About the tour
At the invitation of the Canadian Government and to mark Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall will visit Canada from 17th to 19th May 2022.
The Prince of Wales’s first official tour to Canada was in 1970 and this visit will be the 19th time His Royal Highness has visited the country, having visited all ten provinces and three territories in the past. This will be The Duchess of Cornwall’s fifth official visit; Her Royal Highness’s first tour of Canada was more than a decade ago in November 2009.
On the May Tour, Their Royal Highnesses will travel more than 2000 miles across the world’s second-largest country from the eastern most province, Newfoundland and Labrador, to the Northwest Territories, in Northern Canada. Their Royal Highnesses will also visit Canada’s capital region which will include a special reception to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.
Day One
To start the tour, The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall arrived in St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, where they were welcomed by The Governor General of Canada and her spouse, His Excellency Whit Grant Fraser and The Prime Minister of Canada, The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau.
The Prince then took the Royal Salute and inspected the Guard of Honour, before joining The Duchess to watch the official welcome ceremony at Confederation Building.
The Ceremony included a number of artistic and cultural performances representing Newfoundland and Labrador’s rich tradition of song and story.
Their Royal Highnesses then visited Government House to meet representatives of the local communities, businesses and organisations.
"As we begin this Platinum Jubilee visit, which will take us from the newest member of Confederation to among the oldest communities in the North – and to a much-storied capital at the heart of a great nation – my wife and I look forward to listening to you and learning about the future you are working to build." - The Prince of Wales
Joined by Indigenous Leaders from across Newfoundland and Labrador, The Prince and Duchess attended a solemn ceremony in the Heart Garden, which was followed by a smudging ceremony and a prayer by the President of NunatuKavut Community Council.
A moment of silence was then observed to honour and remember the Indigenous children who attended residential schools in Labrador and Northern Newfoundland.
To close the ceremony, local schoolchildren planted paper hearts in the garden with messages of reconciliation while a solemn Indigenous musical performance is given by musical group, Eastern Owl.
The Prince then learnt about The Campaign for Wool in Canada, the work of NONIA (The Newfoundland Outport Nursing and Industrial Association) and met the Franco-Manitoban artist, Rosemarie Péloquin, who showed her needle-felted Canadian wool sculptures of The Prince and Her Majesty The Queen.
Their Royal Highnesses then had the chance to see to the Commonwealth Walkway, a commemorative Platinum Jubilee project, and also were greeted by members of the public and local community organisations including Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award recipients.
Finally, The Prince and Duchess unveiled a bronze marker to commemorate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee, and watched on as schoolchildren planted an Ivory Silk Lilac tree in the heart of the walkway to help launch the Queen’s Green Canopy project on the grounds.
The final visit of the day was at Qidi Vidi Village, where Their Royal Highnesses were introduced to representatives for the Quidi Vidi Village Artisan Studios.
The Quidi Vidi Village Artisan Studios was established following a joint investment in 2010 by the Government of Canada and the City of St. John’s to rehabilitate a former fishing plantation into a city-owned multi-purpose artisan incubator to support the local arts community and advance the region’s tourism industry.
The visit finished at the village’s harbour, where The Prince and Duchess had the chance to enjoy local entertainment, live music and speak with members of the community, local vendors and fisherman.
Day Two
The second day of Royal Visit Canada was in Ottawa, the Canadian capital, where The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attended the Order of Military Merit Ceremony at Rideau Hall. The Governor General of Canada, Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, invested His Royal Highness as Extraordinary Commander of the Order of Military Merit.
The Queen is the Order’s Sovereign and the first senior visitor appointed as Extraordinary Commander was The Duke of Edinburgh.
Their Royal Highnesses then attended a wreath laying ceremony at the National War Memorial.
The National War Memorial, also known as “The Response,” is a cenotaph symbolising the sacrifice of all Canadian Armed Forces personnel serving Canada in time of war in the cause of peace and freedom—past, present, and future. The Memorial was unveiled by His Majesty King George V in 1939 to commemorate the response of Canadians in the First World War 1914-1918.
At the Blessed Virgin Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral, The Prince and Duchess met members of the Ukrainian Community.
During the visit, representatives of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress and the Canada-Ukraine Foundation discussed their partnership efforts to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine.
Their Royal Highnesses then visited local market producers and merchants at ByWard Market, where they met small business owners including a Maple Country Sugar Bush stall where they learnt about the maple production in the region.
