Queen is boss, our role model: Prince William

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge cutting a cake during 90th birthday celebration of The Queen Elizabeth II at the residence of British High Commissioner in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

As part of their ongoing visit to India, British royal couple, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton on Monday visited the India Gate in the capital and paid homage to martyrs at Amar Jawan Jyoti. They later visited Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial and paid homage to him. Later in the evening, the royal couple also attended a reception hosted to mark the birthday celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II in which Prince William lavished praise on his grandmother, saying that she had “entrusted another generation” of her family towards strengthening of ties between the United Kingdom and India which is the largest country in the Commonwealth. The British monarch will turn 90 in a few days. “She might be the grandmother but she is the boss,” was how Prince William described Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch. Speaking at the reception, Prince William said his children Prince George and Princess Charlotte were “lucky” to have her as their great grandmother and that she will remain a role model for them for life. On his current India visit, Prince William said he was “incredibly impressed” how the country was on the move where “dynamism” was “matched” with warmth and welcome.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be hosting lunch for the royal couple on Tuesday afternoon after which they will move on to Assam to visit the Kaziranga national park.

“Never forgetting those who have made their ultimate sacrifice for India,” read the message accompanying the wreath laid by the royal couple at the memorial at the Amar Jawan Jyoti. With the sombre tune of military bands playing in the background, the royal couple stood in silence in front of the memorial.

Earlier, on the second day of their India visit, the royal couple touched down in the national capital around 2.20 pm.

Later in the afternoon, in a close to 45-minute visit to the Gandhi Smriti on Tees January Marg, the royal couple also saw the exhibits there and came to know that Gandhiji learned to wear a tie and play the violin during his stay in London as a student.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge also paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at the Martyr’s Column. As is well known, the Father of the Nation was killed on January 30, 1948 by a fanatic at the Birla House. The House, where Gandhiji spent the last few years of his life, was later turned into a memorial.

According to news agency reports, the Royal Couple also visited the museum, the khadi-weaving room and expressed keen interest in knowing about Lord Mountbatten’s tribute to Gandhiji among other eminent personalities, after his death. The royal couple were particularly keen about the spinning wheel the use of which he popularised all his life.

Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India was related to the British royal family. Gandhiji and Mountbatten were known to have shared bonhomie and the last Viceroy had also attended his funeral. “They (the royal couple) were curious to know about Gandhiji and his life’s philosophy. Their reaction was ‘such a simple life’ as they saw his pictures and visited his living room,” said Depanker Shri Gyan, Director of Gandhi Smriti, who accompanied the royals around the memorial.

“They were very excited and happy to see him spinning the wheel. They wanted to know why Gandhiji spun the wheel and what it symbolises,” Gyan was quoted by news agencies, as saying.

“They asked why was the spinning wheel used and how it became a symbol of Indian nationalism. To this, we said that this symbolised economic independence and promoted the idea of ‘swadeshi’. They also asked how khadi is made,” said Sailja Gullapalli, a research associate with the Gandhi Smriti, who also accompanied the couple throughout their visit to the museum.

The royal couple wrote a note ‘To India’s Visionary Leader’ in the visitor’s book. Known for their sartorial grace, the couple looked elegant in their attire. Kate wore a cream dress by Emilia Wickstead on her first outing in the city.

Interestingly, of all of Gandhiji’s belongings on display, which included watch, spoon and fork, they were curious about a small stone in the collection, which the museum staff explained, was used for scrubbing.

Thirty students of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan sang ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram’, ‘Vaishnav Jana’ and ‘Om Tat Sat’ songs to welcome Kate and William while they were offering tribute at the Martyr’s Column.

For 11-year-old Ananya, it was “dream come true” to meet the royal couple. “After the song, Prince William appreciated us for singing the songs so confidently,” said Aditi Kedyal, a standard VII student.

The staff at the Gandhi Smritil have been busy for the past one-week to make preparations for the royal couple’s visit. Two days before their visit, it was given a fresh coating of paint.