THE PRINCE OF WALES AND THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL - Background Information for Media - May 2019
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THE PRINCE OF WALES AND
THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL
Background Information for Media
May 2019Contents
Biography .......................................................................................................................................... 3
Seventy Facts for Seventy Years ...................................................................................................... 4
Charities and Patronages ................................................................................................................. 7
Military Affiliations .......................................................................................................................... 8
The Duchess of Cornwall ............................................................................................................ 10
Biography ........................................................................................................................................ 10
Charities and Patronages ............................................................................................................... 10
Military Affiliations ........................................................................................................................ 13
A speech by HRH The Prince of Wales at the "Our Planet" premiere, Natural History Museum,
London ...................................................................................................................................... 14
Address by HRH The Prince of Wales at a service to celebrate the contribution of Christians in the
Middle East................................................................................................................................ 16
Remarks by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall at the official launch of the Royal Osteoporosis Society
at the Science Museum, London ................................................................................................. 18
A speech by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall at a reception for WOW – Women of the World,
Clarence House, London ............................................................................................................. 19
Online Resources
www.princeofwales.gov.uk
@ClarenceHouse
YouTube.com/TheRoyalChannel
Facebook.com/TheBritishMonarchy
@ClarenceHouse
Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal ChannelThe Prince of Wales Biography The Prince of Wales, eldest son of The Queen and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was born at Buckingham Palace on 14th November 1948. In April 1962, The Prince began his first term at Gordonstoun before spending two terms in 1966 as an exchange student at Timbertop, a remote outpost of the Geelong Church of England Grammar School in Melbourne, Australia. The Prince went to Cambridge University in 1967, graduating with a degree in history in 2970. He was invested as Prince of Wales by The Queen on 1st July 1969 at Caernarfon Castle. Before the investiture, The Prince had spent a term at the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth, learning to speak Welsh. On 11th February 1970, His Royal Highness took his seat in the House of Lords. On 8th March 1971, The Prince flew himself to Royal Air Force (RAF) Cranwell in Lincolnshire, to train as a jet pilot. In September 1971 after the passing out parade at Cranwell, The Prince embarked on a naval career, following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather and both his great-grandfathers. The six-week course at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, was followed by service on the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk and two frigates. The Prince qualified as a helicopter pilot in 1974 before joining 845 Naval Air Squadron, which operated from the Commando carrier HMS Hermes. On 9th February 1976, The Prince took command of the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington for his last nine months in the Navy. On 29th July 1981, The Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's Cathedral who became HRH The Princess of Wales. The Prince and Princess of Wales had two sons: Prince William, born on 21st June 1982; and Prince Harry, born on 15th September 1984. From the time of their marriage, The Prince and Princess of Wales went on overseas tours and carried out many engagements together in the UK. The marriage was dissolved on 28th August 1996. The Princess was still regarded as a member of the Royal Family. She continued to live at Kensington Palace and to carry out her public work for a number of charities. On 9th April 2005, The Prince of Wales and Mrs Parker Bowles were married in a civil ceremony at the Guildhall, Windsor. After the wedding, Mrs Parker Bowles became known as HRH The Duchess of Cornwall. The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall were joined by around 800 guests at a Service of Prayer and Dedication at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. The Service was followed by a reception at Windsor Castle hosted by Her Majesty The Queen. The Duchess supports The Prince of Wales in his work. Through the years, His Royal Highness developed a wide range of interests which are today reflected in The Prince of Wales's Charities, a group of not-for-profit organisations of which The Prince of Wales is Patron or President. These interests are also reflected in the list of more than 400 organisations of which His Royal Highness is Patron or President. The Prince's interest in Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal Channel
fields such as the built environment, global sustainability, youth opportunity, education and
faith have been elaborated over many years in a large number of speeches and articles.
Seventy Facts for Seventy Years
On 14th November 2018, The Prince of Wales celebrated his 70th Birthday. Here are 70 facts
to celebrate seventy years.
Early Life and Family
1. HRH Prince Charles Philip Arthur George was born at Buckingham Palace on 14th
November 1948 at 9.14pm, weighing 7lbs 6oz.
2. The Prince was christened on 15th December 1948 at Buckingham Palace.
3. The Prince has been the heir apparent since he was three years old and is the longest serving
Prince of Wales.
4. He is the 21st Prince of Wales and the first since 1936.
5. The Prince is the first heir to see his mother crowned as Sovereign.
6. The Prince of Wales became the 24th Duke of Cornwall on The Queen’s accession to the
throne in 1952. At the age of 21, in 1969, HRH took over the management of The Duchy of
Cornwall, the estate of The Duke of Cornwall.
7. The first formal photograph of The Prince was taken by Cecil Beaton in December 1948.
8. The Prince has three siblings: TRH Princess Anne, The Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, The
Duke of York, and Prince Edward, The Earl of Wessex.
9. The Prince has two sons: The Duke of Cambridge (Prince William), born on 21st June 1982;
and The Duke of Sussex (Prince Harry), born on 15th September 1984.
