charles is patron of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, a Romanian conservation and regeneration organisation and has purchased a house in Romania. Charles also has “a deep understanding of Islamic art andarchitecture”, and has been involved in the construction of a building and garden at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies that combine Islamic and Oxford architectural styles. In 2010, The Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment decided to help reconstruct and redesign buildings in Port-au-Prince, Haiti after the capital was destroyed by the 2010 Haiti earthquake

In 1980, he wrote a children’s book titled The Old Man of Lochnagar which was later adapted into an animation short film, a musical stage play and a ballet. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer and they had two sons, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (born 1982), and Prince Harry of Wales (born 1984). In 1996, the couple divorced, following well-publicised extra-marital affairs. The following year, the Princess of Wales died in a car crash. In 2005, he married Camilla Parker Bowles in a civil ceremony followed by a televised blessing service. Camilla uses the title Duchess of Cornwall.

On 16 June 2012, the Queen awarded the Prince of Wales honorary five-star rank in all three branches of the British Armed Forces, “to acknowledge his support in her role as Commander-in-Chief.” He became a field marshal, an admiral of the fleet and amarshal of the Royal Air Force. He has held substantive ranks in the armed forces of a number of countries since he was made a flight lieutenant in the Royal Air Force in 1972. Since 2009, Charles holds the second-highest ranks in all three branches of the Canadian Forces. Charles’s first honorary appointment in the armed forces was as Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Regiment of Wales in 1969; since then, the Prince has also been installed as Colonel-in-Chief, Colonel, Honorary Air Commodore, Air Commodore-in-Chief, Deputy Colonel-in-Chief, Royal Honorary Colonel, Royal Colonel, and Honorary Commodore of at least 32 military formations throughout the Commonwealth, including the Royal Gurkha Rifles, which is the only foreign regiment in the British army.He has been inducted into seven orders and received eight decorations from the Commonwealth realms, and has been the recipient of 20 different honours from foreign states, as well as nine honorary degrees from universities in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand

As Prince of Wales, Charles undertakes official duties on behalf of his mother and the Commonwealth realms. He officiates at investitures and attends the funerals of foreign dignitaries. At the funeral of Pope John Paul II, Charles unintentionally caused controversy when he shook hands with Robert Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe, who had been seated next to him. The Prince finds the current Zimbabwean regime abhorrent. He has supported the Zimbabwe Defence and Aid Fund which works with those being oppressed by the regime. The Prince also recently met Pius Ncube, the Archbishop of Bulawayo, an outspoken critic of the government.”Both Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall travel abroad on behalf of the United Kingdom. The Prince has been regarded as an effective advocate of the country, with his visit to the Republic of Ireland, where he delivered a personally researched and written speech on Anglo-Irish affairs that was warmly received by Irish politicians and the media, being cited as an example. Prince Charles makes regular tours of Wales, fulfilling a week of engagements in the principality each summer, and attending important national occasions, such as opening the Senedd.

In 2000, Charles revived the tradition of the Prince of Wales having an official harpist, in order to foster Welsh talent at playing the harp, the national instrument of Wales. He and the Duchess of Cornwall also spend one week each year in Scotland, where the Prince is patron of several Scottish organisations. His service to the Canadian Armed Forces also permits him to be informed of troop activities, and allows him to visit these troops while in Canada or overseas, taking part in ceremonial occasions, such as placing a specially commissioned wreath, made from vegetation taken from French battlefields, at the Canadian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and in 1981 he became the patron of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum. In 2010, he represented the Queen at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India. He attends official events in the United Kingdom in support of Commonwealth countries, such as the Christchurch earthquake memorial service at Westminster Abbey in 2011 On 16 November 2011, he attended a special service at Westminster Abbey celebrating the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible in the presence of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall attended the enthronement of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby at Canterbury Cathedral on 21 March 2013. ThePrince of Wales represented the Queen at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2013,

