The time is probably ripe, the occasion with the anniversary – the 200. Birthday of albert and victoria – given. And there was also a favour: the reception of the british ambassador in berlin on the occasion of the queen’s birthday celebration. Coburg’s second mayor, birgit weber, took the opportunity to invite prince charles to coburg. "I will really try to come", the heir to the throne replied.
He knows coburg from private visits and is very pleased to be here. "The prince was very open-minded, friendly and interested in the anniversary celebrations planned in coburg", he said in a press statement on wednesday. He was also well aware of the planned coburg events in england, such as the concert with the royal choral society.
Invited guests
In his speech, he had also explicitly mentioned that concert, which spontaneously prompted birgit weber to invite him to the city after all.
The mayor traveled to berlin with horst graf, head of coburg marketing, and city marketing coordinator michael selzer. The british ambassador, sir sebastian wood, had invited around 700 guests to his berlin residence in grunewald to celebrate the 93rd anniversary of the founding of the british government. Queen elizabeth II’s birthday. Celebrate belatedly with a royal garden party.
The prince of wales was pleased with the spontaneous meeting and was keen to hear about the events in coburg in the anniversary year of albert and victoria. The patronage for the celebrations in coburg and england has prince charles mother, queen elizabeth II., adopted.
It has not yet been decided when charles will come to coburg. According to selzer, this will require extensive preparations. Therefore, not even a vague date could be given.
In his official address, prince charles emphasized the "many ties and relationships with germany, as well as with many other parts of europe, that go back generations".
Prince albert sentenced
The unity of great britain and germany was also a merit of his german great-great-great-great-grandfather albert of saxony-coburg and gotha. He called him a "remarkable man", who "had a great influence on the arts, science, commerce and business in the united kingdom". "My family owes prince albert not only family ties to today’s germany, which we still value, but also an affinity for german culture and tradition and the desire to preserve these commonalities across national borders.". With a smile, the prince also mentioned albert’s merit in bringing the tradition of putting up a decorated tree at christmas to england.
In times of the brexit, prince charles and his wife, the duchess of cornwall, packed one message above all on their trip to germany: the diversity and continuing importance of the british-german relationship shortly before the uk leaves the european union.
Baby albert?
"Today we are much more than just neighbors, we are friends and natural partners, united by common experiences, interests and values, and deeply involved in each other’s future", the prince of wales emphasized. He was delighted to announce the birth of his fourth grandchild, which he was looking forward to on his return home. The official name of "baby sussex, the name of the royal offspring has not yet been made public. Perhaps the royal offspring will indeed be named after his great-great-great-great-grandfather in the year of albert and victoria’s jubilee, thus further strengthening the connection with coburg’s past.