Last week, the Royal Family celebrated the 80th anniversary of VJ Day in public, and it has emerged that Prince Harry also did as well, showing how eagerly he is to reconcile with his family.
Prince Harry has placed a secret letter paying tribute to Second World War veterans at a national memorial – hours after a visit from King Charles and Queen Camilla, it has emerged.
The King and Queen led the nation in commemorating the 80th anniversary of VJ Day during a moving ceremony at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire on Friday. The event came on the day Charles vowed that the sacrifice of heroes who fought and died in the campaigns in the Pacific and Far East during the Second World War “shall never be forgotten”.
And now it has been revealed that Harry, who served for 10 years in the Army, also paid a touching tribute to the veterans by having a personal letter and wreath placed at the Burma Star Memorial at the same location.
It is reported that Harry insists the tribute was laid by a friend, with strict instructions only for it to be placed at the memorial after his father and stepmother have left so as not to overshadow them. This is a significant indication that he is determined to make amends with his royal relatives.
In the letter, which was attached to a poppy wreath, includes his royal emblemn and is signed Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, he pays tribute to all that fought in the war, including his late grandfather, Prince Philip, who served in the Far East.
In pictures obtained by GB News, the letter reads: “For me, this anniversary carries an added layer of meaning. My late grandfather, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, served in the Pacific campaign.
He described those years with a quiet demeanor, but I am aware of how much he admired everyone who supported him during that conflict. I think of him today, and I think about each of you because of the shared struggles, friendships formed, and legacy you leave behind.
He also added: “On this 80th anniversary of VJ Day, we pause to remember the day the guns finally fell silent across the world, the true end of the Second World War. We also pause to recognise you, the men and women of the ‘Forgotten Army,’ whose courage and endurance in the Far East campaign were anything but forgettable.”
You fought a long, difficult battle in conditions that were hard to imagine, faced an enemy who was determined to defeat you. You fought in difficult terrain, endured months, even years, far away from home.
The move comes just weeks after it emerged that top aides for Harry and Charles met in London last month, tipped as a crucial “first step” in what insiders believed could be a “rapprochement process” between the estranged Sussexes and the rest of the Royal Family.
Meredith Maines, Harry’s right-hand woman, and Tobyn Andreae, the King’s communications chief, met at the Royal Over-Seas League on a neutral ground.
The get together came just two months after Harry’s eye-opening BBC interview, where he claimed Charles “won’t speak to me because of this security stuff,” referring to the controversial removal of his police protection in the UK.
Camilla, a war veteran who was “off script,” on Friday at the National Memorial Arboretum to pay tribute to the King’s cancer battle, appeared clearly emotional.
Charles and Camilla joined Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and 33 veterans aged from 96 to 105 who served in the Far East and Pacific at a national service of remembrance.
The celebration of the six-year war’s end on August 15 is known as VJ Day, but much of it was centered on VE (Victory in Europe) Day in May, with those who served in the Far East being known as The Forgotten Army.
Yavar Abbas, a member of the 11th Sikh Regiment, took to the stage at the National Memorial Arboretum to read excerpts from his diaries from his time serving Burma in 1945 in a moment of reverence for his “brave king” (first).
As Mr. Abbas, 105, who is originally from Lucknow in India, said, “I make no apologies for briefly going off the script to salute my brave king, who is here with his beloved queen, who is currently treated for cancer,” Camilla looked at her husband and appeared to wipe away a tear as he appeared to wipe away a tear.
Around 1,500 people gathered to hear Mr. Abbas’ claim that he also had cancer and that he hoped it would bring “comfort” because he had been battling the illness for 25 years.
He continued, “I salute him for gracing this occasion because he has gone a long way to make sure that his grandad’s 14th Army is never given the nickname “The Forgotten Army.”
Source: Mirror
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