Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, walk together in Buckingham Palace, following their wedding on Friday, in central London April 30, 2011 Reuters Pictures
Saturday, April 30, 2011
For Now, The Honeymoon Will Have to Wait
Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, walk together in Buckingham Palace, following their wedding on Friday, in central London April 30, 2011 Reuters Pictures
Kate's Flowers are Placed at Grave of the Unknown Warrior
A Lovely Photo
Royal Wedding 2011
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge leave Buckingham Palace in an Aston Martin
The Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
Official Photo
Britain's Prince William and his bride Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, pose for an official photograph, on the day of their wedding, in the throne room at Buckingham Palace, in central London April 29, 2011. Photograph taken on April 29, 2011. Reuters Pictures
Friday, April 29, 2011
The Evening Reception
Britain's Prince Charles (R) walks with Prince William followed by his wife Kate (2L), the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Cornwall as they make their way to Buckingham Palace for the evening celebrations following Charles and Kate's wedding earlier in the day on April 29, 2011 in London. Getty Images
Just Wed
A combination photo shows a selection of photos taken during the Royal wedding between Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, in London April 29, 2011. Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton married at Westminster Abbey on Friday in a sumptuous show of British pageantry that attracted a huge world audience and breathed new life into the monarchy. Reuters Pictures
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
Britain's Prince William and his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, come out of Westminster Abbey in London, after their wedding service, on April 29, 2011. Getty Images
A Beautiful Bride
Kate Middleton arrives at Westminster Abbey at the Royal Wedding in London Friday, April 29, 2011. AP Photo
The Adorable Bridesmaid's and Pages
Philippa Middleton, sister of Kate Middleton and Maid of honour, arrives with the bridesmaids at the West Door of Westminster Abbey in London for the wedding of Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton, on April 29, 2011. Getty Images
A Lovely Entrance
The Royal Wedding in 15 Minutes
Kate Middleton (2nd L) looks at Britain's Prince William (C) as she arrives at the altar of Westminster Abbey with her father Michael Middleton (L) for their wedding, in London, on April 29, 2011 Getty Images
The Wedding of the Century in Three Minutes
Fans cheer as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is driven past after her wedding to Britain's Prince William in London April 29, 2011. Prince William married his fiancee, Kate Middleton, in Westminster Abbey on Friday. Reuters Pictures
Brian Cowen Gives Graveside Oration at my Uncle's Funeral
A few days, my father's oldest brother sadly passed away.Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.
Michael Smith was a true gentleman, full of wit and charm, loved by his community, neighbours, friends and family. He was a great Gaelic footballer in his youth, a man that was throughout his long life a great traditional musician, a well known stalwart of Comhaltas na Ceoilteorà Éireann, a lover of the Irish language and a great community volunteer in his home village of Cloghan in county Offaly.
I was deeply moved when a lone accordionist played a medley of Irish tunes at the graveside.
Uncle Michael was brought up on a small farm with none of the trappings of wealth. My grandfather Patrick was a farm labourer that had to hire himself out as a ploughman, drover and thatcher to put food on the table. A great all-rounder. But poor like many of his generation.
As with all of his brothers and sisters, Michael worked hard to break out of the poverty trap. As a youngster he spent summers digging turf on of the family holding in what was then the vast Bog of Allen. He found employment at Ireland's first milled-peat fired power station at nearby Ferbane when it was opened by the Electricity Supply Board (ESB) in 1957. It used the turf from the local bogs. He worked himself up to become a senior manager and stayed with the organisation until his retirement.
My grandfather was a great IRA man who fought in the War of Independence. He was captured in a shoot-out during an ambush of a British army unit and spent 2 years in a military prison, securing his freedom only after the ceasefire and the ending of the war. Like the rest of his family, he fought on the losing Republican side during the Civil War.
Like many republicans of that era, the Smiths went with DeValera when he left Sinn Féin and established Fianna Fáil as he continued a campaign for a better more egalitarian more just society that what appeared in the form of the Irish Free State. Uncle Michael followed the family tradition and believed wholeheartedly in the early traditional radical values of the party, that was then the main party of the rural and urban working classes.
He became an important organiser of Fianna Fáil in Offaly over the years and helped out Brian Cowen from when he started out on his long political career. Michael stayed a party loyalist to the end of his days.
Hence it was no surprise when our former Taoiseach gave a deeply moving oration.
My mother's family also came from the same nationalist, republican small farming tradition that went with DeValera in the 1920s.
