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Prince Harry is putting his best foot forward on his tour in honor of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

Harry is currently on a tour of Belize (March 2nd & 3rd), the Bahamas (March 3rd – 5th), and Jamaica (March 5th – 8th) on behalf of The Queen as part of Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The ever-popular prince will also be paying a visit to Brazil in support of the UK Government and his own charities from March 9th – 11th.

The solo Diamond Jubilee tour representing the Queen is a first for Harry, who is usually out and about with his brother William or his father, the Prince of Wales.

Related articles

• Diamond Jubilee: Prince Harry parties on visit to Belize (telegraph.co.uk)
• His Royal Highness Prince Harry of Wales Having a Blast in Belize (VIDEOS) (royalcorrespondent.com)
• Diamond Jubilee: Prince Harry Begins Caribbean Tour in Belize [PHOTOS] (ibtimes.com)
• Prince Harry: Belize for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Tour! (justjared.com)

Westmacott was born in the village of Edington, Somerset in the South West of England in December 1950. He was educated at New College Oxford. He joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1972, and has extensive experience abroad with postings in Tehran, Brussels, Ankara, and Paris.

The new ambassador also has royal connections: in 1990, he was made Deputy Private Secretary to the Prince of Wales. Three years later, Westmacott was sent to Washington as a Counsellor. Later postings included Director for the Americas in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and Deputy Under Secretary of State.

In 2002, Westmacott was appointed Ambassador to Turkey, where he served until 2006. The following year he was appointed as the Ambassador to France where he served until this month.

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via: http://ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Queen Elizabeth II has returned home from her historic visit to Ireland.

Her Majesty’s speech during her visit moved many, but her mere presence was what spoke the loudest. No British monarch has visited the shores of the Emerald Isle in 100 years. The last British sovereign to set foot on Irish soil was the Queen’s grandfather, King George V, who visited Ireland in 1911 with his consort, Queen Mary.

It is fitting, then, that the Queen should be the next monarch to visit the Republic of Éire. King George and Queen Mary had a profound effect on a young Elizabeth. Though no one knew it at the time, the training Princess Elizabeth received from her august grandparents would stand her in good stead as queen.

Dressed in green and smiling brightly, the Queen shook hands with Irish President Mary McAleese. President McAleese did not curtsy, which in my view is appropriate. To do so would have resulted in a tricky political issue at such an historic moment.

The Queen visited the Garden of Remembrance, the memorial garden in Dublin dedicated to the memory of “all those who gave their lives in the cause of Irish Freedom”, where she laid a wreath; she toured the Guinness Storehouse; the National Stud at Kildare (of course!); and met with traders at the English Market in Cork.

The Queen also acknowledged the “sad and regrettable” mistakes of Britain’s relationship with Ireland during her state dinner in Dublin. Below, an excerpt of her speech:

‘A hUachtarain agus a chairde (President and friends).

Madam President, Prince Philip and I are delighted to be here, and to experience at first hand Ireland’s world-famous hospitality.

Together we have much to celebrate: the ties between our people, the shared values, and the economic, business and cultural links that make us so much more than just neighbours, that make us firm friends and equal partners.

….

The lessons from the peace process are clear; whatever life throws at us, our individual responses will be all the stronger for working together and sharing the load.

There are other stories written daily across these islands which do not find their voice in solemn pages of history books, or newspaper headlines, but which are at the heart of our shared narrative. Many British families have members who live in this country, as many Irish families have close relatives in the United Kingdom.

These families share the two islands; they have visited each other and have come home to each other over the years. They are the ordinary people who yearned for the peace and understanding we now have between our two nations and between the communities within those two nations; a living testament to how much in common we have.

These ties of family, friendship and affection are our most precious resource. They are the lifeblood of the partnership across these islands, a golden thread that runs through all our joint successes so far, and all we will go on to achieve.

They are a reminder that we have much to do together to build a future for all our grandchildren: the kind of future our grandparents could only dream of.

So we celebrate together the widespread spirit of goodwill and deep mutual understanding that has served to make the relationship more harmonious, close as good neighbours should always be.

Good luck in Ireland today, President Obama. You have a tough act to follow.

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Historic Visit – An Irish View

Highlights of Queen Elizabeth II’s State visit to Ireland – RTÉ.ie

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On July 1st, just days prior to the release of the Royal budget, royal reporter Richard Palmer stated in his Express blog that the Queen’s spending had gone way up in the past year.

Draft figures which will form the basis of her annual financial report, due to be published on Monday, show that her Civil List spending as head of state has risen by 2.1 per cent in a year – and 4.9 per cent if you include exceptional items.

CNN reports on Buckingham Palace’s statement on Monday, July 5th:

Queen Elizabeth II’s annual budget this year is £38.2 million ($57.8 million), down from £41.5 million ($62.8 million) last year, Buckingham Palace announced Monday.

“Her annual spending has fallen by 17 percent in real terms since 2001,” the palace stated.

The British government covers the budget only for the Queen and her husband through the Civil List. Other members of the Royal Family are funded by the Parliamentary Annuity. In exchange, the Queen reimburses the government with the income from the Duchy of Lancaster, the monarch’s personal property. Would it be possible, then, for the senior members of the Royal Family (save for Prince Charles) to live off of the income from royal holdings alone?

Any accountants out there?

Who is keeping one’s books? Is the budget more or less?