10. The Prince has three grandchildren, five step-grandchildren and one more grandchild on the
way – the first for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
11. The Prince’s first official visit abroad was to Malta, when he was five years old.
12. From February to July 1966, The Prince spent two terms as an exchange student at
Timbertop, a remote annexe of Geelong Church of England Grammar School in Melbourne,
Australia.
13. The Prince spent a term at the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth (April to June
1969) learning Welsh. HRH still often uses Welsh phrases in speeches in Wales.
14. The Prince studied archaeology and anthropology in his first year at The University of
Cambridge, switching to history for the remainder of his degree. His studies finished in 1970.
15. While at school, The Prince played the piano, trumpet and cello. While an undergraduate at
Cambridge, he played the cello, performing in a symphony concert by the Trinity College
Orchestra on 4th December 1967.
16. In November 1965, while a pupil at Gordonstoun School, The Prince played the lead in
Shakespeare's Macbeth.
17. The Prince became the first heir to the throne to earn a university degree in 1970. He earned
his Bachelor's Degree from Cambridge University's Trinity College, and he also earned his
Master's from the same university in 1975.
18. The Prince learned to ice skate at the Richmond Ice Rink, receiving a Certificate of Merit in
March 1962.
19. The Prince’s favourite tea is Darjeeling with honey and milk.
20. The Prince does not eat lunch.
Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal ChannelMilitary and Titles
21. The Prince holds the titles of The Prince of Wales, Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall, Duke
of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Lord of the Isles, Baron Renfrew and Prince and Great Steward
of Scotland.
22. The Prince is affiliated to 18 military regiments.
23. The Prince took up his first Service appointment in 1969 as Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal
Regiment of Wales.
24. The Prince obtained his RAF wings as Flight Lieutenant Wales in August 1971. He was the
first member of The Royal Family to do so.
25. The Prince is a qualified jet and helicopter pilot.
26. The Prince first rode at The Queen's Birthday Parade as Colonel of the Welsh Guards aged
26 years old in June 1975.
27. The Prince is Admiral of the Fleet of The Royal Navy
28. In 1975, as an accomplished diver The Prince spent 47 minutes underwater examining the
wreck of King Henry VIII’s flagship, The Mary Rose. HRH became President of the Mary
Rose Trust the same year.
29. The Prince commanded HMS Bronington in 1976 while in the Royal Navy.
30. The Prince was the first member of The Royal Family to successfully complete the
Parachute Regiment’s training course before being appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the
Regiment in 1977.
31. The Prince is an Air Chief Marshal in the Royal Air Force.
32. The Prince was given the title, "Keeper of the Cows", by the Masai in Tanzania in 2011 to
recognise his work as a farmer.
33. The Prince was given the title Mal Menaringmanu (High Chief), when he visited the Pacific
Island of Vanuatu in 2018.
34. The Prince has a frog named after him: Hyloscirtus Princecherlesi or Prince Charles
Magnificent Tree Frog.
35. The Prince’s name in Pidgin English is ‘Nambawan pikinini bilong misis kwin’ which
translates as ‘The number one child of The Queen.’
Charities
36. The Prince is President or Patron of over 420 charities.
37. The Prince started his charity The Prince's Trust with his Navy severance pay of just over
£7,000 in 1976.
38. The Prince has founded nearly twenty charities in areas including youth opportunity,
environmental sustainability, education and the arts.
39. Each year his charities raise more than £140m for good causes.
40. An independent study reported that £1.4 billion has been added in value to the UK economy
by The Prince’s Trust in the last ten years alone.
41. To date The Prince's Trust has helped over 875,000 disadvantaged young people into
employment or business.
42. Waitrose Duchy Organics (Founded as Duchy Originals 26 years ago) contribute more than
£3m a year to The Prince’s Charitable Fund, which The Prince donates to good causes.
43. In the last ten years, The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund (PWCF) has given more than
£50m in small and medium sized grants for issues including sustainable farming methods,
flood damaged communities, wildlife anti-poaching initiatives and humanitarian relief.
Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal Channel44. The Prince is Chairman of The Royal Collection Trust, commissioning paintings for the
Royal Collection including portraits of the last remaining D-Day Veterans called "The Last of
the Tide".
45. A champion of environmental issues for almost 50 years, The Prince first spoke publically
about his concerns about pollution and plastics and their impact on the natural world in 1970.
Official Duties
46. In the reporting year, 2017-18, The Prince and The Duchess undertook over 600
engagements in the UK and around the world.
47. The Prince has visited nearly 100 countries around the world.
48. Since 1969, The Prince has visited 44 Commonwealth countries, many of them on several
occasions.
49. The Prince undertook his first official Royal duty in June 1965, attending a student garden
party at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
50. The Prince made his first public speech in Welsh in May 1969, on the final day of the Urdd
Gobaith Cymru (Welsh League of Youth) Eisteddfod at Aberystwyth.
51. The Prince laid the nation’s wreath on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen during the
Remembrance Day Service in 2017 at the Cenotaph.
52. During the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2018, Commonwealth Leaders
elected The Prince of Wales to succeed The Queen as the next Head of the Commonwealth.
Unlike The Throne, Head of the Commonwealth is not a hereditary position.
Interests
53. The Prince is an author. He wrote The Old Man of Lochnagar, based on stories he used to
tell his younger brothers growing up. He has also written books on the natural world and the
environment including 'Harmony' and 'Climate Change', a Ladybird Expert Book.
