Once again, the Prince of Wales has been talking about a subject dear to his heart: the catastrophic damage being done to our oceans. William attended the Blue Economy and Finance Forum in Monaco at the beginning of June and gave a powerful address to heads of state, business and government leaders. Speaking partly in French, the prince urged the powerful audience to act quickly.
As a gap-year student William travelled to the Indian Ocean island of Rodrigues, where he studied the damage caused to coral reefs and his interest has never abated. Recently he teamed up with his friend, Sir David Attenborough, whose film Ocean has just been released on TV, bringing the plight of our oceans straight into people’s homes via the small screen. The institution of the monarchy provides a formidable tool to bring such issues to the attention of the public.
Alongside this sits, of course, the pomp and circumstance people love so much. The month of June for instance is a prime example of royal ceremonial at its best: Trooping the Colour, the Garter ceremony and five days of Royal Ascot. Without the royal family in their horse-drawn carriages these events would be quite lacklustre. This year’s Epsom Derby, for example, had no royal presence at all and barely received any coverage apart from on the racing pages. In 2023 the King and Queen were present on Oaks Day because they had a runner.
His Majesty, who has been working harder than his doctors would like for a man still receiving cancer treatment, has taken advice and agreed that his ceremonial equestrian days are over. After riding as monarch for the first time in 2023, the King’s mount Noble –a gift from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police – proved to be a bit of a handful. It was notideal for the uniformed King, complete with bearskin and holding several reins in one gloved hand, to be astride such a lively mount. Last year the Princess Royal rode Noble, which appeared to be equally skittish despite a further year in royal training.
Anne, who will celebrate her 75th birthday next month, decided to mark this milestone by holding a special forum at Buckingham Palace to bring her charities together. It was typical of the princess who, like her late father, dislikes any kind of purely personal celebration and instead wanted to acknowledge the achievements of the many charities with which she is affiliated.
When Queen Camilla reaches her 78th birthday on 17 July she will not be allowed to let it pass without fanfare – much as she might prefer to ignore it. The King spoils those close to him and will certainly do so for his ‘beloved wife’. By then they will both be looking forward to their Scottish sojourn, a time to relax after the rigours of a busy six months, and prepare for the much-anticipated second state visit of President Trump, most likely hosted at Windsor Castle. This is a more spectacular backdrop than the Buckingham Palace venue for his 2019 state visit. Whatever is decided, it will be impressive as it is the duty of the monarch to play the gracious host regardless of any personal feelings they might have.
