Under the watchful eye of British veterans and their families, the British Royal family, led by Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh, remembered Britain’s war dead during the annual Remembrance Day ceremony at the Centopah in Whitehall. At exactly 11 AM, two minutes of silence were observed in memory of those who died for Queen (as well as King) and Country. Following the Queen and the Duke who placed a memorial wreath of poppies were Prince William and Prince Harry, who represented the Prince of Wales, who is currently on an official visit to Canada. Additional wreaths were presented by the Duke of York, the Earl of Wessex, the Princess Royal and the Duke of Kent as well as prominent British politicians.

The first Remembrance Day was dedicated by King George V on November 7, 1919 to remember the sacrifices of those who served and died in World War I, but now Remembrance Day pays tribute to members of all conflicts from World War I to the present day conflict in Afghanistan. This year’s Remembrance Day will remembered as the first ceremony without any surviving World War I veterans present, as within the last year Henry Allingham, Harry Patch and Bill Stone, passed away.

Armistice Day is officially observed in the United Kingdom on November 11th as major hostilities in WWI were ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, with the signing of the Armistice.

This year, as in years past, poppies are placed in the Field of Remembrance, which is located at Westminster Abbey to remember those killed by war. During World War I, poppies bloomed across some of the worst battlefields of Europe. Traditionally from November 1st until Armistice Day, Britons wear small red poppies sold by the Royal British Legion. The funds raised from the sale of poppies support injured servicemen and women and their families as well as the families of those killed during active service.

To view pictures of the British Royal family, please visit Remembrance Day Services: 2003-2009.

Zonk British Royals Armistice Day, Duke of Edinburgh, Elizabeth II, Prince Harry, Prince Philip, Prince William, Remembrance Day

 Prince William showed enthusiasm today as he opened the Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum.

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He did, however, seem less than enthusiastic when asked to hold a large, hairy tarantula just before the official opening.

The arachnid, an eight-inch wide Mexican Red Kneed named Sarah, was being shown to children at the Attenborough Studio when its minders politely asked the Prince if he would like to hold her.

“Ooh, I would love to,” William said, though he certainly didn’t sound like it. But he did hold the tarantula calmly for about a minute.

The Prince later joked about his experience when he opened the Darwin Centre.

“Just to warn you,” he told the audience, “that there is a spider loose somewhere in the Cocoon. It was given to me, and I seem to have lost it. If you see it, it goes by the name of Sarah.”

William admitted he was “petrified” as he held Sarah.

The Natural History Museum’s Darwin Centre is a new 78 million pound section dedicated to the work of Charles Darwin. Both Prince William and naturalist Sir David Attenborough officially opened it.

“I remember coming here first as a child with my mother,” the Prince said in his speech. “Millions of others will have shared with me that same sense of awe and wonder and just a shiver of something more as you step off the street, through the doors, to stare into the beady eye of the blue whale or the terrifying eye socket of a T. Rex. A moment never to be forgotten — especially when everything is a lot bigger than you.”

At one point during the centre’s opening, William stopped by the laboratory, put on a white coat and gloves and was given a demonstration on how scientists work with mosquitoes in order to fight diseases such as malaria.

Sonjapearl British Royals Animals, Charles Darwin, Prince William

Click here for more pictures of Wills & Harry

 After taking a striking photograph of Queen Elizabeth II, photographer Rankin will now aim his lenses at her two grandsons, Princes William and Harry.

“I think that Prince William and Prince Harry are amazing,” he told the Telegraph. “I would absolutely love to photograph them. For me, it’s not about celebrity or the privilege into which you were born. They have an incredibly difficult life and I think they carry it out with dignity. Obviously, I treat people with respect if they have earned it.”

The last time the royal brothers sat for any photographer, was for John Wonnacott. Wonnacott took a group picture to mark the 100th birthday celebrations for the princes’ late great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

Sonjapearl British Royals Portraits, Prince Harry, Prince William

 Prince William went hiking through England’s countryside Friday, in the name of charity.

Six teenagers from Centrepoint, an organization which helps homeless youths, and members of Mountain Rescue, a volunteer run charity, joined the future King in a trek up Helvellyn, a mountain in the Cumbria region of northeastern England.

Click here for Daily Mail article

Prince William did this to help the teens get a different view of life.

“A lot of these guys have never done anything like this so it is a real challenge for them and I have really enjoyed meeting them,” he said, according to the Daily Mail.

The location of the hike of kept secret until today. Therefore, other hikers who were not part of the group were surprised to see a Prince go by.

But according to Andy Simpson, the spokesman of Mountain Rescue, William stopped to chat with those hikers.

“It was nice to see him engaging with so many members of the public. They just happened to be out for a walk and it’s just made their day,” Simpson said.

Once reaching Helvellyn’s top, the Prince and his team raised a flag to mark three years until the start of the 2012 Summer Olympics, taking place in London.

Those who trekked with Prince William were a bit taken aback by how down-to-earth he is.

