IN LINE TO THE THRONE
Royal fans wait in mile-long queue for Windsor Castle to show support for the King and Princess Kate amid health battles
Queen Camilla stood in for the King today at the Royal Maundy service
ROYAL fans flocked to Windsor in a show of support for the King and Princess of Wales, waiting in record queues to get into the Castle.
Charles, 74 and Kate, 42, have both bravely told the world they are being treated for cancer sparking wild accusations of a Royal Family in crisis.
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But the monarchy was given huge public backing as a mile-long line snaked around the royal residence today, with paying visitors eager to get a glimpse inside.
The waited in the rain for more than an hour to see marvels including The State Apartments and final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II.
US visitor Frank said: “We were told that was the longest queue anyone had seen for the Castle and it really was something but everyone was very polite and very British.
“A lot of people said they were here to show support for the family as they face this double health battle.”
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Unfortunately for the royal fans, the family were not at home.
Elsewhere, King Charles told worshippers at Worcester Cathedral it was “a great sadness” he could not attend the Royal Maundy service because of his cancer diagnosis,
Camilla, 76, stood in for the King, 75, but he still managed to make his voice heard after recording a personal message played on loudspeakers.
The Queen presented ceremonial coins to 75 men and 75 women, the number chosen to represent the King’s age, at the annual service.
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But a noisy group of protesters outside tried to drown out the service by chanting “Down with the Crown” and waving flags.
Hard-working Charles was instead kept busy 130 miles away holding audiences with ambassadors at Buckingham Palace.
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And he will return for the Royal Family’s scaled-down Easter service at Windsor on Sunday.
Speaking to the thousands who attended, he read a passage from the Bible.
His statement then included the words: “Ladies and Gentlemen, it is, for me, a great sadness that I cannot be with you all today.
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“The Maundy Service has a very special place in my heart. It has its origin in the life of Our Lord who knelt before his disciples and, to their great surprise, washed their travel-weary feet.
“And, as we have just heard, in doing so he deliberately gave to them and to us all an example of how we should serve and care for each other.
“In this country we are blessed by all the different services that exist for our welfare.
“But over and above these organizations and their selfless staff, we need and benefit greatly from those who extend the hand of friendship to us, especially in a time of need.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
72-year-old Norman Tomlinson
“The 150 men and women who have been chosen today to receive the Maundy Money from my wife are wonderful examples of such kindness; of going way beyond the call of duty and of giving so much of their lives to the service of others in their communities.”
Camilla listened alone at the front of the cathedral, while many bowed their heads as Charles’s voice echoed through the building.
In a spectacle of tradition and pageantry, Camilla then began the Maundy ritual - usually performed by the monarch.
One recipient, 72-year-old Norman Tomlinson, who volunteers with his local church and a hospice in Nottingham, said afterwards: “This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
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“I said to her, ‘I hope the King gets well soon and your daughter-in-law as well.’ She said: ‘Thank-you very much.’”
The Queen mingled after with well-wishers and was cheered by around 300 people who had braved the poor weather.
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