While Buckingham Palace has kept the details of the German State Visit under wraps until they happen, their guest has other ideas and is telling everyone just what he will get up to while in the UK.
President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s office has announced his full itinerary for the three day State Visit and revealed that the 90 year old Duke of Kent will play a vital role in one of the most important parts of the trip.
As the State Visit concludes, President Steinmeier is heading to Coventry to attend a memorial service there. The city was heavily bombed during World War Two and its cathedral had to be rebuilt after serious damage. It is seen as a place of reconciliation and forgiveness and the President will be joined there by the Duke of Kent.
The Duke will accompany the German President on a tour of Coventry Cathedral. Only parts of the medieval church, including the spire, survived the bombing and the new cathedral was consecrated in 1962. The two men will see some of the symbols of reconciliation that are in the church including the Charred Cross which was made from the ruins of the old cathedral.
They will also see the statue of Reconciliation which was presented to the Cathedral in 1995 to mark the 50th anniversary of the end of World War Two. A similar copy has been given to the Hiroshima Peace Park in Japan.
The Duke of Kent has been heavily involved in reconciliation movements between the UK and Germany and attended the consecration of the new church in Dresden. It had to be rebuilt after heavy bombing raids by British and US troops in the final months of World War Two. Dresden was very badly damaged and 25,000 people were killed.
Another poignant moment will follow when the Duke of Kent and the President of Germany meet veterans.
The visit is one of the stand out moments of the State Visit and the importance that King Charles places on the role of the Duke of Kent within the Royal Family has been underlined by his involvement at Coventry.
The State Visit got under way on December 3 with an official welcome ceremony at Windsor Castle hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla.
President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife, Elke Budenbender, had been met at Heathrow by the Prince and Princess of Wales who accompanied them to Windsor.
A carriage procession through the town to the castle followed.
After the ceremonial, which included the inspection of a Guard of Honour, the German President was hosted for lunch where other members of the Royal Family, including the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, joined them.
They were all later shown parts of the Royal Collection with particular links to Germany. Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, featured heavily in the display and he had a big influence on the stand out moment of the State Visit which followed later.
The State Banquet at Windsor Castle saw the Princess of Wales were the Circlet tiara which Prince Albert helped design for Queen Victoria. The Prince Consort was inspired by Indian architecture and created a diadem based on pointed arches. These are covered in diamonds and have a central stone. In Albert’s day, they were opals but when Queen Alexandra became the owner of the tiara, she switched those for rubies.
The tiara was left to the Crown by Victoria and since then has only ever been worn by queens. Kate is the first princess to wear it.
Day two of the State Visit will include a gala banquet hosted by the Lord Mayor of London. The President of Germany will also lay a wreath on the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II in St. George’s Chapel in Windsor.
The State Visit is designed to cement relations between Germany and the UK. The visit to Coventry will be a vital part of that.