54. The Prince is a keen painter and had a watercolour displayed in the Royal Academy's 1987
summer exhibition, after it was submitted anonymously.
55. In 1975, The Prince became a member of the Magic Circle, a society of stage magicians
founded in London in 1905, after passing his audition with a "cup and balls" trick.
56. In 1980, The Prince rode in the Ludlow steeplechase and finished second. The Prince has
been a keen equestrian throughout his life and played polo until 2005.
57. The Prince made a cameo appearance in popular comic The Beano alongside The Duchess of
Cornwall in 2013.
58. The Prince also made a cameo appearance on Coronation Street in 2000.
59. The Prince has presented the weather forecast on the BBC.
60. The Prince marked the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth by appearing in
‘Shakespeare Live! From the RSC’.
61. The Prince has his own brand of whisky, Barrogill.
62. The Prince’s first car was a MGC GT, purchased in January 1968.
63. Contrary to popular belief, The Prince purchased his Aston Martin DB6 Mark 2 Volante in
November 1970 himself. It was not a 21st birthday present from Her Majesty The Queen.
TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge left Buckingham Palace in HRH's Aston Martin
in April 2011.
64. The Aston Martin was converted to run on E85 bioethanol made from by-products of the
wine and cheese industries in 2008.
65. The Prince uses a fully electric Jaguar to travel to engagements in London.
Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal Channel66. Clarence House, The Prince of Wales's official London residence, had solar panels installed
on the roof in 2010.
67. Llwynywermod, near Llandovery in Carmarthenshire, is The Prince of Wales's Welsh home.
Bought in 2007 by the Duchy of Cornwall, the farmhouse was refurbished using local
materials and the skills of Welsh craftsmen and women. It is used as the base for Their Royal
Highnesses’s engagements in Wales.
68. The Prince was given a quartet of huge olive-oil jars from Italy. The terracotta jars were
intended to be sent to HRH’s Highgrove House in Gloucestershire and were shipped in a
crate tagged "The Prince of Wales, Tetbury". The jars ended up being mistakenly delivered to
the local pub of the same name.
69. The Prince keeps Burford Brown and Maran chickens in his garden at Highgrove House in
Gloucestershire.
70. The Prince often carries out tree planting ceremonies during engagements. After planting
each tree, HRH gives a branch a friendly shake to wish them well.
Charities and Patronages
Inspired by HRH’s values of harmony and sustainability, The Prince of Wales's charities
work to transform lives and build sustainable communities.
For over 40 years, His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales has been a leader in identifying
charitable need, setting up, and driving forward charities to meet it.
The Prince of Wales carries out dozens of engagements every year in support of his charities.
Collectively The Prince of Wales's charities raise more than £100 million annually to support
The Prince of Wales's charitable work in the UK and overseas.
The Prince's Trust
The Prince's Trust help 11 to 30 year-olds who are unemployed or struggling at school to
transform their lives. Since The Prince of Wales set up The Prince’s Trust in 1976, more than
950,000 disadvantaged young people across the UK have been supported by the Trust and
helped to move into work, education or training.
For more information visit www.princes-trust.org.uk
The Prince's Trust International
The Prince's Trust International works to combat the global issue of youth unemployment and
focuses on supporting young people overseas.
For more information visit www.princestrustinternational.org
The Prince’s Foundation
The Prince's Foundation focuses on the built environment, heritage, community education
projects and promoting culture across the UK. The Foundation now comprises four of The
Prince of Wales's existing charities: The Prince's Regeneration Trust, The Prince's
Foundation for Building Community, The Prince's Foundation School of Traditional Arts and
The Great Steward of Scotland Dumfries House Trust. This new structure allows the
Foundation to achieve His Royal Highness's goal of creating viable and renewable
communities.
For more information visit www.princes-foundation.org
Twitter - @clarencehouse Instagram - @clarencehouse YouTube – The Royal ChannelThe Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund
Founded in 1979 and incorporated in 2008, The Prince of Wales’s Charitable
Foundation (PWCF) supports the charitable work of The Prince of Wales.
The work of the Charitable Foundation is two-fold:
1. A grant making body that supports a wide range of causes, the primary areas of interest being
the built environment, responsible business and enterprise, young people and education, and
global sustainability.
2. An incubator for initiatives and projects that fall within the Charitable Foundation’s primary
areas of interest.
For more information visit https://www.pwcf.org.uk/
Royal Founding Patronages
A number of organisations founded by The Prince of Wales continue to tackle the various
concerns to which he devotes his public life.
For more information visit www.princeofwales.gov.uk/prince-waless-charities
Patronages
Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall are together
Patron of over 500 charities, a full list of which can be found here:
www.princeofwales.gov.uk/patronages
Military Affiliations
The Prince of Wales is a strong supporter of the Armed Services and sees them as one of the
most important parts of his role as Heir to The Throne. The Prince of Wales’s relationship
with the Armed Services consists of three main activities:
Promoting the role of the Armed Services within national life, through operational visits,
ceremonial duties, and commemorative activity across the UK and around the world.
