Thousands cheered and whooped as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge received a beautiful official ceremonial welcome with full military honours this evening outside Parliament House in Victoria.
The crowds came by ferry from Vancouver and Seattle and by plane from Toronto and Montreal and several thousands came by car from all over British Columbia. They started staking out their spots from 10am and by 1pm all the best places were taken. Families abounded and one lady brought her 7-week old daughter Violet. This was to be an uproarious celebration and a proud and tasteful welcome…and it didn’t disappoint.
Having settled Prince George and Princess Charlotte at Government House where the family is based for the next 8 days, the Duke and Duchess proceeded in a motorcade where they were greeted with cheers, flag-waving and dropped-jawed wonder from a crowd of ardent fans and royalists.
It’s hardly surprising that in a city named after Prince William’s great great great great grandmother royal fervour runs high but this reception was quite extraordinary. I soon discovered that the icing on the cake for this crowd was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his glamorous wife Sophie Gregoire. Trudeau was greeted like a rock star here, the only speaker to receive louder cheers than the royal couple.
First stop for the Duke and Duchess was to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph and unveil a new plaque to recognise the Afghanistan war effort.
From here the couple walked up the red carpet following the Prime Minister, his wife, the Governor General, British Columbia’s Premier and Lt Governor to witness a wonderful display of pomp and ceremony including a booming 21-gun salute. They were serenaded by the haunting Victoria Children’s Choir and were welcomed by a series of speeches delivered in French and English including one from PM Trudeau.
Prince William looked happy and confident when he came to the lectern to give his response.
“Catherine and I are delighted to be back in Canada. When we were here last time, we had been married only three months. The warm welcome that you gave us at that important moment in our lives meant a lot to us – and we have never forgotten it. That is why we are so pleased that George and Charlotte can be with us in Canada this time round, beginning their own lifetime of friendship with this wonderful country,” he said.
“Catherine and I have asked to meet as many people from as many walks of life as we can while we are here. We are very much looking forward to learning about how Canadians are tackling some of the biggest challenges of the day, including the environment, supporting young families and the mental health of young people – subjects about which we are both passionate…..We feel very fortunate to have time to get to really know parts of this country that we did not get to visit in 2011 but of which I have very happy memories as a shy teenager.”
William was referring to the time he came as a 15-year-old and everywhere he went met with proposals of marriage from wannabe princesses. And from the chuckle in the crowd, some of those unrequited suitors may well have been there today.
When he tried a few sentences in French Prince William sounded a little awkward and joked: “It’s a little rusty, work with me.” But he needn’t have worried, the cheer was immense.
The couple then signed the Government of Canada’s visitor’s book and proceeded to meet members of the public; the Duchess receiving endless bouquets before they drove away under the cover of dusk with Parliament House lit up and twinkling with hundreds of bulbs. It looked like a scene from a fairytale.
Words: AWW editor Juliet Rieden on location in Victoria
