By Ben Sanderson
His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales, visited Leicester Market on Tuesday, 11th February 2020.
Prince Charles, with his wife Camilla, Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cornwall, was in Leicester to formally reopen Leicester’s market square under the new name Green Dragon Square.
Charles unveiled a plaque to rename the square after a medieval pub which once stood on the site of the square.
Camilla was presented with a miniature bronze statue by Lord Mayor of Leicester Annette Byrne to commemorate the royal couple’s visit.
After formally renaming the square, Charles shook hands with numerous spectators and conversed briefly with some.
These people had waited for around an hour through hailstorms and music to see the Prince.
Asked about his opinions on the Duchess of Sussex and royal engagement in politics, both of which have caused Charles and his family scrutiny over the past months, the Prince declined to comment.
The event also featured drumming, a penny farthing and children singing about climate change.
The ceremony was part of a tour Charles and Camilla took with Charles’ son Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, and his wife Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, of Leicestershire.
Among other things, this saw Prince William play wheelchair basketball, and Charles pushed his wheelchair closer to the basket to help his son score.
The speech Prince Charles gave at Leicester Market:
“Ladies and gentlemen, can I just say what an enormous pleasure it is for my wife and myself to be here today?
“We apologise for keeping you all waiting through hailstorms and other weather events and also if I may say so from preventing you from shopping in the splendid market here, which we so enjoyed seeing.
“It is a really special occasion for us to be able to visit Leicester and I do hope this city square will make a huge difference to all your lives.
“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your incredibly kind welcome.
“It really has made a whole difference to us and I do hope this great city continues to have great success in the future.
“Nothing could give me greater pleasure than to unveil this plaque and to reopen the square.”
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