It’s not often that Prince William gets to head on a royal away day with his father and stepmother, but the Prince of Wales headed to Aberfan, Wales with King Charles and Queen Camilla on October 21 to mark the 60th anniversary of one of the U.K.’s greatest tragedies.
The Aberfan disaster occurred on October 21, 1966 when an avalanche of coal waste engulfed a small Welsh village, killing 116 children and 28 adults. It is said to have been the greatest mistake of Queen Elizabeth’s reign that she waited eight days to visit the people of Aberfan, but The King gave a touching speech on Wednesday morning to honor the community.
“It has been so very special for The Queen, The Prince of Wales, and myself, to be back with you here in Aberfan as you mark 60 years since what was, and always will be, the saddest and most tragic, of days imaginable,” he said.
The royals met with people who were impacted by the disaster during their visit to Aberfan’s community center and Memorial Garden, including a 96-year-old woman who was a police officer at the time of the event.
“Over the years, as once again today, it has been profoundly humbling to hear the testimonies of survivors, of relatives who lost their loved ones and of rescuers who fought so hard to save others during this appalling tragedy,” The King said in his speech.
He added that it was important to recognize that while the Royal Family “have heard stories of heartbreak,” they were also struck by the “heroism” and “the most inspiring grace” of the people in Aberfan.
Although Princess Kate didn't join the royal trio, her signature was included on a card attached to the wreath that Prince William presented at the Aberfan Memorial Garden.
In Gyles Brandreth's book Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait, the royal biographer wrote that he once asked the late Queen's former private secretary, Lord Charteris, if the monarch had “ever felt she had put a foot wrong.”
“He said, immediately, ‘Aberfan. She got that wrong and she knows it,’” Brandreth wrote, adding that Lord Charteris told him Queen Elizabeth regretted waiting so long to visit the families in the days following the disaster.
"No one should ever have to bear what you, as a community, have endured," King Charles said in his speech Wednesday. "But no one could have borne it with greater strength, resilience, or hope."