From his youth the Prince had been avid player of competitive polo until 1992, breaking his arm in 1990, and becoming briefly unconscious after a fall in 2001. He then played for charity until 2005. Charles also frequently took part in fox hunting, before the sport was banned in the United Kingdom in 2005. The Prince has been a keen salmon angler since youth and, frequently fishes the River Dee in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, Charles is a supporter of Burnley Football Club. The Prince is also President or Patron of more than 20 performing arts organisations, including the Royal College of Music, the Royal Opera, the English Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, Welsh National Opera, and the Purcell School. As an undergraduate at Cambridge he played cello, and has sung with the Bach Choir twice. He is a fan of Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. He founded The Prince’s Foundation for Children and The Arts in 2002, to help more children experience the arts first-hand. He is President of the Royal Shakespeare Company and attends performances in Stratford-Upon-Avon, supports fundraising events and attends the company’s annual general meeting. He enjoys comedy, and became a member of The Magic Circle after passing his audition in 1975 by performing the “cups and balls” effect

Prince Charles is also keen and accomplished painter and has exhibited and sold a number of his works, and published many books. In 2001, 20 lithographs of his watercolour paintings illustrating his country estates were exhibited at the Florence International Biennale of Contemporary. He was awarded the 2011 Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award by the Montblanc Cultural Foundation for his support and commitment to the arts. Upon moving into Highgrove House, he became interested in organic farming, and launched his own organic brand, Duchy Originals. The Prince of Wales also became involved with farming and various industries within it, regularly meeting with farmers to discuss their trade. In 2004, he founded the Mutton Renaissance Campaign, which aims to support British sheep farmers and make mutton more attractive to Britons. In 2007 he received the 10th annual Global Environmental Citizen Award from the Harvard Medical School’s Center for Health and the Global Environment, In 2007, Charles launched The Prince’s May Day Network, which encourages businesses to take action on climate change. He also spoke of the need to protect fisheries, the Amazon rain forest, and to make low-carbon emissions affordable and competitive. In 2011, Charles received the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Medal for his engagement with the environment, such as the conservation of rainforests and continues his work to this day

Armistice Day/ Veteran’s Day

November 11th is Armistice Day. Armistice Day is held annually in remembrance of the sacrifices made by all the brave men and women who joined the Armed Services, Air Force and Royal Navy and who who fought and died during World War I and II, to protect the freedoms which today, we take for granted. The Date; the 11th day of the 11th Month at the 11th hour is also significant as Peace was finally declared following World War I at 11:00, November 11 1918 after Germany signed an armistice agreement with the Allies in a railroad car in the forest of Compiègne which went into effect at 11 a.m. Paris time on 11 November 1918 (“the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month”), and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not formally a surrender. The Germans were responding to the policies proposed by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen Points of January 1918. The actual terms, largely written by French Marshal and Supreme Commander of the Allied Armies Ferdinand Foch, included the cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of German troops to behind their own borders, the preservation of infrastructure, the exchange of prisoners, a promise of reparations, the disposition of German warships and submarines, and conditions for prolonging or terminating the armistice. Although the armistice ended the actual fighting, it took six months of negotiations at the Paris Peace Conference to conclude the peace treaty, the Treaty of Versailles.

To mark the occasion Church Services are also held worldwide on Remembrance Sunday and two minutes silence takes place at 11:00 am to honour the fallen. It is only when you visit the cemeteries and battlefields that it possible to comprehend the sheer scale of the loss of life and to understand the futility & horrors of war. It’s also a really sobering experience to see haunting images of the landscape, which even today still bears witness to the tragic events which happened during World War I and II.

Armistice Day (which overlaps with Remembrance Day and Veterans Day) commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o’clock in the morning—the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. While this official date to mark the end of the war reflects the ceasefire on the Western Front, hostilities continued in other regions, especially across the former Russian Empire and in parts of the old Ottoman Empire. The date was declared a national holiday in many allied nations, to commemorate those members of the armed forces who were killed during war. An exception is Italy, where the end of the war is commemorated on 4 November, the day of the Armistice of Villa Giusti.After World War II, the name of the holiday was changed to Veterans Day in the United States and to Remembrance Day in the countries of the British Commonwealth of Nations. Armistice Day remains an official holiday in France and Belgium. Armistice day was declared a holiday because President Wilson felt it was necessary to leave a day to celebrate the end of warsIn many parts of the world, people observe two consecutive minutes moment of silence at 11:00 a.m. local time as a sign of respect in the first minute for the roughly 20 million people who died in the war, and in the second minute dedicated to the living, generally understood to be wives, children and families left behind but deeply affected by the conflict.

