Approximately fifteen members of the Swedish Royal Court attended the luncheon, including Crown Princess Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel. Victoria and Daniel will be accompanying William and Kate on a series of engagements during their remaining time in Sweden. The two royal couples have much in common.Victoria is the heir apparent to the Swedish throne, she and her husband Daniel are a similar age to the Cambridges and parents to Estelle, 5, and Oscar who is two in March.
Since William and Kate got married, we've often discussed how interesting it would be to see them meeting the young Swedish royals. It's important for the couple, as the future King and Queen to build relationships with their royal counterparts. Communication Secretary Jason Knauf said "From our perspective, it's a chance for Their Royal Highnesses to build a strong relationship with the Royal families of each country, and particularly the Royals of their generation who they will know throughout their lives. Those close relationships between countries on a people-to-people level are something that Royal visits are particularly good at highlighting.”
Hannah Furness elaborated on this in her story for The Telegraph:
'As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge embark on their tour of Sweden and Norway this week, they will aim not just to perform their formal public duties, but finally forge personal relationships with some of their closest European counterparts. The visit will see them join a glamorous set of young European Royalty, meeting the generation they will grow up alongside until each eventually inherit the throne.
It will be the first official trip to either country for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and their first opportunity to spend time with their Royal counterparts. Although Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel were at their 2011 Westminster Abbey wedding among 1,900 guests, it is understood the Duke and Duchess do not know either well.
They are likely to bond over their families: the Swedish Royal couple have two young children, while the Norwegians have three. Each are widely photographed in their home countries, with glossy magazines around the world poring over glamorous photographs of the two princesses with much the same interest as those of the Duchess of Cambridge. Both Scandinavian women have enjoyed an extensive education. Victoria, 40, studied subjects including political science, conflict resolution and international peace-building at Yale, completed work programmes around the world, speaks four languages fluently and has completed basic military training.'
The Royal Palace of Stockholm is the official residence of the Swedish monarch.
The combination of royal residence, workplace and culture-historical monument open year round to visitors makes the Royal Palace of Stockholm unique amongst Europe's royal residences. The palace was built in baroque style by the architect Nicodemus Tessin and is formed as a Roman palace. It has more than 600 rooms divided between seven floors with a state apartment facing the city and smaller living rooms facing the inner courtyard. The palace contains many interesting things to see. In addition to the Royal Apartments there are three museums steeped in regal history: the Treasury with the regalia, the Tre Kronor Museum that portrays the palaces medieval history and Gustav III's Museum of Antiquities.
After lunch, Victoria and Daniel joined William and Kate for a walk through the picturesque cobbled streets of Stockholm from the Royal Palace to the Nobel Museum.
A video from KP.
The Duke and Duchess, accompanied by Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel, leave the Royal Palace of Stockholm for Stortorget Square #RoyalVisitSweden pic.twitter.com/yywsAW70X3— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) January 30, 2018
A great shot of Victoria and William - a future Queen and King.
The royals had an opportunity to meet members of the Swedish public in Stortorget, the oldest square in Stockholm, and a charming public space outside the Nobel Museum.
Crowds waited for hours to meet the royals.
The Duchess received a selection of flowers.
As did Princess Victoria.
It was a particularly exciting day for two of our readers who saw the royals and kindly shared photos.
Reader Luisa shared the following from the walkabout "We were a bit afraid that the royals wouldn‘t come over to our side anymore because they already spent so much time on the other side. But at the end all of them came over and she even shook my hand! I was so excited. She looks exactly like in the pictures and was very elegant and kind. A woman said she had a beautiful coat on and she said she found it difficult to find something to wear. She was very thankful to the woman next to me who gave her flowers. William shared a little joke with a small boy whose name is also William. They spent about thirty minutes meeting people before going inside."
Karolina was also there and shared her snap via email.
People reports:
'Karin Wahlgren, 75, from the suburb of Järfälla, handed William a special glove to wipe their dog Lupo’s paws with. “You hold the dog with one hand and use the glove on the other to wipe him,” she told PEOPLE. “He said, ‘The dog always comes in with dirty paws, so it will come in handy.’ Wahlgren was also awestruck by Kate, who she says “was more beautiful in reality than I imagined she’d be. She has a sort of radiance.”
