The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have taken part in the traditional military St Patrick’s Day parade in Aldershot today for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic.
Prince William and Kate Middleton visited the 1st Battalion Irish Guards at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hampshire.
Kate wore an emerald green Laura Green London coat for the occasion, which retails at £3,200.
The dress was complemented by a matching hat, green heels, a gold shamrock pin and traditional Irish sprigs.
William is the Colonel of the Irish Guards and the Duchess presented the guards with sprigs of shamrock during the event.
Kate also presented the regimental mascot, an Irish Wolf Hound, with his own sprig before ruffling the dog’s head.
The custom of presenting the sprigs began with Queen Alexandra in 1901 and is a job that has been done by the Queen Mother and Princess Anne.
As William is the Colonel, Kate took over the duty in 2012, a year after the royal wedding.
William and Kate are about to embark on a week-long tour of the Caribbean, which will see them visit commonwealth countries Jamaica, Bahamas and Belize.
After Barbados became a republic and removed itself from the commonwealth in November last year, Jamaica’s prime minister indicated the island nation wanted to follow suit.
Andrew Holness, the Jamaican prime minister, said at the time: “There is no question that Jamaican has to become [a] republic.”
