Plymouth welcomes the Duke of Cornwall

Plymouth welcomed His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales, to the Royal William Yard today (Tuesday 15 July).

The visit took place to mark the 100th anniversary of the joining together of the neighbouring towns of Plymouth, Devonport and East Stonehouse.

The ‘Three Towns’ as they are known, were formally merged in 1914 to become the Borough of Plymouth (granted city status by Royal Charter in 1928). The Prince of Wales got to see the recently improved Royal William Yard including the new access staircase, offices and restaurants.

Tom Bloxham, MBE, the Chairman and co-founder of Urban Splash, welcomed the Prince of Wales and led a tour of the Royal William Yard.  Urban Splash are a firm originally founded in Manchester and Liverpool which specialises in breathing new life into historic architecture and also building new offices, homes, bars, restaurants and hotels. The Prince of Wales then met the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Plymouth, Councillor Michael Fox and Councillor Mrs Rosemary Fox, Tracey Lee (Chief Executive of Plymouth City Council) and Oliver Colville MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport.

The Prince was treated to a performance by children from Plymouth School of Creative Arts about the coming together of the Three Towns.

Lord Mayor of Plymouth, Councillor Michael Fox, said: “The 100th anniversary of the coming together of the Three Towns is an important milestone for Plymouth and we were absolutely delighted to be able to welcome His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales here.

“The visit was a great opportunity to promote Plymouth and the fantastic work that goes on here. There is much to be proud of in this city and it is great to be able to showcase the historic Royal William Yard and its associated industry, as well as other important local landmarks.”