Supporting the welfare and interests of Service personnel, Veterans, and their families.
Maintaining the history and heritage of the Armed Services through links Regiments, Units
and Formations both in the U.K. and around the Commonwealth.
The Prince is almost always present at the annual Armistice Remembrance Service at the
Cenotaph, as well as regularly attending other commemorative events around the country to
pay tribute to The Fallen.
The Prince attended the marking of the 70th anniversary of D-Day, in Normandy in 2014, as
well the 70th anniversaries of VE Day and VJ Day in London in 2015. He has also been
present at the most significant British World War One centenary commemorations, most
notably the centenaries of the Battle of The Somme in France on 1st July 2016, the Battle of
Passchendaele in Belgium, on 31st July 2017.
In The Prince's capacity as Crown Prince of The Realms, he was involved in the most
meaningful World War One centenary commemorations for the Realms of Australia, New
Zealand and Canada. The Prince was present at the events marking the centenary of the New
Zealand Battle of The Somme in 2016, the Canadian events at the centenary of the Battle of
Vimy Ridge in April 2017 and the Australian events to commemorate the centenary of the
Battle of Villers-Bretonneux on Anzac Day, 25th April 2018. All of these took place at the
8corresponding Battlefields in France. Additionally, in May 2015 The Prince of Wales, along
with Prince Harry, attended British, Australian and New Zealand led events in Turkey
marking the centenary of the Gallipoli campaign.
The Prince of Wales often pays tribute to the dedication of British Service personnel during
his visits to foreign countries, often through visits to Commonwealth War Grave Commission
sites or overseas memorials to the Armed Services. This took place most recently in the
Caribbean and Cuba in 2019, in Ghana, Nigeria, Australia, Greece and France in 2018,
Malaysia, Italy and Romania in 2017, as well as in Kosovo, Bahrain, and Serbia during 2016.
Another element of The Prince's support to the Service personnel, Veterans, and their
families is through his role as Patron of a number of Defence related charities and
organisations. The Prince has been Patron of Combat Stress, the oldest UK Defence mental
health charity, since 2003. The Patronage had previously been held by Queen Elizabeth
The Queen Mother. He is also Patron of the War Widows Association of Great Britain, the
British Forces Foundation, the Royal Naval Benevolent Trust, the White Ensign Association,
and many other charities.
9The Duchess of Cornwall
Biography
The Duchess of Cornwall was born Camilla Rosemary Shand on 17th July 1947 at King’s
College Hospital London, the daughter of Major Bruce Middleton Hope Shand and the Hon
Rosalind Maud Shand (nee Cubitt).
Her Royal Highness has a sister, Annabel Elliot, and a brother, Mark Shand, a
conservationist, who
died on 23rd April 2014.
The Shand family lived in East Sussex from 1951 onwards. Major Shand, MC and Bar, was
Vice Lord-Lieutenant of East Sussex and Master of the South Down Hounds for 19 years. He
died aged 89 on 11th June 2006 at his home in Dorset.
Mrs Rosalind Shand was 72 when she died in 1994 as a result of osteoporosis. The Duchess's
grandmother had died from the same condition eight years earlier.
The Duchess was first educated at Dumbrells School, in Sussex, and then at Queen’s Gate
School in South Kensington. She also attended Mon Fertile school in Switzerland and studied
at the Institut Britannique in Paris.
On 9th April 2005, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall married at the
Guildhall in Windsor in a civil ceremony. Afterwards, there was a Service of Prayer and
Dedication at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, presided over by the Archbishop of
Canterbury, followed by a wedding reception at Windsor Castle given by Her Majesty The
Queen.
Her Royal Highness has two children from her first marriage, Thomas Henry and Laura Rose,
and five grandchildren. She is a devoted grandmother and step-grandmother.
Charities and Patronages
Since her marriage to The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall has become Patron or
President of over 90 charities and regularly attends events to support them.
The Duchess of Cornwall supports her husband, The Prince of Wales, in carrying out his
work and duties as Heir to The Throne. She also undertakes public engagements on behalf of
the charities that she supports.
Her Royal Highness’s charity work is varied but several themes prevail: literacy; supporting
victims of rape and sexual abuse and domestic violence, empowering women; active ageing;
combatting loneliness; health; food; animals; and heritage and the arts.
Literacy
The Duchess is a passionate promoter of Literacy in the UK and internationally, with
particular focus on encouraging a love of reading and writing from an early age.
The Duchess is Patron of several organizations which promote and support literacy, including
the National Literacy Trust, Book Trust, First Story, the Wicked Young Writer Awards and
Beanstalk. Her Royal Highness frequently attends literacy-themed engagements, such as the
Man Booker Prize for Fiction, and, since 2016, has been a Judge for BBC Radio 2’s 500
Words Competition – an initiative which encourages children around the country to get
creative and send in their stories of no more than 500 words. She has also visited prisons to
see the work of adult literary schemes.
10The Duchess is Patron of the Royal Society of Literature and Vice-Patron of the Royal
Commonwealth Society. Her Royal Highness has presented The Queen’s Commonwealth
Essay Prize on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen since 2014. In 2017, Her Royal Highness
visited schools in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and met pupils participating in The Queen’s
Commonwealth Essay Competition. In 2018, The Duchess launched the 2019 Competition in
Ghana.
Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Abuse
In 2013 The Duchess began a Wash Bag initiative, providing Sexual Assault Referral Centres
(or SARCs) with wash bags, which are given to those referred to the centres. Each small bag
contains toiletries including shampoo, shower gel, mascara, a toothbrush and a hairbrush.
Following a successful pilot of the project at the three London SARCs, known as The
Havens, the scheme has since grown from a London based pilot of 750 bags to a national
distribution partnership with Boots of over 10,000 wash bags. The Duchess attended its
national launch in Nottingham in March 2017. The national roll out of the project began
delivering wash bags, provided by Boots, twice yearly to the 49 SARCs around the UK.
Her Royal Highness has visited projects run by Barnardo's, of which she took on Patronage
from HM The Queen in 2017, focusing on Child Sexual Exploitation, and has visited centres
in many countries, including the USA and the Balkans.
In 2013, The Duchess held a Reception at Clarence House bringing together an important
group of national stakeholders and key decision-makers. This was the first time in the UK
that such a wide range of organizations had been drawn together specifically to discuss rape
and sexual abuse. In 2014, The Duchess met actress and campaigner Angelina Jolie and the
then UK Foreign Secretary, William Hague, to discuss their work on ending sexual violence
in areas of conflict. During Her Royal Highness’s tours overseas with The Prince of Wales
she regular meets with women who have suffered sexual violence.
Supporting Victims of Domestic Violence
The Duchess has also highlighted the work of domestic abuse charities and the work they do
to support victims and survivors.
Her Royal Highness has visited the domestic violence charities SafeLives, Refuge and
Women's Aid in the UK, and in July 2016 hosted a reception at Clarence House on this
subject. The Reception provided an opportunity for guests to share and generate new ideas,
encourage closer collaboration, and ultimately to benefit victims of domestic abuse. It also
acknowledged the work of staff and volunteers across the various sectors – as well as the
bravery of victims in coming forward to share their experiences.
In 2018, Her Royal Highness convened a Women’s Forum roundtable on domestic violence
across the Commonwealth at CHOGM. In the same year, The Duchess also visited domestic
violence refuges in France and Ireland. During Their Royal Highness’s recent tour to Cuba,
Her Royal Highness met with a group of women there who had suffered domestic abuse and
spoke with others who are working to combat the issue. In 2019, The Duchess has also
visited women’s refuge in Liverpool and Milton Keynes.
Empowering Women
Her Royal Highness became President of Southbank Centre's Women of the World Festival
since 2015, and has been involved in the initiative since its conception. The WOW Festival is
a global festival movement launched by Jude Kelly in London in 2010 that celebrates women
11and girls. To date, WOW has held 65 festivals in 5 continents over 30 location in over 15
countries, reaching over 2million women and girls.
Her Royal Highness attended a Reception to mark the launch of WOW Festival in February
2015 at the Royal Festival Hall and has hosted several events, including a lunchtime
Reception at Buckingham Palace on International Women’s Day to celebrate WOW 2017.
In 2018, The Duchess attended a WOW reception in Australia; convened a WOW ‘think-in’
in Nigeria; and attended a WOW reception in Ghana. The Duchess hosted a reception to
celebrate the Southbank Centre’s Women of the World Festival in March 2019 at Clarence
House.
Active Ageing
Her Royal Highness supports older people in the community: she is President of the Royal
Voluntary Service, a national charity for volunteering that supports older people. In
November 2017 Her Royal Highness, as President of the National Osteoporosis Society (now
the Royal Osteoporosis Society), hosted a Tea Dance at Buckingham Palace, which featured
on the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. In the Spring of 2018 The Duchess visited
The Royal Academy of Dance in Battersea to watch a Silver Swans dance class for older
people. In January 2019, Her Royal Highness visited the Stepney Jewish Centre to learn
about the support it offers to elderly people in the area.
Combatting loneliness
Her Royal Highness is Patron of The Silver Line, a helpline for older people suffering from
loneliness and has herself made calls to some of its users. In December 2018, The Duchess
paid a Christmas visit to a London Centre for older people who receive “Meals on Wheels”.
Health
Her Royal Highness is President of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Patron of
Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, Medical Detection Dogs, Arthritis Research UK and
Duchenne UK.
Food
The Duchess is a great supporter of the tradition of Harvest Festival and in 2017 and 2018
joined Harvest Festival celebrations in Scotland. Her Royal Highness is President of Wine
GB and Patron of The Big Lunch, which brings communities together for lunch on one day in
June each year. The Duchess attended a Commonwealth Big Lunch at CHOGM in London
in March 2018, and, later that year, joined a Commonwealth Big Lunch in the Gambia and
Ghana. Her Royal Highness visited OzHarvest in Sydney, Australia in 2015 and is Patron of
UKHarvest: both organisations are helping to reduce food waste by delivering surplus food to
charities and food banks.