Staci Cunningham, another member of the crowd, told PEOPLE that she chatted about the bitter Swedish cold with William and Kate. “We asked them if they were enjoying their visit,” she said. “They are. They were friendly and sweet. It was kind of them to take so much time in the cold.” Also among the crowd was math teacher Niklas Schild, 33, who told William that he’s planning to travel to Windsor to join the festivities surrounding Prince Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle on May 19. “William told me, ‘You’ll be very welcome — it will be a very happy day’,” said Niklas.
The couple also chatted to British 7-year-olds Tia Hart and Eva Rouse, who live in Stockholm. “Kate asked us if we like living here and what kind of things we like doing,” said Tia. “We said we like tobogganing and she said that her children would love that too.”
The foursome posed for photos before heading inside.
A closer look at the historic square.
A wave from the Duchess.
The royals met a number of Nobel Laureates, and heard more from the Museum's curator about Science in Sweden and the Nobel Laureate system. Princess Victoria wore a floral print dress and coat by Swedish designer Ida Sjostedt today
More from Richard Palmer:
'British Nobel Laureate Professor Duncan Haldane, a Princeton physicist, told the Duke of Cambridge today: “You don’t have to be a genius to get a Nobel Prize.” Professor Haldane made William laugh, telling him the secret of winning a Nobel Prize: “You have to be in the right place to see something strange. All the really interesting discoveries were made by accident.”
The Duke and Duchess leaving the museum.
William and Kate's next stop was ArkDes, Sweden’s national centre for architecture and design.
The couple attended an event celebrating architectural collaboration and the best of Swedish design, from the most iconic and global furniture brands, to up-and-coming homeware designers with new takes on sustainable furnishings.
William meeting guests.
William and Kate met representatives from IKEA. Founder Ingvar Kamprad died earlier this week. During a chat with head of design Marcus Engman they revealed, they have IKEA pieces for the children's rooms.
They also tried out chairs.
The Duchess wore a new bespoke Catherine Walker coat and dress. In our recent polls, you awarded the brand the title of 'Kate's Best Designer of 2017'. What do you think of Kate's Walker pieces today?
Kate's dress appears to be a customized version of the Bea dress. The luxurious double wool crêpe coatdress is tailored with a saddle shoulder, funnel neck, fitted sleeves and swirling skirt.
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| Catherine Walker |
Kate accessorised her coat with a faux fur collar and faux fur cuffs from Troy London. The brand was set up by Rosie Van Cutsem and her sister Lucia Ruck Keene. Rosie's husband William Van Cutsem is one of Prince William's oldest friends and godfather to Prince George.
Kate wore her Peruvian Connection Vallnord Alpaca Fur Hat. The Duchess last wore the hat on Christmas Day.
Kate carried a gorgeous new Mulberry handbag. Middleton Maven noted it is their Mini Seaton style. It's available at House of Fraser. A larger version of the bag is in stock on the Mulberry website.
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| Mulberry |
It is described as:
"It is described as The Mini Seaton's sleek lines and streamlined silhouette are sized down from the regular style, ideal for a day-evening bag or to pack away for a trip. Featuring equestrian-inspired detailing such as raw-edged construction and the signature Rider's Lock, the Mini Seaton can be worn on its adjustable shoulder strap or carried by its neat top handle.
A closer look at Kate's bag.
Kate accessorised with her Kiki McDonough Special Edition Green Tourmaline, Green Amethyst and Diamond Earrings. They were specially made to celebrate the birth of Princess Charlotte.
And for her choice of footwear, Kate chose her Tod's Suede Pumps and briefly changed into her Russell & Bromley Half N Half boots for the walk.
This evening, The Duke and Duchess will attend a black tie dinner at the Residence of the British Ambassador, attended by members of the Swedish Royal Family, and representatives from government, and popular culture.
Kate accessorised with her Kiki McDonough Special Edition Green Tourmaline, Green Amethyst and Diamond Earrings. They were specially made to celebrate the birth of Princess Charlotte.
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| Kiki McDonough |
And for her choice of footwear, Kate chose her Tod's Suede Pumps and briefly changed into her Russell & Bromley Half N Half boots for the walk.
This evening, The Duke and Duchess will attend a black tie dinner at the Residence of the British Ambassador, attended by members of the Swedish Royal Family, and representatives from government, and popular culture.
