The Duchess of Edinburgh lands in Bangladesh just a day after joining the royal family for Remembrance Sunday
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, is in Bangladesh until 11 November
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Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, kicked off her official visit to Bangladesh on Monday, just a day after she joined the royal family to mark Remembrance Sunday at The Cenotaph. The 61-year-old is in the country from 9 to 11 November to champion the ties between Britain and Bangladesh and to see the support being provided to the Rohingya community.
On the first day of her visit, the Duchess touched down at the Crowne Plaza Dhaka Airport, where she was met by Dr Zubaida Rahman, the spouse of the Bangladeshi President. Sophie is set to share a discussion with the pair on their ‘shared interests in the welfare, protection and empowerment of women and girls,’ says Buckingham Palace.
The royal mother-of-two then toured the Bangladesh Institute of Peace Support Operation Training in Gazipur, meeting with female United Nations peacekeepers to learn more about their experiences of deployment. The role of women in peace and security has long been a concern of Sophie’s, who has advocated for women’s rights from Ukraine to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Sophie wore a trumpet-sleeved green top from Theory with a pair of cream trousers and Penelope Chilvers espadrilles, completing her look with Sting sunglasses, earrings from Mara Moon and her Tilly Sveaas T-Bar necklace, as well as her Apsrey London oak leaf bracelet.
Visiting the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan, the Duchess of Edinburgh will meet with local hockey players to learn more about the role that sport can play in opening up opportunities for women and girls. Sophie is a keen hockey fan, serving as Patron for English Hockey since 2006. She fondly recalled dashing away from dinner with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at Balmoral to watch Team GB win gold in Women’s Hockey.
Upon landing in Dhaka, the Duchess of Edinburgh met Dr Zubaida Rahman, First Spouse and senior vice-president of the Surovi School
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The Duchess is in Bangladesh to advocate for women’s equality and to learn more about the role of women in peacekeeping
Jane Barlow – PA Images/Getty Images
Later in the trip, Sophie is set to visit Cox’s Bazar, where she will see the work of organisations endeavouring to support Rohingya refugees. She will hear of the protection services on offer for women, girls and families who have been affected by displacement, especially with regard to strengthening resilience and leadership among refugee communities.
It has been a busy few days for the Duchess of Edinburgh. Over the weekend, she joined the wider royal family to pay tribute to the fallen as the nation marked Remembrance Sunday. Watching the service at The Cenotaph from the balcony of the Foreign Office, stood side-by-side with the Duke of Kent, Sophie paired her Armani wool coat with a Jane Taylor hat and a personal pair of diamond and pearl drop earrings for the solemn occasion. She completed her ensemble with a brooch representing the Royal Irish
The day before kicking off her official visit, Sophie joined the Duke of Kent for the Remembrance Sunday service at The Cenotaph
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On Saturday, Sophie joined the royal family at the Royal Albert Hall for the Festival of Remembrance
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That Saturday, the Duchess joined King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince Edward, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester at the Royal Albert Hall for the Festival of Remembrance. Sophie wore Alaïa for the celebration, accessorising with G. Collins & Sons platinum earrings and a leaf-inspired choker from one of her favourite jewellers, Giulia Barela, her Chopard happy diamonds bracelet, and her treasured Apsrey London oak leaf bracelet. As for her brooch, Sophie opted for a poppy, paying tribute to the Special Operations Executive – women who worked as organisers in Nazi-occupied Europe during the Second World War.
While the Duchess was busy marking Remembrance Sunday, she was also celebrating a special family occasion, as her daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, turned 23. The young royal is about to kick off her gap year in earnest, having completed her studies at St Andrews University this summer. Having worked at the Royal Windsor Horse Show and Balmoral this year, it seems Lady Louise has inherited her mother’s work ethic.
