Portrait of Diana Removed From Church Ahead of Charles' Bermuda Visit — And It's Not the Only Change
At St. Peter's Church, the oldest Anglican church outside the UK, a photograph of Diana has been removed from its display case.
Bermuda is putting its best face forward for King Charles. The roadsides are being trimmed, the properties freshly painted, the ancient silver polished to a mirror shine. As a part of the preparations, two things have quietly disappeared from view, one of them a ghost the Palace would rather not confront. At St. Peter's Church, the oldest Anglican church outside the UK, a photograph has been removed from its display case. It showed Charles on his 1982 visit to the island, standing alongside a heavily pregnant Princess Diana.
Church leaders decided, without being asked, that the image might unsettle the King. Rev Thomas Nisbett explained the decision, talking to The Daily Mail, stated, "We removed it recently. The ladies of the church thought it would be more sensitive if that reminder of the past weren't there. And one doesn't argue with the ladies of the church."
In its place now sits a photograph from Charles's first visit to Bermuda in 1970, when he opened Parliament. The church's silver platter and chalice, presented by King William III and Queen Mary 329 years ago, have been buffed to perfection for the occasion. Charles, 77, touches down in Bermuda on Thursday for a three-day tour, arriving directly from his state visit to the United States, which begins tomorrow. Queen Camilla, who accompanies him throughout the American leg, will not be continuing to the island, instead flying home to Britain once the US visit concludes.
The second thing locals have been told to deal with is considerably more chaotic. Bermuda's feral chicken population, a fixture of island life since Hurricane Emily destroyed thousands of domestic coops in 1987, has become an unlikely security concern. Hunters have been dispatched to cull the birds before the King's arrival, with their nocturnal crowing deemed a potential disturbance to the royal sleep.
Mark Outerbridge, senior biodiversity officer for Bermuda's Department of Environment, was candid about the scale of the problem. "Feral chickens are all over the island. We trap, sedate, and euthanize the chickens. But even if we trap all of the feral chickens around Charles's residence in Bermuda, he's still likely to hear the crowing. There are so many, I'm not sure we'll ever be rid of them."
The preparations extend well beyond churches and chicken coops. Gardeners are working overtime along the King's route, painters are refreshing properties he will pass, and construction crews are racing to finish work at venues on his itinerary. In King's Square in St George's, workers have been clearing blocked drains ahead of royal speeches. "It's not like Charles will be inspecting our sewers," one worker admitted, "but it wouldn't be good if they overflowed when he's giving a speech."
Charles will also attend an exhibition on the slave trade — a subject on which he has previously expressed "personal sorrow" but stopped short of a formal apology. At St Peter's, at least, there is warmth waiting for him. Rev Nisbett says the King will be given space to reflect during his visit to the church. "He will be given the opportunity to pray, if he wishes. He is, after all, the Defender of the Faith."
