The Duchess of Edinburgh is embarking on a major royal visit
which will see her carry out several firsts.
Sophie headed off to South America just hours after taking part
in events marking Remembrance Sunday.
The Duchess was seen wiping away a tear as she watched her
husband, Prince Edward, lay a wreath at the Cenotaph at the
national Act of Remembrance.
The evening before, she and the Duke of Edinburgh had attended
the Festival of Remembrance where, for the first time,
Prince George joined the Royal Family.
This royal trip will see Sophie head to Peru, the first time she
has visited the country. The Duchess is there at the request of the
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Her time in the country will include a visit to the Amazon
rainforest where she will meet Indigenous leaders including women
who are helping support their communities through environmental and
economic activities.
The visit to Peru will also touch on an issue very close to the
heart of the Duchess of Edinburgh. She has taken a deep interest in
eye care and health since her daughter, Lady Louise Mountbatten
Windsor, was born with the condition, esotropia. Lady Louise, who
turned 22 this weekend, underwent several operations and now enjoys
good eyesight.
One of the roles Sophie has taken on since then is ambassador
for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness
and her time in Peru will see her visit the Divino Nino Vision
Centre to hear about its work in treating glaucoma and
pterygium.
From Peru, the Duchess of Edinburgh will head to Central America
where more firsts await her. She’ll spend time in Panama and
Guatemala, again debut trips to those nations for her.
The visit to Panama will include meetings around ongoing work
between the country and the UK to help victims of conflict related
sexual violence.
The Duchess of Edinburgh will also meet senior members of
Panamanian government on this leg of her tour of Central
America.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has also asked
the Duchess of Edinburgh to visit Guatemala where she will see
conservation efforts in the remote Maya Biosphere Reserve which are
led by Indigenous groups.
There will also be a chance for Sophie to witness, first hand,
community work to support survivors of human trafficking and sexual
violence. She will also visit a charity supporting vulnerable young
people.
This is a long visit for Sophie who won’t return to the UK until
November 19. The final days of her visit will be spent in Belize as
part of the Royal Family’s engagement with the Realms.
During her time in Belize, which was visited by the Prince and
Princess of Wales during the Platinum Jubilee visits they made,
Sophie will see conservation work with a focus on marine
systems.
The Duchess of Edinburgh will also see the British Army Training
Support Unit Belize and take part in jungle training.
This royal visit will also co-incide with the national holiday
of Garifuna Settlement Day and we can expect to see Sophie taking
part in events marking that.
The Duchess of Edinburgh is taking on an increasing number of
solo overseas visits in support of The King as well as at the
request of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. In
late summer, she made a high profile visit to the Democratic
Republic of Congo where she saw work going on to help victims of
conflict related sexual violence.
The Duchess also has a busy schedule at home with visits around
the country supporting the charities and military with which she is
involved.
