COURSE SIDE. Kate Middleton is finally back. The Princess of Wales will be present alongside her husband Prince William this Remembrance weekend.
As soon as it was announced on Thursday, the news made headlines and delighted the British. Buckingham Palace, in a statement, said that the Princess of Wales, who has just completed chemotherapy after being diagnosed with cancer, “will take part in remembrance events this weekend with the rest of the Royal Family… She will be present at both the Remembrance Sunday ceremony at the Cenotaph and the evening before at the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall. However, this happy news is counterbalanced by the half-hearted news that the participation of Queen Camilla in this weekend's ceremonies, who is suffering from a chest infection, will be subject to medical advice, the palace said. .
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The Queen, aged 77, has been forced to abandon some of her engagements since the start of the week, asking everyone to please forgive her for the disappointment caused. According to tradition, as did his mother Queen Elizabeth II before him, King Charles III, who has just completed his first long tour abroad since his own cancer diagnosis, will lay a wreath of red poppies on Sunday at the foot of the cenotaph, thus leading the nation to pay tribute to its fallen soldiers, emphasizing this year the 80th anniversary of the Liberation through the sacrifice of Allied fighters and also of the Commonwealth nations.
A gradual return
The palace's announcement about Kate marks the next major step in her gradual return to public royal duties, as she prepares to join the King and William in honoring the nation's dead on November 10. This will be the first time since the start of the year that she will have two consecutive days of official public engagements. Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and Princess Anne, Princess Royal, as well as cousins Kent and Gloucester will also be in attendance. Thousands of veterans proudly displaying their medals, military families and the public will gather to remember all those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
William will also lay a floral tribute – featuring the three white feathers of the Prince of Wales and a new red Welsh ribbon – at the historic Portland stone monument. During these ceremonies, ladies of the royal family watch the laying of wreaths from the balcony of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, which overlooks Whitehall and, if Queen Camilla is present, her wreath will be laid by an equerry of the royal house, as is customary. Another tradition, the minute of silence which, in the United Kingdom lasts two minutes…
Only rare appearances
Since the start of 2024, Princess Kate, 42, has made only rare public appearances, after undergoing major abdominal surgery in January and being diagnosed with cancer for which she underwent chemotherapy treatment. This public outing of the Princess of Wales, at a traditionally solemn moment for the Windsors who have forged very strong links with the British army and war veterans, comes the day after the declarations of her husband, William, on his return from South Africa, who said “2024 has been brutal and probably the most difficult year of my life.”
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” Honestly ? It was terrible. This is probably the most difficult year of my life. So it's been very difficult trying to cope with everything else and stay on track. But I am very proud of my wife, I am proud of my father, who knew how to do what they did. But from a family point of view, it was brutal.” As early as September, the Princess of Wales announced that she had completed her preventative chemotherapy treatment and explained that she was “looking forward to returning to work and undertaking some other public engagements in the coming months.” adding that his goal was to “do what I can to stay cancer-free.” Certainly Kate's presence at the tribute to British soldiers on Saturday and Sunday will be seen as an encouraging sign of the favorite princess' return to the public stage.
