Freedom of the City for HMS Prince of Wales

Last summer, the County and City of Bristol awarded Freedom of the City to HMS Prince of Wales, the largest warship in the Royal Navy.

300 sailors from HMS Prince of Wales assembled in Bristol Cathedral Choir School and on College Square, with a Royal Marine band leading the march from College Green down Deanery Road, along Anchor Rd and counterclockwise around the centre, returning to College Green.

A jubilant service of Thanksgiving then took place in Bristol Cathedral. Captain Hewitt read Psalm 107 including the unforgettable words: “Those who go down to the sea and ply their trade in great waters”.

The Choristers of Bristol Cathedral have a strong connection with HMS Prince of Wales since singing at its commissioning in Portsmouth in 2019 in the presence of the then Prince of Wales and Princess of Wales. The date of the commissioning was 78 years to the day since the battleship’s predecessor, the 35,000-ton King George V class battleship HMS Prince of Wales, was lost in action during World War 2 in the South China Sea.

After the Thanksgiving service families of sailors from HMS Prince of Wales joined the crew in City Hall for an afternoon tea party.

Members of the Fitzhardinge Society joined members of the public to witness this marvellous occasion centred around Bristol Cathedral.