Sunday 11 September 2022 04:37 PM New Prince of Wales vows to serve Welsh people with 'humility and respect' trends now

The new Prince of Wales has vowed to serve the Welsh people with 'humility and respect' on the same day his father was proclaimed King Charles III at Cardiff Castle.

Prince William thanked the Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford for his 'fitting tribute' to his grandmother and revealed over the phone that he would travel to the country 'at the earliest opportunity'. 

William was given the title which had previously been bestowed upon his father - the new monarch - for more than 64 years, following the death of his grandmother, the Queen, on Thursday.

As Charles's eldest son, William immediately inherited the title the Duke of Cornwall upon the death of the Queen.

However during his first speech to the nation on Friday, King Charles III told the former Duke and Duchess of Cambridge that they would be given the titles Prince and Princess of Wales.

Technically, Charles's wife, the now Queen Consort Camilla, had been the Princess of Wales, but she used the feminine equivalent of Charles's Duke of Cornwall title, the Duchess of Cornwall.

This was thought to be out of respect for Charles's ex-wife Princess Diana, who died in Paris in August 1997.

A statement from Kensington Palace said: 'HRH expressed his and The Princess of Wales's honour in being asked by His Majesty The King to serve the Welsh people. They will do so with humility and great respect.

'The Prince acknowledged his and the Princess's deep affection for Wales, having made their first family home in Anglesey including during the earliest months of Prince George's life.

'The Prince and Princess will spend the months and years ahead deepening their relationship with communities across Wales.

'They want to do their part to support the aspirations of the Welsh people and to shine a spotlight on both the challenges and opportunities in front of them.

'The prince and princess look forward to celebrating Wales' proud history and traditions as well as a future that is full of promise.

'They will seek to live up to the proud contribution that members of the royal family have made in years past.'

The couple had lived in Anglesey as newlyweds when the Prince was stationed at RAF Valley while he was an RAF pilot.

After George was born in 2013, they spent the first few months of his life on the Welsh island before moving to Kensington Palace the same year. 

Today, thousands of people gathered at Cardiff Castle to hear Charles be proclaimed King in Wales.

More than 2,000 were allowed inside the grounds but hundreds more lined the street outside the castle walls, including two protesters holding signs reading: 'Not our king!'

Prior to the proclamation, 26 men of the 3rd Battalion the Royal Welsh – supported by the Band of the Royal Welsh – marched from City Hall at 11.25am along the Boulevard de Nantes, North Road and Duke Street to the castle.