Yet to be honest, I had to hold back my anger at the funeral, and not say anything that would disrupt the sorrowful occasion and upset the mourners. For I, like the majority of people in this country, am livid at the way Fianna Fail has brought ruination to the country in order to bail out banker friends and property speculators who epitomized greed and arrogance. It seemed for Cowen and co that favours to rich friends mattered more than duty to the citizens of Ireland.
So I was genuinely shocked during the funeral at seeing how many people clapped and chatted with Cowen as if he was some great hero.
I stayed away from the man. But I was in the minority.
For ever since my youth I have been highly critical of a party that betrayed many of its radical founding principles especially with the setting up of 'Taca' by Charles Haughey which soon led to Fianna Fáil becoming hijacked and corrupted by a parasitical elite of 'nouveau riche' property developers, absentee landlords, land-grabbers and carpetbaggers who saw the party as a way of using political connections to secure lucrative government contracts and land re-zonings. There was no real sustainable national wealth created by these men.
There were and are honourable people in the organization such as Eamon O'Cuiv and Noel Treacy. But not enough.
I am proud to say though that most of my brothers and my sister concur (I think!) with my political beliefs and saved me from being viewed by the older family members as the lone radical black sheep. But even most of these cousins have changed their perceptions as the reality of the causes of our recession have been exposed and the betrayal by Fianna Fáil to all those of previous generations who suffered death, imprisonment and torture so that future generations could live in a self-governing democratic society free from the evils of enforced emigration, privilege, absentee landlordism and poverty.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Happy and Relaxed
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 28: Catherine Middleton waves to the crowds as she arrives at The Goring Hotel after visiting Westminster Abbey on April 28, 2011 in London, England. With less than 24 hours to go final preparations for the wedding of Prince William. Getty Images
Right: Kate Middleton arrives at The Goring hotel in London April 28, 2011. Britain's Prince William will marry his fiancee Kate Middleton in Westminster Abbey on April 29. Reuters Pictures
The Proud Father and Grandfather
Prince Philip, Duke of York arrives at the Mandarin Oriental hotel for a gala dinner hosted by Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in London on April 28, 2011 on the eve of the Royal wedding. Britain's Prince William is to marry his fiancee Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey in London on April 29, 2011. Getty Images
Prince and Princesses
Left: Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria (R) and the Duke of Vastergotland arrive for a pre-wedding dinner ahead of the wedding of Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London April 28, 2011. Reuters Pictures
Right: Greece's Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal arrive for a pre-wedding dinner ahead of the wedding of Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London April 28, 2011.
A Pair of Queens - Attend the Pre-Wedding Dinner
Pictured Left: Greece's Queen Anne-Marie arrives for a pre-wedding dinner ahead of the wedding of Britain's Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London April 28, 2011. Reuters Pictures
Pictured Right: Spain's Queen Sofia waves as she arrives for a pre-wedding dinner ahead of the wedding of Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London April 28, 2011. Reuters Pictures
Queen Elizabeth Host pre-Wedding Dinner for the Royals
Britain's Queen Elizabeth arrives for a pre-wedding dinner ahead of the wedding of Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London April 28, 2011. Reuters Pictures
Westminster Abbey Being Transformed into Beautiful English Garden
The Royal Groom Shakes Hands with Onlookers outside Buckingham Palace.
Onlookers and revelers camping in front of Westminster Abbey overcrowd a walkway in London, Wednesday, April 27, 2011. Revelers are camping out outside the Abbey where Prince William and Kate Middleton are due to get married on Friday, April 29. AP Photo
Official Photo of Wedding Program
With their wedding day just one day away, Prince William and Kate Middleton released a new photo that appears in the official Royal Wedding program.
The black-and-white image was taken by celebrity photographer Mario Testino and features a close-up shot of the couple smiling in matching white shirts.
Courtesy: ET and The Insider.com. Click link for full post.
http://www.etonline.com/royalwedding/110186_JUST_IN_Prince_William_Kate_Middleton_s_Official_Program_Photo/index.html
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Kate Arrives at Clarence House Looking So Cool!
The couple have lived together at a rented farmhouse on in the island of Anglesey for the last year and friends said they saw no reason to be apart for any longer than necessary.
