The King and Queen of the United Kingdom began their second day in Italy with a visit to the Quirinal Palace, where they were met by the President of the Italian Republic, His Excellency Signor Sergio Mattarella and his daughter, Signora Laura Mattarella.
His Majesty inspected the company of the guard of honour in the courtyard of the palace on Wednesday, and then together they all watched the overflight of Frecce Tricolori and Red Arrows fighter jets.
Inside the palace, Their Majesties and the President presented their official delegations to each other and then proceeded to meet privately.
After a brief conversation, the president presented the royal couple with their honours. The King received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic on a chain, the Queen received the Grand Cross, and the President received the Grand Knight’s Cross of the Order of the Bath.
While the King and the President continued their conversation, Signora Laura and Camilla went to see a selection of antique books on the art of horse riding in the Piffetti Library and the 16th century State Chambers of the Palace, where they chatted with the staff preparing for tomorrow’s State Banquet and carrying out repairs to tapestries and furniture.
After visiting the palace, Their Majesties laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which is located inside the Altar of the Fatherland, which in turn forms part of the monument to Victor Emmanuel II, and honoured the memory of the fallen.
His Majesty also paid homage to the military flag of the “Granatieri di Sardegna” Regiment, accompanied by the Minister of Defence and the Chief of Defence. The guard of honour consisted of 200 Italian soldiers from the army, navy, air force, carabinieri and financial guard. The King and Queen also met with officers and junior officers from the Carabinieri, Army, Navy, Air Force and Financial Guard before meeting the British contingent.
Visiting the Colosseum
Their Majesties then visited one of Rome’s iconic symbols, the Colosseum. Here they heard about the work being done to preserve Italy’s cultural heritage and learnt more about the ongoing restoration work taking place in and around the monument.
While the King and Queen met with members of the public in the Colosseum square, the Welsh Guards Band and the Sassari Brigade Band played a variety of tunes celebrating the defence and cultural relationship between Britain and Italy.
His Majesty also toured the Temple of Venus and Roma and met with a group of archaeologists, including Dr Barbara Nazzaro, architect of the Colosseum Archaeological Park, and a group of archaeology students from Roman universities and the British School in Rome.
At the same time, Her Majesty met with representatives of Roman social organisations such as MODAVI, an association founded in Rome in 1996 to tackle drug addiction; Peter Pan Odv, an Italian non-profit organisation that provides accommodation and a range of free services to families who come to Rome from all over Italy and abroad for treatment for childhood cancer; and Differenza Donna, an Italian NGOs that supports women who are victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.
The King and Queen then met TV presenter and historian Alberto Angela, who spoke to them about the history of Rome and the restoration of its monuments, including the Colosseum.
In the evening, the King and Queen attended a reception at the Villa Volkonskaya, the official residence of the British Ambassador to Italy. Charles and Camilla met with representatives of business, industry, honorary citizens, ambassadors of Commonwealth kingdoms, UN diplomats and representatives of the arts and culture, military and defence, education and youth over drinks in the villa’s garden.
