Each week The Royalist takes a closer look at the crown and recaps the biggest stories revolving around the Royal Family.
Canada Day Commemorations
This week, on Canada Day, Princess Anne, 73, apologized to the people of Newfoundland for missing a planned trip to the province. The Princess Royal was hospitalized on June 24 for a horse-related injury on her Gloucestershire property.
Anne had been scheduled to attend an event at Newfoundland’s National War Memorial, and it was there that Governor General Mary Simon delivered the Princess Royal’s message. “It is with deep regret that I am unable to be with you today, as you commemorate the brave sacrifices of the members of the Newfoundland Regiment who went into battle on the first day of the Somme.” She went on to reminisce about a previous visit to the site, in 2016, to mark the 99th anniversary of the Battle of Beaumont Hammel.”
An Olympic equestrienne, Anne suffered a concussion and some memory loss related to the incident, and remains at home, Gatcombe Park, recovering after her release from hospital.
Meanwhile, July 1 was also Diana, Princess of Wales’ birthday; she would have been 63. Her childhood friend, then sister-in-law, Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York remembered Diana in an Instagram post that day, writing: “You were a pillar of light and love. And what a legacy you have left behind. I will forever remember our laughter and the kindred, kind spirit I found in you. I am sure you are watching over us always. Rest in peace my friend.” So many years after they were both divorced from their princes in 1996, Ferguson, 64, is choosing to remember the fonder parts of the shared history, and the hijinx and fun, of her relationship.
Scotland Bound
In Scotland this week, the King and Queen were joined by the Prince of Wales (known as the Duke of Rothesay when he is in Scotland) and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. This is the current core A-team roster working major royal events, and they teamed up to present an array of awards (including new Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Thistle; both the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were named to the order this year). There was also a Thistle service, for which the royals wore their heavy, full-length black velvet ceremonial Scottish robes, complete with a white plumed feather atop the hat and massive golden tassels closing the robes.
This is all part of Holyrood Week. The Edinburgh Palace of Holyroodhouse has been the home of royalty in the Scottish capital since the 1500s; most recently, Queen Victoria made it the official Scottish home of the British Royal Family in 1850. This city, of course, is much older than the royal residence: this year’s visit coincides with Edinburgh’s 900th birthday celebration.
In other Scottish royal news this week, it was revealed that King Charles is the new boss of his Balmoral estate. In a first for the Royal Family, Charles has been named “a person of significant control” of Canup Ltd, which owns the lands at Balmoral and Delnadamph in the Highlands, as well as flats worth some £1.8 million (approx. $3.1 million Canadian) in Edinburgh. Balmoral castle itself was purchased by Prince Albert in 1852, thus providing both a private and public residence for the monarch in Scotland. Queen Elizabeth used Balmoral as her summer retreat throughout her reign and Charles inherited the building upon her death. It seems he is set to take a firmer hand in property management. Charles has proven quite adept at running estates, both in the Duchy of Cornwall and at his own country estate, Highgrove, which was at the forefront of organic farming under his direction.
Tennis Anyone?
The royal Scottish week also coincided with Wimbledon, which saw an array of celebrities – from David Beckham to Canuck actress Kim Cattrall to Sir David Attenborough (who received a standing ovation as he made his way courtside) and Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters fame. Grohl, 55, cleaned up for Wimbledon – with shots of him in a suit, with his hair combed back, splashed across social media – as the event has a full dress code for the Royal Box, similar to Ascot’s Royal Enclosure. Last year Sir Lewis Hamilton was turned away for violating dress regulations.
There had also been hopes that Kate, an avid tennis fan and patron of the All England Lawn and Tennis Club might appear at the tennis tournament and even present the winners’ cups. In fact, her parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, attended on Thursday. Still, the competition began on June 25 and runs to July 13, so there is time if she decides to attend.
But there are still duties at home that await Charles, including one of the most important of his Constitutional responsibilities – to invite the newly elected British Prime Minister, Labour leader Keir Starmer, to form a new government on his behalf.