In line with tradition, however, Kate will spend her last night as an unmarried woman apart from the groom. Although she was offered the pick of palace apartments in which to stay, family-orientated Kate has opted to stay in the five-star Goring Hotel with her parents, Michael and Carole, sister Pippa and brother James.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1381168/Royal-Wedding-Kate-Middleton-Prince-Williams-final-rehearsal-Westminster-Abbey.html#ixzz1KmFnMlmz
Life at Buckingham Palace - Barbara Walters
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II arrives at St John's College Cambridge in eastern England, on April 27 2011, to attend a lunch and reception to mark the 500th Anniversary of the College. The Queen's grandson Prince William will marry his fiancee Kate Middleton at London's Westminster Abbey on April 29. Getty Images
Full Military Dress Rehearsal Included the Horses
Full Military Dress Rehearsal
Hundreds of soldiers, sailors and airmen today had their last chance to practise for Friday's Royal Wedding in a dress rehearsal that started before dawn and continued into daybreak.
The full-scale walk-through was timed down to the last second - with military leaders well aware that the world will be expecting them to make sure everything goes smoothly on the big day.
So nothing was left to chance with the dry run which began at around 4.50am - after soldiers had gathered as early as 2am - and continued for hours.
The Happy Princess-to-Be
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Prince William's Life in Pictures
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Britain's Prince William serves on board HMS Iron Duke in a 2008 file photo. The picture is one of several released April 26, 2011 by Britain's Ministry of Defence, dating from the time Prince William served with the Royal Navy in 2008 - onboard HMS Iron Duke during Caribbean counter narcotics patrols, at the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, and during his visit to the Royal Marines Commando Training Centre where he underwent survival training. Reuters Pictures
Diana and Kate's Style
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 20: Martin Nolan (Standing) and Darren Julien pose with two of Princess Diana's dresses which will be auctioned through WE tv & Wedding Central at Julien's Auctions in Beverly Hills on May 7th in celebration of the Royal Wedding, with a portion of the proceeds going to charity are shown at Times Square on April 20, 2011 in New York City. Getty Images
Prince Harry's Mates - Walking with the Wounded - Welcomed in London
The Bet is On: Will Kate Middleton Wear The Queen's Diamond Tiara?
A gambler stands to win £72,000 after betting that Kate Middleton will become the first 'commoner' to wear the Queen's diamond tiara on her wedding day.
The bet that she will wear the George III Tiara was placed by a well-spoken middle-aged woman in Egham, Berkshire, yesterday.
The Russian fringe tiara is part of the Crown Jewels and was made in 1919 for Queen Mary. It has since been worn by the Queen Mother, the Queen and Princess Anne at their weddings.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1380592/Kate-Middleton-tipped-borrow-Queens-tiara-royal-wedding-72k-bet.html#ixzz1KfwHpnXr
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey, one of Britain
Neither a cathedral nor a parish church, Westminster Abbey was established as a ‘Royal Peculiar’ in 1560 by Queen Elizabeth I. It means that the Abbey is outside the jurisdiction and responsibility of the Church of England and that the Abbey receives no regular funding from the Crown, the Church of England or the government. The present church, begun by Henry III in 1245 is a treasure house of architectural and artistic achievement on which each succeeding century has left its mark.
Fifteen out of the thirty-nine sovereigns crowned in Westminster Abbey also lie buried within its walls. Their medieval and Renaissance tombs, though among the most important in Europe , form only a small part of the extraordinary collection of gravestones, memorials and monumental sculpture for which the Abbey has long been famous.
Many of the significant individuals in British history are remembered here: royalty and aristocracy, clergy and politicians, writers, scientists and musicians. They include Geoffrey Chaucer, Sir Isaac Newton, Charles Dickens, George Frederick Handel and William Gladstone.
Fifteen royal weddings have taken place in Westminster Abbey since King Henry I and Princess Matilda of Scotland
More than a million people visit Westminster Abbey every year and several hundred thousand come to worship at its daily services.
The Grave of the Unknown Warrior
The Grave of the Unknown Warrior is at the west end of the nave. It is a black marble gravestone encircled by red poppies with an inscription in brass letters which commemorates the many thousands killed in the 1914-18 war who have no grave.
