Hundreds of servicemen and women will march through the centre of Bristol next month - as the Royal Navy’s latest and largest warship is granted the Freedom of the City. Three hundred sailors and Royal Marines will parade through the city centre on Saturday, June 10, in recognition of the 50-year link between Bristol and HMS Prince of Wales.
The ship is a fifth-generation aircraft carrier and one of the most powerful surface warships ever built in the UK, with additional roles that includes disaster relief, humanitarian aid and diplomacy. HMS Prince of Wales weighs in at 65,000 tonnes with a crew of over 700. And with her flight deck that measures 280 metres long and 70 metres wide, she can accommodate 36 fighter jets and four Merlin helicopters.
The City and County of Bristol has been affiliated with the ship since 2016, an honour shared with Liverpool, and the relationship will last for 50 years. The link was re-affirmed in March this year, when the Freedom of the City was accepted by Captain Richard Hewitt OBE, on behalf of the Royal Navy and the ship’s company.
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The honour, when conferred on a military unit, grants them the privilege of marching through a city “with drums beating, colours flying, and bayonets fixed”. Since first being awarded in 1888, the Freedom of the City has been bestowed on 66 individuals and military unit and Bristol is the first UK city to award the honour to a fifth-generation carrier.
The ceremony on June 10 will get underway with the Lord Mayor of Bristol presenting a Freedom Scroll at a unique ceremony on College Green. Then, led by His Majesty’s Band of the Royal Marines from Commando Training Centre Royal Marines, 275 sailors will march through the city to exercise the freedom rights, before returning to College Green, where there will be a blessing in Bristol Cathedral.
Lord Mayor of Bristol, Councillor Paul Goggin, said: “It was an honour for Bristol to grant the Ship’s Company the Freedom of the City. I am delighted to celebrate the close bond Bristol has with the HMS Prince of Wales, and people across the city look forward to strengthening our ties with them. I look forward to welcoming them with open arms on 10 June.”
Captain Richard Hewitt OBE, Commanding Officer of HMS Prince of Wales said: “Being able to exercise the Freedom of the City of Bristol is a significant honour for us. Bristol has a great maritime heritage and I know our sailors are looking forward to being on parade through the City.”
“This will support the continued strong relationships between generations of Royal Navy sailors in HMS Prince of Wales and the City of Bristol over the next 50 years.”
Honorary Royal Navy Captain Peaches Golding OBE, Lord-Lieutenant of The County and City of Bristol, said: “This ceremony and the awarding of the Freedom of the City are potent symbols of the close ties that exist between Bristol and our nation’s armed forces.
“Bristol has a long and proud history of affiliation with our nation’s armed forces, a tradition that has seen eight previous units receive the Freedom of the City.” The full route and timings will be released in due course.
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