Last year was the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Day of Days. France’s President Macron hosted a huge gathering in Normandy for the commemorations, and many countries sent significant delegations for the anniversary events. This year, we’ll have the 80th anniversaries of VE Day and VJ Day, Victory-in-Europe and Victory-over-Japan. Germany surrendered months before Japan, which is why both dates are significant. VE Day is May 8th and VJ Day is August 15th. Many Allied troops stationed in Europe post-VE Day really believed that they would soon be sent to Japan to finish the war there. Well, the Windsors have big plans for the 80th anniversary of VE Day, and it sounds like King Charles and Queen Camilla really want to be front and center. It also sounds like the Prince and Princess of Wales are just being attached to larger events.
The Royal Family will attend a host of VE Day events to commemorate the 80th anniversary marking the end of the Second World War in Europe. King Charles and Queen Camilla will lead the events, which will begin on 5 May with a military procession of 1,300 members of the armed forces, although Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Princess Royal will also make a number of appearances.
To open the procession in Parliament Square, a recitation of Winston Churchill’s famous VE Day speech will be played on the loudspeakers when Big Ben strikes 12:00. From there, the King and Queen will watch the March along the mall with the Prince and Princess of Wales and Sir Keir Starmer. The Prime Minister will join the senior royals to lay wreathes at the Queen Victoria Memorial in honour of fallen service members from the catastrophe. Other members of the royal family are said to be joining King Charles, Queen Camilla, Kate Middleton and Prince William for the occasion, including the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, The Princess Royal and Sir Tim Laurence and The Duke of Kent.
From the Buckingham Palace balcony, they will watch a flypast to honour the brave men and women who fought and died to protect their country. It will include Red Arrows and historic World War Two aircrafts to add to the spectacle of the occasion.
Afterwards, the royal couple will host a special tea party at Buckingham Palace for war veterans and their families. This will be a poignant commemoration considering how few servicemen and women are left from the war. It is likely to be the last anniversary where a considerable number of veterans who served in World War Two can attend. The Prince and Princess of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, The Princess Royal and Sir Tim Laurence and The Duke of Kent will join Their Majesties and the Prime Minister, meeting veterans during the reception.
Queen Camilla is set to view the breathtaking new display of 30,000 ceremonial poppies at the Tower of London. The temporary installation was made to reflect the pain of the sacrifices made by the British people during wartime calamities. She will also lead the laying of wreaths at the Innocent Victims’ Memorial outside the Abbey’s Westminster Door.
On the actual day of the anniversary, 8 May, the Royal Family will attend a service of thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey which will end with a concert in Horse Guards Parade later in the evening. The King and Queen, The Prince and Princess of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, The Princess Royal and Sir Tim Laurence, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and The Duke of Kent will attend the event.
The King and Queen will then attend a live celebratory concert from Horse Guards Parade to conclude the national VE Day commemorations. Their Majesties will attend a concert, presented by Zoe Ball, with performances to echo the historic celebrations of VE Day 80 years ago. Thousands of members of the public will have the opportunity to join the audience for the event, which will include performances of music from the era alongside the stories of veterans from the Second World War.
I like that everything is spelled out for all of the commemorative events and it sounds like next week is going to be really busy for Charles and Camilla. It’s supposed to sound that way, because if you look closely, they’re doing like five back-to-back events on Monday, and then they have church and a concert on Thursday. And Camilla will go solo to a poppy installation at some point. Like… even if William and Kate weren’t two of the laziest people in the world, I still don’t think Charles would have allowed them to do much more than this – Charles and Camilla clearly want to “lead” all of the VE Day events. The fact that Will and Kate couldn’t care less is just a bonus, I guess.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
