A huge turnout of royals, including the King and Queen and Prince and Princess of Wales, are at Westminster Abbey for a national service of thanksgiving marking the 80th anniversary of VE Day
A huge turnout of royals have attended a special service to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day at Westminster Abbey today. The King and Queen were joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, veterans and others at Westminster Abbey to recognise the milestone.
First to arrive were the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh who were followed by the Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence. Also present were the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent. William and Kate then arrived with the princess wearing a white polkadot dress by Alessandra Rich and hat by Juliette Botterill, and earrings which belonged to William’s late mother Diana, Princess of Wales.
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The prince was dressed in a lounge suit with Household Division tie and his Great Master of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath Neck Order.
The King and Queen then arrived at the abbey to the sound of a trumpeters’ royal fanfare. Charles was wearing a lounge suit with medals and neck order. Camilla was dressed in a white crepe silk dress and white coat with black stitching by Anna Valentine, with a black and white hat by Philip Treacy.
The service today comes 80 years to the day that the nation celebrated Victory in Europe (VE) Day with church bells ringing out across the country and people gathering to revel in the end of hostilities, with crowds famously gathering outside Buckingham Palace calling for King George VI. After almost six years of fighting against Hitler’s Nazi regime peace was declared, with only the conflict against Japan to be concluded.
At today’s service, 10-year-old Alexander Churchill, the great-great-grandson of wartime prime minister Sir Winston Churchill, will light a candle of peace as young members of the congregation hand out white roses to Second World War veterans. After a national two-minute silence was observed, Charles and William lay wreaths of seasonal flowers, which would have been in bloom in May 1945, at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.
The King did so on behalf of the nation and the Commonwealth, and William for the veterans and the wartime generation, with 99-year-old Ken Hay, who served in the 4th Dorset infantry regiment, at their side. At the end of the service, the tune of We’ll Meet Again made famous by forces’ sweetheart, the late Dame Vera Lynn, will be heard.
Outside the abbey, Kate will join Camilla and other royals in laying flowers at the Innocent Victims’ Memorial in tribute to all victims of war and oppression as the proceedings draw to a close.
Four days of events commemorating the 80th anniversary of VE Day will culminate on Thursday evening with a concert in London’s Horse Guards Parade attended by the King and Queen, with performances by The Darkness, Toploader, and classical singer Sir Willard White.
The royals were also at the heart of VE Day commemorations earlier in the week. On Monday royals, including the Waleses and their children, sat with veterans as the current crop of servicemen and women, including Nato allies, marched past in recognition of those who served to defeat Hitler’s Nazi regime and bring peace to Europe.
Afterwards, they all appeared on the Buckingham Palace balcony for the incredible RAF flypast. Prince Louis, who in past public appearances has stolen the show, did not disappoint royal fans, pulling faces as jets thundered overhead, and during the parade stuck out his tongue and playfully tried to get his father’s attention.
Later that day, Prince George carried out his biggest royal duty to date when he joined his parents and the King and Queen at a tea party for veterans inside the palace. During the tea reception, William told 101-year-old Alfred Littlefield his son George was “interested” in learning about veterans.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Camilla visited the Tower of London, where she described a special poppy display as ‘beautiful’. Camilla visited the historic fortress on Tuesday to launch The Tower Remembers, marking VE Day and the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe.
The new installation features 30,000 ceramic poppies from the 2014 Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red artwork, now redesigned to flow from the White Tower.