Prince William stood in for King Charles on Thursday as two days of commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day came to a close.
In one of the most significant moments as the Prince of Wales, William stepped in for his father to join world leaders including President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Normandy for the finale of the 80th anniversary of the historic D-Day landings.
During the visit, Prince William also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose country is at war with Russia. William, who has met Zelensky several times, greeted him with a warm handshake.
King Charles asked William to be at the ceremony on Omaha Beach, which included King Frederik X of Denmark and other world leaders, as palace aides were instructed to scale back the king’s schedule on the advice of his medical team to prevent exhaustion.
Charles, who is undergoing cancer treatment, attended a service at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer earlier in the day where he paid tribute to the “remarkable wartime generation.”
He was determined to attend the commemorative events in Portsmouth and Normandy. He has attended the most important parts of the two-day-long occasion, delivering moving speeches and meeting veterans.
However, on Thursday afternoon it fell to Prince William to stand in for his father — something he had done last December when he attended the funeral of the Emir of Kuwait.
On Thursday, William showed off his leadership and diplomatic skills and praised the bravery of the veterans who fought on D-Day. In a speech delivered to over 25 leaders and diplomats, the 41-year-old spoke in English and French to commend the action of Canadian troops who stormed the seafront on D-Day. He also laid a wreath and honored 14,000 Canadians who stormed Juno Beach 80 years ago on Thursday and delighted locals when he made a surprise visit to the D-Day Museum in Arromanches, where he spoke with veterans and received a warm welcome from well-wishers.
