The news that the Princess of Wales has been able to return to public-facing duties is both hugely welcome and, after a lengthy period out of the limelight due to her cancer diagnosis, a reminder that she remains the most dutiful and committed of all the members of the royal family.
Yet her first official engagement after her cancer diagnosis was no soft or easy commitment. Instead, she took on a challenging and emotionally demanding responsibility, namely heading to Southport to meet the families of those who were injured or killed in July’s atrocity in the town.
The Princess has often been regarded as the Firm’s most obviously empathetic and socially engaged member
The Princess has often been regarded as the Firm’s most obviously empathetic and socially engaged member, not least because her background is far humbler than the grand circles that she now moves in. The message that the Prince and Princess put out on social media at the time of the attack could not have failed to move. It stated simply, ‘As parents, we cannot begin to imagine what the families, friends and loved ones of those killed and injured in Southport today are going through. We send our love, thoughts and prayers to all those involved in this horrid and heinous attack.’ Now was the chance to make good on the sentiment.
During today’s engagement the Princess spent 90 minutes with the families of those killed in the atrocity. This was followed by a lengthy meeting with the dance teacher who had been holding the class so hideously interrupted, and the emergency responders who were at the scene. This was both practically and symbolically vital. It was an invaluable reminder that those who suffered so grievously in Southport earlier this year have not been abandoned or forgotten. And, although it was not made explicit, her and her husband’s calm, understated decency stands in stark contrast to the hideousness of the riots that erupted after the attack took place.
The royal family has suffered a difficult year. Yet as this particular annus horribilis draws to a close, there is grounds for hope that 2025 will be better. Not only has Catherine’s health recovered, but her return to public life and the straightforward kindness and compassion that she brings – in comparison to that of her self-centred sister-in-law – is a rare and welcome quality in the world today. Southport, and Britain, are lucky to have someone of such integrity standing beside them.