The grave contains the remains of an unidentified serviceman taken from the battlefields of the First World War. The idea came from an army chaplain, David Railton, who had noticed in a garden at Armentieres
The Unknown Warrior was buried on 11 November 1920 in the presence of King George V and other members of the Royal Family, the Prime Minister, members of the Cabinet and the chiefs of the armed forces. A hundred holders of the Victoria Cross formed a guard of honour through the nave. The grave contains soil from France and the Union Flag, known as ‘the Padre’s Flag’, which covered the coffin on its journey from France , hangs in St George’s England , was presented in 1990 and hangs on a pillar to the south; on a pillar to the north hangs the Congressional Medal of Honor, conferred by the USA
The inscription on the grave reads:
BENEATH THIS STONE RESTS THE BODY
OF A BRITISH WARRIOR
UNKNOWN BY NAME OR RANK
BROUGHT FROM FRANCE
THE MOST ILLUSTRIOUS OF THE LAND
AND BURIED HERE ON ARMISTICE DAY
11 NOV: 1920, IN THE PRESENCE OF
HIS MAJESTY KING GEORGE V
HIS MINISTERS OF STATE
THE CHIEFS OF HIS FORCES
AND A VAST CONCOURSE OF THE NATION
THUS ARE COMMEMORATED THE MANY
MULTITUDES WHO DURING THE GREAT
WAR OF 1914-1918 GAVE THE MOST THAT
MAN CAN GIVE LIFE ITSELF
FOR GOD
FOR KING AND COUNTRY
FOR LOVED ONES HOME AND EMPIRE
FOR THE SACRED CAUSE OF JUSTICE AND
THE FREEDOM OF THE WORLD
THEY BURIED HIM AMONG THE KINGS BECAUSE HE
HAD DONE GOOD TOWARD GOD AND TOWARD
HIS HOUSE
St Edward the Confessor’s Chapel and the Shrine of St Edward
At the heart of Henry III’s rebuilding of Westminster Abbey was the magnificent shrine of St Edward the Confessor, whose patronage of the monastery was largely responsible for its wealth and importance.
The shrine stands in its own chapel behind the high altar and occupies the lofty, apsidal east end of the Gothic church. Its importance is emphasised architecturally by the processional ambulatory surrounding it and by the radiating chapels beyond. The original lavish decoration included a Cosmati-work pavement, laid at the same time as the great pavement in the sacrarium, though in a different style. Originally the shrine could be seen from the crossing and quire, and only when the altar screen was built in the mid-fifteenth century did St Edward’s Chapel become the enclosed space it is today.
Saints’ shrines were found in many medieval churches, but in Britain
The Shrine was in medieval times an important place of pilgrimage. In recent years, some elements of pilgrimage have been restored. Twice a day, some of the Abbey’s community and visitors assemble in the Shrine for prayer, in addition to parish pilgrim groups each week and a national pilgrimage in October, an important element in the Abbey’s annual rhythm of prayer and devotion.
The Cosmati Pavement
The Cosmati Pavement is a remarkable floor in front of the High Altar, nearly 25 feet square, composed of more than 30,000 pieces of porphyry, onyx and glass, cut to different sizes and shapes and set in geometric designs. The materials were brought from Rome
There are thought to be only three of these pavements left in the UK Canterbury
The Cosmati Pavement was covered by carpet to protect is fragile surface for most of the last 150 years. It was not visible at either HM The Queen’s wedding or her Coronation. A two-year conservation project completed in May 2010 means that it is now on permanent display to the public.
St Edmund’s Chapel
St Edmund’s Chapel off the South Ambulatory is dedicated to Edmund, king of East Anglia Valence
The chapel windows are plain except for three pieces of heraldic glass, placed here in 1938 which depict the three lions of England for Henry III, the red pallets of Provence for his queen, Eleanor, and the red lion rampant crowned for Richard, earl of Cornwall
The Abbey’s ten bells will be rung prior to the wedding for up to half an hour. After the service a full peal of 5,000 changes will be rung that will take in excess of three hours. Full peals are rung on the Abbey’s bells only for significant occasions. The ringers do this without a break and need to concentrate throughout.
In change ringing the sequence in which the bells sound alters continually. No sequence is repeated. The peal commences and concludes with ‘rounds’, which is the ringing of the bells in order from the highest to the lowest note. A rhythmical and flowing effect is the objective.
The changes to be rung are determined by ringing methods (similar to scripts or scores) which the ringers commit to memory. The Royal Wedding peal will combine two methods, London and Bristol
The conductor, while ringing one of the bells, announces frequently which method is to be followed. He also provides other instructions to achieve the peal length of 5,000 changes.
Abbey Ringers
Members are elected to the Westminster Abbey Company of Ringers, a voluntary group, and are able bell ringers. They come from all professions and past members of the Company have included a train driver, a school teacher and a medical consultant. The current membership includes architects, bankers, civil servants, a lawyer, IT workers, a supply chain manager and management consultants.