The Arts
Her Royal Highness is Patron of the London Chamber Orchestra, the National Youth
Orchestra, Elmhurst Ballet School, Friends of The Royal Academy, the Charleston Trust, the
Fan Museum, the Ditchling Museum; and Patron of Dundurn Castle in Canada. In 2018, The
Duchess attended a London Chamber Orchestra concert in support of Helen & Douglas
12House Children’s Hospice; and in 2019, hosted a musical evening for the National Youth
Orchestra at Clarence House.
Military Affiliations
The Duchess supports the work of the British Armed Services both in the United Kingdom
and abroad. Her Royal Highness has her own military appointments and accompanies The
Prince on many of his visits to the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.
Her Royal Highness is Royal Colonel of 4th Battalion The Rifles, Commodore-in-Chief of
the Royal Naval Medical Services and the Naval Chaplaincy Service, Sponsor of HMS
Astute, Lady Patron of HMS Prince of Wales and Honorary Air Commodore of both RAF
Leeming and RAF Halton.
In 2006 The Duchess of Cornwall became Royal Colonel of 4th Battalion The Rifles
following the re-organisation of the regiment. The Battalion was previously named 2nd
Battalion The Royal Green Jackets with The Queen as Colonel-in-Chief. The Duchess visits
the regiment regularly to welcome returning troops and present honours.
The Duchess visits the regiment regularly, meets servicemen and their families, presents
service medals and receives regular briefings from the Commanding Officer. In 2006 The
Queen appointed The Duchess of Cornwall to the position of Commodore-in-Chief of Royal
Naval Medical Services. Her Royal Highness is pictured presenting operational Afghanistan
campaign medals in this role at Whale Island in Portsmouth in January 2012.
In 2008 The Queen approved new Royal Air Force honorary appointments in recognition of
the strong links between the Royal Air Force and the Royal Family. The Duchess of Cornwall
was appointed Honorary Air Commodore of both RAF Leeming and RAF Halton.
The Duchess also has personal links to military organisations connected to her father Major
Bruce Shand, who was awarded two military crosses. Her Royal Highness is Patron and an
Honorary Member of the Desert Rats Association. Major Shand, fought with the Desert Rats
in the Second World War before being captured during the Battle of El Alamein. The
Duchess has attended many occasions with veterans, serving soldiers and officers of the
9th/12th Lancers with whom her father also served.
The Duchess is Patron of Sea Cadet Unit TS Astute which is related to her role as Sponsor of
HMS Astute and is a Life Member of the Royal British Legion Women's Section, of which
The Princess Royal is President.
In 2011, The Duchess became Colonel-in-Chief of the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada and in
2012 Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police.
13A speech by HRH The Prince of Wales at
the "Our Planet" premiere, Natural
History Museum, London
4 April 2019
For that to happen as many people as possible, across all cultures and languages, must understand the
natural world and our place within it. We are Nature ourselves. “Our Planet” will be a critical part of
that process and I hope and pray that it will catalyse an enduring determination to cherish and protect
the Earth, “Our” only home.
Secretaries of State, Ladies and Gentlemen, I was most touched to have been asked here this
evening, along with both my sons, to launch this really remarkable series. It is also a much-
awaited opportunity to pay tribute to, and thank, Sir David Attenborough for all he has done
over so many years to bring the wonder, the fascination and, increasingly, the desperate
plight of the natural world to our attention.
Above all, he has done so much to lift the veil of ignorance from our eyes about the intricate
and integrated beauty of our home. The film of “Our Planet”, so astonishingly crafted by
Silverback Films and with the support of WWF and Netflix, will, I pray, help to provide an
essential means of reaching and teaching hundreds of millions of people around the
world. Education about what we have, what we have destroyed and what can and must be
regenerated could not be more timely or more urgently needed.
I often wonder why we have waited so long to take the action we were so evidently required
to do. Fifty years ago - as it happens about the same time I made my first speech about the
environment – the space flight Apollo 8 took “Earth Rise”, the photograph that showed for
the first time the incomparable beauty – and fragility – of our planet. Surely, one might have
thought, we would have known then the responsibility we had, what we had to do and the
perilous path along which we were treading.
But, since that time, we have cleared fifty percent of the world’s rainforests, destroyed fifty
percent of our coral reefs, poisoned our rivers – and, indeed, whole swathes of the Ocean
with the run-off from industrialized agriculture - and have dumped hundreds of millions of
tons of plastic into the Oceans as well.
And, of course, in doing so we have instigated as Sir David also said just now, the world’s
sixth mass extinction event and have accelerated CO2 emissions to the extent that climate
change is now a very real existential threat to our whole civilisation. Welcome, Ladies and
Gentlemen, to the Anthropocene, an epoch formed by the impact of Man.
And perhaps the greatest crime of all is that we knew what were doing. Informed consent
being the basis of democracy, should we not reject informed destruction as the basis of
catastrophe? And, it appears, we have only belatedly, partially and somewhat reluctantly
come to the realisation that Our Planet does not refer to the “our” of Homo sapiens, but rather
to the whole, astounding miracle of life on Earth.
14We share it equally and, as is becoming only too obvious, for our own survival we
desperately need the rest of the Natural World, with which we are intimately inter-connected,
but which we have been taught to exploit and dominate as something separate from
ourselves.
It has given me great pride to see how both my sons, in different ways, have taken up the
cause of restoring the balance of Nature.
