Queen Camilla received an impromptu round of applause from members of the public today as she visited a breathtaking installation of ceramic poppies at the Tower of London.
The queen was attending the installation as part of a week of celebrations across the U.K. to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, also known as VE Day, which marked the surrender of the Nazis and the end of WWII in Europe.
Yesterday, Camilla gathered with other senior royals on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for a flypast by the Red Arrows, the Royal Air Force’s aerobatics team, who painted the skies with red, white and blue contrails.
Some members of the public gathered at the iconic royal palace told the Daily Beast they had cheered on the queen to show their support for the royals after Prince Harry made a series of allegations about the family in an ill-tempered BBC interview last week.
One visitor, James Leach, 63, a caterer, told the Daily Beast he had cheered the queen, saying: “We didn’t know the queen was going to be here today, so it was a lovely surprise to see her. She has made Charles very happy and Harry should try and be thankful to her for that. I thought his interview was just very, very sad.”
Another visitor, Jane Colts, 72, a retired teacher said: “It was great to be able to show our support for the monarchy after what Harry said by giving the queen a hip-hip-hooray. Harry should pipe down in my opinion.”
This year’s anniversary of VE Day is being given extra attention by the establishment as it is likely to be the last round-number anniversary to be attended by any veterans who saw active service in WWII, some of whom met the queen at the tower today.
The new display of ceramic poppies, called The Tower Remembers, features nearly 30,000 ceramic poppies, repurposed from the 2014 commemorative art installation, Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red.
The poppies are presented in a new design inside the inner walls of the tower, flowing down to Traitor’s Gate, a river entrance on the River Thames, resembling a wound to reflect the sacrifices made during WWII.
