Prince Charles To Attend D-Day Ceremony in France

There has been a circus surrounding the preparations for the D-Day 65th anniversary this weekend, as no member of the British Royal Family was invited; and the situation has received media coverage globally. The anniversary will be attended by Presidents Sarkozy and Obama, but questions were raised when no member of the British Royal Family was announced as attending. The royal household initially stated that no royal was attending as none had been invited; the response from the French was that the British had been invited, but it was up to them to decide exactly who would represent them. Gordon Brown’s attendance had previously been confirmed.

Rumours that the anniversary was intended to be low-key in Britain are swirling, and the suggestion that this is why the Prime Minister accepted the invitation followed.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs stated on camera that President Obama felt that the Queen should receive an official invitation, and suggested that Obama had communicated this. It is unclear whether he was referring to France or Britain here, however media reports suggest that Clarence House had no knowledge of this.

The resolution to the matter has recently been announced, with The Prince of Wales attending, representing his mother the Queen. This comes following an invitation from the French Ambassador in London.

The irony of this resolution however, is that it appears that there was never any suggestion that the Queen would attend the anniversary, but the intention was always that Charles would go! HM has only attended the 50th and 60th anniversaries to date, not the 55th…

It is expected that the Queen will spend Saturday at the Epsom Derby, as is her tradition. She is the head of Britain’s Armed Forces.

Filed under The United Kingdom
Tagged Anniversary, D-Day, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, France, President Obama of the United States, President Sarkozy of France, Prime Minister Brown of the United Kingdom, The Prince of Wales, World War II.

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