Amid talked-about tensions with son Prince Harry, King Charles III referenced family during an emotional speech when celebrating the 80th Anniversary of VE Day.
“It is now eighty years since my grandfather, King George VI, announced to the nation and the Commonwealth that ‘the dreadful shadow of war has passed from our hearths and our homes.’ The liberation of Europe was secured,” Charles, 76, said during at the Horse Guards Parade in London on Thursday, May 8. “His words echo down through history as all this week, and especially today, we unite to celebrate and remember with an unwavering and heartfelt gratitude, the service and sacrifice of the wartime generation who made that hard-fought victory possible.”
Throughout the week, Charles and the royal family, including Prince William, Kate Middleton and their kids Prince George, Prince Charlotte, Prince Louis and others, have been spotted out on multiple occasions for various VE Day (Victory in Europe) celebrations. The annual event is celebrated in the U.K. to mark the end of World War II in 1945. (Harry, 40, and wife Meghan Markle now reside in Montecito, California with kids Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.)
“While our greatest debt is owed to all those who paid the ultimate price, we should never forget how the war changed the lives of virtually everyone,” he continued, in part. “That debt can never truly be repaid; but we can, and we will, remember them.”
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Charles also brought up his wife, Queen Camilla, and their June 2024 trip to celebrate the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
“In January, as the world marked the liberation of Auschwitz, I met survivors whose stories of unspeakable horror were the most vivid reminder of why Victory in Europe truly was the triumph of good over evil,” he continued. “All these moments, and more, combine to lead us to this day, when we recall both those darkest days and the great jubilation when the threat of death and destruction was finally lifted from our shores.”
He then made mention of his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, and her diary written at 19 years old about her volunteer work during World War II.
“I do hope your celebrations tonight are almost as joyful, although I rather doubt, I shall have the energy to sing until 2 a.m., let alone for that matter to lead you all in a giant conga from here back to Buckingham Palace,” he quipped. “The Allied victory being celebrated then, as now, was a result of unity between nations, races, religions and ideologies, fighting back against an existential threat to humanity.”
Charles continued his theme of referencing family by bringing up late grandfather Prince Philip, and his experience in the Royal Navy.
“In remembering the past, we must also look to the future. As the number of those who lived through the Second World War so sadly dwindles, the more it becomes our duty to carry their stories forward, to ensure their experiences are never to be forgotten,” he added. “We must listen, learn and share, just as communities across the nation have been doing this week at local street parties, religious services and countless small acts of remembrance and celebration.”
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In concluding his speech, Charles offered a quote from his grandfather.
“We shall have failed, and the blood of our dearest will have flowed in vain, if the victory which they died to win does not lead to a lasting peace, founded on justice and established in good will,” he said.
Charles’ focused on several family members comes amid his ongoing drama with Harry.
Following a landmark loss in his battle for government-funded security in the U.K., the Duke of Sussex spoke out in a bombshell BBC News interview, implying that his father was the reason his appeal was denied; he also alleged that the monarch “won’t speak to me.”
Charles has not publicly addressed Harry’s claims.
