Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have arrived at an Invictus Games event in Dusseldorf, Germany, to adoring applause from fans, with the Duke of Sussex then earning additional praise for speaking in German.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made their appearance on a red carpet in Dusseldorf for the one-year countdown to Prince Harry’s Invictus Games 2023 on Tuesday 6 September.
When the couple, who are being classed as private citizens rather than royals by German police, arrived, they were met by hundreds of fans, with some waiting for more than two hours in the city’s main square for a glimpse of the duke and duchess, according to the DailyMail.
For the occasion, the duchess opted for a cream knitted turtleneck tank by Anine Bing, which she paired with matching wide-legged trousers and cream heels. Prince Harry opted for a simple gray suit, which he completed with a white button down shirt.
During the couple’s visit, Prince Harry and Meghan signed the “Golden” guestbook in Dusseldorf’s Town Hall, a book that that the Queen herself signed during a visit in the 1960s.
The couple also took the opportunity to engage with royal fans, with Meghan seen posing for selfies as she made her way up the red carpet. The duke and duchess were also photographed greeting a service dog named Loki during the One Year to Go event.
Following the visit to the city centre, the couple, who are in the UK for a series of charitable events which began with the One Young World Summit in Manchester, England, on Monday, took a cruise on the MS Rhein Galaxie, which ferried the pair along the Rhine to Duisburg and ended at the Merkur-Spiel sports stadium. There, the duke greeted the crowd in German, before delivering a few remarks in the language.
“Hello Dusseldorf. We, Meghan and I, are very happy to be here today,” Prince Harry said to cheers and applause from the crowd. The duke then mimicked wiping sweat off his forehead at his attempt, before joking: “That’s about where it stops as well” and continuing in English.
On social media, the duke’s attempts were met with praise from fans, with one person tweeting: “Very good Harry!” while another said: “Wow this is amazing!”
According to the DailyMail, despite classing the couple as private citizens during their visit, city officials rolled out the red carpet for the pair, while German police noted that they were only invovled in crowd control. The outlet also noted that German police said temporary roadblocks were set up along the couple’s route from the airport to the city centre.
However, the couple is reported to be paying for their security themselves, with the duke and duchess protected by their own security team during the visit.