Wedding Ring
The Wedding ring that Catherine Middleton will wear will be made of Welsh Gold. The gold was given to Prince William by The Queen shortly after the couple were engaged. It has been in the family's possession for some years and has been in the care of the Royal Jewellers. There are no further details on which mine the gold was mined from. More information about the ring may be released closer to the Wedding Day.
There will only be one ring, in accordance with the couple's wishes. The ring will be from Prince William for Catherine.
Other Royal Wedding Rings
The wedding rings of The late Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, The Queen, The late Princess Margaret, The Princess Royal and The late Princess of Wales were all made from the same nugget of Welsh Gold, which came from a Welsh mine, Clogau St David’s at Bontddu, North Wales .
In November 1981, the Royal British Legion presented The Queen with 36-grammes of 21 carat Welsh Gold, part of this gold went into the making of the ring worn by Sarah, Duchess of York (1986).
The Wedding rings worn by The Earl and Countess of Wessex are made from Welsh gold, too (possibly from the piece presented in November, 1981).
The Prince of Wales wears his wedding ring under his signet ring.
The Routes
The Route
The route between Buckingham Palace and the Abbey goes by The Mall, Horse Guards Road, Horse Guards Parade, through Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall Parliament Square
The additional route from the Goring Hotel to The Mall goes by way of Grosvenor Place Buckingham Palace Road
The Wedding Service will be relayed by audio speakers along the Route. This is in addition to the screens already announced at Hyde Park and Trafalgar Square
Cars and Carriages
Cars
Miss Middleton and Prince William will travel separately to the wedding service using State Cars from the Royal Mews.
Miss Middleton will travel in a Rolls Royce Phantom VI, accompanied by her father. The Rolls Royce was presented to The Queen in 1978 for her Silver Jubilee by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
Prince William will travel in a Bentley, accompanied by Prince Harry. The State Bentleys have been uniquely designed enabling greater use to be made of the vehicle’s interior space. The Bentleys are 6.22 metres long and, at 3.84 meters, their wheelbase is 1.3 metres longer than that of an average family sized saloon.
State cars are painted in Royal claret livery. The Rolls-Royces and Bentleys do not have registration number plates, since they are State vehicles. On processional occasions, the State cars travel at around nine miles per hour, and sometimes as slow as three miles per hour.
The State Car collection includes two Bentleys, three Rolls-Royces and three Daimlers. Members of the Royal Family and Miss Middleton’s parents and siblings will travel to Westminster Abbey in cars and motor coaches organised by the Royal Mews.
Motor-coaches
All the motor coaches used on the day have been supplied on a temporary loan from Volkswagen for the wedding, and will be driven by drivers from Westway Coaches.
Carriages
At the end of their wedding service at Westminster Abbey, Prince William and Miss Middleton will travel in the 1902 State Landau along the Processional Route Buckingham Palace Parliament Square , Whitehall
There will be five horse-drawn carriages in the Carriage Procession from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace
The 1902 State Landau, the Glass Coach, the Ascot and Semi-State Landaus are housed at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace
The 1902 State Landau was specifically built for King Edward VII in 1902 and was intended to be used at his Coronation. It is the carriage in most general use at the Royal Mews and is usually used by The Queen to meet Foreign Heads of State when they arrive on State Visits to Britain St Paul York also used it for their return to Buckingham Palace
The 1902 State Landau is painted in a lighter shade of maroon than the other coaches and richly adorned with gold leaf and upholstered in a crimson satin. It is normally used open, and drawn by six horses.
The Glass Coach was built in 1881 and was purchased for use at King George V’s Coronation in 1911. The Glass Coach has carried previous Royal brides to their weddings – Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923, Princess Alexandra in 1963, Princess Anne in 1973, Lady Diana Spencer in 1981 and Miss Sarah Ferguson in 1986. It has also carried the bride and bridegroom from the church, as it did when Princess Elizabeth married The Duke of Edinburgh and again when Princess Anne married Captain Mark Phillips.
The Glass Coach was built by A. Peters and Sons, as a sheriff’s town coach before being purchased shortly before King George V’s coronation. It is driven by a coachman from the box seat with two or four horses, has special interior lighting and is known as the Glass Coach on account of its large glass windows.
There are five Ascot Landaus in the Royal Mews. Two of these will feature in the Procession. Ascot Landaus are always used for The Queen’s procession up the course at the Royal Ascot Race meeting and also for other visits of an official nature. They have been used for The Queen’s coronation visit to Edinburgh , the Investiture of The Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle , The Queen’s silver Jubilee visits to Glasgow and Cardiff
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