When they were much younger I never thought they were paying attention to anything I said
or did! But when I turned seventy last year I discovered, to my astonishment, that
they had! My sons are both keen to remind me that we know what the problem is, we no
longer need permission to act, but the priority is now to focus urgently on finding and
implementing solutions. It is also glaringly obvious, as we look around our world, that these
solutions need to heal the environment and our societies.
There is much, though, about which we can be hopeful. We can change our behaviour, we
can embrace a circular economy, we can embrace renewable energy, we can make soil health
the basis of our agriculture, we can meet the Sustainable Development Goal targets on the
Ocean and forests, we can regenerate and restore our degraded landscapes, we can ensure that
investment reflects the risks inherent in destroying natural capital as well as climate change
and we can ensure that the infrastructure, on which some $90 trillion is to be spent in the next
twenty years, is zero carbon and enhances the lives of those who depend upon it.
Not only do we have the solutions, we also have the money! In other words, the costs of
keeping to 1.5 degrees of warming are relatively small and the benefits are enormous,
whereas the costs of not doing so are catastrophic. So what I want to know is how can we
sacrifice our children’s and grandchildren’s entire future, let alone the future of all life on this
miraculous planet by not doing what we know is required – now? These self-same children
and grandchildren are already raising their voices and demanding action…
We can do all of these things because we must and, by doing them, we will invest in
technologies and activities that will secure employment and prosperity.
Climate change and biodiversity loss are not only going to wreak havoc on future
generations, they are starting to wreak havoc on us already (particularly, and tragically, on
the poorest and most vulnerable) and we have no choice but to be the change we need, for
there is nobody else.
For that to happen as many people as possible, across all cultures and languages, must
understand the natural world and our place within it. We are Nature ourselves. “Our Planet”
will be a critical part of that process and I hope and pray that it will catalyse an enduring
determination to cherish and protect the Earth, “Our” only home.
15Address by HRH The Prince of Wales at a
service to celebrate the contribution of
Christians in the Middle East
4 December 2018
Time and again I have been deeply humbled and profoundly moved by the extraordinary grace and
capacity for forgiveness that I have seen in those who have suffered so much.
I find it hard to express what it means to me to join all of you here, in this sacred place, and in
this special and holy season of Advent, to recognise the role that so many of you play as
instruments of peace in God’s world.
In recent years, I have had the great privilege of meeting so many Christians who, with such
inspiring faith and courage, are battling oppression and persecution, or who have fled to
escape it.
Time and again I have been deeply humbled and profoundly moved by the extraordinary
grace and capacity for forgiveness that I have seen in those who have suffered so much.
Forgiveness, as many of you know far better than I, is not a passive act, or
submission. Rather, it is an act of supreme courage; of a refusal to be defined by the sin
against you; of determination that love will triumph over hate.
It is one thing to believe in God who forgives; it is quite another to take that example to heart
and actually to forgive, with the whole heart, “those who trespass against you” so grievously.
So, in coming together today, we can only give thanks for the truly remarkable strength of the
Faith with which so many Christians face persecution, and which gives them the courage and
the determination to endure, and to overcome.
They are an inspiration to the whole church, and to all people of goodwill.
Earlier this year I had the great joy of meeting a Dominican Sister from Nineveh who, in
2014, as Daesh extremists advanced on the town of Qaraqosh, got behind the wheel of a
minibus crammed full of her fellow Christians, and drove the long and dangerous road to
safety.
Like the 100,000 other Christians who were forced from the Nineveh Plains by Daesh that
year, they left behind the ruins of their homes and churches, and the shattered remnants of
their communities.
The Sister told me, movingly, of her return to Nineveh with her fellow Sisters three years
later, and of their despair at the utter destruction they found there.
But like so many others, they put their Faith in God, and today the tide has turned - nearly
half of those displaced having gone back, to rebuild their homes and their communities.
16Churches, schools, orphanages and businesses are rising from the rubble, and the fabric of
that society, which had been so cruelly torn apart, is being gradually repaired.
This is the most wonderful testament to the resilience of humanity, and to the extraordinary
power of Faith to resist even the most brutal efforts to extinguish it, and I could hardly be
more delighted that another of those Dominican Sisters will speak later in this Service.
Throughout history, in these lands which are the cradle of faith for Jews, Muslims and
Christians, communities of different beliefs have shown that it is possible to live side by side
as neighbours and friends.
Indeed, I know that in Lebanon Muslims join Christians at the Shrine of our Lady of Lebanon
to honour her together. And I know that there are Muslim faith leaders who have spoken out
in defence of Christian communities and of their contribution to the region.
Co-existence and understanding are not just possible, therefore; they are confirmed by
hundreds of years of shared experience. Extremism and division are by no means inevitable.
All three of the great Abrahamic faiths believe in a loving, just and merciful God who cares
for creation, who cares for his creatures and who expects us to care for one another.