This gesture of respect was suggested by Edward George Honey in a letter to a British newspaper, although Wellesley Tudor Pole had established two ceremonial periods of remembrance based on events in 1917. From the outset, many veterans in many countries have also used silence to pay homage to departed comrades. The toast of “Fallen” or “Absent Comrades” has always been honoured in silence at New Zealand veteran functions, while the news of a member’s death has similarly been observed in silence at meetings. Similar ceremonies developed in other countries during the inter-war period. In South Africa, for example, the Memorable Order of Tin Hats had by the late 1920s developed a ceremony whereby the toast of “Fallen Comrades” was observed not only in silence but darkness, all except for the “Light of Remembrance”, with the ceremony ending with the Order’s anthem “Old Soldiers Never Die”. In Australia, meanwhile, the South Australian State Branch of the Returned Sailors & Soldiers’ Imperial League of Australia similarly developed during the interwar period a simple ceremony of silence for departed comrades at 9 p.m., presumably to coincide with the traditional 11 a.m. time for Armistice ceremonies taking place in Europe (due to the ten-hour time difference between Eastern Australia and Europe)

In the United Kingdom, beginning in 1939, the two-minute silence was moved to the Sunday nearest to 11 November in order not to interfere with wartime production should 11 November fall on a weekday. After the end of World War II, most Armistice Day events were moved to the nearest Sunday and began to commemorate both World Wars. The change was made in many Commonwealth countries, as well as the United Kingdom, and the new commemoration was named Remembrance Sunday or Remembrance Day. Both Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday are now commemorated formally in the UK. In recent years Armistice Day has become increasingly recognised, and many people now attend the 11am ceremony at the Cenotaph in London – an event organised by The Western Front Association, a UK charity dedicated to perpetuating the memory of those who served in the First World War.

VETERANS DAY

Veterans Day is an official United States public holiday, observed annually on November 11, that honors military veterans; that is, persons who served in the United States Armed Forces. It coincides with other holidays, including Armistice Day and Remembrance Day, celebrated in other countries that mark the anniversary of the end of World War I; major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. The United States previously observed Armistice Day. The U.S. holiday was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.

Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day, a U.S. public holiday in May; Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans, while Memorial Day honors those who died while in military service. It is also not to be confused with Armed Forces Day, a minor U.S. remembrance that also occurs in May, which specifically honors those currently serving in the U.S. military.

Because it is a federal holiday, some American workers and many students have Veterans Day off from work or school. When Veterans Day falls on a Saturday then either Saturday or the preceding Friday may be designated as the holiday, whereas if it falls on a Sunday it is typically observed on the following Monday. When it falls on weekend many private companies offer it as a floating holiday where employee can choose some other day. A Society for Human Resource Management poll in 2010 found that 21 percent of employers planned to observe the holiday in 2011.

Non-essential federal government offices are closed. No mail is delivered. All federal workers are paid for the holiday; those who are required to work on the holiday sometimes receive holiday pay for that day in addition to their wages. In his Armistice Day address to Congress, Wilson was sensitive to the psychological toll of the lean War years: “Hunger does not breed reform; it breeds madness,” he remarked As Veterans Day and the birthday of the United States Marine Corps (November 10, 1775) are only one day apart, that branch of the Armed Forces customarily observes both occasions as a 96-hour liberty period. Election Day is a regular working day, while Veterans Day, which typically falls the following week, is a federal holiday. The National Commission on Federal Election Reform called for the holidays to be merged, so citizens can have a day off to vote. They state this as a way to honor voting by exercising democratic rights.

Remembrance Sunday

This years marks 100 years since the end of World War I and To mark the Hundredth anniversary of the end of World War I this years Poignant Remembrance Sunday service was Led by Members of the The Royal Family including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, HRH Prince William the Duke of Cambridge, Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cambridge, Duchess of Cornwall, HRH Prince Andrew – The Duke of York, HRH Prince Edward – The Earl of Wessex, Sophie Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal Princess Anne, Prince Michael of Kent, Meghan Merkle and Field Marshal Lord GutJohnrie of Craigiebank. There was a Brief service conducted by the Bishop of London then at The first stroke of Big Ben at 11am the firineg of a gun from Horse Guards Parade by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery marked the start of two minutes’ silence, which was followed by The Last Post, sounded by the Buglers of the Royal Marines.

