The King - and now Captain General Royal Marines - visits the West Country where he trained
His Majesty today presented the coveted King’s Badge
Last updated 15th Nov 2024
His Majesty the King has today welcome a new generation of commandos as he paid his first visit to their training centre as the ceremonial head of the Royal Marines
In his capacity as Captain General Royal Marines, the King watched the King’s Squad of 362 Troop pass out at the Commando Training Centre in Lympstone, near Exeter.
His Majesty presented one member from the King’s Squad with the iconic green beret and - for the first time since his grandfather King George VI in 1939 - His Majesty presented the coveted King’s Badge to the recruit deemed the most impressive of those passing out.
During his visit His Majesty was introduced to serving members of the Corps and training instructors, as well as Royal Marines families and veterans.
The King will also have the chance reminisce of his time at the site in the 1970s with a tour of the facilities.
Col Innes Catton RM saidL “His Majesty the King’s visit to the Commando Training Centre is an extremely proud moment for all those involved and the crowning glory of this the Royal Marines 360th anniversary year.
“For the King to take time to come down to Lympstone to present the King’s Badge and Commando Green berets to the King’s Squad, as well as speak to his Marines will be an enduring memory for my staff and the whole Royal Marines family.”
In 1974, having passed out at Britannia Royal Naval Collage in Dartmouth the King qualified as a helicopter pilot at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton in Somerset.
As part of that training the Prince of Wales, as he was at the time spent time at Commando Training Centre Royal Marines in Lympstone and was introduced to elements of Commando Training, where these pictures were taken.
One of the pictures also shows the Prince of Wales in his flying overalls having landed his Wessex V Helicopter on the parade ground. He went on to serve at RNAS Yeovilton on 845 Naval Air Squadron who support 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines.
Yesterday The King was presented with a home-made birthday card by a group of schoolchildren who sang Happy Birthday as he visited a surplus food project.
Charles shared his 76th birthday with the first anniversary of the Coronation Food Project, which raised £15 million to open the first two Coronation Food Hubs in Deptford in south-east London and Knowsley in Merseyside.
The smiling King appeared on good form as he arrived at the Deptford Trading Estate for the hub's official opening on Thursday, without the Queen, who is recovering from a chest infection.
Volunteers from the Felix Project, who were dressed in the charity's signature green and who will run the London hub, clapped, cheered and waved flags as Charles stepped from his Bentley.
He gave a wide grin and waved at members of the public who had gathered to see him, before being greeted by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
The King attended a "surplus food festival", which showcased meals created from food that would otherwise have gone to waste.
And he sat down with a group of children from Peckham's Rye Oak Primary School who will benefit from the new hub, and listened to them talk about the foods they like, asking about their school lunches.
Asked if he would be putting his feet up for his birthday, he said: "Not quite."
At the end of the conversation, he said: "I hope you have a very happy Christmas."
Charles is treating his birthday as a normal working day despite facing a difficult year in which both he and daughter-in-law the Princess of Wales were diagnosed with cancer.
His visit celebrated the first anniversary of his Coronation Food Project, which he launched last year in a bid to bridge the gap between food need and food waste in the UK amid the cost-of-living crisis.
He opened the second hub, in Knowsley, Merseyside, virtually, saying: "Please give my kindest wishes to everybody there.
"I hope it makes an enormous difference to all their remarkable work that they do."
He then unveiled plaques for both hubs.
Afterwards one little girl left her seat to hand the King a birthday card, which had been signed by all the children, and they then broke into a well-rehearsed rendition of Happy Birthday.
Charles smiled and thanked them.
During his visit, he toured the facility, meeting representatives of food banks, schools and community groups, as well as beneficiaries.
He was shown a newly installed industrial freezer, which measures more than 48ft (14.8m) by almost 14ft (4.2m) and will increase the capacity to store frozen food by 400%.
There were also stalls showcasing food donated to the project by major retailers.
The Marks & Spencer stand was showcasing digestive biscuits which the company had donated.
The King said: "Are these very popular, I expect?
"We used to get them in the good old days of British Rail."
He was accompanied on the tour of the facility by Mr Khan, Coronation Food Project chairwomen Dame Martina Milburn and Baroness Louise Casey, and other representatives of the charities involved in the project.
The Coronation Food Project hopes to open a further eight hubs in the future.
As he left, Charles was greeted by excited crowds who wished him a happy birthday, handing him flowers and cards.
The crowd cheered 'hip hip hooray' three times.
Members of the royal family also wished the King a happy birthday, with the Prince and Princess of Wales sharing a photo of a relaxed-looking Charles wearing sunglasses and a garland during his recent tour to Samoa.
William and Kate's message read: "Wishing a very Happy Birthday to His Majesty The King!"
The monarchy's official social media accounts posted a message alongside a more formal portrait of the King standing in the White Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace.
Gun salutes were fired in Green Park by The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery and at the Tower of London by the Honourable Artillery Company as part of the military's traditional celebrations on the sovereign's birthday, and bells rang out at Westminster Abbey where the King was crowned in 2023.