So in this season of Advent, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, who Himself
knew exile, injustice and suffering, I can only assure you of our steadfast support and most
heartfelt prayers as you take forward your works of restoration, justice and healing, so that
God’s will might be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
17Remarks by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall
at the official launch of the Royal
Osteoporosis Society at the Science
Museum, London
13 February 2019
I can’t believe 25 years later what I’m seeing now. We’ve got all these wonderful medicines, there’s
been incredible research going into it. We’ve got people on helplines helping others who obviously
need a cheery chat to get them through it. It’s just incredible what’s happened and I just wish my
mother was here today to see what could have been done.
It was 25 years ago that my mother died as a result of osteoporosis. In fact, she was exactly
the same age that I am now. Then it was never discussed, rarely diagnosed and always
attributed to old people. They just said well you’re getting old, that’s what you should expect
- your bones crumble and you know we’re very sorry but you can’t do much else about it.
So I thought to myself there must be some way of finding out a little bit more about this
disease, because my family and I were devastated but also we didn’t understand how
somebody could be in so much pain and we were unable, the doctors seemed unable, to do
anything about it.
So luckily down the road from where I live I found this wonderful tiny charity called the
National Osteoporosis Society which was manned at that time by the indomitable Linda
Edwards, and I know that Katie and Andrew Edwards are here today. And I also know that it
would have been her birthday. So we really have her to thank for what’s happening today.
Anyway we got together and decided we had to have a plan to spread the word so to speak.
Since then the whole Osteoporosis Society has gone from strength to strength. I can’t believe
25 years later what I’m seeing now. We’ve got all these wonderful medicines, there’s been
incredible research going into it. We’ve got people on helplines helping others who obviously
need a cheery chat to get them through it. It’s just incredible what’s happened and I just wish
my mother was here today to see what could have been done.
But I also think it’s very important to tell my children and my grandchildren that this disease
can be prevented. When you are young... you’re immortal. You don’t think about dying,
getting old and breaking bones. But I think if we can just tell them how important it is to eat
the right things, to take exercise - these will go a long way to keeping their bones healthy. I
think the message is getting through slowly but surely, and I dare say I hope will be a way
forward to find a cure for this devastating disease. I’m sure we’re not far off it. We’ve got the
most brilliant brains working together to get there. I’m sure it won’t be long before we get
there but we have got to get the young people thinking about it too because it’s their future.
18A speech by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall
at a reception for WOW – Women of the
World, Clarence House, London
7 March 2019
From these stories grow conversation, debate and, most importantly, action. Over the last nine years,
WOW has held 65 festivals in 15 countries, reaching over 2 million people. As we know, these
festivals are both a joyous celebration of women and girls across the globe, and, at the same time, a
frank examination of the issues that prevent them from achieving their potential.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Clarence House. I must, if I may, just take a moment to
salute the brave gentlemen here amongst this immense regiment of women – thank you for
your support.
It’s a huge pleasure to see you all here today, a mix of familiar faces from last year, as well as
new friends joining us for the first time, as we prepare for the 9th Women of the World
Festival. I can’t believe that it is the 9th. I am immensely proud to be the President of WOW
and to have this opportunity to celebrate your remarkable work. I always enjoy hearing your
stories: stories of what WOW has meant to you; of your achievements; of the obstacles you
have overcome; and of those you continue to face. As we all know, stories are powerful and
there is no better storyteller than WOW’s founder, Jude Kelly. Jude has been telling stories
throughout her life. I understand that, as a child, she would put on plays in her parents’
garden, inviting the whole neighborhood to attend. Later, of course, she went on to tell
hundreds of stories as a theatre director and as Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre,
which she has now left to run the WOW Foundation full-time. Today, the stories she tells are
the challenges facing women worldwide, helping us to think what a better world for us might
look like and how it might be attained.
She and I have spent quite a bit of time together over the past year (a bit of a double act)! A
flying visit to the WOW Festival in Brisbane, followed by a roundtable discussion on
domestic violence across the Commonwealth, at last year’s Commonwealth Heads
of Government Meeting, drawing out heart-breaking stories from women who had
experienced abusive relationships. Then we were in a very hot Nigeria last Autumn, where
we listened to women who were looking forward to setting up the first WOW festival in
Abuja and later, in Ghana, we attended a WOW reception to hear about women’s
achievements there. Across the Commonwealth, I have heard stories from Women of the
World - stories that sadden; stories that anger; and stories that encourage and inspire.
From these stories grow conversation, debate and, most importantly, action. Over the last
nine years, WOW has held 65 festivals in 15 countries, reaching over 2 million people. As we
know, these festivals are both a joyous celebration of women and girls across the globe, and,
at the same time, a frank examination of the issues that prevent them from achieving their
potential.
19We also have with us today five extraordinary women, finalists from the Daily Mail
Inspirational Women of the Year Awards. Their stories are quite incredible, and I hope that
some of you have had the chance today to meet Eileen, Victoria, Liz, Lorraine and Lisa.
Their courage, determination and self-sacrifice are truly inspirational.
Ladies and gentlemen, one final story. I happen to know that, a few years ago, Jude was
asked for a single piece of advice she would offer to women. I will close with this, which I
think speaks for us all:
“Women need to say, ‘I’ve got one life, I’ve been given life, it has been breathed into me and
here I am and I should use it for the best possible purpose’ - Whatever each woman herself
defines that to be”.
Thank you very much.
2021
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