QUEEN ELIZABETH II 1926 - 2022
KING CHARLES VISITS ST ANNE’S CATHEDRAL Jane Hardy describes the atmosphere outside St Anne’s Cathedral during King Charles’ first visit to Northern Ireland as the new Monarch. one woman at Hillsborough put it to me the day before, “Och it’s sad”. Yet the accession and a new name above the door seemed good too, like the weather on Tuesday, September 13. The new head of the Firm said he’d dreaded that day yet here he was, five days on, energised. It was a bright autumnal day and standing in Writers’ Square, the media pack, local and international, and people from charities and community groups close to Charles and his mother, were there. Plus a good sprinkling of schoolkids from both sides of the divide. The mood was celebratory. En route to my stand, I passed two sisters with one of their baby daughters, not yet a year. So why had they, alongside hundreds to thousands, come to stand in the warmth and wait for the appearance of the Royal car, a German vehicle with the flag on. “We wanted to pay our respects to the Queen and greet King Charles,” said Amie Black. Her sister agreed and the baby nodded and sucked her lolly. History was also being made. King Charles’ mother first visited the Province a month after her wedding, in 1953, on a trip with Prince Philip to Derry-Londonderry, although she’d been coming over as Princess Elizabeth since the end of the war, chalking up over 20 visits. In 1946, Princess Elizabeth with her parents, George VI and Queen Elizabeth, came to Ulster on a ‘Victory’ tour, hosting a garden party for war workers in Botanic Gardens; she and Princess Margaret were often hosted by their aunt, Lady Rose Bowes-Lyon, at Hillsborough. It’s safe to say, and Belfast’s Lieutenant confirms this, that the Royal Family has a soft spot for Northern Ireland. When his automobile with pennant (that tells you it’s his car) arrived and the new King and Camilla, Queen Consort, got out, he seemed
K
ing Charles III’s first visit as Monarch to Northern Ireland was a mixture of the ceremonial and the chummy, the public and personal. The man who as heir to the throne had often made the hour-long flights from London to Belfast, but this was a new dispensation. It was, of course, a bittersweet experience too. Prince Charles had known his whole life that he would only start the job he was trained for when his “beloved mama”, Queen Elizabeth II, died. As
Ireland President Michael D Higgins.
42
PAGE42-45.indd 2
04/10/2022 15:37
