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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry attended a memorial for the Iraq and Afghanistan Memorial on Thursday, March 9, in London.
The event, led by Queen Elizabeth II, paid tribute to the Armed Forces and civilians who served during the Gulf War and conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Of the 2,500 guests invited guests, many members of the British Royal Family turned out in a rousing show of support. Prince Philip, Princess Anne, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall, and Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex were all in attendance at the military Drumhead Service on Horse Guards Parade in Whitehall.
The event also attracted Prime Minister Theresa May and senior members of Cabinet as well as representatives of veterans, serving military, bereaved families, charity workers, civil servants and politicians.
The two-year-old son of a war hero couple brought a smile to the Queen’s face.
The golden royal trio looked smart for the sombre occasion.
Kate and Wills were seated together while Harry sat nearby.
Dressed in a royal blue coat, matching hat and with her trusty black handbag in tow, the Queen was tasked with unveiling the important war memorial which honours those who lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Prince Philip, who turns 96 this year, reportedly complained to the artist who created the large bronze sculpture that the engraving was too faint and should be made darker.
The 90-year-old monarch looked as sprightly as ever at the important event.
The memorial was erected in the Victoria Embankment Gardens near Westminster.
Prince Phillip accompanied his wife for the occasion.
Wills and Kate looked on from the stands during the sombre ceremony, while Harry – who served two tours in Afghanistan as a helicopter pilot with the British Royal Army – commenced the ceremony with a reading from the biblical Book of Ecclesiastes. It began, “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under Heaven . . . A time to love and a time to hate, A time for war and a time for peace.”
Kate chose to wear a Michael Kors Collection swing coat for the occasion – a striking ensemble which she first debuted on the final day of her tour of Australia in April 2014. This time around, however, she accessorised the look with bow-accented gloves, a navy suede clutch, pointed-toe pumps and a whoppingly large hat.
While Kate mightn’t have played a direct role in the going’s on of the event, she did take the time to swap notes with the wife of a Royal Marine commando, Samantha Burge.
Samantha, who explained to reporters onsite that she “wanted a mummy chat” with the much-loved royal, has two little daughters who are very similar in age to George and Charlotte – Isabella, 4, and Amelia, 22 months.
“She said that Charlotte is growing up really fast. She is the one in charge,” Samantha, wife of Warrant Officer Class 2 Chris Burge, said to reporters.
“We have both got 2-year-olds and they are ruling the roost. It was a bit of a mummy chat.”
“[She said] they are both becoming really good friends, George and Charlotte.”
For a change, Wills and Kate watched on as the event was carried out and didn’t play any direct roles.
Kate looked stunning in the navy blue ensemble.
It is a busy time of year for the royal mother-of-two who will soon jet off to Poland and Germany at the request of The Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
The 35-year-old royal will be accompanied by her husband for the official royal tour, which will kick off in July.
The exciting news was confirmed through a Kensington Palace spokesperson on March 3rd.
“The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will make an official visit to Poland and Germany this July at the request of The Foreign and Commonwealth Office,” the statement began.
“Full details will be announced in due course,” it concluded.
This will mark Catherine’s first trip to Germany and the couple’s first time in Poland on behalf of Queen Elizabeth.
Although the initial announcement hasn’t addressed whether they will be joined by their two young children, Prince George, three, and Princess Charlotte, 22 months, the pair travelled with their parents as they embarked on a royal tour of Canada last September.
WATCH: The family-of-four touch down in Canada. Post continues after the video…
The Cambridges will also head to Paris later this month for a two-day tour on the 17th and 18th of March.
The trip to France will mark the first official royal visit by the couple since the untimely death of William’s mother, Princess Diana.
Wills was just 15 and his brother Prince Harry only 12, when Princess Diana was tragically killed in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997. She was 36 years old.
While the tour will be the Duke and Duchess’s first official visit to Paris, William has previously travelled to Paris on a handful of unofficial trips.
Though, any trip to the French capital is undoubtedly an emotional experience for the second in line to the throne.