The event included the traditional Laying of the Wreaths and March-past the Cenotaph War Memorial in Whitehall London finishing at Horseguards Parade. This year nearly 10,000 people took part many dignitaries who laid wreaths at the event including HM Queen Elizabeth II, HRH Prince Charles prince of Wales, the German President, Prince Andrew, Prince EdwardPrincess Ann, Prince Michael of Kent. They were followed by Prime Minister Theresa May, Deputy Prime Minister and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Vince Cable, the leader of the Liberal Democrat Party, Nigel Dodd leader of the Democratic Union Party, John Bercow, speaker of the House of Commons, and Lord Fowler Speaker of the house of Lords.

Others who laid wreaths included the Duke’s equerry, Captain Ben Tracy and culture secretary, Karen Bradley, Former Prime Ministers David Cameron John Major, Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, the Home Secretary Philip Hammond and the Education Secretary plus the Mayor of London Sadiq Kahn, Scottish National Party Leader, Jermey hunt on behalf of the Overseas Territories, The forty seven High Commissioners of the Commonwealth including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, Northern Ireland, Guyana, Gambia, Barbuda, Lesotho, Tonga, Fiji, Bangladesh, Solomon Islands, St Dominique Brunei, Namibia, Cameroon, Falkland Islands, Nigeria, St Kitts, Barbados, St. Lucia, Jamaica, Togo and Tobago and the Ambassador of Ireland Adrian o’Neil. They were followed by the Chiefs of the Armed Services and Roy Wilsher on behalf of the civillian sevices. Fifteen Religious leaders also took part including representatives of the Roman Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, Sikh, Zaoastrian and Hindu faiths and The President of the Royal British Legion also laid a wreath as did the Chairman of the British Legion, and Pauline Cotton Secretary of Transport for London

This was Followed by the National Anthem, other music was performed by Chapel Royal Choir School and the Massed Bands of the Black Watch and the Royal Marines, which included Rule Britannia, Heart of Oak (The Unofficial Anthem of the Royal Navy) and Nimrod from Sir Edward Elgar’s “Enigma Variations” ,The Minstrel Boy by Thomas Moore, Men of Harlech, The Skye Boat Song, Isle of Beauty by Thomas Haynes Bayly, David of the White Rock, Oft in the Stilly Night by John Andrew Stevenson, Flowers of the Forest, Nimrod from the Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar, Dido’s lament by Henry Purcell, OH Valiant Hearts by Charles Harris, Solemn Melody by Walford Davies, Last Post – a bugle call, Beethoven’s Funeral March No. 1, by Johann Heinrich Walch, O God, Our Help in Ages Past – words by Isaac Watts, music by William Croft, Reveille – a bugle call and God Save The Queen.

This was followed by a March past the Cenotaph with Princess Ann taking the salute. Organisations taking part in the march-past the Cenotaph included Royal navy association, Royal Airforce Association, Paratroop Regiment association, Royal Marines Association, Merchant Navy Association, Fleet air arm association, Gurkhas Association, Burma Star association, the Chinditz, Royal Mechanical Engineers association, Royal Northumberland fusiliers association, Royal Army Corps, 656 squadron Association, Home Guard, Royal Engineers Association, Army Air Corps, Metropolitan Police, Royal Pioneer CorpsReconnaissance corps, Maritime Air Association, Bomber Command, Royal Observer Corps, Falklands Association, Sappers Association! War Widows Association, Irish Defence Association, Royal Marine Commandos association, The Salvation Army, NAAFI Association, National Association of Retired Police Officers, Saint Johns Ambulance, The Red Cross Association, Commonwealth Graves Association, the RAF survival equipment association, Army Cadets, Sea Cadets, Army Training Corps, the Church Lads Brigade, THE Girl Guides, The Scouts, The Cubs and The YMCA.

With It being one hundred years since the end of World War I, the event was marked by bells being rung simultaneously at different cathedrals and Churches throughout the country at 12:30 pm. Elsewhere In Liverpool a special service at St George’s hall featured Joey, the giant puppet from the play Warhorse,  The Royal National Memorial Arberetum in Alrewas also held a service, The arboretum’s focal point, the national Armed Forces Memorial, is designed so that on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, a shaft of sunlight dissects its inner and outer walls, falling on a bronze wreath sculpture. In Wales a day-long motor racing event on Anglesey was paused for the two-minute silence and included a remembrance ceremony. The races were organised by Mission Motorsport which uses racing as part of rehabilitation for physically or mentally injured veterans, including helping those with post-traumatic stress disorder, At the Field of Remembrance at Cardiff Castle, which is one of six created across the UK by the British Legion, more than 10,000 crosses were laid. Elesewhere The Archbishop of Canturbury, Bishop of Durham, led a remembrance service at St. Gabriel’s Church in Sunderland. The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO laid a wreath at The Armed Forces Memorial during the service which was attended by more than 3,000 people.

