In a black Diane von Furstenberg coat that sported two scarlet poppies, Princess Kate stood on the balcony of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to watch Prince William laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in London’s Whitehall.
The royal, who was 29 at the time, had followed the example of the then-Duchess of Cornwall and the Countess of Wessex in wearing a hat for the Remembrance Day service – hers was by Jane Corbett.
Camilla and Sophie appeared to be talking her through the proceedings as William, a search and rescue pilot, followed senior royals, including the late Queen, Prince Philip and their eldest son Charles in paying his respects, dressed in his grey Royal Air Force uniform.
For Flight Lieutenant Wales, as he is known in the military, the act of remembrance has very real meaning. Two dear friends of his lost their lives in combat.
Second Lieutenant Joanna Dyer, a friend from Sandhurst, died in Iraq in 2007. Major Alexis ‘Lex’ Roberts, his former platoon commander, was killed in Afghanistan the same year.
He has never forgotten their sacrifice. At the royal wedding, places were reserved for Joanna’s sister and Susan Roberts, Lex’s widow.
On Sunday, King Charles will lay a new wreath at the Cenotaph as he leads the nation at the annual Remembrance Day service for the first time as monarch.
The design of the ring of poppies pays tribute to the wreath used by both his mother the late Queen and his grandfather George VI. A wreath will also be laid on the Queen Consort’s behalf for the first time as Camilla watches from the balcony of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office building.
