Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Kate Wears Green Emilia Wickstead For St. Patrick's Day

Duchess Kate visited Aldershot Barracks today to present shamrocks to forty members of the 1st Battalion Irish guards at their St Patrick's Day parade. 



It is a special day for the 30 year old marking her first solo military engagement.


Upon arrival Kate was presented with shamrock.


Queen Victoria formed the regiment in April 1900 as a sign of recognition of the brave acts carried out by Irish soldiers serving the British army. The tradition of presenting shamrocks goes back to the first regimental St Patrick's Day in 1901.  The Queen Mother presented shamrocks for years and the regiment supplied pallbearers for her funeral in 2002. Below we see The Queen Mother greeting the guards mascot, the Irish wolfhound.


Kate presenting a shamrock to the adorable mascot 'Conamel' Dog handler Oliver Vaughed said 'People say Conamel shake his collar, probably as a thank you. He has been our mascot for four years and always marches in front of the regiment.'


The Duchess smiled and petted the six year old dog.




The military band played the first few bars of God Save the Queen.




Last year Prince William was made an honorary colonel of the regiment and wore his Irish guards uniform to the royal wedding. St. James' Palace said today would mark the beginning of a long-standing relationship between Duchess Kate and the Irish guards.



You can watch a video of Kate arriving and presenting shamrocks here and in the barracks here.




The event was a little too overwhelming for one soldier who passed out during the parade. The papers reported it was a reaction to seeing Kate :) Perhaps not the legitimate reason but an amusing headline all the same.


After the presentation the Duchess toured the barracks. One soldier toasted 'Your Royal Highness. On behalf of the 1st Batallion Irish Guards we welcome you and wish you a Happy St. Patrick's Day. We also thank you for the shamrocks that you have presented to us.'




Kate enjoyed a glass of Harvey's Bristol Creme sherry in the Junior's mess at the barracks.



Duchess Kate met with two little girls who very excited to meet a real princess :)


Beautiful Kate was certainly a hit with soldiers. Captain Will Jenkins said 'We are honoured and very lucky to have the Duchess here to carry out a long-standing tradition . It has always been the history. It's our heritage to be presented with a shamrock.'



Kate and the regiment pose for the official photograph.




The full sized photo.




We had all hoped Kate would wear green to mark the occasion and she didn't disappoint. Wearing a dark green coat dress by New Zealand born designer Emilia Wickstead. We see Kate's coatdress below from the 2010/2011 collection. (With thanks to Rene) Yet again we see Kate choosing a full skirt and emulating the fashion of the 40's/50's. 




A look at the back of the beautiful coatdress.




Kate wore the Betty Boop hat by Lock and Co. It is available in an array of colours for £245. As you can see Kate opted for brown.




The Duchess wore her favourite Kiki McDonough green amethyst 18ct gold and diamond earrings. An ideal choice for the day. Below we look at the citrine version.





As expected Kate wore the shamrock brooch previously worn by the Queen Mother and Princess Anne during engagements with the regiment. Kate wore it last year for a military engagement.




Kate's brown suede shoes are yet to be ID'd. 




What did you think of Kate's look today?




Finally I was amused to see one Kate fan got a very special treat this morning! (With thanks to @Royal_Corgi)


                                                                      Joanna Milner Twitter




Lá Fhéile Pádraig Duchess Kate readers! :)


Source (Daily Mail, Daylife, BBC)

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