The Portland stone memorial is the nation’s tribute to more than 16,000 servicemen and women who have died on duty, or as a result of terrorism, since 1948. In Scotland, First Minister Alex Salmond joined the Lord Lieutenant and Lord Provost of Edinburgh Donald Wilson, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore, military leaders, veterans and serving personnel at the Stone of Remembrance at the City Chambers in Edinburgh. He observed a two minute silence and laid a wreath on behalf of the people of Scotland. The First Minister then attended a Service of Remembrance at St Giles Cathedral. In Northern Ireland Taoiseach Enda Kenny laid a wreath on behalf of the Irish Government, at the cenotaph in Enniskillen.

Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance

The Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance took place on Saturday 10th November 2018 at the Royal Albert Hall in honour of Britain’s war dead. Presented by newscaster Huw Edwards, It was attended by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Whowas joined by the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Harry, Meghan Merkle, Prince Charles, The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Edward and Sophie countess of Wessex and The Prime Minister Theresa May

The event featured performances from Tom Fletcher and Russell Watson. The Torch of rememberance was carried on by a flight lieutenant. This was Followed by A reading by 97 year old bomber command veteran Colin Bell of Michael Morpurgo. The Chelsea Pensioners attended. There was A recording from World War I captain Mabely Esler of the Royal medical corps. The Band of the Royal Marines played,”Vindictive”. Sheridan Smith then sang “are you just Sleeping”. Extracts of Sir Wilfred Owen’s poems were read by Michael Palin and Adrian Lester. Palin also read “Epitaphs of the war” by Rudyard Kipling. Bryn Terfyl then sang Roses in Piccadilly and Nina Wadia gave a poignant reading. Sheku Kennah Mason also performed Hallelujah on cello while Photographs of many who died during World War I were shown by their relatives. Sir Tom Jones then performed Precious Lord. There was a performance of Sir Edward Elgar’s Jerusalem and TheKingdom Choir performed the Lord’s Prayer. The service chaplains Peter John Baptiste, Monsignor Andrew McFadden and Reverend Nia Williams then All gave readings. Right Reverend James Newcome also gave a reading and Sir Bryn Trfyl sang Amazing Grace.

Personnel from the army, navy and Royal Air Force were represented by 110 members of The Royal Navy led by leutenant commander Michael bray, the Royal Navel Nursing Service , the Royal marines, Royal navy reserves, The Royall marine reserves. Cold stream guards, Royal regiment of fusiliers, the gurkhas, queen Alexandra Royal nursing corps, the Royal Yeomanry, maritime logistics corps, Royal Airforce, the Queen’s colour squadron, the Royal. airforce nursing service, Royal auxillery Air force, University Air Squadren, the Merchant Navy. There were also representatives of various members of the Commonwealth and more than 80 affiliated organisations. Plus members of civillian services includong the Royal British Legion, St Johns Ambulance and Royal Voluntary Service.

The festival, included the traditional two-minute silence as poppy petals fall from the roof of the Royal Albert Hall, each representing a life lost in war. The event, which had an audience of veterans and their families, served as a moving tribute to the country’s fallen. A bugler then sounded The Last Post before a piper from The Royal Dragoon Guards played a traditional lament. They were joined by coalition representatives from the USA, Denmark, Estonia and Bosnia as well as senior officers from the Afghan National Security Forces. There was a rousing performance of I Vow to thee My Country, followed by the National Anthem before Garrison Sergeant Andrew Stokes brought procedings to a close.

Trooping the Colour

The annual pageantry and splendour of the Queen’s Official Birthday Parade or Trooping The Colour Marks the official birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. It is believed to have first been performed during the reign of Charles II. In 1748 it was decided that the parade would be used to mark the official birthday of the Sovereign and it has been an annual event since 1760.