Next was a trip to Assumption School, where The Prince families who have recently settled in Canada. Meanwhile, The Duchess attended a literacy-focused event with schoolchildren in the learning centre, where she heard about the school’s various literacy programmes.
Their Royal Highnesses then attended an event with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), where they visited the sables and the musical ride centre, which was opened by The Queen in 2002.
As Honorary Commissioner of the RCMP, The Prince then presented Commissioner Lucki with her Long Service Medal and clasp, recognizing 35 years of service.
The Prince then met those who have been helped by the 30 Birds Foundation, which is dedicated to safeguarding the future of a group of 450 Afghans, predominantly schoolgirls, who we have evacuated from Afghanistan.
His Royal Highness then met Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Rideau Hall, and later attended a Sustainable Finance Engagement event with CEOs of Canadian Companies at the John G. Diefenbaker Building.
The day finished with a reception hosted by the Governor General to celebrate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.
Guests at the reception included a wide variety of Canadians who have dedicated their lives to serving their community, alongside representatives from Their Royal Highnesses Regiments, other stakeholders and the national Platinum Jubilee commemorative projects.
Day Three
On the final day of Royal Visit Canada, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall travelled to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories.
Their Royal Highnesses first visited the Dettah Community, where they were welcomed by the two Chiefs for the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, the Premier of the Northwest Territories, and representatives from the Northwest Territories Council of Leaders.
The Prince and The Duchess were then invited to participate in a Feeding the Fire Ceremony, facilitated by Elder Bernadette Martin.
His Royal Highness then attended a Round table with Yellowknives Dene First Nation Leadership, where he was shown demonstrations of Dene Hand Game competitions and a traditional drum dance.
Meanwhile, Her Royal Highness visited Dettah’s Kaw Tay Whee Community School. The Duchess toured classrooms and participated in a Wıìlıìdeh language lesson and learnt some key words and phrases with the class.
Her Royal Highness was then shown demonstrations of fish scale artwork and fish drying. Staff and students explained the processes and history of the traditional activities.
The Prince then visited the Canadian Rangers at Fred Henne Territorial Park to mark the organisation’s 75th anniversary, where he also discussed the impact of climate change on the work that they do.
The Canadian Rangers are a part of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Reserves working in remote, isolated and coastal regions of Canada. They provide lightly-equipped, self-sufficient mobile forces to support CAF national security and public safety operations within Canada.
His Royal Highness then participated in a discussion with local experts on the impact of climate change in Northern Canada and the importance of Indigenous-led initiatives.
The Prince met representatives of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and the Boots on the Ground programme, to discuss the value of Indigenous-led environmental approaches and how Tlicho knowledge informs their work.
The Duchess then visited a YWCA transitional housing centre, hearing stories of how beneficial the programme is, the impact reconciliation has on how programmes are developed, as well as discussions about women-led initiatives and the services required for many women in the North.
The centre is otherwise known as Hoti Etsanda Ko in the Welledeh dialect of the Tlicho language, which means ‘healthy living place’ – is a transitional safe housing centre for women who are fleeing domestic violence and are in need of a stable and safe environment to call home.
Together Their Royal Highnesses then visited Prince of Wales Heritage Centre in Yellowknife, which was opened by The Prince in 1979. It is the Government of the Northwest Territories’ Museum and archives.
The Centre acquires and manages objects and archival materials that represent the cultures and history of the Northwest Territories (NWT), plays a primary role in documenting and providing information about the cultures and history of the NWT, and provides professional museum, archives and cultural resource management services to partner organisations.
The tour finished with a Platinum Jubilee Ceremony at Ceremonial Circle and unveiled a Jubilee Plaque in the Jubilee Garden.
The Ceremonial Circle was officially opened on March 31 1999 and was the site of the Northwest Territories’ celebrations to mark the creation of two new territories, Nunavut and a new NWT, in Canada’s North.
"During this Jubilee visit we have again been reminded of everything that makes Canada so special – not least the vastness and magnificence of the country that you share; the diversity, compassion and inclusivity which you embody. We have once more felt the extraordinary generosity of spirit for which the Northwest Territories – and, indeed, Canada as a whole – are so rightly known throughout the world." - The Prince of Wales
The new Jubilee Garden has been planted in honour of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, with the plants and colours of the garden selected to reflect the deep relationship between the Crown and Indigenous people and Canada’s ongoing national efforts at reconciliation.
