Honey, horses, and horticulture as British royals soak up sunny South East 

Prince Charles says the 'brutal aggression' against Ukraine is in his thoughts, during his visit with Camilla to Waterford

Prince Charles sampling a drop of Waterford Irish Single Malt Whiskey at Shane Fitzgerald’s farm during his visit to the South East with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. Picture: Julien Behal/PA
 

Prince Charles brought up Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on the first of his two days in Ireland.

During a speech at a reception in Waterford, he said his thoughts, and those of his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, are with the people of Ukraine suffering “brutal aggression”.

He raised the issue during a speech to business leaders and local politicians at the start of the second leg of their four-day visit to the island of Ireland after a walk around the centre of Waterford City.

Hundreds of wellwishers lined the route for the start of the couple’s sixth official joint trip to the Republic, which follows two days in the North.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall meet members of Waterford Viking Re-enactment Group at Reginald's Tower, during their visit. Picture: Julien Behal/PA

The couple, who have vowed to visit every county in Ireland, arrived in Waterford on Tuesday as part of the celebrations to mark the Queen's platinum jubilee.

As well as mentioning the war in Ukraine, he also met two members of the local Ukrainian community.

He and the Duchess of Cornwall met Oksana Zadolynna, who has lived in Waterford for 20 years, and her friend Natalie Paperova.

In his speech, the Prince said: “Especially in the past few weeks, our thoughts, and I am sure your thoughts and prayers, ladies and gentlemen, however inadequate they may be, are with the people of Ukraine as they continue to face such uncertainty and brutal aggression.

It has been most moving to meet members of Waterford’s Ukrainian community here today and to learn of the actions that your county is taking to support them.

“Such times as we are living through bring into sharp relief the importance of peace and friendship, which history tells us we can too easily take for granted.”

Later, Ms Zadolynna said: “It was great to meet the royal couple.

“Although we didn’t have a lot of time to talk to them, Prince Charles was asking about the situation and he seems to pretty much know what is going on over there.”

Mayor of Waterford City and County Joe Kelly welcoming Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, at the Waterford Treasures Medieval Museum during their visit to Waterford.  Picture: Julien Behal/PA

One of the people who met Prince Charles in Waterford during his walkabout at Cathedral Square earlier was a man who served with him in the Royal Navy, James Eccleston.

The Prince was walking along a line of school children opposite the Irish Silver Museum when he spotted a badge on Mr Eccleston’s blazer. It was an  Air Handlers Association badge.

The two men served aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes, in the mid 1970s.

“I don’t think he had any idea who I was,” Mr Eccleston said. “I was on the lower decks and he was an officer.

"He spotted the badge on my blazer, and straight away he asked if I was retired now. I said I was. He didn’t stay long but it was an honour to meet him. "

Orla Bolger, principal of Presentation Secondary School Waterford, said some 46 sixth-year students from the school were also there to greet the royal couple at Cathedral Square.

She said: “The girls were delighted to meet the royal couple.

“They were very generous with their time and asked the girls a lot of questions.

 “We were advised not to take selfies.”

Later, Prince Charles eagerly shared his expertise with green-fingered Waterford schoolchildren — and assured them no crisp or chip tasted better than those made from potatoes grown in your own garden.

The horticulture enthusiast was visibly in his element as he toured the sprawling Grow It Yourself (GIY) complex in Waterford in brilliant spring sunshine.

The Duchess of Cornwall meeting Rachael Blackmore at Henry de Bromhead Stables in Knockeen Co Tipperary during her visit with Prince Charles to Waterford and Tipperary in the South East of Ireland. Picture: Arthur Edwards/PA

Meanwhile, the duchess visited Henry de Bromhead’s stables on her own, to meet staff and teams at the stables and a number of prize-winning racehorses including Cheltenham Champion Hurdle winner, Honeysuckle 

Rachael Blackmore, the 32-year-old from Tipperary who recently won the Boodles Gold Cup at Cheltenham on the Henry de Bromhead-trained chaser A Plus Tard, presented this horse and Honeysuckle to her.

At his visit to a farm run by the Fitzgerald family, the prince — who visited it on his own — was treated to a demonstration about soil by An Teagasc sustainability adviser Cathal Somers.

Teagasc Glanbia Future Farm Programme and former Young Dairy Farmer of the Year Shane Fitzgerald was impressed with the prince.

He said: “I felt really at ease with him. He felt like a normal person, to be honest.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience and I feel proud like for the local area and just for ourselves to have someone of his stature come here. 

He did try and get him to come in for a cup of tea, he said but his officials whisked him away before he could persuade him to stay.

He did, however, manage to give him a gift — a jar of Kilmagemogue honey.

The couple will also tour parts of Tipperary, another county to cross off what is in effect one of his bucket lists.

Early in the day he joked: “It has long been one of our great ambitions to visit every county of this majestic land before senility totally overtakes us.”