The Duchess in more McQueen for Royal Air force 100th Anniversary.
Kate wore Alexander McQueen for today’s historic events marking the Royal Air Force’s 100th anniversary. She attended the RAF 100 service at Westminster Abbey, arriving with Prince William as well as the Duke as well as Duchess of Sussex.
Seeing the Duchess at the service was a surprise, she had not been included in the original listing of participants released by the Palace.
Flag bearers making final preparations before the service.
Some of the active-duty RAF workers on hand this morning before the service got underway.
There was a extremely strong royal existence at all of the events marking the occasion. Sophie, Countess of Wessex, looking extremely elegant as she arrived at Westminster Abbey.
Sir Timothy Laurence as well as Princess Anne.
Prince Andrew.
Other dignitaries attended, including Prime priest Theresa May.
Prince Charles as well as the Duchess of Cornwall.
Prince William as well as Kate being greeted as they go into the Abbey. The Duke wore the No. 1 uniform of the Royal Air force as well as his RAF wings, showing he is a qualified RAF pilot.
As always, the final person to go into an event is HM.
The Dean of Westminster, the extremely Reverend Dr. John Hall, the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, as well as the Queen prepared to head up the aisle.
More than 2200 people attended the service. At the podium in this photo, Wing commander Nikki Thomas, the very first ever female RAF Tornado bomber squadron commander. She checked out the poem High flight by John Gillespie Magee Jr., “Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth as well as danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings.”
More on the service from an ITV story:
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, addressed the congregation as well as said the RAF has in its very first 100 years been a decisive factor in serving the country, as well as being key in protecting democracy as well as freedom.
With an RAF ensign draped over the high altar behind him in the abbey, Mr Welby likewise highlighted exactly how members of his own household have served as well as been killed in the RAF – drawing interest to his own father who flew low level sorties in Burma.
Following the service, the Queen presented a new flag to the regiment, a ceremony known as the presentation of Colours.
You see many of the other royals in attendance.
HM delivered remarks, saying, “I keep in mind the battle of Britain being fought in the skies above us, as well as we shall never fail to remember the guts as well as sacrifice of that time.”
The RAF was a new branch of the British armed forces when it was formed in 1918. The Royal Naval Air service was merged with the Royal Flying Corps to produce the new entity. The Queen spoke about her father, George VI; he was the very first member of the Royal household to qualify as a Royal Air force pilot.
The Royal Air force Pipes as well as Drums taking part in the parade after the service as well as ceremony.
Crowds lined the streets to watch the parade as well as flyby.
Another view.
Another view from above.
You can see a number of London landmarks in this picture.
The Red Arrows leave their mark on the sky.
Another view.
And a video of the jets as they flew over the Palace.
In the afternoon there was a reception at Buckingham Palace for RAF veterans, active duty staff, as well as their families. Princess Anne as well as her husband, Sir Timothy Laurence satisfying workers from the RAF’s emergency response Team.
The Duke is clearly in his aspect at events like this one.
Sophie as well as Edward spent time at the Science, Technology, engineering as well as Maths STEM camping tent at the reception.
The Duke of Kent as he arrived at the reception.
The Duke as well as Duchess of Sussex.
Prince Charles speaking with a vet who looks like he *might* have served in WWII.
Now for what Kate wore.
Many will acknowledge the piece, as it is almost identical to two other Alexander McQueen designs the Duchess has worn. Most just recently the Duchess wore the style in a extremely (very) pale yellow to the wedding event of the Duke as well as Duchess of Sussex.
Originally we saw Kate wearing the style to Charlotte’s christening.
She brought the gown back for Trooping the Colour in 2016, as well as once again for a battle of Passchendaele centenary service in Belgium in July 2017.
Today the Duchess debuted a new hat by Sean Barrett.
Mr. Barrett is a milliner specializing in chapeaux for the remarkable arts, designing primarily for television as well as film. His IMDB listing shows credits for TV programs like The Crown and Downton Abbey, as well as films ranging from Mary Poppins Returns to Evita.
Kate wore the diamond drops on loan from HM we have seen previously.
And the RAF Air Cadets Dacre brooch.
Set with diamonds, rubies as well as other gemstones, the Duchess very first wore the brooch in February 2016 at a church service honoring the 75th anniversary of the Royal Air force Cadets, of which she is the patron.
Kate carried a new clutch that I haven’t yet identified.
She wore her Gianvito Rossi suede heels in the praline colorway.
There are some terrific videos related to the anniversary. This one offers a 1:50 overview of the day’s events.
This BBC video is a stellar look at the flypast.
LINKAGE
Learn more about the RAF Centenary at the RAF 100 official website here; the RAF website is here; its Facebook page is here, the organization’s Instagram page is here and Twitter feed here
Read about the RAF 100 Appeal, a fundraising effort that will benefit four major RAF charities:
the RAF Benevolent Fund
the RAF Charitable Trust
the RAF Association
the RAF Museum
The Guardian and The Observer news stories about the new service as published in 1918 may be checked out here
The entire text of the Queen’s speech may be seen here
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