“I didn’t know he was coming until last night but he was a lot more down-to-earth than I expected, he was canny.” said Johnny Glendinning.

At the end, William praised the folks of Mountain Rescue.

“These men and women are unsung heroes. They are up and down these mountains rescuing people with broken legs every day.”

Sonjapearl British Royals Prince William, Sport

Click here for Telegraph article

 The second-in-line to the British throne was called to the bench on Monday. Prince William went to London’s Middle Temple, where he was made an honorary barrister.

He is the sixth member of the royal family to be made a member of the bar. The list also includes his great-grandmother, the Queen Mother, and his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Prince told a little about himself in an opening ceremony. “I play football, rugby and water polo, not very well, but particularly pride myself in being a quite magnificent armchair centre-back at football and flanker at rugby.”

William also made a vow to the 300 guests in attendance.

“And now you have made me a barrister – I promise not to practice, except for the odd speeding ticket.”

Prince William wore a gown for the ceremony. He was alone, with no member of the royal family attending with him. But his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, did send her wishes.

“I regret that I am unable to be with you this evening for your call to the Bench which follows in the tradition of Royal Benchers established at Middle Temple for my great-grandfather, the Prince of Wales, in 1861.”

Sonjapearl British Royals Prince William

A visit to Australia, with Melbourne in particular, is believed to be in the works for the second-in-line to the British throne, Prince William. While nothing has been confirmed by Clarence House, the Prince himself spilled the beans during a recent visit to the Tower of London.

Speaking and posing for photos with two Australian teens and their mother, Prince William asked where the trio was from. Upon receiving the reply of Melbourne, he told them, “I’m coming to Melbourne soon.”

The Telegraph reports that the visit could possibly take place in the coming English spring, which would make it somewhere between March and May 2010 (which would mean the Prince would need to pack a nice warm sweater and also a sun hat, given the brilliant ‘four-seasons-in-a-day’ Melbourian autumn). It is highly unlikely though that an official visit would be confirmed by Clarence House until just prior to the visit, for security reasons.

The proposed trip would be the Prince’s first solo official visit to Australia. William has only been to Australia once before, as a toddler in 1983 when he accompanied his parents Prince Charles and Princess Diana on their royal tour.

JessRulz British Royals Official Visit, Prince William

Click for the image at the Daily Mail

 It’s 2-1 odds at some British bookies this weekend, after reports that Kate Middleton has been formally invited to meet the Queen at Balmoral during the August Bank Holiday, that there will be an engagement announced this year. While Middleton has met the Queen previously, this will be the first time that she has been to the Scottish home of the Queen.

In the minds of many, it’s about damn time that something happened. Now that Crown Princess Victoria has finally gotten herself engaged, all eyes are on William in the hopes of another fairy tale wedding. However, unlike Princess Diana, Middleton has lived with the unending media attention and speculation for years now, so she has at least become somewhat accustomed to what her life would be like as a future British Queen.

Whatever the case may be, Wills will need to hurry along; he turns 27 tomorrow and he’s not getting any younger, as his balding head will attest. And if it’s not Kate that he marries, he’s got a long slog ahead of him to find someone else, if he does not want to put her in the same position that his mother was in. And besides, they do seem to care for each other quite a lot, if they’ve weathered all that’s been thrown at them thus far in their relationship.

Empress British Royals Kate Middleton, Media, Prince William

 Royal brothers Princes William and Harry are hoping that their country will be the host of two major sporting events – the Rugby World Cup in 2015 and the Football World Cup in 2018 or 2022.

So eager are they, that the two made separate videos promoting the UK as the site for the events.

In William’s video, he explains, “England’s love for the game is world renowned, football is in our blood. I believe with England’s great passion for the game we will stage a World Cup to remember forever. A first-class festival of football.”

As for Harry’s video, he says, “you will have already heard about how we in England will give the game of rugby a truly global profile with our world class stadium and outstanding facilities for players and supporters. All of it will leave a long lasting legacy in this rugby-loving nation.”

It should be noted that Prince William is the president of the football association in Great Britain.

To see Prince William’s video, click here.

To see Prince Harry’s video, click here .

Sonjapearl British Royals Prince Harry, Prince William, Soccer, Sport

Sonjapearl British Royals Prince William, Soccer, Sport

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 To all the naysayers who firmly believe that the relationship between Prince William and Kate Middleton is over, or at least on the rocks – think again!

After weeks of not being photographed together, Wills and Kate appeared at the Audi Polo Challenge this Sunday. Kate watched as her prince played for charity, along with his brother, Prince Harry.

Once the game was over, Prince William walked up to his girlfriend of several years, put his hand on her lower back – as he often does – and the two walked in sync with each other, smiling and laughing. They even got into a car together.

So, sorry to all those who believe William is making a mistake, because clearly he does not agree with you!

To see photos of Wills and Kate click here .

Sonjapearl British Royals Kate Middleton, Polo, Prince William