King Charles III attended his first service for the Order of the Garter, the oldest order of chivalry in Britain, marking the official installation of two new members
Former Labour minister Catherine Ashton was made Lady Companion while Chris Patten, the final governor of Hong Kong, became a Knight Companion.
The king and Queen Camilla waved to crowds as they attended the service at Windsor Castle.
Thousands of members of the public gathered inside the castle grounds to see the procession arrive at St George’s Chapel.
Members of the Order in attendance included former prime ministers Sir Tony Blair and Sir John Major, as well as the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh.
The Princess of Wales also attended and shared a smile with Prince William as the procession moved past.
Meanwhile, Queen Camilla arrived with King Charles and could be seen clinging to her hat as the wind whipped up around her.
The Duke of York, who is a member of the Order, did not attend.
King Charles attends first Order of the Garter service of his reign - in pictures
Meanwhile, two other members of the Order, Lord Shuttleworth and Lord Luce, were named in the order of service but were unable to attend.
After the service, a procession of four Ascot Landau coaches ferried away members of the royal family who waved to the crowds as they went past.
The ceremony was attended by 800 guests inside the chapel and 2,900 members of the public who had won ballot tickets to watch from outside.
“It’s the first time we’ve been here since the queen passed away, and I did feel quite sad this morning,” said Samantha Toomes, 53, from Ripon, North Yorkshire.
“Last year we came hoping to see her.
“We do pomp really well in this country.
“It’s just amazing to watch the ceremony take place – it’s part of our great tradition.
“To be part of that is very special.”
The appointment of the Baroness Ashton of Upholland and the Lord Patten of Barnes was announced on April 23, St George’s Day, named for the patron saint of the Order.
Baroness Ashton served as parliamentary undersecretary of state in the Department for Education and the Ministry of Justice between 1999 and 2007.
She also served as leader of the House of Lords and lord president of the Council as well as diplomatic roles including British European commissioner.
She was appointed a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to international diplomacy and is currently Chancellor of the Order.
A former Conservative MP, Lord Patten of Barnes served as governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to the handover to China in 1997.
He also served as environment secretary and chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, as well as Conservative Party chairman.
The Order of the Garter is the most senior order of chivalry in Britain, established by King Edward III nearly 700 years ago.
The Order comprises 24 members, including the king and queen, several members of the royal family and 18 knights or ladies.
The royal website states: “Knights of the Garter are chosen personally by the sovereign to honour those who have held public office, who have contributed in a particular way to national life or who have served the sovereign personally.”
In addition to the 24 knights or ladies, overseas monarchs, known as supernumerary, or stranger knights, have also been appointed to the Order.
The King of Spain and the King of the Netherlands were both installed as members of the Order at the Garter Day Service in 2019.
Other members of the Order have included Marshal of the Royal Air Force, Lord Stirrup, and former prime minister Sir Winston Churchill.
MATCH INFO
Alaves 1 (Perez 65' pen)
Real Madrid 2 (Ramos 52', Carvajal 69')
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How tumultuous protests grew
- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
