Remembrance Day
St. Patrick’s Day – Standing in for Kate at Irish Guards
Lady Ghika represents Princess Kate as she presents shamrocks to officers on St. Patrick’s Day. photo
© Yui Mok/PA Wire/dpa
On March 17th, many people remember the late Irish Bishop Patrick. Princess Kate cannot be at the celebrations this year – but she will be represented.
Led by their mascot Seamus, an Irish wolfhound, the Irish Guards have the Celebrated St. Patrick’s Day. Around 250 soldiers from the British Guard Regiment met in the town of Aldershot near London. On their official Instagram channel, the British heir to the throne, Prince William, and his wife Princess Kate, who has the honorary title “Colonel of the Irish Guards”, showed a video with excerpts from rehearsals for the parade.
In contrast to last year, the 42-year-old was unable to take part because she is still recovering from an abdominal operation until after Easter. Representing Kate, the wife of Regimental Chief Major General Christopher Ghika presented three-year-old Seamus with the traditional shamrock. The infantry force was founded by Queen Victoria in 1900 and is one of the king’s five body regiments.
In London and Dublin, many people took part in parades for the annual St. Patrick’s Day. The parade in the Irish capital had more participants than ever before, reported the broadcaster RTÉ. Bands from the USA and France were also there, as were dance groups from Bolivia, Brazil, Georgia and Ukraine. The Irish and Northern Irish leadership traditionally traveled to Washington in advance and met there with US President Joe Biden, who regularly reminds us of his Irish roots.
March 17th marks the anniversary of the death of Saint Patrick (around 385-461), who was involved in the spread of the Christian faith on the “Emerald Island” in the 5th century. Irish emigrants also brought the celebrations in honor of their national saint to the USA. There are now parades on Saint Patrick’s Day in many countries.