THE King and Queen are to pay a visit to a tapestry telling the story of Scotland – where a new panel has been stitched dedicated to the couple.
The addition has been made to the Great Tapestry of Scotland, which already has a number of “intricately detailed panels” telling Scotland’s royal history.
With the King and Queen to visit the centre where it is housed next week as part of royal week in Scotland, the new panel is to be revealed to them and the public.
Their visit is part of the celebrations for the 10th anniversary of the unveiling of the tapestry, housed in a purpose-built centre in Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, which tells the story of 420 million years of Scottish history, heritage, innovations and culture through its 160 panels.
The visit to the Great Tapestry of Scotland is one of a series of engagements planned for royal week, which this year will see the new King and Queen, accompanied by the Princess and Princess of Wales – known in Scotland as the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay – presented with the Honours of Scotland at a national service of thanksgiving at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.
The King is also due to tour the Royal Yacht Britannia in Edinburgh to mark 25 years since the ship arrived in the city, while the couple will be joined by the Princess Royal in hosting a garden party in the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
Anti-monarchy groups are planning demonstrations for the week-long visit to Scotland.
The tapestry already includes key moments in royal history, with the stories of King Macbeth, Mary Queen of Scots and her son James VI of Scotland and I of England, all featuring in the tapestry – which also pays tribute to Queen Victoria and her love of Scotland, and to the late Queen Elizabeth's coronation.
Sandy Maxwell-Forbes, centre director at the Great Tapestry of Scotland, said that a new panel that had been stitched was “dedicated to our recently-crowned King and Queen”.
Speaking ahead of the visit on Thursday July 6, Maxwell-Forbes said: “It is the greatest honour to be welcoming the King and Queen to the Great Tapestry of Scotland in Galashiels.”
She added: “This marks a significant moment in the tapestry’s extraordinary success story and, as the home of the people’s story of Scotland, we wanted to commemorate this by revealing a new tapestry panel dedicated to our recently-crowned King and Queen.
“This will build on the tapestry’s intricately detailed panels already dedicated to telling Scotland’s royal history.”
Republic has confirmed it will be staging a demonstration on the day outside the cathedral in an act of defiance following the arrest a group of its members at the coronation in London last month.
The Metropolitan Police subsequently released the group and said its actions were regrettable.
A “good turnout" is expected for the event, the group has said.
