With one royal visit successfully carried out, Huntingdon’s mayor wants more of the same.
But next time he’d like to welcome Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge to the town.
While that visit may be a long-term wish, the visit by the Duke of Gloucester – The Queen’s cousin – was a reality as he arrived in Huntingdon on Wednesday to see the military colours recently loaned to the town.
His Royal Highness was welcomed to the Town Hall by the mayor Councillor Bill Hensley who was left impressed by Duke’s knowledge of Huntingdon.
“He was a lovely man and extremely knowledgeable about Huntingdon and the area,” Cllr Hensley said. “He knew a lot about Hinchingbrooke House and the Montagues as well as Cromwell.”
After being given a tour of the Town Hall and an explanation about the Colours of the 31st Foot (Huntingdonshire Regiment), which were recently put on display after being loaned to the town council for two years, HRH was given lunch.
Before his visit to Huntingdon, the Duke visited the £20million Cambourne Village School which opened to its first students earlier this month and, after leaving the town, headed to RAF Wyton to declare fully operational the Joint Forces intelligence Group (JFIG).
The base has been converted into a £300million intelligence hub for all the armed forces and has seen army and navy personnel relocated to the site, carrying out national and international work.
In his speech, the Duke said: “The premier facilities that JFIG now operates from are admired and valued by a number of national agencies and partners, and our thanks must go out to all within JFIG and at Wyton who have made this work.
“We live in an uncertain world and it must give you great reassurance to see this new facility, one which will allow you to be better informed.
“Those who come to work here in the future will be very grateful for all your efforts.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here