The event was attended by many members of the Royal Family including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, who left Buckingham Palace at 10.45am and rode down the Mall in the Ascot Landau drawn by a pair of matching grey horses, From Buckingham Palace, through Admiralty Arch and onto Horseguards Parade. The Sovereign’s Escort, consisted of troops of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and the Mounted Bands, The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, The Life Guards and The Blues and Royals, accompanied by the Massed Bands of the Household Cavalry. Prince Charles Prince of Wales, took part as colonel of the Welsh Guards and Colonel in Chief to many other Regiments as did Princess Anne the Princess Royal who is Colonel of the Blues and Royals. Prince William Duke of Cambridge is Colonel of the Irish Guards, And was also on horseback for the ceremony. Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived in coaches behind the queen. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie also rode from Buckingham Palace in a carriage with Prince Edward and Sophie Countess of Wessex, Prince George and Princess Charlotte were also present.

The Welsh Guards were joined by the Royal Household Cavalry, Coldstream Guards, Scots Guards, Grenadier Guards, Irish Guards, Royal Life Guards, Blues and Royals, The mounted Kings Troop, the Colour Sergeant, Major of the Parade, the Regiment Sergeant, Major Harry Wallace and Major Hallett. Other dignitaries in attendance included Prime Minister Theresa May. During the occasion The Massed bands play many tunes including The National Anthem, The Welshman, Les Hugenots”, which has been played since 1871, the Quick march “Canatex”, British Grenadiers Slow March, Hazelmere, the Grand March from Rienzi by Wagner, Men of Harlech, Scipio by Handel, Figaro, The Champion, Highland Laddie and Voice of the Guns. March of the British Grenadiers, Escort to the Colour, Welsh Guards Slow March Coldstream Guards slow March, Lord Wellington’s March,Toc-H by Joseph Mansfeild, Grenadier guards Quick march, Scots Guards Quick March, Coldstream Guard quick march, Precious Glory by Gottfried Piefke, Men of Wales by Archie Ellis and Men of Harlech.

After the Trooping of the Colour the royal party made their way back through Admiralty Arch, up The Mall and back to Buckingham Palace. On her return to Buckingham Palace The Queen took the salute as the Guards Divisions marched past. The Changing of the Guard ceremony then took place with the new guard being formed by the men of the Escort to the Colour. This was followed shortly afterwards by four generations of the Royal Family including Prince George who was making one of his first Royal Appearances appearing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to witness the flypast

The Fly-past by the Royal Airforce, Included the Red Arrows display team, Augusta 109 and Chinook Support Helicopters, Avro Lancaster, flanked by a Spitfire Mk9 and a Hawker Hurricane from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, Airbus A400 Atlas, C 17 Globemaster, flanked by two Eurofighter Typhoon. Plus a RAF Voyager KC.MK2 strategic air transport/air to air refueling tanker.

After the Flypast, The Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery fired a 41-gun salute in Green Park. (21 gun salute to mark the Queen’s official birthday and another 20 gun salute because it takes place in a Royal park.) The event was observed by Prince Harry. Prince Andrew, Prince Edward, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. In total there were more than 200 horses on parade, and more than 400 musicians from all the Household Division Bands & Corps of Drums and The famous Drum Horses of the Mounted Bands.

Royal Wedding

HRH Prince Harry (, Duke of Sussex, the second son of Charles, Prince of Wales and Diana, Princess of Wales  Married The American-born former Actress Meghan Markle, who is known for her role in the American legal-drama television series Suits, on Saturday. 19 May at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, London.

The Queen consented to the marriage under the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, which allows the monarch to approve or disapprove marriages of the first six persons in the line of succession. Harry was fifth in line at the time of his engagement. After the engagement, Markle began the years-long process of becoming a British citizen. She will retain her U.S. citizenship during the process. The British government decided that the wedding day would not be a bank holiday, as was done for the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. The wedding was on the same date as the FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United (which ended 1:0), which Prince Harry’s brother William normally attends in his role as President of the Football Association. St. George’s chapel has previously been used for the weddings of Prince Harry’s uncle, the Earl of Wessex, and his cousin, Peter Phillips, as well as the blessing for the marriage of the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, Harry’s stepmother.

