King Charles, Queen Camilla and Prince William will make a rare joint public appearance in Aberfan, Wales, next week to mark the 60th anniversary of the mining disaster that killed 144 people, including 116 children.
The royals will visit the village near Merthyr Tydfil on Wednesday, October 21, to join survivors, bereaved parents and members of the community in paying tribute to those who died when a spoil tip slid down a mountain, engulfing Pantglas School and surrounding houses.
Royal history with Aberfan
The late Queen Elizabeth II faced criticism in October 1966 when she did not visit the village until eight days after the disaster. Seeing the devastation first hand started a lifelong link between the monarch and the community, and she visited again in 1973, 1997 and 2012.
This will be Charles and Camilla's second visit to Wales in a week, with the couple also due in Cardiff on Thursday for the official opening of the seventh Senedd.
Commemorations and tributes
The royals are set to spend time in the Aberfan Memorial Garden, which stands on the site of Pantglas School, where a short prayer and a moment of silence will be held. The King and Prince William will lay wreaths, and Queen Camilla will place a posy in memory of those lost.
Queen Elizabeth II previously recalled being handed a posy from a young girl with an inscription reading: "From the remaining children of Aberfan" on her first visit. In a message to an event marking the 50th anniversary in 2016, she described it as "heart-breaking".
Community events and memorial tree
The royals will then attend Aberfan & Merthyr Vale Community Centre, meeting local residents along the route. There they will meet retired members of the emergency services who helped after the coal tip collapsed, including a 96-year-old woman who was a police officer at the time.
They will view an exhibition showing the scale of the rescue effort and meet representatives from the police, fire service, St John Ambulance, the British Red Cross and other first responders. They will also spend time with survivors, bereaved parents, former pupils, siblings of those who died and members of the Aberfan Wives, a support group for mothers who lost children.
There will be a performance from the village's Ynysowen Male Voice Choir, and during the reception, survivors and family members will share personal reflections, including Jeff Edwards, who survived as an eight-year-old pupil.
Prince William will finish the visit at Ynysowen Community Primary School, where he will unveil the Aberfan Memorial Tree, a new sculpture created to commemorate the 60th anniversary.