The service began at midday and was conducted by the Dean of Windsor, The Rt Revd. David Conner. The Most Revd. and Rt Hon. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury performed the marriage ceremony while The sermon was delivered by The Most Reverend Michael Curry, presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church (the American member church of the Anglican Communion) who emphasised the redemptive property of love. The Queen’s chaplain, The Reverend Prebendary Rose Hudson-Wilkin, and the Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London, Anba Angaelos also offered the prayers.

They will become the 16th royal couple to celebrate their marriage at Windsor Castle since 1863. The order of service was conducted by the Dean of Windsor and officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Music was conducted by Christopher Warren-green. The couple have selected words from The Marriage Service from Common Worship (2000), using contemporary language – such as the word “you” instead of “thee” and “thou” – and, as is common these days, Markle will not promise to “obey” Harry.

Music was provided by Two choirs, an orchestra and fanfare trumpeters plus an orchestra  made up of musicians from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra. In addition to the Choir of St George’s Chapel, the Kingdom Choir, a gospel group, also sang, while the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry gave a fanfare. The State Trumpeters included Kate Sandford, thus making her the first female state trumpeter at a British royal wedding. The music was under the overall direction of James Vivian, the chapel’s Organist and Director of Music; the Kingdom Choir was conducted by Karen Gibson, and the orchestra was conducted by Christopher Warren-Green Ben E King’s soul classic “Stand By Me” was performed by Karen Gibson and The Kingdom Choir, and a gospel choir performed Etta James’s version of “Amen/This Little Light of Mine” as the newlyweds leave the chapel. Hymns include the Welsh rugby anthem “Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer”, otherwise known as “Bread of Heaven”. Other music included  “Eternal source of light divine” (from the Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne) by George Frederick Handel; the motet “If ye love me” by Thomas Tallis and “The Lord bless you and keep you” by John Rutter. Other Works performed during the signing of the register included Sicilienne by Maria Theresia von Paradis, Après un rêve by Gabriel Fauré and Ave Maria by Franz Schubert (soloist was the cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason). During the procession, the musicians performed the Allegro from Symphony no. 1 in B-flat by William Boyce and “This Little Light of Mine” by Etta James.

The Day before the wedding Meghan and Prince Harry left Kensington Palace.
Meghan Markle and her Mother Doria Ragland, a yoga instructor and social worker from Los Angeles, stayed at Cliveden House Hotel, Berkshire on Thursday and Prince Harry and his brother William stayed at Coworth Park, a five-star country house a stone’s throw from Windsor and one that has been the venue for many a royal polo match and his first public kiss with Meghan.

On the morning of the nuptials, Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland, accompanied Ms Markle to Windsor Castle, along Meghan was driven from Windsor Castle to the chapel in a Rolls Royce Phantom IVand entered the famous West Door followed by her six bridesmaids and four page boys with the bride and groom each selecting five: two of Meghan Markle’s godchildren, seven-year old Rylan Ritt and her six-year old sister Remi, as well as Brian, John and Ivy Mulroney, the three children of her friend Jessica Mulroney, were chosen by the bride, while Prince Harry’s niece and nephew, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge and Prince George of Cambridge, as well as his godchildren Florence van Cutsem, Zalie Warren and Jasper Dyer, were selected by the groom. They were met by the Prince of Wales who escorted her through the quire of the church. to the altar, where Prince Harry was standing

Meghan Markle’s ring has been fashioned from a piece of Welsh Gold, gifted by The Queen, and Prince Harry’s ring is a platinum Band with a textured finish. Both rings were crafted in the Cleave workshop, and were carried to the chapel by the Duke of Cambridge, in his capacity as best man.

The service was attended by HM Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, William and Catherine the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, was best man, Prince Edward, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Prince Andrew, Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice, Princess Ann, Mark Philips, Mike Tindall and Zara Philips, Earl Spencer, Sarah Ferguson, and Doria Ragland, future nephew and niece, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Prince Harry’s aunt, Baroness Fellowes, sister of Harry’s mother the late Diana, Princess of Wales, delivered a reading.

Other Guests include Meghan’s Suits co-stars Patrick J. Adams (with wife Troian Bellisario), Gabriel Macht, Sarah Rafferty, Gina Torres and Abigail Spencer. Plus Cressida Bonas, Chelsy Davy, Oprah Winfrey, Carol Middleton, Sir Clive and Lady Jayne Woodward, Earl Spencer, George and Amal Clooney, David and Victoria Beckham, Jonny Wilkinson, James Haskell, Joss Stone, James Blunt, Marcus Mumford, Dean Stott, Sir Elton John and David Furnish, fashion designer Emilia Wickstead, James Cordon, Ben Winston, Jo Elvin, Serena Williams (with husband Alexis Ohanian), Idris Elba, Carey Mulligan, Former prime minister John Major, and David Manning. Among Prince Harry’s friends, Owen Inskip, Guy Pelly and Lizzy Wilson and Arthur Landon were in attendance. Among Markle’s, Jessica Mulroney, Misha Nonoo, Janina Gavankar, Abigail Spencer . Priyanka Chopra were also present All three siblings of Diana, Princess of Wales were in attendance including Earl Spencer and Lady Jane Fellowes. However Megan Markles half-siblings, Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle Jnr, were not present. Neither was Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, following an ill advised photograph debacle and because of his ill health having just had an heart operation.

HM Queen Elizabeth has conferred a Dukedom on Prince Henry of Wales. His titles will be Duke of Sussex, Earl of Dumbarton and Baron Kilkeel. Prince Harry will thus become His Royal Highness The Duke of Sussex, and Markle on marriage will become Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex. Harry and Meghan will live at Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace following their marriage

The couple decided to forgo any traditional wedding presents in favour of donations to the following causes: CHIVA (Children’s HIV Association), Crisis (a UK-based homelessness charity), the Myna Mahila Foundation (a charity that supports women in Mumbai’s urban slums), Scotty’s Little Soldiers (which helps bereaved Armed Forces children), StreetGames (a foundation using sport to change lives), Surfers against Sewage and The Wilderness Foundation UK (which promotes the enjoyment of wild nature).

At 1pm, following the service, the couple travelled around Windsor in a horse-drawn carriage, as part of a horse drawn carriage procession from St George’s Chapel through Windsor town returning to Windsor Castle along the Long Walk. Alexi Lubomirski will then take the official photographs at Windsor Castle. Two receptions are bring held; the first, for those attending the ceremony, was hosted by the Queen and took place in St George’s Hall after the carriage procession in which singer Elton John performed for the guests and the groom and the Prince of Wales each gave a speech. A second reception was held at Frogmore House, for a group of 200 family and close friends and hosted by the Prince of Wales, occurred later In a break with tradition, the bride made a speech at the event.  Following the service, there was a reception at St George’s Hall for the couple and the guests from the congregation. Later that evening, the Prince of Wales will give a private evening reception for the couple and their close friends and family.”

HRH Prince Philip

His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark was born 10th June in 1921. He is the husband of Queen Elizabeth II and is the United Kingdom’s longest-serving consort and also the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch. to mark the occasion , The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery fires a salute in London’s Hyde Park, which is fired every year to herald the occasion and the event will be open to the public but is not customarily attended by members of the royal famil

Prince Philip is a member of the Danish-German House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, And was born in Greece into the Greek royal family, but his family was exiled from Greece when he was a child. After being educated in Germany, England and Scotland, he joined the British Royal Navy at the age of 18 in 1939. From July 1939, he began corresponding with the 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth, his third cousin and the eldest daughter and heiress presumptive of King George VI, whom he had first met in 1934. During World War II he served with the Mediterranean and Pacific fleets. After the war, Philip was granted permission by George VI to marry Elizabeth. Prior to the official engagement announcement, he abandoned his Greek and Danish royal titles, converted from Greek Orthodoxy to Anglicanism, and became a naturalised British subject, adopting the surname Mountbatten from his British maternal grandparents.

After an official engagement of five months, as Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten he married Elizabeth on 20 November 1947. On his marriage, he was granted the style of His Royal Highness and the title of Duke of Edinburgh by the King, his father-in-law. Philip left active service, having reached the rank of Commander, when Elizabeth became Queen in 1952. The Queen, his wife, made him a Prince of the United Kingdom in 1957 and Lord High Admiral in 2011.Philip has four children with Elizabeth: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. Through an Order in Council issued in 1960, descendants of Philip and Elizabeth not bearing royal styles and titles can use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor, which has also been used by some members who do hold titles, such as Charles and Anne. A keen sportsman, Philip helped develop the equestrian event of carriage driving. He is a patron of over 800 organisations, and chairman of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme for people aged 14 to 24 years